Fire Knight?

Due to the significant number of Ethyrian troops that had moved to the northern headquarters, it could be said that only half the Ethyrian troops remained in the south. 

Even though it was only half, that was still a substantial number. Kirana estimated there were about three to four thousand Ethyrian troops that had come to Heijo. 

Half of that number equated to around one to two thousand troops, which was still a formidable force for Kirana to face alone. 

While she was confident in her ability to penetrate the defenses of two thousand soldiers in a direct frontal battle, what she wanted to do was infiltrate silently. 

Kirana aimed to enter without causing any commotion. 

As the night comes and the number of guards decreased, Kirana began to sneak in quickly and cautiously. 

If she encountered any soldiers blocking her path, Kirana used a technique taught to her by Cien. 

She created a water ball and applied it to the soldier's head, causing them to lose consciousness. 

She had learned this technique directly from Cien after hearing about it from Lilinette. It was a relatively simple technique but required a fair amount of control. 

Even a slight miscalculation could cause the water ball to burst easily. 

After incapacitating several guards in different corners of the headquarters, Kirana's first destination was the basement. 

There were two rooms in basement: the first was a storage room, and the second was a prison. 

Kirana made her way to the prison area, where she neutralized the sleeping guard in front of the prison room door.

Kirana entered the room and found it in complete darkness with no sources of light. 

There were no lamps hanging on the walls, and a small hole where moonlight should have entered was obstructed by several large trees that had grown behind the building.

The prison room was damp and had an unpleasant odor. Kirana frowned beneath her mask. 

She couldn't see the occupants of the cells, but fortunately, she had prepared a mana lamp in her belt pouch.

When she turned on the mana lamp, the room illuminated, revealing that the cells were full.

The sudden light caused the people inside to wake up. Some looked startled and frightened, while others displayed defiant expressions. However, none of them shouted or questioned her identity.

Kirana approached the faces that showed defiance. There were three individuals with their hands chained to the wall. 

They were seated, but their intense gaze conveyed a strong intent to kill the mysterious figure who had come to them.

"So, what's happening here? You three had to be locked up like this. Lieutenant Gina, Officer Green, and Officer Logan?"

"This voice?!"

The three individuals in chains immediately recognized the identity of the person in front of them. 

They could never forget the voice of the woman who had long been their superior.

A genius and intimidating woman, she had a high sense of justice and a tendency to protect the weak, although her warmth was often hidden behind her cold demeanor.

Kirana lifted her mask slightly, placing a finger in front of her lips. When they saw half of her face, the three of them couldn't hold back their tears.

"I didn't raise you to be crybabies." 

Kirana remarked, to which she received stiff smiles and dry laughter from her three former subordinates.

Kirana could at least imagine what had happened to lead to their imprisonment like this. 

It was highly likely that all three of them, or perhaps their entire unit in Ethyria, had rebelled after learning of the true intentions of the Ethyrian troops in Heijo.

"Where are the others?" 

Kirana looked at the adjacent cells, but she didn't see any of her other former unit members. 

She recalled the commotion mentioned by the fruit vendor and could already imagine the fate of the rest of her unit.

"They... I mean, we..."

"No need to continue, Gina. I understand."

Drap! Drap! Drap!

"Hm?"

The sound of dozens of people running echoed suddenly from the upper floor. Kirana looked up, sensing that dozens to hundreds of people were now running in various directions.

'Seems like I've been discovered, huh... there's no more time.'

It seemed that the Ethyrian troops had realized the presence of an infiltrator, perhaps after finding the unconscious guards hidden by Kirana.

"All of you, duck!" 

Kirana ordered all the prisoners in the guard room. She then drew her sword, which was now enveloped in mana.

The sword Kirana wielded was not Moonice but the Fire Sword.

"Hmm, two stones should be enough. [Fire Slash]!"

Slasssssshhhhhhh!

A long fiery slash instantly cut through all the prison cells, leaving those who witnessed it shocked and panicked. They tucked their heads and prayed to the Goddess of the Wind.

After the slash was done, the top part of the prison cells was cut and melted, creating an empty space large enough for adults to pass through. 

Not only that, but the chains that bound some of the prisoners were also severed, freeing their hands.

Kirana's three subordinates were stunned. They had not expected their leader, known as the ruler of ice, to also be able to use Fire Magic.

For Kirana herself, she used the Fire Sword instead of her Ice Magic to make it more difficult to identify the infiltrator. 

If she had used Ice Magic, her true identity might have been suspected.

Kirana instructed all the prisoners to exit the cells. 

