Chapter 41

Louise blinked her wide eyes twice. Each time, there was an illusion of mysterious violet light dust scattering.

Alec glanced toward where the assailants were and quickly helped Louise to her feet, holding her hand gently.

“We’ve been ambushed. They’ve been following us for a while.”

“What? Following you and me?”

Louise, still bewildered, looked around. It was a dark forest, and in the distance, two riderless white horses wandered in confusion.

Should he have taken a less conspicuous escape route?

The distance they had covered in that instant was beyond any rational explanation.

Soon, mercenaries began emerging from the trees, looking puzzled.

Alec still lightly held Louise’s hand while keeping an eye on the mercenaries.

“Where the hell did they go?”

“They were just here, weren’t they?”

The mercenaries looked around, bewildered.

Seeing this, Louise’s lips parted slightly in shock.

Alec called Gideon.

‘Come here, Gideon. Stay with Louise and protect her.’

[Grrr.]

Gideon began running through the air towards them. Though Louise couldn’t see him, Gideon was more than capable of protecting her from the mercenaries.

“Louise.”

“Yes?”

She turned to him, startled, at his call. She seemed about to say something, but Alec spoke first.

“Stay here for a moment. It will only take a short while.”

“What do you mean-?”

Alec couldn’t let her finish. He had to take down the mercenaries before they reached Louise.

He wanted to know who had sent them, but he already had a good idea.

Besides, the mercenaries weren’t his final targets.

Getting experience points from the mercenaries would be enough.

With each mercenary having 5000 health points, using his fist, enhanced with a skill and magic, would drop their health to zero in one hit.

“Skill. Speed.”

Wind swept around him as he moved.

More precisely, he moved so fast it seemed as though he was the wind itself.

* * *

The gunshot that had exploded in my ears.

Blood was trickling down from the body of a white horse that had been hit.

My heart sank at that moment.

Just as Alec had said, rough-looking men emerged from the forest.

‘Could it be?’

I suddenly thought that these might be the men sent by Marquis Marcel and his cronies to get revenge.

It made sense. Alec had humiliated them more in pride than in body.

As I watched in horror, Alec’s voice reached me.

“Stay here for a moment. It will only take a short while.”

“What do you mean-?”

I turned to him in surprise as he spoke.

Whoosh.

A strong wind seemed to blow my hair up and around.

My heart pounded instinctively in response to the perceived danger.

My hair settled, but Alec was gone.

“…Alec?”

Where did he go all of a sudden?

I stared blankly at the spot where he had been standing and then quickly looked around.

“Alec!”

I called out, scanning my surroundings.

Events were unfolding too quickly for me to process.

Moments ago, I had been on horseback, then I was suddenly here, there was a gunshot, and now Alec had vanished.

‘What is this?’

Thump, thump, thump…

My heart raced for no clear reason.

Neighing sounds of distressed horses echoed again.

I scoured the deserted forest with my eyes, only to return to where I had originally stood.

“!”

I froze, unable to move.

The horses had vanished.

Not only that, but the men who had been searching for Alec and me were now lying unconscious on the ground. They showed no signs of waking up.

I took a hesitant step forward but then froze.

‘What on earth happened here?’

The men who had been so fiercely hunting us were now helplessly sprawled out.

Were there any more of them?

Where was Alec?

I stood there, speechless and unsure.

“Louise.”

But then, a low, soft voice resonated clearly in my ear.

At that moment, my feet felt rooted to the ground.

A comforting, sweet voice followed, making my heart melt.

“It’s all over. I think we can go home now.”

* * *

Whoosh. Thud.

Thud, thud, thud.

Another whoosh.

Grave Mercenary leader Carson regained consciousness.

He saw the night sky dotted with stars.

‘What the hell…’

How much time had passed?

What had swept through here?

He tasted the metallic tang of blood in his mouth.

His face was aching, but his whole body throbbed with pain.

“Ugh.”

As Carson tried to sit up, he grimaced in agony.

His arm, leg, and side were all in excruciating pain.

The impact of being hit and crashing onto the slightly frozen ground had been significant.

‘Who the hell was that guy…?’

Carson struggled to piece together what had happened before he was knocked out.

The man had appeared like a flash of light—tall, handsome, and formidable.

The blows had been so powerful that Carson’s memory felt jumbled.

He shook his head, causing a wave of nausea.

“Ugh!”

His skull felt like it was splitting, but Carson fought to remember.

‘…I was hired by Marquis Marcel Howard to take down the Duke of Brent and his wife.’

Carson’s sharp eyes gleamed.

‘Then suddenly, the Duke and Duchess disappeared, and while we were confused, my men were taken down in the blink of an eye…’

Despite witnessing it, Carson had been unable to react.

He had merely watched in astonishment, waiting his turn as the swift movements unfolded before him.

Whoosh, thud.

Thud, whoosh, thud.

The more he saw, the more overwhelming fear gripped him.

Some of his men had been struck down without even realizing they were under attack.

He couldn’t keep up with the movements; it was like watching lightning zigzag across the sky in a terrifying display.

‘D*mn it.’

Carson hesitated.

No matter how strong a person was, the supernatural terror he had witnessed was overwhelming.

The other mercenaries around him were in the same state.

That lightning-fast assault was now right in front of them.

Carson reached for the dagger at his waist but never touched it.

He had been knocked out so hard that his memory wavered before he could draw his weapon.

“Get up! Get up now!”

Carson shouted at his men, still lying on the ground.

Despite the unprecedented speed and destructive power, Carson was sure he knew who had attacked them.

His instincts as the Grave mercenary leader weren’t wrong.

‘No way, he’s supposed to be weak, too kind, just standing there even if kids throw stones at him!’

Alec Myers.

The same fallen duke known for being the easiest target in the social scene.

***

After taking them all down, Alec dusted off his hands lightly, and a status window appeared before him.

Ding.

[Congratulations!]

[You have completed a surprise quest.]

[~Defeat the Grave Mercenaries and gain experience!~]

[Quest Reward]

[Affection has increased by 1.]

[Experience has increased by 50.]

[Trust has increased by 10.]

[Your level has increased to 2!]

TL NOTE: More advanced chapter of this story is already up to the site. Visit dusk blossoms for more advanced chapters and stories