Chapter Twenty-One: You Create a Diversion, I Take Advantage of the Chaos

After Viscount Colin saw through Kamen Rider Schmidt’s disguise, he did not immediately send anyone to arrest him. Instead, he continued to quietly contemplate how to maximize his own gain. At that moment, the wind chime hanging in his study gave a clear, crisp ring. Viscount Colin knew this wasn’t the result of a breeze; in fact, no wind, no matter how strong, could make it sound. This was the alarm chime of a warning sorcery array. Its ringing meant there was an intruder.

Had Andy known about this, he would never have recklessly approached the Lord’s Manor.

As soon as the chime sounded, Viscount Colin heard shouts from outside the door, followed by the clash of weapons. He picked up his teacup from the desk and waited calmly, listening to the chaos outside and lamenting how expensive these warning arrays were. If they weren’t so costly, he would have installed them throughout the entire Colin Castle, not just his study and bedroom.

He felt no concern for his own safety. Even though the Great Knight Cromwell was absent, he still had three knights stationed nearby for protection. Even if a Great Knight-level adversary attacked, they could hold out for a while. The castle’s guards had also been drilled in emergency response; it would not take long for them to surround the area, leaving the intruder nowhere to escape.

Hm? The fighting outside seemed to be dragging on, and he could hear the distinct sounds of sorcery being cast. It seemed some guest magicians, at least advanced apprentice sorcerers, had come to assist.

The following footsteps and shouting suggested that the guards had already encircled the place. Only when the clamor subsided did Viscount Colin leisurely open his door. His three knightly guards were already waiting for him outside.

After giving their formal salute, the tall, thin knight among them stepped forward. “My lord Viscount, forgive us for any alarm.”

Colin responded coolly, “All settled? Bring him here.”

The three knights exchanged glances. “Well…”

“What is it, has the intruder been killed?”

“My lord Viscount…” The tall knight wore a strange expression. “There was indeed an intruder, but he’s not dead—he’s shattered.”

Only when the knights and guards stepped aside did Viscount Colin understand what “shattered” meant. Lying on the ground was a heap of battered metal, still vaguely human-shaped.

This… Viscount Colin recalled records from his books—an alchemical golem!

After dismissing the guards to their posts, Viscount Colin pondered the reason for the attack. The golem was only as strong as a knight, but its significance was far greater. The core sorcery array needed to create such a golem could only be mastered by a true sorcerer, and the cost of making one was astronomical. Therefore, whoever was behind this golem was certainly a formidable enemy.

But what purpose was served by such a half-hearted, inconclusive attack? Viscount Colin could not fathom it, until a fresh commotion outside interrupted his thoughts. Frowning, he opened the door.

Outside was a bustling crowd led by the manor’s guest magician Charlie, looking disheveled, and another guest magician. There were also city guards, three knightly protectors, the steward, maids—a whole throng of people.

Before the Viscount could speak, the steward, Louis, burst into tears. “My lord, Edward has been kidnapped!” The outcry nearly made Viscount Colin faint on the spot.

As it turned out, while the fight was happening, Charlie had been discussing sorcery with Edward. Hearing the commotion, they had tried to hurry over to help, but no matter how fast they moved, they couldn’t reach the scene. At some point, a thick fog had arisen, and only then did they realize something was wrong. They were lost—lost in Colin Castle, a place more familiar to them than their own hands. Just as they thought to call for help, Charlie smelled a strange fragrance and swiftly blacked out.

Only when a patrol of guards stumbled upon Charlie did they manage, with great effort, to revive him, but by then Edward was nowhere to be found. Charlie rushed to report to the Viscount, and in the search he’d roused many others, who had all come along.

It took Viscount Colin a long moment to recover. Supported by the tall knight, he feebly waved his hand, instructing Charlie to lead the way to where Edward had vanished.

A great mass of people hurried off, none of them noticing the shadow clothed in a guard’s uniform that slipped quietly into the Viscount’s study.

That shadow was Andy!

Andy had originally been practicing his sorcery when Louis’s report reached him with news of the golem attack and Edward’s disappearance. Seizing the opportunity, Andy donned a guard’s uniform procured by Louis and blended into the chaos; the confusion caused by Edward’s disappearance was so great that no one noticed the imposter in their midst.

The Viscount’s departure to investigate the scene gave Andy the perfect chance he had been waiting for since yesterday: to get his hands on the “Prague Answering Chair” hidden in the secret vault.

As soon as Andy entered the room, the wind chime gave a frantic ring. At that moment, a soft “meow” sounded from his chest, and the chime fell abruptly silent.

Second-level sorcery: Silence.

The wind chime kept swinging, but even when Andy slashed it apart with his sword, not a sound escaped. Not just the chime—even if Andy tore the room apart beam by beam, not a whisper would leak outside.

Andy felt utterly deaf. Catherine’s sorcery had plunged him into a world of complete silence. He could feel his mouth move and his vocal cords vibrate when he spoke, but not a sound reached his ears. He looked at Catherine, puzzled.

He remembered the book’s definition of the Silence spell—this wasn’t how it was supposed to work…

Catherine, embarrassed, covered her face with a paw and stuck out her tongue in secret. Her sorcery control was, unfortunately, rather poor. She seemed to have caught her own side in the spell. When the cooldown ended, she cast Silence again, and Andy’s hearing returned at last.

“What are you staring at? Hurry up and find the secret room!” Catherine snapped, flustered by Andy’s strange look.

“No need to look,” Andy replied calmly. He suddenly drew the Viscount’s ceremonial sword from the wall; with a soft breath, the blade sang. Andy then struck it with his own sword, and the ceremonial blade snapped in two with ease. Glancing at the inscription on the scabbard, Andy recognized the word “Judgment.”

“What a sword, what a sword…” Andy grinned like a fox who’d just stolen a hen. Then his smile froze—the blade in his hand was shining with dazzling light…

“Sword Form: Heavy Strike.” “Sword Form: Sweep.” “Sword Form: Thrust.”

As Andy unleashed his swordplay in the Viscount’s study, rare collectibles and meticulously maintained books went flying everywhere. Flakes of plaster snowed from the walls, along with some valueless calligraphy and paintings.

Boom! At last, after a “Heavy Strike,” a gaping hole appeared in one wall of the study. Andy quickly widened it and slipped through.

“So manly!” Catherine’s eyes sparkled as she watched Andy’s retreating back.

Half an hour later, in a hidden chamber of Colin Castle, Andy and Catherine stood, eyes alight with excitement, before the “Prague Answering Chair” and a pile of magic stones.

After persuading Catherine to cast Silence again, Andy couldn’t help bursting into song: “I’m making money, making money! I don’t even know how to spend it. I’ll buy a Nokia with my left hand and a Motorola with my right…”

While Andy was reveling in his windfall, the Viscount stood in the wreckage, feeling as though ten thousand bronze monsters had trampled his study. And seeing the emptiness of his secret vault, he felt as if those monsters had not only ravaged his study but also his heart.

“May I never learn who you are!” Viscount Colin pressed a hand to his chest, trying to calm himself, and groaned weakly. And from the lining of his coat, the magic mirror glimmered with a ghostly light…