Shirone: "Hey, are you okay?"
Shirone tried to help Jis up, but the moment his hand touched him, Jis convulsed in pain.
Jis: "Ugh! It hurts! It hurts!"
Shirone: "Who did this to you?"
Shirone propped Jis up against the wall, but Jis's face twisted in agony as he swatted Shirone's hand away.
Jis: "Get away from me!"
It might have seemed ungrateful to treat someone trying to help him like this, but Jis didn't care.
If they knew why he had ended up like this, they wouldn't have anything to say either.
Above all, he didn't want to show weakness in front of Amy.
Jis: "Haa… haa…"
After struggling with the pain for a while, Jis looked at the group with half-lidded eyes and let out a bitter laugh.
Jis: "You guys were out having fun until now? Must be nice."
Given the extent of his injuries, they should have taken him inside, but Tess remained on guard.
Hadn't he tried to lure Amy into danger just last night using some underhanded method?
In contrast, Amy approached him without hesitation.
As someone who understood the underbelly of this world, she could guess what had happened to Jis without even hearing the details.
Amy: "Falcoa, was it him?"
Jis nodded weakly.
Amy: "Why? Was this revenge for last night? You were just following his orders."
Jis: "Keuk… keuk…"
He let out a hollow laugh.
Jis: "Do you think that guy's sane? Yeah, I took you to him. But I should've made more of a scene. Falcoa… no, that guy's completely lost his mind."
Jis's body went limp.
Jis: "He wants me to bring you back. This time, to their hideout. He's mobilizing all his men to kill you for real."
Shirone: "…How?"
Everyone—Falcoa, Jis, and Shirone's group—knew they wouldn't come willingly.
Jis: "Loop."
Jis threw a small pouch to the ground. A white powder burst out.
Jis: "He told me to give you a drink laced with Loop. He said you'd drink it without question. But it's a lethal dose. I don't know what abilities you have, but if you drink it… you'll die."
The eyes of Shirone's group hardened as they listened.
Just from this, they could already guess what Falcoa wanted.
Shirone: "Did you refuse… and end up like this?"
Jis: "No."
Jis shook his head and smiled faintly.
Jis: "I told him to go to hell."
Shirone: "..."
Jis: "Don't get the wrong idea. It's not for your sake. I'm not scared of some lunatic like him. Do you know how I survived on this island? Why I even tried to survive…?"
Jis began to sob.
Saliva mixed with blood dripped from his mouth.
Jis: "Yuna. My little sister. Falcoa… he took her. He said he'd kill her if I didn't bring you to him. Why… why? Yuna hasn't done anything wrong!"
Jis's body convulsed as he coughed up blood.
Jis: "Cough! Cough!"
Amy: "Jis! Calm down! Speak slowly!"
Jis: "Huu…"
Jis's shoulders shook with sorrow.
This was how it always ended. Someone with nothing—no power, no influence—trying to stand on pride alone would only end up in misery.
'Yuna… Yuna…'
To protect his only family, Jis had abandoned his pride and knelt before them.
Jis: "Please…"
Tears of blood streamed from his eyes.
Jis: "Help me."
The air grew heavy.
Jis: "I apologize for all the disrespect I showed you as a commoner. No one will help me. Yuna is everything to me… If something happens to her, I… I…"
Half out of his mind, Jis rambled until he could no longer bear the fear and broke down crying.
Shirone's group exchanged glances.
Of course, they were somewhat responsible for Yuna's kidnapping, but this wasn't a situation to act recklessly.
'Falcoa's hideout.'
The subordinates they had encountered at the Drunken Palace were all Schema users, and the hideout might be filled with even stronger individuals.
With a comrade's life on the line, no one could easily volunteer to go first.
Rian: "Shirone."
Rian spoke up.
Rian: "If you're going, I'm going too."
Tess: "If Rian's going, I'm going too."
Shirone finally looked to Amy for her opinion.
Her eyes were already burning with the will to fight, so there was no need to exchange words.
Shirone placed a hand on Jis's back.
Shirone: "Where's the hideout?"
Knowing the weight of those words better than anyone, Jis bowed his head repeatedly.
Jis: "Thank you… Thank you…"
Amy: "Enough. Stop it. You're making it awkward. Let's get you inside and treat your wounds first."
Jis: "B-but my sister…"
Amy: "You idiot! If we charge in blindly, we'll just get ourselves killed first. You want us to bring your sister back, right? If they're waiting for us at the hideout, she'll be safe until we get there."
Amy opened the door, and Rian carried Jis in his arms to the bed.
Though they were worried about Yuna, Jis would die if they didn't treat him first.
Tess cut away Jis's clothes with scissors.
Having trained in espionage techniques even before enrolling in the swordsmanship school, she could assess his condition at a glance. The bruises indicated that his ribs were broken.
Tess: "This is going to hurt."
Tess pressed on various parts of Jis's body.
Jis: "Aaaah!"
Tess: "Endure it. If your muscles stiffen, it'll only get worse. I'll check your internal organs too."
Tess pressed hard on Jis's abdomen.