At this moment, she didn't care whether the prisoners were Ethyrian soldiers or actual criminals imprisoned in Heijo. 

Her only goal for now was to escape and take her remaining subordinates out of the Heijo headquarters.

After all the prisoners had exited, Kirana told them to gather behind her. She could hear the sound of soldiers' footsteps in the headquarters, coming towards the prison room.

"Let's go." 

Kirana said and started running out of the underground room. 

The prisoners followed behind her. When Kirana was about to climb the stairs to the upper floor, she encountered the soldiers who had just descended.

"Who are you?!"

"Tsk, troublesome." 

Kirana muttered as her sword ignited once again, and a large red magical circle suddenly appeared.

"What are you going to do?!" 

The soldier at the front panicked, seeing the infiltrator's sword glowing and surrounded.

"Burn you all. [Fire Slash]."

A Rank 6 fire attack swept through all the Ethyrian soldiers blocking Kirana's path and beyond. 

Not only did the slashing attack destroy the ceiling of the first floor, but it also pierced through to the second floor, damaging several rooms on the third floor, including the headquarters leader's room. 

The leader panicked as part of his room disappeared, leaving behind only the scorching heat.

"What's happening?!"

Back on the lower level, Kirana, who had witnessed the aftermath of her attack, immediately led the prisoners out of the headquarters. 

Along the way, she could sense the residual heat and the smell of burnt flesh from the soldiers who had been incinerated.

A few surviving soldiers who tried to stop Kirana's group were easily defeated by her sword, with assistance from some prisoners who could still fight, like Gina.

Before long, Kirana and all the prisoners managed to escape from the southern headquarters. 

However, Kirana knew they were not yet safe from pursuit, and there were still patrolling soldiers in the city.

"Gina, lead the others to the alley at seven o'clock."

"Commander, what about you?"

"I'll give you time to escape. There's a sewer gate at the end of the alley. After that, lead them south. Get out of the city. We'll meet there."

Gina fell silent but eventually nodded in understanding. 

She then left with the prisoners. Meanwhile, Kirana stood still, waiting for the soldiers who were now in her line of sight.

"You bastards! Who are you? How dare you release prisoners from the Kingdom of Westya!"

"Prisoners? Are you sure?"

"Grrr, attack! Why are you just standing there? Attack and capture that scoundrel!"

Kirana shook her head as she saw dozens of soldiers attacking her all at once. 

Unfortunately, she could sense that the strongest person among the soldiers was only at Rank 4. The difference in strength was too great compared to her.

Kirana easily dodged every attack from the soldiers and severed their hands and legs.

A few minutes later, only Kirana was left standing, surrounded by Ethyrian soldiers writhing in pain.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The sound of applause echoed, and then, as if by an illusion, a man dressed as a servant appeared from the merging smoke. 

It wasn't just the man; behind him, dozens of others also materialized from the mist.

Upon seeing the man's face, Kirana immediately furrowed her brow.

"Gyo." 

Kirana called out but deepened her voice to sound more masculine.

"Oh, interesting that you know my name. Who are you? I've never known there's a Fire Magic user of your caliber in this kingdom. Are you really from Westya or the Fire Kingdom?"

"..."

Kirana remained silent, refusing to answer. 

She was afraid that speaking might expose her true identity. 

Moreover, she remained vigilant. Facing Gyo without using her Ice Magic, Moonice, and her mastered sword techniques would be nearly impossible.

Kirana hoped that Gina had already led the prisoners far away from her current location.

"Hmm, why are you suddenly silent?" 

Gyo grinned and approached slowly, his hands behind his back, displaying his arrogance.

However, just a few steps forward, the masked figure tossed a small alchemical vial in his direction. 

Startled, Gyo leaped backward, wary of the vial. But what happened was that the vial fell to the ground and shattered.

As it broke, a white mist instantly billowed out, covering the entire field of vision, including Gyo, who cursed his negligence. 

He tried to draw in the white mist with his abilities, but as the mist began to dissipate, he suddenly felt a threat from the sky.

Gyo looked up and saw a large fire slash heading straight for him.

"Damn it!"

BAMMMMMMM!

The fire attack rained down on Gyo and the dozens of people he had brought with him. Not only them, but dozens of other soldiers who had just arrived were also caught in the fire attack.

Kirana landed on the roof of a building far away from the attack site. She could see the flames still burning. 

It was a Rank 8 [Fire Slash] attack, unleashed by Kirana using her own mana. It wasn't powered by Mana Core fragments as it had run out.

Kirana was somewhat exhausted because she had supplied the large spell with her own mana. 

She took a deep breath, then turned and walked away.