A desperate crisis! Two assassin squads attacking, and Eve, the unlicensed rider!
And yet, somehow, Dante managed to survive and made it back home alive.
......If only we could skip to that part......
BUUUUUUUUUUNG!!
The bike was still flying down the road. The speedometer read 100 km/h.
‘Eyes on the road! Eyes!’
Belatedly remembering that Eve couldn’t hear me, I stretched one hand forward like a palm strike to signal “Look ahead.”
“!?!?!?”
Eve, for some reason, high-fived my hand.
Not that, you crazy elephant.
“I said, look ahead! Ahead!!”
“?!???”
She still wouldn’t listen, so I grabbed her head and twisted it like an assassin, forcing her to look forward.
Due to our size difference, I grabbed both her wrists and placed them on the handlebars.
The disturbing part was—Eve’s brute strength was truly monstrous.
She controlled the front wheel with no handlebar at all, just gripping the steering frame.
......How the hell does that even work?
‘Anyway, good job.’
But Eve was still unlicensed, couldn’t read the GPS, and had no idea how imperial cities worked.
SKREEEECH!! KWA-BANG!!
“HEY! You little brats on the damn bike!!”
She drove against traffic and narrowly avoided several cars. My heart jumped.
At this rate, forget the Demon King War—I’d die in a goddamn traffic accident.
It’d be great if I could drive, but switching seats now was impossible...
Huh?
I urgently grabbed both horns.
Eve, being horn-sensitive, freaked out and swung her fist backward.
I dodged it and, still holding her horns, turned her head left and right.
“......!!”
That’s when Eve seemed to realize something. She grabbed the steering frame and followed the direction of her head movements.
If I turned her head left, the bike went left.
If I turned her head right, the bike went right.
Yes.
In a moment of crisis, my brain was running at 200%.
This was, essentially, 『Elephant–Ratatouille』.
Just then, a ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) little kid was recklessly jaywalking and screamed as they saw us barreling forward.
“UWAAAAAH!”
WAAAAH!
“Uwa......!”
Even Eve screamed.
But—subtly, gently—to the side...
We dodged it!
“!!!”
Eve cheered and threw her hands up in joy.
Don’t.
Don’t raise your hands.
Hold the damn steering.
Please....
Anyway, just as we were adapting to this new control method—
VWOONG—!
A round magic circle appeared ahead.
It wasn’t an attack. It showed the face of Professor Wolfgang. It was a long-distance communication spell called 『Deep Surface Mirror』.
– DANTE HIAKAPOOOO!!
He immediately started screaming like a seizure.
“What do you want, you bug professor?!”
– Surrender now! You traitor to the industry! If you surrender of your own will, I won’t kill you!
“What? I can’t hear you!”
– I said surrender! If you don’t want a gruesome end—
“Still can’t hear you. The wind’s too loud! What?!”
– YOU SON OF A BIIIIITCH!!!
Seriously, I couldn’t hear him. All I saw was a face contorted in rage, screaming like a lunatic.
“I don’t know why you’re chasing me, but it’s pointless!”
– Dan... Dante Hi...
While steering Eve by the horns with my left hand, I used my right hand to manipulate the magic flow in the 『Deep Surface Mirror』 and turned the volume way down. Amid the shouting, I couldn’t hear a damn thing now.
“Hey, Kreutz professor! You know, I’ve always wondered—why do you guys from Kreutz live like that? Did the Virgin Mother tell you? That if you can’t win fair and square, use dirty tricks? You got your professorship through politics and backdoor assassinations, didn’t you?”
– ......!?$#!?@$?!
Wolfgang’s eyes, already bugging out, started to roll back in rage.
But I wasn’t done yet.
“Hey. Hey, you old bastard. Pull yourself together. You're like eighty—what the hell are you doing? If you’re a true believer, follow the doctrine. The Virgin Mother says all people are equal, yet you clowns divide power within the Church into Constellations, Saints, Cardinals, Archbishops, Senior Bishops, Junior Bishops, and Probationary Bishops—what the hell is that hierarchy? That’s why the Virgin sent an angel like me to whip you all into shape.”
– !#^(#???? You son of a...!! @#$@#
Even with the volume lowered, I could hear his voice echoing in the distance.
Must’ve been yelling at full blast like a lion’s roar from the sky.
