On August 9, Jin and his companions left Hotel Lenore.
"So, Jin, what's the plan?" Sion asked, her face etched with suspicion.
It was a reasonable question. The town of Loloon, where they were currently located, was over seventy kilometers away from Genfu in a straight line. There was no way a horse-drawn carriage could catch up to an escorted prisoner convoy.
"Ah, don't worry about that. How we’ll do it is a secret. You haven't told us everything yet, have you? We have our secrets too. Please understand. Regardless, I will definitely rescue your sister."
"...Fine. I understand."
This time, Jin had no intention of getting personally involved. There was the risk of being recognized, and more importantly, there was no need for him to put himself in danger. His immediate plan was simply to return to the Klein Kingdom from the Kingdom of Franz.
They arrived at the border checkpoint following the same route they had taken previously. After a standard inspection and confirmation, Jin once again greased a few palms, allowing them to pass through without a hitch. On the Klein Kingdom side, Jin’s certificate worked perfectly, just as it had before.
"I can't decide if this certificate is just that powerful or if their oversight is just that lax," Jin mused to himself.
At 1:00 PM that same day, in the Kingdom of Franz, at a point midway between the towns of Sanfoze and Genfu.
There were no houses nearby, only an endless forest of conifers. The highway, about five meters wide, snaked its way north and south. Since it was unpaved, clouds of dust kicked up with every step.
Ten soldiers and two knights advanced, surrounding a covered carriage.
"Less than ten kilometers to go. We’ll be there in two hours."
"Yeah, I'll finally be able to say good riddance to these damn demons."
"Once we hit Genfu, what do you say we head out to a brothel?"
The escorting soldiers chatted casually as they walked alongside the carriage carrying the cage. Suddenly, they were interrupted.
"Halt!"
Five suspicious figures appeared on the road ahead.
"Bandits?"
"Idiots. We aren't carrying anything valuable."
However, the figures were not bandits.
"I take it this is the escort vehicle for the demons," the leader said. "Hand them over."
"What? Who the hell are you?"
"Let’s just say we are enemies of the demon race. Now, hand them over quietly."
The man who appeared to be the leader stepped forward. His face was hidden beneath a hooded robe, but the breastplate he wore underneath was partially visible.
"That crest...? Is he... someone connected to the royal family of the Celuroa Kingdom?" the knight muttered, stepping forward with a look of doubt. "We are transporting them on official business. We cannot hand them over. If you interfere any further, we will be forced to remove you. Stand aside immediately."
"Interesting! Let's see you try!" one of the leader's companions shouted provocatively.
However, the man at the front remained calm. "Very well. If you will not hand them over, then we shall simply condemn you right here."
Before the words had even finished leaving his mouth, the ten soldiers and two knights collapsed on the spot without making a sound.
"『This is Regulus 41. Targets for processing are unconscious.』"
"『This is Sky 1. Confirmed: no human presence within a two-kilometer radius.』"
『Laojun acknowledged. Confirm the protection targets.』
"『Regulus 41, Roger.』"
Regulus 41 approached the transport carriage and carefully pulled back the cover.
"『Targets confirmed.』"
Inside the cage sat two members of the demon race who appeared to be seventeen or eighteen years old, both lying unconscious.
"『Trans Info.』"
Regulus 41 activated a magic tool Jin had entrusted to him.
"...『Trans Info』 malfunction. Determined to be of the demon race."
Because they couldn't bring Sion and the others along to identify them by sight, they used another characteristic of the demon race to confirm their identity: the fact that Trans Info would not work on them, yielding only unreadable, meaningless data.
『Sky 1, descend as scheduled.』
"『Sky 1, Roger. Falcon 1, descending.』"
The VTOL Falcon 1 touched down.
Regulus 41 searched the bodies of the fallen knights, found the key to the cage, and unlocked it. Regulus 42 and 43 carried the two demons out, while Regulus 44 and 45 moved dummy dolls prepared in advance into the cage in their place.
The unconscious demons were handled with extreme care, with a Magi-Jammer kept aimed at them just in case. They were sent through Falcon 1’s Warp Gate directly to Nidou Castle.
