Chapter 12: Square 10: Assault, Onslaught and Breakthrough
A single carriage tore down the main street at full speed. It passed one carriage after another. Far from safe, the driving was rough and reckless, but there was no time to worry about that.
"11:15... will we make it in time?"
"I will make sure we do!"
Elizabeth pulled a stick out of a wooden box inside the carriage.
"Wh... what is that... wait, is that!?"
Looking closer, the stick resembled a fishing rod. And tied to the end of the string was a carrot.
"Tender, use this!"
"Oh, that helps a lot!"
Tender moved quickly, dangling the carrot in front of the horse’s nose. I had serious doubts this would actually make the horse go faster. Just as I thought that...
The carriage lurched forward.
"That’s more like it! Let’s keep this pace!"
"Yes, Lady Elizabeth!"
Well, fine, whatever works, as long as we make it in time. It was now 11:16. The girl’s house was just up ahead.
At that same moment, the girl’s house. A quiet, ordinary day like any other. In the kitchen, where the mother’s humming and the sound of a knife on a cutting board rang softly, a small figure rummaged through a cupboard.
"Hey, Lily, what are you doing?"
The girl called Lily poked her head out from where she had been crouched inside the cupboard, brushing dust from her hair.
"Sis! Hey, do we have a glass cup? The biggest one we have!"
"A glass cup? What for?"
"So, my friend made this pretty sound with a cup of water. She rubbed the rim with her finger, and I want to try it too."
"Oh, that’s a nostalgic little trick."
Their father walked in suddenly, though no one had heard him listening.
"You know about it, Dad?"
"Yeah, that’s because..."
"Honey!!"
The mother, looking out the window, screamed. Everyone stopped talking and turned their eyes in the same direction.
"...What are those guys?"
Three silhouettes were visible through the window. A large knife. A massive cleaver. Whatever they were carrying, it was clearly nothing peaceful. Sensing the danger in the air, the father grabbed his children’s arms.
"Something’s wrong. We’re running out the back door!"
"Right, okay!"
At that moment, the girl’s long hair drifted gently, as if stirred by wind. Inside the house, where every door and window should have been shut, a breeze passed through.
"Pardon the intrusion, ufufu."
There was no sound. Yet the door’s lock had already been broken, hanging half open before anyone noticed. As if she had been standing there from the very beginning, a woman leaned against the window. The dark skinned intruder smiled with clear enjoyment as she slowly drew her curved blade.
"Now, now, don’t move. If my hand slips, a certain child’s head might just come right off, ufufufu."
"...What do you want!?"
The father stepped forward, shielding everyone else with his body.
"The basement. We’re in the middle of looking for something."
"Looking for something? There’s no treasure here! Just leave already!"
Seeing the father shout at the intruder, the mother, her face pale with fear, grabbed his shoulder and shook it.
"Honey, please don’t defy her anymore! If we just stay quiet, surely we won’t be killed."
Of course, there was no basis for that hope whatsoever. But defying them would only get someone killed on the spot.
"Hmm... maybe killing one of you would set a good example."
The dark skinned woman spoke in a tone that sounded endlessly amused, chuckling to herself. She lowered the hand she had been holding to her mouth, lined up her fingers, and clapped once. It must have been a signal. The half open door was ripped clean off its hinges, and a huge, heavyset man stepped into view.
"Since I’m kind, I’ll spare the kids."
The huge man stood in front of the father and raised his cleaver without a moment’s hesitation.
"Eh?"
"Run, honey!!!!"
"Dad!!!"
The family’s anguished screams rang out. But to the intruders, it was nothing more than irritating noise.
"Don’t worry, it won’t hurt, probably..."
The cleaver, more than capable of cutting a person in half with ease, stopped just short of the ceiling. It could come down at any moment.
"Aaand, here we go."
"Stop it, please stop!!!!!!!"
The girl’s scream, one born of love for the person about to die, nearly a shriek, was drowned out by an entirely different, far louder sound.
CRAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!!!!!!!
The sound of shattering glass. The sound of splintering wood. The sound of scraping metal. A horse’s cry. All of it mixed together into one deafening roar. A carriage smashed straight through the wall in a spectacular breach, and only came to a stop after tearing through the opposite wall as well.
"...Oh my, ufufufu, how flashy. I do like flashy things, but I hate being interrupted."
"Ow ow ow, Lady Elizabeth! Are you satisfied now!?"
"Perfectly! We couldn’t have made a bigger entrance!"
"Heeey, sis. What do we do about this old guy?"
"Leave him be. This is starting to look like more trouble than it’s worth."
The wooden panel that had once been a door, now broken beyond function. One man kicked through that warped, unopenable door with everything he had. Emerging from inside the carriage, the weakest person in the entire room.
"This time... I’m ending this, Nest!!!"
"Aren’t you full of energy. I might just end up killing you."
I had seen so much blood. So many people had died. I had lost my life more times than I could count. And still, I refused to give up.
Once again, I stood to face the monster.
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