Kanna, Gakane, and Nathan pursued and captured the rats at an unbelievably fast pace. It was natural that the two members of the Cavalry worked well together; they had trained in tandem for a long time. Added to this was Nathan Zuckerman's exceptional skill, which knew no bounds, making their operation seamless.

Even in a complex environment, with just one signal from Kanna, Nathan Zuckerman managed to kill the small and fast enemy with a single stroke of his sword. His movements, targeting only the objective without destroying anything else, were so smooth that it made it all look trivial.

Moreover, although he wasn’t an imperial guard of the palace, Nathan seemed incredibly familiar with its internal layout. There was no hint of condescension in his voice as he clearly guided them on which routes to take and which areas must be secured.

After dealing with most of the rats, they took a moment to catch their breath behind a bronze lion statue, which Nathan had identified as a crucial area. As Kanna was tracking the remaining rats, Gakane cautiously asked,

“Is the place where Yuder is... alright?”

“Considering we’ve received no signal from the Duke, it should be fine,” Nathan explained, implying that Kishiar had judged that they needn't concern themselves with external matters.

Gakane felt both relieved and burdened, believing that they had more or less done a good job.

‘Yuder must be somewhere behind this area along with the Emperor and the Commander…’

They had been suddenly assigned to guard the Sun Palace without even being given detailed information. And Yuder seemed to be more deeply involved in this mission than ever.

The Sun Palace was the Emperor's residence. Even without asking, it was obvious that the Emperor was the ultimate focus of today's mission. The invaders would most likely be targeting wherever the Emperor was, and Yuder’s decision to go inside rather than remain outside was probably because it was deemed more critical and dangerous.

The appearance of invaders in the Sun Palace today had already confirmed that the choices made by the Emperor and the Commander were correct.

“Kanna, is it getting difficult to chase the remaining rats?”

“They seem to have figured out what we're trying to guard, and their speed is increasing. It’s becoming hard to read them. Only a couple are left now.”

It was natural that the enemy would also not just sit idly by. The rats were constantly trying to evade their pursuit and find something. However, Kanna was just quicker at reading them.

“Don't overdo it.”

“Mm-hmm.”

As she murmured and shifted her downcast eyes this way and that, Kanna appeared almost entranced. It would have been a somewhat frightening sight to others, but Gakane was rather pleased.

Only those who have undergone the same awakening could understand the freedom and pleasure felt when a previously unresponsive ability finally breaks through its limits. Knowing that Kanna was in that state, he didn't want to disturb her.

The only concern was that with each use of her abilities, the handkerchief she used to block her nose was becoming increasingly stained. If it really became a problem, he planned to just knock her out.

‘After all, it's just about searching for the rats... It may not be as fast as Kanna, but spreading my shadow as wide as possible should do the trick.’

“They’ll be coming this way soon!”

Kanna lifted her head and pointed in one direction. Without hesitation, Gakane unfurled his shadow. In the blink of an eye, Nathan Zuckerman approached the area Kanna had indicated and skewered a rat that was just emerging from the darkness. The rat, even after being pierced, tried to escape, but failed to break through the gap sealed by Gakane's shadow and was torn apart like a fish caught in a net.

"Keep running in the same direction! Don't give them a chance to escape! It might look like one, but it’s actually two!"

Kanna sprang to her feet and ran. They located another rat attempting to sneak up the stairs from below. It was incredibly fast, almost as if it had been conserving all its energy for this very moment, escaping just before Gakane could close the gap with his shadow.

"Gakane, hurry!"

While Nathan Zuckerman killed one rat, before the second rat could scurry behind a bronze lion statue, Gakane mustered all his strength and expanded his shadow.

'I'm not too late...'

Barely catching the rat's tail, a pitch-black shadow surged upwards. Gakane immediately wrapped the rat in his shadow and shattered it.

'Done. This is the end.'

So far, so good. They were also prepared to eliminate the red glow that usually emerged from the bodies of the dead rats.

But what flowed from the rat's corpse wasn't the red glow; it was dark liquid.

"...What?"

With a sound like an exploding ball, the blood splattered across the corridor. At the same time, Kanna's eyes widened, and she screamed.

"Monster blood!"

"What?!"

"It’s not the rat's blood. The rat had ingested monster blood… They’ve been targeting this location from the start… A signal? Is that the meaning of the signal? If that’s the case…"

"Something is coming."

As Kanna’s gaze darted erratically, she finally locked onto a window next to a statue. Nathan Zuckerman also turned his head towards the same spot.

At that moment, the moonlight streaming through the window began to be obscured by a dark shadow. It wasn't due to clouds. Gakane noticed an unidentifiable black shadow outside the window, flapping its wings and staring at them.

'What is that…?'

The creature had disheveled fur and skin, like a bird freshly hatched from an egg. However, its wings were strong and large. The body was disproportionately small, but dozens of dark eyes were embedded all over it, each eye independently rolling to look in different directions.

An instinctual shiver ran down his spine upon realizing that those dozens of eyes were watching him. Such a creature couldn't possibly be a normal, living beast.

It was a monster.

"Do you remember that creature from the monster manual we studied? Gakane?"

