I dropped my bow and arrow on the ground and discarded my cloak, revealing Aurelia and Severance Pay. Sigh... what bad fucking luck that these Witches just had to show up on the verge of my biggest score. I had no clue why the hell they were back in the Wild, but either way, they had to die.

Emma was visibly disturbed. She knew I wouldn’t show off my secret weapons unless it was urgent (or if I was trying to kill them). “What’s going on, Rummy?” she asked with a slight quiver in her angelic voice. I also noticed that she was subtly reaching for her mana crystals.

I stoically replied, “Witches.” as I adjusted the sighting on Severance Pay to 200 meters and released the safety.

A look of panic flashed on my clients. I presumed that whatever shady stuff they’re planning, Witches weren’t part of the plan. While they looked at each other nervously, I used <> again. It appeared that the Witches were resting in the same area Aurelia died all those years ago. For some reason, all of them had a gloomy expression on their faces. The archer with the purple hair was on the lookout. The brunette mage appeared to be talking to the red-haired archer away from the rest of the group, so they were perfect first-strike targets. After all, I did recall that the red-haired Witch was the nominal leader of the squad.

I pointed to a large patch of bushes 10 meters from me (and away from the Witches) and whispered “Ladies, I must ask you to hide yourselves in the bushes over there. You may choose to help me, or stay hidden. I don’t care either way.”

Skera looked at me as if I’d gone nuts. “Have you gone mad?!? How can one lone Ranger take on a squad of Witches? We should obviously run!” She struggled to contain her booming voice. Ugh. If she couldn’t control her volume, I might have to shoot her first.

I stared at her blankly and whispered, “You are free to do so, but I’m going to attack momentarily, so you won’t have that much time. That is why I recommend hiding instead.”

Natalia gave me a look of distress, then acceptance. “I suppose our fate is in your hands. Let us go at once.” Emma and Skera followed her into the bushes. “Rummy, I hope you’ll give a satisfactory explanation when all of this is over.”

I ignored her remark. After all, it was time to get to work. I threw my grappling hook upon a tree branch, knelt behind a sequoia and some brush, and began to aim. I could probably only guarantee one headshot. After that, the chaos of battle would’ve forced me to aim for center-mass. My sights trained on the redhead as I inhaled and exhaled. After a brief moment of <>, I pulled the trigger.

*Boom!*

With the assistance of <>, I saw a mist of red suddenly bloom near the redhead’s face. She slumped down to the ground with a hole through her temple. After that, I aimed at the panicking mage, whose hysterical face was sprayed with blood and brain.

*Boom!**Boom!”

The mage had better battle instincts than I gave her credit for. Immediately after seeing her comrade die, she lowered her head and was only grazed on the temple by my 2nd shot. My 3rd shot hits her square in the back and knocks her down.

Knowing her healing capabilities, I’d have to finish the job before she completely healed herself.

Meanwhile, the other Witches realized the severity of the situation. The purple-haired archer on the lookout pointed at my direction and began to look for me. Severance Pay was less loud than her modern counterpart thanks to the suppressor, but it was still quite loud. Good thing the suppressor also hid the muzzle flash.

The 2 fighters charged in my direction and <> forward by about 25 meters (so that’s their range). They’d be in my position soon, so I had to get rid of the remaining archer before then.

The skilled archer found me before I could fire. But because she didn’t have somebody else holding a spyglass for her as she aimed, her accuracy faltered and her return shot only managed to hit the opposite side of the sequoia tree I was hiding behind.

*BOOM!*

Her overcharged return shot was no joke. Even at a range where human eyes struggle to see, she almost got me. Unfortunately for her, that near miss sealed her fate.

*Boom!**Boom!”

The archer tried to dodge my 4th shot, but the supersonic round mocked her attempt and pierced her sides. The 5th shot finished her off as it punched a bloody hole on her neck.

No time to celebrate. The fighters were only 50 meters away thanks to their <> spell. I aimed at the pink-haired fighter, who was holding a metal kite shield on one hand and a polearm on the other, and fired once more.

