Chapter 35: Ged’s Rescue Operation in Crisis (2)

The guard who crossed the path approached the corner where the sound had come from, hand resting on the hilt of his sword, ready for any situation.

But the anticipated situation never arose.

Chirrup──!

With a small chirp, what darted out from the corner was a tiny mountain bird.

The bird stared blankly at the guard for a moment before spreading its wings and flying off in the opposite direction.

The tense guards exchanged glances and let out wry chuckles.

“Pfft. Got all worked up for nothing.”

“No kidding.”

“Hey! What’s going on?”

“Oh! It’s nothing, sir! Just a bird!”

“What? A bird?”

“Yes! Must be the warmer weather—lots of mountain birds around! Though, I’ve never seen one like that before.”

“Tch! If it’s so interesting, go catch it or something! Want me to wait here?”

“Ahem! No, sir. Let’s head back.”

Watching the departing guards, the cleric let out a sigh of relief.

“Ah.”

As if struck by a sudden thought, she lifted her head.

But the thief was already gone from his spot.

The thief had already slipped inside the Research Wing.

She pursed her lips.

“Show-off.”

Just then.

Muttering to herself, she suddenly flinched.

A pair of eyes was watching her from the darkness.

Eyes with whites visible all around—sabaek-an (Four-White Eyes).

Eyes devoid of any trace of emotion, like those of a dead person.

She hurriedly bowed her head.

“Sorry…”

But before she could finish, the wolf-masked figure turned away.

At the same time, the sharp killing intent that had gripped her throat vanished as if washed away.

She let out the breath she’d been holding.

“Phew.”

He was a member of the same Darkness Council.

Originally a cleric like her, he had risen to high cleric in record time after killing numerous enemy knights, including Lance Rockwell of the West.

That man was the wolf-masked figure.

His gruesome act of returning to the cult with the heads of those knights stuffed in a sack was already a infamous tale within the Darkness Council.

Thus, his nickname: the Head Collector.

Facing him, one couldn’t help but feel an itch at the nape of the neck, as if all the blood in their body was drying up. It wasn’t just imagination.

‘Really. Thank goodness he’s on our side.’

Shaking her head, she hurriedly followed the two.

Inside the Research Wing they infiltrated.

There were checkpoints and patrolling guards here and there, but no moment as tense as before occurred.

Because Gerard led the way.

Stop when he said stop, hide when he said hide, move when he said move.

The two clerics followed Gerard’s instructions, passing several research labs until they reached a building made of red bricks.

‘Villain Behavior Research Institute’

This was where Ged was held.

He was in the underground isolation cell beneath this very building.

Close enough that a loud shout might reach him.

But they knew well that many obstacles remained before they could reach Ged’s cell.

Especially since, as Gerard had emphasized, they had only cleared one of the five critical points.

They circled the building and entered through a research lab’s window.

Click!

Gerard, the last to enter, closed the window and immediately scanned the outside.

The cat-masked figure couldn’t help but be impressed by his meticulousness.

“Looks like the enemy hasn’t noticed we’re here.”

“So, can we talk casually now?”

“Don’t let your guard down. We’re just getting started.”

He continued.

“In case you forgot, let me explain briefly. The Villain Behavior Research Institute is where they bring villains from prisons to use as research subjects. The researchers here extract everything—visions, habits, tendencies, behaviors—and turn it into data. The process can look a lot like torture.”

“…”

“That’s why this place is rigged with magic arrays and traps. Not to stop intruders, but to prevent the research subjects from escaping. And…”

Gerard pointed toward the door.

“Right now, two engineering puppets are waiting for us to step out into that corridor.”

Engineering puppets.

The second obstacle.

Engineering puppets were magitech devices powered by mana stone batteries, specialized for close combat.

Their combat strength was roughly equivalent to taking on two guards single-handedly.

However, they had critical weaknesses: predictable movements, passive thinking, and clear vulnerabilities.

Still, the biggest reason the Research Wing used these puppets instead of human guards for security was ‘confidentiality.’

“Finally, our turn to shine?”

The cat-masked figure, as if waiting for this moment, drew her black sword and stood by the door.

“The moment we open the door, you need to strike the mana stone of the engineering puppet.”

“Got it.”

“No mistakes this time.”

“I said I got it! Stop worrying.”

Snapping back, she glared at Gerard.

“I appreciate the help earlier, but don’t cross the line. My skills are better than you think…”

“I’m opening it.”

Before she could finish, Gerard flung the door open.

A powerful gust swept through the research lab.

It was the aftermath of the two figures darting into the corridor like arrows.

Ziiing──

The engineering puppet, belatedly detecting movement, turned toward them, but by then, the black swords they swung had already sliced through the puppet’s mana stone.

Slash!

The mana stone crumbled into dust.

The puppets, losing power, twitched once before shutting down completely.

“If you open the door that suddenly…”

The cleric started to snap, but Gerard and the wolf-masked figure were already heading downstairs.

Biting her lip, she hurriedly followed.

The staircase to the basement was no ordinary place either.

The third obstacle.

The walls and steps were littered with dangerous trap mechanisms.

But Gerard navigated them as if he knew exactly where each trap would spring, dodging them effortlessly.

The cleric, sticking close behind Gerard, couldn’t stop her eyes from sparkling.

This was impossible without knowing the building’s layout like the back of one’s hand.

‘This guy. Has he been here before or something?’

Of course, it was just a thought.

There was no way he’d been here.

More likely, he had obtained and memorized the building’s internal map beforehand.

Even that was impressive enough.

It was proof of his exceptional intelligence-gathering skills.

‘No wonder he was so confident at the inn.’

But the surprises didn’t end there.

