'You should return to Roxanne and the others and wait for my signal, Setsuna,' I said through the party link, brushing away her hot tears with my thumb.
'What about them, Master?' she whispered, her gaze falling on the two women sprawled across the bed. Her voice carried the same pain that showed in her eyes.
From the way she had addressed one of them earlier, it was obvious they were people she knew. Yet neither had stirred—not even after Setsuna had stabbed the Bandit Boss beside them. Whether it was a drug-induced sleep or simple exhaustion, they remained motionless.
'Leave them for now. We'll help them once the rest of the bandits are dealt with,' I replied, reclaiming Durandal from her trembling hands as I opened a Warp for her.
Setsuna hesitated only a moment, casting one final, lingering glance at the women before stepping through.
'How's it outside?' I asked the others through the link while retrieving my helmet and gloves from my inventory. I slipped them on, tucking my mask away—as stealth was no longer needed.
According to Remu and the rest, the situation beyond the house remained unchanged. That was good. I also double-checked with Appraisal: the Bandit Leader's name had disappeared, confirming his death.
The stench itself in the room had shifted. Where the air had once reeked of sweat and sex, it now carried the heavy tang of blood.
Before stepping out, I glanced down at my trump card—the Magic Bracelet adorned on my wrist
[Magic Bracelet
-Magic Gem (100%)
-Magic Gem (100%)
-Magic Gem (100%)
-Magic Gem (10/10)
-Magic Gem (10/10)
-Magic Gem (10/10)]
'I'm ready. Once I draw their attention, Remu and Miria—you two will warp in first and strike. When I open the next warp, Roxanne and Setsuna, that's your cue to join the attack,' I carefully relayed over the details of the next steps to them.
The girls responded positively.
With a Bloody Durandal in my hand, I stepped out of the room, ignored the lantern I had left on the floor, and pushed the door of the house open. Before the thief posted outside could turn, the blade had already found his throat—one clean slice. His head and body hit the earth with dull thuds.
In front of me stretched an open space lit by two crackling bonfires. To the left lounged four thieves—Levels 6, 19, 36, and 43. To the right, two more thieves, Levels 8 and 24, sat with the bandit leader's brother, the Level 5 Bandit.
Appraisal confirmed that just like before: none of them were wearing armor, and their swords lay carelessly at their sides. They were drunk, laughing without a care in the world—until the heavy thud of the body hitting the ground snapped them to attention.
"Who the hell is this? He came out of Boss's place!" shouted the level 36 thief as he scrambled up.
"Shit—he killed him!" the level 43 thief barked.
"What are you numbskulls doing? Get him—kill him!" snarled the level 5 Bandit.
The seven of them lunged for their copper swords and rushed at me in a chaotic clatter.
In that brief span, I had already moved forward, closing the gap. As what I was about to unleash needed them closer.
Under the bonfire's glow, their drunken charge looked monstrous, shadows twisting across their faces like demons rushing to tear me apart. But I triggered Overwhelming, and their rush slowed to a crawl. Their wild charge lost its menace; now they looked more like sluggish prey.
A smirk tugged at my lips as I raised my right fist. The black bracelet gleamed in the firelight, three blue gems and three red gems set neatly into it. And one of the red gems started to glow faintly in the dark.
'Firewall'
'Firewall'
'Firewall'
'Firewall'
'Firewall'
I had quickly used four charges from one of the Magic Crystal to cast four Firewalls instantly. And to top it off I casted one more Firewall with my own magic.
Three walls of fire roared up before the four thieves on the left, merging into a blazing curtain that cut them off completely. The other two melded and blazed up before the trio on the right.
The night erupted with screams as the inferno burst to life.
"Aghhhhhh!"
"What the fuck is this?!"
"Shit—he's a fucking wizard!"
"Get past the fire, you bastards! Kill him!"
The level 6 and level 8 thieves, too slow to react, charged straight into the flames. Their clothes ignited instantly, their hair curling away into ash as their skin blistered and blackened. Their weapons clattered to the dirt as they shrieked in agony, stumbling blindly aside like living torches.
The level 19 and level 24 thieves fared no better—singed and scorched, they dropped their swords too, clawing desperately at their burning clothes and skin, their screams ripping through the night as they thrashed in a futile attempt to put out the fire.
The level 35 and 43 thieves weren't quick enough to escape the firewall either. Unlike the others, though, they didn't drop their weapons or scream—they just cursed viciously, gritting their teeth as they kept charging at me, their skin blistering and clothes burning away in the magical flames.
I could already guess what their plan was. A firewall cast by a wizard only lasts ten seconds. They wanted to endure it, push through, and hope that the fire disappears soon—at least that's what they were gambling on.
The level 5 bandit, the Boss's brother, had been trailing just behind them. He was furious, but smart and quick enough to stop before entering the flames. His sword flashed in the firelight as he bellowed orders at the others to kill me, before rushing in himself.
Of course, I wasn't expecting someone with an advanced Job to fall for something as simple as a firewall anyway.
That wasn't the point. I hadn't thrown those walls up to finish them all off—I had done it to grab attention. With Overwhelming still active, their movements were sluggish, leaving me plenty of time to shift my focus.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw them—the two thieves guarding the barn. Just as I had hoped, they had taken the bait. Wineskins abandoned, swords snatched up, they looked ready to rush over and back up their comrades.
'It's time, Remu. Miria.' I called through the link, opening a Warp at the barn wall just behind them.
In the blink of an eye, two figures stepped through the dark door. The first was Miria, the blue-haired bobcut catgirl, Estoc of Petrification glinting in her hands. Right behind her came Remu, the long-haired pantherkin, her grip tight on a steel sword.
