章 130: Mindless Attacks
"Are they really going to come?"
"Just be patient."
"It's been nearly half an hour!"
Sebastian ignored Ainslie's tantrum and closed his eyes as he rested on the side tree. He was wearing a mask today and wore armor to conceal his figure—not like he still had the same figure that he had in the past.
However, he still couldn't shake off his uneasiness. For the first time in four years, he was going to meet Amy, though he wouldn't reveal himself. How would he react once he saw her? If she somehow realized it was him, how would she react?
Just thinking about it was making Sebastian nauseous.
Unfortunately, he didn't have more time to calm his nerves. Soon, they heard the stomping of horses along with wheels approaching them.
At the forefront of the carriages was a knight wearing a full suit of armor. After gesturing for the carriage and the convoy behind it to stop, the knight approached Ainslie, who was outside of the shade.
"Have you two lost your way?"
"We'll never be lost, the Blue Rose will guide our path."
"Hmm…"
The knight took off his helmet and stretched his hand out.
"I'm the current captain of the House of Luna's knights. Douglas."
"I'm a member of Blue Rose, Peridot. The one under the shade over there is the one you hired, Zircon."
Sebastian nodded at Douglas but didn't intend to go near.
"He's not much of a talker but we can communicate just fine. So, shall we go?"
"We do have to get to our destination soon. Alright, we'll be relying on your powers."
Ainslie smiled underneath her mask and walked toward Sebastian as the convoy began moving again on Douglas' signal.
"It's going pretty well so far. Why do you think the House of Luna hired a couple of assassins to guard them on a trip?"
"They didn't hire us to be guards."
"Eh? What else would you hire assassins for?"
"We're their scouts. They asked Wisteria for an assassin who's able to detect a change in the flow of wind and can spot monsters from afar. It was my repertoire in a past mission and they somehow got wind of that."
"I see… By the way, why did you suddenly recover?"
"Amy isn't here."
"Huh? Isn't our task to guide the house head?"
"Our task is to guide the house head traveling inside the carriage, but it doesn't look like the house head is anywhere near us. What do you think that means?"
Ainslie tilted her head.
"They're expecting an ambush, and they're the bait?"
"Precisely. I'll go ahead, just use your ability if there's anything you need to warn me about."
"Got it~"
Sebastian turned around and headed into the forest. He didn't forget to make a show by using some wind to propel himself too.
…
Sebastian finished tying the rope on a man under his feet.
"Y-you won't get away with this!"
"A bandit telling me that I wouldn't be able to get away with this is a bit…"
Tired of the bandit's ramblings, Sebastian ripped the bottom half of the man's shirt and then balled it up into the man's mouth.
"Mmmf!"
"Much better."
Sebastian stood up and looked around.
'Those were just ordinary bandits waiting for an innocent passerby.'
Though it was true that they were on the path that the convoy was going through, many others also go through the same route.
'Unless everyone's gone crazy, they wouldn't prepare this much, even going as far as to hire assassins just to catch a few bandits.'
Sebastian jumped up a tree and confirmed the convoy's position with his sharpened eyes before going higher into the sky. With his eyesight, so long as his vision was unobstructed, he could see all the way to the horizon.
On top of that, by using his abilities, he could also differentiate moving animals from human targets.
During these last four years, he had been training intensely. More intensely than ever before. And, that led to him learning dozens of abilities that would've been impossible for the old Sebastian.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that as he is now, his former self wouldn't be able to compare to even just one leg.
Sebastian held a hand up to his head and closed his eyes. Though he was currently floating in the sky, he didn't mind.
—Ask Douglas if we can eliminate any threats we find on the way.
Sebastian's voice transmitted itself to Ainslie who was walking nearly five kilometers back.
"Hey, if we do find any threats, what are we supposed to do?"
"Then we intercept them, of course."
"But, what if it's Zircon?"
"Hm? If he finds any on the way, then I suppose it's fine to deal with them too."
"Thank you."
Douglas scratched his head as Ainslie distanced herself and pointed at the sky.
Suddenly, she shot out a ray of lightning into the sky.
"What is it?! Enemy attack?!"
