Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Episode 010 (1)
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1.
Tat, tatat—.
Light footsteps sliced through the cold air.
The next day, Kuhn and the Lion’s Den trainees were already climbing a mountainside in the Mongrashe region at a rapid pace, starting from the early dawn hours.
It had been over an hour since they left Sassanu City.
Yet the morning dew that still hadn’t evaporated told of how early they had departed the city.
The reason the Lion’s Den trainees were moving at such an early hour was simple.
‘There’s no better time for a surprise attack than the break of dawn like this.’
In this time before the sun had even properly risen.
Considering the typical habits of bandits, it wouldn’t be strange at all if they were dead drunk from booze they’d chugged all night, sleeping off a brutal hangover.
And Kuhn and the Lion’s Den group were aiming to exploit exactly that gap to raid their mountain stronghold.
They had entered Sassanu City while concealing their identities precisely because they had planned for this moment.
And that was because...
‘If we’re going to launch a surprise attack anyway, it’s better if word doesn’t get out that a Jordic subjugation force has been dispatched.’
He turned his head, and the Lion’s Den trainees came into view, sticking close behind him as they scaled the steep slope.
Was it thanks to the training at Lion’s Den not being in vain? Even on this fairly steep incline, not a single one of them showed any disruption in their breathing.
Kuhn glanced at them briefly before quietly opening his mouth.
“You’ve all prepared the equipment I mentioned yesterday, right?”
Just before leaving Lion’s Den, he had received several pieces of gear from the instructors, who said they could use them for this mission.
They weren’t special treatment— just the standard supplies that a prestigious knight order’s members would typically receive on a mission.
Kuhn had asked just in case, and the senior instructor had nodded and approved the request.
‘He had this odd expression, like he was surprised I even knew to ask for such things.’
Recalling the senior instructor’s face from back then, Kuhn kicked off the mountainside and leaped upward.
Pababat—!
Among them, what Kuhn had instructed them to prepare last night were throwing knives made for hurling— a type of tudo— and hand crossbows.
Small hand crossbows designed to combine with gloves.
‘Of course, unlike regular crossbows that can fire multiple shots in succession, these have the drawback of only managing two or three shots...’
Even so, both were weapons with plenty of power to target enemies at mid-to-long range.
If used well, crumbling the bandits’ defenses wouldn’t be all that difficult.
Of course... the bandits’ level of vigilance probably wasn’t anything impressive to begin with.
‘Saving even a little strength isn’t a bad idea.’
In response to his question, the three squad leaders nodded as they replied.
“Yes.”
“Of course.”
“Of course, sir! Hmph!”
Lui Silver snorted as he revealed the small hand crossbow fused with his left glove. —Clack!
When fully deployed, it was barely the width of a palm. As mentioned earlier, it sacrificed firing rate for extreme portability.
‘Good.’
Kuhn gave a light smile at the sight.
Separate from their noble pride, they seemed to understand the principle of obeying orders well.
Or perhaps there was another reason.
At some point, the Silver siblings had started following his words more obediently than expected.
‘I was a bit worried there might be some issues.’
That left just one problem: finding the bandits’ hidden stronghold in this vast mountain.
With that in mind, Kuhn lifted his head to gaze at the mountain’s form, thick with trees.
‘Purini Mountain.’
That was the name of the mountain they were on.
‘Among the mountains of the Mongrashe region, Purini Mountain is especially famous for its dense, rugged terrain.’
In other words, it was perfect geography for hiding a stronghold.
‘But—.’
It wouldn’t take long.
And rightly so— if they hadn’t pinpointed the location, it might be different, but they had already narrowed it down to a few spots based on information gathered locally.
They had identified the mountain paths and passes where bandits frequently appeared via merchant caravans and negotiators, then reverse-tracked to deduce the stronghold’s position through inductive reasoning.
‘We’re not scouring the entire Mongrashe range— just one mountain.’
To those who had endured Lion’s Den training, it was no issue at all.
As if to prove Kuhn’s thinking wasn’t wrong—.
‘That’s...’
A few minutes later— rustle.
Something caught Kuhn’s eye ahead of the search formation.
Through the thick underbrush and saplings, a wooden structure jutted out awkwardly.