The two thieves had just begun to sprint forward, completely unaware that death itself was already breathing down their necks. Both catgirls moved with feline grace, light on their feet as they closed the distance in an instant.
Miria's eyes narrowed with sharp focus as she drove the tip of her slender blade straight through the running man's throat.
Remu, having taken a running start, channeled all her momentum into her strike, the steel blade punching deep into the opponent's neck from behind.
Puch!
Puch!
Two bright streams of blood spurted from the thieves' wounds. They managed one or two stumbling steps forward, dropped their weapons, then crumpled to the ground, clawing at their throats as their life drained out.
'We're done, Master,' Remu reported over the party link, glancing towards me.
'Done—desu,' Miria echoed.
'Good job. Go check the barn. If there are bandits inside, first report to me quickly. If not then just stand guard,' I told them with a nod.
The plan had been simple—hit the seven bandits hard enough to draw attention, force the barn guards to abandon their posts, and then let Remu and Miria cleanly take them out. There was a level gap, sure, but with their higher quality gear, the stat boost from my Hero job, and the element of surprise, the execution had been clean.
I was also glad they had listened to me about going for the neck. From my personal experience, if your weapon is sharp enough, going for the neck is the quickest, most reliable killing method. Brutal, but efficient.
I had specifically chosen them for the barn because after eliminating the guards, they could immediately check inside. Both of them had night vision, so they would be able to react to whatever was waiting in there. The barn was the most important place to secure—it was almost certainly where the villagers were being kept—so their role was crucial.
As they acknowledged the order and turned toward the barn, the effect of Overwhelming flickered out. I immediately reused the skill, though I knew that it might strain my Magic Reserves if I keep using Overwhelming continuously. So I siphoned some mana from one of the gems on my bracelet, recharging my magic.
In front of me, the Level 35 and 43 thieves were still advancing, their bodies ablaze but their resolve unbroken. Worse still, the unharmed Level 5 Bandit was charging in full force. And the fire generated from the firewalls—they were about to vanish, their ten seconds nearly up.
'Roxanne, Setsuna—it's time.' I sent an order through the party link, opening a Warp on the wall of a nearby house, right behind the cluster of thieves.
Roxanne was the first to burst out, Flame Rapier in one hand, Steel Shield in the other. Her amber eyes burned with resolve, and instead of flanking the burning bandits, she sprinted straight toward me, clearly intent on shielding me from harm.
Setsuna followed right after, steel sword in hand, her blue eyes blazing with fury. Unlike Roxanne, she didn't hesitate—she angled straight toward one of the burning thieves, ready to cut him down.
I appreciated Roxanne's intent to rush over and shield me, but I wasn't that helpless. Raising my fist, I used my magic bracelet again—this time, all three red Magic Crystals lit up at once.
Normally, I would stockpile Storm and Wall spells inside the gems, but I had prepared differently tonight, knowing I would be facing bandits instead of labyrinth monsters.
'Fireball' x 9
'Firewall' x 3
A blazing curtain of fire surged up instantly in front of the charging thieves and the bandit, cutting off their advance. At the same time, my fist became a magic turret of destruction—as fist-sized spheres of flame erupted one after another, streaking through the night like fiery meteors.
I unleashed eight out of the twenty stored Fireballs from the two crystals, then used another with my own magic, sending a total of Nine balls of fire screaming toward my enemies. Six were aimed squarely at the two burning thieves, while the other three streaked toward the bandit.
The earlier fire created by the firewalls fizzled out with their ten-second limit, but my fresh curtain of flame caught the two thieves completely off guard. They charged straight into it, shrieking in agony as fire licked at their already scorched flesh. Then the Fireballs slammed into them—explosions of heat and light engulfing their faces. Their weapons clattered to the ground as they collapsed, their skin charred and peeling, their screams echoing in the night.
"Ahhh—no! Make it stoppp!"
"Please! Gods, noooo!"
The bandit was craftier. He deftly veered to the side, dodging the firewall entirely, but he wasn't fast enough to avoid the magic raining down. Two fireballs smashed into him, one searing away half his beard and the other setting his tunic ablaze. He barely managed to twist out of the way of the third, his face twisted in rage as the fire ate into his flesh.
"Die, you wizard bitch!" the bandit snarled, smoke and flame licking his clothes as he swung his copper sword at me.
But I had used Overwhelming again, so his spirited blow was still slow to me. I felt quite light on my feet even without adding bonus points to Agility, so I easily sidestepped and cut his outstretched sword arm with Durandal.
"Argh—my arm!" he yelled in pain as blood gushed from the stump. He looked back at me with fury—but what met him was a fiery sword.
It was Roxanne's Sword.
"Flame Attack!" she yelled—apparantely she had been chanting the new spell of the Flame Rapier while rushing here—and as she finished, fire coated the blade. She unhesitatingly thrust it straight toward the bandit's heart.
"Ughh, you bitch!" the bandit spat, blood foaming at his mouth.
Roxanne drew the sword back and cleanly sliced his neck; a red line spurted as he fell to his knees.
"Are you all right, Master?" Roxanne asked, flicking the blood from her rapier to the side.
"Yes. You were so cool, Roxanne—or should I say, you were so hot," I said with a smirk, impressed.
"Thank you, Master, but you had already defeated him," she replied with a smile."Should I take care of the others too?" she asked, looking at the thieves on the ground.
None of the remaining men were in good condition. Some were still alive and screaming, with half their faces or bodies burned. Their clothes were charred and the air reeked of scorching flesh.
"Yes—let's end their suffering," I said, Durandal in hand. Tonight, Setsuna's revenge was complete, and the blood of her enemies stained the firelit ground.
***
[Gorama 27 has redeemed an Extra Chapter this week]