The Rescue Team finally reached the Rocky Mountain.
The Merchant and Mercenaries busily searched for the stranded Marquis. They shone lanterns on the white rocks, rummaging through various nests and paths.
Meanwhile, they were also dealing with flocks of Monster Birds and battling a pack of beasts.
Yet, they found no trace whatsoever.
“Find something, whatever it takes! A footprint, anything that shows Pastel’s whereabouts! It’s ridiculous we haven’t found that eye-catching kid yet!”
Leonard, who hadn’t slept a wink from climbing to the mountain peak himself, was losing his cool. The Merchant and Mercenaries, pointed at by his jabbing finger, sweated profusely while searching.
“Captain, what if something happened to Pastel?”
The subordinates trembled with anxiety.
Leonard scowled deeply.
“Shut up, you fool! Don’t say anything pointless!”
He slapped the head of the subordinate who spoke without thinking and shouted.
“We just need to find something pink! It’s just pink! Why can’t we find it?!”
“Captain, what about this?”
A subordinate cautiously suggested while scanning the area the Merchant and Mercenaries were searching.
“Pastel being attacked by a bird could be coincidence, but it’s way too suspicious that she’s completely vanished. Don’t you think a certain merchant group might be upset about something and planned this?”
The other subordinates gasped, staring at the one who spoke. It did sound plausible.
Without saying a word, Leonard locked eyes with the subordinate. Then, looking around to see if any other Merchant or Mercenary overheard, he nudged the subordinate.
“You go back and tell the Knight Order to surround the merchant groups. If we say we’re rescuing Marquis Craft, they’ll listen. No, tell them to surround the entire Sky Whale! Not a single one must escape!”
“Got it, Captain! We’ll definitely save Pastel in danger!”
The subordinate dashed off.
As the situation escalated, another subordinate voiced his anxiety.
“What if everyone is innocent?”
Leonard frowned deeply.
“Innocent, my foot! If we haven’t found a kid who’s clearly visible by now, that’s incompetence and disrespect!”
“Oh, oh! Right! Right!”
The subordinates nodded vigorously.
The long search continued.
After a while with no results, just as the sun was rising, they finally made a discovery.
“There’s pink hair in the nest!”
“Really?!”
Leonard rushed over with his subordinates.
It was an empty nest sparsely placed on a steep slope. It looked like there had been quite the commotion; things were broken here and there. It seemed like someone had invaded and robbed the nest.
The pink hair decorating the nest fluttered in the wind. It was a sight to behold.
Leonard carefully touched the hair. It felt soft to the touch.
“Yep, it’s Pastel.”
He felt like he could smell cherry blossoms from somewhere.
“Captain, how do you recognize Pastel’s hair? Have you touched it?”
The subordinates stared at him in confusion.
Leonard flinched before shouting.
“If it’s this soft, it must be hers! Quit with your nonsense and search for more clues!”
The crew hurriedly scoured the area.
They managed to find traces of unidentified individuals who had attacked the nest. It looked like the original baby birds had been kidnapped.
But aside from the birds, Leonard was convinced that some of the merchants were irreverent. Kidnappers showing up at the place where Pastel had been attacked, indeed.
“I won’t let these bastards get away!”
Though there was a lot of emotion involved, his judgment wasn’t completely off.
“Captain!”
A subordinate ran toward him, startled.
“What? Did you find something?!”
“Not that! Over there!”
He pointed towards the early dawn sky. An Airship was ascending straight up into the air. It seemed to be speeding out of control.
“What’s that?”
Leonard frowned. Receiving binoculars from a subordinate, he examined the Airship.
It was an unidentified Airship. Even though Pastel had been half-dragged along as unpaid labor due to her bratty attitude, she had taken note of the merchant groups responsible for managing things. This one, however, was completely unknown.
“Which group is this?!”
Some merchant group was hiding from the student council oversight, or there was an unknown faction out there. Either way, it must be connected to Pastel’s disappearance.
He squeezed the binoculars in a death grip.
“Gather everyone immediately! We’re shutting down every docking bay from now on! Not a single one of them gets to escape from the Sky Whale!”
He ordered the searchers to regroup and turned back to look at the Airship.
The Airship that soared as if it would reach outer space shattered into large fragments. Huge debris sprinkled the sky like stars as a flock of Monster Birds soared around the broken pieces. Several human figures fell from the sky.
In the midst of all, there was a striking pink color.
“What’s that?!”
Leonard’s mouth gaped open.
“Pink! It’s Pastel!”
The subordinates tried to make guesses and were astounded.
“Why is she there?!”
“Help meee!”
Pastel plummeted along with the Airship fragments.
Whoosh.
“Ahhhh!”
Just as she was about to become a pancake, she flailed her arms and legs, swimming toward a nearby wooden table.
