Episode 143
After the meeting, Justice walked out, his steps measured and calm. The other leaders, not particularly close, dispersed in different directions, none noticing the subtle shift in his demeanor.
‘This is dangerous. I have to contact them. This could be disastrous.’
He maintained a neutral expression, masking his growing unease, wary of eavesdroppers.
“So that’s how they use them…”
He reached his room and finally exhaled, his face etched with worry.
‘Even with the Great Sage… this is too dangerous.’
He had to warn them, but first… he had to gather his comrades.
‘If things go wrong, we’ll need to escape. Together.’
He couldn’t imagine leaving anyone behind. They were his comrades, bound by a shared loyalty to Master Yuri.
“Is everyone here?”
Justice was the only leader who regularly visited the servants’ quarters, so his arrival always drew attention.
“Yes! We were just taking a break. Perfect timing!”
Hanna opened the door, her voice bright and cheerful.
“Come with me.”
“You could have just summoned us.”
They were his attendants now, so summoning them would have been less conspicuous. But Justice didn’t have time for such considerations.
“Are we going outside?”
“No. We’ve been out a lot lately. It would be suspicious.”
He had to find a safe place within the guild headquarters.
“You seem worried… shouldn’t we go outside, even if it’s suspicious? I think we’ll be recalled soon.”
Their mission was to uncover the leadership’s plans, and as far as Hanna knew, Justice had already accomplished that. She expected a recall order soon.
“You’re right. Let’s go outside.”
Justice, who had been suppressing his unease since the meeting, realized his mistake. Hanna was right. It was safer to discuss this outside, even if it was suspicious. And they would be recalled soon.
“My apologies. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“It’s alright. Something must have happened.”
His comrades’ reassurances calmed him, and he composed himself, leading them outside.
“Greetings.”
The guards saluted respectfully, no suspicion in their eyes.
“So, what happened?”
Once they were away from the guild, his comrades voiced their concerns. Justice’s pale face had betrayed him.
“…War.”
“What?”
“They’re planning a war.”
His words stunned them.
“…Is that even possible?”
“Demons and monsters are weaker than humans in numbers, even if they’re individually stronger.”
“And the gates haven’t even opened yet.”
They were understandably confused.
Justice sighed, rubbing his forehead.
“Yes, monsters and demons are individually stronger, but humans have the advantage in numbers. They wouldn’t start a war now.”
“But you said they’re planning a war…”
“…Between nations.”
“What…? What are you…”
The Dahlia, Sorcia, and Biltian Kingdoms surrounded the Marcia Empire. There had been constant wars when Marcia was still a kingdom, but now… it was an era of peace.
“The three kingdoms are prepared for war. We have to inform the Great Sage immediately.”
His explanation was still cryptic, but they understood the gravity of the situation. They didn’t press for details.
“Master! Great Sage-nim!”
The Emperor burst in, his face pale, followed by his royal knights.
“Your Majesty? What’s wrong?”
Dustin, who had been bickering with Aroa, immediately straightened up, his expression turning serious.
“We just received a message…”
“From Justice?”
I stepped forward, hopeful, but the Emperor’s expression remained grim. He nodded.
“Bad news…?”
Dustin asked, stepping towards the Emperor.
“…War…”
“War?”
“Yes… war is coming…”
War? What was going on?
“War… with the Adventurer’s Guild?”
That seemed… unlikely. Even without Dustin and the others, the Empire was still stronger than the guild.
“No.”
“It’s not the guild.”
Another enemy?
“…Dahlia, Sorcia, and Biltian. They’re prepared for war.”
…What?!
“Why would they…?”
“He didn’t explain. We have to summon them to the palace.”
The Emperor looked at me with a serious expression.
“Can I have the communication stone?”
“The connection is still active.”
He had contacted me mid-conversation and rushed over with his knights. A panicked voice came through the stone.
“Great Sage-nim…?”
“Justice, it’s… Yuri.”
I couldn’t bring myself to say “Great Sage.”
“I heard about the war. Return immediately. Discard any equipment you have there. Hurry.”
They seemed to be outside the guild, so I told them to discard any potentially incriminating evidence.
“Yes, I underst… ugh… what…!”
“Kyaaa!”
“Ugh!”
“Justice! What’s happening?!”
Screams.
“Justice! If you’re in danger…!”
The communication cut off.
“…This is bad, right?”
“It seems so. I’ll track them.”
Dustin started to move, but then…
“Kyaaa!”
“Aaaaah!”
“Ugh!”
The same screams echoed from the now-silent communication stone.
“Wh-What…?”
“What was that?!”
“Damn it! Where did they go?!”
“Did they fail?”
“No, this is impossible! They vanished!”
They had underestimated Justice’s party. They had simply… disappeared.
“Magic?”
“Teleportation magic is high-level! And there’s no way they could teleport that many people at once!”
Such powerful teleportation magic was unheard of.
“Search the area! They can’t have gone far!”
The knights dispersed, searching the city.
“We shouldn’t have trusted that bastard!”
“You vouched for him!”
They glared at the leader who had recruited Justice.
“How was I supposed to know?! He had the eyes of a true believer!”
“You’re responsible. He might have leaked information.”
“We killed the important ones!”
“You idiot!”
The man grabbed the other leader by the collar.
“They’re accomplices! Do you think they actually killed them?!”
“But we checked the bodies! We saw them!”
“…We’ll see.”
The bodies they had checked were real. Ellie and her party. There was no way they could have faked their deaths, not with their… abilities.
“Find them.”
“Yes. We’ll deal with the consequences later.”
They gritted their teeth and searched everywhere, but Justice and his party were nowhere to be found.