Chapter 42 – Rescue Mission

Chapter 42 – Rescue Mission

— Paul Greyrat —

As if it were fate, as soon as we reached our first location, our group of four was able to easily enter the building, much thanks to Leon’s earth magic sending us upward where we then cut through the glass skylight.

It was a large hall, right in between the slums and the nobles district, hidden away from the prying eyes of the knights.

Of course, it went without saying that many of those same knights were part of this whole thing.

As soon as we jumped through the roof, we were quickly met with the sight of many of the Fittoans we were here to rescue.

Some were in cages, while some were in chains, ages ranging from children to the elderly.

Seeing such a sight, I couldn’t help but narrow my eyes in anger.

How dare they... how dare they treat my fellow countrymen like this.

Just thinking about how my wives might be in a similar position made the feeling worse.

“Well... is this everyone?” Leon asked from my side. “You mentioned how there were three possible places where they were likely spread out, but this looks like everyone.”

“Yeah,” I nodded. “I’m counting thirty. That should be all of them.”

“What? That was way too easy!” Eris complained.

Indeed... she was right.

This was way too easy.

Those fucking nobles, always standing up for their pride and useless arrogance... No way they would let things end like this.

“Father,” Leon said, turning to me as he nodded toward the hall’s entrance. “We have company. Twelve, from what I can see. And more coming.”

Well, that explains it.

Looking back at his face, I couldn’t help but pause upon noticing that one of his eyes was glowing purple.

Oh... right. Demon eye. I forgot about that with all the ridiculous that was my eldest son.

Moving on...

“So this was a trap,” I stated. “That must be why the information was so easy to find compared to before as well.”

“Indeed,” Leon said with a carefree smile as he unsheathed his sword. “But this was probably a trap for you, no? So with us here... wouldn’t it be better to call our incoming assailants the ones who are trapped?”

His blade glittered under the soft glow of the moonlight as it was suddenly wreathed in blue flames.

Narrowing his eyes, Leon’s smile changed from carefree to cold as he continued, “Besides... I feel a bit... unfulfilled, leaving like this. Don’t you feel the same?”

“...Yeah,” I snarled as I unsheathed my own sword.

All those good people that followed my dumb ass and joined our cause... those same good people who were taken out by battle, assassins, and everything in between.

Raul... Joanna... Miras... all of you... I will avenge you.

With this, tonight, our cause will be complete, and I can finally put this path of pain and stress behind me.

Behind all of us.

And I’ll be taking some bastards out with me.

“Paul Greyrat!”

An obnoxiously loud voice resounded through the hall as the large hall door burst into splinters.

“You damn scoundrel! Just like the vermin you are, you ran right into the cage that will be your grave!”

Just as Leon had said, eleven more figures appeared behind the annoying noble, all dressed in combat gear and ready for a fight.

They were... strong. Really strong.

If I was alone, I would have been forced to run with my tail between my legs.

But these arrogant fuckers had never seen what a monster my kid is.

I smiled back at the group, “What’s got your panties in a twist, eh? Need all these people to come get little old me? Gee, what did I do to possibly deserve such a warm welcome?”

The noble was definitely one unaccustomed to combat, seeing as his fat chin wobbled with every step, but whether it was his arrogance, or blind trust in his allies, he still stepped forth regardless with a confident smirk.

“That annoying mouth of yours is still strong, I see. Luckily, that will be the last anyone ever hears from it,” he said. “After all, while your abilities may be praiseworthy for a pest, I doubt you can withstand the collective might of six Saint-rank swordsmen!”

His smirk widened at his words, as if waiting to see me prostrate myself in fear, begging for my life to be spared.

Unfortunately for him, I had reinforcements.

And they were likely the best reinforcements one could ask for.

“Is that all?” I said calmly.

His smirk disappeared.

“...Get them. Don’t leave any alive.”

As soon as he said that, Leon stepped forward, holding his sword at his side as he crouched down.

“Eri, take the right. Father, take the one on the left. Ruijerd, protect the slaves and deal with any that get past.”

