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Chapter 53

In a brief moment, Ian licked his lips.

"Anyway, we already knew your descriptions. Dark hair with a hint of blue, black eyes. One with a beard and a scarred face. And most importantly, the lady with red hair and green eyes. This sounds exactly like you guys." The leader added as if to offer some consolation.

The man smiled wryly as he locked eyes with Ian again, "So, it would be best for you to come quietly. If you\'re not the ones, we\'ll just verify and let you go."

Would you go if you were in my shoes? Ian\'s eyes darkened, a shadow falling over his gaze as the leader clicked his tongue.

"Those are fierce eyes. But don\'t be reckless. You see, we pride ourselves on our marksmanship. Plus..." His voice dropped to a whisper as if he was about to share a great secret.

"We only need to capture that little lady alive to complete our mission. Sure, capturing you two as well would bring us a bonus, but even without that, the reward is substantial."

"Ah, is that so?" Ian nodded, adding, "Then take your shot. I\'ll start moving now."

The leader\'s brows furrowed, puzzled by Ian\'s confidence. With a defiant flourish, Ian moved his arm, and his robe slightly parted to reveal the Sword of Judgment concealed within. His hand rested on the hilt, and the leader\'s expression finally twisted in realization.

"You’re crazy. Just shoot them!" said the leader.

With a swish, the crossbows targeted Ian and Miguel almost simultaneously. Their marksmanship lived up to the leader\'s boast. The firing times were about the same, and the aim was accurate. Yet, ironically, their skill proved to be their undoing at that moment.

Whoosh!

A sudden gust spread around, scattering all the bolts in an instant. Ian, who had been ready to deflect at least one, took the opportunity to shed his robe and leap forward. The Sword of Judgment, now drawn, fell upon one of the men who hadn\'t even realized what was happening.

Crack!

"Urgh... ack."

The man was cleaved from crown to neck, flipping backward with his eyes rolled back. Brain matter and blood spilled as Ian landed smoothly on the saddle, with his left hand whipping out like a lash.

Thwack!

Following Ian’s touch, the wind spread, and the head of another one in the distance was thrown back as if flicked away. The one who fell from his horse had a dagger deeply embedded in the center of his face.

"What a madness..."Just as the leader realized the situation and sighed, Ian was already kicking off the saddle and leaping into action.

Crack!

Just as the leader realized the situation and sighed, Ian was already kicking off the saddle and leaping into action.

Crack—

Another man was diagonally sliced from the nape of the neck to the opposite side of the ribcage. The severed upper body fell, scattering blood and entrails. The lower half remained mounted on the horse. Ian landed with a roll.

The leader’s eyes bulged with bloodshot veins. Slicing a person in half with a single blow was by no means an easy feat. It required either immense strength, a high level of skill, or at the very least, a weapon worthy of being called a legendary sword. Which one was the correct answer, only Ian himself would know. What mattered was that in the blink of an eye, three of his men were dead.

"This, motherfucker...!" The last one, belatedly reacting, threw down his crossbow and drew his sword.

Ian, having regained his stance, threw his dagger at him. The man dodged the flying dagger by leaning his body, but that action couldn\'t prevent Ian\'s following leap. Ian, jumping higher than the saddle, brought down his sword. The mercenary tried to deflect Ian\'s strike with his sword and counterattack. It was a textbook response.

Crack—

Until the sword broke. The Sword of Judgement deeply embedded itself in the man\'s shoulder.

"Aaah!" The man screamed.

Ian, who landed pressing down on the man\'s body, prepared to deliver a confirming kill as he pulled out the stuck sword. It was then that the leader charged at him, aiming to attack Ian from behind as he killed his subordinate.

Whoosh!

The leader, raising his sword, froze as he felt a sharp pain in his back. A bolt fired by Miguel had pierced through his back.

"Urg... uh." Staggering and falling off his horse, the leader let out a suppressed groan. He saw the back of his treacherously fleeing horse.

Thud.

And then, Ian landed in front of him. The fallen leader saw Ian\'s gaze looking down at him, emotionless.

The leader, crawling on the ground, said, "Please... save me...."

Ian crouched in front of him. With a thud, the sword was embedded near the leader\'s face. Blood and fat were sliding down the blade.

Ian’s flat voice followed, "Who issued the bounty? Was it an imperial merchant?"

"The empire...? I don\'t understand. I only heard about it... It wasn\'t them. It was the knights of Agel Lan..." The leader replied with difficulty but obediently.

Ian, narrowing his eyes, added, "If they were from Agel Lan, they should know that men like you wouldn\'t be enough to catch us. Did they really issue a bounty to capture us alive?"

"The truth is that there was a reward for providing information on your location. The reward just was much greater if captured... Ah, this." A moment of realization passed over the face of the leader who was clearly speaking.

The leader looked at Ian and smirked bitterly, "Ah, I’m done. You just tried to extract the information from me."

"Well, you can\'t survive having your liver pierced." Ian, responding coolly, stood up.

The leader coughed up blood and then chuckled weakly, "Don\'t think this is the end... We have... many comrades... Your names are... already known in Bel Ronde...."

The leader’s voice faded but Ian was no longer looking at him.

Is he talking about knights? The royal guard, perhaps, thought Ian.

As Ian scratched his chin, a conceivable scenario played out in his mind: The enraged king of Agel Lan had ordered his royal guard to act. It was probable that most hadn\'t made it across the border, and at the very most, there would be five of them, possibly even fewer.

Even while doubting, they must have moved in the direction of Lu Sard, thought Ian.

