The guards dispersed across their battlefield, leaving only the general and the head of the guards in the square.
"Rector, it seems you still have a couple of people capable of defending the Academy. I thought those two martial arts instructors were the only threat," the general remarked.
"How regrettable that you attacked just before the celebration. If you had deigned to come five days earlier, I would have offered you a warm welcome," the rector replied, seemingly unperturbed by the current situation.
"Oh, come on, I wanted to avoid casualties. But if a serious battle had broken out, someone would have died anyway," the general responded.
"But why all this? A clandestine attack, taking hostages?" the rector questioned.
"I need to learn something from your rulers, and if their answer satisfies me, then all the students will return unharmed. If not, they will have to get used to life in the empire," the general explained.
"Taking children from their families and transporting them to a completely unfamiliar country doesn't seem to align with your code of honor. It seems you're in a difficult position," the rector remarked.
"That doesn't matter. As a sign of goodwill, I'll let you and your granddaughter go," the general nodded toward Feris, "I hope for the reason of your rulers."
"They are unlikely to negotiate with you," the rector replied.
"Forgive me, but I see no other way. If they refuse, a war will begin," the general fell silent for a moment and turned toward the square, "it seems they have finally decided to attack us too."
"General?" the guardswoman scanned the square, a vast open space. The square had a diameter of several hundred meters, making it impossible to approach unnoticed from this side. The main building, however, stood just five meters behind them, and an entire army could hide there if desired, "Sorry, but I don't see anyone."
"They're just very well camouflaged," the general stated.
As soon as the general finished speaking, two large blocks of earth flew at him out of the night.
"What is this?" the guardswoman was surprised, but in the next moment, she unsheathed her katana and cut the approaching rocks, "Where did they come from?"
"Hmm, an earth mage? Unlikely they could hide so well; they must have support. Just keep looking until you find them," the general advised.
The general didn't seem to worry about his own defense, leaving it all to his bodyguard.
"General, why are you so calm? Someone keeps attacking our people, and we've lost contact with several guards. We should have caught all the dangerous individuals by now," the guardswoman expressed her concern.
"Don't worry so much; it'll give you wrinkles. I already have a hunch about what they want. Just behave as usual," the general replied with a sly voice. Illusions seemed to have no effect on him.
"General!!! Damn, they're attacking again," Iria prepared for battle as a few more rocks flew in her direction, "Where are they hiding? Underground, perhaps?"
The guardswoman defended against the attacks and tried to spot the enemy, but there was nothing suspicious in her field of view.
"Come on, look more attentively. I'd say they're right in front of you," the general goaded her with a sly tone. Illusions didn't seem to affect him, it appeared.
"Alright, I'll just calm down, and everything will become clear," Iria closed her eyes and listened carefully to the attacks. The rocks flew with the same periodicity from different places. The only thing that repeated was that they took off from the same distance from one particular spot. If the enemy was anywhere, it could only be there, "Come on, reveal yourself."
The guardswoman began to peer at a specific point, and it seemed to her that there was something there – a slight distortion in the air or a silhouette. Could it be a person?
"Is that him?" Iria focused on the visible distortion in the air and prepared for an attack. The silhouette waved his hand, and another barrage of rocks flew towards her. "So, it's you!"
The silhouette became more distinct, revealing a tall man in student attire. She couldn't believe that some student had been toying with her so much.
"General, I'll finish him off in a second!" Iria lunged forward but was halted by what appeared behind him. Three more silhouettes emerged in space – a girl in a blue uniform with chestnut hair, a small boy holding a sword to the throat of the third figure, and a girl with a short haircut and black armor with silver stripes. "Aileen? So, that's what delayed you. And what do you want?"
"To talk and, well, distract," the tall guy grinned, and behind the guardswoman, there was a loud crash. When she turned, a stone pillar, five stories tall, stood where the general had been.
"General!"
"Including Krito, what are you going to do? The chief guard is still there," twenty minutes ago, the guild members discussed the plan in one of the main building's classrooms.
