Arya and Louis advanced with almost no difficulty; the archer's bow and arrow silenced the few people in their path. The total kill count was about 10 bodies, with hits always being certain to the head or heart.
Those hit in the heart received an attack from the golden-haired noble with his short swords to the throat. The pair was attacking quickly and stealthily while the other member of the infiltration group was drawing attention, which proved to be very effective.
"We've arrived."
The knightess of the order of the shield was amazed as she looked at the iron gate and its locks. The gate was immense and seemed impossible to break with brute force, not with magic, weapons, or hands.
"Some people seem to have found us, a pity our senses are superior."
His gaze was focused on the people coming out of the shadows, bandits wearing cloth clothes with leather armor, the smiles on their faces were wicked. There were ten of these people.
"Calm down, there are brats for everyone to kill!"
The voice was very deep and shrill. The person who appeared was a large man of two meters, shirtless, wearing pants made of animal skin, and boots of the same material. His face was neither handsome nor ugly; he had a huge, dirty beard, his hair was very messy and of a reasonable length, and its color was brown.
"Deal with the smaller ones, I'll hold off the boss."
"I'll support you when I'm done."
Her dexterity with the long-range weapon was enormous as she drew and released an arrow. The sound of the wind breaking happened very quickly and frighteningly, and a body always fell when that moment came.
The blond-haired man had two small swords in his hands, his face serious; there was no room for games as he confronted his smiling opponent.
"The name of the one who will send you to the kingdom of Hades is Jackson, one of the four captains."
"It won't be me who rests in the kingdom of Hades and receives its judgment, it will be you."
The bandit's weapon was a huge club of almost one and a half meters. Its movement made the air heavier; the sensation of death when that monstrosity was swung was enormous. The clash of weapons didn't happen because of the difference in physical strength between the two warriors. One needed only one blow to crush the bones of his enemy's body; the other needed to land the blow in the right spot to decide the fight.
Dodging the blows was done with precision; the heavy weapon couldn't land a single hit and even passed quite far off. The problem was landing a blow with the two smaller swords. The giant club made movement difficult after attacking; the air became heavier, making it difficult to deliver a precise move.
"My attacks are delayed because of the heavy wind generated by his weapon. I can't attack faster than his reaction time this way."
The bandit captain was smiling as he saw his opponent's reaction. The large club hit the ground with great brute force, cracking a large part of it.
"Damn it!"
The movements became even more difficult to execute. The captain had dropped his weapon for an instant, creating several holes, and his fist was not delayed in delivering a powerful punch to the blond-haired man.
"This should knock him out for a while."
Louis was thrown several meters while his mind was unable to reason. The feeling of approaching death was what made him see the light again.
"This guy is strong."
He advanced again, trying to suppress his intense feelings, the nervousness of being in a fight to the death with someone strong.
"Am I trembling?"
His hands shaking as he approached his adversary was a frightening realization; the complex feelings in his heart were coming to the surface, making his judgment even more difficult. He gripped the two swords even tighter as he tried to compose himself to fight. The duel was reaching its decisive point as they faced each other again.
"I'm sure this weapon is heavy, but I don't know its stamina. It could last for hours. I can't last for hours dodging."
His thoughts on how to win made him make a risky decision on the battlefield as he saw his adversary brandish his sword once more. The moment to try to hit him was when the sword in his right hand changed the way it was held. The blade was thrown at high speed at one of Jackson's hands, who smiled as he saw the small white weapon pierce him, making him bleed as he attacked and pulled it back.
"It wasn't effective. I'm one weapon down now."
His skin was covered in sweat from fatigue; nervousness also contributed. The way he wielded the small sword changed to two hands; he couldn't stop trembling if he held it with one. The fear of death greatly affected his judgment despite forcing himself to be composed. The heavy weapon was about to hit him in the same instant of his hesitation; his head would be blown apart if it weren't for a heavy arrow hitting his arm, slowing the blow. The chance arose at the same time. The hesitant eyes, filled with the fear of death, lit up as they saw a chance to survive. The remaining sword in his hand was used quickly and precisely; the blow tore open the throat of his large target. Blood spewed from the throat, covering the ground where the two knights stood.
"Fighting monsters and human beings is very different. This guy was stronger than me."
"My defeat would have been inevitable if I were alone. I didn't expect to see such a strong and skilled bandit."
The thoughts of both were loose as they unlocked the door to allow their companions access to the raiders' fort.
"And there are 3 more of them, and also the chief."
"The presence of Mr. Egil and Mrs. Cecile enchants me at this moment."
The arrival of their companions was quick, as they had been waiting a long time for the gate to be opened to invade the enemy territory.
"You did well."
