「Assault on Diento's lord」 Part 1
The Diento territory is ruled by the feudal lord, in the fortress that was roughly at the territory's center, one man ran down the corridor that led to the lord's bed room at great speed. While the castle's interior was very quiet, the sound of the alarm bells could be faintly heard from behind the glass windows.
The double-doors of the feudal lord's bedroom was luxuriously made with thick quality wood and ordained with gold.
Two sentries stood guard as the night witch and monitored for any suspicious individuals.
The panicked man run straight up to the door and started to violently bang on it, but no one could blame the sentries for this.
The man violently banging of the feudal lord's bedroom door was Cyrus Dorman, Consul of Diento.
"Triton-sama! It's Cyrus! There is a pressing matter that I have to inform you about!!"
His usually pale and stoic face was slightly red and had nervous sweat striking down it tonight.
"Cyrus, why are you here at such an hour? Open it."
Since the voice was muffled by the door, Triton doubtfully called to the speaker before ordering one of the maids inside the room to open the door.
Only the word "Rudeness" was heard as the man made his way inside the room.
Triton rose from his bed in the dimly lit room, and quickly dawned a gown so that he could meet Cyrus at the door.
"Triton-sama, the people in the room..."
While smoothing out his white mustache, Triton prompted the two maids to leave; after glancing at Cyrus the two obliged and left the room.
"What is this urgent business you spoke of?"
"Fires have broken out in the city──"
When Triton heard that he grimaced and let out a large sigh in disappointment.
While marquis Triton thought that there was no reason to barge into his bedroom for such a trivial matter, consul Cyrus continued to speak.
"A fire spread to the major slave trading buildings, including our "storehouse"!"
"What!!!!"
The startled Triton forcibly stood up and angrily approached the consul.
"The delivery date for the Eastern Leburan Empire is closing in! What happened to the products that were being kept in the "storehouse"!?"
"That's, the guards say that someone infiltrated the building before the fire broke out..."
"What'd they say!? The guards were supposed to stop intruders!! What on earth were those fools doing!!!"
The marquis openly berated his foolish subordinates in his anger.
"The front door was suddenly bolted shut, they could only hear screams from within. All sides of the building were covered to prevent any blind spots, the only possibility is that there was a traitor within──"
"Fuck!! Send some of the castle soldiers out to make sure the fire is properly extinguished immediately! Even if the top burned, the basement was made of stone so it wouldn't be easy to burn!!
"It wouldn't look good to have the castle soldiers only appear there though... If you do not dispatch them in the other three locations──"
"Don't bring that up now; dispatch them in mass!!!"
In response to Cyrus's protest, the veins on Triton's head bulged as he yelled. Panicked by the threatening atmosphere, Cyrus tripped over himself as he quickly left the room to carry out the orders.
In order to quench his throat after raving so much, the short on breath Triton grabbed a pitcher of water next to his bed and started to gulp it down.
"...Fortunately the delivery date had been postponed. Worst case we will simply have to deliver what we have on hand to eastern Lebrun as a reimbursement for their order..."
Speaking those words in disgust, marquis Triton rubbed his forehead to suppress the headache he got from thinking up the later correspondence.
Arc POV
Many smoke pillars could be seen rising above Diento from the bank of the Rydell river, and I watched as they clouded the night sky.
Strange──, the kidnappers' base was in the red-light district close to the east gate. I'd understand if the fire spread in that area, but why were there so many fires popping up around the city?
"Ariane-dono, did your collaborators set the city on fire?
It's possible that members of Ariane's group were using this as a cover for the rescue operation. However, with an unpleasant expression she denied the accusation.
"I don't know. Only Danka and I should have been in the city. Those fires were caused by something else. In any case, it's an unexpected event that perfectly covers our infiltration. We can also take advantage of this confusion to infiltrate the castle as well.
It didn't seem like she was telling a lie. And it is a good opportunity like she said. With fires sprouting up in so many places, a lot of people most have been dispatched from the castle to extinguish them.
No, if the underground organization I was connected to was threatened, the first thing I would do is dispatch my troops. With the castle's lowered security, now would be the best time to search it.
