After some time Cedo looked at Hakama, who was walking ahead of him, and asked, "How did you like that knight? He was interesting, wasn't he? Do you think all the paladins in the capital are that strong?"
"He's special," Hakama replied. "Among knights, only the best become paladins, and he's the best even among the best. The speed of his spiritual arts is on a completely different level."
She began waving her hands, demonstrating the movements.
"Spiritual arts?" Cedo asked.
"Sacred power is something bestowed by the spirits," Hakama explained, "and the techniques for using that power are called spiritual arts."
"I see." So they don't consider the nanomachines to be spirits, he thought. In this era science is considered magic.
Then he remembered Karina pointing a sword at him and screaming furiously that he was a damned lesser being.
"Lesser being," he said. "It seems there are many races in this era."
"Yeah," Hakama confirmed. "Some are more like fish, others like bugs."
"Bugs?"
"Grandma said that a long time ago people were limited to their own habitats. Their bodies slowly changed to adapt to the environment."
"So they adapted to the environment," Cedo asked in surprise.
That means there were survivors a hundred million years ago, he thought. These people evolved from the remnants of humanity. There's no point in thinking about it now.
Out loud he said, "Yeah. And those who never changed are considered lesser beings."
"Right," Hakama replied. "Compared to those who adapted to the environment, they're weaker in every way. That's why they're despised. Most of the slaves are lesser beings."
So there is slavery here, Cedo thought.
"They're not that different from us," Hakama said. "Treating people badly because they're different is wrong. They're all wrong." She made an offended face.
Cedo smiled softly. She's a good child, he remarked to himself. She looked up at him.
The next second a desperate cry rang out. Poval was calling for help. At that very moment she dropped her cane and collapsed to the ground. Hakama rushed to her.
"Are you all right?"
Cedo looked at Poval in surprise and said quietly, "Look at her ears."
They carefully turned the girl onto her back. Cedo leaned over her. She's covered in bruises, he thought. Terrible injuries.
Hakama lifted Poval up and asked worriedly, "Are you all right?"
Cedo concentrated the energy in his hand and said calmly, "Hold on. I'll heal her."
But at that very second Poval put a knife to Hakama's neck and barked, "Don't move. If you move, I'll cut her — and you too."
I see, Cedo thought calmly. We walked right into a trap. He glanced to the side. That means they're nearby. The ones capable of something like this.
The next moment Valentine began to emerge out of invisibility. He chuckled.
"Excellent work, Poval."
She had done exactly as he ordered. A few more bandits stepped forward.
Invisible camouflage, a nanomachine function, Cedo noted to himself. It projects the surroundings onto the body, creating the illusion of transparency. The drawback is that the illusion dissipates the moment you move. But they made good use of it.
Valentine pointed his sword at Cedo and said coldly, "Too fashionable clothes for a lowly creature. What country did you come from?"
"Cedo," Hakama called out anxiously.
Valentine chuckled. "Don't move. Do you know what will happen otherwise?"
Hakama tried to concentrate the energy in her hand again, but Cedo sharply shouted her name. She froze in surprise.
"That is the power for fighting the distorted ones," he said firmly. "You understand that it can't be used against people, right?"
She wanted to object, but Valentine interrupted her with a chuckle.
"That's right." He hadn't expected to run into someone with sacred power. "By the way." The bandit came closer to Cedo. "Can you use it too?"
"Who knows?" Cedo replied calmly.
The man flushed. "What?"
And he immediately kicked Cedo in the stomach.
Hakama screamed, "Cedo!"
"Don't be insolent, lesser being," the bandit barked.
Then Valentine intervened and ordered coldly, "Don't damage the goods."
The bandit grumbled. "They won't give much for a lesser being anyway."
Valentine narrowed his eyes. "And what if he can use sacred power?"
The bandit snorted. "A lesser being? Never."
These are the very bandits the paladin talked about, Hakama thought in horror. Slave traders.
Valentine concentrated his energy again and stepped towards Hakama, murmuring, "She's going to lie down for a while and get some sleep."
If we're caught, we might be made slaves, she thought in a panic.
After some time she heard Cedo's voice.
"Hakama. Wake up."
He called her again and again. She opened her eyes, looked at him in shock and whispered, "Cedo."
Sitting up, she looked around and realized they were in a cage.
"Are you all right?" Cedo asked quietly.
"Yes." But something else was more important. "Where are we?"
Cedo looked around the room. "This is the base of the men who attacked us. It looks like they bring everyone they capture here."
The room was lined with cages containing exhausted people. Hakama frowned and suddenly asked, "Why are you naked?"
"They liked my unusual clothes," Cedo answered calmly, sitting opposite her.
She stared at him. He was too calm. He shrugged slightly. He had lived more than one life. He had managed to get used to a great many things.
Hakama said she was more interested in why he hadn't defended himself. He could easily have dealt with them.
He looked at her in silence, then said quietly, "Forget it."
At that moment the door to the room creaked open. Poval came in, carrying a tray of food, and said indifferently, "They're awake."
Hakama lunged at the bars and screamed, "It's her. She orchestrated all of this."
Poval abruptly dropped the tray to the floor and muttered, "You can hate me. I don't expect you to forgive me."
Her face contorted with tension.
"She's too kind to be a real villain," Cedo said calmly.
Poval flinched. "Kind? What do you mean?"
He bowed his head slightly. "Real villains don't think like that. They don't care whether they're hated or not, forgiven or not."
Then he rose to his feet. "In any case—"
He gripped the bars tightly. Poval froze, looking at him in bewilderment. The next second the bars of the cage crumbled with a crash.
Cedo dusted off his hands and said calmly, "I was waiting for you to come. We'll talk where no one can overhear us."
"With me?" Poval asked in surprise.
He stepped forward and asked firmly, "Where are they keeping the one you hold dear?"
She froze, staring at him in bewilderment. How did he know?
He bowed his head slightly and replied that he had guessed. Concentrating the energy in his hand, he instantly healed all her wounds and bruises. Then he said, "I fell for the trick because your wounds were real. But even bandits don't usually beat their own just to use them as bait."
He had understood everything quickly. She followed their orders because they had threatened someone dear to her.
She lowered her gaze. "My little brother. He's with them now. They said that if I don't obey, he'll be sent into slavery and we'll never see each other again. And our parents — those bastards just killed them."
Her voice broke. She clenched her fists and burst into tears. Through her tears she screamed that she had to protect her brother. That was why she did everything they told her.
At that moment Cedo clenched his fists, gritted his teeth and thought: idiots.
Hakama looked at him and asked quietly, "Did you let yourself be captured on purpose, to save everyone here?"
He nodded briefly, then added, "But scum like these aren't so easy to get rid of. They're like oil stains."
She frowned. "Oil stains?"
"Yes. It's enough to destroy just one, and they'll gather their strength again. The evil will continue."
At that moment the guard behind the door jerked sharply. He had heard the noise in the room.
"If we're going to be rid of them," Cedo added coldly, "we need to tear them out by the roots, all at once."
With those words he kicked the door down with a powerful blow, throwing the guards aside, and stepped out into the corridor.
"And we start right now."