The Butcher of the Crossed Blades
The Crossed Blades bandit group.
Like most bandits, they were no different from the rest.
Pillaging and murder, theft and rape.
They were criminals who embraced every sin and hid beneath the shadow of the mountains to survive.
Among the countless bandit groups, these men were particularly vicious.
They were so wicked that they had gathered in this remote mountain range. Killing a few people was the bare minimum for them; some had even murdered their own families over inheritances.
A large man entered a tent reinforced with water buffalo hide.
“Boss, good news.”
Arkan, the leader of the Crossed Blades bandit group, narrowed his gloomy eyes.
He was the biggest and most foul-tempered man in the entire band.
Arkan set down the expensive liquor he had been about to drink and looked at the bandit.
“What is it, Acon?”
“One of the scouts patrolling the mountains spotted two women.”
“Women? In this remote mountain range?”
“Come on, boss. Remember how the Sinyrant trade route was closed because of those thieves? Seems some reckless fools have been trying to cut across the mountains instead.”
“Where did he find them?”
“Down at that abandoned house below us. It used to be a black bear den, but the bears must’ve gone off for a nap. The women were just sitting there, completely fine.”
“So, are the bitches pretty?”
“He was too far away to tell.”
“Well, doesn’t matter. As long as they’re women.”
“Exactly.”
“My lower half has been feeling pretty lonely lately. This is perfect timing.”
Arkan grabbed his sword bundle, capped the liquor bottle, and tied it to his waist.
The two men stepped out of the tent.
Outside, bandits were crowded around bonfires, gulping down alcohol or gambling.
The man called Acon walked beside his boss with an excited expression.
“I’ve been staring at nothing but smelly men for a while now too. Ever since the trade route got cut, our income dried up completely. Heh heh. I can’t wait to get a taste.”
The Crossed Blades bandit group was a large organization.
They were on a completely different level from the petty thieves who robbed out of poverty.
While ordinary bandits targeted merchant caravans or travelers, these men raided entire villages and trading companies.
In terms of numbers alone, they numbered nearly three hundred.
They were essentially a small army made up of murderers, robbers, and thieves.
These were men who committed crimes as easily as swatting flies and swung their blades more casually than forks.
Some of them had stolen and used rare weapons, while others had learned basic magic to aid their crimes.
Each of them had a criminal value of at least thirty.
Even investigators would never underestimate them if they came alone.
Their base was located on the highest ridge in the mountain range.
At the top of the ridge stood a dam that held back a lake.
“You made sure the dam was securely tied today, right?”
“Boss, you worry too much. I had the boys tie it down tight and posted lookouts. Don’t fret.”
“The dam is our weapon, but it can also become poison.”
“Who doesn’t know that?”
Acon answered grumpily.
The dam had been built out of fear that investigators or imperial troops might invade.
If necessary, they could collapse it to trigger a massive landslide that would sweep away everything around them.
“It’s been a long time since we settled in these mountains.”
“True. Isn’t it about time we moved our base? With the trade route income gone, this place isn’t all that great anymore.”
Arkan stroked his thick beard.
“Maybe we should head for the capital next.”
“What? The capital? Can people like us even survive there without getting caught by the investigators?”
Acon looked doubtful, but Arkan shook his head.
“There’s the Black Tiger Clan.”
“Ah, that famous group these days?”
“I hear they’ve recently joined hands with a major trading company and are expanding their power through drug trafficking.”
Acon scratched his unwashed scalp.
“I’m not too fond of them. I’ll admit they’re big, have many branches, and are good at what they do. But isn’t their leader a Traveler?”
“Is that a problem?”
“Not exactly a problem, but it feels a bit off.”
Acon blew the dust off the tip of his blade.
“I hate those Traveler bastards. They suddenly appear from some remote world and treat us like puppets. Some of them obsessively hunt monsters like lunatics. They all seem desperate to live as busily as possible.”
“That’s true.”
Arkan nodded readily.
He was cruel and violent, but at the same time, a cold-headed leader.
