Alejandro possessed the skills to rightfully call himself a great thief. While his combat abilities weren’t exceptional, his agility and expertise in stealth were remarkable enough to ensure he would make a name for himself as an assassin if he chose to switch careers. From the moment he was thrown into the underground prison, Alejandro began his preparations for escape.
‘As expected, it’s not easy.’
He had meticulously prepared to loot the royal treasury. Using the knowledge of the palace he gained from previous infiltrations, he planned his routes and identified key figures to avoid, even spending a fortune on specialized magical tools for emergencies.
Clink.
With the ‘magical spike’ tucked behind his molar, Alejandro snipped his handcuffs and grinned. Even the special handcuffs crafted by the royal blacksmiths to prevent the escape of the most dangerous criminals were no match for this magical spike.
This very spike was why Alejandro was confident he could escape even from the royal underground prison. Who could imagine that a spike the size of a fingernail would possess the sharpness to pierce through anything?
‘Alright, time to get moving.’
The structure of the underground prison was relatively simple. It consisted of long corridors lined with solitary cells on either side, and several floors of identical design. Alejandro and the other prisoners were currently on the second underground level. The barbarian accused of regicide was held on the third floor, which Alejandro intended to reach first.
‘Handling him might be tricky, but if I can use the promise of escape to manipulate him, he could be a powerful ally.’
Scratch. Scratch.
Alejandro lay flat on the floor and began scraping it with the spike. He took care to minimize the noise to avoid detection by the guards at either end of the corridor.
Scratch. Scratch.
The magical spike easily pierced through the floor of the underground prison. Although it required several attempts due to its short length, Alejandro eventually succeeded in making a small rectangular hole in the floor.
“Ugh…”
He carefully moved aside the scraped floor material and slipped through the hole. His slender frame allowed him to contort and maneuver through the narrow opening with relative ease.
Landing softly and quietly, Alejandro surveyed his surroundings.
‘Just as the Deputy Commander mentioned. It seems special measures are indeed in place.’
Not a single sound or presence around the solitary cell into which he had descended. The third floor appeared to be exclusively reserved for the barbarian. This worked in Alejandro’s favor.
Shk.
Poking a hole through the black iron bars with his spike, Alejandro cautiously peered out to check for any guards at either end of the corridor.
‘No one?’
To his surprise, there was no sign of guards or even evidence that guards had been stationed there. Alejandro found this peculiar. Surely, they wouldn’t leave such a dangerous prisoner unattended?
Thud. Thud.
‘Of course not!’
The sound of countless footsteps echoed from the staircase connecting the second and third floors. Without hesitation, Alejandro sprang up and grabbed the edge of the hole he had just made, hanging upside down. He peeked through, assessing the situation in the corridor.
‘A patrol?’
That many people seemed too much for a simple patrol. Of course, considering the criminal they were dealing with—a murderer of royalty—extra caution made sense. But something felt off.
If such a large group had moved, he should have sensed their presence even on the second floor…?
“…!”
Alejandro’s eyes flashed as he realized something.
He hadn’t sensed their presence on the second floor? Then they must have come from below, moving up to the third floor!
He had no idea how deep the underground prison went. But for such numbers to ascend from the fourth floor to the third was certainly odd.
‘Something smells fishy. Really fishy!’
Thump. Thump.
He could feel his heart pounding. Alejandro squinted as if to pierce through the darkness of the corridor. Soon, he spotted a group emerging from the right, causing his eyes to tremble.
He was so shocked that he almost gasped. The world-renowned great thief, Alejandro!
‘People…? No, are those bipedal lizards?’
Even though the figures had cloaked themselves from head to toe to conceal their shapes, their bulky frames were unmistakable. What was particularly startling was the protruding snout-like feature on what seemed to be their faces. Though the darkness obscured his view, it resembled the maw of a reptile.
The stench of suspicion had evolved into the reek of decay.
As Alejandro hung upside down from the hole, observing the figures, he realized the gravity of the situation. These weren’t ordinary guards or soldiers. Given their unusual appearance and behavior, something far more sinister was at play.
He knew he had to act swiftly. The presence of these creatures indicated that there was more at stake than just a simple prison escape. Alejandro carefully lowered himself back down, determined to find Khan and warn him.
His movement became even more cautious and precise as he crept through the corridors. He had to reach Khan before these strange beings could. There was no turning back now—he had to see this through.
***
“Dragon energy?”
Khan muttered when he sensed a multitude of figures approaching from a short distance away, right as he was about to press Draupnir for more details.
So, it’s them.
He didn’t need to hear from Draupnir to know. His heightened instincts had been loudly signaling danger ever since he sensed their approach.
Snap.
With a swift motion, Khan spread his arms, easily snapping the chains of his handcuffs. The first action he chose to take with his newfound freedom was—
Crash!
—breaking through the wall.
Despite the sudden appearance of a giant breaking through the walls next door, the intruders responded immediately without a moment of surprise. However, they momentarily hesitated at Khan’s next move.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Every time he rammed his shoulder into the prison walls, large holes opened up. Having tunneled through three cells in an instant, Khan’s head suddenly turned up toward the ceiling.
“Well, well… How’ve you been?”
“Move your head if you don’t want to die.”
“What? Wait a minute!”
Spotting Alejandro hanging from the ceiling like a monkey, Khan bent his knees and—
Bang!
“Who’s causing all this racket?”
“Alejandro! Is that you?!”
“It’s not me!”
Ignoring the innocent protest of the “monkey”.
Khan quickly ascended to the second floor, smashing through the iron bars and stepping into the corridor. He could sense the lizard-headed figures urgently heading for the stairs.
