NOVEL WEB Chapter 90
90. Next Time
There’s no choice but to talk to Levin directly──.
Jack made up his mind.
He had to restore his controlled colleagues back to normal.
If Levin was planning to snoop around others or target someone else, Jack had to stop him.
The quickest way to do that was to confront him in his lair.
Above all, Jack was angry at Levin for barging into others’ peace without care.
“I’ll ask again. Where is he?”
“Do you think I’d tell you?”
Miranda’s expression remained stern.
“I don’t think so. But──”
Jack took a step forward.
He enhanced his leg strength, closing the distance at a speed that no ordinary human could react to.
At a speed far beyond Miranda’s reflexes, he knocked the sword out of her hand.
“Ugh…”
“What if I said I’ll make you talk by force?”
In the same motion, he grabbed Miranda’s wrist.
He applied just a little pressure, and the female knight’s face twisted in pain.
If possible, he didn’t want to hurt her.
So this was the minimum threat.
It still pained him, though──.
“Do it if you can.”
But Miranda’s resolve didn’t waver even under threat.
She glared at Jack with fiery eyes.
“It seems I can’t defeat you. Do what you want—torture, violate, kill me. No matter what happens── I will never betray him.”
She had ironclad loyalty.
There’s no choice──.
Jack made his decision.
It’s not his style, but he’d have to use trickery.
[I believe he’s in Carbal City, right? Surrounded by beautiful women… I’d like to get in on that.]
He recalled the conversation he overheard earlier.
“…Wait. Now that I think about it, there was no need to ask. You accidentally mentioned Levin’s base earlier.”
“Ridiculous.”
“No, I definitely heard it. His base is──”
Jack stared into Miranda’s face.
At the same time, he enhanced his vision and reflexes.
“Bit City.”
The female knight’s expression changed slightly.
It wasn’t a surprise at being caught──.
Her lips slightly relaxed, showing both a sneer and relief.
“I see, so it really is Carbal City.”
This time, Miranda’s expression changed again.
Unlike before, there was a hint of surprise and worry.
Both were so brief that ordinary people wouldn’t have noticed.
But with Jack’s enhanced vision and reflexes, he could see it.
He had intentionally mentioned a false city name to catch her off guard.
Then, in the next question, he mentioned the city name he had overheard Miranda and her colleague discussing earlier.
Catching her off guard with a sudden question, and the relief from thinking she had deceived him── this momentary lapse made Miranda’s expression change.
“It seems that’s correct.”
Jack grinned.
This confirmed it.
“You──”
A beat later, Miranda gasped.
Being as perceptive as she was, she must have realized that he had read her expression.
“Now, I’ll need you to come with me.”
“Huh?”
“I don’t like probing around or taking hostages. But I want to protect the people I care about. I will protect them. For that──”
He enhanced his arm strength and easily hoisted Miranda onto his shoulder.
At the same time, he enhanced his leg strength and started running.
He dashed down the corridors of the building at super speed.
“…Sorry, Hannah. Our date will have to wait.”
Jack apologized in a small voice to the woman he had feelings for, who was probably already at the meeting place.
※
Carbal City, is a city in the eastern part of the Kingdom of Adonis.
In the innermost part of the lord’s castle at its center──.
“Where’s Miranda?”
Levin, sitting in a luxurious throne-like chair, asked the woman beside him.
“She’s out for the regular report on Subject S5164.”
The woman who answered was named Jillian.
A beautiful woman in a luxurious, revealing dress that exposed her elegant shoulders and ample cleavage, with bold makeup.
Like Miranda, she also served as Levin’s close aide.
Originally a noblewoman from a neighboring country, she was summoned and controlled by him through a high-ranking official of the Kingdom of Adonis under his influence.
She was as beautiful as Miranda and, like her, a favored concubine of Levin.
“Isn’t she about due to return?”
“It seems she’s running a little late.”
“…Hmph.”
Levin flipped through a file in his hand.
It contained reports on Subject S── Skill Holders.
He viewed them as the most dangerous and important targets, and Miranda was probably conducting a thorough investigation.
Investigations on other holders were also progressing to some extent.
A boy adventurer with defensive powers.
A male serial killer with the power of slaughter.
A young fortune teller with the power of foresight.
A mysterious, elusive woman.
And── the last one.
Levin suspected this person was within the Adventurers’ Guild, but had no solid proof.
Among these five, the one with the power of slaughter seemed to have died in some incident.
Perhaps he fought another Skill Holder.
Among the remaining four, Levin considered Subject S5164── Jack Jarce, whom Miranda was investigating, the most important.
His combat ability was immense.
If Levin could recruit him, he’d be a powerful asset.
However, haste would ruin everything.
Caution was necessary.
“Now, report on the situation in each region. I want to know the extent of my control.”
“Yes, sir. First, regarding Rudis City, Levin-sama’s influence has spread further, and it is now completely under control──”
Jillian reported.
He could see that lords and close aides in various regions were falling under his control one by one.
“My very own kingdom── it’s starting to take shape.”
Levin smiled and muttered contentedly.