Chapter 39

For now, I'll stay calm and observe the enemy.

(The one with the appraisal skill is from earlier, and the others are level 20 to below 30.

If he has the appraisal skill, he could get a proper job...

But anyway, they're kidnappers in a band of thieves.

I intend to capture them as much as possible, but if it gets dangerous, I won't hesitate to kill them.

I should check the appraisal skill with the Divine Eye.)

I had a book of skills at home, but it only contained skills with a rarity of 4 or lower.

Honestly, I don't remember any of it.

It was a thick book, but the content was quite disappointing.

**Appraisal**

Select an observed target to view its status.

The information that can be seen includes:

- Name

- Level

- Gender

- Date of Birth

- Race

- Magic Talent

- HP

- MP

- STR

- VIT

- AGI

- Skills with a rarity of 3 or lower

This is what I saw with the Divine Eye.

The grade is much lower than the Divine Eye.

(Still, it's a pretty good skill.

The part about skills with a rarity of 3 or lower is a bit iffy, but if they give it to me, I definitely want it.)

I added, "I don't need it."

For now, the plan is for me to pretend I know nothing and listen to them. If I hit the jackpot, I'll suppress them; if not, I'll retreat immediately.

They said it's dangerous, but I'm not patient enough to play detective.

I'm quite impatient, as you can tell from my actions so far.

I checked everyone's status and their weapons.

There's no particular trap.

If I wait, more might come.

On the other hand, tailing them is an option, but that's for people who can fight.

They will almost certainly leave the city by tonight.

If I track them and find their hideout, I'll call for help.

But there's no guarantee they'll stay until help arrives.

Splitting up is not an option.

I need to stay and keep an eye on the enemy with the Divine Eye.

My ability is not invisibility; it just allows me to see.

Is that okay?

Have you heard of the game Pac-Man?

To put it simply, you clear the stage by eating all the dots.

The enemies are visible on the screen.

But it's not easy.

What I'm trying to say is that just because you can see them doesn't mean you're invincible.

If you get cornered, you're done.

To my knowledge, there are no communication spells.

I can't take such a dangerous path.

I'm doing this out of curiosity and for the benefit of my family.

So, I put on the cloak I brought, pulled the hood deep over my head, went to the hideout, and knocked on the door.

The hood is to counter the appraisal skill.

I heard from my father that there's a trick where you can't appraise someone if you can't see their face.

Everyone inside became alert.

I could see everyone drawing their weapons with the Divine Eye.

And they didn't move.

They seem to be pretending no one's home.

I won't let that happen.

"Hey! I have a message for Mr. Waro Variant!"

I shouted loudly.

Everyone inside flinched, and a subordinate opened the door.

Probably because the voice was younger than expected.

He checked my appearance through the gap and gave the all-clear signal, then opened the door.

"Ah, hello! I have a message from a friend of Mr. Variant, so I came to deliver it. Is this Mr. Variant?"

"Ah? Who are you, kid, with a message!?! I haven't heard of any such thing!!"

"No, it's about the princess, for a final confirmation."

He flinched and had a look of "How does this kid know?"

(Bingo)

"Hey, kid! Come over here!! And you too, kid!"

He started waving a knife.

"Ah, these girls are slaves who have been mistreated, so I rescued them. They can't fight, but they have magic talent, so they can cover for you."

The men showed sympathy in their eyes.

"Wow, well, come in for now."

"Thank you, I'll come in."

I was easily let in.

(Too easy, isn't it?)

Then the men upstairs came down.

(They're too careless, but then again, they're 5, 8, and 10 years old. The appraisal skill holder must have seen the statuses of the two girls, and I can be guessed from my height and voice.)

The appraisal skill only shows the original status, not the buffed status.

"Ah, ah, I'll do my best!!"

They answered a bit nervously.

The men nodded in agreement.

"Alright, I'll deliver the message."

"Sure!! What is it!?"

"Ah, no, the place where the princess is being held has changed, so the meeting place has also moved. Uh, where is the princess being held now?"