"Well, the number guards will be insufficient if the soldiers from the castle were dispatched. Assuming we take this opportunity to slip inside the lord's castle..."
That moment Ariane licked her sexy full lips and gave a fearless laugh, before she laid her sight on the earnest expression sporting Danka.
"Danka, could you keep an eye on the kids. If I'm not mistaken, the nearest village is a day away if we go upstream and enter the large forest right?"
"That's about right. At the the upper reach of the river, there is a fulcrum with the Riburuto river. I will wait for you there.
"Please do. Arc, start removing the magic eating collars."
"Yes"
While Ariane encouraged the elven girls to stand in front of her, I approached one of them and slowly placed my hand of the collar, so that I didn't frighten her.
"[Anti-curse]"
When the magic formation formed and sunk into the collar, it made the same clear snipping sound as last time before opening and falling off.
Although the other girls were surprised, they came over to be with looks of expectation.
Nodding, I use [Anti-curse]on each of the girls and destroy the remaining collars. After each of the collars were destroyed, the girls offered me their words of gratitude.
"He really is capable of curse removal magic..."
Danka also quietly voiced his surprise.
"Let's quickly head to the feudal lord's castle!"
I feel a gentle tap on the shoulder of my armor, as she vehemently yelled and stared in the direction of Diento's lord's castle. That was the signal to transfer to the castle.
When I give a small nod, Ponta who was around my neck let out a cry that said she was ready to go.
I first moved to the other side of the river using [Dimensional step]. The sound of the alarm bells became louder after we moved closer to the city.
Since the the south side of the wall faced the river there were no homes built within the outer wall, meaning that there were no witnesses to what was happening.
Since it was so late at night, there weren't many guards on top of the outer wall either, only a few sentries were sparsely place along the wall.
In a matter of seconds, I used [Dimensional step]to transfer to the top of the outer wall and then to the inner wall that was visible from there.
Unlike the the outer wall, that separates the wilderness from the city, there were no sentries placed on the inner wall. Was the purpose of this wall to defend the city in case of siege warfare?
Still, to be safe I crouch down and observable the situation in town through one of gaps in the wall's railing.
Smoke was coming from all over the city, there were maybe four points of origin? The four fires most have gone off simultaneously as it would be impossible for them to have been set off leisurely given the timing.
After concealing her dark elf body with her gray cloak, Ariane glared at me with her golden eyes, insisting that I transfer to the next location.
Since her lilac skin was covered by her cloak that melted into the darkness, only her golden eyes could be seen from within, it was like she was some conductor of some kind of galactic express. Though the body on the inside is a dynamite one though...
I look at the raised castle of the feudal lord that stood at the center from the gap in the railing. The castle, which was dimly lit by moonlight, was a great distance away from here. The foot of the castle was rested within its own large shadow, and the outskirts of the building were swallowed by darkness.
Ariane was still glaring at me from behind, but it was not like I was staring out at the city without a propose. It seemed that I won't be able to merely transfer near the castle.
I first thought that the feudal lord's castle was built with a mechanism that obstructed magic, but really it was just a matter of finding a suitable transfer destination. This magic doesn't seem to be usable in utter darkness.
Since the castle's roof was illuminated by the moonlight I set the transfer location there and invoke [Dimensional Step]without a hitch.
The city was built atop a hill and the castle was placed at the highest point of the city; there was nothing obscuring the view of the area up here. It was a great view. I would like to experience this view during the day if possible.
Ariane was surprised when we suddenly transferred to the roof, and she late out a small yelp as she tried to regain her balance.
"Ya! Hey don't suddenly transfer to the roof without warning?! If you're going to move to an unstable foothold say so before hand."
"Ah, I did something foolish."
Ponta, suddenly moved to the top of my helmet and let out a growl in protest of my treatment, causing Ariane to apologize. Since Ponta settled the matter, I'll buy her some grapes when this is over.
As expected, we were able to watch all the activity of the castle from the roof, without anyone being aware of us.
The feudal lord's castle wasn't very elegant in appearance; looking more like a fort than anything else. In addition to the two walls that surrounded the castle, there was as a moat, making it hard to invade.
In between the walls and the castle, there was a large garden in the front, and the rest of the space was filled with a large barracks and an empty training field.
