## Chapter 353 – Kim Kat and the 40 Bandits
“Ughaaack! An attack! An attack! Get the hell up, you sons of bitches!!!!”
A bandit, half-naked and seemingly just woken up, crawled out of a tent, waving a hand-and-a-half sword while shouting like a madman.
He probably wanted to gather his comrades as quickly as possible to repel us, but as expected, he paid the price for drawing aggro, getting stabbed about five times mercilessly and collapsing right there.
“Kill them! Kill them all!”
“This one’s mine!”
The adventurers, having succeeded in their surprise attack, were completely ecstatic, slaughtering the bandits crawling out of their huts and tents without any hesitation.
The adventurers were already mentally and physically prepared for battle, and they had successfully launched a surprise attack.
On the other hand, the bandits were only keeping a few guards posted while indulging in booze and naps. In that state, they could never stop prepared killers.
Even if they did come to their senses, more than half of them would already be dead, and bandits who had lost half their comrades wouldn’t be motivated to fight.
In small-scale battles like this, a good surprise attack is all you need to win.
As expected, surprise attacks and getting the first hit in are the shortcuts to victory.
“Repent in death, heretics!!!!!”
“Oooogh?!?!”
Eliza, dashing through the now-battlefield, smashed the heads of the bandits trying to escape. It was so fast that it was impossible to distinguish between a warhammer and a lightning bolt.
“The cave! They’re coming out of the cave!”
At that moment, the merchant shouted.
Looking over, bandits were frantically rushing out of the cave’s interior, grabbing whatever weapons they could find.
Taking advantage of the adventurers’ attention being diverted, the bandits who had rolled out of their tents with weapons in hand began to resist.
“Winia! Those bastards are coming out of the cave!”
I’m currently protecting Winia.
As Winia incinerates the bandits’ heads with fireballs, I cut down the approaching ones in a single strike. It’s the classic setup of a heavily armed warrior protecting a mage dealing damage from the back.
No ordinary opponent can withstand this tactic.
“I’m already watching!”
Winia was also watching the cave. As a mage experienced in field combat, she immediately stopped casting small spells and began chanting a more powerful one.
ㅡWhoosh!
Looking at the shape of the red magic circle drawn above her staff, it was Fire Arrow, a spell that launches exploding arrows.
It’s a pretty devastating spell, given its explosive nature.
“Fire Arrow!”
As the incantation finished, a fiery arrow flew out, colliding with a small bandit just emerging from the cave and exploding.
ㅡBoom!
It was quite powerful.
The bandits crowded at the entrance were engulfed in flames by the massive explosion, screaming like monsters as they writhed in agony.
“Kkeheeeeeeeeeeeeeeck!!!!”
“Kiyaaaaaaaack!!!!!”
“Jjiyaaaaaaaaaaaack!!!!!!!!”
Those monstrous screams…!
As expected, the bandits weren’t human after all!!!!!!
Only monsters could make such bizarre screams!!!
“F, fire! Touching the fire reveals their true demonic forms!!! Eliza!!! These guys aren’t heretics, they’re monsters!!! Be careful!!!”
I shouted at the top of my lungs to inform Eliza of the unbelievable truth that I was witnessing with my own eyes.
“T, that can’t be! Are you saying monsters were disguising themselves as humans!!!”
“That’s right! These bastards were imitating humans while killing people!!!!”
“Oh, God of Order!!! How could they be so vile!!!! I cannot forgive them!!”
Shocked, I immediately began to gather mana, preparing for danger. If they weren’t human, they must have a hidden trump card to turn the situation around.
I had to be careful of that.
Not just simple bandits… Is this also a conspiracy by the heretics? As I gathered mana, the surrounding vision began to sharpen.
A keenly honed sense.
Expanding my senses to meticulously analyze the surrounding situation.
If they were monsters, they might use dark magic or something. I focused intently, tightening my grip on the sword, and shielded Winia with my body.
ㅡWhoosh!!
Even in the midst of all that, Winia maintained her focus, continuously firing fireballs into the cave. However, unfortunately, the only thing to burn was the bandits, so she couldn’t seal off the cave.
“You bitch!!!! Die!!!”
At that moment, one of the bandits, reasonably well-equipped, roared and charged forward, raising his longsword.
“Who’s calling my woman a bitch, you ball-busting son of a bitch!!!!”
I immediately turned to face him.
His equipment was decent. The length of his sword was similar to mine. But he was smaller than me. Thinking that far, I waited for him to get a little closer, then timed it perfectlyㅡ
ㅡCelestial Demon’s Descent.
I kicked off the ground.
ㅡWhoosh!
“Kkieeeeeeeeeeeeeeck!!!!!!”