The knights suddenly spurred into action and began brandishing their weapons.
"Ah, no, I was just signaling Zircon that it's okay to deal with any threats."
Ainslie smiled, though it couldn't be seen through her mask. She hid her hands behind her back as she stared into the direction where Sebastian should be.
"He really is too cool."
…
As Sebastian saw the streak of lightning travel through the sky, he turned his head down to the threat that he found. He unsheathed the claymore strapped to his back and dropped down.
Like a meteor crashing into the ground, Sebastian landed accompanied by a massive explosion of dirt and dust.
"What was that?!"
"I don't know!"
With all the dust in the air, nobody in the area could see Sebastian, but he could see them. He swung his great sword in an arc and a stream of blood splattered the trees. The man he had cut didn't even have time to let out a cry and neither did his comrades.
Nobody was able to resist the blind attack. Sebastian had cut them all down without a sound and even if some of them had groaned or yelled out before their deaths, it didn't matter.
After nearly a quarter of a minute, the dust finally faded enough for the remaining survivors to see Sebastian standing amongst a group of their fallen comrades.
"Attack!"
The survivors raised their hands and launched a variety of attacks. Most of the people present were Inheritors whose abilities Sebastian hadn't seen before.
Sebastian frowned and took a step to the side to dodge a vine snapping at him. He raised his hand holding the claymore and swung down. An arc of wind followed the direction of the sword and cut a tree in its path in half. The person he was aiming at managed to dodge in the last second.
Even though he was surrounded by dozens of armed men, there wasn't any hint of fear in his eyes.
'The strongest they have are Adepts.'
Their fighting power wasn't anything to worry about. Even if Sebastian took it easy, he would still be able to win against them. However, there was one thing he was worried about.
'Who are they working for?'
Years ago, Lizard's Tail had attacked Aurora Academy with the assailants using weapons that were a threat to Inheritors. But, they were still all regular people in the end.
Today's roster was filled with unknown Inheritors with unknown abilities. He had seen his fair share of powers during these four years but only a few of the powers present resembled the ones he knew.
"Who are you?!"
One of the men shouted. They had ceased their attacks at some point after realizing that none of them were hitting their mark.
"Let me return that with another question, who are you working for?"
Sebastian didn't forget to use an ability to mask his voice.
"It's useless to talk to him, attack!"
Sebastian frowned. They had barely exchanged anything yet they attacked already. Nevertheless, it was actually easier for him that way. He leaped and headed straight for the man that had shouted and cut him in half.
Then, he turned around and swung his sword horizontally—cutting apart several enemies in the distance.
"H-how can he move so fast with such a large sword?!"
One of the men shouted in disbelief before his death.
So far, Sebastian had cut down at least half of their numbers but their will wasn't fading at all.
'Are they courageous or stupid?'
Typically, they would try and run away after seeing how none of their attacks are able to get through his armor, but, none of them even had the notion to do so. They all seemed determined to drag him to hell with them.
In the end, none of them talked about who they worked for and what their motive was.
Sebastian jumped up one of the branches of the tall trees and sat there. He looked at the scattered bodies all over the place and looked to the side. A few minutes later, the convoy arrived and stopped right in front of the area that he had just battled in.
Ainslie approached him first and jumped right beside him.
"Hey, how many were there?"
"At least three dozen."
Sebastian looked down and frowned. The knights were approaching and inspecting them for a while before Douglas gestured for Sebastian and Ainslie.
"What happened here?"
Douglas faced Sebastian and asked. His face was solemn, though it was only natural, considering a slaughter had just happened here.
—They were crazy.
"It appears that they were mindlessly attacking Zircon when he confronted them."
"Mindlessly attacking…"
Ainslie narrated whatever Sebastian said.
"Could you give a little more detail?"
"They didn't want to surrender even though they were cornered and none of them spoke a single word about their motives despite interrogation."
"..."
Douglas frowned and looked at the carriage.
"And you're saying that these people were waiting for us on this path?"
"Yes. Sir Douglas, would you mind telling us what you know?"
"...Looks like I can't hide it."
Douglas sighed and pointed at one of the wagons at the back.
"Let's talk over there, it isn't going to be a short story."
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