*Boom!**Boom!”

The 6th shot missed due to a <>, but the 7th shot pierced the kite shield and hit her right in her abdomen. She lowered her shield in pain and gave me the opening I needed. I aimed for her head and pulled the trigger.

*Boom!*

*PING!”

Blood sprayed around her left eye socket as she fell down on her back.

Ah, the iconic ping of the Garand. What a fun sound to hear after some recreational shooting at a reenactment. In a real life-or-death battle, not so much. Especially when the remaining blonde Witch <> a meter in front of me and charged right at me with an arming sword and round shield.

Despite how well the initial ranged ambush was, at the end of the day, it would be decided by my gun-fu. First, I threw Severance Pay like a spear right at her shield. Then I cast <> to avoid the charge at the last second and fly up 3 meters in the air. I took out Aurelia as I fell. Perhaps it was fitting that the pistol I named after her would be the one to finish this fight.

Right as I drew Aurelia, the blonde fighter <> appeared right behind me with her sword in the overhead position. I cast <> again, but this time towards the side and away from her.

*SWISH!*

Her overhead strike missed with great fanfare as the surrounding air currents furiously fluttered as a result. Wow, what strength! Even though she was no Knight, I thought she could realistically take on any Knight in the city.

With her speed, kinetic vision, and <>, I’ve got no easy way to line up a clean shot. This fighter was no fool. She kept teleporting right behind me to keep me pinned down and to prevent me from firing. I kept avoiding her attacks with <> until I saw my grappling hook and a rope attached to it. It was a good thing that I had affinity to the air element, otherwise, I’d be out of mana already.

I cast <> once more to reach the rope. The fighter responded in kind and <> right behind me. I grabbed onto the rope at half a meter away from the hook and let my momentum rapidly swing me over the tree branch. Finally, I had a clear shot at her! Sure, I was upside down, but I’d take it!

*Pop**Pop**Pop**Pop*

Wow, her reaction again was amazing. She shrank her profile by crouching behind her shield. As a result, she managed to cover most of her body. Too bad her shield wasn’t as sturdy as she thought. Knowing that I might have some penetration issues with Aurelia, I tried to aim for the same spot on the shield so I could drill through with multiple shots. The first two shots were fully embedded into the metal shield. The 2nd punched through and hit her somewhere. The 3rd shot manages to actually hurt her because I heard a bloodcurdling scream.

I let go of the rope as I collided right into her at full speed. We both fall to the ground from 3 meters in the air with me on top of her.

*CRASH*

She dropped her sword from the impact. With me kneeling on top of her and her shield, I pointed my pistol at her head. It was then that I noticed her trying to stab me with a silvery dagger. Holy fuck, how could she react and move like that even after getting shot twice!? What a fucking monster!

Well, fuck. As long as she didn’t stab me in the vitals, I should be able to heal myself after looting their stuff. But man, this shit was gonna hurt…

That’s when I noticed Emma standing up from the bush (roughly 5 meters away on the side) and casting a spell. Perhaps from shock, the blonde fighter hesitated for just a slight moment.

*Pop**Pop**Pop**Pop*

I emptied an entire clip into her face, thoroughly ensuring that she’d be getting a closed casket funeral. Despite her hesitation, she still managed to completely pierce my armor (not something your garden-variety steel dagger can do) and into my left flank. Fuck! That fucking hurt!

If Emma hadn’t distracted her by standing up, she might’ve been able to do worse damage. Holy hell, what a scary thought…

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

As much as I wanted to relax, I hadn’t slain the most dangerous enemy yet: the brunette mage. I dropped the empty mag into my pocket and reloaded another one. After a long 200 meter jog (running with an extra hole in your body was no picnic), I arrived at a sobbing mess of a woman on the ground.

Upon a closer look, she managed to heal all the injuries on her, but she had lost all will to fight. Tears and snot blended with the blood spray from before on her face. Good lord, she was a hot mess. What a way to throw mud onto the reputation of the Witches. Her comrades lived and died with their reputation. This particular Witch was just embarrassing.

