Lane, you okay?

　Stella came running in late.
　Stella must have seen the instant death magic in the distance as well.
　She had a look of impatience on her face...
　He let out a small exhale of relief when he saw that I was okay.

'I'm nothing,'
Well that's good. I'm really glad.

　When I looked, the other knights were restraining and capturing the fallen lord's private soldiers.
　However, there were more than a hundred of them, and this one was five.
　It wasn't possible to capture them all at once, and it was taking a long time.

''Will it take some time over there?''
''Well as expected, with this number of people we're dealing with, even if we've neutralized them, it won't be easy, it will take an hour or two.''
'We can't give them that much time, can we?
''Mm, I agree with you. Therefore, I'm going to leave this place to my men and I'm going to raid the mansion and secure the lords. Because unless we catch the culprit, it will all be in vain.
We'll help you.
'I knew Rain would say that. I'm counting on you.
Yeah, I'm on it.
Nya ... aren't you two getting along?
Maybe he's a surprisingly ambush....
Hmm. I don't think we should be sitting on our hands.
No, it's not...

　Even in times like these, everyone was the same as usual.
　They seemed to have a lot of heart, which in turn made me feel more confident.

Let's go!




----------



　We rushed into the entrance hall of the museum.
　It was so large that it was hard to believe it was a single individual building.
　It was large enough to accommodate a small group of people for sports.

　On either side of the back of the room, stairs extended to the second floor.
　Part of it was a vaulted ceiling, and I could see all the way to the third floor.

''Ha.''

　In front of the door leading to the back of the building, several men could be seen.
　There were six of them.
　All of them had their armaments at the ready, and had already shifted to a state of readiness for battle.

　And behind them.........
　The lord's son I saw in the town square before........Edgar.
　Next to him, I see an obese man.
　Perhaps he is the lord of the city.

"Wait!

　Stella raised her voice.

'There's no point in putting up any more resistance. It's not hard to see that much, is it?　Quietly accept our, the Order's, audit!
The little girl ... barking like a dog!
Who do you think you are?　I'm the lord of this city. You should be accused of treason for turning on your lord. You will know your sins!
Apparently, you don't speak the language. Then we'll have to enforce it!
You're kidding me!　You can't admit such a thing, man!
'Yes, yes, I know. You can rest assured that I will work my way through the rewards.

　The leader of the mercenaries shrugged his shoulders.
　He was dismayed by the lord's unseemly attitude.
　Still, they wouldn't back down.
　As long as they are being paid, they will do their job well.
　That's what being a mercenary is all about.

''And so...''

　The man who was the leader stepped forward.

'We can't let you go to your husband, can we? It's going to be a cliché line but if you want to get through here, you're going to have to deal with us.

　A moment later, the wind blew through.

　No it's not the wind.
　It's the fighting air emitted from the men.
　You can even feel the pressure of the fighting air, and you naturally get ready for it.

　However, it's nothing more than that.
　I've fought Arios before, and I've had a good number of occasions to do so.
　There's no need to be cowed by this level now.

　The same goes for everyone else.
　The name of the most powerful species isn't cool.

Yeah.

　However, Stella was different.
　Pressed by the pressure released by the men, she stepped back slightly.

　It was probably due to the fatigue of having been in command and fighting for so long.
　It might not be a good idea for Stella to clash with those guys now.

'Stella, can you let us take care of things here?
'Wha... what are you talking about?　There's no way you can do that!
'The last thing I need is for something to happen to Stella. We'll have no one to hold the Order together.
It's...
'You're tired, aren't you?　It's not a good idea to be reckless.
M.....
Isn't trusting people and letting them take charge one of the things Stella does?
''Well that's not fair, Rain. You're going to have to back down when you say that.

　Stella put her sword away.

'I just want you to promise me,'
Yeah?
Lane and the others don't do anything rash. It doesn't matter if we're all safe. Do you understand?
Yeah, I know.
I'm sorry, sir.

　Stella steps back.
　But she's still reaching for the hilt of her sword.
　If we're in a pinch, he's going to join us without hesitation.
　We'll have to be careful not to let that happen.

'Kanade. Take Nina to Tania.
Yes.
What? I killed her?

　Puzzled, Tania held Nina in her arms.

'Tania, I'll need Nina's protection and Stella's escort, just in case.
Uh... why me?　I thought I could go wild.

　Kanade, who specializes in physics, is weak when used with magic.
　On the other hand, Sora and Luna, who specialize in magic, are weak when they are attacked by physics.
　Therefore, Tania, who is in between, has the best balance.

Please. Tania is the best.
Hmmm I'm the best. That's one way of putting it, the reliable one, right?
'Of course. I want to leave you two in charge because Tania is so dependable.
It's not bad to be relied upon. Mmm-hmm. I'll let you do your thing.
Thank you, Nina. Nina, I've got your sister here to protect you this time. I just want you to know that you are in good hands.
Hmmm.

　He patted Nina's head and narrowed his eyes ticklingly.
　However, she doesn't seem to be disgusted, and she smiles.

I'm not going to be able to get rid of it. You can go ahead and flaunt it, everyone.

　Tania steps back as she speaks of such things.
　Tania and Nina are watching.
　More and more, they have a reason not to lose.

'Is the consultation over?'

　The man who was the leader of the mercenaries asked with a laugh.

''You're so disciplined to bother waiting for me, aren't you?
We're not gonna do anything stupid. It's part of our job to buy time. You can keep talking about this for as long as you want.
That's not going to happen. You don't mind if I throw your job away, do you?
That guy can't do it. You know what I mean?

　The man in charge sneered.
　I laugh back.

'Then it's settled.'
Yeah. I guess we should get started.

　The killing spirit of the leader swells up.
　If it were an ordinary person, that alone would frighten him and make him faint.
　It's going to be a nasty battle.
　Remembering the feeling of a fierce battle I took a step to break the fire of the battle.