Baby Princess Through the Status Window

‘I need to inform my brother first.’

She quickly composed herself and cast a cautious message spell.

[Damian Elverdotte]
Thoughts: Huh?

As she had used a spell abruptly, Damian’s face showed confusion.

Upon receiving the message about assassins nearby, his expression hardened.

There were security protocols followed during this trip, and one of them was mana tracing to confirm the absence of any assassins.

However, there was no time for explanations. The assassins had been gradually closing in on the tower, step by step.

<...Understood.>

After contemplating a moment, Damian nodded slightly.

Then, he swiftly manipulated mana, seemingly giving instructions to the nearby guards.

[Sarja]
Thoughts: Something feels off. Hmm? The mana… We don’t have time! Attack now!

However, the hesitation didn’t last too long. The leader of the assassins, who had been observing this side, urgently gave a command.

“Be careful!”

After Siervian’s reflexive shout, the sound of swords being drawn echoed loudly among the knights escorting them.

Due to the prince’s warning and their heightened alertness, they swiftly reacted as soon as the assassins’ presence was revealed in the wheat field.

“What… w-what are you?!”

The Mosae Kingdom attendant, who had been taken aback by the knights suddenly unsheathing their swords, was now truly astounded as the black-clad assassins emerged from the wheat field.

“Siervy, stand behind me.”

“Okay.”

With a stern expression, Damian directed his younger sister to stand behind him. The assassins were gradually closing in on them, surrounding them at a deliberate pace. It seemed they had planned the attack carefully, taking advantageous positions.

“Who the hell are you!”

“…”

Roid, taking a step forward, intentionally spoke in a rough manner.

However, the assassins only glanced at him briefly without uttering a word.

Their indifference hardened Roid’s expression.

[Adante Roid]
Thoughts: This is not good. They are professional assassins.
…But if no unexpected variables arise, we might be able to escape.

“How dare you in this sacred place!”

The attendant from Mosae Kingdom, who had finally regained his composure, shouted in anger.

This granary region was considered sacred by everyone on the western coast. It was hard to believe that such a reckless act would happen here.

‘Could it be a plot by King Mosae?’

The attendant’s reaction was closer to pure rage. Looking at his status window, there was no evidence of collusion with the assassins.

However, Siervy decided to withhold judgment for now. The situation was extremely complex.

Today, the information about their arrival here was known only by King Mosae.

[Damian Elverdotte]
Thoughts: Was there a reason for King Mosae to resort to such schemes? Why?
Could it be dissatisfaction with the alliance?

Damian seemed to have similar suspicions.

Both of them subtly distanced themselves from the attendant.

“Reveal your identity at once.”

Roid deliberately took a step forward, positioning himself for a possible attack. Siervy also kept an eye on the surroundings while giving Damian a sidelong glance.

Despite being outnumbered, they seemed confident that they could overcome the situation with Damian’s magic assistance.

Unfortunately, at that very moment, the ‘variable’ that Roid had been worried about occurred.

[Sarja]
Thoughts: Now’s the time! Activate it!

‘What’s going on?’

“Be careful!”

As soon as she noticed the odd thoughts from the status window of the assassins’ leader, she reflexively shouted a warning.

At the same time as her warning, the ten assassins pulled something from their pockets in unison.

The small bead-like objects started to sparkle simultaneously, as if synchronized.

“Attack!”

The knights immediately rushed forward when they saw the suspicious actions of the assassins.

It was common sense not to let the assassins move freely.

Damian also launched an offensive spell without hesitation. A bright light infused with intense energy flew accurately toward the leader of the assassins.

“Ah!”

“…”

However, the powerful magic suddenly dissipated into thin air.

“Argh!”

The knights, who had jumped in believing they would receive magical support, were overwhelmed in an instant.

As if waiting for that moment, more assassins emerged from behind them, further worsening the numerical disadvantage.

[Damian Elverdotte]
Thoughts: The mana… it’s not responding?!

Siervy, startled by her brother’s alarmed thoughts, also tried to use mana. However, she couldn’t sense any trace of mana as if it had evaporated in an instant.

‘First, the magic circle!’

In her confusion, she tightly grasped the pendant her father had given her and tried to move mana again. It was an intuitive action to protect her body.

‘This doesn’t work either…!’

But that also failed. As soon as they illuminated the beads simultaneously, this happened. What on earth could that be?

“Oh no, even mana communication doesn’t work!”

