The caravan owner was completely stunned.
His mouth hung open, his eyes wide as saucers. He stood frozen in place, even forgetting to tremble.
From the moment he first laid eyes on this girl, he had only taken her for an ordinary young woman with a bit of money traveling alone—maybe with some connections, but likely just a regular person looking for a ride under his protection.
Second-rank Warrior?
Among the adventurers he had hired, the leader, Captain Engels, was only Second-rank himself!
Having Second-rank strength wasn’t something just anyone possessed. Take Engels, for example—he could single-handedly handle three or four common bandits without losing ground!
And now this girl, who looked as if she couldn’t even truss a chicken, was on the same level as Engels?!
The boss’s mind was in chaos.
He recalled how he had tried to sweet-talk her earlier, remembered the way he had stared at her coin purse, and thought about how he had tripped over her hem and landed flat on his face.
‘Oh no, oh no, have I offended her now?’
He swallowed hard, tried to say something, but found his tongue tied, unable to utter a single word.
Alpha didn’t look at him.
She simply glanced down at the sword formed from condensed light in her hand, then gave it a gentle squeeze.
The blade trembled slightly, as if responding to her.
So this is… the Demon Lord’s power?
She thought silently to herself, the corners of her mouth curving into an almost imperceptible smile.
Then she lifted her head and looked outside the carriage.
That bandit had already fled without looking back.
Alpha dismissed the sword, stepped out of the carriage, and landed steadily on the ground.
The remaining four rings of light still revolved quietly around her, their ghostly blue glow especially conspicuous in the night.
The campfire’s light reflected off her face, illuminating a pair of calm eyes.
Even though spending money and acting as a bodyguard sounded a bit like being taken for a fool, she still needed this caravan to reach the Empire. So they couldn’t afford to stop here just because of a few bandits.
—
Out on the wasteland.
The bandit leader was locked in a back-and-forth fight with Engels.
…
Blades clashed, sparks flew.
Both were Second-rank, evenly matched. Neither could gain the upper hand.
“Damn it, this cargo’s tougher than I thought!”
The bandit leader cursed through gritted teeth, but his hands didn’t stop—another slash came swinging down.
Just then—
“Boss! Boss!”
A breathless voice shouted from behind.
The bandit leader shot a glance and saw his number eight henchman crawling toward him, face pale as a ghost.
“What’s the panic?!”
He blocked Engels’ attack with his blade while grumbling angrily, “Spit it out!”
The henchman swallowed and spoke rapidly:
“Boss! There’s a woman on that carriage! She snapped my sword in half with one swing!”
“What?”
The bandit leader was so shocked he nearly got cut by Engels. He quickly dodged to the side, retreated two steps, and glared at the henchman.
“What nonsense are you spouting? A woman can snap your sword?”
“It’s true, boss! I swear! If I hadn’t run fast, I’d be split in two too!”
The henchman, unable to explain, raised his empty hands to show him, then pointed toward the carriage: “Boss, look! She’s coming out!”
The bandit leader turned and looked, spotting Alpha under the moonlight, holding a glowing sword with rings of light orbiting her body.
His expression changed.
“Is that… a Magic Swordsman?!”
And Alpha was too young—she only looked about seventeen or eighteen.
The bandit leader’s face grew even darker.
A seventeen- or eighteen-year-old Second-rank Magic Swordsman?
If she was a self-taught prodigy, that was one thing. But if she came from a prestigious family…
Tonight might end with them injuring her badly, only to have some unknown powerhouse come to their hideout in a few days to slice off their heads.
Not to mention, there was a Second-rank Engels holding them up here. If she charged over from the other side…
“Damn it.”
He cursed through clenched teeth, then made a snap decision:
“Brothers! Grab what you can and pull out!”
At his command, the bandits who had been locked in combat immediately disengaged and ran.
But before they fled, they snatched a few goods from the carriage—cloth, grain, a few bags of copper coins.
“Boss, we’re just leaving like that?” One lackey asked reluctantly.
“What else?” The bandit leader glared at him. “You want to take on two Second-ranks?”
“Uh… me?”
The lackey imagined that scenario, shrank his neck, and dared not speak again.
The bandits came fast and left fast.
The sound of hooves gradually faded, and the camp fell silent again.
Only the campfire still crackled, illuminating the mess all around.
Engels panted heavily, his hand gripping his sword trembling slightly.
He looked toward where Alpha stood.
There, a girl stood quietly, surrounded by four ghostly blue rings of light.
The glow was especially striking in the darkness, like some ancient and sacred symbol.
What is that?
Engels’ pupils contracted.
He had lived for decades and seen many things, but he had never witnessed anything like this.
The rings of light around that girl didn’t seem like any kind of magic, yet they radiated an aura of majesty.
Was this a Magic Swordsman?
Engels couldn’t figure it out, nor did he dare to stare.
He silently averted his eyes and called over his men to assess the losses.
Alpha didn’t chase either. She stood there, watching the direction the bandits had fled until the hoofbeats completely disappeared into the night.
She looked down at the Light-forged Longsword in her hand.
The blade shimmered with faint patterns in the moonlight, like a living thing breathing.
She gently released her grip.
The sword dissolved into specks of light, reforming into a ring of light that returned to her side, rotating quietly with the other four rings around her.
It was then that the caravan owner crawled out of the carriage, his legs still weak. He only managed to stand steady by gripping the shafts.
He stared at Alpha’s back, opened his mouth, wanted to say something, but found himself at a loss for words.
In the end, Alpha spoke first.
“Can we still move on tomorrow?”
Her voice was very calm, as if asking about something trivial.
The boss was stunned for a moment, then nodded frantically.
“We can! We can go! Absolutely we can!”
“As for the goods those bandits stole… I’ll take the loss! Just as long as we reach the Empire safely!”
Alpha didn’t turn around. She only gave a faint “Mm” in response.
Then she walked back to the campfire and sat down again.
As she sat, the five rings of light quietly withdrew into her body and vanished.
As if everything that had just happened was nothing but an illusion.
Engels silently glanced at her, then silently looked away.
He asked no questions.
The campfire crackled.
The night deepened.
This time, Alpha didn’t go back to sleep in the carriage. Instead, she sat hugging her knees in front of the fire, staring at the leaping flames, lost in thought.
Her left hand unconsciously reached for the back of her right hand.
There, the New Moon Mark was radiating a faint, gentle warmth.
Recalling the fleeting glance from the distant sky when she had first gained this power, a flush rose to Alpha’s cheeks.
Who would have thought the Demon Lord…
was watching me even this late at night…
“Hehe…”