The place I had told Mason about was behind the communal tombstone outside the western gate. I had lied, saying that there was a passage here that connected to the Lake Kingdom.
The area was seldom visited by people, so there was little risk of civilians getting caught up with these guys. Plus, it was a distinctive location that I frequented.
"Hmm, hiding a passage behind a tombstone, huh..."
It was a blatant lie, but I acted as if I was under some kind of hypnosis. Mason seemed somewhat convinced.
The officer from the Aegis Special Forces standing next to Mason whispered something into his ear.
"The succubi-extracted hypnotic directly interferes with the mind. It can even break down the psychic barriers of the Ivory Tower's Archmage. There's no way the Prince could resist it. It's highly likely to be true."
"I still have my reservations... I'll scout the passage alone for now."
Mason gestured with his chin towards me as he stepped outside.
"Keep a strict watch on the Prince."
Mason left the room.
Quickly, I scanned the remaining members of the Aegis Special Forces. Four men in the room, one at each wall.
Tied up in the room were myself, Godhand who had been subdued and was lying on the floor, and Burnout.
I locked eyes with Godhand. Groaning in pain just moments ago, he formed a subtle lip motion as our eyes met.
'Bodybag.'
Of course.
The current Shadow Squad consisted of three members: Metal Manipulator Godhand, Explosive Archer Burnout, and Telekinetic Bodybag.
Godhand and Burnout had been captured, but Bodybag wasn't here... meaning she wasn't captured and was observing the situation from outside.
'There's a chance.'
I took a deep breath and waited for a few moments. Until Mason had left the house and was far enough away.
About ten minutes later, I felt it was time. I lifted my head.
Alright, let's get started.
"Hey, can you loosen these restraints a bit?"
I whined, looking at the Aegis Special Forces members who were keeping watch over me.
"They're too tight; it hurts this Prince's arms. If you take this off, I can use my magic power, and it will be more comfortable."
I was practically talking to Godhand, signaling for him to handle the restraints.
The squad members exchanged uneasy glances.
"Captain, it seems like the hostage is trying to wake up from the hypnosis."
"Let's blindfold him again."
Mason's lieutenant, their captain, picked up a cloth bag to put over my head again. I frowned.
"Hey, you really gonna put that on me? You sure you can handle the consequences later? You know I'll remember your face, right?"
"..."
The captain broke into a sweat but continued to approach me. Just as he was about to put the bag over my head, I yelled.
"Now!"
"?!"
Then, from outside, a whooshing sound signaled something flying toward us.
Boom!
One of the walls completely shattered, sending large fragments flying into the room.
They were pieces of building debris thrown in by Bodybag using his telekinesis. Seems like there was plenty of that lying around in this ruined village.
The fallen wall's debris crushed one of the Aegis Special Forces members who had been standing there.
"Ahhhh!"
"What's going on?!"
"It's an ambush!"
In the split second that the Aegis Special Forces members were distracted, Burnout silently stood up, pulled his gag off with one swift motion, and—
"Aaaaah!"
—spewed fire from his mouth.
So that's why he was always gagged.
"Ahhh!"
The captain, engulfed in flames, screamed as he rolled on the ground, setting the room ablaze.
Even if they were part of the Aegis Special Forces, with building debris being bombed from outside and someone breathing fire from the inside, chaos was inevitable.
Simultaneously, Godhand sprung to his feet and transformed his arm into a blade.
His hands were metal prosthetics... and Godhand was a metal alchemist.
It was as if he had been carrying emergency weapons in his hands from the beginning.
"Your Highness!"
Godhand, who had rushed toward me, swung his blade effortlessly.
Swoosh!
My restraints were severed in an instant, and the moment the magic seal tied to the restraints disappeared, magic power flowed back into me.
"Ah, this chilling yet heavy sensation. It's been a while."
I muttered as I stood up from my spot.
"The long period of humiliation and persecution... was a bitter cup to drink. Thank you, Godhand."
I glared at two special agents who were belatedly rushing in.
"You two there!"
Our eyes met.
And when eyes meet?
[Gaze of Command] activation condition met!
"Jump in place 10 times!"
Flash!
[Command Difficulty: Easy]
[Comparing the user's Intelligence stat to the target's Magic Power stat.]
[Deciding the success rate. Rolling for resistance...]
Ding!
[Evaluation Complete!]
>Success: 2 bodies
[Executing forced command.]
A resounding success!
The two agents immediately and diligently began jumping in place.
Before they could complete ten jumps, Godhand and Bodybag charged in, knocking both their jaws clean off.
I growled as I kicked the two agents who had fallen flat on the ground.
"Screwed up the last count, didn't you? Have you not learned to start over if you mess up, you bastards? Huh?"
Acting all cocky, I suddenly doubled over with a throbbing headache. Ugh!
"Damn, nosebleed…"
But there's no time to be a crybaby about this. I quickly wiped away the nosebleed with the back of my hand.
At that moment, an elf with plump cheeks rolled in through the broken wall from outside. It was Bodybag, who had bombarded the ruins from the outside.
"I apologize for being late!"
"I survived thanks to you, Bodybag!"
"Your Highness! Be careful! There are more agents outsi... Ahhh!"
Thud thud thud!
Before Bodybag could finish her sentence, arrows rained down through the broken wall.
Those outside had indiscriminately shot crossbows at us. What lunatics!
Godhand, who had pulled me behind cover, clenched his teeth.
"There are many of them! I took down four, so at least ten must remain!"
I could hear footsteps rushing toward the closed door. I clenched my teeth. We were completely surrounded!
'Any means of escape?'
