Let's Train Heroine

"...So this is the hideout of those people."

"Yes, if our information is correct."

Two young men were peeking from behind a shadow at a certain building. One was Kai, the Crown Prince, and the other was Damian.

There was no one around. They were in the slums of the royal capital, a place filled with orphans, adventurers who could no longer fight due to injuries, and criminals who lived in the shadows, beyond the reach of the law.

Normally, this was a place where Kai, the Crown Prince, would never set foot, but today, he had a reason that compelled him to come.

"...The people based here are targeting Maris. We can't ignore that."

They had received information that led them here. In this place, there were people from Lost City.

"Hey, any movement?"

"Alec, Ruki."

Two more people appeared behind Kai and Damian. Alec and Ruki. They were all in love with the same woman, which had brought them together.

"Sorry, but we can't expect any reinforcements from the knights. Some idiotic noble seems to be interfering."

"The Red Guards can't move either. When I mentioned the names of the people here, they just shut me out."

"...I thought so. It seems someone powerful is behind bringing the Lost City people here."

Kai's face twisted in frustration.

"The Red Guards and knights can't move... It's up to us to capture them."

"There are fifty enemies. Even if half of them are out, there are still about thirty outlaws in that building."

"There are four of us. We're outnumbered, but... we have no choice."

"It's for Maris-sis. We have to do our best!"

Kai and his three friends nodded to each other. If they took too long, their movements might be noticed, and the outlaws could escape. They were determined. Retreat was not an option.

There was no one around the target building. No guards were visible, and it was eerily quiet.

"Alright... let's go!"

With Kai leading the charge, the four moved toward the gang's hideout. They drew their swords and burst into the building.

"What...!"

About thirty men were inside, armed and ready to fight off intruders. However, they were not attacking Kai and his friends.

"This is..."

"Everyone is down...?"

The outlaws, criminals, people from Lost City, and gang members were all lying on the floor, twitching slightly.

"Who did this to them?"

Alec muttered in disbelief. Some of the fallen gang members were muscular and clearly strong, yet they had been beaten and were now unconscious.

"...Anyway, let's search the building. We need to find out who did this, and at the very least, capture the boss."

"Ahhhhhhhh!"

Kai's words were cut off by a scream from deeper in the building. The four looked at each other and rushed toward the source of the scream.

"It's this room...!"

They grabbed the doorknob of the room at the back and flung the door open.

"This is..."

Inside, they saw a rough-looking man with tattoos being lifted by the neck, held in the air by a figure.

However, before they could see who it was, the figure flew headfirst into the ceiling, creating a large hole and escaping outside. Kai and the others shielded their faces with their hands to protect themselves from the falling debris.

"What the heck was that...?" Kai muttered in disbelief.

Looking up through the hole in the ceiling, they saw the evening sky framed by its shape.

"Hey, this guy...!"

"What is it, Ruki?"

"This guy is the gang boss! The one we were trying to capture!"

Ruki knelt beside the tattooed man on the floor, confirming his identity.

The man was rough-looking with tattoos, around forty years old, with dreadlocks and a prominent nose. His appearance matched the information they had gathered about the gang leader.

"He's still alive, but barely..."

"This is a major victory... but we didn't do anything," Alec frowned, and Damian shook his head.

Judging by the previous room, the gang was already destroyed. They had captured the boss, but they felt uneasy about the situation being resolved without their involvement.

"...Let's refocus. We need to do what we came here to do," Kai sighed, speaking to his companions and himself.

"We'll take this man to the knights. If we capture the boss, the nobles behind them won't be able to act... And, Damian."

"Yes, gathering evidence of the nobles' involvement in their crimes, right?"

"Exactly. Turn over every drawer and safe!"

Kai and his friends captured the gang members and gathered evidence of their crimes with a sense of resignation.

After a while, they had achieved their goals and left the gang's hideout.

As a result, one of the new gangs targeting Maris was destroyed. They had also managed to take down the nobles using the gang for their dirty work. Despite their success, Kai and his friends were left with an inexplicable feeling of dissatisfaction.

---

"Tch... Just how many are there? Is there no end?" Annoyed, Maris clicked her tongue, and the glass in her hand broke apart, spilling water down.

"God, this..." Maris felt even more annoyed as she looked at her white dress, now wet and slightly transparent, revealing her skin, though there was no one here to see it.

Maris swiped her hand over the wet area, and the dress dried instantly.

She stood up from the chair, which broke apart. Slowly, her room began to break. Maris frowned as she looked around the room. She closed her eyes and began to control her power, and once she got it under control, the destruction of her room stopped. Then she used her power to repair it.

"My power..." Maris was feeling that her power seemed to be not listening to her anymore. It was getting out of control if she wasn't careful.

"I need to do something about this... But what can I do?" Maris crossed her arms and thought, "For now, let's destroy that new gang that formed."

Maris decided to go there herself instead of sending Marionette. She thought that by using her power more, she might be able to control it better.