To the east of Rhodes lay a fairly large forest. It had several paths, all measured out by hunters on foot.

There weren’t any especially large beasts inside. The biggest you’d find were things like porcupines.

Though why there were porcupines in a place like this was the biggest mystery of all...

Crack.

“Ah!”

A branch snapped, sending a small figure tumbling straight down.

“That hurt!”

Leticia rubbed her nearly broken back, bit her lip, and struggled to her feet. “Can you do anything right, you little bastard?!”

“Tch. It’s your body, not mine. Of course I’m not used to it!”

Over on the other side, Stano was grimacing too. He’d been controlling Leticia’s body just now, trying to climb a tree and pick some wild fruit to fill their stomachs. He hadn’t expected the branch underfoot to be so flimsy. It snapped before he’d even put much weight on it.

A little explanation of their situation: after getting the location of an exit from the city out of a drunkard, Stano had acted at once. He’d dodged wave after wave of people and even changed Leticia’s appearance a little.

The dirt smeared over her was the least of it. Stano had picked up a sharp-edged shard and, in just a few quick strokes, cut off Leticia’s shoulder-length hair. What remained was a head full of tangled, filthy clumps.

Although he’d obtained the information his uncle had left behind, how to get it out was now the biggest problem.

Stano could have gone straight to his father, Benson, and told him everything.

But how would he explain where the information had come from?

Even if he found a way to pass it to his father’s dedicated contact office, he was still Stano—Stano Bansen, the eldest son of the Benson Family—not his father, who had earned his own glorious military record.

They’d surely uncover traces of his involvement and tell his father.

So he had no choice but to rely on another method.

That meant relying on Leticia, the country girl he could make use of, and having her carry the information.

For now, he first had to make sure she survived, then lead her safely to a place where their country had a presence and get his uncle’s final message out.

As for how he’d managed to get Leticia’s body out of the city with such ease despite being utterly exhausted...

Well, this was a place where so-called “gods” and “demons” existed. Naturally, there were things here that defied common sense.

For example, with just a little combat technique, a soldier could burn through their own potential and life force, rally their spirits, and return to battle even when utterly exhausted.

Stano had learned a great deal from a young age, and naturally he’d studied this forbidden military technique, one meant to be used only when there was no other way out.

His father had strictly forbidden him from trying it, though. The technique inflicted tremendous damage on the body. There had been cases where soldiers became so fearsome after using it that one could almost fight ten enemies alone—but when the effects wore off, they either became listless or collapsed dead.

There was no need to discuss those who collapsed and died; they’d paid for it with their lives. But examinations of those left listless revealed that their bodies had inexplicably aged and withered. Those young, strong men would be lucky to live another two or three years, let alone ten.

It was nothing less than gambling with your life—a one-for-one trade at the limit.

Back in the city, Stano had used this trick on Leticia.

After all, his father had only told him not to use it himself. He’d never said he couldn’t use it on someone else. Besides, things had been urgent. If he hadn’t used it, Leticia would be tied up and awaiting judgment by now.

He didn’t think he’d done anything wrong.

Yet he unconsciously ignored the fact that he’d been the one to rush out in the first place.

“No! I have to rest!”

Leticia sat down without a care in the world, unwilling to move another inch. “I’m begging you, stop messing around!”

“...All right.”

Stano fell silent for a moment and didn’t do anything else. “Then rest for a bit. But we’re not out of danger yet, so stay alert.”

Rhodes was right behind them. Even as they’d left through the city gate, Stano had felt the atmosphere growing more and more tense. He’d only managed to get Leticia out by taking advantage of the chaos.

Luckily, this wasn’t some highly developed city. He’d heard that in their capital, the Church had built special devices that let people communicate through holy arts, making it incredibly fast and convenient. If they’d been in a place like that, they probably wouldn’t have escaped.

“Stay alert...”

At those words, Leticia felt her gut twist. “If it weren’t for you, would I even need to?!”

“I’m sorry.”

Hearing how readily he apologized did nothing to soften Leticia. “What good does an apology do?!”

“You’re right. It doesn’t do much.”

Stano spoke quietly. “Still, it might make you feel a little better. This is the first time I’ve apologized to a woman outside my family. You should feel...”

“I should feel what, exactly?!”

Leticia was already in an absolutely foul mood. “Can you just leave me alone for a while?!”

“Oh.”

It seemed he’d gotten away with it for now. She hadn’t asked why he’d been able to make her body move, either.

Stano breathed a sigh of relief, then pulled his consciousness back a little and returned to his own body.

Feeling the comfort of his own body, with the excitement still lingering in his heart, Stano almost felt as though he’d just woken from a very long dream and none of what had happened was real.

Now he needed to talk to his father and see whether he could draw out some information without revealing anything. He also needed to visit the family library.

He wanted to look closely at the definitions of “Sorceress,” “Witch,” and “Demon Maid.”

At last free of Stano’s interference, Leticia felt as if her whole body were coming apart. The pain burned fiercely, and even being in a state called “rest” was a kind of torture.

Leaning against the tree trunk, she laboriously pulled out the slip of paper. Leticia wanted to see what kind of life-or-death message could make that little bastard do something so... unforgivable.

But then...

“What the hell is this supposed to say?!”

She’d learned quite a few written characters, but the obviously encrypted symbols on the paper were crooked and twisted like earthworms. She stared at them in a daze, nearly bursting out screaming.

She couldn’t read a single thing!!!!