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Just as we’d been hiding in the shadows to rest for a bit—

The naïve hope that they might just give up on the chase was quickly crushed.

“Noche, they’re coming.”
“!”

The sound of something cutting through the water, heavier than rats, drew closer.

“Persistent b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲s̲, nya!”

Sufi and I must be worth quite a lot as merchandise.

A clear light glimmered in the passage ahead. They’d gone out of their way to double back and bring lighting…

“Let’s run, nya.”
“Alice, hold on tight!”
“Okay.”

Sufi carried me on her back, and all of us began our flight once again. But with the enemy bringing their own lights, our advantage was gone.

The water that reached up to our knees was only a slight hindrance to them.

Trying to avoid the submerged passages only narrowed down our escape routes further.

“Don’t let them get away! After them!”
“Stop right there!”

Rough shouts drew closer. What hit us hardest was the drop in body temperature; the underground chill and soaking wet clothes had quickly drained away our warmth. Resting had preserved our stamina, but the moment we stopped moving, the cold seeped in, and now everyone’s movements were clearly sluggish.

I wanted to do something, but there was nothing I could do in this state. All I could manage was to stay still so I wouldn’t slow them down, just blankly watching everyone fight to protect me.

Like this, I’m no different… no different from before, from my previous life.

“Damn it, they’re persistent, nya!”

There was no trace of composure in Noche’s voice.

“Up ahead, a fork!”
“Go left.”

The path split in two. From the right came the sound of something rushing toward us, so I pointed left.

“Jyu!”
“Whoa!?”

The moment we darted into the left path, a rat leapt out from the right with a low cry, and a man’s scream rang out.

By sheer coincidence, the rats had crossed paths with the men chasing us. I glanced back to see the thugs—who’d been coming after us with sticks under the sword-wielder’s orders—halted as they were attacked by the rats.

“What the hell, it’s huge!”
“Gah, it bit me!”

The rats were feral, biting and ramming into the men without regard for their own injuries. In a passageway this narrow, that kind of chaos made it impossible to pass through easily.

“The rats are attacking them.”
“Serves ’em right, nya!”

Even hated enemies could look like saviors in this situation. On top of that, I could hear the scampering of more rats charging down the right-hand passage.

With their size and ferocity, even seasoned fighters wouldn’t have an easy time…

“Out of the way!”

The man with the sword handed his light to a nearby boy and charged forward, unsheathing his blade in one swift motion.

“Damned hindrance—‘Slash’!”

Shouting what sounded like a skill name, he swung his sword. The blade gleamed with a faint red light, tracing a streak through the darkness.

From what I’d seen on the surface, that sword wasn’t of particularly good quality. The well-worn blade showed signs of damage—just barely not enough to be called a piece of junk.

It didn’t even look sharp. Yet that very blade…

…split the rat clean in two from head to tail, like an axe chopping firewood, and cut straight through.

The thought that calling out attack names was ridiculous, like something out of a comic book, was instantly blown away. What the hell was that? I’d never seen anything like it.

“That guy can use Arts, nya!?”
“You know what that is?”

Sufi asked the question I wanted to, startled by Noche’s outburst—she must’ve been keeping an eye on our rear as we ran.

“Mom told me about it! It’s like a special move you can use if you train hard enough, nya!”
“A-a knight I know said it’s a technique that channels magic into martial arts!”

Noche’s vague answer was backed up by Filia’s explanation. We didn’t have time to analyze it deeply, so for now I’d just think of it as magic channeled through a weapon.

But one thing was clear: these guys weren’t just random thugs.

“Stop, nya!”

Noche’s voice made us all freeze. The reason was clear…

“Sorry, I didn’t notice.”

It was a dead end. At the very back of the cul-de-sac lay the broken remains of something that looked like a doll. Part of a half-finished wall had collapsed, leaving a gaping hole. Beyond the hole was a sheer drop like an abyss, and I could hear the sound of rushing water below.

The sound of rushing water had made it seem like the space ahead opened up into another path.

That was a mistake. The worst kind of mistake in this situation. My chest tightened painfully.

“Nothing we can do, nya. We’ll just have to turn this around somehow.”

With a serious look, Noche turned back, and Sufi followed her lead, facing the way we came.

“Hah… hah… Finally found you little brats.”

Blocking the passage ahead, the swordsman—splattered with rat blood—stood with the men he led, anger seeping from his voice.

■■■

“Damn, you ran all the way down here, huh?”
“Give it up. Goren here’s a former D-rank adventurer. A monster wannabe like you doesn’t stand a chance against him!”
“That’s right!”

The slum kid who’d been utterly beaten by Noche earlier was now strutting behind the swordsman, holding a lantern and puffing himself up—hiding behind the tiger’s stripes, so to speak.

But the information that the swordsman was a D-rank adventurer was the worst thing we could’ve heard.

The International Adventurer’s Guild ranks its members based on mission capability, including combat skill. There are seven ranks from A to G, following the order of a magical alphabet almost identical to Earth’s, and above them is S-rank, derived from a word meaning “transcendent” or “exceptional.”

G is apprentice level. F is for greenhorns. E is considered the minimum level at which you can live off adventuring with your own skills.

A D-rank means being fully-fledged, and in a small town or village, they’d be considered elite.

No wonder he’s so used to fighting—he’s not leaving any openings right now.

Behind him, a row of men holding clubs blocked off our escape route completely.

“You don’t wanna get hurt, do you? Be good and come quietly. If you behave, we’ll let those two animals of yours go.”

I heard the sound of a lie. A nasty sound mixed with anger and malice.

“Sufi, that’s a lie.”
“I know.”

I whispered that he was planning to kill Noche and the others after capturing us, but Sufi only nodded, saying she already knew.

Of course she did—it was way too obvious.

“…Filia, take care of my sister.”
“Sufi?”
“S-Sufi?”

Filia, flustered, came closer as Sufi gently set me down from her back.

“I’ll find some opening—when I do, take Alice and run.”
“…Tch, guess that’s all we can do. Filia, I’m leaving her to you, nya.”

“Wow, such touching friendship.”

The swordsman mocked them, and irritation flared, but I focused hard, straining my ears for even the slightest gap.

“Uu… sniff… Alice, hold on tight.”
“…Okay.”

I followed their instructions, trying to be as little of a burden as possible. Clinging to Filia’s back, I concentrated entirely on listening.

So I wouldn’t miss a single chance, so I’d know exactly what our enemies were doing.