Feeling the pressure of authority, I hastily nodded in agreement, just like Ruijerd and Eris did.

“Now... I can only do this once,” Leon said. “So one of you... come at me.”

His words seemed to tick off one of the swordsmen, as the bearded man unsheathed his sword before leaping forward.

“You brat! Feel the might of Millis flow through your blood-!”

But as soon as he neared Leon, I felt a shiver, and a moment later, the bearded man’s head was sent flying through the air as his body crumpled to the ground, his pristine white armour quickly stained red by the blood flowing from his open neck.

Everyone stood still, save for Ruijerd who simply nodded approvingly.

W-What the hell? This son of mine... just dealt with a Water Saint like he was nothing! And in an instant, too!

The thought sent a shiver down my spine.

...I swear to never cheat on Zenith ever again, lest that blade be turned against me.

“Wow... They don’t call it a ‘Secret Art’ for nothing,” Leon said as he reviewed the aftermath of his attack. “But to think... Severing flesh is quite different from trees, huh?”

...I will absolutely never look at another woman again. I swear it.

“Y-You... You bastard!”

With the shout of one of the enemy swordsmen, the battle began in earnest, with Leon sending an arc of fire to separate two of the remaining five Saint-rank swordsmen and corralling them towards me and Eris.

Fuck... he’s been doing everything so far.

As a father, I would never accept that!

“Face the wrath of an annoyed, surpassed father!” I shouted as I engaged against my opponent.

He had two short swords, typical of the North God Style, but I could tell from how he handled himself that he focused on speed, so there was likely some Sword God mixed in there as well.

Almost like me.

But... it was a bit flimsy.

His blade lashed forth like a whip, heading straight for my neck as his second blade came from behind it, a hidden strike to puncture my lung as I defended my neck.

Parrying his first strike, I let my momentum carry me past him, ensuring that his second strike wouldn’t be able to connect as I set my stance once again.

Hearing the clang of blades from around me, I unfortunately wasn’t able to focus on the others as I was too preoccupied with this guy.Th.ê most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m

His face was blank and stern, so I doubt I’d be able to provoke him. And it wouldn’t be smart for me to use a Sword God technique against a faster opponent...

I guess I’ll have to wait him out until he shows an opening.

We exchanged a few more strikes before I was suddenly interrupted by Leon’s shout.

“No... you should just take the month off,” he said with a smile as he looked at Aisha and me.

What an oddly creepy smile... was that him being satisfied with our bond?

...Gross.

“Oh! But I do want you to meet Zenith’s family, the Latreias,” he said, shaking off his grin. “They’ve given me their support, so I should at least tell them I know where Zenith is and that I’ll be leaving to get her.”

“Sure,” I shrugged. “But they’re nobles, right? Are they annoying?”

Paul leaned back in his chair, releasing a sigh.

Well, that answers that question.

But still... she is my grandmother... and Norn’s as well.

...Though I have a feeling that they wouldn’t like Aisha that much, being the daughter of a second wife and all, especially considering their devotion to the Millis church.

And Paul did say they didn’t care about me, an adopted child, either...

“...Fine. But Norn isn’t coming, and if they say anything I don’t like, I’m not letting her go at all. Deal?” I said.

“...Deal,” Paul sighed again. “Why is my family so troublesome...”

I didn’t comment on that.

Half of my family’s ‘troublesomeness’ was the cause of the man himself, after all.

He should take some responsibility.

— Leon Greyrat —

“Hmm...”

Looking at me with an appraising gaze, I watched as Claire Latreia, my adoptive grandmother, looked over me with the eyes of a hawk.

She was an older lady, as one might expect, with pale blonde hair that was tied up in a bun, piercing blue eyes, and a constantly stern expression on her face.

“...You pass.”

“Uh, sorry?” I said, confused.

“I said you pass to be recognized as being related to me,” she said. “It seems that while that foolish daughter of mine made many mistakes, especially in the field of men, she has at least seemed to raise her children appropriately. Even Rudeus had an acceptable level of etiquette for a child.”

