“Get a hold of yourself, Idiot!”
I rushed over and helped Idiot up, and he opened his eyes with a small groan. Thank goodness…! There were no visible external injuries. He must have been knocked unconscious with some kind of drug.
“I’m…sorry… Lady Lecty…was taken away…”
“Was the culprit the school nurse…?”
Idiot nodded, his expression twisted with frustration.
Damn it… Both we and Prince Lucas had anticipated the possibility of someone within the academy being connected to the Church. That’s why, even after Lily stopped Prince Slay and Marquis Hortness’s kidnapping plan, we had Idiot accompany Lecty just in case.
Idiot’s strength, especially in defense, is comparable to Roan-san and Alissa-san. Since Alissa-san, who was protecting Lucretia and Lily in my place, couldn’t leave, he was the best choice.
What we didn’t expect was that the opponent was skilled enough to neutralize Idiot. Alissa-san’s earlier statement was only about someone of her own level, not that anyone could easily neutralize Idiot by catching him off guard.
At least, it would be impossible for me, even with my «Ninja» Skill.
“Hugh, where’s Lecty?!”
Following me, Rouge, Lily, and Alissa-san burst into the tent. When I shook my head, Lily immediately crouched down and activated her «Strategist» Skill.
But,
“No, there’s no reaction from Lecty…!”
“Damn it, too fast…!”
I had only been away for about fifteen minutes at most. If they managed to bring Lecty into this tent and kidnap her in that time, they were far too efficient.
Lily’s «Strategist» has a range of 1500 meters. To move Lecty out of range in such a short time, they must have had a horse prepared in advance.
A planned crime. And it clearly involved a monster attack. It was hard not to think of the incident at Duke Lecherie’s Mansion.
If a robed figure was involved again, then that liquid that turns people into monsters might also be…
Anyway, there’s no point in thinking about it. Right now, getting Lecty back is the top priority. I have a good idea of who kidnapped her and where they might have gone.
Please be safe, Lecty. I’m coming to help you—
“Haaai, stop. Where do you think you’re going with that scary face, Hugh-shounen?”
Alissa-san stood in front of me as I was about to leave the tent after laying Idiot on the floor.
“Where else? I’m going to save Lecty, of course.”
“No, no, calm down. You’re not thinking of storming the Grand Cathedral alone, are you?”
“…”
I was, in fact, planning to do just that. With my skills, it wouldn’t be impossible to infiltrate the Grand Cathedral unnoticed and rescue Lecty. In fact, it would be easy if I used my «Brainwashing» Skill to its full potential.
“It’s true that you might be able to save Lady Lecty easily. That’s the problem.”
“What’s the problem?”
“To put it simply, Lady Lecty’s kidnapping might end up being for nothing. Our testimonies alone aren’t enough evidence. If it goes too smoothly, Cardinal Malicious might just play dumb and that’ll be the end of it.”
“…So, you’re saying we should make a big fuss about it?”
Even if I rescued Lecty now, if I questioned Cardinal Malicious about Lecty’s kidnapping afterward, he wouldn’t have any evidence of it. Conversely, if I was asked how I rescued Lecty, I would be at a loss for an answer.
And even if I saved Lecty, as long as Cardinal Malicious was still around, he might plan another kidnapping.
Alissa-san was saying that instead of rushing to save Lecty, we should take steps to expose Cardinal Malicious’s crimes.
“If their goal was to kill Lady Lecty, they would have done it here. Idiot-shounen wasn’t killed either. Well, if they attacked with the intent to kill, they would have been noticed by the killing intent, I guess. Since they kidnapped her for some purpose, we should still have time.”
“Maybe, but…”
“Wouldn’t it be better to talk to someone who knows the situation first?”
As Alissa-san said that, she turned her head towards the entrance of the tent, where Cicely-san was peeking in, as if trying to gauge the situation. If she was the one who came to warn us about Cardinal Malicious’s plan to kidnap Lecty, she might have some useful information.
