The full moon above them softly illuminated the woods.
The two thugs stiffly walked in front. The hand holding the torch occasionally trembled.
"Hurry it up."
Cyril and Myra walked behind, their eyes sharply staring at their backs.
"Yes, sirs!"
The butterfly menacingly fluttered her wings in the air, flying in between the thugs.
"Morpho, stay away, it's not a game."
"Did you see two kids recently? A brother and sister about 13 years old."
"...Can't say we did. S-sorry."
Myra bit her lip, not asking any more.
Passing a certain point, Cyril felt a wave go through his body.
Suddenly, in the distance, a palisade became visible, its gates tightly shut.
To the left of the gate was a wooden lookout tower. A bored man in rugged clothes stood there holding a bow inlaid with crystal.
What just happened?
Cyril looked over the camp, finding it quite conspicuous among the woods, yet he didn't see it until only a short distance away.
"Illusion magic." Myra whispered, on her face a frown.
"Oh? Illusions..."
Let's think about this later.
Cyril shook his head as their group arrived right near the gates.
Upon noticing them, the lookout leaned over the railing with widened eyes.
"Ron! Rex! Not as useless as we thought, eh? We were just lacking two people for our quota!"
Ron and Rex in front had weapons, leading two young people, with one of them looking anxious.
Myra worriedly eyed the encampment, her face somewhat pale.
Why not use this...
"This should be fun."
"Act as if you've captured us," Cyril whispered to the two.
Rex and Ron stiffened and robotically moved forward, their backs wet from sweat.
"Ye-Yeah! Open up the gates!"
The lookout nodded and motioned somewhere to his side.
Slowly the wooden gates of the camp opened up, while the group stared at it without moving.
It worked.
He recovered and lightly pushed the thug in front.
They entered the camp itself, passing a few tents, outhouses, and put-out campfires.
The majority of the people were sleeping, and only 5 tired thugs were awake to leer at the students coming through.
They wore weathered leather armor, their weapons inlaid with crystal.
"Not even a single demon so far. Do these wastes even know who they are working for?"
Don't think so.
Soon they reached a box-shaped stone building standing lonely in the middle of the camp.
In front of it sat a thug with slightly better chainmail on his body, his eyes sharply scanning the two.
"...This guy doesn't look like a villager."
The thug frowned, placing his hand over his sword.
"What are you doing here?"
Cyril ignored him, instead looking around.
Should I pretend to be a prisoner and give myself up...
The 5 people awake in the middle of the night all started walking closer, surrounding them. Their gazes were tired, their movements clearly untrained.
No.
With this little mana in the air, everyone would be conservative in their spells. I should have the advantage with my physical strength.
It's enough for some thugs.
"What's wrong with you? Cat got your tongue?" The thug grabbed the sword, his stance becoming more wary.
Still ignoring him, Cyril looked towards Myra.
Not to mention there are two of us, that's more than enough.
"You alone are an overkill to these wastes."
He slowly nodded, to which a spark lit up inside Myra's eyes. She quickly cast a spell, their surroundings becoming suddenly quieter.
"You arro-" The man's voice disappeared midway through as he began pulling his sword.
Cyril shot forward, punching him in the stomach before he could react.
The man flew into the wall of the stone building, sliding to the ground as his eyes rolled over.
Immediately Cyril turned around and dashed towards the others.
Myra, already near one of them, struck as her body briefly shined blue, knocking one out.
The thugs were startled, staring blankly for a moment.
The action was too sudden, be it Myra or Cyril, their speed was beyond them.
"Ala- !"
A bolt of green energy from Myra hit the thug on the lookout tower before he could scream.
Just as his body was dropping to the ground, Cyril reached a thug nearby and grabbed him by the neck.
Then he kicked the man in the stomach before throwing the body towards the rest.
Myra dashed to them as they fell and swiftly struck them, knocking them unconscious.
Their cries of pain were bizarrely lost in the quietness of the night.
With that, Cyril looked around.
Only Rex and Ron remained trembling on the ground, their hands covering their heads.
No one came out from the tents, the other thugs blissfully asleep.
He breathed a sigh of relief, then gave Myra a nod.
She cast a spell, and the noise of their surroundings returned.
"Just some bandits..." She mumbled with a frown before pulling out a blue vial from her pocket.
Gulping it down, her face regained a bit of its color, and she shot the stone building nearby a look.
Cyril walked up to it and forcefully opened its door.
It revealed a stone stairway heading underground, at the end of which was another door.
Morpho landed back on his shoulder, twitching her antennae with a sense of adventure.
Cyril contemplated for a moment before glancing at Rex and Ron.
"Have you been inside?"
"Only once, in the first room!"
"Please, let us go, heroes! With your strength you don't need us!"
Not this time.
"Move."
Under his cold eyes the two had no choice but to start shakily descending the stairs.
Cyril and Myra cautiously followed after.
...
Behind the door was a cramped but clean stone room with a single table in the middle. The area was illuminated by a lonely magic lamp on the ceiling.
As Cyril stepped into the room, the lights dimmed.
"Hmm? What's with the lighting?"
The man in the white coat by the table turned his head.
"Oh! You are just in time! Good job."
He excitedly approached the group and paused once he got close.
"You didn't bind them...?"
The man's expression quickly changed, but it was too late.
Cyril suddenly hit him on the stomach, and the mage dropped limp to the ground.
"...Can we go now? We aren't useful at all, really!"
Rex cautiously asked, glancing at the body on the floor.
Indeed...
Cyril gave Myra, behind the two of them, a look. She suddenly grabbed their heads and smashed them together.
Two more bodies were now lying on the floor.
"Scum." Myra mumbled before taking a deep breath to calm down.
Cyril observed her and turned towards the butterfly on his shoulder.
"Lead us."
