Return Journey (3)

-Jjarrureung, jjarrung, jjarreung….

The peaceful conversation by the bonfire was abruptly cut off by an ominous sound.

Ethan’s expression instantly hardened as he heard the security device activating, just like I did.

In that state, we briefly made eye contact and exchanged opinions in hushed voices.

‘Lilith, was that just now….’

‘…Just a moment, Young Master Ethan. There’s one more thing I need to check.’

-Nod.

After covering my mouth with a finger and whispering a warning, Ethan quietly nodded in agreement.

We listened carefully for a few seconds to see if the bell would ring again, but after the first chime, no further sounds came from the security device.

The good news was that it likely wasn’t a ‘horde’ of monsters.

…The bad news was that the possibility of it being something other than monsters had increased.

If it had been monsters, they should have sensed our presence and rushed at us by now, but there was no trace of growls or footsteps in the darkness.

It seemed fate had decided we wouldn’t be getting any peaceful sleep tonight.

-Zzeubung…. Zzeubung….

The slow, deliberate footsteps made it obvious they were trying to stay quiet.

Given how suspicious the presence was, I whispered to Ethan in a low voice.

‘It’s people, probably about five or six of them.’

‘Bandits?’

‘Maybe not, but it’s better not to let them get any closer. We have Isabelle with us.’

‘…Right. We have Lilith and Isabelle.’

Though it was dark, the flickering light of the bonfire and the faint moonlight were enough to guess their positions.

When they came within about ten meters of our campsite, Ethan drew his sword from his waist and thrust it into the darkness as a warning.

“That’s far enough. Don’t come any closer.”

“…….”

“If you’ve lost your way, we’ll let you pass if you turn back now. This is our campsite, and we can’t let you get any closer.”

A faint murmur rose from the darkness as the group exchanged words among themselves.

I couldn’t make out what they were saying, but it was clear they were plotting something.

Ethan glanced at me as if seeking my opinion.

“…….”

-Shakes head.

“…….”

-Nods.

After a brief exchange of glances and silent communication, Ethan repeated his earlier words, still pointing his sword at them.

“I don’t care. If you take another step forward, I won’t hesitate to use force.”

“Oh, come on~. Why so cold, young master~? How are we supposed to find our way back in this pitch-black night~?”

“Just go back the way you came. If you need it, I’ll even give you a torch.”

“…….”

The man at the front stiffened, and Ethan and I grew even more wary.

When the negotiation-or rather, the scheming-seemed to stall, the rest of the group began emerging from the darkness one by one.

“What’s the holdup? How long are we gonna wait?”

“You said you’d get us the bonfire! Why’s this taking so long?”

Including the first man, there were six burly men now visible.

All but the seemingly friendly-looking man had arming swords or broadswords hanging from their waists.

Their scarred and battle-worn appearances didn’t exactly inspire trust, and any lingering hope that they were just lost travelers vanished completely.

‘Damn. I had a feeling it’d come to this.’

Forget about sleep-first, I needed to assess whether Ethan and I could handle them.

First, my magic arrows were useless. My terrible accuracy made hitting anything in this darkness impossible.

Mana Blast took too long to cast, and since I’d used it recently, my body couldn’t handle another one. It was also too large-scale, risking Ethan getting caught in it.

Blurred Light was useless in the dark, so close combat with daggers was my only option. Not ideal, but I had no choice.

While I was assessing my options, one of the bandits who had just shown himself yelled at Ethan.

“Hey, buddy, why don’t we just share the bonfire? You wanna be responsible if we freeze to death out here?”

“I don’t owe you anything. If you freeze, take it up with the sun when you get there.”

“Ah, come on! Your tents look big enough for all six of us! And there’s two of them!”

“Two tents could fit ten people! Right?”

They shamelessly chatted as they took a few steps closer.

Ethan drew his second sword and fully prepared for battle.

“I told you not to come any closer.”

