The Pinne Estate was perfectly average in size for an estate belonging to a viscount. There was the capital city surrounding Pinne’s castle and the castle walls around it; beyond it was the outer city, where the estate residents dwelled, and the city walls surrounding it. By comparison, Count Steelwall was a major character protecting the kingdom’s frontier; next to the walls of his city, the Pinne Estate’s walls appeared incredibly shabby. Although that was a bit of an exaggeration, it could be said that the walls just looked like slightly taller fences. There was no way that such a structure could block a detachment consisting of fighters considered elite among the Steelwall forces.

Thud!

Zich went up the wall with just one jump and looked at the city from there. The moonlight and starlight shining from the night sky revealed the city.

‘There are no guards.’ It wasn't that there were few, but that they were completely absent. It was inconceivable that a city, no matter how small, could have no guards at a late hour like this. In every sense of the word, the city seemed...