Bright and open alleyways, magnificent and brand new windows, freshly-painted walls, and floor made with the finest andesite. It was a grand building, several dozen people coming in and out the large entryways with smiles on their faces.
It was a perfume shop, small glass bottles and tiny canisters holding several colorful liquids and different sorts of scents and fragrances. A small whiff and one could feel at ease, their favorite fragrances wafting through their noses.
It was a place frequented by ladies, both from the gentry, the nobility, and wealthy merchantries. Only soft giggles and busy chatters could be heard, the ladies, both young and old, chatting cheerfully with one another about their favorite scents.
"Lady Leia, have you heard already? A new pastry shop had opened up in the east."
"My, I did hear about it. 'Marchissier', correct? I've been waiting since last month."
"As expected of Lady Leia. Should we head there together some time? I heard their products are really delightful, especially their lemon tarts."
"Oh dear, I would be much obliged. I've been wanting to try it myself as well."
It wasn't just perfumes and scents they were talking about, but also the recent rumors and happenings which have reached their ears, cheerfully spreading all sorts of news and information, regardless be it true or false.
After all, gossip and rumors is also an important part of high society culture. It not only allows two parties to be closer to one another, but also for them to gather all sorts of information about different manners of subjects.
And whilst the ladies gossiped about such topics, a single figure made her entrance inside the shop. Her steps were silent and so were her breaths. She strode by the center, yet not a single one noticed her presence, continuing on as they do.
"Hm?"
"Is something the matter, Lady Leia?"
"No, it just felt like I bumped into something just now."
Even when she accidentally bumped with someone, they didn't notice even a speck of her presence. They only felt a cold chill and nothing else. All she leaves was doubt to oneself, passing by like a phantom not belonging to the world.
She continued down the aisle, and with a little leap, she crossed the counters which only employees are supposed to be in. There was no need to open the door. Like a ghost, she simply passed through it without much difficulty.
One... Two... Three... And more...
The silent figure passed through one door after antiehr and even used entrances which aren't obvious to the naked eye. It didn't matter which room it was, as long as she could pass through it, she did so without any hesitation.
A couple minutes later, she finally found the basement where all the materials for perfume making and testing were stored. The room was cold and chilly to preserve the materials, but the silent figure remained unfazed.
She continued to wander around the basement, touching the walls to see if there were any spaces she could pass through and also checking the floor while she was at it. It didn't take long before she found a hidden trapdoor, delving in as soon as she did.
What greeted her was a dark and narrow staircase, only a couple magic lamps lighting up the place to make sure no light escapes outside the trapdoor. It was silent and eerie, not even the whispers of the wind to be heard.
"So there really is a secret passage... Grey was right..." ［Yuna］
The secret figure was none other than Yuna, and after accepting the King's request along with Grey, they have been doing a thorough cleaning up around the Royal Capital, crushing one criminal organization after another.
At first, there were only a couple dozen that the Kingdom knew of, but after Grey used his eyes to scour the whole capital, such a number rose by several folds, both small and large criminal organizations included in the list.
"Seriously, though... Why do criminals always use dark places... At least light it up a little... It feels so icky and eerie here..." ［Yuna］
And now, Yuna is in her 7th criminal organization. It was still the first day, but she had already crushed 6 of them in a matter of hours. Though most weren't related to the Duke, she did manage to crush one which was, and had the knights handle the rest.
As it stands, all High-Rankers along with them are raiding the criminal organizations all by themselves, and the Knights will handle the rest, including the ones specializing with imitations, handling everything ever so skillfully.
Of course, as it would be suspicious if the General and other High-Rankers suddenly went missing, Grey and Yuna tasked Sirius to create illusions of them, other knights supporting them to make it seem less suspicious.
『Sirius, how's it going over there? Has anyone noticed yet?』 ［Yuna］
『Negative, Mistress. Rather, it seems like the enemy rarely interacts without allies. I haven't seen them approach my illusions even once.』 ［Sirius］
『That makes better for us. Continue the good work.』 ［Yuna］
『Understood, Mistress.』 ［Sirius］
Without a single trace of worry in mind, Yuna continued on with her steps and soon enough, she found herself in much open and bigger corridors buried a couple dozen meters underground, barely any ventilation to be seen.
Rather, there were only magic tools around which circulate the air and regulate the temperature of the air and also magic lamps which provide dim lighting. There was also basic furniture here and there, a couple rooms to the side.
Inside those rooms were nothing too great, only some materials and equipment used by the criminal organization to proceed with their daily operations. There were a lot of illegal items, but they were the least of Yuna's concerns.
