Chapter 27: Ch 27: Crashing the kidnappers
The priest fell quiet and followed the group, but Kael did not make the mistake of trusting him. In fact, he kept an eye on the priest even as he took the lead.
Since he was keeping such a tight leash on the priest, he noticed it the second the priest decided to grab Seraphina.
Kael tugged her out of the way, and Iris took the chance to grab the priest before pushing him down and holding her sword at his neck.
"Do not make any sudden movements. Otherwise, your neck will go flying off."
Iris’s voice was scary, and even Kael felt a hint of fear. He was glad to have her on his side and not as an opponent this time.
The priest also shivered, and after looking around for a bit, he decided that the best course of action would be to beg for his life.
"I did not mean to do this. It was all a plan by Sir Juniper. He told me that he would ruin my life if I did not do this. H-He even threatened to plant false evidence against me."
The priest begged for his life, but it was hard to verify his words. Sir Juniper had the money and the means to frame anyone he wanted to. And with the temple on his side, it would be easy for him to ruin someone’s life.
But just because Kael felt sympathy for this man (if he was telling the truth), that did not mean he was going to forgive him.
Unlike him, Iris had no mercy in her heart, and she stabbed the priest’s thigh before he could beg further.
"Stop lying to me. I have seen enough liars to recognize them by their tone of voice. What did that man promise you? And what did you agree to do for him?"
Iris demanded answers, but she did not give the priest any time to respond. He was going to bleed out at this rate.
Kael had no reason to interfere, but he decided to save the priest’s life anyway. And it was only because he needed him as evidence of what happened.
"Iris, that’s enough. You can let him go now. I need him alive until the trial so that we can extract his memories and have a look. You can take him after that."
The priest’s hopeful expression was instantly crushed when he heard Kael’s words.
Memory extraction was advanced magic that allowed others to see someone’s memories. However, it required a lot of control from both the caster and the one under the spell.
Furthermore, Kael had heard that it hurt a lot to have one’s memories extracted, and most people never recovered from it.
The priest must have had the same fear because he instantly grabbed Kael’s leg and begged.
"G-Grand Master, have mercy. I will-"
Iris grabbed the priest and pulled him back before knocking him out. Kael sighed and used magic to throw the priest into a holding cell with a spell to keep him asleep.
He would get more information out of the priest later. For now, he had a hero to find.
__________
"Boss, are you sure it’s a good idea for us to take this kid? You said he was an ordinary kid, but he looks rather high-profile. Are we going to be safe?"
The kidnapper asked Sir Juniper in a hesitant voice.
It had not been his intention to participate in this kidnapping, but he had been pressured into doing it with money.
Even now, he complained that they should not do this, but he was still willing to go along with it.
"Tsk, stop speaking nonsense and drive this cart. We are almost out of the area. I will pay you once we reach the next town."
Sir Juniper told the driver, and he hesitated before starting the cart once more.
Leon, who was asleep in the back of the cart, slowly blinked as he woke up from his nap. Sir Juniper noticed and immediately decided to make a good first impression on the kid.
"Hey kid, are you finally awake now? We found you in a den of kidnappers and decided to save you. It was rather irresponsible of your guardian to leave you alone. You should choose a better guardian from now on. How about me?"
Sir Juniper asked before Leon could even understand what was going on. He waited for Leon to get scared and ask questions, but the hero never did.
Instead, Leon sat up straight and, after looking around for a while, decided to address Sir Juniper.
"I don’t know what you are planning, but you should turn back while you still can. This is the last warning I can give you."
Leon’s voice was too even for a fourteen-year-old kid. It even made Sir Juniper shiver for a moment before he realized what he was doing and caught himself.
"Hmph! You don’t know what you are talking about, kid. Don’t you realize that I just saved your life? You should be thanking me, not doubting me."
Sir Juniper replied, but his heart was beating irregularly for some reason. Even his vision was going in and out of focus.
He was not the only one experiencing these symptoms. The kidnapper he had bribed was having a similar reaction.
"Sir Juniper, I don’t think I am feeling alright. I-"
The driver fell unconscious, and Sir Juniper immediately looked at the hero.
"Did you...do something?"
Sir Juniper asked in a small voice as his shaking got even worse. He was so busy looking at Leon that he did not realize the cart had lost its driver and was heading toward a cliff.
Leon sighed and shook his head.
"I did not need to do anything this time. The temple told me that a hero is a holy existence protected by the goddess. Maybe this is your punishment for kidnapping me."
Leon’s voice was calm, but Sir Juniper could not help but feel creeped out by him. He was beginning to realize he had made a mistake.
"Y-You have gone mad! Both you and that blasted teacher of yours are crazy! I cannot believe-"
The cart fell down the cliff, and the last thing Sir Juniper saw was Leon’s smile.
"Hmm, I will take those words as a compliment."
And with that, the cart crashed into the ground, and the kidnapper along with Sir Juniper were crushed.
Leon was the only one who survived the crash unharmed. He got up and looked around.
"Hmm, looks like my good luck is still the same. But I used a little too much energy. I guess it’s time for me to go back to sleep and let my current self control this body. Unfortunately, I will have to meet teacher another time."
As soon as he finished speaking, Leon’s body crashed onto the ground and he fell asleep.
