Jude fought and won against Abaud and gained a massive amount of EXP.  But he was in desperate need of even more EXP if Guudnash was even more powerful than Abaud.  Jude had been told that when Abaud had been arrested he was only level 22 but after he became a he was somewhere around level 40.

He also had learned that Guudnash was at level 39, but already had an Elite Class he had been leveling up.  Which means he had two other jobs at level 30.  Jude was unsure what level he would be at when he became a but it wouldn’t be low.

Right now Jude needed levels more than anything and what better way to get levels than from a weakened Bandit?  But after looking around there was no sign of him.  The bandit ran away!

Jude opened up to see if he could get any clues.  But the corruption from the explosion left the entire area in a mess.

“,” Jude said as he used the Ghost Commanders Eye variant.  A life form couldn’t hide from this eye as long as it was in range.  And to his luck, he not only found the bandit but also clues to the secret passage that the Bandit had used.

Jude walked over to a wall and found clear markings of the hidden passage.  It was a stone that looked like it was part of the wall itself with a hidden handle in a hole that no one would willingly put their hand into.  Normally this wouldn’t be easy to find, but since the blast covered everything in gooey like dust, the signs of the bandit using it was quite clear.

Jude also knew that this hidden passage wasn’t an escape route, but more like a safe room.  Ghost Commander’s Eye reviled that it was a dead end.

He still had the spectral swords out so he entered fully prepared.  The rock slid away revealing a tight tunnel.  Jude carefully progressed along it as it slowly opened up into a room.

The bandit lay on the floor gasping for breath, clearly on his last leg.  The room itself was still a rough cave and was filled with the precious treasure that the Bandit had hoarded.

“Just kill me,” the Bandit rasped.

Jude was about to do just that, but then he remembered that he had a lot of questions, “I will end your suffering, but I have a few questions.  Answer them quick and honestly and you will have a quick and honest death.  Don’t and I will let you die slowly of your own devices.”

The Bandit scowled and gritted his teeth.  Blood oozed out of his mouth, but he said no words.

“How many more are there?” Jude asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Oh come on, I know there is at least one more.”

“I said, I don’t know.  I only meet the one.”

“What was he doing to the slaves?”

“Corrupting them somehow, it was similar to how I make but at the same time different.  I’m not sure exactly what it is.”

“How many of those slaves went away from here?”

“No more than 40 from here, but they could be using other Bandits as well.  Who knows how many there are,” the Bandit laughed.

“What can these do?”

“I don’t know that either, now just kill me.” The Bandit coughed up more blood.

Jude’s mind was reeling; he didn’t know what else to ask because his thoughts were now a jumble.  With a flick of his hand, he ended the Bandits misery and notice more level ups.

He eyed the boxes of Jewels and gold.  There were also a number of other items, like swords and armor.  He wasn’t sure if he could carry it all in his but he was sure willing to try.

***

It was the next day and Jude had still not returned.  Krinn would like to think that he wasn’t worried, but he actually was.  Still, as the leader in Jude’s absence, he could not let his worry show.  He had even stayed in all night instead of his usual carousing in the local pubs.

Wen noticed this as well but didn’t say anything.  She knew her brother and would support him when he got serious.  Right now he was serious.

“I’m going to take Alpha Group and go to Valley Maze.” He told her.  “I want you to stay here and continue with training the recruits.”

Krinn was surprised that she agreed, “Of course.  Find Jude and bring him back.”

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What Krinn didn’t know was that she was trying to support him. She wanted to go herself, but also knew that they had more responsibilities than just them and Jude.  Jude, of course, was the most important person in Heroic Retribution, but supporting her brother’s decision now was also important.  Following the chain of command was the only way any mercenary company would work.

Krinn then gathered the Alpha Group, which consisted of two Warriors, a Rogue, a Healer, and a Wizard.  The Warriors and Rogue were most talented out of all the recruits.  The healer was Nellie who Jude had made into a Healer.  She had excelled at healing able to Rank Up her skills faster than any of the other Healers once she leveled up.  She was nearly as fast as Jude was!  The Wizard was Cairfray, the first that Jude gave the job too.  Her views of Jude were on the fanatical side of things.  At first, it proved to be a good thing as she worked the hardest out of all the recruits and her achievements only second to Nellie.  But Krinn was beginning to wonder if her views of Jude were a little extreme.  Still, her loyalty was unquestionable.  And besides Jude, she was the best Wizard they had.

Nellie and Cairfray had actually developed a rivalry.  This seemed to really bolster Nellie’s naturally timid personality.  She was slowly coming out of her shell and being a little bolder.  At least when it involved Cairfray.

Krinn and the Alpha Group left Longdale and traveled north towards Valley Maze.

