405 Winter Visit, Part 25 - Unknown Battle (7) -

Some time after Espis and Linella started the flames. As per their meeting with Minar, when the wind magic activated, they set the contents of the bag on fire and then watched what was going on outside.

If anyone comes out, turn it off if it's a miscellaneous fish. Leaving it up to the two of us to decide if we could kill him or not, it was Minar's word. They had faithfully kept the word, but wondered whether it was fulfilled by those who came out of that Fire.

Flames are less capable of killing themselves. But no one is the first to be able to remain calm, wrapped in flames that deprive him of his sight and make him unable to breathe. It was difficult for Espis and Linella to think that anyone could escape this large workshop without vision. But Minar's orders are absolute to them. The two remained faithful and waited to see if anyone would come out in front of the workshop.

Such their thoughts were lightly broken sooner than they thought. And there came out of the workshop a man in flames. The man suddenly stopped perfectly when he walked in a firm foothold rather than cheering, making him royal on the spot. And when they were marked with their hands, blood erupted simultaneously from all over them. The man put out the flames with his own erupted blood as Espis and Linella caught fire.

"Well, that's what you did with your little clever imitation."

"Right."

A man was going to crush some soliloquy, but there's another coming out of the flames like a gavel at it. What a strange object it was, covered in something like tentacles all over its body. The sphere of constant tentacles could not seem to be enveloped by flames in its peristaltic motion. And when his tentacles were released, a boy appeared from the inside, like an ugly old man.

"Hmm. Uh, surprised"

Are you all right, Anomaly?

"Are you worried about me? Senior Hidun."

"I don't want to worry about it. Without you, there's no plan."

"Oh, he's the only one worried about his body."

"Don't say bad things to people."

Within speaking, Hidun had also taken his garment refrain from the shadows, and Anomaly had somehow activated the demon squares a short distance from the entrance to the workshop.

Hidun, dressed up, walks over to Anomaly.

"What about the aftermath?

"I'll take care of that. I don't know if that's the case, but all the workshops have magic for suicide bombings."

"I see. Then I'll take care of you. I will return to my mission."

"Assassination?"

"There's that too. But it'll be a joint mission with Silence for a while."

"Oh, Alexandria? Speaking of which, it happened to a funny guy before. He's a former knight of Alexandria..."

"... well, that's interesting. It could be used for something."

"Right?"

Rinella tries to get close to hear Anomaly and Hidun discuss something at all, but Espis stopped it. Rinella appealed to Espis with suspicious eyes, but when she saw the blue face of Espis, she thought of it on the spot.

Doesn't the servant Hidun even think about laying low, or does he think it doesn't matter if he's no longer there? He didn't seem very attentive to his surroundings, but Espis was right to stop the linella. Because if we took a few more steps, we would have been automatically caught up in Hidun's vigilance net.

Hidun and Anomaly continue the conversation.

"And you struggled."

"I'm not struggling. But he was the one who could go inside. As a result, the last attack was unprotected."

"Well, the kind of guy who dies to that extent, he's not with us. More than that, did the other guy die properly?

"Oh, the shadow metastasis no longer activates. I guess he's dead. It's hard to think about flying into a hungry ghost and being alive."

"Well, that's all they got, too, because that's... and that's it. In a few moments this workshop will begin to collapse. If you're busy, why don't you go already? I will see the collapse of this workshop."

"Okay, then I'll take care of it. I'll see you at the other workshop."

"Yes, sir. Say hello to your souvenirs when you come."

"If you feel like it."

That's how Hidun disappeared first, and then a while later, with the sound of a collapse, the workshop began to destroy altogether. It was a workshop built using a cave that led to the basement of the mountain range, but when it broke it became a slight landslide and a strip of creatures became noisy. When the cave soon raised dust and earthen smoke, eventually nothing would move by the time the smoke subsided.

Anomaly confirmed so firmly that it disappeared in the magic of metastasis. For the first time there, Espis exhaled heavily. Linella stares at that face.

