Chapter 27: Bandits and High Mages

At Hedin’s booming shout, the mercenaries erupted in cheers, as if they’d been waiting for it.

“Hell yeah! We’re starting with a big score!”

“Nice one, Tagrid!”

“Heh, we better get a bonus for this!”

“They say Glaco Kingdom’s liquor is top-notch, heh heh.”

“2,000 gold—how much will we each get?”

Hedin grinned at the mercenaries’ excitement and gave Tagrid a nod.

Tagrid raised his sword and shouted, “Follow me!”

He took the lead, with Hedin and the mercenaries following close behind.

As they moved, Tagrid asked Hedin, “What if there’s a noble in that carriage?”

It wasn’t certain, but a 2,000-gold carriage from the Kerhen Workshop likely belonged to a noble.

And a noble’s death wasn’t a trivial matter.

The Hedin Mercenary Band had come to the Glaco Kingdom because they were declared public enemies in the neighboring Laco Kingdom after killing a viscount.

So, Tagrid was curious—how would Hedin handle it if it was a noble?

“If it’s a noble…” Hedin trailed off, pondering.

His deliberation didn’t last long.

“We’ll strip them for everything they’ve got and kill them. We’re not staying in Glaco anyway.”

The Glaco Kingdom was just a stopover, not their final destination.

The Hedin Mercenary Band was headed to Patan, a city-state ruled by the Mercenary King.

“Even if we don’t kill them, nobles are a hassle. They’ll make trouble unless we’re declared public enemies. Better to kill them and leave the kingdom before it becomes an issue.”

They planned to take everything, including the carriage.

Even if they spared the noble, the outcome would be similar.

It was better to eliminate them and avoid future complications.

“Got it. And don’t scratch the carriage—it’s worth 2,000 gold.”

“Don’t worry. No escorts, right? A little scare, and they’ll come crawling out.”

With that conversation, the Hedin Mercenary Band reached their target.

In the distance, the carriage approached.

Hedin signaled, and the mercenaries spread out, closing in on the carriage.

Soon, the carriage stopped nearby.

“What’s this?” the driver asked, frowning slightly.

Hedin was dumbfounded.

He wasn’t alone—he held his prized steel axe, and his mercenaries had blocked the path.

How could the driver be so bold in this situation?

“Don’t you get what’s happening?” Hedin said with a scoff.

“Leave the carriage and get lost.”

“Looks like bandits,” the driver said, glancing into the carriage.

Hedin was floored.

Bandits?

How dare they compare his mercenary band to mere bandits?

“Tch, Dephai,” Hedin called to the mage waiting nearby.

“Put him to sleep with Sleep.”

Dephai nodded and chanted, “Sleep.”

But the driver frowned and snapped, “What are you doing?”

“…!”

Hedin looked at Dephai in shock.

Dephai was a 4th Circle mage.

His Sleep spell didn’t work?

On a driver?

That was absurd.

Had Dephai only chanted without casting?

“I cast it!” Dephai stammered, flustered by Hedin’s gaze.

“He must be a mage or have an artifact.”

The Sleep spell failing meant the driver was either a mage or possessed an artifact that blocked it.

He couldn’t be a mage—a 2nd Circle mage at least would be needed to resist Dephai’s spell.

Why would a 2nd Circle mage work as a driver?

It had to be an artifact, likely owned by the noble inside the carriage.

This could be even more lucrative, Hedin thought, smiling faintly as he turned back to the driver.

“You’ve got something to rely on, huh?”

At that moment—

“Hedin? The Hedin Mercenary Band?” the driver tilted his head and said.

“…!”

Hedin was stunned.

He hadn’t expected the driver to recognize him.

…We have to kill them all.

He’d planned to kill them anyway, but it was a casual decision, with room to let some slip if necessary.

Not anymore.

They had to die, or the consequences could be catastrophic.

“Didn’t expect you to know us,” Hedin said, still smiling but with an icy voice.

“Then you know what this situation means?”

“I do. That guy next to you, Dephai, is your only 4th Circle mage, right? And the one beside him is a 3rd Circle mage? The 4-star sorcerer has a scar on his cheek, so that must be him.”

“…?”

Hedin was thrown off as the driver rattled off details about his band.

Knowing about their 4th Circle mage and 4-star sorcerer meant he understood their strength.

How could he remain so calm?

“Judging by your expression, I guess I was supposed to be shocked,” the driver said with a smirk.

“I’m 4th Circle too, so why would I be?”

Hedin was floored again.

He’d assumed the Sleep spell failed because of an artifact.

But no—the driver was a 4th Circle mage.

Unthinkable.

…Doesn’t matter.

A 4th Circle mage didn’t change the situation.

Even a 5th Circle mage could be overwhelmed by his entire band.