“Valley Maze,” Krinn said when they reached their destination, “is a very confusing and dangerous place.  Maps of the place are hard to come by and rarely accurate.  There is a natural barrier to sensing your direction inside, so don't trust yourself if you think one direction is north or south because it’s probably east or west.  If you get separated from the group.  Don’t move.  We will come find you.

“You are to keep a lookout for any signs of travel or clues Jude may have left behind for the path he took.  Maze Valley is not a spawn area, so if we confront any beast or people, know that they are smarter than what you are used to.  Don’t overestimate yourself and if they number the same as us, we will run.

“You guys are only level 10, everything here is between 20 to 25 with Bandits being over level 30.  As long as there is only one, we should be fine.  But it will be a tough fight.  Make sure you listen and do exactly what I say!”

“Yes Sir!” they all responded.

“Good, let’s go!”

***

Jude was over encumbered.  His pace had slowed to a crawl, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave behind all the treasure that the Bandit had accumulated.

If it had been anyone else, they would not have been able to carry all the loot.  But with Jude’s skill he was able to pocket it all.  Unfortunately, he still felt the weight of a portion of the loot.  But it was worth it, and not just by the value of the loot, Jude’s skill had Ranked Up to Rank II.  The rank up reduced the weight of the items in his inventory, but not by much.  Still, it allowed him to move at least a little bit more freely.

He was out of the Bandits cave and in the Valley Maze.  He had been up the entire night and spent a lot of time fighting.  But as tired as he was, he still kept up his guard.  The Ghost Commanders Eye variant of was being put to full use.  Jude had kept good notes on the way he took into Valley Maze, so he wasn’t afraid of getting lost.  What he didn’t want to meet was the local beasts, especially being encumbered.

His heart started pounding when he saw a group of six within his range of detection.  But as he reviewed his directions, he estimated that they were down another pathway.  He sighed in relief, but then curiosity then took place in his heart and he decided to take a look.  He hoped it was some sort of dangerous beast that he could get a close look at.

He dispelled Ghost Commanders Eye and created a normal to go searching.  There was a natural barrier that kept things from flying out of the maze, so Jude had to go through several different passageways to find the group he found with Ghost Commanders Eye.  Fortunately, the eye was very fast.

When he finally found the group he was surprised to find that it was Krinn and some of the recruits.  Then he was overjoyed!  They could help him carry the loot!  He quickly revealed the eye to Krinn by making it fly in front of his face!

Krinn said something to the eye, but Jude couldn’t hear, only see.  Still, he was able to lead Krinn and the others back to where he was.  By the time they arrived, Jude had already unloaded a lot of the loot he had gotten.

Krinn laughed, “Ha ha, it’s about time we found you!  And what is all this stuff?”

“I cleared out that Bandits den and was having a problem carrying all the loot back.  I’m glad you guys showed up.  It will make things much easier.” Jude replied.

“You cleared out an entire Bandit den all by yourself?” Clairfray asked with stars in her eyes.  “Only our leader could do such a thing!”

“The bandits weren’t the true problem.  Krinn, we’ve got trouble.  What happened to the slaves I left you to rescue?”  Jude said.

Krinn replied, “We took them back to town and the Town Stone verified that they were slaves made by a Bandit.  After that, the towns guard took over taking care of them.  We got a hefty reward for capturing and returning the slaves as well as the thugs who bought them.”

“So the slaves are now with Lord Merek?” Jude asked with a grimace.

“I guess, why?  Does it matter?” Krinn was worried.

“I encountered a in the Bandit den,” Jude said.  “The was turning slaves into what I believe are .  However, these seem to be able to appear to be human.  It is quite possible that the slaves we delivered to town are actually .”

“What?!  We need to warn the town!” Nellie said.

“We need to do something, but what I’m not exactly sure,” Jude said.  “Lord Merek is involved in this and these slaves turned are indistinguishable.  Even if I warn the town as a whole, I have no proof besides the fact that I’ve killed a demon.”

“You killed a demon!” Cairfray said with renewed vigor.

“What level are these ,” Krinn asked.

“Abaud was probably level 40.”

“Abaud?!” Krinn had heard the stories, it was a hot topic back in town for a while now.

“Yeah, he somehow had been turned into a .  He was the one creating the slaves.”

“This is bad; wouldn’t that mean the Guudnash is also a ?”  Krinn asked.

“I believe he is, why?”  Jude sensed there was more to this.

“Guudnash was already famous.  He was a Rogue class that advanced through Shadow Hunter into the Ninja Elite class.  He was an agent famous for solving a lot of problems for the Riwa kingdom.  The only reason he took up the Head Trainer position in Longdale was for Abaud.

“He already has a grudge against you, but now it will be to an all new level.  You need to be very careful now.  He will be quite dangerous.”

“Then let’s get back to Longdale and prepare!”  Jude said.