The bandit camp was exactly where local intelligence had suggested—a fortified position in the hills that commanded excellent views of the trade routes while providing multiple escape paths through rough terrain.
"Professional setup," Marcus observed as they surveyed the target from concealed positions. "Whoever's running this operation has military experience."
The camp's defensive arrangements were indeed sophisticated. Earthworks that provided cover from projectile attacks, watch posts positioned to eliminate blind spots, and supply caches that suggested the bandits were prepared for extended operations rather than simple hit-and-run raids.
"Count sixteen visible hostiles," Lyra reported after completing her reconnaissance. "Probably more in the command structure we haven't identified yet."
Their investigation over the past two days had revealed a network more complex than anyone had initially suspected. The bandit attacks weren't random highway robbery—they were coordinated strikes against specific caravans carrying valuable cargo, with inside information that could only have come from sources within the merchant guilds themselves.
Corruption at institutional levels, Aiden thought as he studied the camp's layout. Just like the quarry, just like Millbrook's guild politics. Always someone profiting from others' suffering.
"What's the assault plan?" Elena asked, her healing abilities already prepared for the casualties that would inevitably result from attacking a fortified position.
"Three-phase approach," Lyra decided after consulting with her teammates. "Marcus infiltrates to eliminate sentries and create confusion. Elena provides overwatch and support from the ridge line. Aiden and I assault the main position once chaos begins."
It was a sound tactical plan that played to everyone's strengths while minimizing their exposure to coordinated defensive fire. But as they prepared to implement it, Aiden felt his core responding to the anticipation of serious combat.
Not the familiar warmth of his ice magic, but something different. Harder. More aggressive.
Steel, he realized as new knowledge began flowing through his consciousness. The other half of my Path of Frost and Steel is finally manifesting.
The sensation was unlike his previous ability developments—instead of gradual understanding, this felt like a sword being forged in the fires of imminent violence. Raw potential being shaped into lethal purpose through the pressure of approaching combat.
[COMBAT STRESS DETECTED]
[PATH PROGRESSION TRIGGERED]
[ABILITY UNLOCKED: Steel Resonance (Uncommon)]
[Attunes weapons to the wielder's intent, enhancing sharpness, durability, and combat effectiveness]
The new ability settled into his awareness just as Marcus began his infiltration approach. But instead of simply enhancing his weapons' physical properties, Steel Resonance created a connection between his intentions and the metal itself. The sword at his side seemed to pulse with anticipation, eager to taste blood in service of his purposes.
Perfect timing, Aiden thought as he tested the new enhancement. His blade felt different now—sharper, more balanced, somehow aligned with his combat instincts in ways that went beyond simple craftsmanship.
The assault began when Marcus's throwing knives found two sentries simultaneously, dropping them without sound or struggle. The surviving bandits had perhaps thirty seconds to react before Lyra and Aiden charged the main fortifications with devastating coordination.
Aiden's enhanced sword cut through leather armor like fabric, while his Steel Resonance guided each strike toward vital points with supernatural precision. Not the crude effectiveness of his earlier combat experiences, but the refined lethality of someone whose weapons had become extensions of his killing intent.
A bandit wielding a massive two-handed axe rushed to meet his charge, clearly confident in his superior reach and weapon weight. But Aiden's steel-enhanced blade slipped past the man's guard as if it belonged there, opening arteries with surgical precision that left no opportunity for counterattack.
This is what martial skill should feel like, he realized as his sword found another opponent's throat. Not just knowing how to use a weapon, but having the weapon respond to pure intention.
His Delayed Frost Burst provided tactical support as the battle intensified, embedding icicle spears in multiple enemies and triggering explosive ice formations that created chaos among the surviving bandits. But it was his steel magic that made him truly dangerous in close combat.
Each parry flowed into a riposte with mechanical precision. Each attack found openings that his enhanced awareness could identify and exploit. His sword moved like liquid metal, cutting trajectories through the air that seemed to bend reality around the requirements of efficient killing.
The battle ended with systematic efficiency. Sixteen bandits dead, their fortified position captured, and their supply caches revealing evidence of the corruption network that had been organizing the caravan attacks.
"Clean work," Lyra said with professional satisfaction as they secured the area for investigation. "Your sword technique has definitely improved since our first mission."
More than she realizes, Aiden thought as he examined his steel-enhanced blade. The weapon showed no signs of damage despite extensive use, while its edge remained sharp enough to shave hair. Steel Resonance wasn't just combat enhancement—it was fundamental improvement in how weapons responded to skilled use.
The documents they recovered from the camp's command post revealed the scope of the corruption they'd uncovered. Names of merchant guild officials, cargo manifests with targeting priorities, and payment records that showed substantial money flowing to organizers within the city's commercial district.
"This goes all the way to the guild leadership," Marcus said grimly as he examined the evidence. "We're not just looking at random bandits—this is organized crime with institutional protection."
Another network that profits from others' suffering, Aiden observed. Another system that needs to be dismantled by people willing to use violence for constructive purposes.
But their immediate mission was complete. The bandit threat had been eliminated, evidence of broader corruption had been secured, and their team had demonstrated the kind of professional competence that justified advancement to higher-tier contracts.
The journey back to Drakmoor City provided time to reflect on his newest ability and its implications for future development. Steel Resonance opened tactical possibilities that went beyond simple combat enhancement—it suggested ways of integrating weapon work with his ice magic that could create synergistic effects.
Frost-enhanced steel, he thought as he experimented with combining his abilities during evening practice sessions. Ice magic channeled through resonant weapons to create effects that neither approach could achieve independently.
The combination proved devastatingly effective. His sword could channel ice magic directly into opponents through successful strikes, creating internal freezing effects that bypassed normal resistance to cold-based attacks. Meanwhile, his steel resonance allowed precise control over ice formations created through weapon contact.
Another innovation that belongs uniquely to me, he realized with growing confidence. Not stolen from defeated enemies, but developed through understanding how my different abilities can support each other.
By the time they reached the city gates, Aiden felt fundamentally changed by his latest advancement. The crude sword work he'd absorbed from fallen guards had evolved into something approaching genuine martial artistry, while his understanding of how to combine magic and melee combat had reached new levels of sophistication.
I'm becoming the kind of opponent that would have terrified me six months ago, he thought as they approached the guild hall to report their mission's success.
The Path of Frost and Steel was proving its worth through practical application, teaching him lessons about power that went beyond simple accumulation of abilities. Integration, innovation, and tactical awareness were proving as valuable as raw strength for someone planning to hunt down experienced killers.
Seven names still waited on his list, but each completed mission brought new capabilities that would make those eventual confrontations more likely to succeed.
The transformation from broken slave to dangerous predator was accelerating beyond his original expectations.
And his enemies had no idea what kind of monster their cruelties had created.
Soon, very soon, they would learn exactly what House Valdris had become in the ashes of their supposed victory.
The real reckoning was approaching, and he would be ready for it.