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“What happened? What happened to Claudier, Nyango?” (Mendez)
“Calm down, Professor Mendez. Claudier is safe.” (Nyango)
He would have guessed from the screams outside that Claudier had been pushed off the building, but I didn’t dare tell him that, only that she was safe.
The anxious Professor Mendez shook me, and I almost lost focus of my detection magic.
“Phew… sorry. It’s stressful not being able to see what’s going on.” (Mendez)
“It looks like the gold has arrived, so we’ll just have to hang on a little longer. Everyone calm down, we’re almost there…” (Nyango)
There was an air of relief in the conference room when they learned that the ransom had arrived.
The five hundred large gold coins appear to have been placed on a cart and are being carried by four soldiers.
“All right, stop right there! Soldiers, go back to where you came from! My men will take it, but if you try anything, I’ll cut this brat’s throat!!” (Ruffian Boss)
“Alright, we won’t interfere, so don’t harm the child!” (Negotiator)
The students who had been barricading the entrance were moved to the side, and it seemed that about six of the men in black had rushed over to retrieve the cart.
Once the cart was brought into the education building, the students were barricaded again.
“When I confirm that the five hundred large gold coins are all here as requested, I will release the kids, so just wait quietly!” (Ruffian Boss)
“Okay, I promise we won’t interfere with you!” (Negotiator)
The cart was brought near the stairs and the lid of the crate was opened.
“Wow… they’re all large gold coins.” (Ruffian)
“You idiot, it’s obvious, just divide them quickly.” (Ruffian Boss)
“I’ve never seen this many gold coins in my life.” (Ruffian)
“Stop talking and do something with your hands. Don’t try to steal anything.” (Ruffian Boss)
The men in black on the first floor had not moved from their positions, but those on the second and third floors had joined in the dividing of the large gold coins.
“How many have you got?” (Ruffian)
“37.” (Ruffian)
I thought they were to be carried out in the order in which they were transferred, but it seemed that they were to be carried out only after they had all been put on individual bags.
Leather bags filled with large gold coins were piled up by the entrance to the secret passage.
“48, 2 left.” (Ruffian)
“49, last one.” (Ruffian)
“8, 9, 10… Done.” (Ruffian)
“Okay, carry it out!” (Ruffian Boss)
“Oh… this is the weight of ten large gold pieces.” (Ruffian)
“Don’t be lazy, go quickly!” (Ruffian Boss)
Carrying a leather bag weighing about two kilograms, one by one, the men in black descended the narrow staircase leading to the secret passage.
One by one, the men on guard duty on the first floor left their posts and followed the men carrying the leather bags into the secret passage.
“I have received 500 large gold coins. When the bell rings at 6 o’clock, I will release the kids, so wait quietly until then!” (Ruffian Boss)
“All men stand by, no one is allowed any interference!” (Negotiator)
The men in black and the others who had entered the secret passage were moving slower than expected, perhaps because they were passing through a narrow passageway.
But even if they escape at this pace, by the time the soldiers step in, all of them will have slipped out the exit of the slums.
“Professor Mendez. They started to escape through the secret passage.” (Nyango)
“I see. How many are left?” (Mendez)
“There are still about 20 people left.” (Nyango)
“Let me know when they are all in the loophole. I’ll release the students immediately and inform the soldiers of the situation.” (Mendez)
“I got it.” (Nyango)
While the others entered the secret passage one after the other, the boss of the men in black kept pacing back and forth around the entrance, perhaps to make his presence more conspicuous.
Then, when the last one gave the signal, the boss left the entrance with casual steps and jumped into the secret passage, running from the middle of the way.
“The last one left.” (Nyango)
“Okay, open the door! Let’s free the bound students!” (Mendez)
The door to the conference room was opened, and the students who had been locked in jumped out.
“Olivier, it’s okay now, so don’t panic and go outside. Miguel, make sure you escort them out!” (Nyango)
“Noisy! You’re talking to me like I did nothing!” (Miguel)
Don’t be foolish when I was working so hard while you’re not doing anything.
And as long as I’m around, I won’t allow them to run away with that large sum of money.
“[Shield]…” (Nyango)
I put up the [Shield] I had prepared and listen to the inside of the loophole with the sound-collecting microphone.
“Ouch! What is this?” (Ruffian)
“Hey, don’t stop. Let’s get the f*ck out of here!” (Ruffian)
“No, I can’t get through.” (Ruffian)
“What? What do you mean, you can’t get through?” (Ruffian)
“I don’t know. …There’s some kind of invisible wall.” (Ruffian)
“Hey, what are you doing? Come on, man, we have to get out of here.” (Ruffian)
“I can’t get through because there’s a blockage in front of me!” (Ruffian)
I blocked the narrow passage with a thick shield, so they can’t escape now.
While we were waiting at the entrance of the secret passage, a soldier stepped in when he saw that the students had been released.
