Chapter 60

Thank you for always watching.

I need to correct the typos soon. Thank you for always reporting them.

There are many areas where I fall short, but I hope you will continue to support me.

Next is a casual conversation from Alice's perspective.

I'll wrap it up quickly and move on to the next chapter.

Luke confirmed that the two had boarded the carriage.

To assess the situation, he looked around.

The fire was spreading too quickly.

The fire tornado seemed to be heading towards the guild as if controlled by someone.

The chief, along with Luciola, headed to suppress the situation.

Ashes were already flying nearby, and he could feel the heat on his cheeks.

Luke resisted the urge to curse.

He needed to get Noah out of there as soon as possible.

"Mr. Q, let's go!"

Just as Quincy was about to grab the carriage, the horse suddenly neighed.

"Hey, hey, you're not leaving us behind, are you?"

Before Quincy could jump onto the rear wheel, the carriage took off at a rapid pace.

"Damn, I'll chase after it!"

"Are you serious?!"

Luke finally cursed and ran towards the carriage.

Quincy followed behind.

Even though Luke shouted to the driver, the carriage didn't stop.

Worse, he couldn't even hear the voices of Sir Cody or Noah.

"Be careful! What the hell is going on?!"

Quincy's warning came just as they turned the first corner, and several small shadows flew towards their feet.

Without slowing down, the two dodged them by jumping sideways.

Next, Luke deflected something aimed at his face with a knife.

A loud metallic sound rang out.

Thick, needle-like iron rods rained down on them.

Meanwhile, the carriage sped through an empty alley.

The distance between the two and the carriage gradually increased.

"Up there! At least four of them! They're in the dark!"

"Do something, Mr. Q!"

"Take care of yourself!"

While saying this, Quincy launched water balls from his hands.

It seemed that the others were also running on the rooftops and chasing them.

The water balls hit the walls on both sides of the carriage's path and the right side of the buildings.

One of the men, knocked off his feet by the impact, slid down the building.

"If only he'd break his leg, that'd be great."

The man in the black cloak, despite losing his balance, landed perfectly on the ground.

Another man descended from the other building.

They seemed to be planning to attack from above and below.

The men were completely covered in black, from head to toe.

With their hoods pulled deep, their expressions were unreadable.

"I'll show you my face now!"

With the hand that deflected the metal rod, Quincy raised two fingers towards the sky.

He signaled something with a quick wrist movement.

"They're coming, Mr. Q!"

The men who had descended to the ground approached from the diagonal front.

Just as Luke was about to stop, the attacks from above suddenly ceased.

"Looks like we're not the only ones who like high places, huh?"

Quincy's grin was almost villainous.

"Are they your friends, Mr. Q?!"

Luke let out a relieved cry.

Now they didn't have to worry about attacks from above.

Despite Quincy's aggressive stance, the men suddenly stopped.

"What, you're not coming?"

The men turned their backs and started running.

"Mr. Q, let's not chase them. We need to focus on the carriage."

"Boring."

The eerie men disappeared into the shadows of the buildings.

When they realized it, the carriage had stopped a short distance away.

Luke ran to the carriage, as if every moment counted.

The interior was covered with luxurious fabric, and the inside couldn't be seen through the windows.

"Excuse me!"

Luke quickly apologized and opened the door to the cargo area.

"Sir Cody!"

The elaborately decorated passenger compartment was reasonably spacious.

On one of the two sofas, Sir Cody was slumped over.

Luke checked his breathing.

He was alive.

However, Noah was nowhere to be found. Neither were Thorn and Eugene, who were supposed to have boarded first.

"They're gone! Where are they? Noah! Eugene!"

Luke searched the room thoroughly, overturning the sofas and the built-in chest.

But the two had vanished without a trace.

"Mr. Q!"

When Luke came out, Quincy was talking to a man who looked like a mercenary.

"They're gone! Thorn too!"

"Take it easy. ... So, the guys upstairs got away?"

"Yeah. What do we do, chase them?"

A man with a scar over one eye, who seemed to be Quincy's companion, whispered in a low voice.

"No, that's fine. What about the other ones?"

"What do you mean, Mr. Q?"

Unusually tense, Luke asked.

"Weren't there two carriages at the guild's exit?"

You don't mean...

Luke had clearly seen Noah and the others board Sir Cody's carriage.

"When... When did they switch them out?!"

"That's the kind of trick you'd pull. We were completely fooled."

Quincy chuckled deep in his throat.

"So, why are you so calm, Mr. Q?"

"You're the one who seems pretty anxious."

At those words, Luke fell silent.

"It's a bad situation when the surveillance target gets kidnapped, isn't it?"

"..."

Quincy said happily, as if he had silenced a noisy person.

"It would be a problem if that guy's skills were used by a criminal organization or a weak country."

"We need to find Noah quickly."

"Maybe you were told to kill them first if anything happened."

"You too! ... Mr. Q, you're also away from your protection target."

It's bad for both of us, right?

Luke said with a smile, his tone implying that the conversation was over.

"You're all so boring. Hey, let's go."

Quincy led his companion and started running.

"I had someone follow the other carriage. I've arranged for horses further ahead."

"You're only prepared at times like this."

"It'll be fine if we get them back quickly, right?"

Luke followed Quincy, who was grinning.

Luke's title, "Mr. Q," is not a typo.

Noah heard it as a name, thinking "Q" is the surname.

In reality, it's a shortened form of his initials.

The reason will be revealed someday.

2015/01/12 Correction