Chapter 47

The Crossed Swords Bandits were no different from any other bandits. The main activities of most mountain bandits were stealing, killing, looting, and raping; they would commit countless atrocities before retreating back into the safety provided by the mountains. However, the Crossed Swords Bandits were the most vicious and atrocious bandit band among all of the mountain bandits in the Hatar Mountains.

As their base was tucked away in a secluded part of the mountain, most of their members were hardened criminals who had committed at least one or two murders, and some of them had even killed their families because of inheritance disputes.

p>A large bandit entered a tent made of buffalo leather. “Boss, I bring good news,” he said as he greeted his boss.

The boss of the Crossed Swords Bandits was a bandit called Arkan; he was the largest and most vicious bandit in the Hatar Mountains. Arkan looked at the bandit with a gaze full of interest, setting down the expensive wine he had been about to drink on the table. He asked, “What is it, Akon?”

“Our scouts have spotted two women in the mountains,” Akon reported.

“Women? In these secluded parts of the mountain?” Arkan asked suspiciously.

“Ah, boss… Don’t you remember? They said something about closing the Sinirant Trade Route because of bandits or something, and because of that a few mindless fools have been found trying to cross through the mountains,” Akon said with a grin on his face.

“Where were they spotted?” Arkan asked, tapping his finger on the table.

“Down there in the abandoned cabin. Although that place is the habitat of the black bears; maybe the bears went to hibernate or something, but the women seemed to be fine,” Akon explained.

“So, were the women pretty?” Arkan asked.

“The scouts couldn’t see because they were too far away,” Akon answered.

“Well, it doesn’t matter as long as they’re women,” Arkan said with a shrug.

“Of course,” Akon responded.

“That’s great news; my nether region has been itching these days,” Arkan said as he corked the wine bottle and tied his swords to his waist.

The two bandits left the tent; the area around it was filled with bandits that were either getting drunk or gambling. Akon walked beside Arkan with a large, sleazy grin on his face and said, “I’ve been surrounded by smelly men for quite a while now. Our ‘harvest’ was reduced when they blocked the trade route, right? Hehe… I can’t wait to have a taste of those women.”

The Crossed Swords Bandits were a large organization, and they were miles apart from the other bandits, who committed crimes because of poverty. While average bandits targeted passing carriages or merchant convoys, the Crossed Swords Bandits targeted villages or the merchant companies themselves.

The Crossed Swords Bandits boasted a massive 300 members, and they could be considered as a small army composed of murderers, thieves, and rapists. Committing crimes was as easy as breathing for them; the bandits would find it easier to use a sword than a fork. Some of them were well equipped with rare items they had stolen from others, and there were even magicians mixed into their group. The minimum notoriety among them was 30, and even the investigators would not dare face them alone.

Their base was located on the highest hill among the mountain ranges, and a dike blocked the waters of the nearby river to create an artificial lake.

“Did you remember to check the dike today as well?” Arkan asked.

“Ah, boss! What are you so worried about? I’ve asked the boys to reinforce it and I’ve stationed a guard to watch over it as well. Don’t worry!” Akon answered.

“The dike can be our weapon or our poison,” Arkan remarked.

“Who doesn’t know that?” Akon responded, annoyed.

The dike was something they had prepared in the event that the investigators or the imperial army came after them; it could trigger a massive landslide that would sweep away everything in its way if the dike were released.

“It’s been quite a while since we moved here, come to think of it…” Arkan said, feeling nostalgic.

“Yes, boss; isn’t it about time we moved our base? Our income from the trade route has dwindled as well…” Akon added.

Arkan started to rub his long beard and asked, “Shall we go to the capital next?”

“Huh? The capital? Can we even hold off the investigators there?” Akon replied, tilting his head.

Arkan shook his head and remarked, “The Black Tiger Clan is there, right?”

Akon exclaimed, “Ah! That clan that’s been getting famous these days?”

“I heard they’ve been growing in size after collaborating with a merchant company to smuggle drugs,” Arkan said, still rubbing his long beard.

Akon scratched his head, which he had not washed in a while, and said, “I don’t like it there. I agree that they’re big, have a lot of connections, and are resourceful, but their boss is a Traveler, right?”

“So what if it’s a Traveler?” Arkan asked.

