The Mayor of Sprigfield was currently shaking as he stared at the trophies the Brave had just slammed on his floor.
"Y-you killed all these?!?" His eyebrows kept twitching. His face as he handed Jack a travel token was priceless.
[Congratulations! You can now legally travel to Timber City!]
With this, he'd be able to grow stronger quickly. Thus he announced his departure for a trip, ordering D.L. to take care of his place while he was gone.
"I'll wait for you, so you have to come back safely." Pumpkin Girl made him promise as he left….
—
The road to Timber City passed through a coll in the mountains. A small fortress guarded it, one that many players grumbled about.
"Tch— They just won't let us through! What's with this setting?"
"Apparently, you need to reach a certain fame level and get a quest from the Mayor to be allowed in."
While there were plenty of places to explore in Sprigfield, they wanted something new, more fun.
They suddenly saw a lone man walk toward the open gate, chuckling to themselves. Soon he'd reach the invisible barrier and…
"?!?"
As Jack easily passed through, he felt their surprised and envious gazes on him. A few Empire soldiers quickly surrounded him.
"Reason for your passage?" One grumbled, glancing at Moon Moon.
This seemed like straightforward questioning, but there was far more behind it. It would affect the first event he would encounter in this new land.
Adventurer—> Pushy people would want you to become a mercenary
Merchant —> The commerce guild would try to get a hold of you
Traveler —> This would set off some red flags
No matter what one said, there would be a group awaiting to investigate you once you arrived in the City.
But, there was also one hidden option.
"I'm a merchant here to sell rare resources!" With a wave of his hand, he made countless treasures appear in the air. It was the rewards from all the bosses he had recently slain.
— Gulp! —
The guards' eyes shone as they saw all that he owned. The simple-looking man had turned out to be a young master in disguise?! After a few formalities, he was ushered in.
"Alright, please proceed!" the soldiers showed great respect.
The mountainous road was relatively safe, as soldiers occasionally patrolled it. But, his earlier display had just started an event.
As soon as he was out of the fortress' view, he grabbed seemingly at empty air, revealing the invisible Fairy that had been hitching a ride.
"Kyaa. H-how did you find me?!"
"…."
"Please, let me stay. The farm is lonely without you!"
"Alright, but I have a job for you…."
She beamed in joy, hurriedly following his orders. Her presence was the only reason he had dared to act like that at the gates…
—
In the mountain, there were rocks everywhere.
At one specific spot, however, that wasn't all there was. Behind the boulders, many gruff-looking men awaited.
"Are you sure there's a merchant incoming? He should have been here by now." One of them grumbled.
They had a deal with one of the guards at the fortress. Every time there was a big fish passing through, they would be given a heads up.
Either this one was a man of the land, and he owned a dimensional treasure, or he was a Brave, and no one would care if they killed him. This was so damn great!
As they were lost in their delusions, time passed. Eventually, they couldn't take it anymore and sent a few of their guys to scour the road dressed as simple travelers.
It didn't take long for them to come back, puzzled.
"Boss, he's gone. It's strange. It's like he disappeared entirely. I checked for traces, but there were none either." One reported.
It soon became painfully evident that they had wasted their time. They could only return to their base, dragging their feet.
Little did they know, there was a tiny Fairy right on their heels. As expected of her master, he had predicted it all! Her little heart couldn't help but beat with pride.
Before long, she was flying back, arriving at a seemingly very ordinary boulder.
— Knock! Knock! —
The boulder shook, Jack pushing it away from the hole he had been hiding in. Her face full of pride was enough to assure him of her success.
There was one thing for sure, whatever happened, he could not confront the bandits alone. Each was level 40 ish, and they could coordinate to boot.
Their Hideout was in a cave, and it was well hidden. Plus, they would often change their location to prevent raids.
This gave them the confidence to pillage the road as they desired. Then again, most of the caravans passing by belonged to powers they didn't dare touch.
That's why they had been so excited about Jack's passage.
[Congratulations! Found the bandits' Hideout!]