I looked at Lily, and she nodded with a tearful expression while still crouching down.
“…I understand.”
When I nodded, Alissa-san beckoned Cicely-san into the tent.
“…I’m sorry. If I had arrived safely…”
Cicely-san bit her lip with remorse and bowed her head to us. Now that I think about it, the word “Holy Maiden” that Cicely-san muttered like a delirium while she was being treated by Lecty must have been referring to Lecty, not Rosalie.
Cicely-san tried to warn us about Lecty’s danger until she lost consciousness, even though she was in tatters. We should be grateful, not blame her.
“Cicely-chan’s injuries, they weren’t from monsters, were they?”
“…No. Those were injuries inflicted by pursuers when I was escaping from Cardinal Malicious. He secretly gathered heretics and formed an armed group that could be called his personal guard. We Holy Knights who were dispatched as Rosalie-sama’s guards were attacked by them, and I was the only one who…”
“A Church squabble?”
“It’s not that simple! This is a rebellion by Cardinal Malicious. He has been possessed by evil thoughts and has become a heretic. He imprisoned Rosalie-sama in the basement of the Grand Cathedral and attacked us when we went to rescue her!”
“Rosalie was imprisoned!?”
“Is that true, Cicely-san!?”
“Yes… Rosalie-sama was desperately trying to save the people suffering from illness. But, she couldn’t do it… Cardinal Malicious declared that Rosalie-sama was a fake pretending to be a Holy Maiden and locked her in a prison…!”
“That’s absurd…”
In the first place, the Holy Maiden is just an honorary position that the Church assigns to women with healing skills. It might have a strong religious meaning, but being appointed doesn’t mean you gain special powers.
There shouldn’t be any descriptions of healing diseases in the Sacred Scripture, and Cardinal Malicious’s grounds for declaring Rosalie a fake are far too weak. To say she’s a fake because she’s inferior to the fictional «Holy Maiden» Skill is too simplistic.
“Could it be, that he gave up on the current Holy Maiden and is now after Lecty…?”
At Lily’s question, Cicely-san nodded with frustration.
“For Cardinal Malicious, the existence of the Holy Maiden seems to be more important than God. If Cardinal Malicious gets his hands on Lady Lecty, Rosalie-sama will be useless for good. That’s why I thought I had to stop Lady Lecty’s kidnapping, but…”
“…………”
I turned my gaze to Alissa-san, and she seemed to be closing her eyes to gather her thoughts. According to Cicely-san, Rosalie is in more danger than Lecty. I still have to storm the Grand Cathedral and rescue both Lecty and Rosalie…
“Alright, let’s split into two groups.”
Alissa-san opened her eyes and clapped her hands, proposing that.
“One group will report the situation to Prince Lucas and make arrangements to enter the Church through official procedures. The other group will go ahead and storm the Church to rescue Lady Lecty and Holy Maiden Rosalie, and at the same time, secure Cardinal Malicious and evidence of the kidnapping. I’ll be with Lily-jou and Rouge-shounen to report to Prince Lucas. And Cicely-chan, Hugh-shounen, and… Idiot-shounen, you can move now, right?”
“Of course…!”
Idiot, who was asked by Alissa-san, stood up while staggering. He didn’t seem to be fully recovered, but Idiot clenched his fist with gritted teeth.
“I really want to go with you, but if a member of the Royal Knights Order storms the Church without a warrant, it could cause a big problem. I’m counting on you, Hugh-shounen.”
“…Thank you, Alissa-san.”
If Alissa-san hadn’t stopped me and I had gone to rescue Lecty, I might not have realized Rosalie’s critical situation.
“There’s no need for thanks. It’s certain that Lady Lecty and Holy Maiden Rosalie are in danger right now. If we don’t make it in time, you can hate me then.”
“I’ll do my best to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
At my reply, Alissa-san nodded with a somewhat relieved expression.