「Help! Somebody, help!!!」???
While Yuna and I were exploring the marketplace, a loud scream rang through our ears, and just by the sound of it, the source was deep in the alley.
Anyway, what's up with criminals and alleys?
While thinking of such a thing, we arrived at the source of the scream. There, we saw a woman in her twenties, wearing a maid outfit, shielding a young girl with her body from the assault of unruly men.
Because of the situation, Yuna and I did not think any further and jumped in quickly in order to save the two of them. And even before the men could retaliate, their knees were already down to the ground and their eyes already turned white.
「Huh?... What... happen...」Maid
「Rosa! Rosa! Wake up!」Young Girl
Before she could finish her statement, the maid collapsed to the ground, unconscious. The little girl tried to wake her up but it was useless.
Looking at the maid closely, she was really beaten black and blue. She must have endured all that pain in order to protect the young girl.
Alright, let's help her out.
「Little girl, please step aside.」Grey
「W-W-What are you going to do to Rosa?!」Young Girl
「Don't worry, it's just a healing spell.」Grey
When she heard I was going to heal the maid, tears stopped flowing from her eyes and she looked at me straight in the eyes.
「Can you really heal her?! Please! I will do anything, just please heal Rosa!」Young Girl
「Don't worry, Grey can do it. For now, why don't you tell onee-san what happened here.」Yuna
「O-Okay...」Young Girl
In order to calm the girl down, Yuna said some words of reassurance, and asked her about how the situation unfolded in order to get her mind off the injured maid while gathering information at the same time. As for me, I prepared to cast a healing spell.
Now then,《Heal》.
After casting a healing spell to the maid, her complexion became a lot better and the bruises in her body started disappearing. Luckily, there weren't any deep injuries. If everything goes right, she should wake up soon.
While Yuna was talking with the young girl, I took the chance to tie the unconscious men up, and casted a sleeping spell on them.
A sleeping spell is a type of curse magic, and curse magic, like recovery magic, are among the 7 special magics, along with summoning magic, barrier magic, illusion magic, enchantment magic, and production magic.
These magics are of null attribute and are used in many applications. But even though these magics are useful, not many fighters practice them because on top of being hard to practice, it also doesn't make one stronger.
Unlike spells, arts, and techniques which affects the flow of mana, special magics doesn't, because it works simply by ejecting mana outside of the body while visualizing how the mana will work.
And while the other special magics are much rarer, recovery, enchantment, and production magic are used on a daily basis by professionals.
「Grey!」Yuna
Just as I finished tidying up the mess, Yuna was finished on asking the little girl questions, and according to her, the story went like...
The little girl, named Eliza, with her maid, Rosa, and their guards, were on their way to pick up a dress they ordered a few days ago, but as they were passing by the alley, one of the men suddenly grabbed Eliza.
The guards tried to fight back, but because of the difference in numbers, it became difficult for them to fight while protecting Rosa and Eliza. That's why while they were holding back the assaulters, they asked Rosa to escape with Eliza. Little did they know, there were others laying on wait in the other side of the alley.
They managed to run for some time, but they eventually ran out of stamina and their legs collapsed to the ground. And in order to protect Eliza from the assaulters, Rosa used her body as a shield. A few seconds after that, Yuna and I arrived and knocked the assaulters out, which brings us to our current situation.
Just from the story alone, I can already infer that the little girl was a daughter of someone influential. And after I used my appraisal, I found out that she was the town lord's daughter. Her full name, Eliza Landevar.
「So, Eliza, do you have any idea why they attacked you?」Grey
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「No... But my father probably knows!」Eliza
「Your father, huh...」Grey
The town lord... I wonder what kind of perー
「You there! What are you doing to Eliza-sama!?」Guard 1
「If you don't want to get hurt, get away from her!」Guard 2
「Ah! It's not like that! They're my saviors!」Eliza
Eliza's guards suddenly arrived out of nowhere, and pointed their weapons towards us. Luckily, Eliza managed to resolve the misunderstanding before things got ugly.