The castle was composed of six outer towers, connected to the central structure by small corridors.
From atop one the six towers that we were standing on, it was possible to view over the entire city.
The only way for enemies to spot us is if they randomly decided to look up, but there was no way to search for the elves.
The tower we were on right now was a lookout tower, that can act as a grain storage or various other uses if the f0rt was ever under siege. There seems to be facilities for accommodating captives and criminals underground, now where would I place high-end elven slaves?
"Araine-dono. I hesitate to ask, but what type of treatment do elven slaves receive?"
"... is that question really relevant now?"
She glared at me with her golden eyes from the depth of her cloak with an openly displeased expression.
"The kind of treatment they receive, I think will make it easier to Identify their location..."
Upon hearing my intentions, she replied with disgust after a while.
"In the case of the woman, they often become playthings..., the men are made to to fornicate with noble women to produce children."
"When I looked over the sells contracts, why was the cost of the males higher? Does it have something to do with them fornicating with noble women?"
"When a mixed raced child is born, it will inherit the race of of its mother right?"
Mixed raced children took after their mothers..., that's another thing I didn't know, but I chime in to prompt her to make her point.
"A human child is thereby born with the high magical power that is the characteristic of the elves... The human nobles have many people with high magical aptitude, that were taken from elves in the days of old. Ah, those human still aren't able use spirit magic though──"
I see, in order to survive in this world overrun with monsters, the humans had to become better at handling magic, so they forcibly took the power from the elves.
Then it's the nobles that are mostly capable of magic... Only financial and military might hold power in this world. Why would those of this country allow the beings called elves run free when they can strengthen their own military might?
This world is built upon feudalism, so it's unlikely that human rights are respected.
So with the mindset of a man in power────, the whereabouts of the missing elves should be decided by that.
If I was connected to the to the captives sexually I would not keep them in the regular prisons, so we should probably check around were the feudal lord sleeps?
There were a few soldiers routinely patrolling the the grounds. Whether or not this minimal amount was the result of the fires that broke out in town is unknown, but I'm still grateful for this situation.
"I'm about to transfer to the main building of the castle."
When Ariana placed her hand on my shoulder and gave an affirmative, I transferred us from the top of the tower to a bush next to the main residence.
Glass was fitted into the window frame, and you were able to see inside the residence. I confirm that there were no human shadows in the corridor before I transfer inside it. The view from this side is not the same from the outside of the window.
The corridor was wider along the side of the residence it was connected to, and it was filled with various furnishings.
Ariane silently walks up to one of the corridor's doors, and quickly checked the room behind it.
She give me the "Follow me" gesture before entering the room. The room had a parquet wooden floor, a polished wooden table surrounded by chairs, and at the back hung a large tapestry. Based on the room's atmosphere it was probably a waiting room. The interior was dimly light, and outlook was bleak.
Directly across from us was another door, which Ariane opened and scouted out the area beyond it.
When I saw the building from the roof of the tower it don't look anything impressive, but it seemed rather large from the inside. Was there an underground dungeon here after all?
Ariane calmly opened the door the rest of the way and then left. I followed her out of the waiting room.
This corridor was only half the width of the previous one, doors lined both sides, and there were small pictures between each door.
Farther down, the corridor curves to the left making it impossible to see beyond the turn. I transfer to the edge of it and peek around.
At some point the hallway came to a dead end, with a barred wooden door at the center of the wall, and a guard dozing off in his chair in front of it. Unlike the the previous ones, the barred door was gave off a strange vibe.
When I transfer to the side of the sleeping guard's side I grab his head and twist it. A sickening sound rings throughout the L shape hall as I kept the now limp body from hitting the floor.
I ripped the key from the dead guard's waist and slide it into the door's keyhole.
When I hear the sound of the shutters turning I slowly open the door; the room was perfectly square that wasn't too wide, and there as a staircase leading underground.
We were on the first floor of the building and the stairs led to the basement. Since there was a guard I was able to find a clue.
I called out to Ariane, who had been searching the the other rooms till now.
"Araine-dono"
In spite the quietness of my voice, Ariane appeared in an instant, proving the excellence of the elves' hearing.