“Oho~. Scary. The young master’s got not one, but two swords~!”

“But what’re you gonna do? There’s only two of you, and we’ve got numbers.”

“Two? Oh, is the lady fighting too? What’s a delicate girl like her gonna do?”

“Dumbass, I’m talking about the maid inside the tent. I saw her earlier-she’s definitely in there.”

……What?

What the hell did these bastards just say?

“Ah~. Well, two girls against all of us would be tough!”

“I spotted this place first, so the black-haired one’s mine. I’ll use her first, then when I’m done… mmm….”

The shameless bandit’s words were abruptly cut off.

Ethan’s sword stroke cleanly severed his head from his shoulders.

“…Huh?”

“W-what the-?!”

By the time the stunned bandits realized what had happened, Ethan was already in their midst, swinging his twin swords with deadly precision.

In an instant, three heads hit the ground, including the first one.

“H-hey! Kill that bastard!”

“Shit! What the hell kind of guy did we mess with?!”

“He just killed three of us, you idiot!”

The remaining three bandits-two of whom had finally snapped out of it-drew their arming swords and rushed Ethan.

The skinniest one charged straight at me.

“Drop that knife, bitch! I don’t wanna see you die….”

“…You’ve got some nerve, you fucking bastard.”

-Clang!

“…Huh?”

The bandit froze when his arming sword was deflected by my dagger.

Stabbing my dagger into his exposed throat wasn’t difficult.

-Schluk!

“Uh, uh….”

My dagger pierced his windpipe and severed his spine, turning him into a head-bobbing corpse straight out of a mage’s horror story.

“…Ah.”

Oh, damn. This is Luke’s dagger, isn’t it?

I just grabbed whatever was closest in the heat of the moment-no wonder it cut so well.

As that pointless thought crossed my mind, agonized groans came from Ethan’s side.

Naturally, Ethan’s voice wasn’t among them.

“Guhhh….”

“Y-you crazy… there were six of us….”

The last bandit collapsed with a stupid last word.

What does it matter if there were six of you? If a bunch of trash like you attack a carriage or campsite, even ten or twenty of you would end up dead.

Honestly, Ethan could’ve handled ten of them alone even without me.

In fact, I might’ve just gotten in the way. I could take on one or two bandits, but three or more would’ve been tough for me.

Ethan’s quick decision to strike first was the right call. Even if it had seemed reckless at first glance.

“Lilith, are you okay?!”

“Yes, as you can see, I’m fine, Young Master Ethan.”

“Are you hurt?! Did that bastard do anything to you…?!”

“I appreciate your concern, but could you lower your voice a little?”

“…Ah, right.”

I gestured toward Isabelle’s tent, and Ethan nodded, lowering his voice.

Just in case, I pressed my ear to the tent and listened-only Isabelle’s shallow breathing, her usual sleeping sound, reached me.

“Fortunately, it seems she didn’t wake up during all that.”

“…Good.”

“It’s not exactly a pleasant sight for Isabelle to wake up to, so we should probably bury them somewhere farther away.”

“…I’ll handle that. Lilith, can you check the security device?”

“…Understood, Young Master Ethan.”

I could already picture Ethan sternly refusing if I offered to help carry the bodies.

I fixed the security device the bandits had knocked over and covered the bloodstains on the ground with dirt.

For stains on objects or rocks, I had no choice but to use Clean Magic.

Of course, digging graves for six grown men took a considerable amount of time.

By the time everything was finished and we returned to the tent, it was nearly 3 AM.

Inside, Isabelle was still peacefully asleep, oblivious to everything.

‘It’s good she didn’t wake up.’

As long as Isabelle was safe, that was enough.

For a moment, I felt like I’d forgotten something, but my exhausted mind, worn out from the night watch and the fight, couldn’t recall it.

Overwhelmed by sudden fatigue, I collapsed into my sleeping bag.

…Well, if it was really important, I’d remember it by morning.