「Ah! We apologize for our rudeness!」Guard 1
「Don't worry about it. Ah, but first, could you take care of those guys for us? And also, please take care of the lady over there too.」Grey
I pointed at the unconscious men I tied up just a while ago, and the maid who still hasn't regained her consciousness.
「I already casted a sleeping spell on them, so until the duration of the spell runs out, they wouldn't be able to wake no matter what you do to them.」Grey
「Ah, we'll do that. But first, we need to take the young lady back to the mansion first.」Guard 1
「Don't worry, my partner and I will take her home.」Grey
I need to talk to the town lord after all.
「We're grateful for your help, but we canー」Guard 1
「Don't worry, Marcus-san, I trust them.」Eliza
「But Eliza-sama...」Marcus
Eliza tried to convince the guard but the guard was still hesitant to let us take care of sending Eliza home.
I guess he won't easily trust a stranger. Well, I would be more worried if he did.
「If it's about our identities, then...」Grey
In order to clear up the suspicion, Yuna and I handed our guild cards to the guard. And upon receiving it, his eyes became wide open. He then tried to confirm the authenticity of the cards after that.
A few moments later...
「On the guards' behalf, I apologize for our rudeness, Count Grey-sama, Countess Yuna-sama! Please forgive our insolence!」Marcus
... the guards bowed their heads before us, asking for forgiveness.
Haah... How many times has this happened already? At this point, I've already given up on correcting them.
「Then, is it alright for us to handle this? Don't worry, we'll make sure to take her home safe and sound.」Grey
「Y-Yes!」Marcus
It was easy to notice the guards' troubled expression from trying to choose between obeying their lord's order and fulfilling our request.
Somehow, I felt pity for them.
「Then, Grey, let's go.」Yuna
「Ah, yeah...」Grey
Without turning our heads back, we walked away from the troubled guards and exited the alley into the marketplace, with Yuna holding unto Eliza's hands.
「Umm... So is Yuna-oneesama actually a noble?」Eliza
「Hm? Oneesama?」Grey
「Ah... Liz-chan calls me that.」Yuna
Wait, Liz-chan? When did you two get so close?
「Ah, by the way, Liz-chan, this is my partner, Grey.」Yuna
「Umm... Nice to meet you, Grey-oniisama. My name is Eliza Landevar, please call me Liz.」Eliza
I wanted to rebuke the way Eliza addresses me, but upon seeing her innocent face, I can't bring myself to do so.
「Nice to meet you too, Liz.」Grey
「So... Grey-oniisama, Yuna-oneesama, about my question... Are you two really nobles?」Eliza
「Well, how do I explain this...」Grey
In order to answer Liz's question, I tried to explain the High-Rank Peerage System to her like how I did with Yuna, but as expected, you can't compare the understanding of an adult to a ten-year-old child. But we still managed to pull it through, with the help of Yuna.
「I see... Then that means you're nobles, right?」Eliza
「Yes, but unlike true nobility, our ranks are not hereditary.」Grey
「Not Hereditary?」Eliza
「It means that only you can have it, and your children won't.」Yuna
「Oh, I see! So it's like my mother's breasts!」Eliza
「「Huh?」」
To Liz's sudden statement, mine and Yuna's minds were filled with confusion.
「It's because even though my mother has large breasts, my older sister doesn't!」Eliza
I have many questions about how she came to that conclusion, but I'm already tired of explaining so I'll just let her be, as long as she understands.
「Ah, we're here.」Eliza
Just as we finished explaining the high-rank peerage system to Liz, we arrived in front of her home.
It was a large mansion which easily dwarfed the other buildings in the vicinity. And even though we were still outside, I could already see how luxurious it was just by looking at the gates and the garden in front of it.
Without any hesitation, Liz approached the gate and asked for the guards to open it for us to enter. But just as I expected, the guards halted the gate's opening when they noticed me and Yuna.
「Forgive me for being rude, Eliza-sama, but who might these people be?」Guard
「They're my guest.」Eliza
「Uh... Eliza-sama... You see... Fritz-sama forbade us from letting strangers inside the manor.」Guard
「Then just tell otou-sama that I brought guests.」Eliza
「Well... um...」Guard
Seeing the guards' troubled face, Yuna and I handed them our guild cards to clear the suspicion and make things progress quicker. And unsurprisingly...
