A deafening silence drowned the gory and horrific plaza, as the gruesome battle had abruptly halted. Only the sounds of vigorous breathing could be heard, as the people present were stupefied at the scene that occurred right in front of their eyes. Amidst such a tense and dangerous situation, the crowd could only stare at the giant corpse as if they were hypnotized.

Even the bandits had been extremely perplexed, witnessing the headless body of their friend. Death!? One of them actually died!? That too fighting against a bunch of farmers!? Not a single one among them could believe such a situation.

screech!

But before the crowd was given any time to pull themselves out of their transfixed thoughts, another air slicing whistle suddenly assaulted their ears, widening the range of shock and fear among the savage brigade. The speed of the projectile was not supersonic this time, but it was fast enough to pierce the skulls of two distracted bandits, who had let their guards down. With a bloody hole drilled into their heads, the lifeless bodies collapsed onto the ground as if their puppet strings were cut.

There actually were two arrows! Being fired so fast that only a single noise could be discerned. Three bandits had been killed in just a few breaths of time.

"What are you bastards lazing about!", the axe wielder shouted. His expression of mockery and contempt had turned deeply serious, as he stared behind at the village entrance with fury.

But that emotion too, changed into one of shock when he found the bodies of the bandit archers lying on the ground, in a pool of blood around their heads. How!? How long have they been dead!?

Standing against such a powerful and unknown enemy, fear, and uneasiness slowly crept up in his heart. The archer's presence could not be detected no matter how hard he tried, indicating the foe's masterful skill. He needed to quickly take care of this danger, lest their members succumb to the dreadful sniper, one after the other.

screeech!

The axe wielding bandit did not have to wait long, since the moment he had turned to look behind, another familiar sharp whistle cut through the air approaching him from afar. Cold sweat overflowed from his skin in that instant, as he hurriedly jumped backward to avoid the arrow that was accurately aimed at his head. But as if his actions were already telegraphed, the projectile curved upwards, following him right behind

ding!

"Shit!...ugh!"

With no more room to dodge and with the arrowhead right in front of his eyes, the bandit hurriedly brought forth his axe trying to deflect the projectile. A loud grunt escaped his mouth due to the sheer strength behind the arrow, making him stumble back a few steps. The parrying hand instantly went numb from the impact. The sensation was akin to deflecting a heavy mace, making the bandit seriously doubt for a moment if it was really just an arrow.

The surrounding villagers did not miss this opportunity. Flames could be seen burning once again in their lifeless eyes, and their previously hesitant and rigid actions suddenly became more explosive. The axe wielding bandit could not defend the entirety of villagers' assault this time, only being able to twist his body to protect his vitals as a few sword slashes invigorated into his flesh.

"HAAAH----!"

screech!! schiing!

The axe wielder roared in consequence, fury descending onto him like waves of high tide. But just when he had tensed his muscles to undergo another one of those devastating spinning attacks, another arrow suddenly whistled past the air, again aiming his head. A metallic sheen covered the bandit's body at that moment, as he once again tried to deflect the archer's vicious attack.

ding!

The arrow was perfectly parried this time, without the bandit faltering at his stance. But he still had to take another few sword slashes on his body from the villagers that surrounded him. Anger rose from within his heart, as the ferocious bandit was suddenly forced into a defensive fight due to the fear of getting sniped, while the annoying villagers' nicked him with weapons every now and then.

The same situation happened over and over again for a few times, as the axe wielding bandit was forced to block or dodge the deadly arrows, while wounds continuously piled upon his body. The villagers' explosive change as they lashed onto him fearlessly with crazed looks, was also one of the reasons he felt frustrated and anxious. At this rate, he would die from blood loss, even before the arrows could find their targets. He suddenly regretted his initial decision of jumping into the middle of this mob with nowhere to escape.

'Just once! If I could just spin once, crushing these annoying files, I could gain some distance and catch some breath.'

The bandit firmly resolved himself, waiting for the next snipe as he winded up to create momentum for another spinning attack, and as expected an arrow arrived just on time, this time screeching towards his heart, trying to prevent the whirlwind slashes. But the axe wielder did not halt his momentum, unlike previously, instead of jumping upwards, timing himself perfectly to hit the arrow during the rotation. His body glowed with a metallic colour once again, as the axe was swung at the projectile with all his might.

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DING! screech!

The arrow was instantly sent flying away, and the bandit continued with the momentum, just about to crush down one of the village men beside him. But suddenly, his face warped in horror, looking at the black dot closing in on him with ferocious velocity.

'Two arrows!'

A second arrow, hidden right behind the first one, whizzed past the air targeting the bandit in a compromising position. Only now did he understand, that all the previous instances were a bait, just for this moment. Gritting his teeth at the last moment, he brought forth his metallic leg, placing it in front of his chest to block the projectile.

pssh!

Much to the bandit's surprise, the arrow lodged into the man's knee quite deeply, severing the ligaments. He landed on the ground with a crippling pain that distorted his face, but unfortunately, the worst had yet to arrive. The villagers' follow strikes landed cleanly, pushing him back as the bandit stumbled with a crippled leg. And before he could even catch his breath, a cold chill went up his spine as he hurriedly brought his axes forward, placing them in front of his heart like a cross.

schiing!