"Kuhahaha! The boss really is a sucker, isn't he?! He's even giving us so much money just because we complimented his intelligence!"
"That's right! Where could we find a better idiot than the Duke?! Just how did a foolish moron like him survive the Civil War?"
"Hey! Watch your mouth! Do you want your neck cut off?!"
"Hah? Who cares?! There's only us here to listen anyway! Even if I curse the Duke, nothing will happen to me! Don't be such a coward."
"This bastard... You really don't know your limits..."
And of course, what secret hideout is complete without a couple of useless thugs who are drinking to their heart's content all the while playing some sort of game with their daggers. They were all loud and boisterous, mouths reeking of alcohol.
As it seems, there weren't just the three of them before her. From the instructions Grey had given her, there should be a few more corridors and over 40 thugs all in all. It was quite a large place, especially considering that it's underground.
"Really, Duke Schemer is a worthless man. I even think he'llー"
"So this one is related to that worthless Duke, huh..." ［Yuna］
"Hahaha! Now we're talking! Curse the Duke more!"
It may be because they were so drunk, but even when Yuna suddenly appeared in front of them, they didn't even raise any wariness and continued on drinking. Well, they noticed after a couple seconds that something was off.
"Wait! Who are you?! How did you getー Kuaakkkk!!"
However, it was far too late. Before one of them could even finish his words, Yuna's daggers already came rushing towards him and his neck was sent flying. Blood dyed the dark floors red, one piece of trash now cleaned up.
One of the remaining two quickly reacted after seeing his colleague die, immediately pulling a dagger of his own as fast as he could. Unfortunately for him, he was still far too slow, his arms cut off without warning and his head following soon after.
"H-Help! There's anー"
⟨⟨Silence⟩⟩［Yuna］
The last one remaining tried to run for the bells and call out the others, however, it was all futile efforts. With just a single word from Yuna, the whole surrounding was quickly swallowed by silence, not a single sound ringing in the air.
He tried to run, however it was just as useless. A silver glimmer streaked across the dark corridors and he came crashing towards the ground after his legs were cut off. It was extremely painful, but he couldn't even voice out his agony.
Yuna couldn't see the true nature of people like Grey could, but the very fact that they joined such an organization meant that they weren't all clean. If they were prepared to kill, then they must also be prepared to be killed. There was no need for mercy.
"We can't have that, you know?" ［Yuna］
A cold glimmer shone in her eyes and Yuna brandished her daggers one more. Yet another head came flying and rolling towards the floor. Three people died in a matter of seconds yet Yuna's expressions remained unchanged.
"Hey, why did you suddenly become quiet? Did something happen?"
And it may be because of the sudden change in atmosphere, but after Yuna killed off the three, another small group of evil minions and thugs came pouring out to check on them. They looked just as evil and worthless as the first bunch.
However, rather than their boisterous colleagues, what they were greeted with was a bloodbath. All three of their colleagues were dead and a single slender figure stood in the middle of it, her blue eyes peering at her.
"Q-Quickly! Call the othersー !!!"
"Hey now, didn't I just say we can't be having this?" ［Yuna］
And just like their comrades, they all suffered the same fate. Before they could even realize it, Yuna had already appeared before them and her daggers came for their necks, yet another faint silver glimmer in the air.
Yuna brandished her daggers and three heads came flying at once. One managed to take a step away, but unfortunately for him, before he even had the chance to run, the young lady had already thrown her other dagger, piercing his head soon after.
Four lives vanished once more, their bodies making subtle thuds as they fell towards the ground one after another. There were no more people in sight, only a dark and narrow corridor greeting the young lady from both sides.
"That's 7 down... 30 something more to go..." ［Yuna］
Just like that, Yuna continued her killing spree and killed off the bandits one after another as if she was swatting some flies. And it may be because it has been some time since Grey gave her instructions, but there were more of them than anticipated.
Well, not that it made any difference towards her anyway. All she needed was to do was brandish her daggers a couple more times, and was quickly over. It was all quiet during the first half, but the same couldn't be said for the second half...
"Get her! Make sure she doesn't escape!"
"Be careful, she's a dangerous one! Don't let your guards down!"
"You're my prey, b*tch! Don't ever think of getting out of this place alive!"
For some reason, they were all huddled up in the same room, and they all witnessed her kill one of them. They were quickly enraged and alerted, rushing towards Yuna with their blades and arrows pointed towards her.
However, Yuna couldn't be anymore unfazed. She simply looked at them and started counting how many of them there were. She had the opportunity to interrogate one of them beforehand, and he answered perfectly with a dagger pointed at his throat.
