Chapter 85 (1/2)

”Uwaaaah-!!”

Cho Hong cried out. She managed to shove away Kazuki grabbing her arm to restrain her and dashed out, only to slam into someone else and ungainly tumbled backwards. Cinzia, with a cigarette hanging on her lips, was looking down at her with somewhat surprised eyes. They had returned, in other words.

”What is….” (Cinzia)

Cinzia quickly closed her mouth. A total of seven people had returned. Six people went there initially, so at the least, it meant the team succeeded in rescuing one person.

”Lawrence! It's Erica Lawrence!”

”Richard Hugo is there, too!”

The waiting contingent of people discovered the rescued captives and cried out in elation. However, their cheers didn't continue on for long.

From the get-go, the success rate of this mission was deemed low. However, the atmosphere of the team that had rescued two captives was especially downbeat, more so than expected. It was as if looking at a bunch of dazed, soulless people.

Cinzia's eyes, meanwhile, drifted off towards Ian's sweat-soaked face, now distorted into a sorrowful expression of defeat as he breathlessly panted out. Only then did she realise that the rescue team was lacking someone.

”Ian! Iaaaaan!” (Cho Hong)

Cho Hong had been sitting on her b.u.t.t, looking dazed, before recovering her wits to rush towards the Sorcerer.

”Hurry! Hurry and reactivate the magic circle! Nooow!” (Cho Hong)

The moment she grabbed him by his collars, Ian crumbled like a straw. It was because he had exhausted all of his mental power maintaining the magic circle.

”Get up! You gotta get upppp!” (Cho Hong)

Cho Hong cried out in desperation. The surrounding people began to murmur unsteadily. Cinzia hurriedly entered the boundaries of the magic circle and forcibly suppressed Cho Hong. She threw out a question while pus.h.i.+ng down the crazily-resisting woman.

”Ayase Kazuki, what happened?” (Cinzia)

The j.a.panese man couldn't open his mouth for a while. He was famed for his cold, collected demeanour, but right now, he looked just as confused as everyone else here.

”….First of all.” (Kazuki)

Kazuki finally broke his long silence and spoke in a low, quiet voice.

”We were able to get this far in the rescue mission all thanks to that young man. From the beginning until the end.” (Kazuki)

Cinzia immediately knew who this ‘young man' was.

”I know that.” (Cinzia)

”We didn't want to give up until the end. He and I remained till the end of the allotted time and searched everywhere. Because of that, we were able to rescue Richard Hugo and Erica Lawrence, and also, could save Ayase Yui, Ibrahim Ali and Edward Dylan in time.” (Kazuki)

This meant that the Earthlings were somehow been all rescued in one way or the other.

”What about Teresa Hussey?” (Cinzia)

”The Princess was….” (Kazuki)

Kazuki faltered in his words and couldn't continue.

”….He couldn't end his search even if she was nowhere to be found and he overshot his time limit?” (Cinzia)

”No, ma'am.” (Kazuki)

Cinzia's guess was met with a needlessly sharp reb.u.t.tal from Kazuki.

”It seemed that the Princess was being held as a prisoner by a high-ranking Parasite.” (Kazuki)

”A prisoner, is it?” (Cinzia)

”Yes. However, he managed to successfully rescue her. Even though he was discovered in the middle of his escape, he somehow broke through their dragnet and made it out of the prison block, as well.” (Kazuki)

”There was a high-ranking Parasite present? No, hold on. He got discovered but still managed to escape?” (Cinzia)

Cinzia blinked her eyes. She was only half-convinced when she heard the news of the Arden Valley incident, but what with Kazuki being so serious like this, she had no choice but to believe.

”So, what happened, then? If he escaped, why isn't he here?” (Cinzia)

Kazuki helplessly shook his head.

”….I'm not sure.” (Kazuki)

”What?” (Cinzia)

”D*mn it! I really don't know what happened. Yes, he was cutting it really close, but I was certain that he'd make it. We blew up the sky bridge and delayed the enemy's pursuit and sniped every single flying creature. And he was just about to safely enter the hideout, but…..” (Kazuki)

Kazuki pushed his bangs up. His forehead was soaked in sweat.

”He was about to, so what happened next?” (Agnes)

It was Agnes asking the question next. Kazuki's expression remained at a loss as he replied to her.

”What I saw was…. Seol was running while carrying the Princess in his arms before he suddenly faltered.” (Kazuki)

”Are you saying he fell?” (Agnes)

”No, it didn't look like he tripped and fell. If he tripped on something, the momentum from his running speed would still ensure that he…. Ah.” (Kazuki)

Kazuki's eyes narrowed to a slit, and he continued on with a half-convinced, half-unsure expression on his face.

”Just before he entered the room, I think I heard a sound similar to a gunshot.” (Kazuki)

”A gunshot?” (Cinzia)

”That's the best I can describe. Even I can't be certain of this.” (Kazuki)

Upon hearing the word ‘gunshot', Cinzia sneaked a glance at Agnes.

