บท 69: Chapter 69
"Halt, you scoundrels!"
At that moment, a group of men stepped out from the shadows, blocking their path as if they had anticipated Yuder's next move.
"How dare you tread on our territory! You'll have to pay a toll if you want to pass."
Jimmy, who had been chatting casually with Gakane, glanced at the men and whispered lightly.
"Oh, it's them. The ones I ran into when I came for the Cavalry test."
He spoke in a tone that made it seem like he wasn't facing bandits, but rather old acquaintances from his hometown. Meanwhile, the bandits, puzzled by the trio's lack of fear, lit their torches and began to approach.
"Are these brats frozen with fear? Why aren't they saying anything?"
A scarred bandit, his face rough from past knife fights, advanced, but as soon as he laid eyes on Jimmy sitting calmly atop his horse, he abruptly fell silent.
"Hey, why'd you stop talking? We were discussing the toll…"
Another bandit, following close behind, halted mid-sentence as well.
"What's wrong? Why are you all… Wait, you! It's you!"
"Hello again. Still hanging around, I see." Jimmy smiled, rubbing his nose as if greeting a friendly neighbor. The bandits, however, did not appreciate his cheerful tone.
"Bloody hell, it's that kid from last time! The one who said he was going to take some kind of test!"
"Don't tell me you… You failed and came crawling back? Dammit!"
"No, I passed, of course. And now I've got two companions with me."
He gestured toward Yuder and Gakane with a smile. Only then did the bandits notice the other two, their eyes widening in panic.
"Don't tell me, those two are like you… slicing through rocks with their swords…?"
"Ah, no," Jimmy replied cheerfully. "They're far more impressive than I am. After all, I'm only twelve."
At that, one of the bandits closest to them turned and bolted, waving his arms frantically. "Retreat! Run for it!"
The other bandits, as if they had been waiting for the signal, scattered into the woods without a second glance.
A sudden gust of wind swept through the mountain path, snuffing out one of the torches. The remaining few, who had been further away, quickly realized what was happening and melted into the shadows.
"They ran off before we even did anything," Jimmy remarked, sounding almost disappointed as he watched them flee. "Now what?"
"Yeah, Hmm, Should we chase them?" Gakane asked, turning to Yuder with uncertainty. Normally, they would pursue, but their priority was their mission to find Devran Hartude.
"What do you think, Yuder?"
"Summon the shadow clone to chase them. Block their path and catch as many as you can," Yuder ordered.
"On it."
At Yuder's command, Gakane's shadow clone surged forth from beneath his horse, darting in the direction the bandits had fled with incredible speed. Its movements were far faster than any human could achieve.
"Jimmy, how long have these bandits been lurking around here?" Yuder asked, his face impassive as Gakane's clone went about its task.
Jimmy, lost in thought, frowned slightly before answering. "Hmm. I'm not exactly sure. Up until last year, a lot of people used to travel this path. But when I told my parents I'd be coming here alone for the Cavalry test, they forbid me from using this route. They said it had become dangerous because bandits had started claiming it and demanding tolls. Still, it's the quickest way, so… hehe."
"So, they've been here for at least a year?" Yuder clarified.
"Why? Is that important?" Gakane, still manipulating his shadow, glanced at Yuder with a curious tilt of his head. Thanks to his intense training, he was now able to control the shadow with relative ease. Yuder, his tone calm, addressed both of them.
"Haven't you noticed anything unusual?"
"Noticed what?" Jimmy asked, puzzled.
"I don't get it," Gakane added.
"There are Awakeners among those bandits."
"…What?" Gakane's eyes widened in surprise. Just then, a distant thud followed by a scream echoed through the air—Gakane had inadvertently used his shadow clone too forcefully.
"Awakeners? Then why did they run when they saw us?" Jimmy questioned. "They wouldn't have needed to. And Yuder, how did you figure that out?"
"Torchlight. Wind. Darkness," Yuder replied cryptically.
"Huh?" Jimmy blinked, confused for a moment. But then, his face brightened as he pieced it together. "Ah! I get it now!"
