Silva Schneizel stood hidden in the forest on the south side.

  From his position, he had a clear view of the men and girls in the clearing.

  The distance between them was roughly ten meters.

  Concealed by branches and leaves, Silva remained invisible to the men on the highway.

  (Those bastards... Are they really going to do this right in the middle of the highway?)

  At first, Silva thought the men might move to a different location. But it quickly became clear they intended to commit their crime right there, in the middle of the road.

  Despite the considerable time that had passed since they attacked the carriage, the men showed no signs of concern.

  Even on a deserted highway in the middle of a forest, their confidence was disturbingly high.

  (Damn animals...)

  Silva felt a wave of disgust toward them, mixed with a sense of unease. He pushed those feelings aside, waiting silently.

  Suppressing his seething anger and murderous intent. Waiting for the right moment...

  "Alright, it's decided! This stays between us. If the leader or the boss finds out, we'll all be dead!"

  At Gates words, the men nodded in agreement.

  "Okay, let's start with the blonde one!"

  One of the men holding the blonde girl spoke up.

  "I'll take the silver haired one!"

  The men began shouting their preferences, each more eager than the other.

  "Hey, Gates, what about you?"

  "Huh? Do whatever you want. I'm fine as long as I get the first go with this silver haired one."

  "Hey! Gates, what the hell are you saying? That one's mine first!"

  Their hunger and desperation evident, the men argued nastily until they finally settled on an order.

  "You guys at the end, keep watch! The guild's extermination squad is still assembling, and the Imperial Army hasn't moved yet, so we shouldn't have much to worry about. But that doesn't mean another target won't show up. Stay alert! And you guys, the second in line, make sure to hold down the women!"

  The men quickly followed Gates' instructions.

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  (So, he's the leader of this group.)

  The time had come. Silva tightened his grip on the chakrams in his hands.

  "Alright!"

  The men began lowering their robes and pants to their knees, revealing themselves.

  (Now! Die!)

  The moment the men moved to cover the pinned down girls, Silva let fly his chakram. It sliced through the air, aimed directly at Gates.

  "Guhaa..."

  The chakram, released with precision, struck the unprotected back of Gates head, causing him to collapse onto the girl.

  Without missing a beat, Silva launched the second and third chakrams in quick succession, then charged out of the forest.

  His targets were the men holding down the girls.

  "Guehh!"

  "Gyaaa!"

  The second chakram buried itself in one man's throat, while the third lodged in another's forehead.

  The fourth chakram, however, missed its mark as a man dodged, causing it to fly overhead.

  (Four more to go.)

  There was a reason Silva had waited until the girls were on the brink of being assaulted before making his move. He needed to ensure the men were disarmed.

  "When a man attempts to assault a woman, he would need to lower his pants. If his sword is attached to his belt, as was the case with these men, he would also have to remove the sword from his waist."

  Silva, who needed to win this fight at all costs, had considered the trauma this would cause the girls, but ultimately waited until the last possible moment.

  His strategy paid off, with Gates, their leader, taken out in the initial strike, the men lost their coordination.

  Two of the men who had attempted to assault the girls had their pants lowered to their knees.

  In such a state, quickly preparing for combat was impossible.

  Given the considerable distance to the lookouts, Silva's first priority was to neutralize the men holding down the girls.

  "What happened? What's going on?"

  The men keeping watch on the highway noticed the commotion and rushed back.

  "What the hell are you looking at? We're under attack!"

  One of the bandits, his eyes clouded with greed and fear, shouted.

  "Who the hell are you?"

  "Don't mess with us! You think you can go against the Red Moon Gang?!"

  Ignoring the shouts of the men rushing toward him, Silva dashed toward the girls.

  "You bastard! Die!"

  The man who dodged the chakram stopped holding down the girl and drew his sword.

  He raised it high and swung down with all his might.

  Silva's sword, held at his side, intercepted the descending blade.

  Ding

  The clash of metal echoed, and sparks flew.

  The man aimed for Silva's head, but Silva aimed for the man's sword itself.

  Though the man managed to keep his sword from being knocked out of his hand, his right hand was flung backward.

  Thud.

  A dull sound, like splitting a wet watermelon, resonated.

  Silva's sword crushed the man's head.

  (Three more to go!)

  However, the element of surprise was wearing thin.

  The three men who had been keeping watch were now fully armed and watching for an opening.

  (They're not charging... damn it!)

  The battle reached a stalemate.

  The three bandits were no match for Silva in terms of combat ability, but their skillful coordination prevented Silva from finding an opening.

  Silva sheathed his sword and waited, keeping his stance low, watching his opponents moves.

  A tense standoff continued between the two sides.

  (This isn't good... I have no choice but to gamble!)

  Suddenly, Silva lowered his guard and erased all signs of his killing intent, his right hand, still holding the sword, relaxed naturally.

  Silva slowly began to walk toward the bandits.

  Unlike before, when anger and murderous intent had radiated from him so intensely, now there was no emotion on his face.

  "St-stop right there!"

  "What are you planning?!"

  This unexpected move caught the bandits off guard, his body appeared completely relaxed, full of openings, It looked as though he could be killed with a single blow.

  So defenseless did Silva appear.