The bandit camp was located at the foot of a small mountain. There was a modest-looking fort set up using a ring of trees to reinforce their position. Several guards stood lazily along the border, not doing their job of monitoring their surroundings properly. There were two watchtowers set up on both sides of an inconspicuous gate, which were partly covered by treetops. A decent expanse of flatlands spread between the fort and the forest, which would allow the bandits enough time to sound an alarm if they spotted someone approaching.
“Thank god they’re safe…”
A dozen bandits surrounded the five captive women in the clearing. They were beaten and bruised, and two of them were even unconscious. However, there were no signs of them being assaulted – at least not yet. The bandits seemed much more interested in the hooded figure that stood among them.
“What are they talking about?”
“… It seems like they got the wrong captives.”
Tolg’s fluffy canine ears twitched with every large movement the bandits made in response to the hooded figure. The bandit boss looked clearly agitated, even from a distance.
“Wrong captives? So they were hired?”
“Seems like it.”
It made sense if the bandits were able to take down a caravan arranged by the church. In addition, they were guarded by adventurers. The vast majority of the bodies on the caravan were that of bandits, so they must have arranged enough members to ensure they could take it down. Only a large amount of money and the possibility of additional compensation would give them the incentive.
Otherwise, there would have been no way for a ragtag bunch of criminals to coordinate such a risky attack.
“That hooded figure. I think it’s hiding its presence.”
“What’s the use? He’s in plain view.”
“I don’t know. Perhaps it’s a precaution in case they were raided. He could slip out without anybody noticing… Oh, it looks like the bandit boss isn’t too happy. Their client will only pay half the price.”
“That’s… well, at least it’s not the worst-case scenario.”
If the client had refused to pay for the captives, then the bandits would be outraged. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what would happen to the women who would be left in their hands. At least, if the client was still willing to pay for them, then they shouldn’t be harmed too much, as there may be a chance that the client would refuse “damaged goods”. In a sense, they were safe for a while.
But that was if the bandit leader accepted the price.
Fortunately, it seemed like he did. After a while of complaining, and even threatening the hooded man with violence, they eventually gave up and accepted the trade. Money was money. They lost a lot of men in that attack, so it would be stupid to not accept the deal.
“That man’s going to pick up the women tonight, it seems.”
“We have some time until then.”
There were still several hours before nightfall. All three of them could move out at any time. The question is if they should wait until then. There were advantages and disadvantages to both choices. He was confident about defeating a few dozen bandits, even if reinforcements came from within the fort. The entire field was within Manna’s sniping range, while an open battle would only be advantageous for him and Tolg. However, how fast would they be able to rescue the captives? If the bandits held them hostage properly, then it would become a big problem.
If they waited until darkness fell, then it would be much easier to conduct the rescue. For one, people rarely stayed awake for extended periods during the night. Their guards would be at their most lax. However, at that point, the captives might have already been assaulted. The hooded figure made no note as to what the bandits were allowed to do to them. Manna also wouldn’t be able to support them as much within such narrow and winding confines.
Either way, they had the element of surprise. Both were equally viable choices. But for Matthias, there was only one option to take.
They had to rescue the captives immediately. There was no way he was going to let them suffer any longer. That was what a hero should do. If Soleil was there, then she wouldn’t even need to think about it. She would have just rushed at the moment they saw the captives.
“I suggest we wait until nightfall,” Tolg suddenly whispered. “The hooded man told them not to touch the prisoners, or he would not pay a single bronze for them. They should be safe for now. If we sneak in properly, then they wouldn’t even have a chance to use them as hostages.”
Matthias’ shoulders relaxed at the news. But at the same time, he wished that they mentioned those details earlier. It would have saved him the mental gymnastics.
----------------------------------------
As they were practically guaranteed that the women would be safe, their priorities changed. Moving at night had become much more desirable.
To catch the hooded man, they decided to wait until he showed up again. Tolg had night vision, while Manna had trained herself to be able to see in the dark. Matthias simply needed to be notified.
A couple of hours after night came, Tolg nudged him awake. It was time for them to move. Matthias signaled to the trees for Manna to scout ahead. She didn’t respond, but he saw a shadow leap from the canopy and dash towards the camp without a sound.
By the time they came to the fort, they had found that all of the sentries posted at the gates and watchtowers had an arrow through their throats. The number of bodies inside was even higher. Since the fort was within a wooded area, it had become Manna’s hunting ground. Despite the lack of decent lighting, every bandit died with a precise shot through the neck.
Stolen story; please report.
Matthias subconsciously understood why she had aimed there instead of an instant kill on their heads. She was probably angry. The captives were her fellow women after all. A shot to the throat through their spine would make them suffer for a while, unable to call for help or crawl to safety.
She was likely aware that it was her best chance to get back at them. And upon entering the cave, he realized that she really wouldn’t have much of an opportunity to do so inside.
It opened up to a wide chamber. There were several bandits inside, but they were quickly subdued by their combined efforts. Unlike Manna’s ruthless methods, Matthias preferred not to kill his targets. Although having their head smashed in by the face of his sword was far from the most pleasant of experiences. Surprisingly, Tolg also didn’t kill anybody. Similar to Matthias, he used his staff as a blunt weapon and knocked them out.
