Calika Nehu
"My name is Dania, no family name."
I had already told the city gate guards that, and besides, this person was likely a knight, meaning they were probably a noble.
If they asked about Rosac, I definitely wouldn' t be able to answer. Getting caught would be a hassle, so I had to use the name Dania instead.
"Where do you live?"
"The slums."
If I said I lived in the city, they' d surely ask follow-up questions like which zone, what alley, which block, or what my house looked like. That would make it easy for them to verify.
But by saying the slums—a chaotic place where people live haphazardly—they wouldn' t dig deeper into my residence.
"Where are you headed?"
"To the slums."
"What for?"
"To fight."
"Are you an adventurer?"
"Yes."
Since I had jumped over the guards' heads to enter the city, claiming to be a slum dweller probably wouldn' t fly.
"Which guild are you with?"
"I' m not with any guild."
"Then show me the identification card issued by the office."
"I lost it."
"Take off your mask."
"?!! Um… can I not take it off?"
"Don' t be insolent!"
"When a knight gives an order, you obey!"
"Defying a knight' s command! Don' t you know that' s punishable by death?!"
"Someone like you has no right to refuse!"
"Even if I ordered you to strip naked right now, you' d have to comply!"
"Don' t make me repeat myself!"
Just one pleading sentence, and the knight' s personal guards instantly changed their demeanor, glaring at me with contempt.
"If you don' t remove it, I' ll order them to strip everything you' re wearing right here."
With a genuinely threatening tone, I reluctantly removed my mask.
The moment my face was revealed, they froze, staring in shock. The knight' s harsh demeanor vanished, and even the reinforcing soldiers slowed their march, gawking at me.
But after the female soldiers snapped out of their daze, they looked at me with envy, despite all of them being attractive themselves.
"Take her to the mansion. I' ll interrogate her myself."
The personal guards acknowledged the order without taking their eyes off me.
"No, I have to hurry to help my sis—!"
In my panic, I blurted it out and couldn' t cover my mouth in time.
"So that' s your real reason for going to the slums?"
Since I' d already let it slip, there was no helping it.
"Yes, I need to save my sister. Please let me go."
"Request denied."
I clenched my shirt in frustration. The guards surrounding me immediately gripped their weapons, their eyes tracking my every move.
If I tried to escape, I' d be charged with defying a knight' s order under martial law. They' d have the right to execute me.
I might be able to escape alone, but getting Tiara and Elda out with me would be nearly impossible if the entire kingdom' s soldiers were hunting us.
"Tell me your sister' s name and description. I' ll send someone to find her."
"My sister doesn' t trust anyone but me, her family. Please let me go myself."
The knight stood in thought for a moment before shaking their head in refusal.
"Under martial law, a knight' s orders are absolute. I' ll send someone to find her instead. You' re coming with me to the office to verify your identity first."
Just then, the Ice Soldiers caught up, but only those wielding knives made it inside—they had climbed the wall like I did.
The remaining Ice Soldiers were stuck outside with the city gate troops.
"Hm? Ice Soldiers? Didn' t Lera already fall?"
I was shocked by the knight' s words.
"What does that mean?!"
"Exactly what I said."
Seeing my confusion, the knight explained further.
That' s when I learned that Lady Lera had died.
I could hardly believe it. How could Lady Lera, who seemed so strong, die so suddenly after returning to the guild?
But the [Resounding Magic] guild had confirmed it themselves, so it must be true.
Could it be… because of me?
I quickly shook my head to regain my composure. If Lady Lera' s death was indeed because she helped me, then I had to save Elda to ensure her sacrifice wasn' t in vain.
"Um… can the Ice Soldiers pass through?"
I asked while glancing toward the slums. The knight studied my eyes for a moment before nodding.
"Let the Ice Soldiers through."
The two rows of soldiers immediately halted to make way for the Ice Soldiers.
Once they were all gathered, I ordered them to find Elda immediately.
Luckily, I had already described Elda' s appearance to them while we were clearing the dungeon cores, so I didn' t have to say her name in front of the knights.
Still, the knight ordered half of their personal guards to follow them.
"Let' s go."
I glanced at the slums again. Elda, wait for me. I promise I' ll come get you as soon as they' re done with me.
I put my wooden mask back on and followed them, torn by two worries.
One was Elda' s safety. The other was that if I went to the office, they' d surely find out I lied about my name. What would I do then?
*****
Since we were walking instead of running, it felt like a massive waste of time. It was as if they were deliberately dragging things out to talk to me longer.
Along the way, I had to answer questions about myself and my family. I lied, saying I only had a sister, knowing I' d likely be caught soon anyway.
All the while, I kept looking for an escape route.
At first, the questions seemed like routine checks, but later ones were utterly pointless—like what kind of food I liked or what hobbies I had.
When I answered with "mushrooms growing on houses boiled in canal water" and "none," the knight and their guards were stunned for a while before laughing, thinking I was joking.
But it didn' t stop there. The knight went on to recommend local shops, tourist spots in the inner city, famous items, and even their favorite restaurants, for reasons I couldn' t fathom.
They acted like a tour guide, casually showing me around while I was burning with anxiety.
The personal guards kept me boxed in the middle, walking behind the knight the whole time, leaving me no chance to escape.
I don' t know how much time we wasted, but we finally reached the nearest branch office.
There, I ran into the same clerk from before, Leggie, who was helping at another branch.
She and the other staff hurriedly greeted the knight with utmost respect. After a brief exchange, I learned the knight' s name was Jisend Gluart.
After their conversation, Leggie politely invited me to the rank assessment room.
This was a stark contrast to how she' d treated me like trash before. But I figured her true colors would show once I was assessed as [Rank F] again.
In the rank assessment room, Jisend sent all their personal guards to watch me and prevent any escape attempts while they headed to the second-floor reception room.
I placed both hands on the assessment crystal before Leggie could even explain.
"You' ve been assessed before, haven' t you? So you' re a real adventurer."
"Yes. Can you please hurry?"
"Right away, Ms. Dania."
Leggie quickly inserted a dungeon-sourced mana stone into the slot to power the crystal.
The crystal, which should' ve emitted a faint glow like during my previous assessment, showed no light this time.
"The stone might be degraded or out of energy. Let me try again."
Leggie removed the stone and inserted a new one.
But the result was the same. No matter how many times she tried, it stayed the same.
Leggie concluded the assessment and led us to the reception room on the second floor.
It was a room a [Rank F] like me would never have seen in my lifetime. Oddly, Leggie remained polite toward me.
In the reception room, Jisend' s personal guards didn' t follow us inside, standing watch at the door instead.
The only people in the room were me, Leggie, and Jisend, who was casually reading documents and sipping tea.
The room was decorated soothingly, with a relaxing atmosphere. In the center was a set of guest sofas and a table, along with an elegant tea set brought out to welcome Jisend.
There were no windows, so the door was the only way in or out.
When Jisend saw me enter, they shifted to the right side of the sofa. Leggie sat across from them.
Seeing me stand still, refusing to sit, Jisend stopped reading.
"Sit. Why are you standing there?"
Jisend said, glancing at the empty spot next to them.
"..."
I sat on the left side of Jisend. It was my first time on such a soft sofa, but I had no interest in it at all.
"What' s the assessment result?"
Leggie gave a wry smile before answering Jisend' s question.
"Ms. Dania' s rank assessment result is… unable to be assessed."