Chapter 227: Result of ying Around
Three Imperial Knight Corps are guarding the castle.
The first corp protects the throne room while the other two were also stationed at key locations by the Prime Minister.
That being said, the overall protection of the castle is being left to the army.
Originally, the Imperial Knights should upy the majority of the castle defense but it cant be helped that they have to use the army as they have spread out to protect the Emperor and important locations in the castle.
It must have been a tough decision for the Prime Minister.
Many among the Imperial Army favor Gordon. If possible he wouldnt want to use them but since he has no other choice, he assigned a general from the moderate faction for castle defense.
That General is General Estman. He is a sixty years old senior general.
He was one of the generals who were in charge of managing the army at the central part of the Empire. People see him as a general who is always smiling.
In fact, that impression of him is not wrong. He is a person who loves the young soldiers like they were his own grandchildren and cultivates them with his knowledge and experiences.
His reputation is also very favorable among the Empires people. He is one of the few that is not only popr among the soldiers but the people as well. Naturally, this man is well trusted by my father.
However.
He is with Gordon huh..
When I was heading to the Inner Pce with Finne and Mia, I muttered as I saw the soldiers gathered in front of the stairs.
The soldiers are walking back and forth as if they are looking for something while keeping their eyes on the stairs.
Moreover, they seem to be alert.
To guard the castle, it is enough for them to patrol the already decided route and station a few soldiers at key locations. Its strange that they are so alert as they are searching for something like that.
Enemy? Then I will blow them all away.
It will be difficult to move if we get caught at this stage. We will have to face a lot more soldiers until we reach the Inner Pce you know.
Thats true. I have to get around them somehow.
So roundabout..
Mia is upset at mine and Finnes assessment.
Im sure that Mias ability can break through their defense and get us to the Inner Pce but we have to keep in mind that we have to escort people on our way back as well.
At the very least, I dont want to cause a fuss until we arrive at the Inner Pce.
Is there any way to distract them?
What are we going to do after we distract them?
I want to enter the room on the other side of the aisle.
We cant get downstairs that way you know?
Its alright, I have a n.
Then thats easy.
Saying so, Mia suddenly aims her bow out the nearby window.
She then shot out an arrow made of magic power without any sound.
I couldnt understand what she was doing for a moment but when I heard a high-pitched sound on the opposite end of the corridor, I understood her n.
WHAT WAS THAT!?
CHECK IT OUT, HURRY!!
The soldiers eyes turned toward the sound.
Seeing that, Mia gives us a signal.
Now!
Slipped down the aisle, Mia opened the door of the targeted room without any sound and beckoned me and Finne.
We crossed the aisle as quietly as possible and managed to enter the room.
What did you do Mia-san?
She curved the arrow she shot outside to let it go through another window. It must have broken something.
Thats right. I confirmed that the other window was opened beforehand. Its simple.
Saying so, Mia asks, [Now, what are we doing next?].
Mia said that what she did was simple but it was by no means simple at all.
Although there are differences between magic bow and magic, the principle is not so different.
Thats why, theoretically, that feat can be done by a mage.
She managed to not only maintain the magic that has already left her sight but also urately hit the target location without hitting anything outside the castle.
Precise control and ability to grasp the surroundings. Furthermore, she calcted the amount of magic power that allows the arrow to not disappear mid-flight, one could say that her ability to fine-tune her power is superb. Not to mention that she aplished all of that in an instant.
Her skill could be said to be godly.
I understand why Vermillion managed to elude the Dominion for so long.
You would have no way to defend against her if something like this hits you in the middle of the night without any warning.
If you left your window open even just a little, your escort will be silently sniped down. Even if she doesnt have a direct line of sight, she can just curve her arrow to hit you.
In front of Mia, guards pretty much serve no purpose.
What is it? Staring at my face like that?
No, I just think that you actually are pretty amazing.
What was that actually for!? Didnt you recruit me because you saw my ability!? Thats rude you know! Thats too rude you know!!
I always know that Mia-san is an amazing person.
As expected of Finne-sama! Your eyes are certainly different from this biased prince!
If you only speak normally, I might have evaluated you correctly though.
I told you that it was Ojii-sama who taught me to speak this way! The truedy that Ojii-sama met must have spoken like this, no doubt!
I hope so. Was that Ojii-sama also the one who taught you the magic bow?
Thats right! My Ojii-sama is a great person you know!
An old man who taught Mia huh.
Someone who can teach such a specialized skill like the magic bow to Mia and trained her to be so skilled with a bow to this extent must not be some simple old man.
Thinking of the Master of Magic Bow, there is one person thates to mind.that old man must be someone rted to that person. Mia as well.
This piqued my interest so I want to sit down and have a nice and long talk with her but unfortunately, I have no such luxury right now.
Well, I will have you tell me more about your Jii-san someday. For now, lets hurry.
Hurryeven if you say that, the stairs are currently blocked, you know. I can go down from the outside but since Finne-sama will being with me, that would be impossible right?
We cant use that kind of n. We dont know who will be watching after all.
Saying so, I started changing the order of the seven portraits hanging inside this room.
Unable to understand my action, Mia tilted her head.
What are you doing?
A little game.
You start ying games at a time like this!?
Yeah, Im ying. But sometimes, ying games can be useful as well.
Saying so, I finished changing the order of the portraits.
Some of them are in the same position while some are in different positions.
When I confirmed that, I removed the portrait at the center.
Then, a hole that shouldnt have been there earlier appeared behind the portrait.
Putting my hand in the hole, I pressed the switch that was inside.
In response, a hidden door appeared on the wall opposite the portrait.
WhaWhaWha!?
This castle has undergone various renovations every time we have a new emperor. The new emperors each add more secret passages and rooms in the shadows. Those hidden passages and rooms werent all passed down properly.
How do you know about such a room even though it wasnt even passed down from the previous generations!?
The hints of their whereabouts are not in the books that you would normally be studying, but in the diaries that the tutors judged to be worthless instead. I didnt study properly but I passed my time ying around reading those diaries to find this kind of secret.
It means that studying is not the only thing that cane in handy isnt it?
Exactly. This castle is my backyard. I have never lost a round of hide and seek or tag in my life. I guess this is the result of me ying around huh. Lets use this to surprise our enemy this time.
Saying so, I entered the secret passage with a grin.