“I still can’t hear you! Instead of wasting your time raging, how about you practice your magic? Bye.”
As Wolfgang continued to foam at the mouth and wag his finger, I smashed the 『Deep Surface Mirror』.
CLANG!
Anyone hear the sound of someone flipping their whole outfit?
I couldn’t say.
But judging by what happened next, it definitely flipped Wolfgang’s insides—
A massive magical surge erupted in the distance, and a cross-shaped flare of light appeared across the region.
‘Tch.’
『Cross Mark』—an 8th-level [Trap] ability.
I accidentally brushed the edge of the trap zone, and a cross-shaped Stigma 「†」 burned itself onto my right wrist.
At that moment, I felt my mana cut off from my right hand.
‘That’s bad.’
Getting caught in this trap greatly restricts movement and mana flow.
As proof, my fingers were already starting to grind stiffly.
While controlling the bike with one hand, I began dodging other 『Cross Mark』 zones, one by one.
WEEE-OOOH! WEEEEE-OOOH!
Then—Imperial Security Bureau bikes suddenly started chasing from behind.
Four of them.
‘Now the guards show up?’
Were they finally here to rescue me from this assassination hell?
Nope.
The guards raised megaphones and shouted.
– You there on the motorcycle! Stop at once! You are suspected of vehicle theft!
Vehicle theft?
Eve looked back in surprise.
SMACK!
I slapped the back of her head and turned her face forward.
– This is your final warning! Stop immediately! The male and female suspects who stole the motorcycle—halt now!
I sighed inwardly. No wonder.
Where the hell did the elephant get such a nice bike...?
She stole it.
This damn brat went GTA mode!
– That motorcycle is the property of the Marquis of Monseul’s son! Hey—wait—dangerous—young master—!
– ...L-Let me speak...!
– rustle rustle
Just then, a well-dressed young man riding pillion on one of the guard bikes yanked away the megaphone.
– You there! Professors! Stop right now! That bike was a personal gift from His Majesty the Emperor!!
– Stop! Please stop!
You’ve got to be kidding me. If it was a gift from the Emperor himself, that thing was basically a national treasure.
– Please stop...!!
– Not just to me! It was gifted to my father, the Marquis of Monseul! I only took it out secretly! He doesn’t know!!
– You absolutely cannot damage it!!
And right then—I saw the broken steering frame.
Ah, it’s probably fine.
It might be repairable, right?
Then the bike’s outer frame fell off and tumbled down the road into a trash can.
“......”
“......”
Eve and I, startled, looked in that direction.
......I don’t even know anymore.
But of course—it wasn’t called an imperial gift for nothing.
A sharp intent flared from far away. The imperial envoy assassination squad had begun sniping.
SHWEEEAAAAK—!
The bullet tore through the air.
But the bike automatically deployed a 『Barrier』 that blocked it.
KA-KANG!!
– Noooooooo!!
The young noble’s scream echoed through the megaphone.
– Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot! You people, who even are you!? Why are you attacking our bike!!
As if this was just a bike?
We couldn’t just sit there and take it.
Following the route on the 「Navigation Orb」, I lined up the bike in a straight path, turned my body, and unleashed 『Armory of the Celestial Soldier』 into the air like mad.
FWHUMP, KWA-BANG—!
The assassins began to explode one by one.
KA-KANG!!
Return fire came my way, but the Emperor’s 『Barrier』 blocked it.
An excellent exchange rate, really.
The young master kept screaming in the background, but that was no longer my concern.
– Halt!
In the chaos, a translucent wall spread out—an Imperial Guard spell called 『Guardian Wall』. That was also an 8th-level spell. If we crashed into it at this speed, the bike would be obliterated.
‘No!!’ The young master screamed.
At the same moment, I shot a 「Royal Guard Sword」 from 『Armory of the Celestial Soldier』 and shattered it.
KAKAKAKANG!!
I lost three Royal Guard Swords in the process, and from the other side, I heard a scream—someone yelling, ‘...My Royal Guard Sword!!’
And like that, the bike roared down a straight road and burst out of the city.
In the sky above, even the Guard’s airships began to chase.
Wolfgang and Kreutz’s assassination squad.
The Empire’s envoy assassination unit.
The capital’s elite Guard strike force.
Everyone was out to catch and beat the hell out of us.
