Reincarnated Devil's Strongest Hero Training Plan ~The baby he picked up has grown up so well that his father is confused~ - Chapter 78
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- Chapter 78 - Calm before the storm
Reincarnated Devil’s Strongest Hero Training Plan ~The baby he picked up has grown up so well that his father is confused~
Chapter 78 Calm before the storm
“Damn it!”
“I can’t believe Amanda…”
Just a few minutes after Amanda was abducted in the attack at the tavern’s ground floor, in a room at the inn attached to it, the two men, having heard the whole course of events from Hades, twisted their faces in frustration and clenched their fists.
Especially Gaius, infuriated by his own incompetence, being drunk at a crucial moment, had eyes bloodshot with an expression of fury that was unlike his usual serious and gentle demeanor.
They couldn’t forgive themselves for letting Amanda, a woman they both respected and cherished, fall into the hands of the enemy.
Now fully sober from the alcohol and even dispelling drowsiness with Ars’s recovery magic, they were ready to burst out at any moment.
Part of it was also fueled by the knowledge of what might happen to the abducted woman.
“I won’t forgive you bastards… Don’t think you’ll get an easy death.”
The raging fury of this super warrior was not only directed at the target, the Second Prince, but also aimed at the organization itself mentioned in the note, the Dark Guild.
Thanks to the presence of their comrades, they managed to maintain at least a minimum level of rationality, but if Ars were to show any aggressive intent now, Gaius, who was teetering on the edge between reason and emotion, would completely succumb to his anger.
If it comes to that, even if he’s alone, he’ll infiltrate enemy territory and, using any means necessary, will destroy everything, even at great cost. But by doing so, Gaius, outnumbered against even the skilled assassins that the enemy might employ, won’t get off lightly, and above all, his comrades won’t approve of it.
“Hey, calm down. I explained Amanda’s objective, and it’s not the worst-case scenario yet.”
“But…!”
Unable to listen to the opinion of the one who had been the closest among the three remaining members, Gaius, who was infuriated by the situation, couldn’t control his frustration.
Understandable as his feelings were, it was crucial for the eldest member of the team to remain the calmest in such situations. Moreover, letting emotions run wild at this juncture wouldn’t benefit anyone.
Knowing this well, Ars, who usually never stopped smiling, adopted a stern expression and scolded his companions.
“But, that’s not it, Gaius. This is a problem we all need to tackle together. Especially now, we can’t have anyone acting on their own. If you go off the rails here, I’m sorry, but you’ll just be a hindrance to rescuing Amanda. Stay in your room and get some rest.”
“What!? …Yeah, you’re right. I see. My apologies, Ars. I got a little carried away there.”
With Ars decisively stating the matter, even Gaius, who was usually composed, seemed to feel it, shaking his head slightly to regain his composure.
Yet, the simmering anger in his heart hadn’t diminished, and even now, having regained his composure, there was no intention of showing any restraint towards the Dark Guild.
“Yeah, that seems fine. I got a little worried because it wasn’t like the usual calm Gaius.”
Now then, what should they do next?
With that, Ars first focused on the element of the Dark Guild’s base mentioned in the note.
The note listed several potential locations for their base, with options ranging from if the enemy were royalty, to here, and if the expectation was wrong, then here. This was because in this great kingdom’s capital, there were several guilds of varying sizes, so it was necessary to list several candidates like this.
“Most likely, this is just a brief summary of the information Amanda gathered during this investigation. If the enemy knew she had the information, they would likely move their base, so she left behind decisive evidence here. And this time, the opponent is royalty, specifically the second prince, as she had deduced.”
Though it was only speculation based on the investigation, if this information turned out to be true, the destination to head towards would naturally become clear. Moreover, the fact that the second prince was waiting not in the royal castle but in the underworld guild in the lower town was actually convenient.
If he had holed up in the royal castle, it would have become a much more complicated problem to solve.
“Now that it’s settled, it’s simple. Let’s head out right away, Ars. I owe that assassin as well.”
Despite being taken down once, if it hadn’t been for the fact that Amanda, a human, was the target at that moment, she could have handled it on her own. Therefore, she didn’t seem satisfied with the situation, feeling as if victory had been snatched away from her.