[Defeat them all! Surely they have a bounty, right?]
Jack could only shake his head. Was the cheeky system trying to cause his doom? No, he had a far better plan.
"Let's start operation: give the bandits a taste of their own medicine…."
It happened in the middle of the night. The entire mountain started shaking. That's when the bandits suddenly woke up, panicked. What the hell was happening?!
Incredulous cries came from the sentries as they ran to their leader.
"B-boss! The Empire found us! They're on their way!"
"What?! Nonsense! We never did anything to provoke their wrath. There's no way they'd —" But as he checked outside, he froze.
It was dark, the visibility was low, but they could see the silhouettes in the distance, illuminated by the torches. A large army had appeared.
It was incredibly surreal how amazing their coordination was. Every time one took a step, the ones in the back followed! It was as if they were one single entity.
"Quick, Jorn, I want more details." The leader ordered one of the scouts. He was the only one that had a spell that had enough range to work in this situation.
"Right away, Sir! It's— ARGGG!" Just as the man cast the spell, he was suddenly overcome by a severe headache. That's when a few of them turned white.
In order for this to happen, the enemies had to have a really skilled mage who had placed a defensive measure around their troops.
This could only mean one thing: their enemies had come prepared. Should they fight, they would indubitably die.
"Retreat! Retreat! Grab the treasure and run!" There was no other alternative than this. There was no way they would fight fairly and perish.
An invisible fairy couldn't help but sigh in relief when she witnessed this. Timing her attack with the man's spell had been so hard!
They had been so stressed that they hadn't even realized that a small Fairy had infiltrated their ranks. Well, that and she hadn't caused any real damage either.
Thus, they began moving toward one of their old bases.
They evacuated orderly under such stress, not leaving anything worthwhile behind. Soon enough, they had even managed to escape the army.
"Boss, they're gone! They won't bother us anymore!"
….But they did.
The scouts shouted once more as they spotted the enemies. "They found us again!!! Get up, everyone!!!"
The bandit leader instantly understood that something was wrong.
"We run, lads!" They hurriedly switched base once more, and it seemed they had gotten rid of their pursuers.
However, this time, the bandit leader ordered a full sweep of their camp. Everything that moved was killed, from small insects to roaming monstrous beats.
They even checked every single of their members to make sure they weren't marked with a tracking spell. But, there was no issue to be found.
Just when they thought they'd be fine….
"They're here again, Boss!"
The more this went on and the more they realized that their enemies would always follow no matter what they did. There was no escape.
Unfortunately for them, they didn't realize that the source of all their problems was a small Fairy hiding by the side. In their defense, fairies were still believed to be extinct.
As long as she stuck to them, the army would follow.
As for the poor bandits, they could only come to the logical conclusion that they were outclassed. Their enemies were toying with them, enjoying their squirming.
Base after base, the army followed. They felt as if rabbits hunted for sport, their faces becoming darker and darker.
Then it reached the point of no return.
"Boss, I really can't take it anymore. At this rate, we'll fall of exhaustion just from running. I can't accept this." One shouted with hatred in his eyes.
This feeling soon echoed with the others. As the Boss saw his men, he gave a chuckle full of bravado.
"You're right. You're all right! We may be crooks, but we have our pride. Let's show them who we are. I'm gonna kill them. Who's with me!!"
"Kill!"
"KILL!"
They all rushed toward the great army in the distance, knowing this would be their last fight. They were outnumbered, outclassed, and the enemy probably had an archmage.
But so what?!
"KILL!!!!" They all screamed as they finally reached their enemies, wielding their weapons with incredible courage.
They entered the army's midst and started a slaughter….only to freeze.
"What the hell?! There's an undead here!"
"Those aren't real soldiers! They're sculptures!"
The great army looked very convincing from a distance, but there was obviously something wrong with it up close.
"What's happening?! Why would….oh god!" they screamed in horror as they rushed back toward their base.
But as they arrived, it was already too late. All that awaited them was an empty treasury. As for the thief, he was already on his way toward Timber City.
It was time for some shopping…