An arrow with a dazzling red aura impacted the blade of the axes right at that moment with an irritating metallic grind. The bandit frantically tried to block the projectile, his body shining brightly with a silvery sheen overcoating the weapon.

pssh! spurt!

The brief confrontation between the two colours was won by the red arrow, which drilled past the steel blades and the chest muscles, right into the man's heart as he was flung backward by the momentum, crashing on the ground. Another second was not provided to express any form of emotion, as the surrounding villagers skewered him from all sides with swords and axes, making his body resemble a hedgehog.

"HAAAAAAH!"

A deafening roar resounded throughout the plaza, seeking attention from the entire battlefield. Only this time it was from the villagers' side, mainly the ones who had finished off the axe wielder. The boost of morale was quite contagious, instilling immense courage within the villagers, while simultaneously increasing the feelings of trepidation among the bandits, as the tides of the battle started shifting in the opposite direction.

shua! shua! shua!

The hearts of the bandits jumped every time the ear-piercing sound reverberated throughout the battlefield. They seem to come from every direction accurately targeting their vitals, timed perfectly at the moments their bodies end up in compromising positions where they are unable to defend.

Three more bandits had been killed since the death of the axe wielder, one directly dying from a headshot, while the other two being pierced through along different body parts, immobilizing them momentarily for the villager's kill. As a result, the villager's morale kept on increasing, finally managing to push back the bandits who had now switched to the defensive.

"kekeke, I'm different from those idiots. It is impossible to hit me within this crowd!", the slant-eyed man shouted, as he twisted and turned through the gaps of people like an illusion.

He was the only one among the bandits who enjoyed the situation with a sinister smile, using the crowd to advantage contrary to his comrades. After witnessing the sheer power behind the arrows, he was smart enough to not try to parry them.

"Keke, you will become my best toy tonight. Ah! I can't wait for you to show yourself! I can't wait to blind your eyes! I can't wait to play with you!", the slant-eyed man laughed with a sadistic expression, bringing chills running along the spines of the villagers surrounding him.

The to and fro battle continued for a while, with all of the arrows being perfectly dodged by the bandit, along with the flurry of melee strikes, all while stabbing the pitiful villagers every few instances. Although, as time passed, the people surrounding him gradually got fainter and fainter and the sadistic savage was too busy enjoying the situation to notice the change. By the time he realized, it was too late.

screech!

One arrow, slightly faster than the others, approached the slant-eyed bandit's head almost instantly the moment his surroundings opened up. Only now did the bandit realize that he had been lead towards the empty pathway opened up by the giant. His expression flickered for the first time as he hurriedly stepped back under his sharp instincts, but the arrow again curved upwards, following him right behind. The bandit twisted his body sideways, barely avoiding the arrow that grazed past his rags.

screech!

A second arrow made it's way right at that instant, hidden behind the previous one almost penetrating the man's chest.

"I have already seen this pattern, you idiot!" the bandit snickered, inhumanely twisting his body further from his already uncomfortable position, again barely dodging the arrow that grazed past him.

screech!!

A mocking smile pertained on his face as tried to regain his balance, and just when he was about to rush into the crowd to use them as shields once again, another arrow arrived right after, aimed at his chest hidden behind the second one!

Three arrows! Fired in such quick succession, they traveled like the compartments of a train.

"What!" the bandit exclaimed, his face distorted in shock. He was neither in a position to dodge or parry the projectile and could only grit his teeth in fury as he helplessly blocked it with his flesh.

"AHHH! I'll kill you, you piece of shit!!" he screamed with all his might as the arrow pierced his forearms, drilling through the bone and sticking out of the other side, crippling the arm in its entirety.

swish!

But just as he had lowered his waist, getting ready for an explosive dash, to his horror a dazzling green projectile had already reached his neck from the side at that moment. It was timed perfectly, being just an instant late to the third hidden arrow. The direction of this arrow was perpendicular to the previous three, whizzing straight from the bandit's blind spot.

Is it really just one person!? That was the only question the slant-eyed man could think before the green arrow drilled a bloody hole in his neck. From a birds-eye perspective, one could see that the path followed by the dazzling green arrow made an almost perfect semicircle with the three straight arrows.

"Nobh....cabth ...dietth, I...slith...eyesbh", unbelievably the bandit was not dead yet, muttering incoherent words with chunks of meat flying out of his mouth, as he jumbled forwards trying to wave his dagger. It seemed he was still trying to slit the eyes of a nearby villager.

swish! swish!

Two arrows simultaneously made their ways to the bandit's head as an answer, piercing both of his non-existent slant eyes. the attack punctured the brain as the man banged headfirst into the ground due to the momentum.

"HAAAAAAH!"

The cries of the villagers once again pierced the high heavens. They knew very well who was the person responsible for this miraculous turnaround, and they could feel the despair and helplessness slowly being removed from their minds, instead replaced by a glimmer of hope in this desolate darkness. The weak morale, which seemed to flicker out at any moment, was suddenly protected by a pair of alluring hands.