3 bar menu

Vol 05 Chapter 161: The Arson Incident

It was a night of the new moon…

Two mercenaries were walking through Lezado.

Since the military coup, the number of guards had increased to more than three times the usual. The atmosphere was tense.

「Ah, what a hassle. I wish I could have a drink.」

The large man sighed, showing a lack of motivation. The smaller man nodded in agreement.

「I want to drink that distilled liquor from Rosais.」

「Yeah, you can get drunk with just a little of that stuff… But isn’t trade supposed to have stopped?」

The price of Rosais’ distilled liquor had been steadily rising. Although trade hadn’t officially stopped, the major merchants who had been trading with King Rosais’ Country had been suddenly arrested, causing the trade to start stalling.

Moreover, rumors were spreading that Lezado and King Rosais’ Country might sever diplomatic relations. Hearing this, merchants from other countries were buying up all the distilled liquor.

「Sigh, maybe we backed the wrong side?」

「Who could have predicted this would happen?」

The two sighed. They were mercenaries hired by an anti-Rosais faction councilor.

As long as they were paid, they did their jobs diligently. Even if it wasn’t work they agreed with.

Between work and distilled liquor, work was more important. These two always spoke ill of their employers, so they weren’t truly regretting it deep down.

「Actually, once this job is over, I’m going to get married.」

「…」

「Hey, are you listening?」

The large man turned around and looked at the smaller man walking a step behind him.

The man had collapsed.

「…Huh?」

「Don’t worry. I just knocked him out.」

Something caught in the man’s throat. An invisible force tightened around his neck.

「!? !? !? !?」

A few seconds later, the man lost consciousness.

◇

「It looks like Alice-san took care of the guards.」

A woman, perched on a rooftop, surveyed the liquor storehouse that had no guards.

This was the place the two men strangled by Alice, were originally supposed to patrol.

The storehouse was guarded by twelve mercenaries who rotated every two hours. Therefore, under normal circumstances, it was impossible for the storehouse to be unguarded.

…However, the mercenaries who were supposed to be here were not. They were lying unconscious by the roadside.

The previous guards had long since departed. As long as mercenaries were paid, they fulfilled their duties… but they did not go beyond their duties.

The concept of unpaid overtime did not exist for them. After all, they were just mercenaries.

「Now then…」

The woman opened the door of the storehouse. Inside, it was packed with barrels of liquor.

This was distilled liquor imported from King Rosais’ Country. It had been stored here until the price reached its peak.

The woman scattered oil around and set it on fire.

The fire rapidly spread to the liquor, turning into a raging inferno.

「Now, for the final touches…」

The woman threw a large amount of poppy into the fire and cast a spell.

In an instant, the flames vanished. But the fire wasn’t extinguished.

It had merely become invisible.

「The concealment will last for thirty minutes. Now… I wonder if everyone else is making progress?」

With those words, the woman hurried away from the scene.

◇

「Operation complete.」

「Same here, I’ve finished setting fire to the liquor storehouse.」

「I’ve finished setting fire to the house of an absent first-class citizen.」

「I’ve finished setting fire to the target oil storehouse.」

「I’ve also completed my task. Good job, everyone.」

Soyon, who was in charge of the arson squad, commended her subordinate magicians.

The outline of the operation was as follows:

First, Alice infiltrated the city to gather information on the locations of the warehouses, the soldiers’ patrol routes, and their schedules. Afterward, magicians from King Rosais’ Country were smuggled in during the dead of night.

Then, Alice timed the guard shifts, knocking out or killing the soldiers.

Even if the replacement mercenaries didn’t show up, the guards adhering to their contracts left their post once their shift ended, leaving gaps in the security. During these gaps, the arson was carried out.

The fires had poppies mixed in and enchanted to become invisible.

Of course, anyone who got close would notice… But at this time of night, the only ones wandering around were the mercenary guards.

And they were lying unconscious on the paths they were supposed to patrol.

By the time they regained consciousness and returned to their posts, the enchantment would have worn off, and they would see the buildings engulfed in flames.

「Our task here is done. …Now, let’s withdraw. Alice-san, I leave the rest in your hands.」

「Understood. Soyon-san, you’re first.」

Alice said this, then carried Soyon on her back. She swiftly ran across the rooftops, expertly using threads to leap over the city walls.

Just as Alice managed to get the fifth magician outside the walls… The city of Lezado began to stir with commotion.

「Well then… it’s time for my part.」

Alice licked her lips.

◇

「Fire! Fire!」

「What were the guards doing?」

「How did no one notice this sooner?!」

「Find the culprits! Catch them!」

「Idiots! Putting out the fire is the priority. Extinguish it before it gets out of control!」

「Run! The fire’s spreading! Ouch! What the hell are you doing?」

「You’re the one running in the dark! Watch it!」

「You two, move! We can’t get through! My furniture’s going to burn!」

「Hey! Drop that luggage! You’re blocking the evacuation!」

The city of Lezado was in a state of panic. Such was the terrifying nature of a fire.