The fact that the Crossed Blades bandit group had survived while evading the investigators’ eyes was thanks to his leadership.
Acon added,
“Well, it’s not like I have any particular complaints about the Black Tiger Clan. We’re running low on food and liquor anyway. And while the mountains are safe, there’s no one to kill and no women to look at. It’s too boring.”
“I agree. If we go to the capital, there’ll be plenty of big scores to make.”
When they reached the center of the base, Arkan shouted loudly.
“Everyone gather up!”
The bandits who had been lounging around lazily stood up at once and gathered in front of the platform.
Every one of them had a cross-shaped scar on their cheek.
It was the symbol of the Crossed Blades bandit group—not a wound earned in battle, but a scar they had carved themselves with a small sword.
Arkan stood with his hands behind his back and spoke.
“We’re going to go snatch some women. Anyone who wants to come, raise your hand.”
Almost every bandit raised their hand at once.
Arkan selected about ten volunteers from among them.
Among the bandits were quite a few sadists who would kill the women while kidnapping them due to their violent hobbies.
Those types had to be filtered out in advance.
The ones not chosen returned to their places with disappointed expressions.
They had just finished organizing their group and were descending the mountain slope when—
“Aaaargh—!”
A faint scream echoed.
It had come from their base.
Arkan, Acon, and the other bandits wore puzzled expressions.
Then, bright red blood began to flow down from beneath a large boulder.
Acon let out a chuckle and said,
“Since when was there a red spring in these mountains?”
“Not that I know of.”
“Then some arrogant bastard must have attacked our base.”
Even though their comrades were being killed, none of them showed any sign of panic.
These men had not a single shred of sympathy to begin with.
Arkan gripped his wide-bladed sword tightly.
“I’ll have to carve a cross-shaped scar on his face.”
As soon as Kang Yoonsoo entered the main camp of the Crossed Blades bandit group, he saw bandits gambling with dice around a bonfire.
He smashed the back of the head of the nearest one.
The bandit collapsed forward without even letting out a scream and died.
The other bandits stared blankly at Kang Yoonsoo, unable to even set down the cards in their hands.
Before anyone could grab their weapons, Kang Yoonsoo swiftly seized the Lightning Storm Staff.
“Lightning Discharge.”
Lightning Discharge
Crackle—!
The mana gathered in the staff exploded, scattering fierce lightning.
The twenty bandits around him were burned almost to a crisp.
At the unfamiliar explosive sound, other bandits rushed over with fierce expressions, weapons in hand.
“Who the hell are you?”
Kang Yoonsoo did not answer.
The bandit group numbered around three hundred.
For Kang Yoonsoo alone, it was nearly impossible to handle.
He could fight alongside the undead, but that would reduce the experience points he gained.
Besides, he had never faced them alone before, so he didn’t know their attack patterns.
However, Kang Yoonsoo recalled his tenth life—the time when he had been a slaughterer.
Once, he had single-handedly annihilated a large army.
The bandits drew their weapons and charged at him ferociously.
Due to the narrow terrain, not all three hundred could target him at once. In reality, only a few dozen came at him.
Kang Yoonsoo dodged the blade of the bandit at the front and thrust his sword at the next one.
His longsword shattered the bandit’s skull.
He immediately swung the staff to his left, blocking an incoming spear.
At that moment, five weapons flew toward his back simultaneously.
“Lightning Discharge.”
Crackle—!
The lightning surged, damaging everything around it.
However, the quick-witted bandits quickly retreated and avoided the powerful current.
Lightning Discharge was a skill that could only be used four times per day.
He had already used it twice, so he was running low on opportunities.
One bandit cackled.
“I don’t know where you crawled out from, but do you think you’re the only one who can use magic?”
The bandit was holding a long staff.
Pointing it at Kang Yoonsoo, he shouted,
“Flame Backflow!”
Fierce flames flew toward Kang Yoonsoo.
He lowered his body to avoid the flames and swung his sword.
He stabbed the back of the neck of a nearby bandit repeatedly, killing him, then pierced the mouth of the next bandit and killed him as well.