They probably realized after a few days that they had ventured the wrong way. From then on, it was likely that they had changed direction, issuing bounties in every village they passed. It was a foolish act, something only knights would do.

The situation could escalate, involving not just mercenaries and merchants but also greedy lords eager to join the fray. It seemed only a matter of time. Then, a real chaos unpredictable would unfold.

"By the way, it seems our names and descriptions have been spread around here....... Isn\'t there too many tails to cut off now?" Miguel asked cautiously.

Ian shrugged, "If you know, start by taking care of them."

Miguel descended from the coachman\'s seat. Soon after tying the corpses onto the horse saddles, he scattered the horses in all directions. It wouldn\'t help much, but the intention was to delay the discovery of the skirmish site as much as possible. Leaving one horse behind, Ian climbed onto the saddle, securing an additional means of mobility. Now it was a race against time. He casually smiled at Lucy, who was sitting in the cargo space, as their eyes met.

"After going through the trouble of cutting your hair and all that, we ended up getting caught anyway," said Ian.

Lucy shook her head, "That\'s why we were able to come this far without major issues. It\'s okay."

Her voice was steady, even after the bloodshed. Indeed, she was probably the most accustomed to death among twelve-year-olds.

Lucy blinked and added, "But why didn\'t you use magic? Since you were going to kill them anyway."

Even in the midst of this, you\'re curious about that, the nature of a wizard never goes away. Well, I did use gray magic, Ian muttered to himself and shrugged his shoulders.

"Magic should only be used when necessary. If I waste it on the likes of them, there won\'t be any magical power left. We\'re in an era of magical twilight, after all."

As Lucy nodded in understanding, Ian suddenly raised his arms. "Take a good look at me now. This is what happens when you fight with a sword."

"You look messy," said Lucy.

"Exactly," said Ian.

"But it\'s cool. You look strong," said Lucy.

...Stubborn, just like a mage. Ian clicked his tongue.

"So, what\'s the plan now? Continue on as we were?" Miguel, who had climbed back onto the coachman\'s seat, asked.

"No." Ian, approaching the coach, looked towards the mountains in the distance. If they continued as is, their location would be revealed in a matter of days at most.

"If we cross through there, how much time can we save?" Ian asked.

It was time to implement Plan B.

***

Miguel sighed as he spoke, "I still think this isn\'t a good decision. At best, we\'re saving two or three days..."

"If we start being surrounded and chased at that time, you\'ll change your mind," Ian said calmly, deepening Miguel\'s sigh.

They were now climbing the mountain, or more precisely, entering a valley between mountains. There was a path that seemed like a shortcut, but it was in terrible condition, seemingly untouched by travelers for a long time. That was to be expected, as according to Miguel, this place was rumored to be haunted by evil spirits.

"I heard those rumors years ago. By now, the madness of the Black Wall or some strange grudges must have taken over. I know your skills, but...," said Miguel.

"Don\'t worry. I won\'t ask you to fight. Just keep the carriage safe. Besides...." Ian looked up at the sky. The darkened clouds gathered overhead.

"It\'s too late to turn back now," said Ian.

Miguel hadn\'t considered it, but for Ian, venturing near the haunted area had been a backup plan from the moment they decided to move this way. It was unlikely the pursuers would imagine they\'d enter such a place willingly. Even if they did suspect, the cowards wouldn\'t dare follow. Additionally, this route would shorten their journey, killing two birds with one stone.

"I miss Phillip. He would have taken my side in moments like this," Miguel muttered in resignation.

Ian chuckled softly, "Wouldn\'t have made any difference anyway."

The horse Ian was riding snorted. Not just him, but all the other horses pulling the carriage were also terrified. It was a natural reaction. Everything around them, including the blackened trees, was bleak, devoid of life. Something sinister seemed to lurk in these mountains.

Rustle.

At the sound brushing past his ear, Miguel swiftly turned his head. But nothing was in sight. Only the darkened trees and the cloudy night sky remained.

Rustle— Sssht—

"Is that the sound of the wind...?" Miguel asked.

"Impossible," said Ian, laughing scornfully, with his eyes already cold and settled.

Swoosh, Swish—

Ian knew what sound this was since he had heard such sounds a few days ago.

"It seems we\'ve found what sort of beast makes its home here," said Ian.

"What kind of creature... lives here?" Miguel asked.

Ian suddenly raised his hand. Turning in the direction Ian pointed, Miguel\'s eyes widened in shock.

Miguel had finally spotted something that was darting through the trees. It was a spider, hiding in the shadows like a ghost, its size nearly that of a wolf, with its color a dark gray.

"A cave spider...?" said Miguel.

"Yes. That one is a cave spider. And that one, and that one too." Ian remarked, looking around.

Miguel, momentarily frozen, hurriedly reached into his backpack and grabbed a torch.

Whoosh!

As the flame blazed to life, Miguel saw the shining eyes between the trees. More than ten cave spiders were watching them.

"The cave spiders of Bel Ronde are the ones that have escaped from here," said Ian.

"So... the beast living here is actually...?" said Miguel.

"Probably their mother," said Ian.

Swoosh, Swish.

At Ian’s words, the sound of the cave spiders\' movements, like the wind, surged from all around.

It was then that Ian turned to look at Lucy, "Pay close attention."

Lucy\'s eyes widened as she saw Ian\'s eyes, which had suddenly begun to flicker with a fiery red light.

"This is exactly the kind of situation where magic is needed," said Ian.

Whoosh.

Around him, balls of bright red fire burst into existence simultaneously.