Ch.288Chapter 288 – The Resistance Mountain Fortress (1)

It had been about three days since we started tracking Beatrice.

While driving the carriage toward where Beatrice was, we stopped briefly and settled in a suitable spot.

“So it’s my turn now.”

“Please.”

Vanilla nodded at my words.

She had returned to her dark elf form, probably because there were no prying eyes around except for us.

Soon she began using magic, and after a moment, she nodded and pointed in one direction.

“That mountain over there. From what I can tell, those resistance fighters have some kind of mountain fortress there too.”

“You were able to detect that as well?”

“Of course.”

Vanilla nodded at Sera’s question.

She grinned and said:

“I combined the previous search magic with far-sight magic and a few other things to figure it all out in one go. I’m certain.”

“It’s good that we won’t need to do as much reconnaissance.”

At Eve’s words, Vanilla placed her hands on her hips and thrust her chest out slightly, as if asking for more praise.

Chris ignored her slightly emphasized chest and the uncomfortable glance it drew from Kriss as she looked at Sia and spoke:

“Should we head there right away?”

“That seems best.”

Sia nodded and then looked at me as she spoke:

“Since this is resistance territory, if we delay too long, we might be mistaken for enemies.”

“And Beatrice might notice us first and run.”

While we could track her secretly from a distance, once we got closer, Beatrice might detect us.

If we wasted time on preparations, we might lose our chance entirely.

“Can just the two of us go?”

“We have Vanilla and Gigas too. That should be safe enough.”

Sia was counting the demon folk as allies even though they were essentially prisoners.

‘Well, that’s not exactly wrong…’

During our time traveling together, the boundaries between us had blurred considerably.

Still, it was worth considering whether we should leave without people who could reliably subdue those two if needed.

While I was contemplating whether Sia and I should risk going quickly by ourselves, a suggestion came:

“You and I can go together, White Dragon. Vanilla can stay here.”

Gigas, in the form of a young boy, pointed at me as he spoke.

So Sia would watch Vanilla, and I would keep an eye on Gigas.

Eve carefully spoke up:

“You mean you?”

“Yes. When it comes to physical strength, I’m second to none. I can definitely pull my weight.”

Gigas struck a pose as if showing off his strength, though in his child-like form it looked more like playful antics.

“And if the White Dragon comes along, I can’t try anything funny. The moment I try to transform, the White Dragon would take my head off.”

“No one said you would betray us.”

When Eve spoke cautiously, Gigas snickered.

“I appreciate the trust, unlike when we first met. Anyway, compared to Vanilla who’s a mage and needs protection, I’m a frontliner, so it would be less burden on the White Dragon if I go.”

“I need protection?”

“More than I do, Miss Mage.”

Vanilla glared slightly, but Gigas deflected it casually.

Still, she seemed to acknowledge the difference between a frontline fighter and a mage, nodding slightly.

“Then we’ll be back soon, so wait for us.”

At my words, Eve’s face darkened slightly.

Meanwhile, Kriss approached me with a smile.

“I’ll be waiting for good news.”

“Sure.”

I immediately turned and ran in the direction Vanilla had indicated.

I put more strength into my legs as I saw Gigas following closely behind me.

+

‘Kei…’

Eve stared at the forest path where Kei had run off.

Various thoughts crossed her mind.

However, she couldn’t organize those thoughts for long.

“Eve, do you have a moment?”

“What is it, Seraphina?”

Looking to the side, she saw Sera watching her.

And Sera carefully asked Eve:

“Have you been worried about something lately, Eve?”

“Worried?”

“Yes, worried.”

At Sera’s words, Eve almost let her face crumble, but quickly composed herself.

The poker face she had cultivated as a merchant wouldn’t break so easily.

“I’m just tired. I’ll feel better after some rest.”

“That’s a lie.”

However, Sera had already seen through her.

With an unusually sharp expression, Sera quietly asked:

“We’ve been together for quite some time now. It would be sad if you thought we couldn’t read your face.”

“I suppose so.”

I can’t fool her after all.

Eve nodded with a slight sense of embarrassment.

And Sera continued:

“So will you explain? Why your face darkens whenever we try to get closer to Beatrice.”

She had indeed grasped the situation accurately.

Eve gave a bitter smile.

“I don’t think you’ll understand even if I tell you.”

“Please tell me anyway. Why did your expression darken?”

Seeing Sera’s unwavering resolve, Eve fell into thought again.

‘Perhaps I should keep hiding it…’

Eve thought this, then looked at Sera’s face again.

