25-125

EP.125 [Eugene Schneider Rescues Vivian, but Is Blocked by the Sophists.] 

"Antonio’s instincts have really dulled. Back in his mercenary days, they called him the bear with the eyes of a hawk. That’s what happens when you join a knight order your senses get dull." 

Adan sneered at Antonio upon hearing that the 2nd caravan’s guards were being shifted to reinforce the 1st main caravan. 

Eugene Schneider, upon hearing that Tyrannos’s main force was attacking, felt a strong sense of déjà vu. As he suspected, the Tyrannos force targeting the 1st main caravan was mostly a bluff. Except for the cavalry, the rest were just numbers filler troops. That’s how so many could hide without being noticed. 

"Good. Thanks to that, we’ll be able to hunt the blonde fox." 

Smirk... 

Adan curled his lips into a smile as he mentioned the "blonde fox" none other than Vivian. 

The reason for sending a large, flashy force to the 1st main caravan was to draw all the attention of the Iron Cross Knights, who were responsible for the main escort. With the 2nd caravan’s defense thinned, Adan’s elite detachment, though small in number but strong, planned to attack the 2nd caravan. 

"If those goods make it through, it doesn’t matter. If you cut off the head, the rest will be torn apart. That’s why we just need to take out the head the bun-haired fox." 

The Iron Cross Knights and Red Fox Mercenary Band believed Tyrannos was after both the goods and Vivian. But they were wrong. The only target of the Tyrannos detachment was Vivian. 

If Vivian was neutralized, the massive wealth equivalent to a tenth of a great city would become a seed of chaos. That’s because such change is only possible with someone as capable and symbolic as Vivian at the center. 

With that calculation, the Tyrannos detachment targeted Vivian, correctly guessing she was with the 2nd caravan. 

Slick... 

Confirming that things were going as planned, Adan looked back. 

"Still, it’s surprising. I thought you’d be desperate to grab Vivian for the money. Are you really just here to cut off the retreat?" 

Behind him stood figures in monk’s hoods. 

"Sometimes there are things more important than money. Just like Tyrannos risks everything to stay anti-Empire." 

The emblem of a snake coiled around a sword Sophists. 

"Please, spare me!!!!" 

Thud! 

By now, the 2nd caravan had passed the cliffs and entered the forest. At that moment, Adan’s Tyrannos detachment attacked, quickly overwhelming the 2nd caravan. 

Theo Leopold, head of the Theo Guild who was leading the 2nd caravan with Vivian, fell to his knees before Adan, begging for his life. 

"Get up. Stop acting, it’s disgusting." 

Adan dismissed Theo with a sneer. 

Indeed, the one who had been leaking Iron Cross Knights’ information and allowing spies into the merchant alliance was none other than Theo Leopold, a high-ranking guild leader. 

The swift collapse of the 2nd caravan was also his doing. Even if Antonio had lost his edge, he would never have made such a reckless decision unless manipulated by Theo’s scheming. Theo had placed all his guards in the 2nd caravan, and Antonio, trusting them, sent the Iron Cross Knights to the 1st main caravan. 

But Theo’s guards, following his orders, surrendered the moment the Tyrannos detachment appeared. 

"Haha... Still, there are people watching. Play along a little, so I can at least keep some reputation if I become the new leader." 

Theo kept his head bowed, pleading with Adan. 

In recent years, Alexandria’s merchant scene had grown huge, all thanks to Vivian. The merchant alliance, once just a figurehead, now had real power. Theo, a long-time insider, wanted to take over. With no official leader, Vivian acted as a de facto chairwoman. Theo planned to eliminate her and install himself as the clear leader. 

"Where’s that Vivian bitch, Theo Leopold?" 

"She’s in that old carriage... We disguised it as a cargo wagon..." 

Tyrannos also planned to use Theo as a puppet leader. So Adan accepted his plea and went to confirm Vivian’s location. 

