The Wanderer and the Beast
"Wha— hey, grab that bastard!"
"I'll fucking kill you!"
Three of them immediately took off after Joseph.
"Wait! You little shits!"
One of the bandits shouted, but they didn't stop.
They should have been suspicious. An attacker introducing himself so brazenly right in front of them and then running off was strange enough to warrant doubt. But they'd been ambushed in their sleep, and that kind of thinking hadn't occurred to them. They were also furious that a comrade had just gone down. Joseph's self-introduction had probably come across as the rambling of some dumb country boy.
That stupid hick thinks he can mess with us? I'll kill him!
That seemed to be about as far as their thinking went.
Joseph sprinted down the highway. Even if their armor was only cloth, they were still wearing it — they wouldn't catch him anytime soon.
Whish—thunk.
Something flew past him from behind and buried itself in the dirt. An arrow with no fletching.
"You fucking idiot! You can't even hit that?!"
"Then you try it, you son of a bitch!"
Joseph glanced back as he ran and shouted,
"Can't even land a single shot? Slow-ass blockheads! I'll butcher you just like I did those other bastards!"
The ones chasing him clenched their teeth at that. Especially the man who'd been shocked to see the goat-bearded one called Zorph — his face flushed red as he charged after Joseph.
What about the others?
The remaining two hadn't given chase. They were still at the original camp, watching the surroundings. Some pursue, the rest keep watch. A reasonably sensible choice. But Joseph's mouth curled into a grin.
Just as planned...
Joseph veered off the highway and plunged into the forest. The ones behind him shouted,
"That bastard! He's heading toward the village! Don't let him get away!"
Just as Joseph had expected, they knew the way to the village.
The sky was clear, the sun fierce. Sunlight filtered through the leaves in visible shafts. He couldn't hide in the darkness like some black beast. But the trees here were denser than the woods around Bari Village.
Joseph weaved between the trunks, dodging his own traps as he sprinted uphill — as if trying to evade arrows that might come from behind. The three of them followed him straight in, just as expected.
"Gah!"
Then the two in front hit the traps and went down.
Joseph immediately formed a sphere. A hiss rose as he poured mana into it.
"Huh?"
A dumb sound came from the one behind who hadn't fallen. Joseph ignored him. For now.
Of the two who'd gone down, he targeted the one who'd sprawled more dramatically. Still running, he brought the sphere down on him.
Crack!
The sphere slammed home, and the man's head drove into the dirt. The back of his skull caved in. He didn't move.
At the same time, Joseph snatched up a spear he'd hidden. The one who'd made that dumb sound scrambled backward in shock at the magic, while the other fallen man was still trying to get up.
Joseph tucked the spear against his side, grabbed a tree, and spun around it. Using the centrifugal force to keep his speed, he launched himself at the man still on the ground.
"Ugh... ahh!"
He drove the spear into the man's face with his full weight behind it.
Thunk!
The spear tore through, punching straight through his face.
"Ghhhk..."
The man flailed his arms, but his sword caught against a tree. Joseph kicked the hand away, and the body went limp.
He immediately kicked the corpse aside and yanked the spear free, then turned to check on the last one. The man was frantically nocking an arrow. So he'd been the one who'd shot earlier.
"Nngh! Fuck!"
Joseph dove behind a tree, then ducked behind a shield he'd planted nearby.
Ping—
The arrow whistled through the air but failed to pierce the shield. In that window, Joseph retrieved the sphere he'd driven into the first man's skull. It was still intact.
"You... you son of a bitch! You fucking bastard!"
The remaining man spat curses. His voice was shaking. He was scared — fear of the unknown, of a mage who'd just killed two mercenaries right in front of him. That made things easier.
Joseph caught his breath, then immediately hurled the sphere at the man. At the same time, he planted a foot on the shield and launched himself forward, spear in hand.
"Hiiik!"
As expected, the man tried to dodge the sphere. There was enough distance that he could.
⟨ Fire ⟩
At Joseph's incantation, the sphere that had flown to the man's face burst into sparks and scattered. He felt the mana disperse. But it didn't matter. Success or failure wasn't the point. The man's gaze locked onto the scattering sphere for a split second. That was enough.
Joseph was already above his head. The man's face snapped up toward him — too late.
"Uwa—"
Joseph drove the spear straight down into his skull. Impaled vertically from the crown of his head, the man didn't even finish his scream before collapsing.
"Hah... hah..."
Only after confirming the man was dead did Joseph gasp for air.
Five. That made five of the seven bandits dead. Running around using magic and weapons at the same time was harder than he'd imagined. The Joseph of his previous life would have been spent after launching that first sphere. Every muscle in his body was screaming. His back and face were already soaked with sweat, and his palms stung.
Two left.
Joseph grabbed a club from the man whose head he'd crushed and a sword from the archer, one in each hand. Then he formed another sphere, gathered some leaves, and covered it again.
"Wha... what the hell..."
Right on cue, a dazed voice came from behind him. They'd been guarding the loot, and when they noticed no one around, they'd followed. The scene in the forest made them freeze.