"Ah? I think it's the fourth warehouse in the Sals region, right?"

Yes, confirmed to be an idiot.

"Right, right, the meeting place is now the dungeon."

At that moment, I, Skuna, and Aina moved.

I used my quick movement skill for a moment and delivered a full-force blow to the stomach of the first one.

"Ah?! Lo-ghuff!!"

He collapsed.

"What?! What are these guys?!?"

I immediately used a level 5 wind debuff spell, Slow, on three of them.

"What?! Ghuff!"

Skuna knocked out an enemy with one blow.

The sound of swords clashing could be heard.

Aina, who faced the highest-level appraisal skill holder, was blocked.

"What are these guys?! They're not at this level!! And this is a debuff?! Shit! My body won't move as I want!!"

He was panicking.

The other one was attacked by Skuna, who dodged a sword like a cutlass and stabbed the enemy in the stomach.

"Guff! Ora!!"

He swung his sword wildly to keep Skuna at bay.

As for me,

(Oh, oh, blood is coming out. Is this bad? I don't mind if they die, but I'd prefer to send them to the dungeon.)

I was just watching from behind and giving my thoughts.

I was told not to join in because it would make me worried and unable to concentrate.

This is bad for my heart. The sword speed is slow, and I don't think they'll hit, but I keep saying,

"Oh, oh, safe"

every time they narrowly avoid it.

It's a pathetic story.

Finally, Skuna knocked out the third one.

The flag for escape is up, but I won't give up.

For now, I'll just knock them out.

The appraisal skill holder is strong, as expected of his level. He's barely holding off the attacks from two people.

"Hey!! Why don't you at least surrender!?"

He suggested.

"Will you?"

"..."

"Skuna, Aina, continue."

"Wait! I get it, look!"

He dropped his sword and raised his hands.

"Thank you.

Now, how many of you are there?"

"...12"

(Lie.

There's no way 12 people are enough to kidnap a princess.

I don't know, but it's not possible.)

He had no detailed information.

"Hey"

"Gurrr..."

He stabbed his leg with the knife I brought.

It's not as if I'm saying "Hey" lightly; I feel terrible. I feel like I'm going to vomit.

I didn't let Skuna and Aina do it because I'll need to do it eventually, so this is practice.

"Hey! Wait, this guy is—!!"

I stabbed him again silently.

"Doing this! Guaaaa—!!"

I stabbed him again.

"I, I get it, I'll tell the truth! I'll tell the truth, so stop!!"

"So, how many are there?"

"All 38 of us!!"

(That's about right.

I don't know, but it's reasonable.)

For now, I'll assume there are that many.

I asked various questions, such as when they would leave the city, if the place they mentioned earlier was correct, the levels of all members, especially the leader, and when they would meet up.

I threatened to stab them again if they lied, then knocked them out and woke the others to compare information.

I left that to Skuna.

I told them I'd cut off their heads if they lied, and they started talking freely.

During this time, I went out the back door, took deep breaths, and drank a lot of water.

I held back the contents of my stomach with air and pushed them back with water.

(...Disgusting, my hands are shaking, and my legs are trembling.

I almost vomited. My face must look terrible.)

In my past life, I've seen torture in anime and games, but it was just "Wow."

But I realized that real torture is different from game torture.

I might have overdone it because I didn't have the know-how.

After a while of deep breathing, Skuna and Aina came.

"It seems to be correct. We've confirmed it."

"S, so it is..."

"Are, are you okay!? You look pale?"

"No, I'll be fine in a while.

It's just that it was my first time, and my body was shocked."

"I see, what will you do with them?"

"Hand them over to the guards.

Then, we'll lead the guards to raid the warehouse and finish it."

"Ha!"

I have to lead the guards or my father.

If I find out later, the feeling might fade.

It's best for the head of the Orion family to lead the charge to impose the greatest favor.

Relying on a third party to notice might just be self-satisfaction.

That won't do.

Although I gained a lot, if I don't achieve my original goal, it would be counterproductive.

So, I asked Skuna to call the guards and my father.