Chapter 57

Chapter 57

“Students are in danger… you said?”

“Yes, that’s right. And if you’re feeling better now, could you please get off me?”

“Hmm? Ah… sorry.”

Lisa quickly got off me, and I immediately stood up.

Then, I turned my gaze again toward the direction where the rebel forces had appeared earlier.

‘It’s begun in earnest.’

A few of the students who had been in the street just moments ago had vanished.

And inside the alley, I spotted a man wearing a green mask quietly slipping in.

They had carried out a kidnapping in that fleeting instant.

‘Abductions happened simultaneously in two places, and there must have been a third spot I couldn’t see where it’s already over.’

Originally, I’d planned to handle this alone.

But right now, Lisa—who had returned to her senses—was beside me.

If I could get her help…

‘…Good.’

I quickly ran the calculations in my head.

With Lisa’s support, I could move much more boldly.

If things went well, I might be able to prevent all three students from being kidnapped.

“Lady Lisa.”

“Why?”

“Can you trust me? Trust me and lend me your strength?”

“…Why are you asking that?”

“Pardon?”

“Why ask something so obvious?”

Lisa spoke in a calm, expressionless tone.

It was so very like her.

I couldn’t help but smile faintly at that.

“Then, please follow me.”

With those words, we began to move swiftly.

But as I glanced at Lisa, a thought resurfaced.

The words she’d said earlier—asking me to become her husband.

Honestly, it still lingered in my mind, and I wanted to ask her again about it.

But I forced that thought aside for now.

Because what mattered at this moment was not the present—but the future.

---

“Well done, everyone. You’ve done very well.”

In the dark alleys of Skedum—

A group of men in green masks were dragging along three students.

The students were unconscious, their limp bodies being pulled along the ground.

“We don’t need the two girls. Toss them somewhere deeper in the alley. The important one is this boy.”

The man who appeared to be the leader gave his order.

Following his command, the masked men roughly threw the female students into the alley.

The leader then approached the male student and took out a small gem from his pocket.

The gem emitted a faint light near the boy.

“This is the one. One of the bloodlines capable of awakening the Great Falcon.”

The leader nodded with satisfaction.

“Comrades of Rhaineus. We’ve finally reached the final stage. Just endure a little longer. Soon, the Great Falcon will awaken and return to us everything that should have been ours.”

At his words, the green-masked group neither spoke nor showed any reaction.

They simply nodded, their eyes filled with unwavering conviction.

‘The others must be doing well too.’

The leader glanced toward the outer part of the alley.

He was the leader of Team 1 from the organization called Rhaineus, which sought to resurrect the Great Falcon.

Together with the leaders of Teams 2 and 3, he had come to Skedum several weeks ago to carry out this mission.

‘For the resurrection, a sacrifice of pure blood is needed. Among the students of Lysquare Academy, there should be one with that bloodline. Kidnap about three of them.’

Each team leader had gathered their members and devised a plan for the abductions.

And so far, everything had gone smoothly.

They had succeeded in kidnapping the students without attracting the attention of Skedum’s merchants.

All that remained was to quietly leave the city.

“We’ll move through the alleys to the designated spot. Once there, we’ll regroup and take the carriage out of the city.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Take care of the boy. Let’s move.”

“Quickly. Before the Academy realizes the students are missing, we need to be gone.”

“Yes, sir.”

The leader’s subordinates began to move, carrying the unconscious male student.

Watching them, the leader smiled faintly.

‘We’re almost there. Once we resurrect the Great Falcon and bring it under our control, toppling the Empire will be only a matter of time.’

For decades, Rhaineus, the rebel faction, had lived like rats—hiding from the Empire’s watchful eyes.

Now that their final stepping stone to take flight was in place, the long-enduring leader of Team 1 couldn’t help but smile—

Bang—!

“Arghhh?!”

While they were moving quietly, a deafening crash echoed from behind.

When the leader turned around, a red-haired girl was slamming a greatsword into the ground.

“What the—?!”

“S-Stop her!”

Team 1’s members drew their weapons, but before they could respond, the greatsword swung again—sending them flying backward.

‘Red hair, a greatsword… and an Academy uniform… Don’t tell me she’s from the House Balmuth—?!’

