“Well, isn’t this just dandy.”
It had been a few weeks since the incident happened, give or take.
As expected, there wasn’t a single special clue to be found at the scene of the occurrence.
The O’Neil Kingdom sure did a tidy job cleaning up; there wasn’t even a trace left suggesting multiple knights had fallen here.
Professor Amillion, much like myself, was wandering around looking for something, anything, but it seemed he hadn’t struck much luck either.
“I should head further in.”
While Elizar was busy giving the kids a lecture about this and that, I headed towards the forest ahead.
At the edge of the wide-open field stood an abrupt expanse of towering trees, forming a dense forest.
Even from a distance, it seemed barren, but something about it tugged at my instincts, urging me to take a closer look.
Without any solid reasons, I just felt like I might find something here.
I had wandered far enough that my group was out of sight, and the forest that had looked distant was now much closer.
It was even more colossal up close than I had anticipated.
“Whoa, these are some big trees.”
Just as I muttered to myself and was about to step into the forest, I felt an odd sensation.
‘This feeling…’
I wasn’t unfamiliar with it; I’d encountered it relatively recently.
The strange feeling had surfaced when I passed through Landgar’s barrier back at the Academy during our little scuffle.
A peculiar, sticky sensation, like moving through something thick that didn’t want to let you pass.
Crunch!
Underfoot, a broken twig made a loud sound as I stepped on it.
The transition from the field to the forest was like stepping through a line clearly drawn between two worlds — the vibes were totally different.
Just one step from the open field into the forest, and the entire atmosphere shifted drastically.
I stopped and heightened my senses.
I was almost 100% certain of it — I had walked through some kind of barrier, and it likely caused this sudden change in the environment.
In other words, an enemy was nearby, or I was stepping into their territory.
Hummm…
Staying cautious, my first instinct was to draw my sword in my right hand.
The familiar sound rippled through the air as I summoned the Black Shadow Sword into my grip with ease.
Swoosh!
Having my weapon at the ready, I moved slowly forward through the space.
Paf!
“Hmm?”
I noticed something moving, my high alert picking up shadows jumping between the trees ahead.
Assuming it was the enemy, I prepared to pounce, but then I paused.
‘Did I imagine it?’
Paf!
“Oh!”
No, my sight was spot on.
The figure leaping swiftly between the trees ahead was none other than someone I knew all too well.
“Adele?!”
The person, decked out in her official attire and her brown short hair bouncing, was no other than Adele, skipping nimbly from branch to branch.
I was sure. There was no chance I could mistake Adele.
“Huh…”
Adele paused, turning her head to glance at me from her perch on a thick branch.
Now that she was still, I could see her more clearly.
It was undoubtedly Adele.
But something was off.
“Realy?”
Calmly, I reflected on the situation.
Adele was perched casually on the branch, looking down at me.
‘There’s no way Adele could actually be here.’
She looked identical, sure, but realistically, she couldn’t be here. Adele lacked the ability to teleport like me, not to mention I’d seen her just last night in the office.
Hence, the odds were high that whoever stood before me was a fake, adept at mimicking Adele’s appearance.
‘But how?’
Paf!
The faux-Adele then leapt off quickly into the deeper forest.
“Running from me won’t help you.”
Hummm…
I teleported above the branch she had just vacated.
As soon as I appeared closer, I could tell Adele, now on the next tree, was startled.
“I should question you.”
Paf!
The mimic-Adele reacted to my statement by accelerating her pace.
I had to find out who this figure was and why they were imitating Adele.
Hummm…
Teleporting through the forest, I calculated her trajectory and leapt ahead.
Just as I positioned myself in front of her to land the blow…
<A new main quest has started.>
“Wow!”
Paf!
Caught off guard momentarily by a system notification,
Adele’s look-alike narrowly avoided my punch.
BOOM!
Simultaneously, a loud explosion went off, and the decoy disappeared into thin air, as if they had never existed.
‘What was that?’
Then I noticed the system message that had disrupted my focus.
Why did it pop up right at this moment?
<Main Quest (4) 'Make a Name'>
Objective: Rescuet Elaine St. Claire and halt the plot of the Nameless.
Details: Rescue the kidnapped Elaine and uncover the mysterious organization known as Nameless.
