The Forest Race Clonne

Chapter 107

Why is the crown prince, who should be in the imperial palace, captured in a place like this?

I understood the situation, but my mind refused to accept it. I wondered if I was hallucinating from the poisonous smoke, but that couldn’t be the case. The more brutal reality always seemed to be the truth.

“Sir Sei.”

I came to my senses after hearing Seimeion’s voice. His tone, tense, made me realize there was more to the situation. Outside, the sound of footsteps echoed.

“…We’ll discuss this later.”

The Crown Prince nodded quietly, seemingly aware of the presence too. As I pressed closer to the door, muffled conversations began to filter through.

“What’s that noise? There’s nothing here, it’s so quiet.”

“I heard it. Something definitely clattered.”

“Is it a rat again? Last time you made a fuss, we ended up in a mess for no reason.”

“Better to be thorough than to be caught off guard. Those guys from the main building were throwing a fit earlier too. If there’s even a minor problem, they’ll go nuts again.”

“Are you scared of them? They’re not even a mouthful to us.”

“Do you think I’m doing this out of fear? It’s because they’re annoying. They keep whining, and we can’t even kill them because of their so-called honor code.”

The footsteps belonged to two men, and from their conversation, it was clear they were members of the Demonic Beasts.

‘Of course, they wouldn’t trust humans to manage a warehouse like this.’

Listening to the approaching sounds, I bit my lip. Pretending to sleep crossed my mind, but the slightly ajar door was a problem. I hadn’t closed it in case it couldn’t be opened from the inside, but for the same reason, I couldn’t risk closing it now. They hadn’t noticed anything yet, but they surely would as they got closer. Everyone who had woken up was also holding their breath.

‘…I might be able to handle one.’

As I warily retrieved my magic sword, ready for anything outside, a familiar voice reached me.

“Is that a sword you just drew?”

The voice came from someone who had approached closer. It was familiar but not the Crown Prince’s. I sighed involuntarily.

“Officer Edmil are you here too?”

“…”

Though always a quiet person, this silence felt different.

He averted his gaze briefly before extending a hand to me.

“May I borrow that sword? I seem to have misplaced mine.”

“Will you be alright? They aren’t human.”

“If they’re not human, then what?”

He asked casually, but then quickly fell silent again, a knowing look crossing his face before I could even respond.

“I still think it would be better if I do it rather than you.”

“…You’re not wrong.”

Swallowing another round of tiresome regret, I cut deeply into my palm and smeared my blood evenly over the blade before handing it to him.

“This will be of more help.”

“…”

After a brief silence, Edmil nodded and accepted the sword.

“Hey, isn’t that door open?”

“What?”

And then, what I had feared happened. The patrolling men finally noticed the open door. But Edmil moved swiftly.

Thunk! Thud! With a sound of piercing flesh, the intruder collapsed without a groan, right as he stepped inside.

“What the…!”

The result for the one following behind wasn’t much different. Edmil immediately moved on to the next target after extracting his sword from the first fallen enemy. The second one also perished without finishing his sentence. The swift resolution left me feeling awkward for standing by with my dagger, ready to assist.

“Is it… over?”

“…”

The situation ended so anticlimactically that even the terrified people couldn’t hide their confusion. However, the most surprised seemed to be Edmil himself, who had showcased such remarkable prowess. He, stiffened for a while, turned to look at me.

“Weren’t they supposed to be of the Demonic Beasts?”

“…I believe they were.”

As soon as I answered, a pungent smell hit my nose. It was the scent of blood starting to emanate from the fallen bodies—distinctly different from human blood. Edmil seemed to silently confirm this as he sniffed the air. He glanced at his sword momentarily before taking a defensive stance again.

“There are many questions I have, but I suppose they can wait until we’re out of here.”

After a quick scan of the surroundings, Edmil stepped through the doorway first. Following his signals, the rest of us began to move cautiously.

It was an exceptionally long night.

* * *

“Thank you so much for saving us.”

The sobbing girl continued to bow repeatedly.

Though she had held up bravely throughout, she was now unable to stop crying, realizing they were safe. The other rescued individuals were in a similar state. Surviving such a deadly ordeal naturally left them shaken.

‘Thankfully, the escape was easy.’

I looked back at the now invisible building.

Honestly, I couldn’t clearly recall how we made it out. I just blindly followed the directions Semeion provided, and before I knew it, we had found the exit.

No other Demonic Beasts appeared, and no alarms went off. It was so uneventful that I felt disoriented once we got outside. In hindsight, there didn’t seem to be many guards in the first place.

‘They didn’t even lock the room they held the people in.’

While it made things easier, it also meant that things had been going too smoothly until now—a fact that I found rather unsettling.

We rescued a total of thirteen people. They varied in gender and age but had some commonalities. Most were either travelers or recent immigrants to the capital, and they had been missing for less than two days.

It was a planned hunt targeting people who wouldn’t be missed. The short period they were held captive suggested they were either used as immediate food or temporarily stored until moved elsewhere. Either way, discovering them today was fortunate.

All the victims were handed over to the nearest Law Enforcement outpost. Though it was late into the night, these community Law Enforcement offices operated around the clock.

“Go inside and report the abduction. Make sure to mention the involvement of the Demonic Beasts.”

“Yes, we will. Thank you, truly.”

Shortly after, the previously dimly lit building began to brighten and fill with commotion. The Law Enforcement corps were in an uproar upon encountering the kidnap victims in the dead of night. It was a glimpse of the uproar that was likely to hit the Imperial Guard and the Security Department thereafter.

‘It’s going to be a full-blown emergency.’

A mass abduction orchestrated by a famous merchant guild, with Demonic Beasts involved. This was definitely going to keep everyone busy for at least a week.

Of course, I wasn’t in a position to sympathize with them. I had my own share of issues to address. Starting with the most immediate one.

Turning around, I saw two individuals waiting under the shadow of a tree, raising their hands. The Crown Prince and Edmil had slipped out from the group of victims.

“Looks like it’s just us left now.”

“…”

Seeing the Crown Prince smiling as our eyes met made me sigh involuntarily. When I only heard his voice, I could pretend there was still a chance to escape reality, but seeing his familiar face under the moonlight, there was no longer any denying it.

“Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”

The Crown Prince responded to my belated greeting with a courteous bow as well.

“Good to see you, Officer. I never expected to see you again like this.”

“Neither did I, Your Highness.”

“Haha, what a coincidence! It seems you’re my savior every time a crisis strikes. You must be my lucky charm.”

“…Seeing you joke like this, I’m relieved that you’re truly alright.”

“I’m a bit low on energy, but I can manage. All thanks to you.”

Though he said that, someone who had just woken up from a critical state couldn’t possibly be completely fine. On closer inspection, his fingers were slightly trembling. It was clear he was overdoing it, trying to hide his discomfort.

‘He needs to rest and stabilize. But since he refuses to request medical help from the Law Enforcement corps…’

From his simple attire alone, it was evident he had snuck out. But regardless of the circumstances, the idea of covering up an incident where the Crown Prince nearly lost his life was preposterous.

“You look conflicted.”

“…I’m just wondering what Your Highness is thinking.”

“Haha, I understand what you mean. But there are reasons. It would be problematic if it was known that I left the palace. There are people who think they are keeping track of my location.”

Tracking magic.

Understanding the situation, I couldn’t help but click my tongue.

“Moreover, they are certain I cannot escape from where they believe I am.”

So, it was the magic of the Magic Tower.

But now, the Crown Prince stood here, completely outside. The implications of this fact caused my mind to momentarily burn with thoughts. The imperial mages had found a way to bypass the magic of the Magic Tower.