Volume 1, Chapter 39: Earl Aubock⑧
Earl Aubock’s office, somewhere on the second floor.
Lambert’s greatsword bisected the door to the office in one fell swoop.
Even though the door was made of sturdy wood, it broke to pieces like a thin sheet of paper. The largest portion of the broken door clattered into the office, while the small shards scattered around the floor.
However, the Earl was nowhere to be seen.
Almel followed after Lambert from behind, her steps tentative.
Even then, she didn’t try to escape from Lambert.
Her previous experiences with him had taught her a good lesson; he could, and would, cut down anyone in a flash if he became suspicious.
「Since he’s no longer here… Is he moving to the basement? Or else, has he run away…」
Lambert entered the room without a shred of hesitation.
「Ya know, from the way those soldiers reacted, he’s definitely on the second floor.」
Additionally, even though Lambert was quickly discovered, his path didn’t waver. He continued in a straight line toward the Earl.
The Earl shouldn’t have had time to escape.
Even though he was hiding right now, Earl Aubock must have prepared an emergency escape for himself in the worst case scenario.
「It seems he managed to slip away. Well, I have to say that you’re a monster, but… Earl Aubock is a monster in another sense. He isn’t the kind of opponent you can take down alone…」
Earl Aubock was the type of man who made plans, backup plans for those plans, and backups for those backups. With Lambert’s invasion, Earl Aubock must have become even more cautious.
He would obviously continue sending assassins to kill Almel and Lambert.
The damage wouldn’t be limited to just the two of them; their surroundings would be involved too.
No matter how powerful Lambert was, there was no way for them to stay awake 24/7. The real test was their endurance; inevitably, they would become exhausted and die. That was what Almel felt in this situation.
They had a chance of winning if they could corner Earl Aubock before it was too late.
But, that also meant prolonging their battle against Earl Aubock, with his immense wealth and authority.
It was by no means a one-on-one duel.
They had to find him, corner him, and kill him as soon as possible.
「I found him.」
「Eh?」
Lambert’s greatsword slashed at the bookshelves on the other side of the room.
「W-What the…」
Almel didn’t manage to finish her words.
A hidden passage was revealed from behind the collapsed bookshelves.
「These highborns never change, regardless of the era, huh.」
Lambert muttered while looking into the underground passage.
「Regardless… of the era?」
「The king of Aunz also prepared the same gimmick. This is typical;influential people suddenly vanish when they’re cornered. They either use body doubles, dress as soldiers, employ a skilled swordsman, use magic to destroy the passage, or release monsters in their prison. These kinds of people are bound to cause mayhem once they’re cornered.」
Lambert shouldered his greatsword as he spoke.
「But no one has ever managed to escape from me.」
Almel felt a terrifying chill come over the room, and the strength drained from her legs.
Previously, she grumbled about Earl Aubock being a monster.
That was true, except for a huge misunderstanding on her part.
Almel didn’t understand most of what Lambert said just now.
One thing she could understand was the fact that there was an insurmountable gap of experience between Earl Aubock and Lambert.
This was probably the first time Earl Aubock had ever been cornered in his life.
However, there was one thing she was sure of: Lambert had pursued numerous humans that were far more terrifying than Earl Aubock.
「I’ve troubled you for asking to guide me this far. You may leave. And let me give you one last piece of advice. You’re not suited to tread the path of the sword.」
Lambert leaped into the hole behind the bookshelves.
His overwhelming mass squashed the destroyed bookshelves, and his figure vanished beyond into the darkness.
The ominous metallic noise of his armor could still be heard, even after his figure had vanished.
Standing there with a dumbfounded look, Almel was left behind. A while later, she mustered the courage to peer into the passage.
Although her mind was yelling at her to run away, her trained sense of duty made her unable to leave until she saw the ending with her own eyes.
The passage was inclined to the point it was almost a slide.
Since the passage was a bit too small for his huge figure clad in armor to fit in, Lambert ended up sliding down. Some parts of his armor scraped the passage wall along the way, leaving behind countless sparks.
Along the way, Lambert decelerated his fall by changing the way he gripped his greatsword, holding it out horizontally in front of him.
Suddenly, Lambert’s body was flung up right after a corner.
Despite seeing the passage continuing in front of him, many sharp spears were waiting on top of Lambert’s landing point to skewer him alive.
It was a trap prepared to kill the pursuer.
The trap itself was held down by some sort of board. It would rise bit by bit when the board was removed.
There was no better evidence to confirm the fact that Earl Aubock had recently used this passage, since the trap had been set.
「Quite vigilant, but that kind of trap won’t work on me.」
Lambert didn’t bother to change the direction of his fall. He fell right on top of the spear trap.
The spears were smashed to bits against the might of Organ.
He killed the force of his fall by rolling forward, crushing more spears along the way. He stood back up in a defensive stance, prepared for another surprise attack.
There in front of him, the long passage was hidden behind a stone wall.
Lambert discovered fresh footprints as he scanned the passage in front of him.
「I’m a bit far behind, huh.」