"I have to ask, why are we headed for the warehouses?"
Climb answered the thief, who was inspecting their surroundings.
"Renner-sama mentioned that if they were rounding people up and taking them prisoner, they would need a big space to control and imprison all of them. With that in mind, it would be easier to separate families and lock them up in several big warehouses instead."
"I see. If the families are split up, they'll think they're all being taken hostage and be less likely to flee. If that's the case, we have to hurry... well. Even if we double back on our original route, we still need to pick a safe path."
"Thanks. We're counting on you."
There was more to do after the rescue. While thinking about how they would make it out of there, one thing that stood out as absolutely important was a safe axis of retreat. The choice of route was crucial, especially since they would be moving a lot of people.
But how long could this streak of luck last? Brain wondered.
This mission was essentially ordering Climb to die.
Since the other side was rounding up the civilians, that meant they had a plan for them. In turn, that meant they would be watching them closely. And according to what he had heard, the enemy leader Jaldabaoth was a being who could kill adamantite ranked adventurers in seconds. Any sentries he placed would be formidable indeed.
Brain's attention turned to Climb by his side.
He had worn his white armor to let people know that he was Renner's knight. Currently, he was stroking his gauntlet... or rather, the ring he wore on the ring finger underneath it.
Gazef himself had given him that ring.
It was something he had obtained from an ancient granny who used to be part of Blue Rose. According to the legends, it was an extremely rare item born of ancient magic, that could raise a warrior's powers beyond its limits.
You must return alive. Brain recalled Gazef's face as he said that.
Gazef had not shown any particular emotion at that time. No anger, sorrow, or despair. He understood that as a warrior in service to a lord, there would eventually come a time when he would be ordered into a battle that would result in his death. However, in order to aid Climb without being physically present, he had lent him the ring.
Brain had been following the thief's hand signals when he suddenly sensed a presence. Looking up, his line of sight followed the building— in that instant, Brain felt an impact that seemed to stop his heart.
On the edge of a roof of a nearby warehouse was — judging by her height and body type — a girl with long, blonde hair. She wore a dress made of pure white fabric that had been elaborately embroidered, and under the hem he could see that she wore a pair of high heels which sparkled like diamonds. Combined with her extravagant array of rings, jewelry and other necklaces, it made one think that she was some noble’s daughter, or a wealthy heiress of some sort.
Her beautiful figure, illuminated by the wall of fire, contrasted sharply with her bone-white mask, yet, her mystique was not diminished in the slightest. And in contrast to her striking appearance, her presence was far too subdued, as though she were nothing more than a wraith in an oversaturated world.
Her clothes and the color of her hair were completely different from that time. Back then, she might have been said to have been born of the night, but this time, she seemed to have descended from the moon. But even so, there was no doubt that they were the same person. The image Brain had seared into his soul from before layered itself over the person he was looking at now.
He was sure of it. Under the mask of the young girl above him was the face of that monster— Shalltear Bloodfallen. It seemed that she had not noticed them yet, but if it was truly that same monster standing before him, then no matter how far apart they were, they would be instantly killed if she discovered them. Was there a way they could flee without being detected?
There was none.
When Brain realised this, he felt as if he was putting a foot on cracked ice. He was suddenly aware of the oily, disgusting sweat oozing out of his pores.
Brain signaled to Climb and the thief, indicating he had something to say. Sensing that he had spotted something, the two of them halted and held their breaths.
What now? What can I do to get out of this? If we fight her, we'll be killed for sure. Even if we tried to run, we'd be chased down and killed anyway. Back then I used an escape tunnel, but there aren't any here now. But why is she here? Is she looking for me?
Brain smiled bitterly at that last thought.
If that were the case, then there was only one solution to this problem.
"Climb-kun, I'll go buy us some time. Use it to flee."
After that, Brain looked to the thief, and bowed his head.
"I'll leave him to you."
Without wasting any time on second thoughts, Brain immediately leapt up the building where Shalltear was, hoisting himself up in a single motion. Although he did not have the climbing skills of a thief, the building was only two stories high, and a warrior's arm strength could easily scale it. On the roof, Shalltear remained where he had first seen her.
Brain's heart pounded mightily. He was scared, terrified beyond the capacity for rational thought. The memories of his desperate flight from her reappeared in his mind. In spite of that, he was still able to muster up the courage to face her head-on.
"...is something the matter?"
The ice-cold woman's voice called out, only slightly muffled by the mask she wore.
Doesn't she recognize me? What's this, some kind of game?
The best course of action now should be to pretend he didn’t know her and observe her responses. With that in mind, Brain raised his voice and answered her.
“I’m here because I saw a strange woman on a rooftop. What are you doing in the capital?”
“And why, pray tell, must I answer you? Perhaps you could tell me what a human is doing in this area. Are you the only one who has infiltrated this far?”
His heartbeat sped up and increased in intensity. Although he didn’t know where Climb was, he knew he could not let his eyes leave hers. In order to confuse her, he raised his voice and continued speaking.
"Are you looking for someone else? Not me?"