Chapter 6 : One-sided Slaughter
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Realizing that the sounds of battles have now completely died out, I subconsciously activated my low-level skill [Sprint]. My body was enveloped by a faint blue light as my mana began to concentrate towards my two legs.
Adventurers often fight against creatures that threaten their lives. The smallest of missteps would be a major setback towards the adventurer, often leading them to their own demise. Although the knowledge in fighting is an incredibly important factor when it comes to being an adventurer, learning when to run away is equally important.
Thus, along with three other basic skills, [Sprint] was a requirement to become an adventurer. Although it's purpose is opposite to what I'm doing, going towards the problem doesn't mean that [Sprint] isn't being used incorrectly. Not only is [Sprint] a tool used to run further away from the problem, it is also a tool used to go towards the problem. Such occasions are when you wish to lend a hand towards victims in life-threatening situations, such as this.
A 3 minute run was thinned down by one minute, thus, I've reached my destination in atleast 2 minutes. Although it may not seem much, but even a second of time would greatly change the situation. The moment I laid my eyes upon the destination, I've already realized what was going on.
This road connected a nearby village to the city. It seems that the residents of said village decided to traverse this road to sell their numerous products such as crops, animal hide, etc. But, they've underestimated the capabilities of bandits causing them to dig their own graves.
Bandits are without a doubt, the lowest level of scum. They would steal hard-earned objects from others and would kill those who stand in their way. Once their lustful gazes land on a particular beauty, they would begin to ravage said beauty to the point that they would break.
But, that isn't their most horrible trait. The moment a bandit would get their hands on people, they would either sell them as slaves or take their body parts and sell it in the black market. The former seemed to be the more prominent situation due to the fact that slaves were legal.
Fearing that these innocent civilians would lose their right to be called a "person", I decided to make my move. By using [Detect], another skill that is required to become an adventurer, I found out the amount of bandits and their location.
[Detect], like [Sprint], is self-explanatory. By sending a tiny wave of nearly undetectable mana, I would be able to locate anyone so as long as they are atleast 10m near me. Although there are certain objects that could interfere with the wave such as thick walls, mana-absorbing objects, mana-blocking objects and barrier skills, nothing of the sort seem to be present in this situation. Thus, [Detect] is appropriate and should be accurate.
I managed to locate 18 bandits and 6 villagers. 17 bandits were huddled up near the cart while one bandit laid low in one of the bushes. I assumed that the one that hid in one of the bushes was the scout of the bandits. It was strange that a scout would stay low inside bushes rather than a more advantageous spot such as on top of a tree, but seeing as one of the bandits shouted towards the direction of the hidden person, I began to believe that my doubts about this person were correct.
The hidden person stood up from the bush, causing it to violently rustle. One questionable trait this person had were his black clothing. One would think that this man were to be a necromancer due to his black clothing, but his red eyes and snow white hair said otherwise.
The white haired man began his attack on one of the bandits was at a close distance. He attempted to take the bandit as hostage, but his weak attack wasn't enough. As the bandit slammed his body towards the tree, I begin to make my move.
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I stood up from my own hiding place as I used [Sprint] to quickly shorten the distance between me and my target, the 2 bandits near the cart. With the use of the skill [Feather Feet], a skill that decreased any sound I made from running by 50%, I silently arrived at my destination.
Without the existence of a scout in this group of bandits and with all of them concentrated on the white-haired man, began my attack. I pulled out my longsword from my sheath and with one swift motion, I decapitated the two bandits. Their deaths were so quick that they never had time to let out a shriek nor did they have the time to react. The mouths of their decapitated heads were still open due the fact that they were laughing. The white-haired man's failed attempt to attack seemed to be funny for them, but, they were foolish to even think that they had the time to laugh in a forest as dangerous as this.
As their heads fell to the ground creating a faint thud, I quickly guided myself towards my next targets when all of a sudden, I heard the shriek of one of the bandits.
"I-It's the Star-girl!" the bandit furthest from my area screamed as he pointed towards my body.
My title is The Unattainable Star, not Star-girl! I ranted in my mind right before I sliced open the backs of my targets. The two of them screamed in pain as the one who I assumed to be the leader began to shout towards his men.
"What're you all waiting for?! ATTACK!" he furiously pointed towards me.
All of the bandits reacted as they began to pick up their swords. With two of the bandits decapitated and another two heavily wounded, only 13 of them were capable of fighting me. The nearest bandit swung his broadsword towards my body, but I dodged his attack by quickly sidestepping. Not even a second passed when I raised my sword and sliced both his arms off.
"AAAARRGGHHH!" he let out a painful screech once he realized that he lost both of his arms.
A majority of bandits stopped on their tracks once they saw how I removed him of his arms, but the rest kept on sprinting towards me. A bandit, barely wearing any armor, jumped towards me. Both the short swords attached towards his hands nearly stabbed me, but my body ducked right at the last second. Using the advantage of him suspended in the air, I thrust my sword towards his stomach, instantly impaling him.
Seeing as one of his comrades attempted to attack me from my side, I shoved his impaled body towards his comrade causing both of them to fall down towards the ground. Wasting no time, I shoved my sword down towards their chests, ending both of them in an instant. Realizing that brute force could only get me so far, I decided to use my skills.
I extend my arm as I point my sword towards the furthest group of bandits. Just like pulling a rope, I pull my sword. Once the hilt of my sword was at a level similar to my cheek, I began to shout the trigger word for the skill.
"[Full Thrust]!"
My body was enveloped with a red faint light as my body flung towards the direction my sword pointed. Just like how a boulder would smash onto the ground, my feet collided with the soil leaving behind a small fog of dust and a small foot-shaped crater.
In a blink of an eye, I've impaled the chests of a line of bandits. The three of them went limp once my blade skewered their bodies like meat. I've thinned down their numbers to a frightening point, causing all their morale to disappear in less than a second.
"She's a m-monster!" one bandit complained as all the power in his legs disappeared, causing him to fall on his butt.
"I'm bailing fuck this!" the bandit next to him dropped his sword and just ran away.
The rest of the bandits followed in his example and ran away. Some hesitated at first, they glanced towards their leader's angered face. But, once their gaze went towards me, they instantly ran away.
"Cowards!" their leader screamed.
Slowly, I walk towards his direction as I emit large amounts of bloodlust. Although he tries to hide it, I could clearly see his fear due to his legs shaking vigorously. I decided to end this by imbuing my bloodlust with mana, causing my to unconsciously use [Intimidate].
Eventually, the man realized the intensity of his situation when he began to follow his subordinates. With his pants wet, he screamed as he dashed towards the forest.
Although their mouths were covered by cloth, I could clearly hear the screams of joy the villagers created. Some even cried tears of joy when they realized that they were free from the bandit's shackle. Instead of freeing them, which should be my to priority right now, my gaze fell towards the white-haired man. He stared at me with his mouth open, both his crimson-red eyes contained awe along with a tiny portion of fear.