Chapter 13

"Captain! Keep your spirits up!"

"Stop! Don't shake him!"

"...Whoa..."

It seems that my last blow accidentally hit a vital spot...

As I watched the captain of the knights being tended to by his subordinates, I felt a bit guilty.

...However, I can't just stand here forever.

I switched my focus and looked towards the store occupied by the bandits.

"To the bandits! Prince Iksa has arrived!"

One of the knights shouted towards the store.

The store's entrance opened slightly, and someone peeked out from the gap—probably one of the bandits.

They were well hidden, so I couldn't see their face clearly.

"Did you bring the magical artifact!?"

The bandit shouted, and Iksa responded.

"Yep! I brought it! Should I bring it over!?"

"Are you an idiot! The magical artifact should be brought by an ordinary, powerless civilian! Not by a knight or you!"

The bandit's demand was for the magical artifact to be brought by an ordinary civilian.

Well, this is going exactly as planned.

"Agreed!"

Iksa came over to me and handed me the bag he was carrying.

The plan is simple.

First, I'll pretend to be an ordinary, powerless civilian and start by bringing Iksa's bag.

"...Mako, are you sure about this?"

"I'm fine, Your Highness."

I smiled.

It was partly a show of confidence.

...Sorry, but it's mostly a show of confidence.

I suddenly became scared of what I was doing.

Knocking out the captain of the knights, stopping the knights' movements under Iksa's authority, and prioritizing my plan...

...But now that it's come to this, there's no choice but to go through with it.

"Maul, Meala"

I thought of their faces and adjusted the bag on my shoulder.

I felt braver.

It's okay, it's okay.

Compared to the despair I felt during the busy Obon period when all the part-timers and temporary workers went home and only the full-time staff were left, this is nothing.

※ ※ ※ ※ ※

"Huh? You came."

I opened the store's door and entered.

The interior, filled with a sense of cleanliness and elegance, was typical of a high-end store, though not overly spacious.

Various fruits, vegetables, and dishes made from them were displayed on the tables.

In such a place, there were people who didn't seem to belong.

Strong, rugged men with swords, axes, and other weapons in their hands.

They were taking items from the store, eating them casually, and looking at me with lecherous eyes.

I quickly scanned the room.

From where I stood at the entrance, there were three on the right, one in front, and six on the left.

In total, ten people. A decent number.

"Huh, I didn't expect it to go this smoothly. Right, Leader?"

"Indeed, it's boring."

One of the bandits spoke, and the man sitting in the middle of the store, eating a fruit pie, responded.

His muscular arms and legs, broad torso, and scarred face exuded an overwhelming presence.

He seemed to be the leader of the bandits.

"Hey, don't try to play the hero or anything."

The leader pointed at me and said,

"If you don't do as we say, you and these hostages will be killed."

He pointed with his thumb to the left side of the store, where six bandits and the hostages sitting at their feet were.

There were four or five people.

They were probably the store's employees, trembling on the floor.

And next to them, two small shadows.

Maul and Meala were there.

When I looked at them, they widened their eyes in surprise.

"M—"

Meala quickly pressed Maul from the side, stopping him from shouting.

Nice one, Meala.

Maul probably almost called out my name.

They must have realized that I was pretending to be an ordinary civilian and understood my intentions, so Meala covered Maul's mouth.

"The magical artifact is in the bag I received from Prince Iksa."

I explained in a businesslike tone, holding the bag with both hands.

"Alright, bring it over... no, wait."

The leader smiled as if he had an idea.

"Are you hiding anything?"

"Huh?"

"Like weapons or something?"

The leader pointed at me with his index finger.

"Let's check. Take off your clothes."

"Um, take off my clothes?"

"Is that okay, Leader? This isn't part of the 'flow.' If we take too long, it could be a problem."

One of the younger bandits looked confused and said to the leader.

"It's fine. This small perk will be overlooked by 'him.' Besides, we have an escape route secured, so time doesn't matter."

...Him? Escape route?

His words left me with some questions, but I decided not to delve into them to avoid arousing suspicion.

"Come on, what are you waiting for? Take them off."

The leader urged me, and the other bandits looked at me with lecherous grins.

I see, they want a strip show.

Typical bandits, with their crude minds.

...But don't worry.

This situation is, in a way, perfect for me.

...No, that's not it! I'm not saying I wanted to be naked in front of people!

It's just that, considering what I plan to do next, this is a useful development.

"Y-Yes..."

I put the bag down and hesitantly touched my clothes.

I placed my hands on the shoulders of my coat, as if about to take it off, but then stopped.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"Sorry, but... the hostages..."

I acted like a shy, inexperienced girl, showing reluctance to expose my skin to the hostages.

"Damn it, hey!"

The leader turned to his comrades and gave an order.

The bandits laid the hostages on the floor and made them face down so they couldn't see me.

...Good, it worked.

I needed an excuse to get the hostages to lie down, and this was perfect.

Now, there's only one thing left to do.

My next actions were swift.

"Is this good... Hey! What are you doing!?"

The leader turned to me and suddenly raised his voice.

It wasn't because I had already taken off my clothes.

It was because I had opened the bag at my feet and was reaching inside.

"Here, I'll hand over the magical artifact."

"That can wait! First, the clothes, I mean, the unnecessary—"

Ignoring the leader, I grabbed something from the bag, which seemed to be a four-dimensional pocket.

It was the weapon I had just refined.

I grabbed it, lifted it, and swung it horizontally with all my might.

Like a sword being drawn from its sheath, the bag hit the store's wall.

"What—"

The bandits were stunned by what they saw.

What I held in my hand was a "pipe."

A metal pipe.

Not the kind of pipe used for railings or plumbing, like aluminum, stainless steel, white, or copper pipes.

It was a steel pipe, about four times my height—about 6 meters long and weighing about 15 kilograms, used as scaffolding in construction.

"What, you—"

"Whoosh—"

My next actions were quick.

Since I had already focused my magic, the "pipe" I held was functioning as a magical artifact.

Despite its length of nearly 6 meters, it felt as light as a feather.

I gripped the "pipe" with both hands, took a deep breath, and gathered my strength.

Then, I swung it at the stunned bandits.

"Take this!"

Like a powerful bat swing, I swung it with all my might.

"What!"

"Smack!"

"Bang!"

It was like a powerful spear strike.

The "pipe," which extended to the wall of the store, caught the bandits in its path and—

"Take this!"

I slammed all of them into the wall.

Not only that, the wall shattered from the impact, and the bandits were thrown outside the store.

"Now!"

The civilians, who had been watching the commotion, were in chaos.

The knights waiting outside immediately rushed in.

Entia also pounced, as if to vent her frustration.

...However.

"Huh?"

"They're already unconscious."

It seemed that my full swing had knocked them all out.

The bandits were lying on the ground, eyes rolled back.

"Phew... What a relief."

Standing in front of the shattered wall, I wiped the sweat from my forehead.

It seems to have worked out well. Thank goodness.

Relieved, I felt my strength leave my body.

The "pipe" in my hand clattered to the floor.

"Mako!"

Two voices overlapped, and something clung to my body.

It was Maul and Meala.

"Hey, you two... did you pick some delicious fruits?"

I asked, and Maul buried his face in my legs, tears in his eyes, while Meala turned away, hiding her expression.