MCAV Chapter 15

A Kidnapping in the City

“Help! Please help me!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Someone kidnapped my child!”

“What? That’s rare in the streets… Did you see what they looked like?”

“No, but they were wearing a robe and used magic!”

“Magic?”

The guard’s attitude changed immediately. He asked for more details, then quickly reported the incident to his superiors.

“Where do you live? We’ll contact your family.”

Adele hesitated but then gave the location of Lucas’s mansion.

“Oh, that mansion?”

“You know it?”

“It belongs to a high-ranking noble from another country.”

The guards moved faster. They didn’t want any trouble with foreign nobles. They needed to solve this quickly.

Adele decided to go with them.

‘Don’t cry. If you cry, you won’t see clearly.’

She clenched her teeth and followed the guards.

She had to do everything she could to rescue Lonschka. That small child had already suffered too much.

Her usually gentle green eyes now burned with determination.

‘No matter what…’

She would bring them back, even if she had to risk her own life.

***

A Man in the Café

Inside a café with large windows, a man sipped his tea and looked outside.

“The city is noisy today. You there, stop.”

He called out to a passing guard. The guard paused and was immediately startled.

The man who had spoken was breathtakingly handsome.

His deep red eyes were clear, his nose was sharp, and his lips were perfectly shaped. His slightly wavy red hair was tied back, yet still looked elegant.

“What’s going on?”

“A child has been kidnapped.”

“The kidnapper?”

“They might be a magician.”

“Tell me more.”

The guard hesitated. He needed to hurry, but the man’s presence was overwhelming.

In the end, he explained everything he had heard from Adele.

“This isn’t an ordinary magician,” the man said. “Official magicians wouldn’t need to kidnap children. If they wanted test subjects, the government would provide criminals for them.”

That meant only one thing.

“A black magician.”

The guard gulped.

The man clicked his tongue and stood up.

“Rosaline, get up.”

“Yes, Father.”

A young girl, who had been sitting quietly, stood.

She had pink hair and red eyes. She looked about eight years old, but her expression was stiff, almost like a doll.

“It’s time for practice. Summon a spirit and track the black magician’s trail.”

“Yes, Father.”

Rosaline called forth a spirit—a small, fish-like water spirit.

“Undine, find the black magician in this city.”

It was a low-level spirit, not very powerful. But because Rosaline communicated with it every day, it was highly responsive.

The spirit swam through the air and disappeared.

Now, it was a battle of endurance.

The farther the spirit traveled, the harder it became for Rosaline to maintain the connection.

At first, she stood tall. But as time passed, her legs started shaking.

It was painful. But she refused to give up.

She had finally come this far with her father. She didn’t want to disappoint him.

She pushed herself beyond her limits—and finally, she found it!

“I-I found them.”

A drop of blood ran from her nose. She had pushed too hard.

She wiped it away with her sleeve.

“Useless,” her father said coldly.

Rosaline lowered her head.

She didn’t want to disappoint him, but she was still too weak. That realization crushed her.

“Let’s move.”

Now that his own spirit had received the location from Rosaline’s, the man stood up and left the café.

***

The Kidnapper’s Hideout

Lonschka slowly blinked awake.

His head felt dizzy, and his body was swaying.

As his memory returned, he recalled what had happened before he fainted—

A strange man had grabbed him.

And his mother had been calling out to him.

Looking to the side, he saw Leon, tied up just like him.

“Hahaha! Such perfect test subjects!”

The black magician was ecstatic.

He hadn’t expected to find such valuable specimens by chance in the city.

Yes, the chase had drawn attention, but his mind was too excited to care.

“A spirit user and a knight!”

Children who carried mana were useful in so many ways.

Especially spirit users! They were even rarer than magicians and held unique mana.

“What should I do with this spirit user?”

He imagined all kinds of experiments.

Every single one was horrifying.

“I need to get to my hideout first.”

Even in his clouded state, he knew he couldn’t stay here.

As he hurriedly picked up the children, he suddenly sensed something.

“…Huh?”

The black magician cracked his neck.

His usually cloudy mind suddenly cleared. His instincts screamed—

“A spirit.”

A tracker had found him.

And not just any tracker—someone who could command spirits.

Could it be that kid? No, the child was unconscious.

“A spirit user is after me.”

His mood soured.

Had he kidnapped a noble’s child by accident?

“Tsk. I should’ve just marked them and come back later.”

Too Late for Regrets

“It’s better to give up on the child.”

That was the logical choice. But deep inside, another voice screamed—he didn’t want to lose his test subjects!

After all, how could a skilled spirit user be in such a small town? They were usually in the capital or on the battlefield.

“Kill the spirit user. Just kill them.”

The black magician’s eyes turned completely black, and a strange laugh escaped his lips.

He was powerful. He could handle most spirit users without a problem.

“First, the test subjects.”

He grinned and reached for the children again.

At that moment, a burst of flames shot toward his face.

“Argh!”

At the same time, the children broke free from their ropes and started running.

While the black magician was acting strangely, Lonschka had summoned fire to burn the ropes. Then, he launched a surprise attack and escaped.

“My test subjects!”

The black magician, his face red from the burns, chased after them.

Lonschka had always thought Lucas’s training was too difficult. But now, he realized running wasn’t as hard as before.

He ran as fast as he could, amazed at his own speed. At the same time, he whispered to the flames,

“Attack! Keep attacking!”

Annoyed by the fire blocking his way, the black magician roared,

“If I catch you, you won’t get away alive!”

A chill ran down their spines. Lonschka and Leon ran with everything they had.

But no matter how much they trained, they were still children. The black magician was catching up.

***

Adele’s Search

Adele didn’t even think about wiping the sweat from her forehead. She pushed through the forest, searching desperately.

At first, she had been with the guards, but they had split up to cover more ground.

It didn’t matter. Adele could move through the forest better than they could—this was where she had lived.

She scanned the area, looking for signs.

‘Someone passed through here. It hasn’t been long, so there must be tracks.’

She could tell the difference between animal and human footprints.

If you wanted to survive in the forest, you had to learn. Mistaking tracks could lead to facing a bear—or worse.

‘Lonschka, Leon!’

She wanted to scream their names, but she held back.

She didn’t even feel the sharp branches scratching her face or the pain in her hands and feet.

All she could think about were the children.

Then, in the distance, she saw something—red flames flickering in the dark.

“Lonschka!”

It was his fire.

One flame turned into two, then three, then many, filling the sky in a chaotic dance.

The fire was even wilder than when their home had burned.

Heart pounding, Adele ran toward it.

Her breath came in gasps, but she didn’t stop.

Finally, she reached a small clearing—and there, she saw Lonschka and Leon.