Chapter 159: Outbreak (4)

Luis’s plan was as follows.

Disguise himself as a hotelier and secretly place the table where Dayle was hidden right in the enemies’ heart.

After that, he would intentionally expose his identity to draw all of their aggro toward himself. He had to do this naturally, without giving it away too much.

Once Luis successfully attracted all the attention and led the enemies away, Dayle, who was in hiding, would use the opportunity to come out and escape with Jaygie.

This was the overall framework of the plan Luis had devised.

Of course, the plan was almost derailed from the start when he unexpectedly discovered the identity of the traitor, Dorian, but Luis instead used this to his advantage to resolve the situation.

It was a moment where Luis’s coolheadedness and resourcefulness shone.

If this were the usual Dayle, he would have been gushing with admiration, but unfortunately, Dayle was hunched over like a shrimp under the table, enduring a painful time.

‘Ugh… How much longer are you gonna talk, Luisss! My back’s gonna breakk──!’

He stifled his groans and boiling frustration with the utmost patience.

Perhaps as a reward for his effort, the enemies, without sensing anything amiss, were all drawn away by Luis and left the room.

“…”

The outside was completely silent.

But since he couldn’t be too careful, Dayle checked to make sure the room was empty using a newly invented artifact.

Only after confirming that no one was there could he escape from the room of time and mind that had constricted his body.

“This is a pain in the ass.”

Even getting out was a chore.

He stretched his body straight, which had been crammed into a tight space.

His stiff bones popped with a cracking sound, giving Dayle a mad rush of simultaneous relief and pleasure.

“Phew. Five more minutes and I’d have become one with that cabinet.”

He rolled his shoulders and quickly loosened up his body, then immediately checked his gear. There was no time to waste.

He had to get Jaygie out quickly so Luis, who was distracting the enemies, could escape safely too.

‘Even with the Frey Academy guys and Clatter that Rachel mentioned, it’s better to get out of here fast.’

In any case, the power analysis was already complete.

Everyone in Shadow had already predicted that the longer the time was drawn out, the more disadvantageous it would be for them and the Academy.

No, considering Dorian’s attitude, who made light of them even knowing that Frey Academy’s Professor Chaser Idna was there, it was probably safe to assume that a head-on fight would result in a loss.

‘That Laitna or whatever, and her brother, must be really strong, huh?’

Well, even then, they can’t beat the boss, he mumbled to himself as he approached the entrance.

The hallway was quiet, save for the sound of someone sobbing.

Dayle concentrated his hearing on the hallway while wiggling his finger.

An invisible thread of mana moved, and a round object floating in the air of the room followed Dayle’s will and went out into the hallway.

‘Third Eye.’

This was Dayle’s new invention.

He had created it to compensate for his lack of thievery skills.

It was an artifact that shared senses with its owner.

In a way, its function was similar to the spirit Sylph or the spider familiar Peter that Gerard had.

In fact, he had the idea to create it based on Gerard’s advice.

What made it different was that while spirits or familiars could be detected by the sharp perception of a knight or the detection magic of a high-ranking mage, this ‘Third Eye’ was a tool that could evade their senses.

He had grafted the skin of a monster called a ‘Geto,’ which had concealment abilities that were comparable to Shadow’s stealth techniques, though not quite on the same level.

‘Hallway’s clear.’

From the Third Eye’s view, the hallway was empty, except for a fallen person and a woman who appeared to be their lover.

It seemed they had been unlucky and were caught by the enemies when they opened the door.

It was a pity, but Dayle’s eyes remained cold.

He stepped out into the hallway.

‘The last room on the right.’

Recalling Dorian’s words, Dayle immediately ran to that room. Unit 810.

“This must be it.”

Unfortunately, he couldn’t check the inside.

Someone could be guarding it, or he could be ambushed the moment he opened the door, so Dayle took out a musket and knocked on the door with its barrel.

Thump! Thump!

There was no response.

‘Is no one inside?’

He turned the doorknob, and it was locked.

Dayle concentrated mana in his right eye, which was not covered by an eye patch.

Blue light dwelled in his enchanted eye, and lines and patterns that were not visible before came into his sight. The entire wall surrounding the entrance was stained black.

The knowledge stored in his mind instantly analyzed the information obtained from his mana-seeing eyes and provided an answer.

A sealing array.

