Chapter 30: Who Said We Were Going Out?

“I found it!”

Inside the room, Ainola finally found the key to open the Sanctuary Barrier.

Just as she was about to leave, the door to the room was violently forced open.

“Ainola!”

Anderson, wielding his Knight Sword, barged in with an imposing momentum.

Seeing Anderson arrive, Ainola, in contrast, calmly looked at him and said mockingly.

“Do you have to shout so loud in the middle of the night?”

“I’ve finally found you.”

Anderson raised his Knight Sword, pointing it at Ainola.

“This time, I won’t let you off so easily.”

“That’s assuming you can catch me, my dear Judge.”

Ainola looked at Anderson with a taunting gaze, dangling the key in her hand to show it off.

“Someone commissioned me to get this, so I’ll be taking it now.”

Of course, Ainola wouldn’t reveal her true objective; she would only pin this deed on the Moon Shadow Society.

Their codenames over there are all various animals, so a “Red Sparrow” like her mixing in would seem perfectly reasonable.

But Anderson naturally wouldn’t let Ainola leave so easily.

He raised his Knight Sword and charged forward.

At full speed, Anderson instantly closed the distance to Ainola.

His still-sheathed Knight Sword swept towards her like a whip.

Even though it was just the scabbard, getting hit by it wouldn’t be pleasant.

Ainola understood this, so she immediately sidestepped, dodging Anderson’s attack.

“Ehehe~ Missed.”

The cunning Ainola was as slippery as an eel; catching her truly wasn’t an easy task for Anderson.

“Catch me? If you can catch me, I’ll let you… hehe~”

The girl playfully stuck out her tongue, then performed another quick dash, directly reaching the window.

She wanted to flee, but Anderson naturally wouldn’t let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“Oh~ I forgot, you don’t have that function right now, how pitiful. Goodbye, my dear friend.”

Ainola’s mockery made Anderson’s veins bulge.

After she leapt from the window, Anderson followed without a second thought.

“Stop running if you dare!”

“Then stop chasing if you dare!”

As a top-tier assassin, although slightly inferior in raw speed to Anderson, a Judgment Knight, her agility completely outclassed the armor-clad Anderson.

After escaping the rear courtyard and reaching the church, Ainola, familiar with the surroundings, was like a fish in water.

Anderson couldn’t even touch a single hair on her head.

Seeing her figure getting farther away, Anderson naturally grew anxious.

He had waited five months, finally encountering this wretched Princess once.

If he missed her now, who knew where she’d run off to next?

So, he didn’t hesitate to sound the Temple Knights’ alarm.

As the piercing alarm blared, a large number of Temple Knights began pouring into the church, systematically sealing off every exit.

“Damn! It was supposed to be a one-on-one duel, Anderson! Have you no honor?”

Hearing the alarm, Ainola was a bit shocked.

To catch an unknown little assassin like her, was it necessary to sound the Temple Knights’ Highest Alert?

“All exits are now sealed. Ainola, even if you grew wings, you couldn’t fly out. Put down your weapon and surrender peacefully. I, Anderson, guarantee your safety.”

“Pfft~”

Ainola, of course, wouldn’t surrender.

She wasn’t stupid.

If she surrendered, she’d probably be dragged to the basement, brainwashed, have her memories read, the antidote obtained, and finally be turned into a Cream Puff.

That whole operation would be seamless.

Then, not only would the Glory Empire be left without an heir, she’d probably end up having to bear Anderson five children.

Is she an idiot?

“Anderson, I’ll give you a little gift.”

Ainola pulled out a canister filled with an unknown liquid.

“Catch!”

Seeing something thrown at him, Anderson naturally didn’t dare catch it.

He hurriedly dodged to the side.

The canister hit the ground and shattered.

Immediately after, a massive amount of white, foam-like glue exploded out, firmly trapping Anderson.

Breaking free would require some time.

Seeing Anderson trapped, Ainola spread her hands, her expression carrying a hint of helplessness.

“I told you to catch it, but you didn’t believe me. See? You’re in trouble now.”

“Ainola!”

Tricked and utterly furious, Anderson was helpless.

He could only watch as Ainola, a glint of pleasure in her eyes, said.

“When have I ever lied to you, Prince Anderson?”

With that, she vanished into the darkness with a smile.

Once the foam dissipated and Anderson broke free, he immediately spoke into his communicator.

“All squads, seal every exit! Not even a mosquito is to fly out! Shoot it down if you have to!”

“Yes, sir!”

With the Temple Knights’ Highest Alert sounded, the knights naturally didn’t dare be negligent.

They nervously guarded every exit, fearing they might let someone slip through.

Meanwhile, Ainola hid in an inconspicuous spot and changed into her nun disguise.

After all, today was Eleanor’s night shift.

Right about now, she should be starting her shift too.

So… who said she needed to escape?

Eleanor smirked mischievously.

Then, she began to display her excellent acting skills, pretending to be terrified, hiding inside a trash bin filled with fallen leaves, hugging her head and trembling.

***

“Reporting, Captain! No intruders found!”

“Reporting, Captain! Two bodies found in the flowerbeds of the rear courtyard! No trace of the Red Sparrow!”

“Reporting, Captain…”

The Temple Knights were busy running around, practically turning the entire camp and church upside down, but they couldn’t find any sign of Ainola.

Anderson, who had stayed up most of the night, now had a massive headache.

“Where on earth is she hiding?”

Logically, Ainola shouldn’t have been able to escape to safety.

But the fact was, no matter how much they searched, they couldn’t find any useful information.

All they found were some servants and nuns who had hidden upon hearing the emergency alarm, and that was it.

Anderson checked the information of the personnel on night duty that evening, and there were no issues whatsoever.

After reviewing who knows how many times, Anderson couldn’t help but suspect that Ainola might have disguised herself as one of these nuns or servants.

So, after multiple scrutinies, his gaze fell upon Eleanor.

This nun had, as usual the previous night, been checking the status of the Magic Lamps.

Upon hearing the alarm, she hid inside a trash bin for fallen leaves in the warehouse.

She was later found by searching Paladins and brought to the main hall for inspection.

The inspection results showed nothing unusual.

She had nothing on her person, and there were no traces of Magic use on her body.

“Tch…”

Anderson clicked his tongue in annoyance, then said to his subordinate, “Bring Eleanor here. I have some questions for her.”