The kidnapping of Ariel was a huge blow to Luke.
As Ariel's guardian knight, he should have been responsible for protecting the princess. But in the end, not only did he fail to protect Ariel, he didn't even get hurt protecting her like Derrick did. He completely lost his qualification as a guardian knight.
Now, thinking about what Ariel might be going through and his own uselessness, Luke was filled with unspeakable regret and despair.
At this moment, he hung his head low, his expression strained, not even noticing Shirou's arrival.
"..."
Shirou completely understood Luke's despair and helplessness.
He had noticed before that Luke, although a bit petty and dull, or simple if you want to be nice, was very loyal to Ariel.
Although he didn't know why Ariel inspired such loyalty, Luke's sincere attitude towards Ariel was something everyone could feel.
That's why, when Ariel was kidnapped and he couldn't stop it, Luke must have felt unspeakable regret.
However, Shirou couldn't let Luke continue feeling sorry for himself like a neglected wife.
Ariel's safety was not only about Ariel herself, but also about the safety of the entire Boreas family.
If Ariel really went missing, the Boreas family would pay a terrible price.
So, whether for Ariel or for the Boreas family, Shirou would do everything he could to find the culprits who kidnapped Ariel and rescue the princess.
"Clap!"
Shirou went straight to Luke and stood in front of him, looking down at him.
He stood there for a while.
Seeing that Luke still didn't react, Shirou had to speak first: "Luke, do you want to save Princess Ariel?"
"...What?!"
Hearing the words "save the princess," Luke, who had been like a computer that crashed, suddenly came back to his senses.
He stared blankly at Shirou for a moment before realizing what he was saying.
But Luke wasn't convinced. He didn't think that Shirou, a mere blacksmith, had the ability to rescue the princess.
He thought it would be better to rely on the Boreas family's massive search than to rely on Shirou.
However, Luke didn't dare to jump to conclusions.
His concern for Ariel was greater than anything else. Even a hopeless straw was something he had to grab onto.
So, Luke stared at Shirou, as if saying, "If you're kidding me, I'll never forgive you."
Shirou didn't beat around the bush. Ariel had been taken away and the situation was urgent.
Without hesitation, he said directly: "I can find Ariel's location, if you take me to the place where Ariel was kidnapped."
"Really?"
Luke was shocked to hear Shirou's words.
First, he was pleasantly surprised, but then he was very doubtful.
After all, Luke still had hostility towards Shirou, the heir of the Notos family, and thought that he might be trying to trick him to compete for the inheritance.
Of course, Luke hadn't completely lost his mind.
For him now, Ariel's safety was the most important thing. If he could save Ariel, he would do anything.
Luke took a deep breath, trying to put aside his personal feelings, and slowly said: "I can take you there, but don't try to trick me, or I'll make you pay, even if I die."
"If I trick you, you can kill me."
Shirou didn't say much, directly showing his determination.
Luke was still wary, full of suspicion.
But at least, Luke was willing to give Shirou a chance.
The two of them set off immediately.
Because the Boreas family had already used almost all their power to search for Ariel, they couldn't spare any extra manpower or even horses.
Shirou and Luke had to run on foot to the place where Ariel was kidnapped.
During the process, Luke was surprised to find that Shirou ran much faster than him.
Luke, as an Intermediate Rank Swordsman, was confident in his physical ability, but he never expected to be surpassed by Shirou, a blacksmith.
This made Luke feel instinctively unwilling and confused.
But his mood didn't affect his actions.
Luke soon took Shirou to the place where Ariel was kidnapped. It was an ordinary-looking street, but the buildings on both sides were complex, making it easy for assassins to hide.
When Ariel's carriage passed by here, the assassins ambushed on both sides suddenly appeared, instantly seriously injuring Derrick, suppressing Luke, and easily kidnapping Ariel.
Because it hadn't been long, the scene was still intact, that is, Ariel's destroyed carriage and the chaotic conflict environment caused by the scene.
"Princess Ariel and I were attacked here. The assassins were incredibly strong, and there may even be someone with Saint level or higher involved."
Luke said, with a resentful expression.