It wasn't long before Yuna finished counting, and after adding their numbers to the ones she's killed already, they added up just perfectly. A sweet smile soon bloomed on her face, which couldn't be any more terrifying with blood covering her.
"So these are all of you, huh... Fufufu! Great! I can finish you all at once..." ［Yuna］
"Quit yapping, b*tch! Say hello to the devil for meー !!!"
The arrogant and skeleton-looking thug couldn't even finish his words when he was suddenly stopped on his tracks. It wasn't just him, but the others as well, thin layers of frost and ice getting ahold of them.
The ice seemed thin and brittle, but in reality, they were so tough and resistant, not even diamonds could compare to them. The moment their feet were bound to the floor by such deathly frost was the moment their fates had been decided.
It wasn't just plain ice as well. After they were all rooted to the floor, frozen flora then started appearing one after another. Some in the form of flytraps, some like grass, and some like sharp spikes. However, each was equally terrifying.
"Fufufu! Why don't you greet him yourself?" ［Yuna］
Cold words drifted in the air, and at the same time, the frozen flora ran erratic. They all grew at a rapid pace, the spikes piercing the enemies, the vines strangling them, the flytraps devouring them, and the blades of grass cutting them up.
The dark floor had turned blue, and just a couple seconds after, it had now been painted red. Not a single one of the criminals left alive, their corpses swallowed up by frost and their eyes white and cold as snow.
With that, the extermination of the 7th hideout had been completed flawlessly, not even a single wound, not even a scratch, on Yuna's body. It was all too easy, the young lady feeling relieved and satisfied to have cleaned up some trash.
"Ah... I should have asked first if they had any prisoners..." ［Yuna］
Well, nobody is perfect and our young heroine was the same. It wasn't the first time she raided a hideout, yet she always goes overboard and doesn't ask the important questions until everything is over. She was too impulsive.
"... No... I should fix myself first..." ［Yuna］
There was no use thinking too much about it. With nothing else to do, Yuna simply decided to clean herself up and tidy up her appearance a little bit. She's extremely beautiful, but what use is such beauty if she's drenched in blood,
After all, in the chance that there are imprisoned victims in the hideout, she doesn't want to scare them because she was soaked in blood. Well, she doesn't want to be covered in blood as well. Blood from filthy people is just as filthy.
⟨⟨Wash!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Dry!⟩⟩ ［Yuna］
Yuna didn't think anymore and just cleaned herself. She then unthawed the ice and looked around the room for anything resembling a key or a base layoutー or at least she was going to. However, it seems such things were also destroyed by her frost.
There were no other choices left. The young lady decided to brute force her way through the hideout and headed in all the rooms inside the hideout, coming across over a dozen of them, most of them just their sleeping quarters.
"Hic... Hic... Mommy... Hic... Mommy... Hic..."
It wasn't long before the search was over, the sound of a child crying echoing from the deepest corridors. Yuna quickly followed it, and soon found herself along the many prison cells, dozens of prisoners hidden within.
Yuna followed the child's voice, and soon found a heavily locked room, with only a heavy metal door to be seen. As soon as she arrived, she immediately took a deep breath and broke down the door with her frost.
When she did, what greeted her were frightened and cautious eyes, people of all races and ages huddling around as if afraid to be dragged away. There were visible traces of abuse and mistreatment all over their bodies, even little children riddled with scars.
Yuna was angryー no, she was extremely angry. Yet all she could do was rein in her emotions and keep herself in check. Acting out will only frighten them even more. The first thing she must prioritize was their safety. Time was of the essence.
⟨⟨Perfect Heal!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Perfect Cure!⟩⟩⟨⟨Rejuvenate!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Recuperate!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Purity!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Dispel!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Serenity!⟩⟩ ［Yuna］
Actions were far better than words. So rather than trying to convince them, Yuna just reached her hands out and casted a few holy magic spells towards them, ridding their bodies with diseases, sickness, traumas, curses, impurities, and so much more.
Golden light shone amidst the eerie darkness, seeping deep into everyone's bodies and filling their hearts with warmth. Some which had already lost their sense of pain and emotions were gradually healed, their sensations coming back to them.
"My... My wounds... They don't hurt anymore..."
"What just happened... Am I dreaming..."
Everyone was astonished and puzzled about what just happened, their eyes unable to believe what they're seeing and their hands unable to understand what they were sensing. It was nothing short of a miracle, their eyes soon swimming towards Yuna.
"It's okay now. You're all free." ［Yuna］
There were Yuna's words, and then there was silence. Silence which was soon broken by a cacophony of cries, tears trickling down towards the floor and pained voices ringing out in the air as they expressed their sorrow and gratitude.