Before anyone had noticed it, the surroundings had fallen deathly silent. No, Cho Hong was still loudly shouting at the top of her lungs. And also….

”…..”

Agnes quietly squeezed her eyes shut.

‘He' missed them. No, should ‘he' say that they simply disappeared without a trace?

In all honesty, a handful of livestock escaping wasn't something to lose sleep over, as far as the high-ranking Parasite was concerned. However, it was a different story altogether when it came to Teresa Hussey. She was a royalty of Haramark, one of the seven kingdoms that played a pivotal role in the human faction. And more importantly, she also was in contract with the seven G.o.ds, as well.

Once upon a time, the Parasite Queen lost her war on a certain planet. She fought against a really powerful G.o.dly being and was soundly defeated. She managed to barely escape with her life and somehow ended up in the Paradise where she set up a new base. She then rapidly expanded her influence and devoured the main G.o.d of this world to restore a portion of her powers.

However, that was far from enough. She sought after absolute perfection for the sake of vengeance, and as a result, she craved after more power. To facilitate her goal, she wanted to absorb more G.o.ds. So, it was rather obvious that she'd be curious about the seven remaining G.o.ds of the Paradise and also, to devour them, too.

In other words, the secrets Teresa Hussey possessed were a type of tribute for the queen. Even if the secret itself turns out to be useless, it could still become a proof of this high-ranking Parasite's worth. If things went well, it could have gotten an opportunity to evolve into an even higher being.

Under the determined drive not to let her escape, it mobilised not just the forces underground, but even those elite creatures guarding the surface in order to track her down. According to its calculations, she should have been captured by now from the horde of Parasites flooding the first underground floor.

Unfortunately, her escape speed was beyond its expectations, and its actions ended up becoming a waste of energy, instead. It reflected on its mistake, knowing that she should have been presented before the Queen upon her initial capture. The desire to evolve blinded the creature into holding the human woman as a captive to torture information out of her. It never dreamed of things turning out this way.

”Growl…..”

The unknown Parasite crossed the restored sky bridge and entered the research area. After clapping its eyes on the hideout, though, it could no longer hide its fury.

”Rooooar!!”

It couldn't figure out how the rats managed to infiltrate, but this….

This laboratory located in the former Delpinion Duchy was a critical strategic point, a military base, for the future invasion of human faction. Even more importantly, though, the plan of ma.s.s production actually began from here, so one could even say that this was the headquarters of all the ma.s.s production facilities out there.

In order to get to the bas.e.m.e.nt, one simply had to go through the surface first. And that was why the surface area was being strictly guarded, but now….

”These d*mn rats!! How dare you resort to trickery like this?!” (?)

The high-ranking Parasite flew into rage before discovering a pool of blood near the bookshelf. The sniping seemed to have succeeded, but no one seemed to know what happened afterwards. What was certain, though, was that there was nothing to find nearby here.

”Find her! Turn this place upside down and bring her to me!” (?)

Since the ones guarding the surface had all come down to the bas.e.m.e.nt floor, there was hardly any room left to move, but under that command, they noisily scattered to all corners of the facility.

The high-ranking Parasite breathed angrily for a while before stomping on the altar in the middle of the hideout.

CRACK!!

Just as the magic circle was shattered into fine dust…

Rumble….

Suddenly, the interior of the hideout shook around just a little.

No, that didn't seem right.

The high-ranking Parasite raised its glare up to the ceiling. It could have been nothing, but the ceiling seemed to have trembled a little bit just now.

”….Keuk!”

However, this creature soon reverted his attention back to the manhunt. It spun on its heels and left the hideout.

Going back slightly in time, just after Seol Ji-Hu was sniped.

”Ah-aahk!” (Teresa Hussey)

Tumble!!

Teresa Hussey was thrown away without any warning. Obviously, she was completely dumbfounded by this development.

She failed to understand what happened. The end goal was almost within reach, but then, her body went airborne all of a sudden before slamming into a wall. It was difficult to say that the person carrying her had simply tripped and fell because she felt something akin to a large impact force being transmitted to her the moment she became airborne.

”Ouch….” (Teresa Hussey)

She somehow regained her wits but freaked out again after clapping her eyes on the young man collapsed on the floor, trembling intermittently with his arm reaching out towards the empty void.

”are you alright?!” (Teresa Hussey)

She crawled to where he was and sucked in a cold breath after discovering his current status. She wasn't sure what hit him, but a copious amount of blood was bubbling out from somewhere below his upper torso.

”A h-healer!!” (Teresa Hussey)

She reflexively looked into the hideout before she became utterly dazed. Those people, wildly gesturing at the two to come quickly only until a couple of seconds ago, were no longer there. The magic circle was not emitting any light, either. There's no way they had abandoned her and Seol behind when the two were right in front of them, so this could mean….

‘Hang on, they were in a rush, weren't they?' (Teresa Hussey)

There must've been a reason that she wasn't aware of. Teresa Hussey's thoughts arrived there and rather than be at a loss, she decided to make a move. She had to do something, anything, rather than standing around in a daze.