"They lit a torch when they approached us, even though they hadn't been carrying one earlier. And when they ran away, the wind suddenly picked up! Plus, there's no moon or stars visible in the sky!" Jimmy exclaimed.
He was right. Gakane, startled, finally looked up at the sky, realizing it was pitch-black without any natural light.
"I didn't even notice… How could I see so clearly despite the sky being so dark?" Gakane muttered, astonished.
That, too, was likely a result of someone's ability. Yuder kept this thought to himself, watching as Gakane's shadow clone subdued three struggling bandits within its inky tendrils.
"Let us go! Let us go!"
"Damn it! I told you I had a bad feeling about this. I said we should've stopped until the boss got back!"
"Shut up, you stinking bastard! Your butt's in my face!"
"I've been saying something felt off ever since that fire last week!"
"And what does that have to do with this, you moron?!"
Yuder dismounted his horse, looked at the captured bandits who were cursing and struggling. Gakane and Jimmy followed, standing beside him as he surveyed the scene.
"Gakane,"
"Yeah."
Just hearing his name was enough for Gakane to understand Yuder's intention. As soon as the shadow clone released the bandits, the three men collapsed to the ground, groaning in pain.
"Ouch! Ah, my back!"
"Damn it! If you're going to kill us, just do it! But don't think you'll get anything out of us—our boss will avenge us!"
As the bandits shouted defiantly, Yuder stepped closer, inspecting their faces more closely. In the dim light of the flickering torch, he hadn't realized before, but they were younger than he had initially thought. Only one of them was armed with a knife.
If they were truly seasoned criminals, they would be better equipped. Yuder's curiosity about who they really were deepened.
"Why are Awakeners here, pretending to be bandits and extorting tolls?" he asked, his voice calm but firm.
"What's it to you? You think you know something? Shut up and stop acting smart," one of the bandits spat.
Rather than answering, Yuder calmly conjured a small flame in his palm. Though modest, the fire flared brightly, illuminating their surroundings. Fear flickered across the bandits' faces as their bravado wavered.
"Yuder, you can summon flames now without a sword?" Gakane whispered in awe. "First wind, now fire... How is your ability growing so fast?"
The truth was, Yuder had always been capable of this. But if he said that, Gakane would undoubtedly question why he had kept it hidden. Instead, Yuder offered a simple response.
"...Training with you guys has helped me somewhat improve."
"Somewhat? You call this Somewhat?"
"Hey, we can talk this out! Yeah, we made a mistake asking for a toll. But we're not real bandits! We've never killed anyone! We just took a tiny bit when people passed through! You're the ones attacking us without reason!"
Thankfully, one of the bandits raised his voice, preventing Gakane from asking further. Feeling slightly grateful to the bandits.
Yuder stepped forward, cutting the distance between him and the bandits. Their faces paled, their fear escalating.
"I only want an answer to my question."
"If... if we answer, you'll let us go, right?"
"Shut up when you're talking to the enemy!".
Yuder raised his other hand, summoning a gust of wind that struck the bandit in the face, silencing him as his mouth snapped shut.
Seeing Yuder control both wind and fire at the same time, the bandits' eyes widened in terror.
"I'll ask again," Yuder said, his tone icy. "Why are people like you—who clearly don't belong to this kind of life—posing as bandits? And why are Awakeners involved?"
"..."
"Answer me."
"I'll answer... if you let my brothers go."
"Boss!" The bandits turned in unison, their voices filled with desperation.
A man had appeared from the shadows. He was strikingly handsome, far too young to be a typical bandit leader. However, the left side of his face was horribly scarred, his left eye dull and clouded. Despite his beauty, there was something chilling about his presence.
Yuder's gaze lingered on the newcomer, and though the man's appearance was strikingly different from the most beautiful man Yuder had ever encountered—Kishiar—the impact he made was unforgettable.
"Did you lead them into this mess?"
"No. The order of events is the reverse," the man replied calmly. "They fled the tyranny of a noble. And then... they found me."
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