Arc 3 Chapter 6 : Kidnapping

[Raul PoV]

The game Path of Destiny contained countless side quests, meant to let players level up their characters to face increasingly stronger enemies as the story progressed.

Some quests were lighthearted and casual, but plenty of others were genuinely dark and brutal. Originally, we'd designed these quests simply so players wouldn't grow bored waiting for the next Main Quest.

That's why we deliberately made some quests a bit exaggerated, to make them more compelling. But this world was reality now. The cruel, terrifying quests we'd once designed were becoming real, lived experiences here.

Just now, Emilia had summoned me to her. She'd assigned our group a mission to investigate reports of missing villagers, from a village located 30 kilometers north of Cataluna Fortress City.

Was I about to witness, once again, the fallout of this dangerous, merciless world we'd created? Watching the people living here suffer under a world overrun with monsters and terrifying demons.

Sephira's death had only been the beginning of the guilt I now carried, for having created such a terrible world. Still, I would keep doing everything I could to make it better.

After a journey of over two hours by carriage, we finally arrived at a village called Virahon.

Several villagers greeted us as we entered.

Our destination was the residence of the village head. Typically, a village in this nation would be led by a Baron. But that arrangement only applied within a Count's territory.

A Marquis only had two subordinate Barons, both stationed in the smaller towns within his territory.

"Greetings, young ones, what brings you to our small village?" an elderly man asked, walking with the aid of a wooden cane.

"We're part of the patrol unit from Cataluna Fortress City," I answered him. "This morning, we received a report about several villagers going missing here. Is that correct?"

"Ah, yes, we did send that report yesterday," the old man answered. "My name is Meyaro, head of Virahon Village. Let's discuss this at my home."

I and the other members then headed toward the old man's residence.

Arriving there, I instructed the rest of my group to wait outside, since the village head's home was too small to accommodate everyone.

"Please, come in. Apologies my home is too small for all of you," the village head said, sounding somewhat regretful.

Stepping inside, he offered me a seat and served me hot tea along with what looked like some kind of sweets.

I drank and ate both, out of respect for the old man, even though I wasn't particularly fond of sweets.

"Alright, let me think how to begin..." the village head murmured, as though trying to recall something. "It started five days ago. Several villagers who went to the river to fetch water and gather firewood in the forest never returned."

"Roughly how long do the villagers usually spend fetching water and collecting firewood?" I asked him.

"Villagers usually go to the river to bathe before sunrise, and in the evening, they head into the forest to gather firewood to keep warm through the night," the village head answered.

"Have there been any disappearances at times other than these two situations?" I asked again, to confirm.

"I believe so — two women suddenly vanished while working in the tea plantation during broad daylight, three days ago."

Hmmm... could that just be a coincidence? If I remembered correctly, from the game, the ones who'd eventually disrupt this region were demons of the Vampire race. Aside from Vampires descended directly from the ancestral bloodline, they couldn't venture out during daylight, given the sun.

"Any signs of a monster attack?" I asked him, to confirm.

"I don't believe so," the village head answered. "If a monster had done this, we would have found its tracks near where they disappeared."

The village's security force consisted of only 50 personnel.

According to the village head, twenty were currently searching for the missing villagers, while the remaining thirty focused on patrol duty. They were currently concentrating their search around the base of the Montana mountain range.

They'd searched into the forest as well, but not too deep. I supposed they feared being attacked by monsters if they stayed too long inside.

Right now, I only had ten members with me, including a mage and one Priestess, Ariel. If we were only dealing with slave traders, I figured our current numbers should be enough to handle them.

"In that case, we'll try searching around Mazovia Forest," I told the village head.

"Don't venture too deep into that forest," the village head warned me. "Even though there haven't been any monster attacks lately, deep within that forest, plenty of monsters still roam."

Having gathered enough information, I and the rest of the group left the village head's house and headed for Mazovia Forest to search for clues.

I suspected this was the work of either slave traders or demons who'd already come here searching for Brian.

Human slavery was strictly forbidden in nations worshipping Goddess Diana as their primary deity. Still, this practice continued illegally.

They traded human slaves in a place known as the black market.

To access the black market, a person needed to obtain a membership card and an Anonymous mask from an agent operating the black market. They'd first verify the background of anyone wishing to access their business, ensuring no government spies could infiltrate to gather intelligence on their illegal operations.