It was a crudely built thing of rough-hewn logs and patched rotten planks— the epitome of bandit shoddy workmanship.
Kuhn easily recognized what it was.
‘A watchtower.’
The structure was none other than a watchtower.
Alongside it stretched wooden barricades of similar quality.
‘Four watchtowers visible so far. Two guys on watch per tower.’
Even they looked hungover from last night’s drinking, their flushed faces drooping without any hint of motivation.
Kuhn scanned them with a cold gaze before speaking curtly.
“Prepare crossbows. Fire when I give the signal. Targets are the watchtowers and any visible bandits... Now!”
As his drawn-out voice ended, sharp whines pierced their ears, and dozens of bolts tore through the air!
—Swaeeak, paebabapak!
Two or three per person.
A total of about seventy bolts.
The sight of the small crossbow bolts slicing through the greenery was nothing short of spectacular.
The dawn mist scattered rapidly in their wake. Morning sunlight glinted along the shafts.
A beautiful scene, like a summer shower.
But the spectacle those bolts created was anything but beautiful— a horrific sight.
—Puwook!
“...Kuhk!”
“—Guk, krrk!”
The first to fall were the watchmen, caught off guard.
Bolts embedded in shoulders, heads, groins, thighs, and more.
Their bodies crumpled limply on the spot.
Blood soon dripped from the watchtowers, soaking the ground below.
Some bandits finally noticing the commotion tried to raise an alarm—
“Wh-what?”
“A-attack! E-enemy raid! Raid, it’s a r—guk!”
‘Too late.’
A few remaining bolts flew over the barricades into the stronghold, pounding the bandits’ bodies.
Kuhn had chosen a vantage point overlooking the stronghold from the start, ensuring perfect trajectories!
The silver lining was that some survivors managed to ring the alarm bell.
—Dang, dang, dang, dang!
The bell signaling enemy intrusion rang shrilly in their ears.
...But Kuhn had no intention of giving them time to prepare.
Gripping his sword tightly, he shouted.
“Charge!”
Before the word fully left his mouth, Kuhn’s form stretched out like lightning toward the barricades!
Gale Step— one of the Jordic family’s basic footworks!
In an instant, his blurring figure shot over the barricades like an arrow.
Tat, tatat.
A soaring leap cleared the 3-meter barricade in one go.
Landing inside with a roll, Kuhn quickly scanned the stronghold’s interior.
“Follow the captain!”
“We’re going in too!”
“You know the plan, right? Squad 3, all of you follow me!”
By then, the other three squad leaders had also vaulted the barricades.
Having surveyed the entire interior, Kuhn nodded calmly.
‘Good, no mage.’
What Kuhn had worried about was the possible presence of a mage.
Even a 3-4 circle mage— not a skilled war mage— posed a serious threat to the current trainees with their long-range attacks.
‘It’s not a matter of skill.’
It was a lack of experience.
After all, the Lion’s Den kids had never faced a mage before.
In that situation, casualties were inevitable.
Meanwhile, the Lion’s Den trainees scattered per the plan, herding the bandits into corners.
“Th-these bastards!”
“Wh-where did they come fr-from all of a sudden?”
“...No word about another stronghold getting hit!”
Some sharp-eyed bandits spotted the badges on the kids’ chests and screamed in terror.
“E-executors!”
“Executors are here, the executors!”
“J-Jordic executors! The executors have arri—kuhk!”
Sgeek—.
Blood sprayed in a long arc.
Kuhn casually severed one’s neck and swept his gaze sharply.
‘All that’s left is finding the leader.’
His nickname was Brown Bear, right?
“What the hell’s all this racket? Executors? Surely the info guild didn’t mention anyth...?”
Right on cue, a massive bandit emerged from the stronghold’s depths and froze.
‘That’s him.’
Bear-like hulking build, two falchions at his waist.
Plus coppery skin gleaming on a shaved head.
His panicked face was the cherry on top.
Their eyes met, and the man flinched involuntarily, stopping in place.
Kuhn, spotting him too, twisted his lips into a smirk.
The man blinked rapidly before yelling.
“...They’re really executors!?”
But why was this?
From the moment he entered the stronghold.
The power of Monstrous Strength and Chaotic Spirits had been sending signals, as if sensing something.
—Wuuuuung.