"Espis, why did you interrupt?

"Stupid, try to get close there. We're wiped out."

"Hmm, cowardly. You haven't been able to grab anything as a result."

"This workshop collapsed. That's enough. You know what that means, right?

"You think Master Minar's defeated? I can't believe that."

"But it's true. Master Minar did not come out, and only the enemy survived from inside. That's everything. Besides, there are people who have seen everything right."

"... report, do... but okay?

'Dog' appeared all the way from behind Espis. Linella one step behind the sudden appearance. He always appears this way, but Linella was unfamiliar no matter how many times she was hit. Espis also seemed calm at first sight, his shoulders tense for a moment. But he seemed to be an archbishop's assistant, and at last he nodded like he was majestic and urged the dog to speak.

"So, then... in the workshop, inside... the master, the teaching is of battle, the end death... the enemy, the loss of, is... the workshop, one. That's it..."

"Stupid! That the Archbishop is dead!? Don't say the right thing, dog!

"Say, I didn't... my report, it's... accurate, it's. What, then... what, eating rough... until, talking, huh?

"Ugh."

Linella shut up about the "Dog" report. Espis, by contrast, spoke to him calmly, no matter what his heart was.

"I understand the situation. We shall continue to take over Master Minar's duties. Will the dog pull up to Arnelia once and ask for future instructions?"

"Copy that. For once, Archbishop... of, will, keeps, ru. This... ahead, deliver, like."

"Mm-hmm. I can somehow imagine when it comes to succession, just in case. Then let's split up here."

To Espis' words, 'the dog' disappeared without a reply. I actually don't know who he is, Espis or Linella, but only the job was accurate. The mission will be delivered exactly.

Espis also tries to prepare for the enemy's pursuit. I pulled the robe off that linella.

"Espis, are you going to make a chase?

"Absolutely. It's a mission. That's why they scattered two kinds of powder. Before they know it, I'll go after them. It's powder for tracking."

"Master Minar, but to someone who didn't have a hand or a leg?

"Absolutely. What does that have to do with anything?

"No, I don't..."

Linella seemed unable to hide her anxiety. Espis and Linella have worked for Minar for a long time, but have done their duty pale to each other. Quite possibly we have a place to discuss it, but it was the first time that a linella working faceless appeared in such an attitude. I guess that's how big Minar was. No matter what happens, he says there's a minar behind him.

But right now, all responsibility lies with these two shoulders. There's no point in Linella being anxious about the size of her opponent. Espice and I can only come up with a bad idea if we think about the mission now.

"Espis, what Master Minar could not do, would serve us"

"I understand you can't. But if we don't, the threat will eventually reach ordinary citizens. We belong to Arnelia to protect the people from irrational threats, right?

"Yes, but. I won't spare my life, but I'm afraid we'll be used by them."

"Right. But in case..."

From there on ahead, Espis didn't put it into words. In case. They have to live their own lives at all times. We must avoid only what makes us enemies of Arnelia, our own people.

If you die, the drills and background you build up disappear like bubbles in an instant. Still, they took this assignment hoping. Even if I die, I have a replacement. They have always told us that they are pawns. But still.

"... I think for the first time now that I only want to leave a proof of my life"

"Me too. Shall we even think about it in the sentence of resignation?

"Is that the irony of knowing I don't have literature, Linella?

"Come on. For now, if we live with each other, shall we tilt it with fire wine?"

"I am Shimodo. At least make it fruit wine or tea."

"Feel free"

Linnella laughed so funny that she had never known one thing about this man's preference that had been long put together when it came to that. I wonder what we've been up to. Maybe we should look at a little bit of human life. We're not pawns, we're bloody people. This is the first time I've ever wanted to fight as a human being and die as a human being.

But they go back to work. Because that's their mission. Their backs were burning with readiness and determination as they headed for a mission that might take tomorrow.

Continued