– N-No! Stop!
Just then, a middle-aged Guard officer shouted.
– Up ahead is......!
Oh no.
Suddenly, the Guard’s emergency protocol surfaced in my head. 『Guardian Wall』 can only be used to protect people. Which means......
Crap.
At the end of the road—there was a cliff.
“?!!!?!!!??”
Eve jumped in panic.
On the far side, the road resumed about 30 meters away.
But the drop to the ground below looked to be at least 100 meters.
If we went over like this, we’d definitely die.
Eve might survive with her absurd body, but I’d end up in pieces.
There was no other choice.
『 Stigma Engrave I: 「Mechanization⚙」, 「Combustion火」⊂「Giprohen Golden Luxury Bike (Emperor’s Autograph Edition) UU-333501」 』
< Star Shards in Possession: 75 (▼30) >
Using the 「Mechanization⚙」 stigma, I converted the entire rear wheel engine into a propulsion unit.
Then with the power of 「Combustion火」, I blew the whole thing up.
KWAKWAKWAKWAKWANG!!!
Through the megaphone, I could hear the noble young master sobbing in grief—
The bike
Took flight――
I clung to Eve tightly. (For the record, it was so I wouldn’t be thrown off.)
The bike flew the full 30 meters and landed on the road on the opposite side.
‘Nice!’
No. Not nice.
SHWEEEAK— KWA-BANG!!
A bullet slammed into the reinforced engine compartment.
It was a snipe from the envoy assassination unit.
‘Damn it.’
The bike began moving again, but the engine was dying, sputtering with a fushiiik sound.
And for assassins, a 30-meter gap was nothing—they could leap it easily.
【 Wolfgang†: <Get him! The bike’s faltering!> 】
Sensing victory, Wolfgang and the assassins leapt into the air and charged all at once.
Two or three more 『Cross Marks』—[Traps]—flew in and wrapped around my right arm and parts of my ankle.
【 Wolfgang†: <Prepare 『Teleport』!! We can’t let the others get him! We have to grab Dante and extract immediately...!!> 】
He’s convinced he can capture me. And that’s not baseless. If this continues, we will be caught. A harsh battle awaits.
【 Wolfgang†: <We must beat the Guard and the envoy squad to him! Faster, faster...!!> 】
But at that moment, I looked at the updated 【Script】 and smiled.
【 Wolfgang†: <What?> 】
【 Wolfgang†: <The “Revelation↑” says... What!? > 】
That’s right.
***
Hicks Bohr, who had fled first, rushed toward the Legorian Institute.
There, he told the senior researchers:
“Professor Dante Hiakapo will be giving a special lecture at the Legorian Institute today!”
And the content of that lecture—
“It’s the part we couldn’t include in the paper due to space limits—the weak points!”
The directors of the institute were visibly shaken.
At that moment, an unseen energy brushed the building, then vanished into the distance.
***
Hearing the incoming transmission, Wolfgang Yusef froze.
< Professor! Professor Dante Hiakapo’s “Revelation↑” has been updated! >
Kreutz had been monitoring the “Revelation↑” all along. Looking for even the smallest clue. And now it had been updated.
< Dante Hiakapo is planning to reveal a portion of the “End of Illusion” as a special lecture at the Legorian Institute! >
Wolfgang went stiff.
‘The End of Illusion!’
And then the mental calculator kicked into overdrive.
It was like a VS game.
The envoy assassination squad was a pain in the ass. The Imperial Guard, even worse. Why the hell did the Guard suddenly get involved...?
But the important part was, all authority of the Guard was delegated from the Imperial Family. Clashing with them meant clashing with the Empire itself.
So the options:
...Fight all odds and kidnap Dante.
VS
Let Dante reach the Legorian Institute and explain a part of the End of Illusion.
“...............................”
A few seconds of hesitation in his mind.
During that time, the Guard and the envoy squad were already charging in.
Wolfgang made his decision.
“YAAAAAH―!!”
He roared:
“Protect Dante HiakapoOOOOOOOO──!!”
The Guard was one thing.
But the envoy assassination squad—absolutely not!
The reaction was immediate. Others had also heard the broadcast about the Revelation.
“UWAAAAH!”
“P-Protect Professor Dante?!”
As the order rang out, the Kreutz assassination squad began charging the envoy assassination unit.