The gate loomed ahead, its iron teeth yawning open to the road beyond.
Solved's eyes, however, weren't on the horizon—they locked on the knight leaning lazy against his spear.
The same man. The one who had taken Henrik's silver and let Elera vanish to be snuggled.
The man didn't even flinch as they approached. Just a bored glance, the smirk of someone who thought the world too small for consequences.
Solved slowed his horse. Andrew gave him a look. "Problem?"
"Opportunity," Solved murmured, dismounting.
He walked past the guard, casual as a traveler checking straps.
But in a single glance—hand fidgeting near his purse, lips tightening at Henrik's name etched faintly on his coin—he had him.
Solved's tone was soft when he spoke, but every word hooked under the knight's skin.
"Henrik Millwright," Solved said, like it was just conversation. "Poor man lost a daughter. Shame the guards didn't see a thing. I wonder… if the Captain heard of bribes at his gate?"
The knight stiffened. His eyes darted left-right.
"I—I don't know what you—"
"Relax," Solved cut him off, stepping closer, voice low. "I don't need you punished. I need you useful." His hand brushed the knight's spear—not threatening, but deliberate.
"Tonight, the patrol leaves the west road unmanned. And you, loyal servant, will volunteer for double duty there. Loudly. Publicly. Make yourself seen. Spread word that the Millwright girl's case has your personal attention."
The knight swallowed, jaw tight. Solved didn't raise his voice, didn't posture.
He simply left the words to coil around the man's conscience—and reputation.
If the knight refused, suspicion would fall on him. If he obeyed, he became Solved's pawn.
Andrew blinked as Solved swung back onto his horse. "You never cease to surprise me."
"Guess am not a one trick pony," Solved , eyes on the road.
The knight was already moving, barking to a fellow soldier about taking the west road patrol. His voice too loud, too eager.
Andrew chuckled under his breath. "Strange and dangerous."
Solved only smiled.
---
[ STRATEGIC MOVE LOGGED ]
Manipulation Check: Success
→ Guard Assigned to West Road Patrol
→ Rumors Begin Spreading: "The Millwright case matters."
→ Local Reputation +2
---
Dust rose as hooves thundered across the barren plain, each strike upon the earth like a war drum heralding their grim purpose.
Two riders pressed forward—Solved, stiff in the saddle, and Andrew, whose movements flowed as naturally as the wind tugging at his cloak. Their path led to Campoff, and with it, danger.
"You're not bad for a first-time rider," Andrew said, a quick glance betraying the ghost of a smile before his eyes returned to the horizon.
"Guilty as charged," Solved muttered, tightening his grip on the reins as the horse surged beneath him.
After a stretch of silence broken only by the rhythm of hooves, Solved asked, "What's our plan when we reach Campoff?"
He turned, studying Andrew for a moment. "Tell me—how sharp is your blade?"
"Years of mastery," Andrew answered without hesitation. His jaw was firm. "Good enough to end a fight before it starts."
"Perfect." Solved's lips curved in the faintest smile. "Here's how we play it: you wield steel, I wield thought. My mind, your blade—we cover each other's blind spots. That way, we don't just fight—we win."
Andrew's gaze lingered on him, as if weighing the truth of those words. At last, he nodded, a rare warmth breaking through his sternness. "You might be a stranger, but I'm assured of one thing—you'll do exactly what you say."
---
As they crested the hill, Solved's eyes narrowed. From the horizon, a black column of smoke clawed at the sky like a warning flare.
"We're running out of time," he muttered.
The System chimed coldly in his mind:
[ 01:30:12 Left ]
"An hour," Solved thought grimly. "Not enough."
"They're loading up," Andrew said, spurring his horse forward. "We need to hurry."
Solved felt sweat bead along his temple. Back in Tokyo, time had bent to his deductions. Here, speed was the enemy, not the puzzle.
"Any shorter routes?" he barked.
Andrew's gaze flicked left—toward a canyon splitting the plain like an open wound. "There's one. Dangerous. Bandits, rockfalls… worse."
Solved studied the jagged cliffs. Bleached bones jutted from the dust at its mouth, and a murder of crows wheeled overhead, screaming as if mocking their choice.
"Can't kill myself," Solved muttered, "but guilt'll eat me alive if I fail. Show me the way."
Andrew's lips curled into a sharp grin. "Then hold on."
He wheeled his horse toward the canyon. The path swallowed them, shadows closing in as if the earth itself meant to test their resolve.
Bones and shattered wagons littered the canyon floor, mute testimony to travelers who'd chosen this path before them. The stench of rust and decay clung to the air, but Solved barely flinched—Tokyo's crime scenes had been far worse.
Yet something was off.
Shadows shifted where they shouldn't. Behind the splintered hull of a cart, a glint of steel. Solved's eyes narrowed, counting quickly. Five below… three above the ridge. Crossbows. Blades. Classic chokehold.
"Turn back," Solved snapped, yanking the reins. His horse reared, hooves striking dust.
Andrew halted beside him, jaw tight. "We don't have time."
The System pulsed in Solved's vision:
[ 00:56:23 Left ]
"Damn it…" Solved muttered. "We just have to—"
The canyon roared. Stones cascaded like thunder behind them, sealing the way out.
From the wrecks, the bandits emerged—five shadows draped in black cloth, faces hidden, eyes burning with greed. Four crossbows aimed high from the cliff, while Five closed in below, blades catching the meager light.
One of them grinned, jagged teeth flashing. "No escape…"
Perfect timing. Because what this rescue mission really needed was a detour through amateur hour.
Solved's gaze flicked, fast as lightning—measuring distances, angles, weapons. He wasn't thinking fight. He was thinking how to break their formation before Andrew swings his sword.