It was accompanied by the aura of death, but the primary power source for the patterns was mana. If he had tried to force it open, he would have surely been caught.

Fortunately, Dayle had a way around it. His left eye, which was covered by an eye patch.

When he took off the eye patch, a purple pupil, as if studded with amethyst, shimmered.

In the distant past, the demon Mamung was more frightening than a great demon and was recognized as the grim reaper of terror to mages, as he could manipulate mana, which was the fundamental force of the world, with his will.

His power now transcended time and was once again realized here by Dayle.

By Dayle’s will, the rules of the sealing array drawn on the door were instantly transformed and moved.

The destination for the forced displacement was the ceiling.

Grrr…

As Dayle lifted his head, the array blocking the door slowly moved upward, following his gaze.

The black lines attached to the wall held onto the array like tough ropes, but it was futile.

The overwhelming demonic power completely severed the will of the initial caster and safely moved the sealing array to the ceiling.

“Damn it. Is it because it’s my first time in a real fight? My eyes are going to pop out.”

Massaging his eyes with his palm, Dayle turned the doorknob.

With a click, the door, which had not budged a moment ago, opened and revealed the interior.

Dayle went inside.

He was about to put the eye patch back on but then shook his head.

He didn’t know when he would have to use his ability again.

In a moment of crisis, there wouldn’t even be time to take off the eye patch, so he just put it in his pocket and took out another musket instead.

Holding two muskets, Dayle scanned the wide suite, wary of enemies who could appear at any moment.

When he reached the bedroom, he found the person he had been looking for.

“Jenji!”

“Mmm! Mmm!”

Dayle immediately ran over and tore off the tape that was covering Jaygie’s mouth.

“It’s Jaygie.”

“Huh? What is?”

“My name is Jaygie, not Jenji.”

Is that important right now? Dayle was momentarily dumbfounded, but he quickly shook his head and reminded himself of his next objective.

Now, all he had to do was take Jaygie and escape the hotel and signal Luis, and his job would be over.

‘That’s it. It’s over.’

In reality, the moment he secured Jaygie, the mission was halfway to success.

That was why Dayle was so excited.

To succeed at this difficult task that he thought was impossible and without the boss!

Just as Dayle was excitedly thinking about telling Gerard, who would return tomorrow, his tale of heroism and quickly untying Jaygie, his expression hardened with coldness.

Tremble.

Dayle lifted his head and looked at Jaygie.

Her mouth was covered as she trembled.

Her eyes were not looking at Dayle, but at something over his shoulder.

“…”

Is there something behind me?

At the same time, Dayle had a question.

He had positioned the ‘Third Eye’ at the entrance in case of this.

‘But why didn’t the Third Eye see it?’

He decided to put that question aside for now.

Dayle smiled faintly and placed his hand on Jaygie’s head.

“It’s okay. Your big brother will take care of it, so just wait a little.”

Dayle then turned around.

He faced the enemy with the attitude of ‘Let’s see who came here to die,’ and a man in a long coat stood there.

But his condition was a little strange.

His hair was stuck together like seaweed, and his skin was pale. His expression was lifeless, and now that he looked, there was a hole in his shirt under his coat, revealing the wallpaper on the wall behind him.

‘A zombie?’

No.

A zombie wouldn’t be dripping with such sticky death energy.

Just then, the man’s clothing caught his eye.

The leather coat, though discolored with age, still had an emblem that symbolized a knight and from under the coat’s hem, a sword protruded.

“No way…”

When he put all of this together, the identity of the being in front of him was singular.

“A Death Knight?”

As Dayle’s expression contorted in horror, a flash of light flickered from the Death Knight’s waist.

Swoosh──!

***

When Luis set off a flashbang and fled, and Blood’s assassins chased after him, the Ladrier Hotel was thrown into an unexpected state of chaos.

Crash!

“W-what is it, who are you people!”

“Shut up.”

Stab!

“A-aah!”

The assassins had no qualms.

They were originally active in Karagas, a lawless land.

Whether their opponent was rich or had a high social standing, it posed no threat to them.

Only money.

Blood’s method was to not care about anything as long as it was for money, whether it was kidnapping, torture, or cutting off limbs.

Their vicious methods were no different here.

The men in hotelier uniforms had their Achilles’ tendons cut as soon as they were caught.

Then, to check their face mask, they would slice off the skin of their face, and if it wasn’t Luis, they would just move them into a corner.

