‘Hmm?’
Something was wrong.
Why did Pegum know who she was?
Yuri instinctively glanced at Keledon. She had completely forgotten to consider this possibility. Before Keledon had sought her out, he must have visited the City Lord’s Manor more than once to report various situations to Bartol. It was possible that, because her nest had been destroyed, Keledon had passed her information along to Bartol.
It was no wonder Bartol knew about her. Of course, it was probably a stretch to say this was a trap specifically designed to lure her in.
Keledon seemed equally surprised by Pegum’s sudden appearance.
“I wonder what brings Master Pegum to this small Adventurers Guild?”
“I originally had some business with you, but that is no longer necessary.”
Pegum looked toward Yuri. “City Lord Bartol wishes to speak with Miss Yuri. Would Miss Yuri care to join me at the manor for a chat?”
‘What?’
He was looking for her? The City Lord himself?
Warning bells rang frantically in the back of Yuri’s mind. She had a feeling that nothing good would come from Bartol seeking her out. Perhaps he had discovered that she found the things hidden underground and was rushing to deal with her.
She shouldn’t go. However, this was also an opportunity for Yuri—a chance to get close to Bartol and scout the layout of the City Lord’s Manor. Even if she did run into danger, she could use Iris’s power. Even if she couldn’t threaten the City Lord, she should at least be able to protect herself and make a clean getaway.
“Wait, I’ll go with her,” Keledon interjected.
Yuri was surprised by his decision, but Pegum shook his head.
“The City Lord expressed that he wishes for Miss Yuri to come alone. Furthermore, he is very disappointed in you, President Keledon, and does not wish to see you for the time being.”
“But that was clearly—”
“Enough. I am merely conveying the City Lord’s will. If you have something to say, you can wait until you visit the manor later to meet with him. Of course…” Pegum’s eyes took on a meaningful glint as he looked at Keledon. “If the President is willing to join us, the City Lord would naturally be willing to reconcile with you.”
Once he finished speaking, Pegum turned his gaze back to Yuri.
“Now then, Miss Yuri, please follow me back to the manor.”
She decided to go and see what was happening. If things went south, she would run immediately.
As they left the office, Yuri glanced back at Keledon. The cloud of worry on his face had vanished, replaced by a look of suppressed rage as he stared intently at Pegum’s back. Although he said nothing, his gaze spoke volumes.
Pegum was the root of all this. Bartol’s change had likely occurred because of him.
‘Someone involved with the Deep Abyss…’ Yuri couldn’t help but steal another glance at him.
“Does Miss Yuri have something she wishes to ask?”
“No. But if I had to say something, I am a bit curious. I am just an ordinary adventurer. I wonder why City Lord Bartol would come looking for me.”
“No, no, no…”
A chilling smile spread across his pale face. “Miss Yuri, you are not ordinary at all. It is possible you are exactly the person the City Lord has been looking for.”
The person he was looking for was her? What did the City Lord want with her?
A sense of foreboding rose in Yuri’s heart. Her right hand instinctively gripped the pendant hanging around her neck. If things went wrong, she wouldn’t hesitate to drop the act.
The two of them went downstairs and arrived at the guild’s main entrance. The moment the doors opened, Yuri’s expression shifted instantly.
More than ten knights were standing outside. They appeared to be elite knights belonging to the City Lord, and they were currently surrounding the guild entrance.
“Please, Miss Yuri. They are here to ensure your safety.”
“I don’t think ten knights carrying weapons are here for my safety.”
Yuri dashed out of the guild entrance. The knights immediately lunged toward her with weapons drawn.
‘Damn it… If I knew this many knights were surrounding the guild, I should have jumped out of a window.’
Now, she could only try to break through the encirclement. Although this was a squad of elite knights—several times more troublesome than the ordinary knights who had chased her before—Yuri had her own trump cards. If all else failed, she would use Iris’s power.