In reality, only the source buildings and their surroundings were burning. It was a fire that could be dealt with adequately.

However, since it occurred simultaneously in five locations and in the dead of night, it caused chaos.

「What are you doing!!!」

A man shouted, silencing the chaotic scene. He was the leading figure of the anti-Rosais faction now controlling Lezado’s parliament.

「Calm down! Evacuate the women and children. Men, bring water from the wells! Gather the mercenaries. Destroy the burning buildings before the fire spreads any further!」

The man issued orders one after another, gradually bringing order to the scene.

「Chairman, it’s quite a commotion, isn’t it?」

Alexios, who had rushed to the scene, spoke to the man. The man turned to look at Alexios.

「Alexios-dono, I’d like your help as well.」

「I expected your request, so I’ve brought my slaves with me. …By the way, is it wise to gather the mercenaries? I’ve heard you’re even gathering soldiers from the prison. This doesn’t seem like a simple arson case. There is a possibility that this is a distraction.」

But the chairman laughed it off.

「You’re worrying too much. We’ve left the minimum number of soldiers at the prison. …Even if someone is trying to orchestrate a jailbreak, how would they escape from the city? The gates are well fortified.」

With the city walls in place, escape was impossible. For now, extinguishing the fire was the priority.

If left unchecked, the fire would consume Lezado.

「However, this doesn’t seem like a coincidence. If this is some sort of conspiracy…」

「Sigh… You worry too much. Fine. I’ll assign you five cavalrymen. Go and check it out.」

◇

Meanwhile, Alice had swiftly killed the prison guards and soldiers and began freeing the prisoners one by one.

「Listen carefully. Head straight north from here, then turn right at the third corner. After that, turn left at the second corner, and then turn right at the seventh corner. From there, you should see the city gate. The guards are sparse due to the fire. With your numbers, you can surely escape.」

The prisoners, grateful to Alice, jubilantly rushed outside, heading towards the northern gate as instructed by Alice.

After nearly all the prisoners were freed, Alice finally turned her attention to the pro-Rosais faction’s prison cells.

「I am a vassal of His Majesty Almus. Everyone, please stay calm. Do not flee just yet.」

Alice opened the cells one by one, releasing the councilors and their families.

There were a total of seven pro-Rosais faction councilors, including their families, totaling thirty people. All had been freed.

「Thank you… Alice-san, was it?」

Ainz, who had his chains removed, expressed his gratitude to Alice. He had heard a little about Alice but had no direct acquaintance with her.

Though he secretly had looked down on her as a Germanis barbarian, she was now his savior. His gratitude was heartfelt.

「Don’t feel safe yet. …We will now head to the western gate. The prisoners have rushed towards the northern gate, so the guards should be concentrated there.」

Lezado had four city gates: east, west, south, and north.

The prison was located in the northwest, with the nearest gate to the north. The second closest gate was to the west.

Alice had used the prisoners as a diversion.

「However… the gates should still be heavily guarded. Are you sure we can do this?」

Ainz questioned, and Alice replied with a smile.

「Don’t worry. At most, there are about thirty guards… and it’s night. They won’t be able to do anything.」

◇

「The northern gate is noisy. What’s happening there?」

「Seems the prisoners broke out during the fire and are storming it. The captain and twenty others have gone to reinforce it.」

「Really? So that means… there are only fifteen of us here. Are we going to be fine?」

「We should be. Most of the prisoners are heading north, and even if some come here, there will only be a few—ugh!」

The man spewed blood from his mouth and collapsed to the ground.

「What? What just happened—」

「You don’t need to know that.」

Alice strangled the man from behind with a wire. The wire, as hard as steel, tightened around his neck and severed it.

「Alright, that makes fifteen. That’s all of them.」

Alice placed her hand on the latch of the now unguarded gate. The latch, so heavy it usually took several people to move, was effortlessly lifted by Alice.

「Everyone, I might need a bit of help to open the gate on my own.」

「…A bit, huh…」

Ainz and the others shared a wry smile as they helped Alice push the gate. With Alice’s strength leading the effort, the gate slowly opened.

「Let’s go. A short distance away, cavalry is waiting. If we can make it there, we’ll be safe for now.」

Thus, the first phase of the operation was a success.

AN:

To prevent terrorism using magic, it’s essential to stop magicians from entering through checkpoints and inspections. Once they’re inside, it’s game over. This is similar to modern terrorism.

Now, a bit of background information… The development of curses, exorcisms, and barrier technology is a constant back-and-forth struggle. However, barriers ultimately win out. By the time this world enters its medieval period, most magic will be blocked by barriers. This is because politicians like Almus and his successors in Romalia will actively fund research, thinking that terrorism is a serious threat. In two to three hundred years, cities will have alarms that go off when magic is used.

Also, on a side note, alcohol evaporates easily and disperses in the air, making it a convenient medium for magic.