An arrow shot by one bandit grazed Kang Yoonsoo’s ear.
Along with a burning pain like a brand, a stream of blood flowed down.
Yet Kang Yoonsoo showed no reaction and continued swinging his sword without pause.
Five bandits fell after being struck by his blade.
You have killed 44 vicious criminals in a short period of time.
You have accomplished a feat that would shock even a veteran assassin.
A new skill, Massacre Dance, has been created.
Massacre Dance
Skill Level - Lv1 (00.00%)
A technique designed solely to kill living beings. Its power increases when facing multiple enemies alone, but its attack power decreases when multiple people target a single individual.
He had killed so many people that he even gained a hidden skill.
Massacre Dance.
It was a skill for an individual to face multiple opponents.
It was a technique he had frequently used during his days as a Life Predator.
In the current situation, it was the perfect skill.
Kang Yoonsoo activated the newly acquired skill.
“Massacre Dance.”
Massacre Dance
Kang Yoonsoo’s blade moved with terrifying speed.
At first glance the movements looked unbalanced, yet they followed a clear pattern.
He sliced across the faces of seven bandits as if sweeping them away.
The skill level of Massacre Dance has increased.
When harboring murderous intent, you will strike vital points more frequently.
The skill level of Massacre Dance has increased.
When targeting multiple enemies, the movement of your blade becomes more agile.
“Aaaargh—!”
“Goddamn it—!”
The number of bandits Kang Yoonsoo had killed quickly surpassed one hundred and twenty.
No matter how many he slaughtered, they kept pouring in.
Kang Yoonsoo swung the Lightning Storm Staff to scatter lightning and thrust his sword, but he could not easily overcome the bandits’ overwhelming numbers.
The moment he gouged out one bandit’s eyeball, a long spear pierced through the corpse’s abdomen and stabbed at him.
Shunk—!
The area around Kang Yoonsoo’s stomach turned red as blood burst out.
The bandit who had stabbed through his comrade’s corpse cackled.
But Kang Yoonsoo’s sword pierced through the man’s mouth and tore it apart.
“Uuurgh—!”
“Bio Absorption.”
You have absorbed a small amount of life force from the bandit Rikeweir.
You have slightly inherited the characteristics of the Bandit class. For the next 2 hours, the chance of being detected while plundering will decrease.
His life force recovered slightly, but the pain remained.
At best, the torn wound on his stomach had only partially healed and the bleeding had stopped.
A cold sweat trickled down Kang Yoonsoo’s forehead.
He repeated to himself.
Fiercely.
Even more desperately.
Arkan and the bandits stopped their descent and climbed back up the mountain slope.
Since they knew the geography well, it didn’t take long to reach their base.
Even so, the screams of the bandits continued to erupt as they climbed.
“Uwaaaah—!”
“S-save me—!”
Only then did the bandits realize something was wrong.
The number of screams coming from the base was far greater than they had expected.
No matter how much they were criminals, these were hardened men.
They were not the kind to fall so easily.
Acon bit his lip and said,
“Damn it, did the imperial army show up or something?”
“I don’t know. We have no choice but to hurry.”
They rushed back to the base even faster.
When they finally climbed all the way up the mountain path, the stench of blood filled their base.
Around them lay corpses charred by lightning and bandits stabbed by claws.
The three-hundred-strong bandit group had been completely annihilated.
Only one person was still alive.
A blood-soaked man was sitting in the center of the base.
His short black hair was clearly stained with blood droplets, and his expression was as cold and dry as a statue.
For a moment, the bandits felt fear.
No matter how accustomed they were to murder, no one could remain so expressionless after killing people.
The man showed no change in expression, as if he had killed something that wasn’t even human.
What was even more terrifying was that a single person had wiped out the entire Crossed Blades bandit group.
Acon asked in a trembling voice.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Liquor.”
“What?”
Kang Yoonsoo pointed at Arkan’s waist.
An expensive liquor bottle that hadn’t been touched was tied there.
In a dry tone, he said,
“Hand over the liquor.”