Rumble, rumble, rumble—
The carriage axle spun at high speed, grinding against the road with a thunderous roar.
Mixed with the hoofbeats of the two fine horses, the noise drew the attention of countless pedestrians before the carriage even turned into the next street.
People all looked toward the upper end of the road.
They were waiting for whatever was making that sound to appear.
Whoosh!
Two fine horses burst out.
The carriage they were pulling nearly turned ninety degrees in an instant.
With a sharp drift, the carriage was yanked straight again and shot down the middle of the street at frightening speed.
"Aaaaah!"
"Get out of the way!"
The people on the street scrambled madly to both sides.
After the carriage thundered past, they all stared in the direction it had vanished, unable to pull their attention back for a long time.
It was only when a cavalry unit chased after it along the same route that the crowd immediately began discussing and guessing what exactly had happened.
A carriage's speed was still far inferior to that of warhorses.
Before long, Rayleigh and the others were caught up to.
Seeing this, he jumped straight down from the carriage.
While still suspended in midair, he kicked one of the knights off his horse.
Standing on the horse's back, Rayleigh discovered that the warhorse had suddenly stopped and was even trying to throw him off.
He was surprised by how well-trained these horses were.
Then he leapt down from the horse's back, wrapped his fist in Reiryoku, and sent the warhorse flying with a single punch, smashing it through the wooden door of a nearby shop.
More knights charged in.
Rayleigh raised his thumb, index finger, and middle finger, then swept them across in front of his eyes.
"Bakudō #37: Tsuriboshi."
Whoosh!
A hammock woven from spiritual power spread across the street, turning into a dense, elastic curtain that blocked the knights' path.
They lowered their bodies and tightened their legs around their horses, intending to smash straight through the obstruction.
However, the moment they struck it, they realized that this barrier possessed shockingly powerful elasticity.
Boing!
Seven or eight warhorses and their riders were launched backward by the force of their own charge, flying a considerable distance.
The cries of the horses rang out one after another.
Mixed among them were the screams of the knights as they crashed to the ground.
"Damn it! Despicable bastard, stop using petty tricks like this!"
After discovering Tsuriboshi's elasticity, several knights drew their swords and chopped down at the barrier before them.
"This thing—!"
Their blades fell as they landed on Tsuriboshi.
However, the elastic barrier did not fear sharp blades as they had expected.
Not only was it not cut apart, the sensation that came through their weapons was strangely wrong.
"What?! How is that possible?!"
Before the soldier could even complain properly, an astonishing rebound force traveled back through his weapon and into his wrist, directly sending the sword flying out of his hand.
The weapon spun two and a half times in midair before stabbing directly into another knight's foot.
After standing frozen for about two seconds, the knight who had been stabbed while standing still finally cried out in pain.
"Aaaaah! My dick!"
"I-I didn't mean to!"
"Damn it, what the hell is this thing? Swords can't cut it, and the rebound is ridiculous!"
"Tch."
The embarrassing display from his subordinates made their commander feel thoroughly humiliated!
"All of you, move aside!"
A warrior who seemed extremely confident in his own strength stepped forward.
Judging by his outfit, he appeared to be a general.
With one swing of his blade, the barrier that had left the knights helpless was immediately torn open.
In the end, it was only Bakudō #37.
Expecting it to endure attacks from someone on the level of a Level 3 was asking too much.
The man followed with several more slashes, completely destroying the barrier.
Even so, his expression remained ugly.
Because in his mind, he had expected to destroy the obstacle with a single strike.
Instead, it had taken him six cuts!
Every extra slash made him feel as if the gazes around him had gained another layer of contempt.
"Continue the pursuit! Latest order: capture Lady Phobos and Welf Crozzo inside that carriage at all costs! As for the man, kill him if necessary!"
"Do not let them escape!"
"Yes!"
Rayleigh returned to the carriage and drove it into the middle district.
The farther outward one went, the larger the city districts became.
The sheer size of the middle district, combined with its complicated terrain, greatly slowed their speed.
Whoosh!
A streak of red light shot into the sky.
A crimson fireball exploded overhead, instantly putting the entire city into wartime alert.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The city gates, which had originally been conducting inspections, all stopped their work at once.
The gates were immediately dropped, sealing every exit.
The people on the streets all went pale.
They fled toward their homes in a panic.
Some, for safety's sake, rushed straight into nearby shops and slammed the doors shut.
In less than three minutes, not a single ordinary resident remained on the streets.
The road had become open, but Rayleigh was not happy about it.
Instead, he grew even more solemn as he remained alert toward his surroundings.
Through sensing Reiraku, he could feel more and more soldiers appearing around them.
"I'll be taking this achievement!"
On a rooftop beside the street, a man holding a bow drew the string fully back.
The arrow nocked against the bow was aimed at Rayleigh on the carriage.
But one second before the arrow could be released, Rayleigh suddenly raised his head and met the man's eyes.
The archer was startled.
'He noticed me!'
'How?'
He had clearly been hiding!
Was it some kind of enemy-detection skill?
But with the arrow already nocked, he had no choice but to fire.
The man released his fingers. The arrow spun through the air, flying straight toward Rayleigh's upper body.
Rayleigh swung his blade and sword slash rushed toward the rooftop.
The arrow in flight was instantly crushed into powder by the force.
The upward surging pressure carved a fresh slash in the roof. Although it did not hit the archer directly, it still caused him to fall into the crack.
"So strong..." Welf muttered, stunned by Rayleigh's strength after seeing that scene.
But then, another group of people suddenly rushed out ahead of the carriage.
In the blink of an eye, they set up a barricade.
If the carriage crashed into it directly, it would undoubtedly be smashed to pieces.
At the same time, pursuers appeared behind them as well.
Over a hundred knights rode warhorses, all fully armed.
Enemies appeared on the rooftops too.
And this time, there was not only one of them, but an entire group.
Archers, crossbowmen, mages, and other rear-line fighters had gathered there.
Every one of them was already preparing their attack.
"W-we're going to crash!"
Welf screamed and clung desperately to the carriage, not daring to let go.
Rayleigh stretched his palm forward.
"Disappear. Raikōhō!"
The lightning cannon fired by Hadō #63 erupted.
Under the horrified gazes of those blocking the road, the barricade and the people around it were all vaporized.
Rumble!
It sounded like real thunder from nature.
After the lightning evaporated the enemies, it scattered in twisted blades of electricity in every direction, leaving several deep scars across the ground.
"M-magic?"
"And without a chant!"
This time, not only Welf and Phobos were stunned.
Even the members of Ares Familia were shocked!
"Shoot the horses!"
"Yes!"
Whoosh!
The archers all aimed at the two fine horses connected to the carriage.
Rayleigh frowned slightly.
He reacted swiftly, immediately raising his hand toward the sky.
"Hadō #58: Tenran!"
A massive tornado stirred up every incoming arrow, twisting them out of formation before blowing them back.
More than a dozen people were injured by the rebounding arrows.