“There’s no problem with it, but I just don’t feel good about it…” Akon explained as he blew off some dust that had accumulated on the tip of his sword. He added, “I don’t like those Travelers. They showed up here from another world and started ordering us around as if we were their slaves. Some of them even chase after monsters all day as if they’ve gone nuts. They seem like a bunch of lunatics who can’t sit still.”

“Hmm… I agree with that,” Arkan said, nodding.

Arkan was a cruel and violent leader, but he was level-headed and calculating as well. It was thanks to his leadership that the Crossed Swords Bandits had been able to stay under the radar of the investigators all this time.

Akon added, “Well, it’s not as if I have something against the Black Tiger Clan. Our food and alcohol supplies are dwindling. Although the mountains are safe, it's difficult to kill people and find women here.”

“I agree. We can strike it big if we go to the capital,” Arkan said as he stopped rubbing his long beard. He reached the center of the bandit base and shouted in a loud, booming voice, “Everyone, gather!”

All of the bandits that had been leisurely hanging around suddenly stood up and gathered in front of Arkan. All of them had cross-shaped scars on their cheeks. The cross-shaped scar was the symbol of the Crossed Swords Bandits; they were not scars they had received from battle, but rather ones they had obtained by cutting themselves with daggers.

Arkan put his hand behind his back and exclaimed, “We’re going to hunt for some women! Let me see the hands of those who want to go.”

Almost all of the bandits raised their hands, but Arkan chose ten bandits from among the hundreds of volunteers. There were some bandits who had the sick fetish of killing the women before they even managed to bring them back to their camp, and Arkan had to exclude those from the get-go. The ones that were not chosen by Arkan sulked in disappointment.

It was at the moment that Arkan was about to descend the mountain with the chosen volunteers…

“Guoh!”

A small scream rang out in the distance, and it seemed to have come from the bandit base.

Arkan, Akon, and the other bandits looked at each other in confusion as a river of blood started to flow down the mountain.

Akon shrieked in surprise, exclaiming, “Damn! Was there a red river around here?!”

“None that I know of,” a bandit replied.

Akon said, “Then that means some bastard ambushed our base.”

Strangely, they were not that surprised at the thought of their colleagues getting killed. These people were not the type to feel any compassion or camaraderie in the first place.

Arkan gripped his large sword and said, “I guess we need to go and give him a cross-shaped scar on his cheek.”

***

Kang Yoon-Soo went into the base of the Crossed Swords Bandits and saw a group of bandits gambling around the campfire with some dice. He crushed the head of the bandit nearest to him, and the bandit did not even have the time to scream as he fell forward, dead. The other bandits did not even drop their cards as they stared, dumbfounded. Kang Yoon-Soo swung his Staff of Lightning even before any of the bandits could pick their weapons up, saying, “Release Lightning.”

Bzzt! Bzzzt!

The mana that gathered around the staff exploded into a flash of intense lightning as it spread around the area, and the twenty bandits near Kang Yoon-Soo were roasted in an instant.

Several other bandits showed up with their weapons after hearing the sound of the explosion, exclaiming, “Who the hell are you?!” However, Kang Yoon-Soo did not bother to answer them.

The bandits numbered around 300, and it was a number that was nearly impossible for Kang Yoon-Soo to fight against alone. Additionally, he had never had the experience of facing these bandits alone, and therefore, he was not aware of their attack patterns.

He had the option of calling his undead army, but he decided against it, as it would reduce the experience points he would get. Instead, he recalled his tenth life, the life he had lived as a mass murderer. In that life, there was even a time when he had assassinated a whole army by himself.

The bandits encircled him and drew their weapons. However, due to the terrain of their base, all three hundred of them could not pounce on Kang Yoon-Soo at once. Still, tens of bandits charged toward him simultaneously.

Kang Yoon-Soo avoided the blade of the bandit in front and cut down the one immediately behind; his longsword easily split open the bandit’s skull. He then immediately swung his staff toward his left side to block an incoming sword. Then, as five blades targeted his back at the same time, he called out, “Release Lightning.”

Bzzt! Bzzzt!

Lightning roared across the terrain like a dragon and burned the bandits up. However, a few of the quick-witted bandits immediately retreated just in time to avoid the attack. Release Lightning was a skill Kang Yoon-Soo could only use four times a day, and he had already used up two of the charges.

A bandit started to laugh, exclaiming, “I don’t know who the hell you are, but did you think you were the only one who could use magic?!” That bandit was holding a long staff, and he pointed toward Kang Yoon-Soo as he shouted, “Fire Vortex!”