At the castle, twenty Army golems stood guard as the prisoners were laid out in a guest room on the second floor.
『Commence final processing.』
On Laojun’s orders, oil was poured over the carriage and ignited. The wooden vehicle went up in flames instantly. The unconscious soldiers were moved to a safe distance to ensure they wouldn't be burned.
Eventually, the fire died down, leaving nothing but ashes and the iron cage. Inside the cage were two objects that resembled charred corpses—in reality, they were dummy remains crafted from magical beast materials. Since they were mostly ash and charcoal, it would be nearly impossible to identify them as fakes.
『That should suffice. Withdraw.』
The Regulus units used the Warp Gate on Falcon 1 to return to Hourai Island, from where they would transfer back to their respective posts. Meanwhile, Falcon 1 took off and set a course for Hourai Island while remaining Invisible.
『They should have noticed the crest. It will be for the best if they believe someone connected to the Celuroa royal family was involved. Even if they don't, it won't be an issue.』
The breastplate worn by Regulus 41 had been intentionally engraved with a crest very similar to that of the Celuroa royal family to sow confusion.
After driving the carriage slightly north from Stolsk, a border town in the Klein Kingdom, Jin located the airship managed by Steward.
"Good work, Steward. All right, let's head back to Kaina Village."
"Ji—Jin, wait! Are you really just going home without doing anything?" Sion asked, her face flushed with frustration.
"Eh? We got the information, didn't we?"
"What do you mean 'we got it'?! All we did was listen!"
Jin laughed and tried to soothe her. "It's fine. For now, I'm going to save your sister and her guard. Just leave it to me."
"Ugh... You're serious about this, right?"
"Yeah. That’s why we need to hurry home."
"I don't see how that’s a 'that's why,' but..."
Despite her confusion, the group boarded the airship. Following their original route in reverse, they arrived at Nidou Castle in about two hours. Due to the one-hour time difference, it was approximately 2:00 PM.
Almost simultaneously, Istalis and Netros arrived at the castle.
"Welcome home, Jin-sama," Barrow greeted him. "It seems some guests arrived in the second-floor guest room a short while ago. We were informed that Jin-sama had left instructions that we weren't required to attend to them, so we don't know their condition. Is that all right?"
"Oh, right. That’s fine. The timing was perfect. Barrow, you and Belle are not to enter that guest room until I give the word."
"Yes, I understand."
Sion and Lucas were completely lost, but Elsa was not surprised. She had a good idea of what Laojun had executed based on Jin’s instructions.
"Sion, Lucas, just follow me. You'll see soon enough."
Jin walked quickly toward the stairs, accompanied by Reiko. Sion and Lucas hurried after them.
Reiko opened the door to the second-floor guest room, with Jin standing just behind her. Reiko had insisted on this arrangement, refusing to let Jin enter first until his safety was assured.
"Welcome back, Master," Land 1 greeted them. He had been standing watch over the two demons lying on futons.
"Sister!"
Seeing the demons, Sion let out a loud cry and rushed into the room, clinging to the unconscious woman.
"How... Why!?"
Her voice was thick with a thousand questions. After glancing back at Jin, she stared at her sister and began to weep.
"She looks a lot like Sion," Jin noted.
The woman, presumably Istalis, had silver hair identical to Sion's and exceptionally pale skin. The man, likely Netros, had dark brown hair and dark skin, similar to Lucas.
"Are they still out because of the drugs, or is it..."
Jin swallowed the rest of the sentence—because of the Paralyzer. Land 1, understanding his meaning, answered immediately.
"I believe it is both, Master."
In that case, it was Elsa’s turn.
"All right, Elsa, I'll leave the Diagnose and treatment to you."
"Okay."
Elsa stepped forward, gently pulling Sion away from Istalis. She pulled back the futon to begin her examination.
"Eh!..."
"This is horrible..."
"Si... Sister..."
Istalis was clad in nothing but scraps of cloth that barely qualified as clothing. Her exposed skin was a map of dark blue bruises and wounds crusted with dried blood.
She had clearly been tortured.