Chapter 73

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SIDE: Owl

Ordered by the Azure Dragon Emperor, I reluctantly headed towards the fortress, but there was a magical barrier in front of me. If I'm detected by this, the curse will start, I suppose.

I don't think it's a good strategy to set a 30-minute time limit when we don't know the strength of the opponent. ...Actually, wouldn't it be fine if I'm not detected?

I can't help but feel that I can pass through the magical barrier without being detected. Eye for eye, barrier for barrier, right? But then again, I can't create a barrier, so it's pointless.

There's no point in complaining, so I might as well wrap myself in holy attribute magic as a formality. The practice of wrapping myself in magic that Yolnaud taught me paid off here. I should make some sweets for him next time.

When I crossed the barrier, there was a sticky wall of magic, but I managed to get through somehow. I'm wrapped in holy attribute magic, but I should search for the Azure Dragon Emperor's daughter as quickly as possible.

Spatial Awareness!

Whoa?! It's more than ten times larger than I expected... The underground area is also quite extensive, so it would be impossible to do this in 30 minutes. ...Unless it's me.

There are guards, both men and women, everywhere. Actually, they are mostly women. Most of the men must be attacking the academy.

It would be impossible to sneak in if there were this many people here normally, but it's a good thing that there are fewer than 30 guards here.

(Smirk)

"I'll capture everyone when I rescue her, and while I'm at it, I'll take the materials and valuables they've accumulated."

With that decided, I should act quickly. Fortunately, the vast area is no problem thanks to Spatial Awareness, and I've already found what I believe to be the Azure Dragon Emperor's daughter, so things are going quite smoothly.

While moving stealthily and quickly, I realized I was almost there.

"...To get to the Azure Dragon Emperor's daughter, I have to go through this room, but it's obvious that the enemy is waiting for me. And it's someone I know."

I'm starting to distrust people... I didn't dislike them, but if I meet them here, combat is inevitable, I'm sure.

Thinking this, I opened the door and found myself in a large room about 30 meters by 30 meters. In the center stood someone I recognized.

"Why are you here? ...Professor Monica?"

I could feel a presence I never felt from the professor before. Her hair was neatly combed, and most importantly, she was properly dressed. While she usually wears clothes, she's wearing a slightly sexy dress now.

However, because of this, her less-than-impressive chest looks even more disappointing. ...Maybe because I'm used to seeing Luna and Yomi, I even felt a bit sorry for her.

"Oh, I thought it was someone else. It's you, Owl. That's my line, why are you here? Or are you thinking of something impolite?"

"Answering a question with a question isn't very professor-like, is it? ...But since I don't have time, I'll say it. I came to take the runaway Azure Dragon Emperor's daughter back. ...No, I was just thinking about the gap between the rich and the poor, so don't worry about it."

"Oh, that's it. She's a young girl, so she probably doesn't want to go home yet. I don't approve of forcing a woman to do something she doesn't want to do."

That's it? ...Now that I think about it, the Azure Dragon Emperor also said something about the person I truly need to find. There must be someone else here.

As if to confirm, I activated "Spatial Awareness" and searched thoroughly. I found three people lying in a room near a giant dragon, and the situation was not good. I needed to use healing magic immediately to save their lives, which were on the brink.

"There's no time to waste on this conversation, so I'm going through!"

I activated full-body enhancement, sensory enhancement, and a delay spell. I also cast serious magical pressure and a downward force spell at the professor.

"Ugh... You're this strong...!"

She must not have expected me to do all this from the start, as I successfully stopped her completely. I hurried past her and tried to go to the next room.

Was it intuition? Without any warning, I instinctively pulled back my hand that was about to grab the door and jumped to the side.

"Wow. This is the first time someone has dodged that."

What?! I thought I had completely stopped her movement. I cast a spell to immobilize her for 15 minutes, but it was already gone.

I must have done something, but I didn't even know what. Dodging that attack was pure luck. I could only dodge it because of the mock battles with Yolnaud and the training in the dungeon.

When I looked at where I had been standing, the ground was gouged as if something sharp had passed through it.

"...Professor, are you incredibly strong?"

"I never said I was weak, you know?"

Damn! Is she at Yolnaud's level? Why do I have such bad luck...? My stats should have high luck.

Stats lie! Damn it!

Although the room is large, it's not big enough to run around in, and I don't intend to kill her. Moreover, I only have about 15 minutes left. This is a bit tough.

"If you don't come, I'll come to you!"

As she said, the professor's figure disappeared. I could sense her position with Spatial Awareness, but it seemed she was moving at super high speed throughout the room.

"Why are you in the Demon God Cult, Professor?"

"..."

Damn, calling out to her doesn't work. I have no choice but to cut her without killing her. I instantly pulled out a staff from my storage and got into the Eight Directions stance.

The staff was wrapped in sufficient magic, but I wasn't sure if it could block the invisible sharp attack from before. This is a bit of a gamble.

Without breaking my stance, I sensed a faint killing intent from the right. Confident in this, I activated a technique aimed at the killing intent.

*Staff Technique: Sword Form: Mirage*

"Sorry, that killing intent was a fake."

Suddenly, the professor's bell-like voice reached my ears from the left. Normally, I wouldn't be able to stop my swing to the left, but this was not a normal situation.

"I thought so, Professor. I believed you would come from the left."

As I spoke, my figure, which should have been swinging to the left, disappeared, and I changed my stance to attack from the right.

"What?!"

*Mirage* creates an illusion like a mirage, as the name suggests. In my previous life, it was a technique to mislead the opponent's senses with killing intent or qi, but in this world, *Mirage* is different. It uses magic to create a real mirage.

