As the voice fell, a strange noise came from nearby.
The main force of the paladins who had been chasing the minotaur finally returned, but it was clear they hadn’t caught the three Darklings.
The leader spoke with the tall paladin from before, then followed his direction and looked towards Fia, quickly approaching her.
They were probably coming to thank her for holding off the Darklings.
Not the best timing.
The paladin, of course, couldn’t hear Fia’s inner complaints.
He soon stood in front of her, his imposing figure and strong movements exuding an aura as solid as a steel fortress.
The paladin removed his helmet, revealing a square face beneath.
He nodded slightly in gratitude to Fia.
“Thank you for your assistance.
Without you, the damage would have been more than just a few collapsed houses.”
“It was the right thing to do.”
Fia looked up, responding humbly.
—Until their eyes met.
Suddenly, Fia felt her heart skip a beat.
Seeing Fia’s appearance, the paladin first frowned, tilting his head slightly as if recalling something.
Then, the gratitude on his face quickly vanished, replaced by narrowed eyes and a hand reaching for his waist.
“Red eyes and black hair, with such a dignified appearance… Could you please remove the cloth from your head?”
“Wait, this child is a bit shy.
Could you not make things difficult for her?” Claire pressed her hands on the snow-white cloak covering Fia’s head, smiling wryly at the paladin.
However, the paladin didn’t show Claire any kindness.
He stepped back, drawing the greatsword from his waist, pointing it at Fia and Claire.
“Please do as I say, ma’am, don’t force me to act.”
Tch.
We’ve been discovered.
—Strike first.
‘Elven Fire’ Fia instantly cast a triple fireball at the paladin, while taking a big step back to distance herself.
But contrary to her expectations of the paladin being unable to fight, after the three fireballs exploded in succession, the roughly forty-year-old paladin stepped out of the smoke, looking a bit disheveled but otherwise unharmed.
Upon closer inspection, one could see a layer of golden light on the surface of the paladin’s armor, a defensive magic that saved him.
“Hah!” The next second, the paladin swung his sword at Fia.
Unfortunately, the swing hit nothing.
When the paladin looked for Fia again, neither she nor Claire was anywhere to be seen among the ruins.
.
“Where did they go!”
“Re-reporting to the captain, they went west.”
“Blow the whistle! We can’t let the Elven Princess get into the city!”
“Y-yes!” A few seconds later, a sharp whistle pierced through the slums.
◇ The scene shifts to the alley entrance.
While the paladins were still searching the streets for Fia and Claire, Claire had already led Fia to a district near the clinic.
It wasn’t that they had teleportation magic or could move through crowds with ease, but they had been jumping across rooftops from the start, naturally avoiding the paladins’ sight.
This experience felt novel to Fia.
She had only seen people jumping across rooftops in art before.
Even though in her time, ordinary people could jump between rooftops using nano-mechanical exoskeletons, it was illegal, so this was Fia’s first experience.
Whether it was the strong wind brushing past her ears or Claire running alongside her, it all felt refreshingly new to Fia, as if nothing in the world could stop her.
The intense thrill even diluted the discomfort of being chased by the paladins.
However, they eventually landed in a cluttered alley.
By now, the paladins had realized they were jumping across rooftops, so landing in an alley made them less likely to be found.
Not to mention, this alley was rarely used, filled with planks, rubble, and household waste that obscured vision.
“Phew, at this distance, they probably won’t catch up to us.
Are you okay, Fia?” Claire looked at Fia beside her.
Since her identity was already exposed, Fia no longer used Claire’s cloak to cover her head.
“I’m fine.”
“Really? I heard rumors that the Elven Princess, though smart, wasn’t in good health and often fell ill.
Fia doesn’t seem weak at all—if anything, she’s too healthy.
She could easily lift an adult two-horned bull.”
“Ahaha…” Faced with Claire’s surprised gaze, Fia scratched her head awkwardly.
“Maybe the previous Elven Princesses were indeed frail, but that was the past.
This is for you, Claire.”
Fia handed the snow-white cloak back to Claire.
Perhaps because Claire had been wearing it, the cloak carried a pleasant scent as it passed by Fia’s nose, making her feel a bit embarrassed.
Fortunately, Claire didn’t notice Fia’s embarrassment.
She simply dusted off her skirt and led Fia forward through the alley.
“Sorry for troubling you.”
Suddenly, Claire, who had been quietly moving forward, spoke.
Since she wasn’t looking at Fia while speaking, but rather ahead, Fia could only catch a glimpse of Claire’s profile—not exactly expressionless, but it was hard to discern what Claire was thinking.
Her deep green eyes were mixed with many indescribable emotions.
She must be referring to how she almost used violence against that woman earlier.
Realizing this, Fia waved it off as if it didn’t matter.
“It’s nothing.
I just felt it was unfair to you from my perspective.”
Fia paused, suddenly recalling Claire’s words about how that family would soon forget her, even if they barely knew each other.
Because she anticipated this, Claire wouldn’t feel sad when the outcome was revealed.
“There’s nothing unfair about it,” Claire shrugged with a bitter smile.
“If I hadn’t anticipated they’d forget me, I wouldn’t have used such a trick.”
Seeing Fia about to say something, Claire quickly added.
“This was done before I made a promise with you, Fia, so it doesn’t count as breaking it.
Besides, I didn’t use a curse to scare those paladins.
Otherwise, I could have just stepped out and silenced them, instead of hiding like this.”
“So, Claire is saying her curse has its benefits?”
“Didn’t you think so, Fia?”
“Not really.”