“What are you doing there?” (Soldier)
“I’m locking them in so they can’t escape.” (Nyango)
“What the hell is going on? Explain it!” (Soldier)
“Well, this looks like an escape tunnel built in the old days when this was a military fort.” (Nyango)
When I told him that a narrow staircase led to an equally narrow passageway that seemed to lead to the slums, he tried to follow the men in black and step into it.
“Oh, wait, wait, wait, the end of the passage is blocked off, so they can’t escape.” (Nyango)
“Is that true?” (Soldier)
“Yes, I can use void magic to block the passage.” (Nyango)
“Void magic? You can do that with that empty, void magic?” (Soldier)
“Yes, well, if all the students finish moving and get ready, I’ll kick them out of the hole without you having to go in.” (Nyango)
“ Are you sure you can do that? (Soldier)
“Yes, leave it to me.” (Nyango)
I look at the soldier with confidence and began to make preparations.
“Evacuate the students and staff! Squad three through seven, gather here!” (Soldier)
As the soldiers began to move, Professor Mendez came to check on them.
“Nyango, where are they?” (Mendez)
“They’re trapped in the tunnel.” (Nyango)
“What did you say……” (Mendez)
“Now, as soon as the soldiers are ready, I will force them out, so please evacuate too, Professor.” (Nyango)
“Okay. Do it!” (Soldier)
The armed soldiers arrived one after another, in front of Professor Mendez.
From in front of the stairs to the entrance hall, they set up their shields in a circle and formed a barricade.
A middle-aged bearkin man, wearing armor more ornate than that of the average soldier, walked between the soldiers and spoke to them.
“I am Torus, the commander of the unit guarding the school. Nyango, is that correct?” (Torus)
“Yes, I’m D-rank adventurer Nyango.” (Nyango)
“At your age, D rank, you seem to be quite skillful. By the way, how do you plan to get them out? ” (Torus)
“Flooding. If water accumulates in the narrow underground passage, they will have no choice but to come out.” (Nyango)
“I see. But where are you going to get the water from? Do you have someone here who can use water magic?” (Torus)
“No, it’s okay. About that, well, it’s a trade secret…” (Nyango)
“Hoho, this is getting more and more interesting. Let’s see what you can do.” (Torus)
The barricade was set up and the go-ahead was given to drive them out, so I began to pour water into the underground passageways using void magic to create water magic circles.
Soon, through the sound-collecting microphone, I could feel the chaos inside.
“Whoa, it’s cold!” (Ruffian)
“What the hell, this is water…” (Ruffian)
“Wow, it’s spewing out of here too.” (Ruffian)
“Hey, isn’t this dangerous?” (Ruffian)
The confused voices of the men in black reverberated through the secret passage, echoing.
“Everybody get ready! Be on your guard, they can come out at any moment!” (Nyango)
The soldiers surrounding the group all readied their shields and spears at once, leaving no room for even a single kitten to crawl out the exit of the secret passage.
Soon after, the boss of the men in black, emerged.
“Damn, you’ve been scheming!” (Ruffian Boss)
“Put down your weapons, take off your masks, and come out with the money! Refuse, or we will continue until you drown!” (Soldier)
“Get out of the way and let us through! Or we’ll bury the money!” (Ruffian Boss)
“Do what you want! We’ll dig it up with your dead bodies!” (Soldier)
“F*ck!” (Ruffian Boss)
Even while the men in black’s boss was negotiating, I continued to pour water, so the volume of voices echoing through the secret passage only increased.
From those who have learned that the tunnel is now a dead end, they are beginning to try to turn around and go back in the narrow passage.
Still, they persisted for about 30 minutes, but the men in black who had given up came up through the secret passage one after another.
The soldiers who had been waiting for them disarmed them, stripped off their masks, and put on restraints that chained their necks and both wrists together.
When the leader of the group came out, the water stopped, but the men in black were soaking wet up to their waists.
I thought I would never want to experience water torture in a narrow underground passageway, even though I was doing it myself.
“That guy…” (Nyango)
Among the unmasked men, I saw a familiar face. He was the horsekin adventurer who had tangled with me in the guild and attacked me in a back alley, but I had turned the tables on him.
Perhaps he was the one who had assaulted my brother and they charged him a hefty fee, and he had joined this gang because he couldn’t pay the bill?
By the time the church bells rang to signal six o’clock, all the men in black had crawled out of the secret passage and returned with the five hundred large gold coins.
Now, let’s put the finishing touches on this.
On the slum-side of the loophole, about 5 meters before the exit, a [Shield] is stretched along the wall of the passage for about 30 meters to reinforce it.
I also put up a [Shield] at the far end of the reinforcement to block the passage.
“Then… [Pulverize].” (Nyango)
I created a Pulverization Magical Circle at full power toward the exit of the secret passage, unnoticed by the soldiers around me.
After a moment’s pause, a booming explosion sounded from far away.
It sounded somewhat louder than I had expected, but I, along with the soldiers, kept a look on my face as if to say, “What’s going on?”
Well, I may have overdone it just a little bit, but well, I guess that settles the matter.
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