And she realized:

‘…This is practically a matter of Kei’s life.’

She and Sera were essentially competitors for the same thing.

But they could trust each other on one point.

‘Both she and I. We both care for Kei.’

Of course, they weren’t the only ones, but Eve and Sera could act for Kei’s sake.

Which meant, if it concerned Kei’s life…

‘There’s no better ally than her.’

Having made her decision, Eve looked at Sera.

“Seraphina.”

“Yes.”

“…Listen carefully. Actually…”

Eve quietly began to share what she had seen in the future.

And Sera’s face began to turn pale.

+

As I ran through the mountains, I quietly thought to myself.

‘Eve has been acting strange.’

She was fine normally, but recently her face would darken whenever Beatrice was mentioned—I had noticed that much already.

The question was, of course, why.

I had casually asked Eve about it a few times on our way here.

Of course, each time she smiled and avoided answering, so I hadn’t figured out the cause by the time we arrived.

‘It would be better if she just told me the truth.’

Or perhaps she didn’t want me to worry because of her concerns?

While I was pondering what to think, a voice came from beside me.

“…You’re rushing to find your woman, but you’re thinking about the girlfriends you left guarding the carriage?”

“What?”

I responded, dumbfounded by Gigas’s words.

The small boy snickered and said:

“Focus on what’s in front of you. If you really want, I can tell you a good way to find out your girlfriend’s secrets.”

“What is it?”

Curious to hear what he had to say, I asked, and Gigas made an expression too lewd for a boy as he replied:

“Push her down on the bed, whisper that you love her in her ear. That solves almost everything. Going further makes it even more certain.”

“This kid has no filter.”

Should he be saying such things in a child’s form?

Then I realized:

‘That’s right, he’s a demon.’

There was no guarantee that demons’ appearances matched their ages.

Just looking at Sia, who’s half-demon—she appears to be around Eve’s age, but judging by her speech and mannerisms, she’s likely much older.

In other words, Gigas probably just looks like a boy but knows far more than he should.

‘Well, he’s not wrong that I should focus on what’s in front of me.’

While I’m worried about Eve’s recent behavior, Beatrice takes priority right now.

I needed to focus on how to meet her and bring her back from the resistance.

Refocusing, I put more strength into my legs, and Gigas seemed satisfied as he increased his speed as well.

Soon he shouted:

“There it is! Looks like Vanilla didn’t do a half-hearted job.”

Gigas pointed at the wooden palisade ahead of us.

“So, what’s the plan? Are we going to resolve this through dialogue?”

“If possible, yes.”

I quietly replied while looking at Gigas.

I have no intention of fighting the resistance here.

“If they’re willing to think the same way.”

As he spoke, something whizzed past us.

While calmly looking at the arrow that had embedded itself in the ground, a voice called out:

“Halt, halt! Move and we’ll shoot!”

“You shoot first and then say that?”

Though I grumbled, I knew that neither Gigas nor I had been the intended target.

If they had meant to hit us, I would have moved to block it immediately.

Still, they had shot, so I was complaining quietly when someone appeared on top of the palisade.

Looking at the man wearing leather armor with some kind of emblem on his shoulder guard, I spoke quietly.

He was holding a long bow in his arm.

“An archer.”

“What knight are you?”

Though he wore leather armor, the emblem on his guard suggested he belonged to a notable organization.

Gigas snickered and said:

“After fighting elves, honestly, archers from other races just seem laughable.”

Gigas shuddered slightly while stroking his body.

Perhaps he was reacting that way because he had been badly beaten by Pine in Albheim.

Meanwhile, the archer on the palisade shouted:

“Two unidentified individuals! What’s your purpose here?”

“I’ve come to find someone!”

I answered immediately, and the archer paused.

He tilted his head slightly as if wondering what I was talking about.

I stepped forward and shouted:

“I’ve come to meet Beatrice! Open the gate!”

“Who’s Beatrice?”

“Don’t play dumb! I know she came here! If you don’t know, call Domestica or Princess Gabriella!”

I said this thinking that even if I didn’t know whether those two were here, the archer would at least recognize their names.

Soon the archer shouted angrily:

“Whatever your purpose is, I can’t let you in!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Gigas and I moved simultaneously.

Gigas swung his arm, and I swung my sword.

With a metallic sound, the arrow fell to the ground.

Then the archer shouted:

“What did I say wrong?”

“No idea.”

Gigas and I responded calmly.

Then Gigas spoke again:

“Maybe we mentioned the name of someone they’re sensitive about.”

“…Princess Gabriella.”