Under her guidance they've moved through the stone corridor.
On the way a few people came out, but before they could do anything, they were taken out by Myra.
Her movements became faster with each new body on the ground, her eyes barely hiding their anxiety.
Finally they've entered through a door, reaching a cramped room with a few cells placed in a row.
"Pete, Jessie!" Myra exclaimed, her face brightening up significantly.
"Who-"
The guard was immediately knocked out by Myra's punch, who then dashed towards the nearest cell.
"Myra!?"
Two children sat there huddled together. The moment they noticed a familiar face, they ran to the door, tears streaming down their cheeks.
"Hold on, I'll get you out."
Myra hastily fiddled with the locked cage.
"I am honestly surprised they are alive."
Cyril gave them a long look before an annoying voice rang out from a neighboring cell.
"Hey! ...Long time no see!"
With a frown on his face, Cyril snapped his head in that direction.
In that cell were two people, one of them a somewhat handsome man with black hair and eyes.
He wore a business suit. On his face was a friendly smile, and his hands had a bulky spherical shackle completely obstructing their movement.
Tony... or Jack rather.
Cyril walked closer, looking down at the thief from the train.
"You did as you promised. I did not expect you."
"Hahaha!" Rhamn pointed her finger at the prisoner, laughing without holding back.
The thief's smile twitched for a moment before he recovered.
"Yes, yes, I am a man of my word."
He raised his shackled arms.
"Listen, how about you help me out a little? You came here to enact justice, yes? I can help in return!"
Cyril's cold blue eyes observed him, the man's smile slowly turning stiff.
I am a bit curious what he is doing here…
"Just let him rot!"
A bead of sweat rolled down Jack's forehead as he stared into Cyril's blue eyes.
"Listen, please. From the moment I first saw you, I knew you were a man among men. You wouldn't abandon a small petty thief like me, right?"
Cyril's expression remained unchanged.
Jack chuckled nervously before realization colored his face.
"A knight like you wouldn't abandon a woman in need, right?"
He stepped aside, revealing the sight of a prisoner sharing his cell.
A woman sat there in a lotus position. She wore a multilayered loose robe with wide sleeves and an intricate flower embroidered on it.
Her face had an elegant beauty, with thin lips and almond-shaped eyes.
"Doesn't she look like some important noble? A beauty like her would surely admire a knight."
Despite Jack's annoying voice, the woman with the long, flowing black hair did not react in any way, keeping her face empty.
"Who the hell is that?" Rhamn vigilantly narrowed her red eyes.
She looks unusual.
Just as he was observing her, Myra walked closer to him, two kids hiding behind her.
"Tony, is that you?"
"Do you know anything about this place? It doesn't look like a typical slaver's lair."
"I've heard a few things." Jack lowered his head with a mysterious expression.
"I'll tell you, as a sign of good faith!"
He walked right in front of the bars and whispered.
"The mages here talked about combining man and demon!"
"..."
"What!?" Myra exclaimed, "But I never knew anything about this!"
Jack squinted his eyes, giving Myra a look filled with pity.
"Are you some kind of omniscient being, girl? Is you not knowing a big deal?"
The corner of her mouth twitched as she looked away.
"I know it's weird, but it's not that shocking, is it? Some mages are crazy people who put progress before conscience..."
Jack shrugged, "Maybe most of them."
Cyril glanced at the woman still sitting on the floor, then back at Jack.
"What about your friend? Where is he?"
"I told him to go get help. He is probably reporting this to the city guards as we speak."
Myra tilted her head with confusion.
"But you are a thief."
Jack pursed his lips and weakly leaned on the iron bars.
"Yes, so I can't call the guards now? Why should I deal with this? You are not the sharpest tool in the shed, girl."
The corner of Myra's eye twitched, and her gaze looking at Jack was now a bit less friendly.
Ignoring this, Jack threw his head back and sighed.
"I never expected this. Where did Viper land himself in?"
"Who's Viper?"
Cyril glared at him, putting a hand on the bar.
Jack turned his head at him, then smirked.
"I'll tell you, just free me."
He frowned and took a step closer, now right in front of the cell door.
Just as Cyril was about to open his mouth, he noticed something.
The woman sitting at the back now had her eyes open. They were golden, full of boundless serenity.
She calmly gazed at his cold blue eyes without flinching.
Cyril tensed up and stepped away from the cell.
"What's wrong?"
Jack frowned and turned to look behind him.
The woman smoothly stood tall, her posture perfectly straight, her hands behind her back.
"The hell!? She is alive..."
He jumped back, hugging the iron bars.
Ignoring everyone else, the woman's golden eyes were locked on Cyril as she made a few steps forward.
"You have fitting eyes." Her voice was quiet, yet it rang clearly in everyone's ears.
It had a certain calming quality to it, like listening to a running stream at night.
Fitting?
"Eyes again?"
"Who are you?" Myra assumed a combat stance. The kids behind her were quiet, their faces turning calm.
The butterfly on Cyril's shoulder fluttered her wings but stopped midway, her antennae twitching in confused serenity.
Cyril's frown deepened as he cautiously observed his surroundings.
"Don't tell me she is an archdemon... She has no horns, but neither does Ophelia."
The woman stood in front of the cell door, uninterrupted silence around.
She took a light breath and waved her arm from behind her back.
Her palm approached the door with the speed of a gentle breeze, easy to follow even for the kids behind Myra.
The moment she touched the door's iron surface, the hinges holding it shattered, and it dropped to the floor with a bang.
A deeper silence now settled.
After a delay, the dim lights above them changed to red, breaking the serene atmosphere.
I didn't see her cast a spell...
Without any words, Cyril raised his arms.
Unperturbed by this, the woman stepped closer, opening her thin lips.
"My name is Selene. Become my disciple."
...What?