Thanks to Lauren and Sharin’s plan, we successfully obtained the key, but we were spotted by the guards.
We fled recklessly into a narrow alleyway, hoping to outrun our pursuers. I had no idea where I was going, but I kept running, changing direction left and right, just to gain some distance. Sharin was still with me, but I suddenly realized Lauren was nowhere to be seen.
I stopped for a moment and looked around the dim passage. It seemed that our pursuers had given up for the time being.
“Lauren, what happened to Lauren? Did you see her, Sharin?”
As I was looking around, a large black object suddenly fell in front of me. Startled, I almost fell on my rear.
“I’m leaving on my own now. I almost got lost, you know. Fortunately, the path connected,” she said.
“Sorry, I ran off because I was spotted.”
I didn’t quite understand, but thanks to the intricate alleyways, I managed to reunite with Lauren. All that was left was to find the boy’s father. From here on, we had to proceed cautiously through the backstreets, making sure not to be seen.
I paid attention to my footing, trying not to make any noise, and cautiously moved to the next path.
“By the way, why did Sharin kill the snake back then? I mean, it was already dead, though.”
Lauren’s face lit up with a happy expression at my whispered question.
“Ah, well, you see, I found this on the way.”
I almost shouted when she showed me what she was holding in her hand. It was a mouse’s corpse…
“Sharin and I discussed it and changed our plans at the last minute. We stole it while the snake was startling us. Don’t you think it was a rather interesting idea?”
Lauren smiled suspiciously, looking satisfied. After a while, we exited the alley and reached the main street. As usual, it was deserted because of the commotion. However, that made it easier to spot our pursuers.
I made sure no one was around and headed down the street. We had to get this boy out of town first. Suddenly, I heard a voice calling me from somewhere.
“Hero, over here, up here.”
Following the voice, I looked up and saw Piyo on the roof. Had she followed me even though I left her behind? She floated down to me.
“It looks like the rescue operation was a success. I found your family here. Philly and the others are surrounded by enemies right now, and it’s tough.”
She must have come all the way to call us.
“Alright, Sharin and Lauren, I’ll leave this kid to you. I’ll go get the father and everyone else.”
I told them to wait with the luggage and followed Piyo. She glided low through the back alleys, guiding me.
We passed through the alleys again and emerged onto another main street, where we saw three figures surrounded by a large group of guards. Among them, I spotted a centaur with the same fur color as the boy. He must be the father.
The father broke free from the three and charged into the group of guards alone, brandishing an axe. He was then caught by one of them with a rope. I hurried towards the crowd and shouted loudly.
“The operation was a success, everyone. Let’s escape immediately!”