A stream of fire shot toward Kang Yoon-Soo, and he ducked to avoid the fire. However, he did not stop swinging his sword even while avoiding the fire attack; he stabbed one bandit in the neck and another through the mouth.

An arrow fired by a bandit grazed past Kang Yoon-Soo’s ear. He felt a sharp pain as if he had sustained a burn, and a small amount of blood flowed down his ear. However, Kang Yoon-Soo did not even grimace in pain as he continuously swung his sword, and five bandits instantly died by his hand.

[You have killed 44 vicious criminals in a short amount of time.]

[It is an achievement that even a veteran assassin would be proud of.]

[The new skill, ‘Dance of Death’, has been created.]

[Dance of Death]

Skill Level: 1 (00.00%)

A skill developed for the sole purpose of murder. Its effectiveness will greatly increase if you are facing multiple enemies alone, but will decrease if you are fighting with a party.

Kang Yoon-Soo had killed so many people just then that he gained a hidden skill. Dance of Death was a skill he had frequently used during his time as a mass murderer, and it was the most suitable skill to use in his current predicament. As such, he immediately called out, “Dance of Death.”

The speed of Kang Yoon-Soo’s sword greatly increased; it seemed to be all over the place at first, but if one looked closely, one would be able to see that its movements were very efficient. He cut down seven bandits in one fell swoop.

[The skill level of ‘Dance of Death’ has increased.]

[Your critical rate will increase if you swing your weapon with killing intent.]

[The skill level of ‘Dance of Death’ has increased.]

[The speed of your blade will increase if you are facing more than one enemy.]

𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

“Guok!”

“Damn it!”

120 bandits died by Kang Yoon-Soo’s hand in an instant, but no matter how many he killed, they kept coming wave after wave. Kang Yoon-Soo swung his sword and staff to spread lightning bolts in multiple directions, but they still charged toward him unceasingly.

At the moment when Kang Yoon-Soo stabbed a bandit in the eye, a spear pierced through that bandit and stabbed him in the stomach.

Puuuk!

Kang Yoon-Soo’s stomach turned red and blood flowed out from it. The bandit who had stabbed him was laughing despite the fact that he had attacked through the corpse of his comrade. However, Kang Yoon-Soo stabbed his sword into the laughing bandit’s mouth and ripped it apart.

“Uwaak!”

Kang Yoon-Soo said, “Life Drain.”

[You have absorbed the life force of the bandit Rikewir.]

[You have absorbed the special trait of the Bandit class.]

[Your chance of getting caught while stealing will be reduced for 2 hours.]

Kang Yoon-Soo had restored a bit of his life force by using Life Drain, but the pain still persisted. The skill had only managed to patch up the injury and stop the bleeding. His forehead was covered in cold sweat as he thought to himself, ‘More. I have to do more.’

***

Arkan and the bandits stopped their descent down the mountain and climbed back up. It did not take them long to reach the top, as they were well-versed in the mountain’s topography. Even so, the bandits’ screams did not stop while they were ascending the mountain.

“Uwaaak!”

“Help me!”

That was when they realized that something had gone seriously wrong. There were far more screams coming from their base than they had initially expected, and even though they were just criminals, they were seasoned and hardened through their own experience. They were not people who would easily be done in.

Akon bit his lips and exclaimed, “Damn it, what the hell is this?! Did the imperial army come or something?!

“I don’t know. We just have to hurry and find out,” Arkan replied, quickening his pace. The other bandits followed suit and moved faster.

By the time they finally reached their base, the air was filled with the stench of blood, and the ground was littered with corpses that seemed to have been burned by lightning, and other corpses with some of their body parts missing.

The three-hundred-man strong bandit base had been annihilated, and a man covered in blood was standing alone in the center. His black hair was dyed red with blood, and his expression was as cold and hard as a stone statue.

The bandits were suddenly filled with fear. Even if one were used to killing other people, how could he remain so expressionless? The man was so void of any expression, it was as if he did not even consider his victims human beings.

A single person was the source of so much terror, and that single person was the one who had annihilated the Crossed Swords Bandits—alone.

Akon asked in a trembling voice, “What the hell are you?”

“Alcohol,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“What?” Akon exclaimed.

Kang Yoon-Soo pointed at Arkan’s waist. Tied around it was a luxurious wine that Arkan had not even taken a single sip of. He said in a cold voice void of any emotions, “Give me alcohol.”