Gripping her flaming longsword, Yuri swung a rapid strike forward. The surging, roaring flames forced back the first knight who charged, but immediately after, a knight carrying a massive shield charged at her.
“Holy Light Defense!”
A piercing light erupted from the knight’s shield. Yuri swung her sword hard against it. With a loud *clang*, the knight didn’t budge an inch. Instead, Yuri’s hand went slightly numb from the recoil.
‘That’s incredibly sturdy.’
The knight’s charge didn’t stop. Seeing the shield about to make intimate contact with her, Yuri fired her grappling hook, quickly pulling herself to the side to dodge the impact. Compared to the patrol knights from before, these elite knights were indeed difficult to handle.
Before she could even land and steady herself, another knight wielding a spear lunged at her. The spearhead was pointed directly at her throat. Yuri swung her sword quickly, barely parrying the strike.
A storm seemed to gather beneath the knight’s feet. The next thrust came whistling through the air, carrying a freezing gale. Yuri could only twist her body to dodge. She narrowly avoided the spear, but her fluttering skirt was inevitably caught by the tip, and a tear ripped through the fabric.
‘Curse it… I actually liked this dress.’
Facing the encirclement, Yuri knew this was not the time for a prolonged fight. While one knight engaged her in direct combat, the others were rapidly closing the circle, intending to trap her in the center. She had to break out quickly; otherwise, unless she could fly, she would be waiting for death.
Then, an idea struck.
“Fire Rain!”
‘You like standing in a group, don’t you? And you like wearing iron armor, too!’
The flames wrapped around her blade suddenly flared up. Yuri swung her sword with all her might toward the knights. A scorching red wave of heat was unleashed, exploding the moment it hit the ground in front of them and turning into a shower of scattered embers.
Some of the knights immediately reacted, casting ice magic to counter the fire rain. Compared to the previous two times she had used it, the effect wasn’t as great. Of course, Yuri hadn’t actually expected to force the elite knights back with just that. Disrupting their formation for a moment was enough.
She aimed her grappling hook at the rafters of the Adventurers Guild. She couldn’t fly, but the grappling hook was enough to get her off the ground quickly. She had already planned her escape route. Although it was a hassle that her face had been seen, she was very good at hiding from searches as long as she could get away.
Just as the hook pulled Yuri’s wrist and yanked her upward, Pegum, who was standing by the guild entrance, raised his staff. An invisible force of gravity suddenly manifested around Yuri, crushing down on her and forcing her to double over.
‘What’s happening?’
In that brief moment of interference, another knight rushed forward and severed the metal cord of the grappling hook.
“Get back!”
Yuri fought against the invisible gravity and swung her sword at the knight, but he raised his own blade and blocked her. Because of the gravity suppression, she couldn’t put any strength into the blow.
‘Dammit… At a time like this, I can only…’
Before Yuri could summon the black mud, a strange sensation came from her legs.
‘What is this?’
She looked down and found that red silk threads had already entangled her legs.
‘No, I can’t break free.’
Her legs were immobilized. She could only try to raise her hands to summon the black mud. As long as she could call it out, she could…
Pegum increased the power of his gravity magic, suppressing Yuri so much that she couldn’t even lift her arms.
‘Guh… I’m completely pinned.’
She didn’t know what to do. Her eyes instinctively flickered toward Iris, but the girl’s figure was blocked by two knights.
Yuri tried to lift her sword again, but under the suppression, she couldn’t even perform the simplest action of raising her hands. Two knights grabbed her arms from either side and hoisted her up.
“Let me go!”
The knights locked her arms down. Her flaming sword fell from her fingertips with a *clatter*, turning back into a pendant as it hung against her chest.
‘Tch…’
Her struggle proved futile. She could only watch as another knight walked up to her and reached out to grab the muffler around her neck.
Yuri’s pupils shrank violently.
‘No… no! Anything but this! Absolutely not!’