At the same time, I pointed the tip of my sword forward. Closing the distance faster than he could run, I unleashed a ferocious roar.
“W, what?!”
The bandit, looking flustered, stopped in his tracks and adopted a defensive stance. Humans usually panic and become defensive when faced with an unexpected situation like that.
“You monster bastard! Pretending to be human, huh!!!”
“Y, you son of a bitch!!!”
Using that brief opening, I seized the distance and took the initiative.
My body, ‘fired’ by Celestial Demon’s Descent, was already flying towards him with gained momentum. Using the power derived from that speed,
I thrust my sword forward.
ㅡClang!
“Die, you motherfucker!!!”
“Eek…! H, hey! Over here! Help me! Hurry, you bastards!!!”
He barely managed to block my initial attack. Judging by the fact that he blocked the strike with a cross guard, he seemed to have learned swordsmanship somewhere.
But despite barely blocking the attack, he was only backpedaling and calling for help from his comrades. Unfortunately, a fierce battle was already underway, so no one could help him.
And the moment you asked for help, you lost.
“Kkieeeeeeeeeeeeeeck!!!”
I roared once more and unleashed a barrage of attacks. You have to finish off guys like this quickly when you get the chance. Roughly judging, he lacked strength, skill, and equipment compared to me.
Overwhelming him with the difference in physical abilities and the swordsmanship I had trained!
“Ugh, ughhhh!!! Stop! Stop it!”
ㅡClang!
Locking blades and engaging in a power struggle three times.
ㅡClang!
ㅡClang!
All three of those attacks were extremely deadly attacks that I had learned from Karin at great expense, and the techniques, well worth the money, steadily stole his future with each one.
That was the end of it with those three.
“Keuh-ack!”
In less than five seconds, my sword entered the bandit’s neck. What an amateur. I immediately severed his neck bone and lifted my leg, stomping on his chest to push him away.
ㅡThud.
He collapsed like a rotten log, vomiting blood and rolling his eyes back.
What a pathetic piece of trash.
A swordsman who can’t even last five seconds.
“Winia! Everything okay!”
“Blackie, I caught nine of them!”
“As expected of Winia-sama!”
I immediately approached Winia, and at the same time, bandits who had escaped from the burning cave charged towards us.
“The mage! It’s the mage! We have to kill the mage to survive!!!”
“Kill her!!!!”
“Uwaaaaaaaa!!!!”
The number was five in total.
“Alright, you monster bastards.”
Five, huh?
“This Celestial Demon Kim Kat will slaughter you all.”
Five bandits wouldn’t even be able to touch a hair on this Kim Kat’s head.
ㅡWhoosh!
I signaled to Winia and charged towards them.
For the ones running towards me?
Just run towards them faster than I had just killed that bandit.
“An uncontrollable urge dejaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!!!!!!!”
It’s even more effective to run while unleashing a ferocious shout and performing a sword dance.
Humans instinctively fear rapidly approaching things, sharp metal objects making metallic sounds, and screaming beings.
Kim Kat, a three-way combination of those three, was a heavenly demon reigning as the fundamental fear of humans, a celestial demon overwhelming the world.
In other words, I am now in a complete state.
ㅡI will never lose.
Of course, skilled warriors wouldn’t fear such things.
But the bandits aren’t skilled warriors.
They’re just cunning and weak thieves.
That was already clear from their running speed, posture, and equipment. There’s no reason for a real expert to be a bandit. Thinking that far, the spirit of despising the weak blazed, and at the same time, unbelievable power poured out.
“H, hey! To the side! Move to the side!”
“That bastard’s coming!”
“Shit, block him!!!!!!!!!!”
Look, even with five people, if they’re disorganized, they’ll get confused like that. They were already terrified by the sight of the demon arriving.
Those who are gripped by fear can never win in battle!!
ㅡOnly those who throw their lives away can win!!!!
As that fusion-Confucian ideology shook my brain, the concept of defeat disappeared from me. There is no mercy, no compassion. I will make them pay the price for tearing out my heart!
If you’ve picked up a weapon, show me that much resolve!
“I’ll carve you up!!!!!!!”
From there, I doubled my running speed by initiating a second acceleration with Celestial Demon’s Descent. It felt as if space was being compressed, but my already expanded senses were able to take in the entire scene.
“You!!!!! Scum!!!!!!!!!”
ㅡSwoosh!!!
“Uwaaaaaaaack!!!”
“Kyaaaaaaack!!”
I swung the black iron longsword bestowed upon me by Karin.
Acceleration. Strength. Mana. Skill. Courage. Victory. All those concepts formed the perfect shape of a sword, and at the same time, the blade that tore through space flew past, severing the heads of two terrified bandits and scattering blood.
