NOVEL FROG Chapter 3: Help
Olgan watched the unfolding battle, weighing his options as the chaotic battle played out before him.
As he moved closer, he crossed the boundary of what he presumed was the range for the "Silent Magic" and could finally hear the conversation.
He heard the knights called the grey-and-white-haired female knight "Princess", and the bandits' intent was to capture her and sell her into slavery.
But their plans had been thwarted by a spell cast by the bandit with the staff, a spell named [Ground Thorns] which sprouted a deadly thrones from the ground and ending their lives along with the knights.
The remaining three "bandits", in which Olgan started to highly doubt if they were actually real bandits, showing no interest in capturing the princess alive, sought to finish her off quickly.
Considering his lack of combat skills and the overwhelming odds, Olgan felt a rising anxiety.
Should he help the knight and princess, or flee?
Rushing in to fight the "bandits" would be stupid—an act only an idiot or a person with a delusional sense of heroism would attempt.
With his heart racing and time running short, Olgan made a desperate decision. Gritting his teeth, he shouted, "This is the police! You are under arrest!"
Though the declaration sounded absurd to him, he had thought it through.
If he couldn't handle the bandits himself, distracting them might give the knights a chance to fight back. In this foreign world, he wasn't sure if his words would be understood despite understanding what they had spoken earlier.
If they didn't understand his language, the mere distraction from the gibberish langauge could provide the knights a crucial opportunity to retaliate. If they did understand but were unfamiliar with the term "police," the confusion could momentarily throw them off. Even if they comprehended what "police" meant, the unexpected nature of a random happen-to-be-here police's intervention could still serve as a distraction.
To his relief, the mage "bandit", momentarily caught off guard by Olgan's shout, had his spell interrupted. Although also distracted by Olgan's shout, seizing the opportunity, the princess threw her sword at the mage.
"[Wind Boost]!" she cried out with her bloodied mouth, a green magic circle appearing around her sword to accelerate its flying speed and spinning speed.
As the sword spiraled toward him, the mage "bandit", snapping back to reality, was forced to cast a low level spell with shorter casting time.
"[Fire Ball]!" he shouted, his tone desparated.
The two projectiles crossed paths: the sword sliced through the mage's frail form, and the fireball struck the princess. The mage fell lifelessly to the ground, while the princess's fate was uncertain.
The remaining two "bandits", also caught off guard by the distraction, fell swiftly to the blonde female knight's counterattack. They were no match for her, their only role being to delay her before the mage "bandits" finished off the princess.
The "bandits" were all killed, while the knights were left with only two, the princess and the blonde knight.
Olgan exhaled in relief. Despite the chaos, things had turned out well.
He hesitated for a moment, then cautiously approached the destroyed carriage, his nerves on edge.
Even though he had saved them, there was no guarantee the knights would view him favorably. He remembered the many times in his previous life when acts of kindness were met with suspicion or hostility.
One instance stood out vividly: he had once rescued an injured cat from a car accident, nursing it back to health, only to have the cat's owner report him to the police for catnapping. It had been a crushing blow for him.
Whenever he thought of that incident, he used "catnapping" as a way to mock the absurdity and cope with the disappointment.
After many similar experiences, Olgan had learned to restrain himself from rushing in to help someone, preferring instead to observe first. Unless a situation was truly life-or-death, he wouldn't intervene recklessly.
Some might call him heartless, but he was simply tired of the never-ending-cycle of returned malice.
Lost in these thoughts, Olgan reached the princess. She lay on the ground, her life slipping away, while the female knight knelt beside her, tears streaming down her face as she tried to save her.
The princess looked at Olgan and managed a faint smile. "Thank you for saving us," she said softly.
"Princess Edith! Hang on, I will save you!" the weeping female knight begged.
The princess sighed and said calmly, "I will Reset."
The female knight was stunned, pleading, "No! You can't! Using Reset to survive is almost like becoming a cripple! Please, reconsider!"
The princess's gaze turned resolute. "It's still better than death."
The blonde knight's body trembled with grief, unable to argue further.
Olgan stood silently, his mind racing as he tried to find a solution while being dumbfounded by what could be the meaning of Reset. The princess's injuries were too severe; even Earth's doctors might not have been able to save her.
Then, he saw the princess weakly extend her arm and touch the air with her finger tip. Her body visibly weakened further with the first touch, but as she moved her finger and tapped repeatedly on the same spot, something miraculous began to happen. Her severe wounds started to close, albeit slowly, indicating a remarkable recovery.
The female knight, seizing the moment, quickly retrieved a bottle of purple potion adorned with luxurious golden ornaments. She poured it into the princess's mouth, and her recovery accelerated noticeably.
What was she doing? Olgan's curiosity piqued. As an avid gamer, his eyes lit up as he began to form a bold guess about the nature of this Reset and the princess's abnormal actions before the recovery.