Godhand and Burnout were injured. Bodybag had just used her telekinesis, and it would take time for her cooldown to reset.
And me... I'm in terrible shape after foolishly overusing my magic power.
My head throbbed so much it was hard to keep my eyes open. My consciousness was fading.
- Big bro, you're really amazing. How did you manage to do this?
Images I didn't want to remember,
- Mom will always be by your side.
floated up in my mind, clouding it.
Grit!
I clenched my teeth and tried to regain my focus. Get a grip, RetroAddict! Should've exercised more, Ash!
'The situation's a mess, but it's still okay!'
I still have some useful items in my inventory. Gasping for breath, I reached into my pocket and...
Beep.
[The player's existence is currently uncertain.]
[System use is not possible.]
"...?"
What the hell is this now? Shit! Why all of a sudden?
A bright red message box appeared before my eyes, displaying that absurd message. What's this about an "uncertain existence"?
No matter how much I fumbled around, my hand only skimmed an empty pocket. I couldn't open my inventory.
Damn it! This is why you should always carry cash as well!
Thud thud thud!
"Your Highness! Ugh!"
Another volley of arrows rained down through the broken wall, and this time, Godhand, who had shielded me, took arrows in his back and shoulder.
Bodybag desperately fought back with telekinesis, and Burnout continued to return fire with the stolen crossbow even with a burnt mouth.
Everyone was putting up a fight, but the disparity in numbers and firepower was glaring.
A heavy thudding noise began emanating from the door we had barricaded. If that door opened, and the enemies stormed in...
That's when it happened.
"Huh?"
"What the... Argh?!"
"Enemy reinforcements– Aaah!"
Crunch! Thump!
A dull bursting noise echoed from outside the door, and the special forces aiming to enter went silent.
We looked at each other, puzzled. What just happened?
Crash!
The next moment, the door shattered into pieces, and,
"My Lord!"
A knight with a tin helmet burst in, his aura as overwhelming as a tank.
"Are you unharmed, my Lord?"
"Lucas!"
Our faces brightened at the appearance of our reinforcements.
"Classic Lucas! You came to rescue us!"
Lucas then awkwardly scratched the back of his tin helmet.
"No, I've reached my limit too..."
Through the cracks in his damaged armor, we saw Lucas's chest soaked in blood and poorly bandaged.
Fresh wounds were scattered all over his body, and the wooden sword he held was snapped in half.
"I managed to crack the heads of about three of them while making my way in, but that's it."
Lucas calmly stated his condition.
"Each and every one of them is formidable. It will be tough to hold them off any longer."
"..."
"Moreover, all the outside security forces are converging here. And Mason has probably sensed something is off and is on his way."
I gritted my teeth quietly.
If Lucas was saying this, then were we really out of options?
That's when Lucas picked up something from the floor.
"...However, my Lord. There is one way."
It was the bag they tried to put over my head.
Holding the bag, Lucas softly said,
"Do you trust me and leave it to me?"
Was it my imagination?
Although obscured by the tin helmet...
Through the gaps, it seemed like Lucas's eyes were faintly smiling.
***
"What the hell happened?"
A short while later, Mason, who hurried back, growled at his subordinates.
"I told you to handle everything as quietly as possible. If we cause this much commotion, the troops from Crossroad might even come rushing!"
One of the special agents standing guard outside reported.
"A knight and a mage broke in from outside, attempting to rescue the prince."
"What happened then?"
"Four guarding the room were killed, and three outside were severely wounded. The squad leader is also dead."
Among the neatly laid corpses, Mason saw his scorched special forces' squad leader.
He was the only guy with some brains among the dumb muscle in the special forces Team 1... Mason clenched his teeth as the agent continued the explanation.
"As you can see, one wall of the hideout has completely collapsed and is no longer functional..."
"Skip that, you idiot! What about the prince!"
Mason yelled, and the agent pointed inside the room.
"He's in there."
"What?"
"The prince is still there while the others escaped. We didn't pursue further after confirming that he was still there..."
Unable to comprehend, Mason looked inside the room.
It was true. Ash was still there.
Bound to the chair, slumped over, with a bag over his head, he was sitting quietly.
The agent added,
"He might not have been able to move because the hypnosis hasn't fully worn off yet?"
"..."
Staring at Ash, Mason's eyes narrowed.
"...Hold on."
"Yes?"
"Doesn't the prince seem to have grown taller?"
Mason clenched his fist tightly.
"Did you check?"
"Huh? Check what?"
"Did you check his face, I said."
"Only captains and above have the authority to approach the Imperial Prince..."
Cutting off the incomplete reply of the agent, Mason gritted his teeth and walked briskly towards Ash.
Whoosh!
As Ash removed the bag covering his head—
Between the disheveled blonde hair, a pair of smiling blue eyes appeared.
"Hello, Mason."
It wasn't Ash.
It was Lucas.
Ash and Lucas had swapped clothes and armor, exchanged their head coverings, and while Ash had escaped, Lucas remained as a stand-in.
"...Haha."
With a resigned laugh, Mason raised his fist high above his head,
Whack-!
And swung it violently, striking the agent next to him.
Thud! Crash!
The agent flew like a broken puppet and slammed into the wall, unable to move any further.
"Falling for such a pathetic trick..."
With a face sinking into despair, Mason sighed deeply as he glanced at the agent who'd met his demise.
"Must be the side effects of the Beast Transformation Serum; I can't control my anger."
Turning his venomous gaze towards Lucas, Mason revealed his beast-like fangs.
"You must have stayed because you think you can handle this rage, eh, sir?"
Lucas only responded with a sly smile.
Above that knight's face, Mason's fist descended with a resounding crash.