Farnello and I descended onto a wild mountain owned by Carillon in the outskirts of Gunsan and immediately checked the map before getting on the motorcycle that was prepared nearby.
"I'll drive. Young Master, please get on the back."
Farnello sat in the front seat as if it were the most natural thing and put on a helmet.
Upon reflection, I realized that I didn't even have a license.
"…Alright."
Since I needed to clear my thoughts anyway, I sat behind Farnello without a word.
The motorcycle was incredibly quiet despite the tremendous speed, likely due to some special treatment. It seemed to be a motorcycle with a magic stone engine, just like the one I saw in the game.
"Farnello, did Lute send any additional information?"
"No, the only information received was her location and the villains chasing her."
"…Is that so?"
Something felt off.
If this were a game, Farnello would have gone on this mission alone, as he always did.
If he had succeeded in rescuing Lute and dealt with the other villains, there would have been no point of contact with the player at all.
But in the game, if you participated in the prison break event, you would encounter all the villains except Lute.
This meant that no matter what, Farnello had failed, Lute had died, and all the villains had successfully escaped.
"Farnello, who is Lute?"
Why would Father send both Farnello and me to rescue her personally?
And why were the villains going to such lengths to not let her escape?
To understand this, I needed information about Lute.
"…Lute, you mean?"
Perhaps my question surprised him. Farnello spoke with a puzzled look.
"Indeed, Young Master probably didn't have many opportunities to meet Lute."
No opportunities to meet?
"Lute is an organization member whom Father has taken care of since she was a child."
…What?
One of the villains who escaped this time grew up in Carillon since she was a child?
"How did that happen…?"
"It's not a grand story. Father simply took in an orphan who was begging on the street."
"Father did?"
"Yes, as Young Master knows, at the time, numerous dungeons were forming and monsters were rampant, causing many people to lose their lives. As a result, many orphans were created, and the Boss established an orphanage for them."
All of this was information I had heard during my successor training.
"Lute was just a nobody back then, but she awakened in the orphanage and began training as an organization member from that point on. It's a long-standing connection."
"…So that's why you tried to rescue her. If she grew up in Carillon, she's practically family."
"Yes, having watched her grow up since she was young. Also, with her ability to control and communicate with rats, she has saved Carillon from threats many times."
But something still felt off.
"If that's the case, why did you let her enter Niflheim?"
"That's because… Lute was the most suitable for the mission to infiltrate Niflheim."
According to Farnello, the recent behavior of the villain alliance was suspicious, so they sent a spy to Niflheim, where they could have the most contact with the villains to gather information.
However, she failed to quietly escape during the prison break and is now being pursued.
"Then they don't even know Lute is from Carillon?"
"They probably only know her as a spy from another organization. They wouldn't know unless Lute revealed it herself."
It was almost absurd to think about.
Do they even realize that Carillon is now their enemy?
Farnello slowed down and parked the motorcycle as we approached the industrial complex.
The abandoned industrial complex, illuminated by the orange streetlights, exuded a sinister atmosphere.
Just stepping off the motorcycle, I could already sense something suspicious.
"There seem to be many guests waiting."
"Yes. It's too quiet for a place where someone is hiding from pursuit."
In such a vast area, if someone were searching, there should be some signs of movement or noise, but the industrial complex was eerily quiet.
"It seems she has been captured by the enemy."
"Looks that way."
If they intended to use her as bait or extract information, she would likely be held somewhere nearby.
If a spatial mage had come with us, we could have found her quickly, but unregistered spatial mages were extremely rare. Since it was just the two of us, we had to find Lute on our own.
Fortunately, I had recently learned a method that could be used even without a spatial mage.
"Surely, I was told to spread the aura."
While I wasn't confident in gathering aura, I was quite sure about spreading it, so I began to slowly disperse my aura.
With the characteristic of the Executor, my overall abilities were 1.5 times higher when dealing with the organization's enemies.
Moreover, the Bloodline: Carillon was already exerting its power, sensing the number of enemies hiding in the industrial complex.
"Let me focus a bit more."
I slowly dispersed my aura into the air.
Like dust melting into the moonlight, like cotton candy dissolving in water, I gently released the red aura, trying to cover as wide an area as possible.
Then, the terrain around me slowly began to form in my mind.
[The effect of Smart Lens is activated.]
[The map within the range of the aura is displayed.]
A message appeared in the darkness as I slowly opened my eyes.
The map of the industrial complex was unfolding before me.
Like ink spreading on paper, the shape gradually appeared wherever my aura reached.
This ability was practically a map hack. Perhaps because of this, a new message appeared before me.
[You have acquired the skill: Aura Sonar.]
"Ha, finally got it."
This was the first skill I had acquired since coming to this world.
I had thought I was using special techniques all along, but perhaps the things I used before were incomplete skills, which is why there were no such alerts.
Indeed, I had been fighting in a makeshift way until now.
The number of enemies detected by Aura Sonar was 15. Since a few were not well covered by the aura, it seemed that some of them were villains.
And among them, three were loitering around one of them… What was this movement?
"–Found her."
I immediately activated the skill Deep Abyss Mystery Prison Hair (深淵謎獄毛) embedded in the suit, Maestro's DisPater.
Sssss–
My entire body turned black as if swallowed by darkness. Not only the color but also my presence seemed to fade completely.
'Even better than I imagined?'
Hiding in the shadows where the moonlight didn't reach, I moved slowly. As a technique to hide in the darkness, there was no sign of anyone detecting me.
At the same time, a huge explosion and smoke began to rise from the factory where Farnello was heading.
It seemed he had started a proper battle.
With the enemies' attention focused there, I had to move quickly.
The target, presumed to be Lute, was inside a two-story office building.
"Just in case, I need to use full power."
I attached a silencer to [Al Capone's Tommy].
A reward from a quest I completed at the academy, the silencer significantly reduced the sound of gunfire.
The performance of the silencer was as quiet and sharp as in the movies.
It's a shame it's called the Chicago Typewriter… but for the mission, it can't be helped.
Creak–
While preparing to enter quietly, I suddenly felt a sense of unease.
Thinking about it, why was there an explosion from the direction where Farnello was?
Farnello didn't carry any bombs.
As I carefully ascended the stairs, I noticed thin fishing lines installed on the steps.
"You've made all sorts of preparations, haven't you?"
I didn't expect such tricks right from the entrance.
Carefully moving my steps, I stood in front of the door and activated the skill: Aura Sonar again to assess the situation inside.
Everyone except one was standing. So, I should indeed kick the door open and overwhelm them–
───────!!
Suddenly, something exploded, and the door shattered, sending me flying backward.
"Oh? I thought we had caught all the little rats, but there's another one?!"
A sharp-looking woman rushed out through the broken door.
Her long white hair, sharp eyes, and the sharp claws on her hands.