After that, the path became a winding mess of excavated rock and collapsed soil. Lanterns were placed at irregular intervals on the walls, which illuminated the earth drenched with groundwater. A foul ammonia smell came from everywhere, which hinted at the bad hygiene of the bandits there. Trash littered the place and ranged from discarded food to broken weapons. There were even torn female clothes, which gave Matthias quite a fright until he realized from their state that they must have been from a time long past.
Due to the limited visibility, Matthias called on Manna to guard the entrance. As much as she hated it, she wouldn’t be of much use in such a place. Her skill with a dagger was more or less at the level of a common warrior, which would spell trouble if she had to fight more than one person.
That was the first time Tolg had seen her. The surprise on his face as Manna emerged from the shadows was amusing.
After making some gestures at her, Manna stomped back towards the entrance unhappily. But despite her grumbling, Matthias trusted her to do her job properly.
Even after committing a large number of their ranks to the attack, there were still a lot of bandits within the main hideout. To avoid alerting the nest, they had to knock out every single one of them. If any of them saw the bodies, which Matthias and Tolg couldn’t hide, then a single shout would alert the entire base of their presence.
“Leave those two to me.”
“Got it.”
Fortunately, despite his massive size, Tolg was very used to covert operations. He ran with all four of his limbs to spread his weight and then pulled his staff out at the last minute to knock them out. Even when he did it from the front, he ran so fast that he gave the two no time to react.
“We’re getting close.”
Matthias heard someone shouting. Tolg confirmed that it should be their boss. He also heard the hooded man’s voice in their conversation.
“What’s happening?”
“It seems like… the bandit boss is demanding an increase in their payment.”
A rough idea formed in Matthias’ head. They must have agreed on the initial amount earlier that afternoon as a pretense. Once the hooded man came back, they could then demand more money and threaten him with violence. Being in the middle of their hideout, being overwhelmed by numbers was a very real threat. It was a very bandit-like behavior. Matthias scoffed in ridicule.
“This is bad.”
Suddenly, the chances that the women will be killed became a real possibility again. It was fortunate that they managed to arrive at a point where they could hear the conversation before the argument escalated. Despite the various branching paths in the cave, Tolg’s ears could accurately guide them to the main chamber. Once they defeat the boss and hopefully capture the hooded figure, then it would only be a matter of beating up any reinforcements that arrived.
They decided to pick up the pace. In doing so, they weren’t able to avoid making a bit of a commotion. Fortunately, the bandit leader’s yelling was loud enough to drown what little noise they made as they pushed through the guards.
As they turned the last corner, Matthias sealed the path using earth magic. It would give them enough time to work on freeing the captives and overpowering their two targets without being outnumbered.
Matthias found that working with the beastkin was a pleasant experience. Tolg was supportive and conscious of his needs. Despite only having spent less than a day with him, he was already able to adapt himself to Matthias’ movements and habits. It was a striking contrast between his experiences with Soleil, who always rushed in without much thinking.
For example, the moment he ran out of cover, Tolg blew a gust of wind and dirt toward the occupants inside. Together with their element of surprise, it gave Matthias enough time to knock out the three henchmen-looking thugs near their leader. Tolg also ran out and disabled the two other bandits near the prison cells.
In an instant, they had forced the fight into a two-on-two scenario.
“Who the hell are you?!” the bandit leader demanded.
Within the dimly-lit chamber, Matthias finally saw the big boss of that gang. He was a tall man with a ferocious face. Together with his neatly-shaved head and leather jacket, he looked like a stereotypical hooligan. The massive arms were attached to a densely-muscled torso, and an equally large axe hung on his back.
“Wow, that’s really standard,” Matthias thought calmly.
If it was any other time, Matthias would have knocked him out immediately as well, leaving only the hooded man for interrogation. A bandit wouldn’t know anything important after all. But despite being blinded earlier by Tolg’s wind, Matthias found that the bandit leader had shown no openings. If he had attacked him regardless at that time, he would have been in a world of hurt.
“We’re here to rescue the captives.”
Despite the pressure the large bandit leader was emitting, Matthias remained calm. Whatever he was trying to do, he couldn’t do it at the same level as an undead drake.
To his side, a decent distance away, stood the hooded man. For some reason, his outline appeared to be hazy. That was when he learned what Tolg meant by his trying to hide his presence. Matthias had to put some effort just to keep him in his sight.
“What is the meaning of this, Lod?” the bandit leader shouted behind him. The hooded man simply shrugged.
“They should be adventurers. You must have let someone escape when you attacked.”
“That can’t be! We set up an ambush in the forest!”
“That tag on his neck says he’s an adventurer, though.”
A nerve popped on the man’s bald head.
“Whatever. If this kid made it here, then that means—“
“Your guys are dead.”
Matthias interrupted him, knowing full well that he’ll anger the man. Emotions tended to force people to make bad decisions. Hopefully, that would make it easier to fight him, even if it meant having to face his full force early on.
Most of all, it would put all of his attention on him. There would be less of a chance that he would use the hostages as shields. At that moment, Tolg should be reinforcing the doors to the prison cells.
Sure enough, his provocation worked. The vein on his head bulged in rage. His face was flushed and even from a distance, Matthias heard his teeth grinding.
But then, a deep, desperate growl came from behind him.
“Sir Matthias… these women are dead…”