“Aren’t you going to draw your weapon?” asked Lazer, seemingly directing his question at Pallan.

“Are you kidding me? Would you have come here if I stood here with a bow and arrow in my hands?” asked Pallan jokingly. He opened his hands, showing that there were no weapons in them, and turned to the girl to gently clasp her arm. “You really are flustered, Lazer. It is unlike you to show up unarmed like this.”

Lazer’s face sank. “You…”

“By the way, do you know how to swim?” Pallan tightened the grip of his hand to prevent the girl from getting away.

She looked at his face and felt a chill go down her spine. Although she did not shake her head, he was able to decipher her answer from her eyes. Then, before she could break free, he pulled her to the railing.

Her view of the world turned upside-down and was incredibly dizzying.

She shrieked in fear.

“No. 3!” Lazer gritted his teeth and roared, revealing a sense of vulnerability in his voice. “Let her go!”

“He called you ‘No. 3’?” Pallan looked at her, amused. “That sounds like a number, so are you not Diana?” He tightened the grip of his hand again and did not seem to hesitate anymore.

“I…!”

Half of her body was now on the railing. Her head was drawing a blank from the fear.

—No, I will die if I do not break free.

This thought prompted her to move. She flicked her tail violently, hooking it onto Pallan’s calf. She then planted her feet on the railing and jumped with all her might in an attempt to bump him and make him lose his balance, which he did. She pulled him with her tail and made him fall to the ground. She then broke free and climbed up the wall agilely, reaching the roof of the lighthouse.

“Damn it.” Pallan turned over and sat up quickly. He looked surprised for a brief moment before following her.

Although she was heading toward a dead end, it bought Lazer enough time to take action.

Lazer did not hesitate and ran towards the lighthouse. As he approached its entrance, four humans rushed out from behind the door. Lazer quickly drew two daggers out from underneath his cloak and close-quarters combat between the two parties ensued.

Rumor has it that King Theodore privately trained fighters for special operations in order to deal with threats connected to foreign wars. Although there were not many of these fighters, they were cunning and were constantly learning new skills. They were more difficult to deal with than ordinary soldiers.

…The battle had to end quick. Against enemies like this, the longer the battle, the more dangerous the outcome.

The tallest man out of the four stretched his foot and kicked Lazer in the stomach. Lazer endured the pain and grabbed the man’s leg, bringing him down to the ground. Then, Lazer planted his dagger into the man’s torso, leaving him critically injured..

The other two men, both holding a sword, rushed towards Lazer. Lazer turned and dodged quickly to evade their constant attacks, but unable to avoid being hit. Their onslaughts made Lazer look increasingly helpless and left several marks on his leather armor.