"Captain, what should we do now?" Viera asked.

For this journey, I'd only brought ten people, including one mage and one Priestess, Ariel.

"We'll search for clues about the missing villagers in the forest, five kilometers north of this village," I answered her.

I looked over at all the members present. I figured this would prove a valuable experience for them, should we actually end up facing slave traders.

"I just want to say a few things to all of you," I said, my tone serious. "If your life or your comrades' lives are ever threatened, I want you to have no hesitation whatsoever in killing your enemy."

I knew mere words like this wouldn't suddenly toughen their resolve enough to kill another human being. They were still young, still untrained for pressure like this.

I was simply reminding them of the consequences of hesitating during a fight.

"Captain, are we going to be fighting criminals?" Piers asked, sounding nervous.

"Most likely," I answered him. "But I hope what we encounter this time really is just criminals. We don't know how bad things could get."

What worried me most was running directly into those demons. Still, given it was daytime, I figured that possibility was unlikely.

After giving a few more instructions, I and the group left the village, heading toward Mazovia Forest.

This forest served as a buffer zone between the Aragon Empire and the Republic of Venetia. No one claimed this forest, given how difficult it was to inhabit, riddled with monster nests, and the considerable cost required to make it habitable.

After walking for nearly half an hour, we finally arrived at the edge of Mazovia Forest. Towering trees stretched high above us, obscuring our view deeper into the forest.

"Viera, Piers, and Tazz will be our vanguard. Tom and Jerry, take the right flank. Vista and Tianna, take the left flank. I'll take the rear guard myself." I instructed them to form up as we ventured into the forest. "Ariel and Barney, you'll stay in the center of the formation."

My reason for staying at the rear was so I could monitor the group's overall movement and direct them according to whatever tactics the situation called for.

Unlawfully taken from NovelPhoenix, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

We began entering the forest, Viera leading the way at the front of the formation. Besides Silent, she also possessed a Profound Codex called Hunter.

With this ability, she was far more attuned to her surroundings than the rest of us. That's exactly why she was so well-suited as our scout.

Tazz was a Paladin, whose role in this group was to serve as our tank, holding off large numbers of enemies, while Piers's job was to support the two of them should anything happen.

"Monsters! A pack of Red Cheetahs!" Vista shouted from the left flank.

"Tazz, Piers, help them! Viera, Barney, provide ranged support!" I ordered them.

"Understood!"

"Got it, Captain!"

Everyone began carrying out my orders.

Tazz immediately moved forward to hold off three Cheetahs at once. Vista was fighting one Cheetah, while Piers helped Tianna, who looked to be struggling against another.

"Four more incoming! 100 meters, 10 o'clock direction!" Viera shouted a warning to the group, drawing an arrow from her quiver.

"Water Bullet!" Barney fired off his spell, but unfortunately, it missed.

"Magic Arrow!" Viera loosed her arrow, which struck one of the cheetahs squarely in the neck.

But the three remaining cheetahs were about to attack Piers and Tianna, who were still fighting.

I quickly activated Acceleration and kicked one of the cheetahs mid-leap, aiming to pounce on Tianna, sending it flying into a tree.

—Miauuw!

The remaining two cheetahs leapt toward me, but I dodged with ease.

—Bam!

I struck one cheetah's neck, knocking it unconscious.

Seeing its companions fall, the last remaining cheetah tried to flee, but I quickly caught its tail with both hands.

—Miauuww!

The large cat screamed as I spun its body around and slammed it hard onto the ground.

Looking around, I saw every member had already dealt with their respective cheetahs, except Tazz, who was still struggling against the three he was fighting.

"Piers, Vista! Help Tazz!"

"Understood, Captain!"

With his two companions' help, Tazz finally managed to defeat the three cheetahs that had been surrounding him.

After several minutes of fighting, we'd defeated every monster that had ambushed us. No one had suffered any serious injuries, except Tazz, who had a shallow cut.

"I'll heal you, Tazz," Ariel said, approaching him.

"Don't heal him," I ordered her.

"Why not? He's injured, isn't he?" Ariel asked, pointing at the cut on Tazz's leg.

"That wound won't hinder his ability to fight," I told her. "Save your mana. You'll need it later."