“Monkey. Don’t just hang around—get everyone else out.”
“Yes, sir!”
Alejandro, now earning the nickname “monkey” swiftly began to release the prisoners. As they worked to free all the prisoners from their cells, the monsters reappeared on the second floor.
When the fearsome creatures emerged, even the bewildered prisoners quickly came to their senses.
“I’ll clear a path. If you want to live, follow me.”
“Hey, you guys! The regicide says to follow him!”
The prisoners were not ones to follow orders, but who wanted to face those terrifying monsters unarmed? They obediently clung to Alejandro, who guided them closely behind Khan.
『Hmm. Mixing it with the rabble only complicates matters. The mage who created those things must be quite skilled.』
Khan brushed off Draupnir’s commentary. Wielding Draupnir in his right hand and the stiletto-like ‘Neria’s Magical Spike’ in his left, he charged at the monstrous creatures.
The monsters, resembling ‘lizardmen’ commonly found in swamps, were armed with straight swords and shields. They even displayed tactical movements, attempting to form a battle line to face Khan.
However, tactics only work when there’s a level playing field.
Slash—!
With a swift and powerful strike, Khan cut through their ranks with ease, demonstrating that no formation could withstand his brute force.
The cursed blade of dragonslaying cut through three lizardmen in a single stroke. Before the ones hiding in the rear could react, Khan raised the sword again, decapitating two more. The narrow corridor was quickly filled with the bodies of the slain monsters.
“Grrk!”
However, their numbers were still overwhelming, with over ten more advancing up the stairs to the third floor.
Crunch.
Khan swiftly approached and stabbed a lizardman that had just set foot on the second-floor corridor. He then kicked its writhing body aside, blocking the path, and rushed up the stairs, shouting,
“Monkey!”
“Right away! Everyone, follow me!”
“Uooooh! Follow the regicide!”
The sight of Khan’s brutal slaughter of the monstrous figures ignited the prisoners’ blood, and they began to shout absurd rallying cries as they followed him up the stairs.
“What’s going on?!”
“How did these bastards escape?!”
The guards, who had gathered and armed themselves due to the disturbance below, met the prisoners as they arrived on the first floor.
These guards, tasked with securing the underground prison that held the kingdom’s most dangerous criminals, were the elite of the elite. They were armed with enchanted equipment that even the palace knights respected.
But their opponent was formidable.
Their magic swords, capable of withstanding a knight’s aura, their armor that could nullify a mage’s spells, and their countless hours of training all proved meaningless. The Gray Wolf of Hoarfrost Gorge tore through the elite guards with brutal efficiency.
‘Annoying.’
Still, they were elite—their fierce counterattacks left shallow cuts on Khan’s skin, emphasizing their caliber.
“Stay still.”
They managed to lightly wound Khan, but that was the extent of their success. Khan quickly neutralized the situation, telling the prisoners to arm themselves and follow him as they emerged outside.
“Aaah! Damn it, we’re free!”
“Screw you, noble bastards! We’re escaping…!”
“Idiots! Did you forget the monsters chasing us?!”
As the prisoners reveled in their newfound freedom, Alejandro approached Khan, realizing he might have insight into their current predicament. However, Khan spoke first.
“Monkey. You said you saw the Palace Steward coming out from the treasury.”
“Huh. Y-Yes, but?”
“Did you see where he took the treasure?”
“Well… I did see him take it, but I only followed him halfway.”
“Good.”
Good, how? Alejandro couldn’t fathom the barbarian’s intentions. Why free the prisoners while being pursued by those bipedal lizard creatures, and why bring up the Palace Steward’s treasure at this moment?
Though itching to rob the treasury, Alejandro kept his complaints to himself. He couldn’t afford to run off alone after witnessing Khan’s combat prowess. Besides, his instincts screamed that following this barbarian would lead to a legendary event in Argon’s history.
“I won’t waste words. Those who wish to escape, do so. I have no intention of dragging everyone along. But—”
If you want to turn the palace upside down, follow me.
Alejandro shivered at the barbarian’s audacious declaration. Indeed, a fiend capable of regicide was bound to be different in everything he did!
“Where should we go, boss?”
Alejandro, or rather, the self-proclaimed great thief now known as Monkey, stood attentively in front of Khan with eyes full of admiration. Freed prisoners crowded behind him.
‘Tsk….’
Khan mentally clicked his tongue at the sight of the kingdom’s worst criminals following him like a pack, calling him “Boss.”
Such barbaric antics were far from suitable for someone like him, a modern intellectual. However, they had their uses, so he couldn’t simply discard them.
‘This might get annoying later.’
This was largely due to the Black Wing Duke’s failure to handle the situation correctly, throwing an innocent man like him into prison alongside these criminals.
‘He’ll deal with it.’
Surely, if the Duke had any sense of responsibility, he wouldn’t blame the person who cleaned up the mess for him. Having shrugged off his lingering guilt, Khan pointed Monkey in the right direction.
“First, let’s head in the direction where the old man disappeared.”
I swear to the heavens.
He had no intention of venting his frustration over being cooped up in the cramped wagon with these smelly criminals for days, nor for being dumped into a damp dungeon. But…
‘If the process of killing the Palace Steward causes some collateral damage to the palace, so be it.’
One thing was certain: he intended to thoroughly deal with the Palace Steward. Only by doing so could he secure the two royal treasures promised by the Black Wing Duke and Princess Delphina.
And by extension, recovering what the old man swiped from the royal treasury would be a splendid bonus. It was a win-win situation all around.
‘Who can resist a buy one, get one free deal?’
Khan led the group through the winding passages of the palace, eyes set on his targets with unwavering determination.