“Stop.”

Gerard suddenly raised his hand.

Before them, after descending the staircase, stretched a straight corridor.

She asked.

“The fourth obstacle?”

“Correct.”

At first glance, it looked like an ordinary corridor.

The floor was made of identical square tiles.

But what if some of those tiles hid magic arrays like landmines?

Then it was no longer an ordinary corridor.

Stepping on one would trigger a loud alarm and a red glow.

Then, the entire building, from the basement to the fourth floor, would be sealed with reinforced doors, locking down completely.

It was a system designed to turn the entire institute into a prison to prevent the escape of research subjects.

There was no way to tell which of the countless tiles would trigger the magic array.

“They didn’t brief us on this part.”

“…”

“So, what’s the plan?”

At her question, Gerard silently pulled something from his pocket.

A pouch filled with fluorescent powder.

Gerard opened the pouch, pinched some powder, and sprinkled it on the tile directly in front of him.

Swish…

Then, something astonishing happened.

Just as water sprinkled on dirt gets absorbed, the fluorescent powder’s glow was sucked into the tile.

At the sight, the cleric couldn’t help but part her lips slightly.

“…”

Gerard pinched more powder and sprinkled it on the tile next to it.

Was it luck?

The powder on the second tile retained its glow.

Confirming this, Gerard stepped onto the tile.

No alarm sounded.

‘That’s incredible.’

She was genuinely impressed.

It had been less than half a day since they started working together at the inn.

Yet, in that short time, her perception of Gerard was gradually changing.

Truth be told, she hadn’t liked Gerard.

Because he had dug into her background, she had faced reprimands from both the cult and the Darkness Council for a while.

Yes.

Her true identity was Rachel, disguised as a freshman cadet.

But now?

Far from disliking him, she was curious.

How far did his abilities extend?

And what were the limits of the intelligence that underpinned those abilities?

‘They said Shadow fell ten years ago…’

The Shadow before her didn’t seem to have fallen at all—it seemed stronger than ever.

‘…Could this person pull off that too?’

As Rachel secretly schemed, they crossed the corridor, and a steel door appeared before them.

Below a sign reading [Protective Isolation], a warning read: ‘Entry Strictly Prohibited Except for Authorized Personnel.’

As expected of a magitech-managed research institute, the door was controlled by an automatic recognition lock.

Standing before it, Gerard used the thievery skill [Disassemble].

Click!

The tightly sealed door to the protective isolation cell opened with surprising ease.

* * *

“Heh heh! I knew it! The cult would never abandon me!”

The moment he saw me, he burst into a wide grin and shouted.

A man with greed plastered across both cheeks.

This was Ged.

“I thought my neck would snap waiting for you!”

I wanted to ask, ‘Is there even a neck to snap under all that fat?’ But more than that, I wanted to tell him to shut up. His voice was too loud.

“Come on. Hurry up and free me!”

“Lower your voice first.”

Approaching the iron bars where Ged was confined, I examined the lock.

It was an automatic lock made of magic arrays.

Like the steel door I just opened, it was designed to respond only to a specific identification marker.

So, I used the lesser thievery skill [Disassemble] again.

The mechanism was simple.

Such systems were typically composed of several magic arrays—sealing, preservation, recognition, mana supply, repetition, activation—interwoven together, with a power source at the core to sustain the arrays.

Find it, burn it, and it’s done.

The explanation was simple, but it required focus, the ability to read arrays, and precise mana control. Without those, it wasn’t even worth attempting.

“What, what’s that?”

As smoke suddenly rose from the lock, Ged, trapped inside, started making a fuss.

“What are you doing! If you break it, I’ll be stuck here forev—”

Click!

“…I’m free.”

Ged blinked at me.

“What was that?”

Ignoring him, I entered the cell and unlocked the handcuffs binding his wrists.

They were ordinary cuffs, easily opened with [Telekinesis].

“What were those visions? Even I, a vision researcher, have never heard of them.”

“None of your business.”

Ignoring Ged’s lingering gaze, I spoke to the wolf-masked figure.

“Now it’s your turn to work.”

He nodded silently and approached Ged.

Then, he hoisted Ged onto his back.

“Wha—? Hey, you! What are you doing! Put me down! Put me down!”

Ged flailed.

The wolf-masked figure complied immediately.

Thud.

Ged crashed to the floor, sprawling out.

“Ugh. You bastard… I said put me down, not drop me like—”

Ged locked eyes with the wolf-masked figure and clamped his mouth shut.

After that, he obediently let himself be carried.

Even while being carried, he kept his mouth shut, his face pale.

He looked like he’d seen a ghost.

Anyway.

“Let’s move.”

We quickly left the protective isolation cell.

As during the infiltration, I took the lead.

In the middle was the wolf-masked figure carrying Ged, with the cat-masked figure bringing up the rear.

We passed through the corridor lit by fluorescent powder and climbed the staircase rigged with traps.

Glancing back, I saw the two clerics focused intently on my movements.

So, I slowly began to channel my mana.

It was time to execute the plan I’d prepared.

[Telekinesis]

As I clenched my fist, I felt a presence in my grasp, as if I were holding it directly.

Rough yet thin, it was Ged’s arm—or more precisely, his sleeve.

I grabbed it and yanked hard to the left.

At the same time, a startled voice erupted from behind.

“Huh?”

Turning my head, I saw the wolf-masked figure stopped in his tracks, the cat-masked figure’s lips agape in shock.

And Ged, his hand outstretched, bracing against the wall.

“N-No, I didn’t do this on purpose… My arm just…”

But Ged couldn’t finish.

A spear shot out from the wall, piercing straight through the cat-masked figure’s forehead.

Crack!

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