The leader quickly came to a conclusion.

“Run! Just take the boy! If we get caught here, our entire plan will—huh?”

Suddenly, he sensed movement to his side.

Instinctively, he drew his sword—

Clang—!

A man appeared out of nowhere, striking at him.

It was a white-haired man wielding a peculiar sword.

“Surrender.”

The white-haired man swung his sword again.

The leader tried to block it—

Slash—!

“…Aargh!!”

—but failed.

Though the strike had been aimed at his torso, the blade suddenly shifted mid-swing and sliced into his leg instead.

“Urgh…”

The leader was startled by the unfamiliar swordsmanship.

It was a technique that dazzled the opponent—deceptive, fluid, and impossible to predict.

‘A frontal fight won’t work.’

He quickly decided to change tactics.

He turned and bolted toward the unconscious girls lying in the alley.

He intended to take them hostage.

It would complicate things, but survival came first.

“…Heh.”

Seeing the man suddenly turn and run, Gideon couldn’t help but laugh under his breath.

It was such an obvious move—the kind of cliché tactic he’d seen countless times in the game.

Gideon dashed forward, heading for the unconscious female students.

The leader, with his leg wounded by Gideon’s blade, was naturally slower.

“Out of my way!”

But when Gideon reached the girls first and stood protectively before them, the leader swung his sword at him.

Even with his injured leg, the man was a seasoned fighter—someone who had battled for years for the organization.

He knew he couldn’t win against the Balmuth heiress, but a single male Academy student? He was confident he could cut him down instantly.

Or so he thought.

Clang! Clang!

Cha-cha-cha-chang!

But Gideon blocked every strike, forcing the man to change his mind.

‘There’s no opening…’

Gideon parried every blow—a swordsmanship honed by decades of experience—without leaving a single gap.

That too, without the slightest bit of effort.

Because of that, the leader began to feel an increasing sense of unease.

He needed to take the unconscious girls that Gideon was guarding as hostages and escape this place immediately.

If he delayed any longer, the Balmuth lady would—

“It’s already too late.”

As though reading his mind, Gideon gave a small chuckle and spoke quietly.

And at that very instant, the leader felt an overwhelming killing intent.

When he turned his head, he saw a massive greatsword flying toward his face.

He quickly raised his sword to block the blow, but—

Boom—!

Even though he managed to block it, the sheer force sent him flying backward into the alley wall.

The man couldn’t even scream before he slumped to the ground, unconscious.

“You did well, Lady Lisa.”

Gideon sheathed his sword and looked around.

While he had been fighting the leader of Team 1, Lisa had already defeated the rest of the small fry.

On top of that, the commotion had drawn the attention of nearby townsfolk, and people were starting to gather.

‘Just as planned.’

Gideon nodded slightly.

Now that civilians had noticed, the rebels wouldn’t be able to slip out of this city easily.

“Lady Lisa, please take care of the unconscious students and keep watch on these green-masked men so they can’t escape.”

“Understood. What about you?”

“I still have something left to do.”

With that, Gideon quickly slipped out of the alley.

---

“Move! I said move! Hand over that girl!”

“And why exactly should I do that?”

The woman in a green mask swung her axe, but I easily blocked or dodged every strike.

This woman—Rhaineus’s Team 2 leader—was beginning to show signs of frustration as the exchange dragged on.

“Everyone! Attack together! Just kill him!”

At her shout, the rest of Team 2 drew their weapons and charged at me.

But it didn’t make much difference.

Clang—! Clang—!

Cha-cha-cha-chang—!

I might’ve been studying other sword styles recently, but at my core, I was a swordsman who had mastered defensive swordsmanship.

When it came to protecting someone, there were few in the entire Empire who could surpass me.

“Ugh… What’s going on…?”

“Please stay still.”

The girl who had been lying unconscious behind me—the one Team 2 had tried to kidnap—slowly opened her eyes.

While blocking the attacks flying toward us, I calmly spoke to her.

“Everything’s fine now. Please stay calm.”

“…O-Okay.”

The girl still looked disoriented, likely from the drug in her system.

But I didn’t let that distract me and kept deflecting every strike that came my way.

‘Good. Thanks to Lisa’s help, I managed to get here in time.’

