Chapter 462
From the state of the trampled forest floor, this was clearly the place to start looking.
"Alright, everyone, combat stance two. From here on, we move by moonlight only, and watch for any movement from them."
We'd entered a zone where we could run into them at any moment.
I killed the magic light. The others did the same.
Deep forest darkness closed in. The only light came from the moon through gaps in the clouds.
Nell and Amina didn't flinch. Their minds switched to combat mode without missing a beat.
Combat stance two means staying sharp. Ready to fight at any moment.
Hard to keep up for long, but it keeps you focused. Means we're close.
"Amina, scout from above. No fighting. Watch for flying monsters."
"Got it!"
"They're heading toward the foot of that mountain. Should be somewhere around there. Keep low."
"Okay!"
That's why air scouts matter.
Night flights are dangerous, but she's got contracted spirits. Backup golems if things go sideways. Her raw stats are high enough now to take a wyvern in a dogfight.
She can recover from a surprise attack.
Her mobility makes her perfect for this.
"Be back soon!"
She took off. Nell, Second Sister, and I looked at each other and started running through the trees.
Second Sister floats. No sound. Nell's had the same training. Minimal noise.
First time fighting with Second Sister. But she's a high spirit. She suppressed her lightning, killed the glow, melted into the shadows. Years of experience, probably.
"Liberta, how many are we looking at?"
"From what we found in the warehouse, food for about a week. Back-calculating... maybe fifty, tops. But I think there are more."
We cut through the forest like the wind. Monsters turned to look, but we were already gone.
Even moving this fast, Class 8 stats make conversation easy.
"What do you mean?"
"Most of the food is for the guards and handlers. The kids get the bare minimum. Just enough to keep them alive."
'They treat the kids like that? Aren't they trying to recruit them?'
Running through pitch-black woods by moonlight takes focus. We've trained for this.
"To them, if you're not a believer, you're nothing. But you might become one, someday. So on the road, they wear them down. Break their spirits. Sap their strength. That's how they work. Hold up!"
We were moving fast. Something caught my eye.
I stopped hard, dropped into a crouch.
"A doll?"
'Broken. That's cruel.'
"One of the kids' things. Take it away, break it in front of them. Classic Church move."
An old teddy bear. Well-loved.
Its face was split open with a blade.
'...Give me a minute. Thirty seconds. I can fix it.'
Second Sister looked at the bear. Made a face. Rolled up her sleeves, took it from me gently, knelt down.
'Hhh.'
She pulled out a sewing kit. Palm-sized, but more inside. Like a magic bag.
Needle and thread. Deep breath. Held it. Her hands moved.
The bear came together. She fixed the loose threads too. Faster than she said.
'There.'
"Clean. Can't even see the seams."
'Just a decent piece of work. The fabric was in good shape.'
She handed it back, looking satisfied. It wasn't new, but it was clean.
"Here."
'What?'
"You fixed it. You should give it back."
'...Fine.'
"She'll be happy."
She took it. Looked confused.
She'd only started dealing with people since Freihait. Maybe she didn't think about giving things back.
'...Yeah. Maybe.'
She'd been teaching sewing to other spirits. Talking about teaching the new orphans. She's soft, underneath.
She smiled, barely. Tucked the bear away.
"You're happy."
'I'm not. Just an excuse to fry whoever did this. You don't treat a doll like that unless you're rotten.'
"It's the Church. Assume the worst."
'Good. No mercy.'
We took off again.
Second Sister had a new reason to be mad. That doll wasn't a waste of time.
The Church probably didn't think breaking a doll would get them a lightning spirit on their trail.
I don't feel sorry for them. They brought this on themselves.
We ran.
"Liberta. Stop."
"What's up?"
Nell held up a hand.
"People. Not far."
She stood still, scanning. Sniffing the air.
I stayed quiet. Second Sister did too.
"That way."
"Sometimes I'm jealous of beastkin senses."
"It's not always good. Strong smells are rough."
She'd found them.
"There's something in the air."
"I don't smell anything."
"Herbs. Medicinal. I don't know how to describe it. Wrong smell."
"...Monster repellent. Keeps weak ones away."
If Nell could smell them, they weren't far.
"Yeah. That's it."
"Right?"
Another few minutes, and I could smell it too. Not something I used in FBO. Not since I got here.
We followed the smell.
A column of people moving through the dark. Minimal light.
"...That's terrible."
"Yeah."
Robes. Black. Surrounding a line of children. Collared. Tied together.
We tracked them from the shadows. Crying. Kids forced to march at night. Whimpering. The crack of a whip. They kept walking.
"Move."
We'd found the tail. Not the whole group. We circled, careful, to get a look.
The Church guards were looking around. Not hard. Their attention was on the kids.
No dangerous monsters here. The repellent was enough. They thought.
They might have thought about an attack. Probably decided it wasn't likely.
If they were actually paying attention, getting close would have been harder.
But they weren't.
We used that.
You could hit them head-on. Easy. Not with the kids in the middle.
Even with our stats, we couldn't take them without the kids getting hurt. The kids were tied at the neck. One line.
They weren't trained to move in the dark. If we cut them loose, they'd curl up where they stood.
If they tried to run, they'd be too weak and hungry to get far.
"Twenty kids a line. Four lines."
"Ten carrying gear. Twenty on guard."
'Familiars too. Cat. Weasel. Wolf.'
"Good thing Dark-san fixed us up with scent-block."
Hit them straight on, the kids become hostages.
Best we could do was watch. Wait. Get information.
Shalia and Esmeralda would bring backup. Eventually.
"Ow!"
"Move!"
A girl went down under a whip. Got up crying. Kept walking.
Nell was ready to jump. Second Sister's eyes were lightning.
"Fix this kid up!"
"...Fine."
A woman walked over. Didn't look happy. She healed the wound.
Church healer? I looked closer.
Petra Lone.
The debt gambler Judeus said we couldn't touch.
Why was she here? Already with the Church? No.
"Done."
"Thank you."
"Stay strong. Someone will come."
The Church men were laughing at her.
Petra wasn't an enemy.
"Second Sister. Can you make it rain?"
We needed them to slow down.
'I can do it. Water spirits are better, but give me time.'
"Make it big. Hard enough to make them camp."
'Got it.'
She went to work on the weather. If it worked, they'd slow down.
Maybe stop.
"No one strong. When the weather turns, we move."
If they stop, the kids get grouped up. The guards have to spread out. Room to set up a defense.
Surround the kids. Hold the line.
I ran the plan in my head. Picked the spot.
"...There."
A light was moving toward them. Another group. Closing in.