Without making a sound, I stepped out from the staircase leading to the underground passage and took a deep breath in the final hiding spot—the alleyway. I exchanged glances with the others, confirming that everyone had emerged and was mentally prepared.

“Three, two… one! Move out!!”

With a hand signal, we all rushed into the open at once. As planned, we passed through the final hidden passage and emerged onto the main street. The broad avenue stretched before us, and when I turned my gaze to the right, I saw an unusual number of knights. Beyond them, a towering stone-brick castle wall stood firm.

Releasing our weapons and unleashing our magic, we dashed forward. There was no way the knights—who had been on high alert for any disturbances in this otherwise unchanged area—would fail to notice the sudden appearance of intruders.

“Wha—!? Who goes there—guh!?”

A voice filled with shock and wariness rang out, only to be physically cut short.

“〈Dragon Slayer〉 is passing through! Make way!!”

The first to charge at the knights and break the frontline was none other than the battle-mad Freesia of our faction. With a clear, ringing voice, she boldly declared our presence to all around. The rest of us followed closely behind her.

“Enemy attack! We’re under attack!”

“Just as Lord Shadow Dragon foresaw, the ‘Guardian of Blood’ is here!!”

“Surround them all at once and kill them! We have the numbers! A mere gathering of children is nothing—crush them with ease!!”

As expected, the moment they recognized our presence, the knights swarmed toward us, drawing their weapons to block our advance.

It was true that we were only six in number, while they had well over a hundred—an overwhelming force. The logical move would be to suppress us with sheer numbers, a strategy that seemed the most efficient. However—

“I’ll take them all, Clay.”

“Be my guest.”

—That logic only applied when dealing with ordinary soldiers.

“Ahaha! This is great!!”

Gone was the composed lady from a few days ago. Now, the battle-mad girl before us bore an eerie, twisted grin—far too unsettling for a noble’s daughter. She closed the distance to the knights with terrifying glee.

“If I take you down here, I’ll earn a—gah!?”

“To think you’d dare oppose our lord—wha!?”

“Your life is mine—huh!?”

“Weaklings have no place here! Get lost!!”

The shadow soldiers charging at her meant nothing. One after another, they fell, each strike from her forming a growing pile of corpses.

The knights, clad in full armor, were sent flying with almost comical ease. It was an absurd sight, made even more surreal by the delighted laughter of the girl responsible.

“This is what you call an unstoppable advance.”

“Fuu-chan looks like she’s having fun.”

Despite their casual remarks, His Highness and the young lady remained completely focused. Whenever Freesia missed an enemy, they swiftly finished them off, perfectly covering her.

We cut down the shadow knights still rushing at us and continued our charge. Thanks to Freesia’s rampage, the path to the castle gate—previously blocked—was now clear and fully visible. The gate was just a stone’s throw away. We had minimal fatigue, no major obstacles, and the enemies in our way were insignificant.

—We should be able to enter without issue.

However, the persistence of these pests was aggravating. Even though they were weak, they were slowly draining our stamina and magic. Worse, the closer we got to the gate, the more knights poured out from within, drawn by the commotion. The constant reinforcements were accelerating our magic consumption.

“What an annoying tactic…!!”

Most likely—no, almost certainly—this was Shadow Dragon’s strategy. Rather than sending out powerful knights to take us down, he was overwhelming us with sheer numbers, whittling away at our concentration through an unrelenting assault.

It was a detestable strategy. For a dragon who looks down upon the world, it felt surprisingly petty. But logically, it made perfect sense.

—I refuse to let him drain us like this.

“We’re breaking through. No need to waste time on small fry.”

“Got it!!”

The distance was close enough—we could push through in a single burst. I exchanged glances with Freesia, who had been leading the charge. As if waiting for this moment, she unleashed the magic within her.

“Turn all to the frozen ashes of Greyfrost!!”

At once, a chilling aura surged around her. With the activation chant, frost spread across the ground, forming ice thorns—just like the ones she had used in the Swylver Forest to ensnare her enemies.