Kanna murmured softly.

"A monster that can locate its target regardless of darkness, walls, fog, or obstructions."

With wings that spewed venom and long claws, its frail body was well-protected, and hundreds of eyes ensured it never lost sight of its target. It ate creatures smaller than itself, so smelling the blood of the same monster in front of it was like a taboo.

The image from the manual they had studied during training merged with the monster before them.

'It’s smaller than the one in the manual... but comparing it to a chicken or a pigeon would be an insult to those birds.'

"How could a monster be in the palace..."

"The important thing is to prevent that creature from entering and violating our territory!"

Kanna's eyes bulged as she shouted.

"I can sense it. There’s another enemy behind that monster!"

"So you're saying that monster is also being controlled, like the rats and the other knights?"

At Nathan Zuckerman's inquiry, Kanna nodded her head, then hesitated a moment later.

"I can sense the presence of another Awakener, but it's different from earlier! That monster just woke up from its egg because it smelled blood. And when we brought the egg here... I think it's watching us through its eyes. I can read some information from its gaze."

"More than anything, I'm certain that we need to find out what's behind all this," Nathan Zuckerman said as he took a deep breath and raised his sword.

"May I ask one more question? Are there other monsters besides this one?"

"No, I don't think so. I can only feel... that creature."

"Understood. Deputy Commander Wand, step back and read as much information as you can from that monster. I'll take it from here."

"It's dangerous, Sir Zuckerman. I'll help you!"

Gakane stepped forward, but Nathan Zuckerman shook his head.

"Guarding the area where the Deputy Commander Wand and the bronze statue are is far more important than attacking. It's something that can't be done with a sword, so I'll leave that task to you."

"But if you get a scratch and inflicted by its poison...!"

Concerned, Gakane looked back at Nathan Zuckerman, who appeared to be mulling over what to say. A moment later, he spoke words that were quite surprising.

"Actually, the Monster Manual you both studied from the Cavalry is based on combat records from our own Peletta Knights. I've faced that monster multiple times. So, there's no need to worry so much. This is the best way to quickly end this."

"What?"

"What you are about to witness... please keep it a secret."

"What are you... planning to do?"

Before his words were fully out, the monster crashed through the window. Reflexively, Gakane summoned a shadow clone to block the shattered glass and grabbed Kanna with another shadow clone, rushing her to safety.

"Ugh!"

After tumbling to a somewhat safe spot, both Gakane and Kanna cautiously lifted their heads. And they were stunned to see a vivid blue aura emanating from Nathan Zuckerman's sword as he blocked the monster's claws.

"My God..."

It was, indeed, an overwhelming battle.

Every time Nathan Zuckerman swung his sword, an impossibly blue light sliced through the monster's body, bursting dozens of its eyes.

Though it might look similar to the sword auras of Jimmy or other skilled swordsmen, the outcome was entirely different. An overwhelming energy lingered at the tip of his sword, reminiscent of ancient Swordmasters who were said to have split mountains with their blades alone.

With a single swing, a crack appeared on the monster's unbreakable wing. On the second, the blade penetrated the crack, tearing off one side. The monster splattered black blood and thrashed about, unable to fly any longer, crashing to the ground with a thud that echoed through the entire palace.

Nathan Zuckerman, splattered with a bit of the poisonous black blood, advanced towards the monster with his aura-wreathed sword.

A single, flawless attack.

With a terrible sound, the monster's weak point, a red eye, exploded. Hidden among its black eyes and steel-like feathers, it burst open, followed by an immense booming noise as the monster's body exploded.

"Be careful!"

All three were knocked back by the backlash of the explosion, and the windows in the corridor shattered, bringing down the chandelier.

"Ugh...!"

After the aftermath of the explosion had passed, Gakane slowly lifted his head to survey the surroundings. Fortunately, no one else was injured. It was thanks to Gakane that, just before the explosion, he had stretched his shadow to its limit to protect everyone.

The other shadow clone, tightly holding Kanna, continued to act as a cushion to keep her from harm. In front of Nathan Zuckerman, a wall of shadow that had blocked the poison stood firmly, swaying slightly. Nathan picked up the sword where the aura had disappeared and turned his head towards Gakane.

"Thank you. You blocked it well."

"Ouch, ouch... If it wasn't for your shadow clone, Gakane, my head would've been smashed."

'...I survived.'

Only then did Gakane realize that he had accomplished the last thing he needed to do and collapsed to the ground in relief. What was reflected in his eyes behind the bronze lion statue was utterly clean. Unlike the mess created by the explosion, it seemed as if nothing had happened there.

Seeing that, Gakane couldn't help but lift the corners of his mouth. Though it seemed like an inappropriate moment, he found no other way to express this sense of achievement.

They had completely fulfilled the mission they were entrusted with.

Check out the new project:

Surviving as a Mage in a Magic Academy

Graduate student Yi-han finds himself reborn in another world as the youngest child of a mage family.

– I’m never attending school, ever again!

‘What do you wish to achieve in life?’

‘I wish to play around and live comforta-‘

‘You must be aware of your talent. Now go attend Einroguard!’

‘Patriarch!’

My future would be guaranteed once I graduate. For my future!