The man’s hands took hold of Leorino’s small face, turning it to admire it from every angle. The lust was growing increasingly visible under his beard.
“Ho-ho… You were right. A beauty worth admiring.”
Leorino hated being touched. He never wanted to be touched by anyone other than Vi.
He had been ready for it, but he was so disgusted that he pushed the man’s hands away in a desperate attempt to resist.
Then a fingernail that had come loose before he was taken from Ebbo must have caught on the man’s clothes.
“What a pain.”
Irritated, the man artlessly plucked the nail from Leorino’s slender fingertip.
“Ugh…”
He already had wounds all over, yet the shock of having his nail ripped off was so great, it seemed to consume his entire body.
“Ha-ha, how beautiful is that face twisted in pain.”
His sadistic side thoroughly awakened, the man licked his lips and pinched the fingernail of his ring finger, which had also begun to come off.
Leorino gritted his teeth.
Live… I must live. No matter what happens to me… Until I see Vi, I must…
“…Now, scream for me.”
“…Agghh!”
He ripped it all the way to the base in one go and reached for the next pink nail, tearing it out without mercy.
Leorino’s eyes widened, tears spilling.
The men who had leaped with Gravis stood close to the outer fortress. Gehman crouched down, closed his eyes, and listened.
“Any progress…Gehman? Did you find him yet?”
“Shh, my apologies, sir. I require a little longer… I’m still not catching Lord Leorino’s voice.”
If Leorino called Gravis again with his mind, or even made a single noise, they would know where he was.
“A scream… A faint scream, stifled…”
The men’s bodies swelled with rage at Gehman’s murmur. Gravis clenched his fists.
Frowning, Gehman listened again, and the next moment he shouted:
“I have located Lord Leorino!”
Peering into Leorino’s violet eyes, glazed with tears, the man grew ever more excited.
“Oh, what a unique eye color you have… Yes, it is wonderful indeed. How glorious he could be with a little effort.”
“That’s why I told you, Lieutenant General Hannibal Barca, not to damage such a rare gem. Just look. It’s broken and dying because of you. It has lost half its value.”
“Doesn’t bother me. Tell your employer that I have been paid. Zwelf has also sent me my fair share. As for the rest, well… I can’t wait to see this great nation succumb to the might of Gdaniraque.”
Leorino was dazed and could no longer make out the men’s conversation.
His wet body was losing ever more warmth on the cold floor. His head was still bleeding.
Gdaniraque’s lieutenant general lifted Leorino’s face again and, after gleefully admiring it, left him where he lay.
“Treat him so he doesn’t die.”
Leorino was dumped on the floor like an old doll. Watching this, Smirnov seemed to hesitate.
“It will be dawn soon. The battle shall begin. By the end of the day, we will occupy Zweilink. Once we break through here, it will only be a matter of time before we invade Fanoren.”
Smirnov knelt before the man. “What do you plan to do with your reward?”
“I’d love to savor him now, but regrettably, he’s too filthy. I can already tell he will be a real stunner when he’s clean. He can wait until I conquer the fortress. In the meantime, wash that muddy mess off.”
Smirnov looked again at the young man lying on the floor. Something was clearly wrong with Leorino, but the lieutenant general of Gdaniraque did not seem to care.
The handover had been completed. Smirnov distracted himself with the thought that it was no longer his problem.
“How will their hero take this humiliation? We will see in the morning sun.”
Hannibal Barca erupted in laughter.
Suddenly, a darkness fell before his eyes, casting a shadow on him. Hannibal Barca looked overhead, where there should have been nothing but air.
“You will not.”
A man clad in darkness suddenly appeared and swooped down on top of him.
Hannibal Barca was known to be dauntless, but even he could do nothing but stare at the man with his mouth agape.
“You will pay for this with your head.”
At that moment, Hannibal Barca, the lieutenant general of Gdaniraque, heard the bells announcing his own death.
“…What…?”
