I felt as if my heart had stopped. No, it was Sharine’s heart, to be exact. I was afraid to turn my head; please, let that shot have been a warning.
“Sh-Sharine…”
As I shifted my gaze sideways, I saw that she was frozen in the same way. When I slowly turned around, smoke was rising from the gun the man was holding. He lowered it and began to reload.
“I won’t miss next time.”
He missed? Perhaps his sniping skills aren’t very good? No, that couldn’t be it. That was a warning shot.
“W-Wait, I told you we’d be there soon.”
“One guide is enough.”
The Dark Harpy man raised his gun again. He was probably afraid of retaliation. Unlike previous enemies, he was genuinely trying to kill us. It seemed like he had been waiting for me to get separated from my companions. If he took a hostage, no one would be able to intervene.
“Sharine, run.”
“B-But then…”
The second shot was fired mercilessly. I instinctively covered my head with my arm. The bullet hit a nearby wooden crate, shattering it and sending fragments flying. He missed again? Why? We weren’t even that far apart. There was no escape route in this narrow alley.
The man, seemingly caught off guard, stopped as if thinking. Then, without taking his eyes off us, he reloaded his gun. He probably thought we were doing something. Unfortunately, we weren’t. Sharine had also been tense since earlier.
His finger hovered over the trigger. I instinctively stepped in front of Sharine.
With a dry crack, the dirt at my feet churned up and hit my face.
“You’re doing something, aren’t you?”
“I’m not doing anything. I don’t have any power like that.”
“Enough,” the man said, putting away his gun and drawing a knife. He intended to finish us off directly. I heard the sound of Sharine drawing her sword behind me. I wanted to say it was two against one, but the opponent seemed experienced in combat. I didn’t know if we could escape safely.
The man sprang up and ran along the wall, moving behind us. What incredible reflexes. Was this a technique only Dark Harpies could use? But this wasn’t the time to be impressed.
Sharine engaged the opponent attacking from above. But the enemy grabbed her wrist, dodged her counterattack, and moved behind her, thrusting a knife at her neck. It all happened so fast that it took time for my eyes to process what my brain was seeing. My body wouldn’t move, even though I knew what was happening in reality.
By the time my limbs finally moved, the enemy’s knife was touching Sharine’s throat.
“Guh… What?!”
This wasn’t said by me or Sharine. The attacker intended to kill them for real. But the knife wouldn’t advance, as if it were being rejected.
“You guys, Gawwsh…”
Suddenly, the man’s movements stopped. Sharine took advantage of the opening, shoved the man back, and kicked him. A small knife was lodged in the neck of the fallen man. He immediately reached for it, trying to pull it out. As he managed to sit up, another knife flew out, as if mocking him, and pierced his throat from the front.
“Goff, goff, i-impossible…”
“Yes, impossible. You should have noticed with the first shot.”
A young boy’s voice. A Satyr boy emerged from behind garbage left in the alley. He had dark purple hair, fur, and a long coat that reached his feet. It was a somewhat strange color.
The boy twisted the knife sideways, finishing off the man. Then, as if nothing had happened, he wiped off the blood and retrieved the blade.
“Um, who are you?”
“Me? I’m kind of in the same line of work.”
He sat on a nearby box and put a cigarette in his mouth.
“Shouldn’t children be smoking?”
“Hah, I’m twenty-six.”
I didn’t mishear. He definitely said twenty-six just now. Even as a joke, he’d probably come up with a better lie. But even if it were true, he didn’t look it at all. He was shorter than an elementary schooler, and his horns hadn’t even grown in yet.
Sharine seemed bewildered, with so many things happening so suddenly. I also didn’t know what was going on. Attacked by a Dark Harpy assassin, shot three times but missed every time. Then, a Satyr child who claimed to be twenty-six appeared and killed the man. This wasn’t a dream; bright red blood was spreading from the corpse.
“Th-Thank you for saving us? Um, are you an assassin?”
“That’s right. Hmm, I expected you to be something else, but you’re quite foolish.”
Huh? Me? Did the boy want to meet me?
“Why did you help us? Oh, don’t tell me you’re after me.”
“Ah, unfortunately. Just kidding. I heard there were people picking fights with Dark Elves. I just wanted to see what they were like.”
So, that’s why you helped us? Was it just curiosity?
“That’s not all, is it?”
Sharine, who had been silent until now, spoke up.
“Who are you? Explain yourself.”
“You’re impatient. Let me have a smoke first.”
He shrugged as if it couldn’t be helped and lit his cigarette.