The professor reacted to my attack, but my staff hit her solar plexus a split second earlier. I didn't have time to hold back, so it was almost a full-strength hit.

Still, she flew back a little at the moment of impact, which gave me a strange feeling. She must not be dead.

"Game over, Professor."

"...I never thought I would lose to a child who hasn't even awakened. I didn't expect to be defeated before I could use my blessing."

"Awaken? Blessing?"

"...I see, you don't even know about that. I had nothing more to learn in the Demon God Cult, so I'll be staying with you next. The loser just follows, you know. Hehehe."

What is she talking about? Is the professor not in the Demon God Cult? And what does "staying with you" mean?

"Are you not in the Demon God Cult...?"

"That's a bit hurtful. I was in the Demon God Cult, but I'm not interested in the Demon God itself. I'm here for my intellectual curiosity."

I don't understand at all... I don't know what she's saying, but she's probably not an enemy. I have a feeling she'll be troublesome, but I don't have time to worry about that now.

"Wait, I have to go save the Azure Dragon Emperor's daughter!"

"Hurry, I still have things to do. I'll visit your house soon, so take care of me then."

"Got it!"

After finishing the conversation, I rushed to the Azure Dragon Emperor's daughter, but there were no enemies in sight. There was no reaction from my presence detection or Spatial Awareness. Was this originally the professor's responsibility?

The magic didn't work at all, and her abilities are still unknown. I only won because she engaged me in close combat. If she had fought differently, the outcome might have been different.

"...The world is still vast. And it seems I've arrived."

I reached a room with a large door, but it had several large padlocks and didn't look easy to enter.

I tried cutting it with my sword, but it didn't budge. I could use magic, but if it hit the Azure Dragon Emperor's daughter, it would be disastrous. (←Nice one!)

"I don't have time... Ah!"

Maybe I was overthinking it. I'll activate full-body enhancement.

"Here goes—!"

I kicked the wall next to the door with all my might.

The wall, which wasn't that thick, collapsed with a rumble. It seemed to emit a sad aura, but I had no sympathy for it.

Inside, I saw a large and complex magic array with a dragon lying in it, looking very distressed. This must be the daughter. She looked very uncomfortable, so I didn't have much time.

"I'll save you now."

*Gur...?*

I detected the source of the curse, but there was no sign of it from the daughter dragon herself. It seemed the magic array was the medium for the curse.

"Once I know the target, it's mine."

*Sacred Heal!*

A quarter of the magic array disappeared. It must have taken a lot of effort to create this array. It's too late to worry about that now.

*Sacred Heal x 3!!*

With a holy light, the magic array disappeared, and the daughter dragon, who had been groaning, seemed to calm down.

"Wait, there are still people I need to save!"

I rushed into a nearby room and found two adults and a child lying on a bed, about to lose consciousness.

*Sacred Heal! Perfect Heal!*

Thanks to the healing magic, they seemed to have survived, but their lost stamina wouldn't return immediately. It would be a comfort, but they would need a good meal and plenty of rest to fully recover.

As I watched the three, who were sleeping peacefully, I felt they resembled someone. Especially the child. With beautiful silver hair and a well-defined face, it was like...!!

...So that's how it is!! Damn it!!

I have to tell someone about this! But I can't move them yet, and I also need to take the daughter dragon.

I'll be delayed longer than I thought... I have to hurry!

What should I do first? ...I need to be able to move freely within the fortress. I should act quickly.

*Spatial Awareness! Presence Detection!*

"Professor is still in the fortress, but she'll probably handle it."

The only attribute that could instantly overwhelm and neutralize this vast fortress was one.

"Rush, lightning, crawl the earth and bind the followers, Thunder Beast 'Thunder Serpent'!!"

This technique, which I recently developed, creates a magic beast of lightning with a will of its own. It felt good so far, but the drawback is that it requires a chant.

The activated Thunder Serpent rushed to the Demon God Cultists at incredible speed, biting and binding them like ropes. One went to the professor, but she easily dispelled it. She's not just anyone.

"Alright, safety is secured. I'll go get the Azure Dragon Emperor."

I moved at full speed to the outside of the fortress, where a beautiful woman was anxiously waiting, pacing around.

"I'm back!"

"My daughter?!"

"Don't worry, she's safe. But I need your help."

I told her about the three humans I had rescued along with the daughter dragon and asked her to ensure their safety. I also heard that the daughter dragon could take human form, so I suggested they come to my house for now.

We went to the place where they were confined, rescued the three hostages and the daughter dragon, and activated the transfer. Despite the intense motion sickness, we arrived at the capital in no time.

Since I couldn't transport everyone at once, I had to make two trips, but I successfully rescued everyone. If the Azure Dragon Emperor can guard this place, there should be no problem.

"Thank you, Azure Dragon Emperor. I think this might be a trump card for a comeback."

"No, I'm the one who should be grateful. ...Hehe, head to the academy first. There must be someone else you want to save, right?"

"Yeah! Someone important to me. I'm going!"

Luna must have gone to the Demon God Cult for this reason. She's still Luna. I have to save her no matter what.

With that, I started running to the academy.

[Next Episode Preview]

The hostages I saved were Luna's family?!

When I arrived at the academy, Luna was acting strangely, as if she was being controlled, and wouldn't listen to me when I talked about her family! A fierce battle with Luna, who suddenly attacked, begins!

Next Episode: "Owl Dies" - Duel Standby!

*Just kidding, I won't die. It was just a whim...

The battle between Luna, Yomi, and Mirei will be written in the [Side Story] next time.

I'll update slowly.

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