“4th Circle, huh? And you’re working as a driver…”

A sudden thought made Hedin pause.

…A driver? A 4th Circle mage?

It was strange.

Why would a 4th Circle mage be a driver?

He glanced at the carriage.

Who was inside?

At that moment—

Creak.

Two people stepped out: a young man and an elderly man.

“They’ve got a bounty in the Laco Kingdom?” the young man asked.

“Yes, I didn’t expect to encounter them here,” the elderly man replied respectfully.

The issue was the elderly man’s staff—he was a mage.

A mage who employed a 4th Circle mage as a driver.

A High Mage…

At least a 5th Circle High Mage.

Worse, the High Mage was deferential to the young man.

What was the young man’s status?

A royal, perhaps?

Hedin swallowed hard, focusing on the two.

“How much is the bounty?”

“The band leader is 10,000 gold, the 4th Circle mage is 12,000 gold.”

“Total?”

The elderly man looked at Hedin, who flinched under his gaze.

The elderly man then scanned the mercenary band.

“About 150,000 gold.”

“Wow, that’s a lot for their level. What did they do?”

“They killed a noble, committed arson, rape, and numerous other crimes.”

“Pretty lowlife scum, huh?”

“Yes, indeed.”

“Not all mercenary bands are like this, right?”

“No, most are fiercely fighting demons and demonic beasts in the coexistence zones.”

“So these guys are especially trashy?”

“Yes, exactly.”

The two were openly disparaging the Hedin Mercenary Band.

But Hedin couldn’t retort.

Argue with a 5th Circle High Mage?

He’d need multiple lives for that.

Instead, he racked his brain for a way to escape the situation.

…Take the young man hostage.

It was the only option.

Capturing the young man, presumed to be a royal, was his only way out.

“Proof? Do we need their bodies, or is there a specific token?”

“Just their bodies will do, but to be safe, we should take the bodies. I have a subspace artifact for this.”

“Will it hold them all?”

“Yes, it’s spacious enough.”

Hedin swallowed hard at their conversation.

They planned to kill everyone.

At that moment—

The young man spoke, and Hedin was stunned by what followed.

His body froze.

It was unmistakably the mage spell Bind.

How…

He couldn’t resist at all.

It wasn’t his first time experiencing Bind.

On the battlefield, being immobilized meant death, so he’d trained with Dephai to resist it.

Dephai’s Bind could be broken with mana manipulation.

But now, no amount of mana worked.

The bigger issue was that the Bind wasn’t cast by the High Mage but by the young man presumed to be a royal.

This meant the young man was likely a High Mage too.

This is insane…

Hedin cursed inwardly.

At that moment—

“Taylor.”

“Yes, Gaon-nim.”

The young man called the driver, who responded.

Hedin now knew their names: the young man was Gaon, the driver was Taylor.

Taylor? Sounds familiar…

Gaon’s name was new, but Taylor rang a bell.

…Gardion Tower!

Dephai had mentioned recently that rumors were circulating about Gardion Tower’s Elder Baren and his disciple Taylor being nearby, urging caution.

“They said you specialize in wind magic, right?”

“Yes, my affinity for wind is strong…”

“Try training like this from now on. You’ll improve quickly.”

Hedin swallowed hard as he listened.

He was terrified of what was coming.

Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

Wind blades appeared in the air—Wind Cutters.

Not just one or two, but dozens.

And they weren’t small or weak—each was larger than Dephai’s strongest Wind Cutter.

“How many can you make at once?”

“Two is my limit.”

“Work up to ten. By then, you’ll be able to take on a 5th Circle mage.”

“Thank you for the advice!”

Gaon turned to Hedin.

The moment their eyes met, Hedin knew he was as good as dead.

The wind blades shot toward their targets.

Slash! Slash! Slash!

Bound by Bind, no one could move.

Hedin and his entire mercenary band met their end.

“I’ll clean this up in a minute,” Rotes said.

Gaon nodded and returned to the carriage.

Rotes took out a subspace-enabled box and, with Taylor, began collecting the bodies.

“To Laverium?” Taylor asked while gathering the corpses.

“That’s best. We can hand them over on the way.”

The Hedin Mercenary Band was declared public enemies in the Laco Kingdom, where bounties could be claimed anywhere.

However, outside the capital, Laverium, verification took longer.

Fortunately, Laverium was only a slight detour.

“Alright, I’ll drive to Laverium,” Taylor said.

Once the bodies were collected, Rotes returned to the carriage, and Taylor took the driver’s seat.

“Let’s go.”

The carriage set off.

Much later, a young man and woman, appearing to be a couple, arrived at the scene.

Step.

As if by agreement, they stopped simultaneously where the Hedin Mercenary Band had died.

The two, who had been chuckling, abruptly stopped smiling.

They began inspecting the area, searching for traces.