Chapter 136: Finding Sasha.

Chapter 136: Chapter 136: Finding Sasha.

Chapter 136: Finding Sasha.

The blade glowed faintly as it moved through the wood, cutting along a careful path while the person controlling it worked to create an opening without making too much noise, and the heat from its surface left the edges of the cut blackened and smoking.

The woman’s cage happened to be positioned close to where the blade was cutting, and as the first section of wood fell inward, she suddenly noticed the strange glow appearing through the wall.

Her eyes widened in shock, and she nearly let out a scream when she realised that something was cutting through the wooden barrier beside her.

However, she quickly covered her mouth with both hands, forcing herself to remain silent as she looked toward the men running about in the distance.

She had been held captive long enough to understand how heartless these men could be, and she had already suffered enough punishment for making the smallest noise at the wrong time, so the thought of attracting their attention filled her with fear.

After confirming that nobody had noticed her reaction, she slowly lowered her hands and turned her attention back toward the strange blade, which had already begun moving again as it continued cutting through the wooden wall.

The hot blade moved steadily through the planks, leaving behind a dark line that gradually widened until an opening large enough for someone to walk through was beginning to take shape.

---

The woman saw a man in armour from the cut-open passage in the wooden wall.

The faint red glint within his helm made her feel nervous, especially since she couldn’t tell what kind of expression he had beneath the metal covering his face, leaving her with no choice but to stare at the mysterious figure in silence.

’Just who is this guy... Is he trying to break in while they’re distracted?’

Her eyes moved towards the burning wall before returning to the armoured man, and as she put the pieces together, a possibility suddenly crossed her mind.

’Wait a minute, don’t tell me he’s the one who caused that distraction earlier.’

The more she thought about it, the more nervous she became, as the man before her seemed far too calm for someone who had just broken into a bandit hideout, and she couldn’t help wondering whether he was an even more dangerous person than the men who had kept her locked up for so long.

"Shsssh."

Osborne pressed a hand to his lips, motioning for her to remain quiet while he observed the surroundings, making sure that none of the men had noticed the opening he had created.

After taking so long to find this place, it would really be a shame if all his efforts were ruined by one careless mistake.

"Is your name Sasha, by any chance?"

To her surprise, the figure spoke in a soft tone, and the fact that he knew her name only made the situation more confusing.

"Umm... Yes."

"That’s good to hear."

Osborne let out a breath he hadn’t realised he was holding, feeling somewhat relieved that he had finally found the person he had been searching for, although he still needed to get her out of this place before the bandits discovered what was happening.

’He’s here for me?’

Sasha didn’t know what to say, and for a moment, she could only stare at the armoured man standing before her.

She had been trapped in this place for so long that she had already lost all hope of leaving, especially after her previous attempts to escape had ended with these men punishing her until she no longer had the strength to try again.

She had even started wondering whether anyone had noticed her disappearance, and whether the people she knew had simply accepted that she was gone, leaving her to spend the rest of her life locked inside a cage.

Yet now, a stranger had appeared out of nowhere, broken into the hideout, and somehow managed to find her despite the fact that she had no idea how he even knew she existed.

"How did you know where to find me... no, who sent you here—"

"I’m afraid I’ll need to step back, miss."

Osborne interrupted her question as he raised his sword, which had taken on a dull red sheen while he prepared to free her from the cage.

He didn’t have the time to explain himself, and even if he did, he doubted that telling her about the Adventurer’s Guild quest and the strange circumstances surrounding her disappearance would accomplish anything useful at the moment.

Besides, the metal bars in front of him were thick enough that cutting through them with an ordinary sword would be a troublesome task, and he wasn’t particularly interested in wasting his time trying to force them apart.

’Let’s try that again.’

Osborne studied the blade in his hand, remembering the principle behind one of his existing spells before attempting to apply it in a slightly different way, like he did a few seconds prior.

He swiped his gauntlet over his blade, and the next moment, the dull red sheen turned a bright, hot red, causing the surrounding air to grow warmer as the fiery energy gathered around the metal.

’It actually worked. Nice.’

’I didn’t really think it was possible. Looks like I created a spell of my own.’

Osborne couldn’t help feeling a little pleased with himself, although he knew that calling it an entirely new spell would be somewhat misleading, considering that the idea had come from something he had already learned.

While he did create a new spell, it wasn’t one created from nothing.

By using the principle of Flame Touch, he had found a way to pass its fiery essence onto his own blade, allowing the sword to carry the same burning property as the spell itself without requiring him to directly touch his target.

It was a simple idea, but the results were far more useful than he had expected, especially since he could now use his sword to cut through objects that would otherwise require considerably more effort.