Chapter 132: I won't give it to you
{TL: By Creed}
With Licorice navigating, I infiltrated the mansion.
When Licorice gets serious, she's amazing, and so far, no one has spotted us.
We continue deeper and deeper into the mansion.
Then... partway through, I suddenly realized something.
"Hey, Licorice."
"What?"
Licorice, leading the way, stopped flapping her wings.
"We’re on the right path, right?"
"Of course. According to the genius, hyper-cute navigator Licorice, I can sense Sofia’s presence coming from this direction."
"Hmm."
"What?"
"I feel like we're being lured in."
We’ve come quite deep into the mansion, but we haven’t encountered anyone.
I haven’t even seen any guards.
It feels a bit too convenient.
When I voiced my concern...
"Fate, you worry too much. Nothing’s happened, so isn’t that a good thing?"
"Do you think so?"
"Of course! I bet the goddess is on our side. After all, you’ve got me with you!"
Sometimes I wonder, where does Licorice get this confidence?
It's a mystery.
"Hmm, quite perceptive, aren’t you?"
"!? Who’s there?!"
Suddenly, a man's voice echoed.
How long had he been standing there?
When I turned around, there was a slim man.
He matched the description Edward and Emilia had given.
"Are you Isaac Needle?"
"Oh? You know of me? It seems you're not just common thieves. Could you be someone related to my beloved wife, Sofia?"
"......"
I silently drew my sword.
There’s no way I’m letting you have Sofia.
That was my way of expressing it.
"My, my, drawing your sword right away? How troublesome commoners can be. Don’t you know the meaning of courtesy?"
"I don’t think you deserve any courtesy."
"You sure know how to talk."
Isaac clicked his tongue.
"Well, I’m a generous man. I’ll overlook the rudeness of a mere commoner."
"How kind of you."
"Here."
Isaac tossed a leather pouch toward me.
Cautiously, I checked the contents—it was filled with gold coins.
"And this is?"
"Take that, and walk away."
"......"
"I’ll even overlook your trespassing. Consider it a reward for bringing my wife back to me."
"......"
"How about it? It’s not a bad deal... In fact, it’s all good for you, isn’t it? For someone like you, this is a fortune you’d never earn in a lifetime."
Hmm.
What is this guy even talking about?
He seems full of himself, or maybe he just doesn’t listen to others...
By the time I’ve come this far, it should be obvious that I’m not giving up on Sofia, but he doesn’t seem to get that.
"Are you an idiot?"
Licorice, as if reading my thoughts, harshly and bluntly insulted him.
"Telling someone to give up on Sofia for money? That’s classic villain behavior. You’d be better off performing on stage. Villains like you are pretty rare these days, you know? Oh, and you might be good-looking, but I bet you’re not popular, are you? A guy who tries to win over girls with money is rotten to the core. So, I guess that’s why you had to use force, huh? Oh, poor thing. I actually feel sorry for you... There, there."
"......"
I felt like I could almost hear Isaac’s rationality snapping.
Licorice seemed to notice too and quickly hid behind my head.
"Alright, Fate! Now’s the time! Defeat the evil mastermind and rescue the kidnapped princess!"
"Yeah, I’ll do my best... But is this teasing thing a habit for you, Licorice?"
She provokes him as much as she can, and then passes the baton to me.
This might be a bad influence on Aisha’s upbringing, so I wish she’d stop...
Hmm.
But knowing Licorice, she probably can’t help it.
I don’t think she’s teasing on purpose—she’s likely doing it instinctively.
"How unfortunate."
Isaac took a step forward.
I firmly gripped my sword and took a stance.
"I wanted to resolve this peacefully," he said.
"After kidnapping Sofia, how can you say such a thing?"
"She is to become my wife. So, don't you think anything I do is acceptable?"
"I don’t think so. You need to be much kinder to girls. There’s no way someone like you, who can’t even manage the basics, should marry Sofia."
"You...!"
"I'm still inexperienced... but I can say this with certainty."
I stared firmly into Isaac's eyes and spoke with conviction.
"Sofia deserves someone better than you. I will never give her up!"
"......"
I felt like I heard Isaac’s rationality snap again.
Licorice had been causing trouble, but...
I felt like I was doing the same thing.
It's like telling someone full of confidence that everything about them is wrong.
But it can’t be helped.
Yeah, it can’t be helped.
I’m a man too.
I can’t stay silent when the girl I like is being forcibly taken away.
...Of course, I’m angry!
"In truth, that woman was secondary... but still, being told that makes me quite angry."
"What do you mean?"
Sofia was secondary?
So, what’s Isaac’s real objective?
"Here I come."
At this point, it's all about taking action.
If I can retrieve Sofia, it will prove Isaac's wrongdoing...
And even if it doesn’t prove anything, as long as I can get Sofia back, that’s what matters.
I kicked off from the floor and closed in on Isaac.
I swung my sword from right to left.
I kept the blade sideways, aiming to strike with the flat of the sword...
Clang!
Isaac also drew his sword and blocked my attack.
"What...!?"
I wasn’t surprised that my attack was blocked.
The issue was with the sword he drew.
Its blade was an intense black, as if it had condensed the darkness of night.
A red gem was set into the hilt.
"A cursed sword...?"
TL Note: A Boss Fight or Mini-Boss Fight?
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