Who could tell Leya what had just transpired?
“Bang!”
Honestly, this was certainly not how things were supposed to unfold according to the plan.
“Ahhh! We got him!”
“Bang!”
“Ugh, come on, if we all attack together, we’re bound to…”
Yet, before the words could fully escape his lips.
With a swift ‘whoosh,’ Leya moved like a golden streak of light, reaching the soldier’s side in the blink of an eye.
As if to deliberately mock the soldier’s ignorance, Leya did not immediately knock him unconscious with the hilt of her Saintess Sword. Instead, she remained perfectly composed, showing no signs of having just emerged from a fierce battle, and slowly began to speak.
“Now, tell me… are you the soldiers stationed here?”
“Uh…”
‘What could she possibly mean by that?’
‘Isn’t it obvious at a glance? I am a fully-fledged member of the inner city’s elite patrol, personally authorized by the Lord of the City himself! In peacetime, we maintain urban security, and in times of war, we are destined to be promoted directly to the Volantis First Army!’
‘So, you tell me, does such a force count as soldiers?’
Before the soldier could offer any further reaction, Leya quickly continued, adopting a lecturing tone and a stern expression.
“If so, then I ask you, what is your faith? Or rather, why did you become a soldier? And your companions, your comrades, why did they become soldiers?”
“…………”
‘Why?’
‘Why did I join the inner city patrol?’
‘Heh… need I even say? Of course, it’s to support my family. After all, this is a lucrative position—few tasks, yet high benefits and status, far surpassing those irregular troops from the outer city by several ranks. With a bit of luck, I might even catch the eye of some inner-city noble and climb even higher.’
“Ah… is that so? Your eyes have already betrayed everything you wish to say, soldier.”
Shaking her head, Leya ultimately let out a helpless sigh, then slowly raised her Saintess Sword.
“And so… precisely because of that, you will not… and cannot possibly, defeat me here.”
“Regardless of your numbers, there is only one reason for your failure… and that is the heart of a soldier within you, your faith in victory… it is simply not clear enough.”
“Bang!”
****************
“Th-th-this…”
‘How… how could it have come to this?!’
Three hundred… a full three hundred soldiers! They were all defeated in less than a few minutes, either knocked to the ground or, realizing the futility of the situation, simply played dead.
This… this… even if most of them were merely Level 1 martial artists, honestly, let’s say you’re Level 3, alright? Let’s say you’re here to slaughter pigs. But… even then, you couldn’t possibly kill a pig a second, could you?! Ahhh!
The stout commander felt his entire worldview shattering.
“Hmm? You’re their commander, then? Heh heh… fascinating. Now, tell me… in your current state… can you even wield a sword?”
“What?! You…”
The stout commander glared furiously at Leya, his eyes filled with such resentment and hatred that he looked ready to devour her whole. Yet, truth be told, he could only gape helplessly, ha ha.
As for whether he should draw his longsword and charge at Leya?
Oh, gods! The stout commander merely wished to say: ‘Please, spare me! Can’t you see she hasn’t even unsheathed her sword yet? Tsk, tsk, if her sharp blade accidentally slipped out during battle, wouldn’t I lose a good twenty pounds of fat?’
“Oh… and you are…”
Ignoring the ridiculous胖子, Leya’s gaze was drawn instead to the middle-aged man beside him.
“Uh… I believe we might have met somewhere before, sir?”
“…………”
“Heh heh, Lady Blonde Sword Princess, you truly are a person of importance with many matters to forget. I am Malfoy, merely that insignificant merchant with whom you had a brief encounter in the Netherworld Forest.”
“…………”
‘Malfoy… Malfoy…’
‘Oh, it’s him. The one who first abducted Erica.’
‘Well… according to the plan, I’ll hand him over to the Netherworld Wolf King tomorrow. For now, there’s no need to quarrel with him.’
Thinking this, Leya casually put away her Saintess Sword, hanging it at her waist, and asked a question that had been bothering her.
“Speaking of which, I’ve been too busy to ask until now, but how did you discover I was here…”
However, before she could finish, out of the corner of her eye, Leya suddenly saw… the two gate guards she had knocked unconscious earlier, now furtively peeking at her from a corner like mice!
“This… this… alright, so that’s how it is.”
Shaking her head, Leya herself was at a loss for words, only managing a helpless sigh.
“Hmph, don’t you dare think this is over!”
Amidst her momentary distraction, she heard Malfoy’s menacing threat.
“Trespassing into the underground s*ave prison, no matter the reason, the Guild of Roseland will not let you off lightly! You will pay the price for this!”
“…………”
Shrugging indifferently, Leya couldn’t even be bothered to argue with him.
She simply looked up silently at the sky.
“It’s almost time.”
Then, just as she had arrived…
She transformed into a golden streak of light, vanishing instantly from Malfoy and the others’ sight.
************************************************
“Uh… Malfoy, old chap, did we… just let her go?”
The stout commander watched Leya’s retreating figure, dumbfounded. Amidst his shock, he couldn’t help but rub his head, asking with an almost childlike curiosity.
As for such a question, Malfoy naturally couldn’t be bothered to respond.
‘What else? If you don’t let her leave, are you going to fight her? What an imbecile!’
Moreover, compared to such an unrealistic notion, the more pressing issue at hand was…
“Tsk, you scoundrels! Useless trash! What are you still hiding for? Lead the way at once! Go check the situation in the prison, you fools!”
If he remembered correctly, Malfoy was quite certain that Leya hadn’t taken anything when she left.
So it was strange. Why had she broken in here? And what exactly did she intend to do?
Filled with such questions, Malfoy truly didn’t want to waste another second here. He was desperate to go to the underground prison and check the situation.
“Uh… oh… yes, yes, my lord!”
“I, I’m coming too!”
The two guards, who had been hiding somewhere until just now, finally emerged sheepishly from the dark corner of the abandoned building, looking terrified and still glancing around, as if afraid Leya might return.
****************
“Uh… well, now that things have come to this, perhaps I should…”
Watching Malfoy, who was anxiously heading to the underground s*ave prison to assess the damage, led by the two guards, the stout commander was at a loss for what to do.
‘Honestly, I was supposed to be paid to avert disaster, wasn’t I? But in fact, it seems I simply made up the numbers… utterly useless, indeed.’
And so, having made up his mind, the stout commander instantly shed his previous dejection and fear, transforming completely as he roared at the soldiers sprawled on the ground.
“Hey! Did you all hear that? You good-for-nothing idiots who only know how to freeload! Get up, all of you, get up! Otherwise…”
However, before he could finish, a series of urgent hoofbeats seemed to echo from the alley behind him.
And a particularly panicked and anxious shout.
“L-l-l-lord!”
“…………”
‘Wh-wh-what the devil?’
‘Can’t you see I’m lecturing my soldiers? Honestly… today is truly the worst luck, tsk tsk.’
‘After I return, I must report this to the Lord of the City. I’ll tell him about a lawless and defiant individual who has recently appeared in the city, daring to openly disrupt public order.’
‘Yes, yes, that’s it. That way, it’ll count as repaying a favor to the Guild of Roseland, ha ha ha!’
“My lord! Someone, from above, says you must immediately cease your current actions and receive a blonde woman who has appeared here with the highest courtesies… in short, no matter what, try to avoid any hostile behavior! Uh… my lord? Are you feeling unwell? Why is your face a bit… uh, pale?”
“…………”