“...I see. I... appreciate your praise of Mama,” I said before narrowing my eyes. “But she is anything but foolish.”

Our gazes clashed for a few moments before she relented, turning her head to my father, who was at my side.

“So? Paul Greyrat... what did a scum like you come to visit me for? Is it about that ruckus I heard about a few days ago?”

As my father and grandmother began to converse, I sat back and went over what I knew about the woman during our brief interactions.

She was extremely stubborn, and just like so many other nobles, she had a fixation with etiquette and ‘continuing the family line’.

Norn, while a quiet and cute child, was not a girl who knew anything about etiquette, and in front of such a brash and strict personality like Claire...

Yeah, I think it was a good idea to have her stay behind with Eris today.

Still, at her heart, I could tell that my grandmother was a good person who was simply too stubborn to give in to anyone less than her version of ‘perfect’.

Honestly, she was quite similar to Paul in that regard.

A good person with a large, glaring fault.

And I knew that she loved her family, judging by the relieved look on her face when I told her of Zenith’s survival and location, but there was still an underlying callousness in her gaze.

That same odd feeling appeared when Paul mentioned how Norn had returned with me.

It felt... uncomfortable. The old woman seemed a bit too... excited.

Not excited in the way of a grandmother meeting their granddaughter for the first time, but rather how one would look at a new sword or pair of boots.

...I think I’ll hold off on having them meet for now.

At least until Norn found herself a bit more.

Paul then went off with Claire to talk privately about... something in another room.

Likely about his plan to retrieve Zenith in Begaritt, as that was what they were talking about a moment before.

“Ah? Is Mother currently occupied?”

Hearing a soft, bell-like voice, I turned to the door that had just been opened.

“...Mama?”

She had warm blue eyes, chin-length blonde hair, and a youthful face that looked exactly like Mama.

I could immediately feel the tears threatening to break out at the sight before me.

“Hm? I believe you’re mistaken, as I do not have any children,” she responded.

Right... yeah, no, Mama was in Begaritt.

That... wasn’t Mama.

I lightly slapped my cheeks to get my emotions back to normal.

But from how similar they looked, and considering where I currently was...

“Sorry, you look exactly like my mother, Zenith. I believe you are her sister, if I’m not mistaken?” I said, getting up and performing a curt bow.

She widened her eyes in shock.

“That golden hair... Are you... Leon?” she asked, her tone indicating excitement.

“It seems that you know of me,” I said.

“Of course I do,” she nodded. “Your mother wrote all~ about you in our letters. Especially when she was still an adventurer.”

Oh... so those letters Mama sent were to Therese?

Interesting.

“In fact,” she said, getting closer to me to whisper in my ear. “I was the one who sent her the barrier spell book. Don’t tell anyone about that though~”

“You were?” I said, slightly shocked. “T-Thank you... I’m grateful. But unfortunately... it was lost in the teleportation incident.”

“I see... well, as long as you learned a lot from it, it’s better that way,” she nodded. “While it would be best if it was destroyed, just having it out of your hands means I don’t have to worry about it bringing you any danger.”

Ah, right. There was that thing about barrier magic.

I would have to be sure not to use it as much as I’m used to while here.

Actually, now that I was out of the Demon Continent, I should refrain from using it from now onward.

“And speaking of that incident...” Therese said hesitantly. “Is your mother...”

“Mama is alive,” I said with a smile. “And we know where she is. That’s why Paul, my father, is meeting my... grandmother right now.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful!”

I then found myself smothered in a hug, and I quickly found out that Therese was just as... bountiful, as Mama as well.

“Oh? Your mother was right, you really are nice to hug!” she then rubbed her cheek against my head. “The perfect mix of firm and soft! Uuu~ I can’t get enough!”

I... felt a little violated... but in a good way.

She also smelled quite nice.

Though her armour was poking my side, so that hurt a bit.

“Ooh~! Why don’t you just stay here, no? I heard you’re talented, so you can become a great knight, and then I can get back some much-needed bonding time~!”

...I’ll just let her do her thing.

But Father, please come back soon. She has quite the firm grip.