With trembling hands, she reached out and clung on, crawling up with great effort.
Finally, Pastel sighed in relief, tightly gripping the table.
Phew.
After falling through the air, landing on a solid surface felt utterly comforting. Humans really should be on solid ground.
As she sat there satisfied with the table, she suddenly startled.
Huh?
Things weren’t getting any better?!
She was still falling…!
“Ahhhh!”
Screaming, Pastel pulled out a Gem Knife from her pocket. She stabbed the knife into the table firmly, securing it.
Table, you’re a UFO from now on!
She summoned all her power of Gem manipulation.
“Fly, UFO!”
The knife vibrated, and the table made noises. Gravity gradually dissipated.
As the falling speed reduced, the Airship fragments began descending upon Pastel. Wooden poles and metal frames covered the sky. Shadows loomed over Pastel who was glued to the table.
Aah!
“Zigzag dodge!”
Show the UFO’s power!
The table jerked back and forth as it soared through the air. As it avoided pots and plates, a wooden pole came crashing down overhead.
Pastel stood up and swung her fist. The pole collided with her punch, creating a shockwave. The wooden post splintered, and debris exploded.
The table shot up through the shrapnel. Flying in a weird vertical arc, it dodged the metal frames.
Soon, the shadows of the Airship fragments disappeared. The view cleared, and the sky opened up.
“Ooh!”
The table slowed down and halted. Pastel wobbled unsteadily on the stationary table, looking around.
Did she survive?
There were no incoming Airship fragments nor was she still falling.
Pastel’s expression brightened.
She raised her arms triumphantly.
“I’m alive!”
She hadn’t turned into pancake Pastel!
Suddenly, a shadow fell over her.
Huh?
A massive flock of Monster Birds flew around the table. The Cult Members riding the Monster Birds glared intently.
“Identify the cause later! Eliminate the attackers first!”
Oh dear.
Weapons flashed. Wands stirred.
“It’s surrounded! The ground is very weak. Focus on skills rather than brute force.”
Aah!
“I’m innocent!”
Pastel made an indignant face.
“I merely swung a rock against your comrade’s head a few times!”
Huh?
Now that she said it, it didn’t sound that innocent?
Aah!
“Just let me go!”
At least until I’m capable of murder.
Her plea fell on deaf ears.
A spear-wielding Cult Member urged the Monster Bird’s reins. The bird flapped its wings and dove in.
The blade of the spear was aimed straight at the girl.
Pastel watched the spear come for her heart with a scared expression. Death approached in an instant, and her mind sharpened.
Adrenaline exploded.
The girl’s expression changed, and she drew her sword. The sword and spear clashed, metal ringing out as the spear’s trajectory twisted, narrowly missing the girl.
Using the remaining momentum, she spun around, wielding her sword in a sweeping motion, catching the Cult Member off guard. The sound of blood echoed. A fountain of blood burst forth.
The torn body tumbled off the Monster Bird. The bird shrieked and swayed, crashing into the table. The wooden table couldn’t withstand the impact and shattered.
With one flourish, the girl beheaded the Monster Bird’s neck and then leaped toward the surrounding Cult Members.
The Gem Knife flew, providing a foothold. With consecutive jumping sounds, the pink silhouette soared, tackling a Cult Member.
The Cult Member riding the Monster Bird dumbfoundedly watched the girl’s blade vertically cleave him. Blood showered the sky.
As she spiraled downwards, the silver arc of her sword followed. The blade traced a downward curve as a Cult Member soaring below was sliced and diced, causing pieces and blood to paint the girl.
Chaos reigned.
With every jump the girl made, another Cult Member fell. The blade deflected magical bullets, creating new corpses.
The knife sought the fleeing ones. A silver trajectory cut through the air, overwhelming the Cult Members. The sound of flesh being punctured echoed. The Monster Birds and Cult Members that had lost their wings plummeted. Screams reverberated across the land.
The knife returned, propping up Pastel’s falling foot. The wobbling impact stabilized.
Pastel stood in the air, gazing downwards.
The Cult Members fell, tangled with the Monster Birds.
“Eww.”
A serene voice spoke.
“Good job. After all, with the Prez merchant group remaining, focusing on the conflict rather than a risky capture was a wise choice.”
With excess hormones swirling in her head, Pastel waved her hand towards the ground.
“Hello there.”
She locked eyes with a descending Cult Member. The Cult Member stared blankly without greeting before crashing into a rock. Debris shattered everywhere, and a large bloodstain marred the earth.
“Eww?”
Startled, Pastel hiccuped.
Hic, hic.
“Hmm.”
The Demon remarked.
“The kid’s view isn’t great.”
“Yeah.”
Pastel covered her eyes with her hand.
Such a good child.
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