Come to think of it, there was a bounty on Princess Gabriella.

Mentioning her name might have been a mistake.

“Well, I don’t think you made a big mistake—the other side is just overreacting.”

“I need to calm them down first.”

I felt I needed to clear up the misunderstanding.

Deflecting an arrow aimed at my head with my sword, I switched my weapon to a greatsword.

Then Gigas and I started running toward the palisade.

The archer immediately began shooting arrows, which I deflected using the greatsword as a shield.

But the archer continued firing arrows relentlessly, as if determined not to give up.

“Ah, can’t be helped!”

Gigas, who had been taking arrows with his body, shouted with a hint of irritation.

He approached me and called out:

“Fly up and take him down. Got it?”

I didn’t understand what he meant at first.

But the moment Gigas grabbed my body, I realized his intention.

The archer’s arrows started flying again, and Gigas, taking the arrows with his body, shouted:

“Go, White Dragon!”

With that, my body was launched into the air.

I immediately hid behind the greatsword to block the arrows.

I felt impacts on the greatsword a few times, but that was all.

I flew toward the palisade like a projectile.

“Damn it!”

The archer shouted in surprise.

And the moment I landed on the palisade:

“No choice!”

I saw the opponent throwing himself backward.

I quickly peered over the palisade to pursue him, and—

As soon as I heard the sound of air being cut, I swiftly changed my weapon to a sword and brought it in front of my helmet.

-Clang!

-Thud!

I heard the sound of an arrow glancing off the sword and something heavy falling.

It seemed the archer had nocked an arrow while throwing himself backward.

“Gutsy one.”

I hadn’t expected him to gamble by targeting my head instead of ensuring a safe landing.

He might not be a simple archer but perhaps one of the resistance’s skilled fighters.

‘But he lost the gamble.’

It was a gamble made with the intention of eliminating me somehow, but it failed when I reacted.

Thinking it wouldn’t be difficult to subdue him, I launched myself over the palisade and landed, seeing the archer staggering to his feet.

The archer moved first.

“Here I come!”

Being too close for archery, he drew a knife and swung it at me.

Despite staggering from the impact, his movements were quite precise.

I immediately changed my weapon to a staff and swung it.

Aiming for his legs.

The opponent reacted to the attack.

“This much…!”

He jumped to avoid the staff aimed at his legs.

When I quickly recovered the staff and thrust it like a spear, he pushed it away with his knife to keep it from touching his body.

Then he pulled on the knife while moving closer to me.

He seemed to be trying to close the distance quickly since he was at a disadvantage in reach.

“This close…!”

“I appreciate it.”

There was no need to change weapons.

I simply extended my arm and grabbed the wrist of the hand holding the knife.

The man’s eyes widened, and his arm began to tremble as he apparently tried to break free.

“Sorry, but I’m not interested in a test of strength.”

Without releasing my grip, I lifted the man and slammed him backward.

“Gah!”

The man coughed and sprawled on the ground.

The knife he dropped flew into the air from the impact.

I caught the knife and held it to the throat of the man who couldn’t get up from the ground.

“Checkmate.”

“Kuh…!”

I saw the man’s face contort.

I quickly lifted him up and held the knife closer to his throat.

Then I addressed the gathering resistance fighters:

“Stop right there. If you shoot carelessly, this man becomes a pincushion.”

I held the captured man toward the archers among the gathered soldiers.

As the soldiers and I faced off, the man I was holding began to shout loudly:

“…The enemy is just one person! Forget about me and use your numerical advantage to…!”

“Actually, I’m not alone.”

-BOOM!

As I muttered this, there was a loud noise from the palisade right on cue.

Soon the gate of the palisade began to be torn away, and Gigas could be seen casually walking in after throwing the gate—several times his height—behind him.

“What kind of kid…!”

“So, it’s pretty obvious your small fry won’t cut it. What will you do?”

When I quietly asked the man I was holding, he gritted his teeth.

Just as I was about to state my demands to the gathered soldiers:

“Wait! Please stop the fighting!”

A familiar female voice was heard.

The soldiers, though hesitant, began to lower their weapons, suggesting she held a fairly high position. The eyes of the man I was holding widened.

“How are you…!”

“Well, this is a familiar face.”

Ignoring the captured archer, I addressed the newly appeared woman.

After briefly showing a complicated expression, she formally greeted me.

“We meet again.”

“Indeed we do.”

I casually accepted Domestica’s greeting.

Then I glared at her and asked:

“I’m here to find our runaway child. Where is she?”

Domestica quietly averted her gaze.