Hearing my order, Ariel simply lowered her head and returned to her position in the formation.

After defeating those monsters, we continued deeper into the forest. Our journey was interrupted a few more times by monster attacks. Fortunately, we only encountered groups of level-three monsters or lower.

After nearly two hours of searching, we finally found a clue.

"Captain, come here," Viera said, pressing her ear to the ground. "I hear footsteps, about 300 meters north of here."

"Alright, you and I will go check it out first. The rest of you, wait here until we return," I ordered them.

Viera and I then moved cautiously northward. We began spotting human footprints after moving about a hundred meters. Before long, we heard what sounded like people talking.

We found a human camp. Several carts carrying large crates, and a cage holding people.

"How cruel..." Viera murmured.

I turned to see what she was looking at.

Several men were casually violating two helpless women.

Both women tried to resist, but the men beat them down to the ground and continued their vile acts.

"What should we do, Captain? I'd say there are about 30 to 40 of them," Viera asked, awaiting my decision.

These were undoubtedly slave traders. It seemed they intended to head toward the Republic of Venetia through this forest, before the Empire's security forces could catch up to them for abducting villagers from the surrounding area.

"Go call the others while I work out a strategy to raid them," I ordered her.

"Understood."

Once Viera left, I began formulating a plan.

If we waited for reinforcements, these slave traders would undoubtedly flee to the border by then. It would become an international incident if imperial patrol officers entered Republic of Venetia territory, even to make an arrest.

We only had ten people, not counting Ariel. We wouldn't be able to capture or eliminate all of them if these slave traders chose to flee rather than fight us.

Before long, Viera and the others arrived.

"We're going to capture or eliminate these slave traders, for violating Imperial law," I told them. "Show them no mercy, and don't hesitate if they resist, understood?"

Everyone nodded at my words.

"Alright, let me explain the strategy."

I then looked over at Ariel, who looked visibly nervous about our current situation.

[Ariel PoV]

Why did it have to be me...?

I was just a Priestess, not suited for something like this. But when I tried to voice my objection to this decision, Raul had simply answered:

"Your face is so innocent, and you look like a helpless, weak woman — those slave traders won't be able to resist the temptation to lure you in and abduct you."

He was... using me as bait...

If this were Brian, he would never do something like this to me. But watching those women being violated made my blood boil.

Their screams, their tears, their despairing faces — it made me realize this was necessary, if I wanted to help them.

"Um... could I ask you something? I've gotten separated from my group — we were trying to pass through this forest toward the border," I said, pretending to be lost in front of them.

"Ah... look, seems like an angel's wandered into our camp," one of them said, sneering at me.

Several of them began approaching, their smiles making me increasingly nervous and afraid, having just witnessed what they'd done to those women.

"Hey, pretty lady, come with us," one muscular man said. "I'm sure we can help you find your friends, and maybe have a little fun together afterward."

More men kept approaching. I slowly backed away, letting a look of fear show on my face. I needed to draw them as far away as possible, so the ones here wouldn't notice their companions were being attacked elsewhere.

While I drew everyone's attention here, Raul and the others would sneak in from the opposite direction, taking down the slave traders one by one without being detected.

"Hey, with a body and face this nice, she'll fetch a hefty price at the black market."

My body trembled hearing one of them say that. Honestly, I'd only just learned from Raul earlier that this horrifying practice of trading human beings even existed.

What they were doing was truly unforgivable.

"All of you are disgusting..."

I stared at every one of them sharply.

"Every one of you is a savage demon wrapped in human skin. People like you deserve to rot in prison, never to walk free again."

Hearing my words, they fell silent for a moment, then burst into laughter, as though they thought what I'd said was just a joke.

"Hahahaha!"

"Hahahaha! Thanks for the compliment, miss!"

These men truly were beyond saving. Their hearts had been consumed entirely by wickedness, and they clearly took pleasure in these horrific acts.

"We're going to enjoy your body before selling it off to wealthy businessmen!"

One of the men lunged at me, but I managed to dodge.

I turned and ran as fast as I could.

"Hehehe~ So you want to play tag, do you? We'll happily oblige, miss!"

I heard one of the men shouting behind me. There were about a dozen of them — there was no way I could outrun them all.

