Free Web NovelChapter 26: Ch 26: Kidnapping the hero
Kael had not expected Leon to agree to help him so easily. The future hero was a virtuous man whose only concern was helping the public.
Of course, that version of Leon was long gone and the one in front of Kael currently was a kid he had helped escape the temple’s grasp before he could be corrupted. freēwebnovel.com
’Then, is it my fault Leon is turning out like this? Well, it’s better for everyone if he’s not loyal to the temple, but I cannot help but feel like he’s getting a little corrupted.’
Could a hero-candidate even get corrupted? Kael had no idea and he had no desire to even know.
What he did know was that he was going to lay out a trap and make sure Sir Juniper fell into it.
...
The next day was finally the right time to start his plan. He decided to head to the town to buy a few things. But he did not go alone.
He took Leon and Seraphina with him in order to lure Sir Juniper out.
Iris was following them at a safe distance and keeping an eye out for danger, so Kael was sure they would be safe for now.
They stopped in front of the flower shop when Kael noticed that he was being followed. And the one following him and the kids was not Iris, but someone else.
He could sense Sir Juniper’s magic signature, but the man was not alone.
’Ah, so he decided to bite the bait after all. This did not take nearly as long as I expected.’
The plan was going flawlessly. Now all Kael needed to do was leave Leon alone so Sir Juniper could catch him and take him back.
Kael walked past Leon and patted him on the back. It caused magic to cling to Leon and that magic would protect the hero until Kael could come and grab him.
Leon pretended he did not notice, but Kael had a feeling he knew that it was time.
"Seraphina, would you like to check out some books?"
Kael asked her and Seraphina nodded and played her part. She clutched his hand and dragged him over toward the books section, leaving Leon all alone.
Sir Juniper took the bait and approached Leon before whispering something to him.
Leon’s expression looked interesting and he followed Sir Juniper. Things were going according to plan. freёwebnovel.com
Kael signaled for Iris to follow the pair so that he would follow them later. And Iris did as she was told.
But when she reached the alley where Leon and Sir Juniper had disappeared, she found no one. All she could feel were traces of magic being used.
’Darn it! This is not good. Did that bastard use magic? Ugh, I will need to report it to Kael right now.’
For the first time since this plan started, something had gone wrong. And it had gone wrong in a way no one had expected.
But when she reported it to Kael, he was not worried. His magic could still trace Leon just fine. And he decided to go and get him.
Or, at least that was the plan. But he was immediately blocked by a familiar-looking priest.
"Grand Master Kael, it is nice seeing you here. I can see that you brought Seraphina out with you for shopping. And this must be your new...’companion’ and teacher for the hero. It’s a nice group. But I cannot help but notice that you don’t have the hero anywhere. Did you leave him back home? Isn’t that...discrimination?"
The priest asked in a fake-concerned voice.
Kael immediately knew that this priest was here to cause trouble for him. He was trying to find faults in Kael’s training and care for the hero.
’Sir Juniper must have contacted this priest to come and question me the moment he kidnapped Leon. Does he want to corner me like this and show that I am not a good guardian? I should turn this situation against him.’
"Why would I discriminate against Leon like that? Rather, we are out here for his training as well. Do you know Sir Juniper? He was sent by the temple to train Leon, so I decided to ask him for this training."
Kael dropped Sir Juniper’s name and that made the priest’s smile freeze.
Involving Sir Juniper in a situation where he was being accused was like throwing the temple under the bus with him.
Now, if they tried to accuse Kael of something, they would have to accuse the temple’s candidate as well.
The priest understood that and decided to choose his words a little more carefully from then on.
"Oh! Is that so? May I question what kind of favor you asked of him?"
The priest tried to probe and get more answers and Kael was more than happy to give them to him.
"I was worried about the hero getting kidnapped too often, so I asked him to help simulate the situation and help Leon train. He should be done any second now and meet up with us."
Kael told the priest and he could see the priest’s desire to curse.
But somehow, the priest controlled himself and decided to speak a little more clearly.
"Are you...lying to hide the fact that you lost the hero? Somehow, my instincts are telling me that none of what you said is true. Did you lose the hero and are making excuses now?"
The priest asked, trying to turn the situation against him. People were starting to pay attention to them as well.
’What a fool! Does this priest think he can say whatever he wants and I will sit still and let him? It’s time to put him in his place.’
Kael decided to snap his fingers and a screen instantly appeared in front of him. It showed Leon being dragged by Sir Juniper toward a cart.
"Be careful with the hero. We need to make sure he’s alive and well."
"Sir, are you sure about this? We are technically kidnapping him-"
"It’s fine. This is all for the temple’s sake. If that stupid brat won’t allow me to have my moment of glory, then I will have to take it myself by kidnapping the hero and making him my student by force."
There were a lot of gasps around the area as everyone witnessed what was happening.
The priest looked pale and red-faced at the same time and he tried to stutter his way out of this, but there was nothing he could say that would make the situation any better.
"Now that we have cleared this misunderstanding, should we go and get Leon?"
Kael asked and the priest nodded while falling silent.
