NOVEL NEXT Chapter 28
Episode 28 Autumn Festival (4)
They set their sights on the church and dashed up the hill together.
Alexia was so fast she seemed like a wild animal, but thanks to Luke’s diligent training every day, he managed to keep pace. Training with the knights was definitely worth it.
While running, Alexia calmly explained the structure of fireworks.
“The surface of the firework is covered with a skin called ‘ball skin,’ made by gluing together special paper and thread. Inside, there’s gunpowder that emits color and light, packed along the core, as well as gunpowder that bursts the ball skin.”
“Got it.”
“The outer layer and the inside are connected by a fuse. However, even if the fuse is lit, it won’t explode until the fire reaches the ball skin.”
—”In other words,” Alexia added, “you can prevent an explosion by dousing it in water or cutting the fuse.”
“That said, if the fuse is lit, don’t go near it. Run. Flee and protect yourself.”
“Understood.”
Before long, the white church on the hill came into view, illuminated by the setting sun.
Without needing to say a word, they both turned toward the west, where the church entrance was confirmed to be located.
In stark contrast to the festive excitement engulfing the town, the area around the church was surprisingly quiet.
Since there was no event taking place at the church, only a handful of villagers had come to offer their prayers.
There were guards stationed, one on either side of the door. As one of the guards looked down enviously at the bustling village, he stifled a yawn lazily.
Suddenly, a blinding flash of light erupted from behind the church.
BANG! The simultaneous sound of a painful explosion pierced the air.
“Wh-what was that!? What about that light and sound just now?!”
“It’s a bomb!”
A voice shouted this out, and chaos erupted around them.
“There’s a bomb planted!”
“Everyone, get outside! Quickly evacuate!”
Upon hearing the screams, a few villagers who had been inside hurried outside, panicking one after another.
An elderly man, bent with age, was staggering and collapsed down the stairs.
One of the soldiers supported the old man’s shoulder and helped him down the stairs, while the other soldier guided the remaining villagers to safety while ensuring their protection.
Glancing sideways at the chaos, Luke and Alexia pushed their way into the church.
The church ceiling arched beautifully above them. A bright scarlet carpet was laid straight along the center, with benches adorned with flowers lining either side.
On a raised platform above the aisle, a solemn altar stood. In the center of the altar was a holy symbol representing God. To its right was the coat of arms of the Perles Royal Family, and to the left was the coat of arms of the Rietberg Family.
Looking up, they could see the elegantly crafted stained glass windows, which also served as light collectors.
It’s customary for churches to have their doors on the west side and backs on the east side, likely for lighting purposes as well.
If one were to visit this church at dawn, the morning sunlight would filter through the stained glass, radiating like divine beams descending from the heavens.
However, there wasn’t time to indulge in such imaginings now.
When they finally reached the altar, the men they had been chasing had just stepped onto it with muddy shoes, reaching toward the silver candlestick that rested there.
“That’s far enough!”
Startled by the stern voice, the men paused in their tracks.
Turning around in a cold sweat was the man who had previously shouted, “It’s a bomb!”
“W-What do you want, kid…?”
“Why did you return inside the church?”
As Alexia stood firmly in their way, she quietly asked.
“You were the one who told everyone to go outside. So why did you come back in?”
“Is it possible that the culprit is inside? I-I just wanted to catch him and turn him in…”
“I see. In that case, let’s start with a different matter.”
Alexia’s tone, icy and unyielding, revealed her disbelief in the man’s excuses as she pointed toward another man who appeared to be a low-ranking thug.
“That guy over there must have stolen money from a village girl. I’d like to inspect him.”
“Money? Don’t know anything about that. Got any proof he did it?”
“This was found discarded.”
What Alexia produced was a purse that a village girl had been carrying with her coins, now emptied and thrown aside in the shadows, which she had discovered and retrieved moments ago.
“The string has been cut with a sharp object. You’ve got a knife or something, right?”
Upon hearing this, the man with the bruise on his face clicked his tongue.
Depending on the type of blade, the cut would vary. If his knife was examined, it would reveal that the blade length matched the cut string.
“I told you not to make stupid moves!”
The bruised man shouted angrily, kicking the trembling low-ranking thug.
Stumbling from the kick, the thug thrust his left hand into his pocket. He flashed the knife he had used in the theft towards Alexia as he lunged forward with a determined shout.
“Die!”
Yet, without even dodging the attack, Alexia grasped the man’s wrist with one hand, halting his motion. With the other hand, she snatched the knife from him, gripping the wooden handle tightly and crushing it into splinters bare-handed.
“Yikes!”
“Who is this?! A monster?!”
The men were left trembling as they watched wood chips fall to the ground.
“I see, you’re left-handed. Luke’s insight was correct.”
Calmly analyzing the man’s dominant hand and the knife’s direction, Alexia couldn’t help but express her admiration.
“Damn it! Let go of me, brat!”
As the bruised man backed away, away from his thrashing younger companion, he began rifling through his clothing. Suddenly, he pulled out something he had hidden and pressed it against the candlestick in front of him, shouting menacingly as he hurled something with all of his might.
At once, the air filled with the smell of burning, and Alexia’s eyes widened.
“…You had one more?!”
A spherical firework landed on the church’s stone floor, emitting a suddenly harsh burning smell as it rolled across the scarlet carpet.
(It’s lit!)
The ignited fire quickly consumed the string-like fuse, shortening it rapidly. Rising a plume of smoky, burnt scent, it burned towards the interior of the ball.
“Alexia-sama!”
Luke lunged forward as if propelled by fear, instantly replaying Alexia’s explanation in his mind.
“Even if the fuse is lit, it won’t explode until the fire reaches the shell. You can prevent the explosion by putting it out with water or by cutting the fuse.”
However, Alexia had warned, if the fire was lit, don’t go near it. Run away and protect yourself.
(…There’s no way I’m running away!)
Luke refused to stop.
There was no water nearby. A small fountain lay outside the church, but there wasn’t even time to fill a cup. If he couldn’t extinguish it with water, there was only one thing left to do.
(Cut the fuse… and stop the fire…!)
His mind was oddly calm.
If the gunpowder exploded here, not only would he be caught in the blast, but Alexia would be too, and this beautiful church would surely suffer devastation as well.
—“Protect yourself,” Alexia had told him. But there was something he wished to protect even more than himself.
“Please, lend me that knife!”
The only sharp object in the vicinity was that left-handed knife from the thief.
Without a second thought, Luke grasped the knife and leaped over the rolling firework.
There was no time for errors or delays.
He pinned the hot firework down with one hand and, with a quick movement, sliced through the base of the fuse with the knife.
The short, thin wire separated from the ball, which was on the verge of igniting, and began to smolder comically on the cobblestones below.
“…Made it… just in time.”