As an Intermediate Rank Swordsman, even though he was talented among the young nobles, facing a real strong person, he couldn't even put up a resistance and was directly suppressed.
This led to Ariel being completely taken away without resistance.
Shirou didn't care about Luke's attitude.
After arriving at the kidnapping site, he observed the surrounding environment.
After arriving around the destroyed carriage, Shirou searched carefully and quickly found a piece of Ariel's torn clothing.
After confirming that it was indeed Ariel's clothing, Shirou immediately took out a dark black longsword from behind.
The sword was familiar.
It was the Hound of Culann that Shirou had used when attacking Darius.
As one of Servant Emiya's favorite Noble Phantasms, the Hound of Culann's effect was very practical. It had strong tracking ability, and once it smelled the target, it would lock onto the target's location and continue to chase the target no matter how many times it was shot down.
Shirou once relied on the Hound of Culann to seriously injure Darius's lower body, causing him to lose his manhood on the spot.
Now he created this projected Noble Phantasm again, aiming to use the Hound of Culann's effect to search for Ariel's location.
"Go!"
Shirou had the Hound of Culann remember Ariel's scent, and using a prepared bow, turned the sword into an arrow and shot it out.
"Clap!"
The black homing-type Noble Phantasm changed direction the moment it was shot out, rushing towards a place completely different from the direction Shirou shot.
Shirou immediately chased after it, not daring to miss the Hound of Culann's actions.
Luke on the side was dumbfounded.
He saw Shirou take out a sword and use a bow, not knowing what he was doing. Shirou's serious expression prevented him from asking.
Seeing Shirou suddenly rush out, Luke was even more dumbfounded.
Before he could react, he found that Shirou was sprinting at a speed he couldn't imagine.
He had to try his best to barely keep up with Shirou's pace.
"Huff, huff"
Luke followed Shirou for several miles.
The distance wasn't too far.
The two arrived at a dilapidated town near Roa.
This town was absorbed by Roa to further expand, causing it to become abandoned.
The residents of the town either moved away or went to live in the big cities of Roa, leaving behind only a lot of cobwebs and unseen mosquitoes.
The moment Shirou found the Hound of Culann slowing down, he immediately retrieved it and jumped onto a nearby tree, using Eagle Eye's ability to observe the town ahead.
As expected.
This seemingly abandoned town had obvious signs of being operated by someone. Not only could he see some new ruts, but there were also several people like guards patrolling around.
He didn't expect them to be so bold as to set up their base directly near Roa.
This must be playing a trick of hiding in plain sight.
The effect was indeed very good. The Boreas family would never have thought that the kidnappers would arrange their base so close to the castle.
"Is Princess Ariel here?"
At this moment, Luke already knew what was going on. The strangeness emanating from this town could be sensed by anyone.
Although he didn't know how Shirou did it, Luke was now full of gratitude towards Shirou.
"Let's go back now and tell Lord Sauros."
Luke was anxious. "We need to get the Boreas family to search this place."
"No, we can't do that."
Shirou shook his head at Luke's attitude.
"Why?"
Luke was anxious.
The opportunity to save the princess was close at hand, and he couldn't stay calm.
Shirou glanced at him silently and explained: "The fact that they were able to attack as soon as you left the city means that they must have planted spies within the Boreas family. If we go back now to provide information, they will be alerted and transfer Princess Ariel to another place, or even take Ariel away from the Fittoa Territory, then there will be no hope."
No matter how special the Hound of Culann was, it couldn't search for people all over the world.
Once the distance was too far, even the Hound of Culann couldn't complete the tracking.
Luke immediately understood Shirou's words, but he quickly looked troubled.
After all, if he didn't tell the Boreas family, how could he save Ariel?
Facing Luke's hesitant attitude, Shirou didn't react much, calmly saying: "There's only one way now, and that is for the two of us to kill our way into this town, kill all the kidnappers while they haven't reacted, and rescue Ariel directly."
"What?!"
Shirou's words shocked Luke. He didn't expect him to make such an amazing suggestion.
Relying on the two of them to fight so many kidnappers?
Isn't this the same as suicide?!
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