Without her, I might’ve barely missed Team 2’s location.

If things continued to go well, we might even stop Team 3 and prevent the kidnappings altogether.

“This way!”

While I was thinking that, I heard a voice from outside the alley—just as I’d anticipated.

It was Lisa’s voice. When I glanced over, she was entering the alley with soldiers—the city guards of Skedum.

“Arrest those wearing the green masks!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

The guards quickly charged toward us.

Seeing that, Team 2’s leader hesitated for a brief moment before clicking her tongue.

“Everyone, scatter! Get out of the city on your own! Survive however you can and regroup later!”

At her command, the members of Rhaineus Team 2 dropped their weapons and fled deeper into the alley.

The guards immediately pursued them.

Once they were gone, I lowered my sword and knelt beside the girl behind me.

‘Looks like they only used a mild hallucinogenic drug. Nothing too dangerous—she’ll recover soon.’

Anyway, I’d protected the girl who’d nearly been kidnapped, and now Team 2 was being chased down by Skedum’s guards.

Just as I’d planned.

‘No—better than planned. Everything’s moving much faster than expected. At this rate… I might even stop Team 3.’

If I headed to where Team 3 should be right now…

“Gideon.”

“Ah, Lady Lisa.”

“I brought the guards like you said.”

Lisa approached me as she spoke.

“This the girl they tried to kidnap?”

“Yes, that’s right. But there’s still one more.”

“How do you know that?”

“I happened to overhear those green-masked people talking earlier.”

It wasn’t exactly a lie.

I did know from the game, but I had also overheard the rebels discussing it moments ago.

Lisa looked at me for a moment, then nodded.

“So, we’re going to save the last one too?”

“Yes. Lady Lisa, please stay here and protect this girl. I’ll head out right away.”

“No, we’re going together.”

Lisa spoke firmly.

“We’ll leave her with the guards and fight together. On the way, I’ll contact the instructors for backup.”

“But…”

I met Lisa’s gaze.

The red aura that had faded earlier after she’d drunk my blood was starting to intensify again as she used her Blood Energy.

That made me uneasy, but…

“…No, it’s fine. Let’s go.”

There was no time to argue.

The first and second students had been near the fountain, so rescuing them was relatively easy.

But saving the third one was cutting it close.

Originally, there wasn’t supposed to be enough time at all—but thanks to Lisa’s help, a small window had opened.

I wasn’t about to waste that chance.

“Please contact the instructors on the way.”

“Got it.”

And so, Lisa and I started running.

‘They should be on the move by now.’

We headed toward the main street.

Even late at night, the city of merchants was still bustling with carriages coming and going.

On the surface, everything looked normal… but—

‘There.’

I spotted it immediately.

A carriage that looked ordinary—but the coachman driving it was someone I recognized.

It was the same face I’d seen in the game.

“Lady Lisa, that carriage. We have to stop it.”

“Understood.”

Lisa drew her greatsword and charged straight toward the carriage.

The coachman—Team 3’s leader—clicked his tongue when he saw us.

“Stop them! Don’t let them get close!”

At his command, a group of green-masked men leapt out of the carriage to attack.

Some even began firing arrows from the rooftops of nearby buildings.

“Tch.”

I deflected the arrows with my sword.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

‘I can barely keep up with the arrows—how am I supposed to handle the ones from the carriage—’

“Move.”

Lisa dashed forward, swinging her greatsword in a wide arc, sending most of Rhaineus Team 3 flying with a single strike.

Just one blow.

Then, she raised her greatsword and positioned herself in front of the speeding carriage—as if she meant to destroy it in one hit.

But the Team 3 leader didn’t stop the carriage.

And though Lisa didn’t seem to notice, he pulled a small glass vial from his pocket.

A vial filled with a green liquid.

The moment I saw it, I knew exactly what it was.

“No!”

Instinctively, I threw myself in front of Lisa.

The leader hurled the vial toward her, and it shattered midair, scattering its contents.

Just before the green liquid could touch Lisa, my body reached her.

A small amount of the liquid splashed onto my skin.

It was only a tiny drop, but the moment it touched me—

“…Ah.”

—I felt my muscles lock up completely.