"As an option, jump from here and challenge him to a duel before she regains her senses," Krito suggested.
"Ha-ha, Lady Iria will knock you out before you reach the ground. But I'll enjoy watching you land," someone replied.
"Looks like it won't work for us... for now," I grinned wickedly. "If there's an obstacle, we'll just remove it."
"And what do you have in mind?"
"An old trick with hostage exchange. Irritate her and lead her away, and I'll seize the moment."
"Divert her? We won't even get close!" Grain was visibly nervous.
"Grain, you'll bombard her with rocks, and Kurone will cover you. And to make sure she won't touch you, you'll take a hostage. Werner, it's your turn. Hold her tight and make your face look scarier, as if you're ready to kill her at any moment."
"I'll do my best!" Werner proudly patted his chest.
"If you think I'll help you, you're mistaken. As soon as I have a chance, I'll tell Lady Iria to kill me along with all of you! Mmm... Iffgm, mmm," the guardswoman's further words were muffled by a gag.
"It'll be more reliable that way; otherwise, our whole plan will fall apart. Levris, you'll come with me. The nearest exit to the general is too high, and you'll help me overcome that," I explained.
Everything went smoothly. Grain's attacks weren't too effective, as expected. But not being able to see him frustrated the guardswoman. And as soon as she spotted them, she left her position next to the general – it was time to act.
"Levris, bring him up here," I commanded Levris. We were right next to the nearest exit above the general, on the fourth floor, directly facing him. With a swing of her staff, Levris summoned all her strength, and two tall columns rose from the ground to the window level, where I stood.
Without wasting time, I leaped towards my opponent. In two jumps, I reached him and addressed the general in a language only he could understand.
"Dragon, I challenge you to a duel of honor, with the freedom of my comrades as the price!" If I spoke to the ancient dragon in the language of its gods, it would have to comply, regardless of the conditions. I couldn't demand he release everyone without an equal exchange, but he couldn't refuse me a duel.
"Hmm, interesting. I thought there was a purpose to all this," the dragon replied.
In the next second, the guardswoman pushed off the columns, appearing next to us, and pointed her katana at my throat.
"General, everything is under control as long as one of them is in our hands; we can capture them."
"No-no-no, Iria, I'll handle everything myself. And let's get down from here; it's getting cramped."
Yes, three people could barely fit on the narrow column, not more than one and a half meters in diameter. Upon my signal, Levris lowered us to the ground, and I turned to the dragon.
"Well? Are you agreeing? I don't care about the sword at my throat as long as I can make your general do as I please."
"I'm not obliged to agree to a duel. But perhaps it could amuse me. However, since you know our traditions, you must offer something equivalent to ten thousand students. And Ignis will be reprimanded for failing in his duties."
"Don't worry, I have something to offer. Your rulers are unlikely to negotiate for the sake of simple students, most of whom are commoners. But if you have their daughters, that's a different story."
"Sounds interesting, but what exactly can you offer?"
"In my guild, there are Princess of Verania and Princess of Leran. They agreed to put their freedom on the line if it helps save everyone else."
"Hmm..." the general approached the rector, "Mr. Rector, will you answer a simple question: is this true?"
"The lad is simply desperate and tries to gamble with something he doesn't have," the rector spoke with a completely calm voice, not betraying any bluff.
"So, he's telling the truth. The rector hardly put princesses at stake, but the youth is more impulsive in this matter. Alright, lad, I accept your challenge. But what do you plan to do with our attack?"
"We'll settle that after my victory!"
"Haha, you're an amusing young lad. I think we should call back all the guards. Let them be witnesses, and your comrades can be witnesses on your side. The rector and his granddaughter will be representatives of the neutral side."
"Granddaughter?" I looked at Feris, and she shyly lowered her eyes. "Alright, Kurone, call them all back."
"I'm calling them!" The girl closed her eyes and focused on her comrades' thoughts.
"Reason, a useful thing. Alright," the general touched his helmet and communicated with the guards, "Guards, return to the square... and you can bring those you fought with."