“Yeah, that’s the plan. Besides, the second prince is probably still staying at the underworld guild now. If we’re going to corner him, this is the only chance. Hades and I will use magic to eliminate the surrounding enemies, so I’m counting on you for the rescue itself, Gaius.”
“Got it. Leave it to me.”
The target location was not far from Rulans Castle, in a wealthy district.
And thus, their counterattack, undertaken covertly, began.
◇
“Tch, so that’s how it is. I thought something was off because among the captured individuals there were high-ranking adventurers, but I never imagined they’d use such magical devices to restrain us like this…”
At a facility in a wealthy district near Rulans Castle, the heart of the capital city.
Amanda, who had been abducted to the headquarters of the underworld guild, touched the collar placed around her neck and muttered with a grimace on her face.
What she was concealing was the fact that this collar was a restraining magical tool developed for the purpose of greatly reducing the abilities of the wearer and disrupting their magic. It was one of the kingdom’s best crime-containment magical devices, developed by the most notorious criminals.
Through the special magical circuit emitted by the collar, even an ordinary person would be weakened to the point of being unable to move, and even high-ranking adventurers with strong magic resistance would only be able to exert the strength of an ordinary person.
Even if they were the strongest S-rank adventurers among humans, freely moving around and escaping from the enemy’s stronghold while wearing this equipment would be extremely difficult.
If there were someone who could forcibly break the collar with their strength, they would no longer be human. In theory, it would be possible to neutralize it with magical resistance on the level of a elemental dragon, but humans are not dragons, so that was also impossible.
“Yes. Using that collar, that scoundrel has captured numerous women, using drugs and such to create obedient pets for himself. It’s truly nauseating.”
The dark elf male assassin, Tokoyami, who glanced at Amanda lying restrained on the floor with the collar on, frowned but continued to speak.
“Hmph. You must have noticed that I was pretending to be asleep, right? And this is all just to keep our stories straight, isn’t it? It’s annoying… But, just this once, I’ll play along. After all, they’re probably waiting, aren’t they? For those kids to come.”
“…”
The assaulted and the assailant.
Between the two, there was a strange atmosphere, as if this situation were the prelude to cornering the Second Prince.
It was spoken as if it were part of the plan of the assassin known as Tokoyami.
And then…
“You’ve kept me waiting, Tokoyami. Ah, and there’s the beautiful Amanda the Mirage! Indeed, she’s stunning. With such a fine specimen, she’s more than enough to be an appetizer before taming Twilight. Truly, you are the top man of our country’s esteemed dark guild. I commend you.”
Bound by various conditions through magical contracts due to serving in the espionage division of a great nation, Tokoyami gritted his teeth.
If it weren’t for the prohibitions against falsifying reports to their master, the royal family, or directly harming them, he would have been tempted to sever their heads right now.
But even if direct means of attack were sealed by magic, revenge had already entered its final stage.
It was a gamble, but he couldn’t afford to show any weakness at this opportune moment to eliminate the Second Prince, Freid.
Therefore, Tokoyami nodded quietly, keeping his emotions concealed, and waited for the right moment.
◇
“I’m in trouble! I saw something really bad! When everyone was gone, a lady got kidnapped by a weird man! What are we going to do?”
Switching scenes to the sky above the royal capital.
After being surprised by the sudden attack at the tavern, little angel Mermel forgot that she had secretly followed Ars and instead held a brainstorming session in her mind in the night sky, the way only a little girl could.
The imaginary Mermel A and Mermel B participating in the brainstorming session exchanged opinions and discussed various ideas.
“Hmm… No good. Even with my genius brain, there’s still no answer. Maybe it’s because the lady was kidnapped out of nowhere, and I’m feeling stressed? So, to calm down, let’s start with a campfire.”
However, it seems that even the Mermels existing only in the little girl’s mind couldn’t come up with a solution, so they reached a unanimous decision to have a campfire to calm down.
And so, it was unanimously agreed upon by the imaginary Mermels.
The reason for Mermel’s scattered thoughts wasn’t because of stress, but simply because it was already nighttime, and she was starting to feel sleepy.
Deciding to have a campfire for now, the little angel stumbled upon a fancy but deserted building in the affluent district, and after starting a fire in the courtyard, she smiled contentedly.