Chapter 109
Chapter 109
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: Nymph Cultist and Pluto's Underground Labyrinth #7
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"It's real! There's a fancy-looking carriage just like Big Brother said! Man, we're in luck!"
"It's not luck—my faith got us an answer. It hit me in the head like a divine revelation. Jod, get up quick and head to the plains—like this!"
"You're getting divine messages without even praying?"
As we grabbed our weapons and stepped out of the carriage, we saw about ten men surrounding it.
Most of them were armed with ragged leather clothes, longswords, maces, and the like, sporting unkempt hair and scruffy beards.
If I had to describe them, they were vagrants wielding swords and clubs.
In one word: bandits, for sure.
Among them, a man gripping two fairly ornate swords in each hand flashed his eyes and shouted.
"Don't damage the horse or the carriage! We can make a fortune reselling them!"
"Big Brother, what about the coachman?"
"What're you asking for? This ain't our first rodeo. We take the horse and carriage—everything else is disposable!"
"Fuck, if I don't ask, you'll bitch that I'm acting on my own again. Totally unfair."
From their chatter, the dual-wielding guy seemed to be the leader of this band.
Leading a group of around ten—not three or four—meant he was probably somewhat notorious around these parts.
I'm struggling a bit just leading a party of five, so how the hell does this guy boss around ten bandits?
As I upped my threat assessment of the bandit leader with those thoughts.
Beside me, the dwarf Didier—gripping his double-headed axe and facing off against the bandits—spoke in a quiet voice.
"Party leader, what's the plan? Ditch the carriage and run? Looks like the carriage is their target. Too many for us to handle."
Didier's advice was spot on.
About ten armed men. I didn't know their individual skills, but as experienced bandits, they surely outmatched us in tactics and numbers.
Sorry, coachman, but ditching the carriage and fleeing might be the smart move. Though whether they'd let us go easily was doubtful.
Was there no other way—.
"Icicle!"
Then a loud shout came from Belmina, who was behind me and Didier.
Soon, strange crystalline shapes crackled into being in the air.
Pew. Pssshhh!
They shot like arrows, embedding in the napes of two bandits and spraying blood.
"F-Fuck, a wizard!"
"There's a mage among the carriage passengers!"
The bandits panicked at the sight of their two fallen comrades. But only for a moment.
"Fuck, it'll take time for her next cast! Crush 'em all before she chants! The longer we drag this out, the worse for us!"
At the dual-sword bandit's snarling command, the bandits drew their blades like well-trained soldiers and charged us.
"Fuck, Didier! Protect the girls!"
"Got it!"
My eyes locked on the bandit charging straight at me first.
"Savage! Let's see your moves!"
For a bandit, he was well-fed—about my size, with tanned, solid muscles visible under his torn leather armor. Bald-headed bastard.
"That leather of yours—crocodile hide? Fits me perfect, same build! Heh, I'll peel it off with your skin!"
He must've targeted me for matching his physique. Guys our size have a hard time finding clothes that fit.
Whoosh.
The bald guy thundered across the dry ground, swinging his longsword without any feint or trick—just brute force.
Less a sword swing, more like a beast swiping with its paw.
But faster than expected. Instead of dodging, I raised my club overhead to block.
Crack!
His long sword lodged into my thick club without cleaving through. A jolt hit my wrist and elbow, but bearable.
"Shit, it's stuck!"
He hadn't anticipated his weapon getting stuck—his body twitched as he tried yanking it free.
I seized the opening, kicking up with all my might into his gut.
"Guhk!"
My toe sank into his solar plexus, forcing out a ragged breath. Anyone else would've crumpled screaming.
"Grraaah—."
Even in agony, he didn't fall—tough enough to match his size. I swung the sword-stuck club down at his lowered head with full force.
Thwack! Clang roll.
"Kyak!"
A solid hit, his sword ripping free and tumbling. I followed up, smashing his massive bald head as he collapsed twitching.
Crack—!
With a skull-cracking sound, the big bandit slumped lifelessly.
Damn, I took down a bandit my size in just a few exchanges! A thrill hit me, but with more to handle, I saved the gloating.
"Th-This fucker won't break!"
"Hit it harder!"
"F-Fuck, come out, you bitch! Come out!"
Clang, clang!
Sharp, grating metallic bursts like hammering thin sheet metal pierced the air.
Turning my excited head, I saw Belmina trapped in some bizarre ice formation, bandits swinging swords and maces to shatter it.
"Hiiik!"
Screams rang out.
"Wow, meeting a nymph in this day and age. So soft and squishy-looking."
"I'll curse you if you come closer! I warned you!"
"Heh heh, and what's this? Some weird pink-haired girl. Doesn't look like an adventurer rolling in the dirt. Out picking flowers?"