I leaped high, avoiding the indiscriminate ice thorns trying to entangle my legs. Using that momentum, I slipped past the shadow knights whose feet were pinned to the ground by the thorns, as if mocking them, and then smashed through the castle gate doors that had been in the process of closing.

"Alright, pardon our intrusion!!"

No matter the circumstances, it’s proper etiquette to greet the household when entering for the first time. That’s just basic manners for a decent person. As a finishing touch, I had Freesia seal the entrance with an ice wall to ensure that the knights she had pinned outside wouldn’t be able to follow us in. Perfect security.

And with that, we had successfully entered the imperial castle.

"Well, we managed to shut out the ones outside, but there’s still a whole damn horde left in here..."

The sound of the massive castle gates shattering and the cold air from the newly formed ice wall dominated the interior. Before us stretched a vast garden, a clear representation of the castle’s grandeur, with the main hall sitting proudly at its far end. As expected, numerous knights were stationed throughout the garden, standing guard as if anticipating intruders. However, their stunned expressions made it obvious—they had not expected this.

"Sorry, but do us a favor and just collapse quietly."

Feeling a slight pang of guilt, we once again broke into a run, cutting down the knights who had been standing in our way (or rather, just standing around in shock).

"We can just head straight inside the castle from here, right, Levia?"

"Yes! From this point, it's actually faster than using the hidden passage!"

"Got it."

Confirming our infiltration route once more, we charged straight through the garden.

The presence of the Shadow Dragon was even more distinct here than outside. The castle’s defenses were even more formidable than expected—knights and soldiers continued pouring in to attack, just like before.

—It was like an endless swarm of ants pouring out of their nest.

Their dark, shadowy figures made the comparison all the more vivid, and once the image formed in my mind, I couldn't unsee it.

Suppressing my irritation at the bizarre sensation, we pressed forward, eventually arriving at a particularly decorated section of the garden. It was filled with an abundance of flowers, ornate sculptures, and even a pavilion. And within that pavilion, sitting leisurely on a chair, was a single knight clad in dark gray armor—

"You arrived sooner than expected. I thought you were just a bunch of kids, but I suppose even rotten bloodline magic is still bloodline magic..."

Noticing us, he stood up with a fluid motion, reaching for a crimson spear that had been resting beside him and hurling it our way.

"Tch!!"

The red spear flew through the air and struck the ground in front of us with a dull thud. In an instant, the knight disappeared from the pavilion and reappeared beside his weapon, smoothly pulling it free from the earth. From just that single movement, I understood—this knight was leagues above the rest.

"Now then, I assume you’re the so-called Guardian of Blood and their entourage? Sorry to ruin your fun trip to the imperial castle, but I’m afraid this is a dead end."

That demeanor, that presence—I recognized it. This knight radiated an aura on par with the Seven Peerless Swords.

"The Five Heavenly Swords..."

He was one of the empire’s strongest knights, a genuine warrior completely incomparable to the foot soldiers we had cut down so far.

With the battle against that damn lizard looming ahead, I wanted to avoid wasting energy fighting him. So I started thinking—how could we deceive him, outmaneuver him, and bypass him to enter the castle?

"If you wish to pass, you’ll have to defeat me firs—whoa...?"

As I was strategizing, the knight suddenly staggered, his movements visibly slowing down. It was as if some invisible force was crushing him from above... and I had seen this before. Just as I began to piece it together, Chronos' voice rang in my ears.

"Go on ahead, Clay. Schvia and I will handle this."

"Leave it to us."

Standing before us, shielding our way, were those two, weapons at the ready.

"...I'll leave it to you. I’ll be waiting up ahead."

"Yeah, we’ll catch up soon."

After a brief hesitation, I concluded that their judgment was correct. Making eye contact with Freesia and the others, I nodded before taking off.

"Hey, don’t just—whoa, the pressure’s still increasing..."

Still bound by Schvia’s Gravity Magic, the knight remained pinned in place as we sprinted past him.

As we left the pavilion behind and continued forward, I felt an overwhelming surge of magic power erupting behind me.