She nodded when I inclined my head towards the square room and followed behind shortly after. After checking the stairs in the room, she proceeds to descend them.
As if she were a ninja, she soundlessly decided the stairs despite them being made of wood. I used transfer to follow behind her Indian martial arts movements. My metal armor made it impossible to imitate her stealthy movements.
"Gufu!! Ga!"
I heard the groans of a man from the basement, before something hit the floor and things went quiet. A guard probably had been stationed below.
Various lamps around the camber acted as the only source of light in this basement, and three iron reinforced doors lined the stone wall to the right. Since the doors were windowless, we could not tell what was on the other side of them.
"My name is Ariane Glenys Maple. Are any of my brethren here?!"
When Ariane pounded on the door and announced herself, there was an immediate answer from the other side.
"A warrior from Maple?! Help has come!!"
"Thank goodness! I'd like to leave as soon as possible 〜!! Please〜!"
It seems that warriors from Maple were synonymous with the best among the elves. Relief and delight could be heard from the voice on the other side of the door.
In order to free them, Ariana searched the body of the fallen guard but didn't seem to find anything.
"The key isn't here! Where is it!?"
Irritation was mixed into her voice, and all of a sudden the answer came from the other side of the door.
"The feudal lord has the key. Thanks to the magic eating collars we can't use spirit magic to break down the door."
I see, it is not necessary for the guard to have a key to the cells. There would be no need for the key of the door could easily be broken down with spirit magic.
"Step back from the door."
Pausing for a moment after saying so, once I was sure that the person moved away, I delivered a powerful kick to the iron reinforced door.
「Bakiin!」When I heard that loud sound, the door remarkably fought off its hinges. With my current strength, bending the cell bars to escape might even be possible.
On the other side of the door was a slender fair-skinned woman with a exasperated expression on her face. She had the blonde hair, green eyes and long ears of the elves; though only a thin piece of cloth covered her delicate frame. Gazing a little lower, I caught sight of the modest bud of her chest. Dropping my view even farther, I noticed that her wrist were bound with simple wooden shackles.
It was probably done to discourage them from trying to escape. Since the elves' bodies weren't built with a lot of muscle, this would still be effective enough.
Leaving the shackles to Ariane I open the other door in the same way, and a similar looking women appeared beyond the frame. However, the women from before had long hair while this woman's hair was cut short.
"Who's that person over there in the knight armor?"
The short haired women asked Ariane that question while looking in my direction. The elves must not have people that are equipped in full body armor. Suspicious looks were passed my way.
"He's a helper that I employed for this rescue mission. It maybe hard to believe, but you don't need to worry because he is a reliable person." //Silver: In other words he's done enough shit to be taken down with us if we're caught.//
She gave a wryly smile as she said that and asked me to remove the magic eating collars from the two people.
I lightly nod before casting [Anti-curse]on the two, and with the familiar snapping sound the collars fall to the floor.
"... Surprising... To commission someone capable of removing curses without a chant..."
The long haired woman said the same thing Danka muttered, while she rubbed her neck to verify that this was real.
"That's my general purpose. After we escape from here and join with the others, will the plan be complete──?"
In the middle of proposing our next action, a objection was given by the two former captives.
"Wait! I'm sorry for causing you trouble after freeing us, but that pig of a feudal lord and the people of Rhoden need to be taught a lesson!"
"Yeah〜! I've been imprisoned here for four years! My mind will never be at ease if I don't dispose of that pig with my own hands〜!"
The two state their claims in Ariane's direction, and plead with their eyes for our next action. She looks to have thought it over a little before she turned and replied to the women.
"Okay. To prevent future sorrows, it's wise to end the feudal lord whose the root of this evil now. Where is the lord?"
Urged on by the fact that the assassination of the lord was accepted, the two hopped over the fallen body as they made their way to the stairs. Despite the two only wearing thin over shirts, they quickly ran up to the first floor, with Ariane following close behind.
The lord's assassination seems to have immediately put into action. While I wanted to avoid drawing attention to myself with flashy actions, I couldn't simply ignore the intentions of the requester in this situation.
Since it was ostensibly the elves' retribution, in order not to be conspicuous it's better to take part in this criminal act.