I had to trust him. If he was late, all these men would take my purity from me.

"Got you!"

My body hit the ground — one of the men had shoved me from behind, knocking me down.

"Time to enjoy that body of yours, miss..."

The man licked his lips with a repulsive expression.

If this continued, they really would take my purity, and there was still no sign of my companions arriving anytime soon.

I had to do this myself — I had to hold them off until they arrived.

One of them leapt, about to pin me down.

Aiming my palm at the man, I recited an incantation.

"Holy Wave!"

The man was sent flying, struck by my Divine magic.

Seeing this, the other men drew their weapons.

"So you can use magic too, huh!"

"Attack her all at once!"

The remaining nine men began charging toward me.

I began gathering mana, activating a Protection spell to keep them from getting any closer.

"Holy Circle!"

A semicircular barrier formed around my body, keeping the criminals from approaching further.

Still, they all began pounding on the barrier I'd created, trying to break through by force.

What should I do? This barrier won't hold them off much longer...

"Hit this shield harder!"

"I'll be the first to have a taste of this woman!"

—Crack!

A crack began appearing.

My heart pounded faster and faster — I had no idea what else I could do at this point. I tried to steady my breathing to face this situation calmly.

Just as I was about to activate the Lusignan family's signature Divine Chain spell, I spotted a black-haired man perched in a tree.

The barrier I'd created finally shattered, and the criminals lunged at me with their swords, but they all froze in shock as a black-haired man suddenly appeared and kicked one of them, sending him flying far away.

"Huh? Who are you!? Don't mess with us!"

But Raul ignored their shouting and struck another criminal's face, knocking him unconscious.

"Attack him and finish him off!" one criminal shouted.

They began attacking Raul all at once, the black-haired man constantly dodging their sword slashes.

"Aggghhh!" one criminal screamed in pain.

An arrow had struck his leg — Viera had shot him from a distance.

With Viera's help, Raul managed to counterattack, taking down two more criminals.

"Ru-run! We're under attack!"

The remaining five criminals then tried to flee, realizing we'd ambushed them all. But I'd already prepared my spell.

"Divine Chain!"

Chains emerged from the ground, capturing all five criminals. They struggled to break free, but it was useless — these chains wouldn't break under an ordinary human's strength.

The fight had ended...

"Ariel, head to the front," Raul ordered me. "One of us is seriously injured."

Hearing this, I hurried to follow his instruction.

Before long, I saw a man lying on the ground — it was Vista.

His stomach was bleeding heavily. A woman was pressing her hands against the poor man's wound.

"What happened?" I asked the two of them.

"This is all my fault. If I hadn't hesitated to kill them, Vista wouldn't be like this! Please, save him, Ariel!" Tianna shouted, beginning to cry.

I knelt in front of the man and placed my palm on his wounded stomach.

This is quite deep... I need to activate a full healing spell on him, or his life will be in danger.

Focusing mana into my right hand, I recited an incantation.

"Holy Light... Sacrament!"

A light appeared and seeped into the wound on Vista's stomach.

Before long, the stab wound began to disappear, his body starting to regenerate, and Vista's expression returned to normal.

"Thank you, Ariel! I don't know what would have happened if you weren't here!"

Hearing Tianna's near-desperate words, I simply gave her a gentle smile.

In this raid, we killed roughly 27 slave traders and captured 14 who were either unconscious or had surrendered.

Raul then ordered Piers and Tom to return to the village to report this and bring back a carriage to transport the detained villagers to safety.

There were 17 people who'd been captured by the slave traders.

I walked over to the two women whose purity had been stolen by those monsters. They still looked shocked and traumatized by the horrifying ordeal they'd endured.

"It's alright, it's over now," I said, trying to comfort them. "You're safe now."

I also activated a spell to help them rest more easily.

After waiting nearly three hours, help finally arrived — dozens of villagers came alongside the village head.

They then helped carry the victims rescued from the slave traders back to the village.

"Thank you for your efforts, Master Raul," the village head said, bowing his head. "But of the 17 victims, only two were actually from our village — the two women assaulted by the slave traders."

Hearing this, Raul's expression turned noticeably grim.

Which meant several villagers were still missing, and these slave traders weren't the ones who'd abducted them.

"I have a bad feeling about this..."