Two killed in the ambush. The three who'd given chase, dead as well. They had no idea how Joseph had taken them down.
One of the two remaining men went pale.
"Aaaagh!"
Then the pale one kicked his companion's leg out from under him.
"You fucking... Kahn!"
"Aaaaaah!"
The one who'd kicked the other — a man called Kahn — immediately spun around and ran.
...Nice.
Internal strife hadn't been part of the plan, but Joseph was privately relieved. He'd had a plan for taking both of them, but he was too exhausted himself.
"You two get along well, huh?"
The remaining man gave a bitter smile at Joseph's words. In the end, it was just the one who looked like the leader, and Joseph.
The leader drew his sword and got to his feet. Unlike the other one, he showed no intention of running.
"Hayra from Bari Village, was it? Doing all this shit by yourself... You're a real monster, aren't you."
"You're just small fry, that's all."
Joseph said this as he slowly lowered his stance, gripping the club and sword tightly.
"Where'd you learn to fight? Huh? You look pretty worn out. Think you can take me?"
"I could take a truckload of small fry like you."
"Truck...? ...R-right. With skills like that, why not become a mercenary? I could introduce you if I go to town."
Joseph didn't answer. He just pulled his mouth into a grin. The man's brow furrowed at that.
"Why don't you just come be a village slave instead? Seems like it'd suit you better than banditry. I'll put in a word with the village chief."
"...That's enough, you little shit!"
The instant the man ground his teeth, Joseph dropped lower. The man lunged. Joseph jumped backward at the same time.
"Huh."
Joseph's foot caught on the covered trap. He went down on his back, flailing the club and sword through the air as he fell.
"Haha!"
A smile spread across the man's face. Joseph was exhausted, and he had the advantage. Charge in and stab him, and it was over. That's what he thought — right up until the moment before he thrust his sword. Until he saw Joseph's smiling face.
Crack!
The instant the man closed in on Joseph — from between his legs — a glowing sphere burst up through the scattered leaves.
Thud!
The sphere shot upward and crushed the man's groin. For a moment, Joseph thought he heard a distinctly unpleasant sound.
"Uh... hhk!"
The man clutched his stomach and curled up. But as anyone would know, that wasn't the kind of pain you could wait out by curling up. Foam rose to his lips. He convulsed for a while, then went still. When Joseph flipped him over, his eyes had rolled back.
Got him...
Just to be sure, Joseph drove the sword into the man's neck. Then he checked the surroundings. There was no sign of the one who'd fled coming back.
"...Haha."
Of the seven bandits, one had fled and six were dead. Things had gone according to plan, though there had been some close calls. Even so, it was Joseph's victory. The hunt had succeeded.
I should... rest a bit.
Joseph collapsed backward on the spot and blacked out.
Joseph didn't wake until around sunset.
Am I actually an idiot?
Once his head cleared, Joseph lamented his own stupidity. If the one who'd fled had come back, Joseph's head would have been rolling while he slept. The thick smell of blood everywhere might have drawn wild animals. And he'd just... taken a nap in that situation. He felt, viscerally, how sloppy he still was.
Still, I lived.
The finish hadn't been clean, but he'd taken down the bandit gang all the same. This would be important experience. As long as he didn't repeat the same mistakes, Joseph would survive the next time too. That's what he decided to believe.
"Now what?"
Coming to his senses, Joseph looked around. The corpses of the bandits he'd killed were still scattered everywhere. And then their belongings caught his eye.
This had all been about getting a magic book, but after the fight, it felt wasteful to just leave.
It's not like I can return any of it anyway.
Most of what they had was stolen goods — and the original owners were dead. With items like that, taking what he needed shouldn't be a problem.
Joseph gathered anything useful from the corpses. First, he scraped together the pouches of silver and copper coins. He also took a sword that looked to be in decent condition, and a cloth armor. He decided to take the iron plates meant to strap onto the arms as well. Better than nothing. No helmet in sight. Probably lying around at the campsite.
He dug up the pack he'd buried, slung it on his back, and retrieved the spear and shield, hanging them from himself.
...Huh.
Then he caught a glimpse of himself and let out a hollow laugh. Cloth armor with iron plates on the arms. A sword at his hip. A pack fitted for long-distance travel. A large shield and spear. If he'd had a helmet on, he'd look every bit the wandering mercenary.
...I should try to get a robe later.
Joseph vowed that once he could make a living with magic alone, he'd definitely dress like a mage.
Better to bury the leftover loot somewhere nearby.
If he went back to the bandit camp, there'd still be plenty of stuff they'd collected. But hauling all of that by himself would take a wagon. He couldn't quite bring himself to just abandon it either, so he figured he'd bury it in one spot when he got back.
Might come in handy someday.
Grrrr—
Just as he finished looting the corpses and was about to head for the camp, a sound reached him. Joseph dropped into a crouch on the spot, covering his back with the shield, and turned toward the noise. It was a sound he wouldn't forget. A low growl that seemed to vibrate through his guts. A little higher than where Joseph had planted his shield — at the crest of the ridge.
"...Of all times."
A black beast was looking down at him.