Sera and the others start walking slowly, but with somewhat audible footsteps.
They’re making themselves heard on purpose, to check what the other side will do once they’re aware of our presence.
Of course, this doesn’t come without its risks, but we’re ready to take action quickly if we have to.
We have barriers, but Chris also has her spirit magic ready to be used. And in front, Sera is drawing attention, while Hikari and Rurika are standing slightly back while erasing their presences.
They’re doing that to effectively use the blind spots of the dimly lit passage.
“Are you sure about this?”
Naoto sounds worried, but depending on how good the others are, they’ll notice us even if we act normally. So there’s no use being worried.
“They’re coming!”
Sera says quietly, and as if signaled by that, a knife comes flying.
Sera dodges it and lets it pass. She could’ve stopped it, but that would’ve created an opening from her. Also, she knows that there’s no one else in its trajectory, and decided to simply dodge it and focus on whatever comes next.
And sure enough, the knife passes by the rest of us without hitting anyone.
Also, after the knife, we get magic fired at us, followed by an arrow.
Sera ignores the arrow and quickly throws an axe at the magic.
There’s an explosion just before the axe clashes with the magic, neutralizing it. That’s because of the explosive effect I infused into that axe.
And as a side-effect of the explosion, the arrow is also blown away-
We hear surprised voices, followed by what sounds like screams. It’s because Rurika and Hikari got close to them with their presences hidden, and are attacking.
The dull sound of metal clashing echoes, and we cautiously advance too, but it’s over by the time we get there.
Everyone on the floor is wearing matching armor.
“Have you seen them before?”
I ask Naoto, but after taking a closer look, he shakes his head.
The knights fainted, and are suffering from the paralysis effect of Hikari’s dagger, but we tie them up anyway. Not with rope, but with a restraining tool I made with Alchemy.
We bind their arms behind their backs, and don’t forget their legs.
Now they won’t be able to move about even if they wake up and the paralysis effect wears off.
“Master, we have to gag them too.”
Warns Hikari.
Yes, they can use magic if their mouths are free. And so, Hikari expertly gags them in a way that they can’t make a sound.
“Hey, just what is her deal?”
Naoto trembles with fear as he watches her.
I’m kind of surprised too, but I keep it to myself. A spy like her learned how to do that too?
After checking a room and leaving the fainted knights there, we keep advancing as we cautiously check each room.
It doesn’t take long, because there aren’t that many of them, but all we see are dusty beds that look like they haven’t been used in a long time. We don’t see anyone either.
“I guess we have to keep moving forward.”
There are stairs in front of us that lead underground.
“Wait!”
Yells Chris, just as Sera and the others are approaching the stairs.
“What’s wrong, Chris?”
“I just got a bad feeling.”
I use Magic Energy Detection, and feel an unstable something that’s fluctuating, but I don’t know what it is.
Hikari and Rurika check the floor and walls, and the rest of us keep an eye out behind us and on the stairs.
And then, we hear footsteps running down the hall. And they’re getting louder and louder.
Someone’s coming. There are multiple footsteps, and it doesn’t sound like they’re being cautious at all.
Is this a trap? Maybe they’re doing the same thing we just did.
The hall is poorly lit, and visibility isn’t good, but I have a Night Vision skill.
Also, now that they’re this close, I can pick them up on Presence Detection, despite its range being shorter than usual.
“That’s far enough!”
I warn, and they stop, seemingly surprised.
I don’t think they were expecting anyone to be here.
I feel like I’ve seen some of these people before. And they’re accompanied by a beast person, so I’m guessing they’re involved in this.
And since I raised my voice, they’re now aware of us too.
They slow down and approach us, stopping just one step short of being near us.
Now that I’m getting a closer look, I see blood on their faces and clothes. But it doesn’t look like they’re hurt, so it’s probably not theirs.
The amount of blood tells me there was a pretty fierce battle.
Were they running without caution because they’re just confident in their power?
But as I observe them, one of them suddenly speaks to me.
“Are you… Sora?”
He asks.
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