The Villain Reborn as Game's Final Boss

Chapter 238: Madness [5]

The chief of the authorities stationed in the city explained in the most polite voice he could muster.

There was no way he could afford to offend the Frost Duchess, even if it was for her own safety.

"That is just your speculation, officer. And I certainly don’t have any interest in letting so many lives be lost, just because—"

BOOOOM!

Before Alia could complete her sentence, the surroundings were covered in a bright brilliance that was emitted from the explosion which took place just at the entrance of the Frost mansion.

"Cover!"

A single order was shouted at the same time by every cultivator present in the area, be it the authorities or the soldiers serving the Frost Dukedom.

Alia, on her part, didn’t react much, though her eyes narrowed looking at the entrance, which had been largely destroyed.

The door had been a particularly beautiful one, and Alia had taken a liking to it since the start.

Destroying such a beauty with no regard left Alia a little upset with whoever the attackers were.

They could have just attacked the mansion directly, so why go with such roundabout ways?

Before Alia could speak any words, soldiers had already covered her from all sides, their weapons drawn out, with their senses spread far and wide, searching for any signs of the culprits behind the explosion.

Though even the soldiers had begun to doubt their capabilities, as after the first explosion they had already searched the entire perimeter of the mansion to see any traces of other explosives being planted, but—

There were none.

So, how had the attackers been able to plant and detonate the explosives right before their eyes?

Coupled with that was the fact that even the Platinum Cores among the soldiers had been unable to track the culprits using their mana sense.

How could the attackers hide their tracks so well?

It had to be known that every soldier serving House Frost, as well as the higher-ups among the authorities stationed here... each of them was an elite, and not some average cultivator that anyone could fool around with.

But even in the presence of such elites, the explosion had taken place...

The Chief of the authorities motioned his men to stay on alert, as his theory was proving to be right.

Maybe... the main aim of the attackers was to attack this very place and kill the members of House Frost.

"There’s no need to be so vigilant."

Alia’s soft voice broke through the tense silence that had blanketed the area.

"Ma’am—"

"Let me speak."

"Yes."

A single word from Alia was enough to silence the Chief, who was just about to warn Alia about the possible dangers in the present situation.

"If the aim of the attackers was harming House Frost, then surely they would have done it in one decisive attack, and not let such a large force gather here."

Alia spoke while moving her gaze across the soldiers, who were ready for battle.

"That—"

Even the Chief’s eyes widened in surprise as he realized the logic behind the statement from the duchess.

Why would the attackers wait for the authorities to arrive and let the Frosts increase the defences around them after the first explosion?

If they wanted to... they should have attacked with their entire might during the first explosion itself.

No.

The more logical approach should have been attacking silently without arousing the attention of the authorities.

Thinking carefully... there was no real need for these explosions to be detonated, when the attackers could have gone with the easier route of assassinating the duchess.

Though even that idea felt far-fetched, as Alia had a lot of security around her.

The explosions were still done outside the mansion, which was why the attackers had been able to succeed.

Within the mansion, there was no way that even a bug could enter without being scanned for possible threats.

But—

The same could have been said for the area around the mansion, as that too was under constant surveillance.

Maybe—

"You may be right."

On the Chief’s acknowledgement, just as Alia was about to mention sending reinforcements to the businesses under attack—

"But with due respect, I must still insist on not sending any troops to help others. There is a high probability that these explosions could have been a distraction, so as to not let anyone help Syma or its allies, still—"

The Chief paused as he took out his sword and stood near Alia, his body turned, with his back facing the duchess.

"Even if there is a one percent chance of this place being attacked, then... I can’t take the risk of letting any harm fall on you. And ma’am, if you still wish to proceed with reinforcing the businesses under attack, then—"

The Chief turned to face Alia, as he made his sword disappear with a single motion.

"You will have to pass through our corpses."

On the Chief’s actions, all the authorities under his command lowered their weapons, as if asking for the Frost troops to end their lives and move on to help whoever they wished.

Seeing the scene before her, Alia let out a small sigh as she shook her head in disappointment.

Looking at the eyes of the Chief, Alia knew that he was serious about his statement, but—

"Ten minutes."

"Hm?"

The Chief looked puzzled as Alia muttered the time.

"You have ten minutes. If there is no attack within the time limit, then you won’t stop me from helping the ones who are truly under attack."

Alia’s voice was firm and so were her words, which left no room for negotiation.

"Alright, you have a deal, ma’am."

Still... this condition was far better than the duchess refusing their advice.

Seeing Alia nod her head, the Chief got to work, dispersing his men to cover every inch of the mansion and all possible areas from where the attackers could get the maximum advantage to plan their attack.

Though the majority of them stayed near Alia, so as to protect her.

The best case would have been to ask the duchess to stay in the mansion, but seeing the explosions, no one wanted to take the unnecessary risk of the mansion somehow being destroyed by the attackers.

That would leave the soldiers with no way of being able to protect the duchess.

And it wasn’t only the Frost Dukedom that was under such attack, as every major noble house and every power out there, which had the strength to truly help Syma, had been under attack from the explosions, leaving no way for any reinforcements to help Syma and the businesses allied with the guild.