Reward: Stat points x 10, Title ‘Hero of the Kingdom’ obtained.
Penalty: Game Reset and loss of Elaine St. Claire.
“Ho…”
My face crumpled when I saw the quest’s objectives.
*
‘Well, isn’t this convenient?’
One of the Elders of the Nameless smiled, eyes closed, basking in silent satisfaction.
Though his eyes were closed, they were very much seeing everything. Through the eyes of a ‘Watcher’ that the Elder had deployed, every movement of the students within the forest was being monitored.
Not the students of the O’Neil Kingdom’s Academy but the ones from the Crescent Empire.
‘An opportunity has arrived.’
By ‘opportunity,’ the Elder referred to nothing but creating a trigger for the O’Neil Kingdom to send reinforcements.
He had deliberately allowed information about his hideout to leak out to O’Neil Kingdom.
Originally, there was no need to rush, but complications arose when the 3 Elder’s plan was a complete failure.
His subordinates led by Landgar were captured, leaving the Crescent side effectively powerless.
Thus, he needed to act quickly, but O’Neil Kingdom, aware of his location, showed no signs of an attack.
To the Elder, this was an incredibly frustrating situation, as he needed to initiate his attacks to set their plan into motion.
One by one, he scrutinized each student through the eyes of the Watcher.
Who would be the easiest target for abduction?
The first to catch his attention was a lone male student blithely poking around the area.
A black-haired, confident individual, he was ignoring the instructions of the group leader and heading straight towards the Enchanted Forest.
‘This one seems the easiest.’
Capturing one student who strays from the group would be as easy as pie for the Elder.
Just as he was about to act, another student caught his eye.
“Come on, wait for me!”
A girl, her golden hair swirling, shouted toward the boy and rushed after him.
‘Who’s this?’
The Elder stared intently at the girl hurrying after the brash student.
A familiar face, and not a mistake.
A daughter of one of the six great families of Crescent, from the St. Claire family.
Elaine St. Claire.
‘This is a prize catch.’
The Elder couldn’t suppress a grin as he recognized Elaine.
There would be an opportunity either way, but capturing a student with some prominence in Crescent would create a greater and more definitive trigger.
With the decision to refocus on Elaine, the Elder took immediate action.
There was no hesitation after finalizing the plan.
Perfect timing and ideal positioning.
At the center of the clearing was a single knight from O’Neil, along with the Crescent instructor and students, while the black-haired student was walking boldly ahead.
And Elaine St. Claire was trailing cautiously behind.
BOOM!
The Elder teleported instantly to where the watcher had been observing from moments before.
The moment he materialized behind Elaine, the Elder put his plan in motion.
Wooosh!
“Eh?”
Swoosh!
“Sharp reflexes.”
The Elder thought to himself as Elaine instinctively drew her sword upon sensing him behind her.
However, even her quick and sharp reflexes weren’t enough as the Elder had already struck.
“What…?”
Elaine couldn’t turn around. She was frozen mid-action, unable to move.
It was a spell of restraint cast by the Elder.
Not just any ordinary magic but a dark magical technique.
Faster and almost twice as potent as regular spells, using this method to disable Elaine was a breeze.
Tuk… Tuk…
“Uhh… Unnnn!”
With Elaine completely immobilized, the Elder casually moved to her side.
“What a remarkable resistance.”
Though those struck by this binding magic usually couldn’t even cry out, Elaine was trying hard to resist.
Elaine was struggling against the magical binding, trying desperately to muster her voice.
The Elder maintained an unwavering gaze into Elaine’s eyes.
Despite his intentions, Elaine wouldn’t be aware of his face.
“Uuunnn!”
Clang!
With a small gesture of the Elder’s hand, Elaine’s sword fell to the ground.
The loud metallic sound drew everyone’s attention.
First to respond was a female knight from O’Neil, who immediately drew her sword and charged fiercely.
‘All according to plan.’
Next came the instructor, presumably the professor from Crescent, charging to the rescue.
From the Elder’s hand, a cloud of black fog began to spread.
As the cloud enveloped, the female knight slowed and stopped her advance.
Taking the opportunity, the Elder touched Elaine’s shoulder and issued his message:
If you want this student back, come prepared the proper way.
BOOM!
And with that, the Elder teleported away without hesitation, dragging Elaine along with him into thin air.