If anyone got in the way during this process, they would use their weapons rather than words.

The person who stood in their way was Luis, who couldn’t stand their cruel methods.

Luis, who had already drawn his sword, blocked an assassin’s blade who was about to kill a citizen and shouted.

“Now!”

Bang!

The door to a room was shattered, and an arm suddenly shot out from inside, gripping the assassin’s neck and twisting it.

Crack

The sound was so loud that the assassins stopped and stared at the spot.

With all eyes on him, a silhouette slowly walked out.

It was Clatter, who had been waiting for Luis’s signal inside the room.

Clatter threw the assassin’s corpse in his hand at his colleagues.

Thump!

That was the beginning.

“Kill them all.”

The assassins rushed them.

A fierce battle unfolded.

To make matters worse, with the addition of the Darkness Council clerics who were hiding inside the hotel, Luis and Clatter were almost lost in the pouring crowd.

That’s when Chaser Idna, who had sensed the unusual atmosphere and quickly came up to the floor, appeared.

“These vile….”

His small, squinted eyes landed on the corpses scattered across the hallway.

There were ordinary citizens, but most of them were hotel employees in uniform.

They must have suffered this horrific fate trying to stop these villains who were causing a disturbance.

With this misunderstanding, the hotelier who was fiercely fighting the enemies caught Chaser’s eye.

It was, of course, Luis, and Luis’s eyes met him for a brief moment.

‘He’s here.’

Chaser held two swords in his hands.

It no longer mattered whether they were the enemies who had attacked the Academy.

They were undoubtedly villains who had committed gruesome murders against innocent civilians, and Chaser Idna had the authority to deliver a summary judgment on villains based on his own discretion and he had the power to do so.

Soon, the Frey Academy heroes, who had followed him up to the floor, arrived.

It was then that a cold command was given from Chaser’s lips.

“Hero cadets, annihilate all the enemies in front of you.”

“Yes!”

As the Academy’s investigation team joined the fray, the combined forces of the Darkness Council and Blood faltered greatly.

Especially with the brilliant performance of Chaser Idna and Clatter, who was disguised as a wandering knight, the enemies were swept away like autumn leaves.

By the time Margo, who had come down late, realized the disadvantage of the situation and immediately went up to bring down Bishop Laitna and Dorian, half of the cult’s forces had already been wiped out.

The battle entered a brief lull. Chaser had the cadets retreat the moment he saw them, especially Bishop Laitna.

Luis and Clatter also naturally joined the Academy’s investigation team and moved back.

The two groups, standing on opposite sides of the hallway, faced off against each other.

“Are you alright?”

Luis turned his eyes at the sudden whisper.

Chaser was standing there.

“You both fought very well. Especially… this wandering knight here.”

Chaser looked at Clatter.

“If you don’t mind, may I ask for your name?”

Clatter shook his head.

One might have been disappointed by his firm attitude, but Chaser simply smiled.

“Well, I suppose this is no time for leisurely introductions. Understood. Leave it to us from here on, and you two should go somewhere safe. You have worked hard.”

“Is that alright?”

“Of course. It is our duty to protect you.”

Luis moved to the back with Clatter, where the stairs were.

If they left the hotel now and went to the meeting place, the mission would be a great success.

All the key targets were here, and by now, Dayle, who had rescued Jaygie without any trouble, would be at the rendezvous point.

He thought so.

Until he made eye contact with Dorian at the end of the hallway.

“…”

Dorian was smiling.

‘Why?’

Their goal was to capture him from the beginning.

To root out Shadow.

But they didn’t seem to be in a hurry even as he was leaving.

They were watching and smiling with a leisurely attitude.

‘Why?’

An uneasy feeling held him back. The plan was supposed to have no flaws. A variable?

‘I even prepared for that as much as possible…’

Just then, Luis’s gaze, which was casually scanning the faces of the enemies, stopped at one point.

There was a man who had maintained a blank expression from the very beginning: High Cleric Vallary.

At the same time, the information about him that Rachel had brought flashed in Luis’s mind.

‘He’s known as an eccentric who refused a bishop’s seat in the Death Council, but everything else about him is shrouded in mystery.’

A sense of foreboding suddenly ran down his spine. Oh, no way.

Before he knew it, Luis was running up to the top floor where Dayle was, not to the lobby.

Pitter-patter!

He, Dayle, was in danger.

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