The condition of the organs, protected by bones and muscles, could only be checked with such force.
Jis: "Ughhh!"
Jis gritted his teeth and endured.
The sooner the treatment was over, the sooner they could save Yuna.
Tess: "Hmm, it's not too bad. Your ribs are cracked, and the rest are just bruises. You'll need a thorough examination, but your organs don't seem seriously damaged. You're tougher than you look."
Jis could only smile bitterly.
Having dealt with countless nobles as a tout, he was used to getting beaten.
Amy: "I'll use basic healing magic. It'll speed up your recovery a bit. I wish Seriel were here for this."
As the healing magic took effect, Jis's expression relaxed slightly. It seemed to have a mild pain-relieving effect.
However, as his body relaxed, exhaustion also began to overwhelm him.
In any other situation, he would have already passed out from the pain.
Half-delirious, Jis spoke.
Jis: "Their hideout is in the northern part of the island. I've never been there, but… you should be able to find it easily. There's nothing there. Just cliffs at the end."
Shirone remembered seeing it from the ship.
The northern part of the island was blocked by natural cliffs, which was why they had docked at the southern port.
Moreover, the north was close to the Kergo autonomous district, a place beyond the reach of the government. It was the perfect environment for a thug's hideout.
Shirone: "Alright, let's head out. Will you be okay alone?"
Jis nodded slowly.
Even if something happened to him, he was resolved to send Shirone's group.
Yet, his expression remained dark because of the guilt of sending people unrelated to Yuna into danger.
Jis: "Are you really sure about this? I know it's ridiculous to ask for help and then say this, but… they're really strong."
Amy: "Hmph."
Amy snorted.
Even if it weren't for Jis's sister, she couldn't let Falcoa—the man who had tried to kill her—off the hook.
Amy: "They're just thugs. Don't worry and get some rest while we're gone."
Jis: "..."
Jis hesitated for a moment.
He didn't want to weigh them down, but the Falcoa he knew wasn't just some ordinary thug.
Jis: "Those guys… Before coming to the island, they were called the Parrot Bandits. Ever heard of them?"
Shirone: "The Parrot Bandits?"
Shirone's eyes widened.
Even Amy's expression turned serious at this revelation.
'During the Arcane incident…'
It was the bandit group that Lucas, the man who had escaped from Inferno Prison in the west, belonged to.
Amy also recalled Lucas's prowess after the effects of Abyss Nova wore off.
Though he had been brutally defeated by Siana, even Iruki and Neid's combined efforts hadn't been enough to subdue him.
Amy's resolve burned even brighter.
Amy: "It's fine. Knowing their identity doesn't change the situation. We've got some history with the Parrot Bandits. You just rest and don't worry."
Jis's eyes reddened.
Jis: "I'm sorry… Because of me…"
Rian: "That's enough. We're not risking our lives out of pity. We're moving because you asked like a man. In a way, you saved Amy too."
Jis let out a bitter smile.
Though he couldn't admit it, it was comforting to hear.
Jis: "A man…? I couldn't even go save her myself and had to beg you guys."
As Amy walked toward the door, she turned back and said:
Amy: "That's what makes you a man, you idiot."
Jis simply stared at the ceiling. His eyes grew warmer as tears welled up.
As he couldn't even turn his head, he heard Shirone's voice fading into the distance.
Shirone: "Don't worry, we'll definitely save her."
The front door closed, and silence fell.
Tears streamed down silently, but even that emotion was fleeting as Jis's eyelids grew heavy.
Shirone's group borrowed four horses.
The northern part of the island was rugged terrain, making it difficult to enter by carriage, and mobility was crucial.
The situation was unfavorable. Above all, the revelation that the Freeman organization was the Parrot Bandits was troubling.
From Shirone's memory, Lucas, the vice-captain of the Parrot Bandits, was a Class B criminal.
Of course, the classification was based on the severity of the crime, but it was also true that one couldn't commit Class B-level crimes without considerable strength.
'This might be more serious than we thought.'
After the Arcane incident, it was said that the Parrot Bandits' leader was a Class A criminal currently on the run. So, what did that make the Freeman organization waiting for them?
Amy: "Are they really the Parrot Bandits? Something feels off."
Shirone: "Yeah. How could a wanted organization settle in a tourist spot? And with the increased scrutiny after the Arcane incident…"
Tess: "They're not the Parrot Bandits."
Shirone turned to her.
Shirone: "Tess, do you know something?"
Tess: "The Parrot Bandits are more like a label they got after crossing into the Torumia Kingdom. Their official name is the Parrot Mercenaries."
Shirone: "Mercenaries?"
After a moment of thought, Shirone asked:
Shirone: "Then what about Lucas?"
Tess: "I don't know about that. Just because they're mercenaries doesn't mean they're all good people. But I do know how the Parrot Mercenaries became bandits."
The group's attention focused on her.
Tess: "They weren't originally a large mercenary group. But they became infamous after a bad incident. Have you heard of the Flower Vase incident in the Iron Kingdom seven years ago?"