「F-Forgive our insolence, we will notify the lord immediately!」Guard
... the guards' reactions were like that.
Umm... Is this considered coercion? I feel like we're abusing our authority.
A few minutes later, the guard returned to us, panting and sweating heavily. He then opened up the gates for us and welcomed us to the manor.
「Welcome back, Eliza-sama.」Butler
When we were right at the mansions main entrance, a butler politely greeted Liz with a bow, and then shifted his attention to us and bowed again in the same manner.
「And I bid you welcome, esteemed guests of Eliza-sama.」Butler
As expected of a butler, he was extremely polite.
Hmm... If I remember correctly, the butlers I read about in mangas and novels are supposed to be the best in combat amongst the lord's servants. I wonder if that's true in this world...
Well, let's see...《Appraisal》.
-----------------------------------
【〔Anthronoid〕】
【Name】Sebastian
【Race】Human
【Sex】Male
【Age】47
【Status】Healthy
【Mana Capacity】549 【Mana Quality】D
【Combat Power】434 【Threat Level】D
【Attribute】Ice 【Spell Proficiency】35%
【Class】Swordsman 【Art Proficiency】38%
【Physical Enhancement】41%
【Ability】...
-----------------------------------
I guess he's pretty strong, considering that he can match this town's adventurer's guild guildmaster. And his name's Sebastian, too...
After opening the doors for us, the butler then escorted us to a large room where we were told to wait for the lord. There, we took a seat in a luxurious sofa,
Hmm... This room sure is fancy. There are paintings hanging in the walls, luxurious vases on display, and even just by the designs on the wall, one could clearly tell how gaudy the mansion was.
「Liz-chan, you're house sure is big...」Yuna
「Really? But the other nobles' mansions are bigger than this.」Eliza
「That's amazing...」Yuna
While I was busy inspecting the room, Yuna and Liz had a friendly chat with each other. A few moments later, the doors suddenly opened, and a middle-aged man entered the room, accompanied by the butler before.
Looks like he's the lord. If I remember correctly, his name should be "Fritz".
「Otou-sama!」Eliza
Seeing the man, Liz quickly rushed towards him and gave him a tight hug.
「Liz, calm down. We have guests over right now.」Fritz
「Un.」Eliza
Heeding his father's request, Liz returned to where she previously sat. And following her, the lord sat on the couch parallel to us.
「Count Grey, Countess Yuna, I bid you welcome to my manor. Please feel free to ask the servants if you needed something.」Fritz
「We're grateful for your offer, and we apologize for the sudden intrusion. Also, if it's alright to you, I wish to talk with you casually. We're not really good with formalities, you see.」Grey
Although I know it's rude to ask such a thing on the first time meeting the lord, I really needed to request that. The formal atmosphere is just too uncomfortable for me and Yuna. I just hope that he wasn't offended by my request.
「Is that so... Then please feel free to. And I believe you already know my daughter, so I'll just introduce myself. My name is Fritz Landevar, current head of the Landevar Viscomital house and also Moterno's feudal lord, pleased to meet you.」Fritz
「I'm Grey of the B-rank party "Blizzard", it's my pleasure.」Grey
「I'm Yuna of the same party, nice to meet you.」Yuna
「Now that the introductions are done, can I ask for the reason as to why the two of you were with my daughter?」Fritz
「Well, you see...」Grey
In order to explain what happened in full detail, I asked Liz to explain the event herself, starting from when they were ambushed until when we rescued them from the assaulters.
「What!?」Fritz
When Liz finished explaining, his father's reaction was just like how I expected it to be. Of course, anyone would be shocked if they learnt that their child was attacked while they were just out doing a task.
「To think that that happened while I wasn't watching...」Fritz
「I know what you're feeling right now, but before that. i want to ask if you have any idea who might have been behind the ambush.」Grey
When Fritz heard my question, he froze for some time and took a deep breath before answering.
「I have a suspect... but before that, I know this is unreasonable for me to ask you on our first time meeting, but I have a request for you!」Fritz
Eh?
CHAPTER 30 END