There was Paranoya, trembling in fear, and Luna in front of her, clutching a sinister black obsidian dagger.
Unarmed women exposed to armed thugs? Nothing good could come of this.
Where the hell was dwarf Didier? Didn't I tell him to guard the girls?
As I scanned the chaos frantically.
"Hraaah!"
I spotted Didier battling the bandit leader, swinging his massive double-headed axe. I told him to protect the girls—why's he fighting their boss?
But no time for questions. I stopped thinking, kicked off the ground, and sprinted full-tilt toward Luna.
Thud.
"Heh heh, come here nice and quiet."
The bandits would reach Luna before my club smashed their skulls.
Fuck, what now? Throw the club?
As I gripped it tight.
"Sh-Shadow Bind Curse—! Hyaah!!"
Dodging the man's grasp by ducking, Luna stabbed her dagger deep into the ground. The instant she did, the reaching bandit's arm froze mid-motion—his whole body locked.
"Wh-What the fuck... B-Body... What is this shit...."
"It worked! I pulled off a high-level ritual! Yes! Shit!"
No clue what it was, but it bought us time. I swung the arm I'd cocked to throw, slamming full force into the frozen bandit's waist.
Smack—!
A meaty impact sent the defenseless thug tumbling far across the ground.
"D-Dorka! Fuck, who flies like a damn rock! B-Boss, what do we do!"
"I-I don't know! You fucking dwarf runt! Stubborn little shit!"
"Hraaah!"
Clang, clang—, clang!
Metal clashed, sparks flying. The dwarf I'd expected to struggle held the edge against a man twice his size.
He said making pancakes was his hobby—made me uneasy—but maybe he lived up to being a guild-picked prospect?
Damn, at this rate, we'd repel the bandits smoothly! This what a proper party feels like, everyone pulling their weight?
Pew—.
Then an arrow whistled from somewhere, embedding in Didier's back.
"Argh! Sneaky bastard, getting backup...! Ain't you ashamed as a warrior!"
"Fuck, I'm no warrior—I'm a bandit, moron! Wasn't planning a fair duel! What're you waiting for! Pile on!"
Hit by the arrow, Didier curled up—then bandits' feet stomped him down.
"Urk, oof! F-Fucking hurts! Y-You cowardly fucks! Ganging up like bitches...."
Clang, clang—!
"F-Fuck! Ice is almost broken! Come out, you sneaky spell-slinging bitch!"
"Drag her to the cave, make her an ice-making slave! Cool summer ahead!"
"Heh heh, shaved ice for days!!"
Belmina's solid ice barrier enveloping her was starting to crack.
Crack, crunch—the ice around her webbed with fissures.
"Y-You spell trash!? If you break my ice, I won't stand for it! I said I won't stand for it!"
"H-Hassan! Hurry, help her!"
Chaos everywhere, punches flying. Could no one stand against a mob? Taking on ten bandits with five was insane.
Fuck, was this pretty flower field my grave?
No, damn it, not like this!!
"You illegal fuckers! Tax-dodging money-grubbing bastards!!"
Rage boiling over, I charged the bandits beating warrior Didier.
Belmina's ice would hold a bit longer. She had time.
Didier had held his own against the leader until the cheap gang-up—rescue him before his short stature got even shorter!
"De-Deforma. Kalimir Nanae—!"
Right before my club met bandit flesh, a loud incantation burst from Paranoya, who'd been huddled behind Luna.
Crunch, crackle—.
Grass and flowers sprouting thick on the ground twisted into eerie shapes, clumping earth and sand into bizarre forms.
"Wh-What the hell...."
Like a kid's crude doll of mud and weeds. The problem? Its size.
Towering nearly twice my height, it shattered any sense of reality just staring at it—warrior spirit gone.
Groooar.
"Wh-What is that...?"
"Fuck, a golem...! Shit, it's a golem!"
"Pluto's necromancy. Th-These fuckers aren't adventurers—they're filthy cultists! Fuck!"
The bandits, radiating kill intent moments ago, shuddered at the sudden giant mud doll.
They even started backing away slowly—giving us an opening in our dire straits.
"Now's our chance!"
Whoosh.
The dwarf warrior Didier, crouched defending amid the bandits, swung his axe forward—severing their legs wholesale.
Spurt—!
Bandits toppled instantly, clutching mangled ankles and Achilles tendons, rolling on the ground.
"M-My leg! My leeeeg!"
"Now you're eye-level with me. Good. Satisfied."
No idea how, but the tide turned in a flash.
Remaining bandits: the leader and two cracking the ice—three at most.
We were five.
Outnumbered, they couldn't escape our ultimate tactic: surround and annihilate.
"Heh heh, fuck, hand over everything, you bastards!"