Cecile quickly praised the pair upon seeing the dead enemies and the damage taken, and was only doubtful about the hunter, who was nowhere to be seen.
"Where is Jon?"
Egil was the one responsible for the hunters and was very worried; he didn't want any casualties among the newcomers.
"He..."
Arya and Louis were sad at the thought of the death of someone who fought alongside them; the survival of the iron-rank hunter did not cross their minds. The expressions of the others were also hardening as they saw their reaction when they tried to say something.
"He's probably fighting alone up ahead. He went to draw the enemies' attention because of his noisy attacks, which are not good for stealth attacks."
Fay was smiling as he walked into the fortress as if it were his own playground; he had no doubts about his friend's survival. Everyone's reaction became even more incredulous as they found several bodies while exploring the fortress—bodies not of civilians, but of bandits. The corpses seemed to be recent, judging by the fresh skin and still-warm blood. The knights' faces became even more surprised when they saw a masked, black-haired man sitting on the ground with a lot of blood flowing from his body.
"So everything went well."
"Yes, the heavy lifting must have been quite boring to deal with."
"I don't like fighting with my life on the line. I feel strange when I have to come up with strategies to survive."
The rest were looking at the pair, not believing anything they had observed in that short time. It didn't seem like someone talking to someone who was badly injured.
"40 people were killed."
Those were Arya's words, who couldn't believe the death toll in those ten minutes. She needed to confirm one more thing.
"Did you encounter any captains?"
"I don't know about a captain, but I found someone very strong. One person almost killed me; his control over the enemy ranks was very good, as were his hand-to-hand combat skills. I only escaped alive by thinking faster and being smarter."
Louis and Arya were incredulous as they remembered the strength of a captain, when they saw the number of bodies in this place, and also that of a probable bandit captain.
"Take my potion, you're badly injured."
"I'll accept."
Fay was smiling as he saw his friend was fine; he had no doubts about his ability to deal with the enemies.
"What are my chances against that strong enemy?"
"You win."
"Can you still fight?"
"No, my mana is depleted and I need to recover."
"Do you want my mana potion too?"
"I'll refuse that offer. I want to see everyone fighting, I don't want to do everything."
The two were calm as they entered the bandits' main fortress. The rest of the group was following them despite everything, so as not to let them go loose. A large, blond-haired man appeared at the same time they entered the fortress. This person's facial expression could not be seen; he was wearing full iron armor on his face, and only his height could be seen—he was one meter ninety.
"Who will challenge me? I am one of the four captains. My name is Bane."
The large bandit was using a hammer of almost two meters. His expression was full of murderous intent; the atmosphere was even getting heavier because of it.
"I will. My name is Fay, an iron-rank, one-star hunter."
The smiling Fay was excited to fight. He gripped his spear firmly with both hands to show his intention to fight and placed himself in front of his opponent.
"Do you think you are strong enough to face me?"
"I do."
The large battle hammer did not seem heavy as it attacked the enemy in front of him; the movement was very fast, almost invisible.
"This guy is very strong. His strength allows him to use this large, heavy hammer to attack as if it were a light weapon."
His thoughts were completely focused on the battle; his body concentrated only on dodging the fragments of stone and the hammer. More and more attacks were being launched by the large, armored bandit. What was impressive was the hunter's reaction, never delivering any attack; his focus was always on observing his opponent's weapon.
"I've already figured out how to beat you."
"What? Don't tell lies and prove it."
The attack was made once more, the dodge was performed perfectly with a smile on the young man's face, who was very confident as he raised his spear and made a movement as if to thrust.
"You won't hit me, fool."
The war hammer was used to attack swiftly and quickly. The problem was the feeling of something missing from his body; blood dripped to the ground, and he could only fall as he noticed the large spear embedded in his chest.
"It wasn't a thrust, it was a throw."
The polearm was withdrawn as more blood spilled onto the ground. Bane could only feel death approaching.
"How did you do that?"
The question was from Gregory, who noticed the hunter was quite calm fighting against the bandit captain, whom he recognized as being stronger than himself.
"I calculated the time to attack and pull back the weapon. I attacked at the moment of pulling back so there would be no reaction. I delivered a strong blow to break the armor, a quick technique so he couldn't react."
Cecile noticed the eyes of her subordinates; they were not weak when one noticed their strengths and weaknesses.
"You are not weak, the problem is the lack of experience in life-or-death situations."
Fay still remembered that cave where he and his friend had to reason logically to survive the goblins. The traps, the arrows, the enemies—the place was a true hell in his mind.
"You two will fight the remaining captain. The big boss will be mine and Egil's."
The two remaining knights nodded to show their agreement to fight the next captain.