“Any last words, Witch?” I maliciously asked with killing intent pouring out of my body as I approached her.

“Why?!? Why have you done this to my sisters?!?” She hysterically asked between sobs.

“After all the killing you’ve done, do you really have the right to ask such a thing?” I angrily shouted at her. The hypocrisy was sickening.

“We….we only did what we did for the Emperor. WE NEVER HAD A CHOICE IN THIS!” She screamed at me, and then sobbed some more.

“Is that supposed to make your murder victims feel better? Despicable!” I pointed Aurelia at her face. Justice was about to be served.

“I understand your rage, Rummy. But this woman has no intention to resist anymore. I strongly suggest capturing her and interrogating her before deciding what to do with her.” Natalia gracefully pleaded her case. Damn, she brought up a good point. This Witch had information I needed.

“Fine. Emma, please disarm her.” I glared at the mage and pointed my pistol at her. “If you even think of activating a spell, I’ll fucking end you!”

I must’ve rolled high on my intimidation check, because she started sobbing harder and even pissed herself a bit. That probably got me negative brownie points with Emma, but against a mage of her caliber, nothing was overkill. I trained my pistol at her the entire time until Emma was certain she was disarmed.

***

Cleanup was a bitch, but we got it done within 20 minutes. Luckily, no mana-beasts showed up despite the noises. Afterwards, we entered my workshop with 4 looted corpses. I learned many things from my prisoner- her name, her unit’s function, and that the spell that could store materials was called <>. After getting the hang of things, I stored everything in my workshop in the 5 bracelets I just looted. This place was compromised, and I needed a new hideout after this job.

At the very least, this place would serve as the final resting place of the 4 slain Witches. I cast <> to carve out a deep pit about 2 meters deep. Then, I unceremoniously tossed in the bodies of the Witches in the pit. Finally, I cast <> again to cover up the pit and all the bloody streaks and drag marks.

Natalia handed me back Severance Pay, which had a bent bayonet tip from the shield deflection. “What an interesting weapon you’ve crafted, Rummy. You are without doubt the most talented forge-smith I have ever seen. What you have created here could end the Era of the Knights.”

I took an en bloc clip from my satchel and loaded it into the internal magazine. I pressed it down as my right hand held down the bolt so it didn’t snap and gave me a bad case of Garand thumb. After getting my thumb caught that one time, I practiced real diligently to properly reload a Garand.

“Your praise is certainly appreciated. Although I would appreciate it if you don’t let the other Knights know about it.” I gave her a wink as I put my cloak back on and picked up my bow and quiver. Skera looked at me with a difficult expression. She must’ve idolized the idea of Knighthood. Why else would she relentlessly train knowing full well how impossible that dream is due to her gender? A weapon that could end the Era of the Knights… that was not something easy to accept for her.

I turned my attention back to the disarmed mage. Time to get some intel out of her. I took out one of the spare leather belts and cut it. I then put the belt around her neck as a makeshift collar to symbolize her status as a prisoner of war. Despite my general contempt for chivalry and fanfare, there were some things I’d be willing to defer to tradition on.

“Listen well, Archmage Sapphire.” Blood drained from her face as she looked at me with renewed horror. “I have taken you prisoner solely because you are worth more alive than dead. As long as you obey me, I will ensure your safety and well-being. Piss me off, and you will rot in a hole with your sisters. Do you understand?”

Sapphire looked at me with a frightened expression at first, then a defeated look of resignation. She swallowed her saliva before answering, “Yes, Master.” Her golden eyes stared at me with reverence and fear. That was not what I was going for, but whatever.

Before Skera could get a word in, a blinding light suddenly erupted out of my hands and eyes. A symbol of clovers that I saw all those years ago re-emerge once more for a brief moment, then disappeared. After a moment of surprise and shock, I realized that my <> was gone now that I’ve completed the task that was asked of me. Well, this sucked. I kinda wish I knew that beforehand, but I was able to loot a spyglass from the Witches to compensate.

Natalia and her crew looked at me with bewildered expressions. Emma asked, “Is that... Spirit Magic from the Elves?!?”