"I know you’re in there, Vivian! If you don’t want to be dragged out, open the door and come out yourself!" 

Step, step, step, 

Adan and his men approached the old carriage Theo pointed at. 

"You’ve got ability but no sense for the bigger picture, Vivian. That’s why your father died, too, you know!" 

Even as Adan threatened her, Vivian didn’t come out. So he mocked her father, Alexis Saint-Pierre. 

"Hope you use that smart head of yours if you get captured, Vivian!" 

Clack! 

Still no response from inside, so Adan grabbed the carriage handle to drag her out. 

"!!!!!" 

But when he triumphantly flung open the door, his face went wide with shock. 

"What?! Where did she go?!" 

Vivian was not in the carriage. 

"By now, the Tyrannos guys have probably realized you’re missing, Guild Leader Vivian." 

And there was someone who had predicted Adan’s reaction perfectly: Eugene Schneider, the “unfaithful male,” Red Fox Mercenary Band’s assault captain, Jeanne’s lover, and now Vivian’s rescuer. 

He was currently walking through the forest with Vivian. 

"I can’t believe it... Theo Leopold was a traitor." 

Following Eugene, Vivian looked devastated as she mentioned Theo’s betrayal. 

"I started suspecting he was a Tyrannos spy about four days ago." 

Eugene replied, scanning the area as they walked. 

Their current situation was thanks to Eugene’s intuition after seeing Davis report the attack on the main caravan. Unlike Antonio or Jeanne, Eugene, as Vivian’s bodyguard, had a close look at the alliance’s internal affairs from a mercenary’s perspective. He’d found Theo suspicious for a while. 

"Yesterday, he was desperate to get his guards into the 2nd caravan. That was a big red flag. When I saw the Iron Cross Knights moving to the 1st caravan, I was sure." 

He’d had suspicions, but as just a bodyguard, Eugene couldn’t act on them without proof. But when Theo suddenly rearranged the guard assignments the night before, it became clear. Theo’s guards were supposed to be with the main caravan, but he insisted on moving them to Vivian’s side. Antonio, not wanting trouble before the big event, agreed. 

Seeing all this, Eugene was sure Theo was up to something. 

‘You’re really amazing, Eugene. You’ve been working so hard as my bodyguard. You always did your job with the guild, but now you’re really solving problems deeply.’ 

As she listened, Vivian looked at Eugene with awe and respect. For a hired mercenary, this was just his job, but for Vivian, it meant much more especially since Eugene had always treated her coldly as Jeanne’s man. Realizing how much he’d done, she was overwhelmed. 

"If we walk about ten more minutes through these bushes, we’ll reach the spot where I asked Thomas to hide two horses. We’ll ride those back to camp." 

Eugene’s professionalism didn’t stop there. Sensing Theo’s betrayal, he’d arranged an escape plan asking assassin Thomas to have two horses ready at a secret spot for a quick getaway. 

"You’re amazing, Eugene!" 

"Arranging the horses cost me out of pocket, so I’ll bill you for it." 

"Of course! I’ll pay you a hazard bonus too!" 

Vivian was nearly starstruck by Eugene’s endless professionalism, but he coolly handed her the bill, and she eagerly agreed. 

As they walked toward safety, the mood was almost light until: 

"Hmm, I knew it wouldn’t go that smoothly." 

They ran into a situation worthy of a bigger hazard bonus. 

"As expected, you escaped well, Red Fox assault leader." 

Step, step, step, 

A group blocked their path four mysterious figures. 

‘Huh... Who are these guys?’ 

As the figures emerged from the dark underbrush, Eugene recognized them. 

His eyes widened slightly as he tried to hide his emotions. 

‘Sophists.’ 

Wearing monk robes and armor emblazoned with a snake coiled around a sword, the ones blocking Eugene and Vivian’s path were none other than the Sophists the same group seen earlier with Adan, the Tyrannos detachment leader.