After the first cell, Yuna then headed off towards the other ones and like she just did, she also rescued them and healed them of their wounds, casting several spells in rapid succession as if there was no tomorrow.
However, she it wasn't all just good things. After a few cells, she arrived within one's swallowed by the scent of death. There was not a single one alive anymore, and there were only cold and lifeless corpses on the similarly cold ground.
She knows it wasn't her fault, nor was it the fault of the Kingdom. Yet she couldn't help but blame herself and feel guilty. If only they arrived a little sooner, maybe, just maybe she could have saved them. A flood of emotions swayed her heart once more.
"Miss Dame... It's not your fault... Please don't be too hard on yourself... If it wasn't for you, we would have suffered the same fate..."
"That's right... It's just that it was their time to go... Even if you couldn't save them, they would never resent you..."
"Ah... Un... I know... Sorry about that... I was a little emotional there... Umm... Can you please bring everyone a little further away? Especially the children. Please wait until everything's over. Help will soon arrive." ［Yuna］
"... Yes... Understood..."
There was no use blaming herself. After she got herself together, she then asked the adults to take everyone away where they wouldn't be able to see the corpses. She is still upset, but she needs to move on and steel herself even further.
"I'm sorry I couldn't save you... Please rest in peace... ⟨⟨Perfect Heal⟩⟩!" ［Yuna］
Healing them was pointless, but it could at least restore their bodies to how it was before they started their suffering. It was the least she could do for them, freezing their corpses so that she could hand them over to their families later.
For those who don't have them. There was also no need to worry. The King had already volunteered to shoulder all the responsibility and give them a proper burial. It was the least they could do as proper people.
"One at a time, please. One at a time. Please avoid pushing yourselves."
Before long, the rescue team had finally arrived. Among them was Grey who had just also finished up cleaning his 9th hideout. He was also in charge of rescuing all the victims and taking them to an inconspicuous location.
At the same time, the other knights had also arrived to clean up the mess, namely the bodies of the thugs and search for some evidence within them. They quickly got to work and didn't waste any more time.
"Are you alright? You look a little pale." ［Grey］
"Un... I'm just... A little upset, I guess?" ［Yuna］
As for Yuna, she was still dwelling on the deaths of the victims and couldn't help but think to herself about a couple of what-ifs. She doesn't know them, but she still felt distressed and crestfallen for their deaths.
"You know... I thought after seeing it a couple of times, I thought I would get used to it. I'feve even killed people myself as well and made a pile of cold corpses with them. Yet it still feels upsetting... Is that strange, Grey?" ［Yuna］
"No, not at all... Rather, I think that's just a part of being a person. Even I, myself, have yet to get used to it." ［Grey］
"Ehh? That's unexpected... I thought you got yourself all together better than me... So you also feel things like these, huh..." ［Yuna］
"Hahaha. You just think too highly of me, My Dear." ［Grey］
Thankfully, Grey was there to cheer her up. Though he knows just how strong and powerful Yuna was, he also knows all her weaknesses and her vulnerable side. She may seem cold whilst wielding her daggers, but she's the warmest person there is.
"You did well, Yuna... I'm proud of you..." ［Grey］
Grey muttered under his breath as he patted the young lady in the head. However, there were responses to be heard, the latter simply nodding her head in silence and wallowing in the turmoil of emotions in her heart crying out all her frustrations.
It took quite a while, but after Yuna bawled out silently like a little child, she was quickly back to her usual self and Grey was now spoiling her once again, wiping away her tears and acting like a father again rather than a fiancé.
"Mou... Grey, I can do it myself, you know?" ［Yuna］
Mumbled the young lady, but Grey didn't listen to her. He simply continued wiping away her tears and fixing up her hair while he's at it. He also took out a couple of snacks for her to enjoy and distract herself with.
While it's very important to raid the hideouts as soon as possible, it is also just as important to take a break and organize their thoughts. Otherwise, they might end up causing more troubles than they could fix up.
"Oh, right... Yuna, have you already inspected every room here?" ［Grey］
"Almost all of them. There are still some rooms which I haven't opened up. Though, I'm sure the knights will inspect them anyway." ［Yuna］
"I see... I just hope they don't find anything too troubleー" ［Grey］
BANG CLOP CLOP CLOP HUFF HUFF
Grey couldn't even finish his words, when suddenly a loud bang echoed in the air. It was a knight who just tripped himself from hurry, soon standing up and then rushing towards the two of them despite being out of breath.
There was no need to ask any further...
"D-De-Demonic Beasts! We have found Demonic Beasts, Your Highnesses!"
... They have jinxed themselves yet again...
CHAPTER 423 END