A blade flashed in the air. As Hannibal Barca stood stunned by the appearance of the attacker, Gravis sliced clean through his neck.
The head of the Lieutenant General of Gdaniraque separated from his body.
The last thing his eyes saw was the face of a man as beautiful as the god of death.
The lieutenant general’s huge headless body slowly collapsed, blood gushing from his neck.
The sudden attack and death of their leader sent the Gdaniraque soldiers in the room into a state of panic.
“Eeeek!”
But the man had brought three others with him, who also appeared out of thin air.
The men caught the soldiers who had been standing around the lieutenant general with the tips of their swords. Within a moment, all the Gdaniraque soldiers in the room were dead.
Smirnov immediately realized what was happening. The general of Fanoren had appeared. A man with the same special ability as himself had come to rescue Leorino.
The general himself was behind enemy lines.
Smirnov quickly lifted Leorino off the floor. He picked up the dagger and placed it against Leorino’s drooping neck to stop the approaching general.
“…General Fanoren. How did you find us?”
Gravis turned around, his whole body erupting with such fury that air seemed to distort around him.
“You piece of filth… I’ll kill you.”
Gravis began to measure the distance between them. Smirnov sensed the particular tension in his muscles. It was a subtle movement that only a fellow ability user would recognize.
Smirnov immediately pressed his blade against Leorino’s neck. It bit into his throat, causing Gravis to stop. Gravis glared at Smirnov indignantly.
“…Get your filthy hands off Leorino.”
“Hmm, I suspect you fight the same way I do. You couldn’t take him from me if you tried.”
“You are Smirnov of the Moirlud Trading Company…the war criminal of eighteen years ago?”
Smirnov felt a thrill of joy at the general calling him by name.
He felt a strange elation, as if he had finally met the person for whom he had one-sidedly yearned for so long.
Two people with the same special ability, but diametrically opposed in every other way. It was a twisted sort of joy to have the man who was everything Smirnov was not recognize his existence.
Smirnov smiled faintly, planning his escape. He had already used much of his Power today. He couldn’t fight Gravis on equal terms.
But how did the general, who was supposed to be in the royal capital, learn of Leorino’s whereabouts?
Smirnov did not expect this turn of events and regretted that he had not saved any energy for this.
“General, something is wrong with Lord Leorino…!” Josef shouted suddenly.
Leorino appeared to have fully lost consciousness. He was so pale that he looked virtually lifeless.
“Master Leorino! Wake up!” Josef screamed.
Gravis assessed the distance again.
“Oh? If you get any closer, I’ll just disappear with Lord Leorino again.” Smirnov immediately pressed the tip of his blade to Leorino’s neck again.
“…Let him go.”
Gravis looked at the man holding Leorino. Smirnov was just as pale as the young man in his arms.
“Look at you… You’ve used too much Power. You can no longer leap very far.”
Smirnov twisted his lips bitterly. It was true that today, with the capture of the outer fortress and kidnapping Leorino from the royal capital, he had used his Power to its limits. The search for Leorino after his escape couldn’t have helped either.
But he could leap just once more within this fortress.
“I can still throw Lord Leorino off the top of the fortress walls.”
Gravis’s face filled with rage. Just seeing that expression gave Smirnov a tremendous sense of accomplishment.
Yes, that might just work.
The man who wanted Leorino as his reward was dead. In which case, it no longer mattered if Smirnov killed him. The next leap would be his last one, anyway. If he could not escape, he wanted to give this general one last taste of despair more painful than death.
That’s right. That’s what his master would want.
Gravis felt a slight tension in Smirnov. He did not have a moment to lose.
Leorino…!
In the next instant, Gravis leaped, closing the gap, and thrust his sword toward the man. At the same time, however, Smirnov also gathered what remained of his strength and leaped with Leorino in his arms.
“…O general! Time for you to see hell all over again!”
Gravis’s sword pierced the void, and his outstretched hand grasped only air.
“…Leorino!”