An attendant next to them exclaimed in great dismay while clutching a magic communication device. It meant they couldn’t send a rescue request to the palace when important guests were in danger.

“Your Highness, please escape!”

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“…Take care of the aftermath.”

Roid, who had been observing the situation, shouted urgently.

Damian’s response was swift.

“Siervy, we need to run now.”

He quickly grabbed his younger sister’s hand and fled behind them.

Although it wasn’t clear, it was evident that the manipulation of mana wasn’t targeted at individuals but rather something affecting the entire area.

Seeing that even the mana communication device wasn’t functioning, they could tell.

[Damian Elverdotte]
Thoughts: If we can get out of this place, we might be able to use magic.

Damian’s strength was of no help in the current situation.

Despite undergoing swordsmanship training, as a child, he was physically disadvantaged and easily overwhelmed.

“Siervy, let’s run well.”

Siervian, reading his quick judgment, tightened her grip on the hem of her skirt and started sprinting.

“Chase them!”

“Where?!”

Sounds of swords clashing resounded from behind. The knights, even though struggling, bought them time to escape with their own bodies.

Tears threatened to fall, but Siervian moved forward regardless.

Taking advantage of their small stature, the two of them dashed into the middle of the wheat field.

“Don’t worry, Siervy. I will protect you.”

Even though he must have been just as anxious, Damian made an effort to console her.

Unable to respond to his words, Siervian bit her lip and tried to suppress her rising anger.

‘If only I were stronger, they wouldn’t have to make such choices to protect me. At the very least, if I could have used the protective barrier Father gave me…!’

Leaving behind the pursuing attendant from the Mosae Kingdom, Damian chose to flee into the wheat field.

In the current situation, no one could be trusted. It was likely that Roid’s judgment was similar.

“Just a little more… Keep going…”

“Gasp… Yes, ugh…”

They ran forward, trampling through the tall grass for a long time.

However, their young bodies had their limits.

Running while cutting through thick grasses that were even taller than them exhausted them physically.

“I’m getting tired. What should we do?”

Siervian suddenly felt scared that she might become a burden. Her older brother in front of her seemed equally overwhelmed.

[Damian Elverdotte]
Thoughts: What was that earlier? Damn it, I still can’t sense any mana. How far do we have to go…?

Mana was the foundation of this world. There was no place on the continent without mana.

But, what they felt earlier was clearly the sensation of mana being severed. It felt like something unpleasant was sticking to their skin, like drinking bitter tea as they struggled to breathe.

Thus, both of them felt thoroughly confused by this unfamiliar sensation.

“…!”

Suddenly, they sensed movement ahead. Instinctively, the two of them abruptly stopped and held their breaths.

‘There might be another assassin I didn’t notice.’

Siervian felt a sudden surge of fear; it seemed there were more of them nearby.

“…”

Damian stood resolute, but without mana, it was difficult to perceive any signs in their surroundings, so he hardened his expression.

Under normal circumstances, it would have been effortless for him to send out mana and sense the presence of other people. Now, it was like they tied both of his hands and covered his eyes.

Finally, Damian, who had been contemplating, roughly guessed the direction of the sun and gestured to one side.

“…Let’s go this way.”

However, Siervian, who had been trying to find a status window, stopped again when she saw where her brother was pointing.

[Thoughts: They said the target would arrive soon.]

It was the status window of an assassin.

“No, let’s go the other way.”

Siervian whispered as she pulled Damian in the opposite direction.

“…”

Since he didn’t have time to argue with his younger sister, Damian obediently moved in that direction for now. However, it didn’t take long for Damian’s thoughts to change. Siervian’s actions after taking the lead became quite peculiar.

“This way.”

“…”

“Wait… Let’s go that way.”

Siervian confidently chose a direction, sometimes even turning back on the path they had just taken, as if she could see beyond the dense forest.

[Damian Elverdotte]
Thoughts: Does Siervian know something?

‘Oops.’

Siervian suddenly fell silent then turned around worriedly and concealed her feelings.

Her impatience had led her to reveal her abilities without thinking.

“Tsk.”

“…”

Damian froze upon hearing the faint, chilling sound coming from the place they had just avoided. It was the assassin waiting for them, inadvertently muttering something.

Because of that, Damian felt uneasy about Siervian’s attitude that she had been displaying since earlier.

In this situation where they couldn’t even sense mana, Siervian’s abilities were definitely peculiar.