ㅡSplatter!
I killed two, so three remained.
“Heok!”
Entrusting my body to the flow of the blade, I naturally transitioned my stance. The biggest advantage of the Practical Sword Technique is its versatility. The executed strike transitioned into a thrust as smoothly as flowing water, piercing the chest of the guy next to me.
ㅡThwack!
“H, he took out three people at once…!”
As expected, there’s nothing easier than facing a weakling gripped by fear.
It’s too simple.
The bandit trio faceplanted into the ground too easily, and the remaining two would soon follow suit.
“D, die!!”
“Run away!!!”
I unleashed a sword strike at the guy who was swinging a hand axe in surprise. ㅡClang! The black iron longsword severed the bandit’s axe, hand, and even his forearm. ㅡWhir! The severed arm and hand flew into the sky. It was like a joke.
“This bastard… His hand and arm are severed!!! Are you crazy!!!”
“Heukyaaaaaaaaack!!!!!!!”
“Why are you treating the body your mother gave you so carelessly! Why!! Just die, you unfilial bastard!!!”
I seemed to be out of my mind. I immediately took a step forward and pushed the tip of my sword in, piercing him as easily as sticking a needle into bread.
That was the gentle death bestowed upon him.
“Save me!”
The other one had already grasped the situation and was running away. I was about to chase after him, but ㅡThwack! Eliza’s warhammer flew towards his head like a heat-seeking missile.
Daring to show your back to this Celestial Demon, you meet such a miserable end.
“Eliza! Good job! Great timing!”
“The same goes for you, Saint!”
I immediately joined Eliza and retreated towards Winia.
“Winia, are you okay!”
“Haa… I’m getting a little tired now. There are too many bandit bastards. I’ve used up more than half of my mana in an instant.”
“Leave it to me now.”
“You’ve been doing it all this time.”
“Hehehe, that’s right.”
The battle was truly fierce.
Our surprise attack worked perfectly, and I, Winia, and Eliza joined forces to slaughter all the bandit bastards, but there were too many enemies.
“Keuh-ack!”
“Keuheuk…! Retreat!”
“Gather over here! There are too many enemies!”
Several adventurers had already fallen helplessly to the bandits’ coordinated attacks, who were overwhelming them with numbers. The survivors were huddled together, protecting the merchant. Let’s join them over there.
The number of bandits seemed to be well over thirty.
It seemed that bastard had lied. Of course, I didn’t believe everything he said, but I didn’t think there would be this many.
With this many, it’s practically a professional large-scale bandit group.
It was fortunate that we reduced their numbers by more than half with the surprise attack; we wouldn’t have been able to do this well if we had faced them head-on.
“Kuh, you’re quite skilled! But the situation isn’t good. There are too many bandits!”
Lactos, holding twin swords, said that as we joined our remaining team. He was already soaked in blood.
“Hehehe, it seems so. But I don’t think we’ll lose. If those are all the guys there are, it’s not like we can’t win.”
It seemed four adventurers had died.
On the other hand, the number of bandits was still close to twenty. Winia had used up quite a bit of mana, but judging from the bandits’ combat power level, it didn’t seem like we would lose.
What I was worried about was the guild’s penalty… If we brought back evidence that we had encountered a large-scale bandit group and ultimately won, it would probably be okay.
The client, the merchant, and D-rank Lactos and I could explain.
It wasn’t a quest that the guild had assigned a rank to and sent us on; the merchant had simply gathered people directly from the guild to go and subjugate the bandits, so that much flexibility would work.
Originally, they would give you that kind of convenience from D-rank onwards.
“Hey, merchant. The bandits are that many, are you sure you can pay properly?”
“…There are more than I thought. But it still seems okay. Since there are dead people.”
When I asked the merchant that, a positive answer came back.
Well, even if he said he couldn’t pay because he didn’t have the money, we would have to kill them all anyway. Just the equipment lying around here is worth a lot. If we take it all, it will be quite a bit of money.
“You sons of bitches are all dead!”
“You’re the ones who are going to die, you morons!”
That was when we were facing off against the bandits, exchanging curses.
“You useless bastards! How many of you have died!!!”
ㅡClang.
From inside the cave, a giant with tattoos on his face and wearing chainmail roared savagely, dragging a warhammer as he walked out. He was big. Big in width, and he seemed a little taller than me.
Even his body was charred black from the flames.
“The Tattoo of Ezath!!!”
The moment he came out, Eliza shouted like lightning when she saw the giant.
“Damn it, it’s real!!!”
The tattoo on the giant’s face was the symbol of the Ezath worshippers that we had killed so many of during the Holy War.
These bastards were heretics after all.