“Oh, so that’s what it’s called. One of the dying Elves of the village the Witches attacked hired me to avenge them, and I guess I fulfilled that contract the moment I killed or enslaved every member of the party.”

“What was the payment?” Emma’s curiosity grew with each question.

“I used to be able to see very far. But not anymore.”

Emma giggled. “So that’s why you were so confident in this deal. With superior weaponry and the ability to detect dangers, it’s no wonder why you were keen on making this deal.”

“Lady Natalia, I believe you have questions to ask our guest?” I intentionally diverted the conversation back to the topic at hand. I also grabbed a life elemental mana crystal and cast <> on my left flank. A breath of fresh air hit me as I felt a surge of vitality repairing my wound. My flank glowed green for a brief moment before fading. The wound was too deep to be completely repaired by <>, but at least the pain and bleeding had stopped.

“Of course. Archmage Sapphire, why are you here with your squad?”

“We were desperate! We were on the verge of getting kicked out of the Imperial Harem! We needed some sort of accomplishment before the younger Witches could force us out! The plan was to spend a couple of months in the Wilds to capture live Elves…” She looked at me with apprehension.

“Go on.” I sternly order.

“ ...as presents for His Majesty. We also want to find out more about the Elf who intercepted us and punish him.”

Natalia approached her and looked her in the eye “I will only ask you once. Do you have any connection to Count Galahad and the nobles of Carnwennan?”

Sapphire gave her a confused expression. “No. How would some backwater nobles help us with our problem?”

Natalia seemed relieved.

“Out of curiosity, what happens if you get kicked out of the Imperial Harem?” I asked.

“There are only 2 things a Witch can count on once she is out: crippling poverty, and suicide missions.” Wow, this Emperor guy was a bigger douche than I could possibly imagine.

“Final question. What is your elemental specialty?” Huh, that was a bit out of left field… What was Natalia getting at here?

“Earth. I am capable of casting the Expert-level spell <>.“ Oh, that’s what that massive AOE spell she used on the Elf Village was called. I suppose that’d something I have to watch out for from future enemy Archmages. Getting caught in one of those could render me helpless even if I have guns.

“Adept Rummy, I am satisfied with my interrogation with the Archmage. Now, I believe it is now time to negotiate.”

“I agree, Lady Natalia. Unfortunately for us, I’ve shown you all of my secrets. So if we can’t come to terms, I’m afraid we’ll have to kill one another.” I replied with a regretful tone.

Field Inventory

Primary Weapon

Recurve bow made from Champion mana-beast sinew/Quiver with arrows

M1 Garand v.1.0 [Christened Severance Pay]

Secondary Weapon

Colt M1911A1 Semi-Automatic Pistol v.2.0 [Christened Aurelia]

Armor

Champion mana-beast leather body armor [Damaged], bracers, and greaves; Leather boots lined with bear fur

Mana Crystals

1x Adept-level air elemental mana crystal

1x Adept-level fire elemental mana crystal

1x Adept-level earth elemental mana crystal

1x Beginner-level ice elemental mana crystal [Moved to stash]

1x Adept-level ice elemental mana crystal

5x Adept-level space elemental mana crystal

4x Beginner-level time elemental mana crystal

5x Beginner-level life elemental mana crystal [Moved to stash]

1x Adept-level life elemental mana crystal

1x Expert-level earth elemental mana crystal

Stash of various mana crystals

Misc.

5x storage bracelets, spyglass, Utility belt, grappling hook, rope, dark green cloak, field satchel, waterskin, rations, boarskin map and steel knife

1x .45 ACP steel centerfire pistol suppressor

1x .30-06 Springfield steel centerfire rifle suppressor / bayonet [Damaged]

6x en bloc clips of .30-06 Springfield armor-piercing ammo

3x magazines of .45 ACP hollow-point ammo

1x leather holster

5x dragon leather armor set

2x dragon sinew recurve bow

2x steel shields

1x steel polearm

1x arming sword

5x mithril dagger