Chapter 64 - 2.25

"Zenith, their arrows don't seem to be anything special. I'm thinking that they aren't.. from the faction who sent people to kill us last time."

"I also think the same, Lady. How do you think we should handle this?" Zenith questioned.

"..We will capture them first and question their objectives. You can charge forward to distract them, I will shoot them down from here. You can do that, right?"

"Yes, Lady. I will proceed with the plan, please give a sign for when you want to start." Zenith narrowed his eyes as he drew his sword. Even though he didn't have magic, it still couldn't be ignored that he was an exemplary knight who attained recognition through righteous means. He was very proficient with the sword and wouldn't lose to just pure numbers.

Zenith entered an attacking stance, and Xu Jiaqi got behind the horse to hide temporarily even if it wasn't much. Zenith would be much more eye catching than a simple young girl who looked fragile and weak.

"Attack!" Xu Jiaqi shouted, informing Zenith who began to dash towards the farthest person who he detected. This would lead to the other people being even more focused on his movements, and leaving Xu Jiaqi the chance to shoot them down.

Xu Jiaqi prepped her magic and launched bullets towards the attackers, making sure that it wouldn't kill them. However, even without her magic, Zenith alone turned out to be enough. He slashed the blunt part of his weapon and hit the opponents one by one, taking them down to the ground.

Xu Jiaqi's magic bullets ended up just being extra help that was unnecessary. The collapsed people were then rounded up by Zenith, who tied them with a thick rope to a tree so they wouldn't escape.

"Great job, Zen."

"I should be able to do at least this much, or I will lose all of my honor and dignity." Zenith answered calmly, humbling himself down.

Indeed, looking at their clothing, they weren't even wearing armor, and their bows were basic.

There was no way that they were assassins. It would be an embarrassment to the assassin occupation to say that they were.

The two of them stood in front of the captured guys. Xu Jiaqi then healed their fatigue so that they would be able to wake up and answer the questions. In seconds, they really did end up opening their eyes and panning their eyes towards Xu Jiaqi and Zenith.

"You.. You shitty bastards! How much more are you going to take from our city?? There is nothing left! Even if you try to pillage the people, all you will get is dirt! We are starving, close to death with broken homes, and you vile beings are still going to ransack our place?!!" One of the men, albeit very terrified, screamed on top of his lungs at the pair as soon as he saw the two.

Zenith and Xu Jiaqi looked at each other and immediately deciphered their words, interpreting it.

"We do not understand what you are saying. We have just arrived from the neighboring town and is seeking refuge because we need to rest before we continue our journey to Palla. We came from Maine, and just so happened to cross this city since it was displayed on the map." Xu Jiaqi explained.

"Liars! We are not dumb! If you aren't part of those groups, how are you here just one day after they left?! You should've met them when you were on the way here, they would've never let you go!" The man shook his head as he disputed the claims.

In truth, Xu Jiaqi had done some tricks using her magic and concealed their figures. This was why even if bandits were there, Xu Jiaqi would be skeptical that they could hear them. Zenith, however, did not know this fact. By blocking the senses of the bandits, Zenith's senses were also obstructed. Xu Jiaqi did remember that some people were flocking on their left paths back when they galloped through the forest, but she didn't pay much attention to it since the System didn't signal danger.

Realizing that this was probably what happened, Xu Jiaqi pursed her lips.

She then leaned towards Zenith and relayed this fact onto him, to which the man widened his eyes and shook his head disapprovingly towards Xu Jiaqi for doing such a thing.

After considering the situation and weighing out their options, it seemed like the attackers were clearly townspeople who were just trying to protect their town after having been terrorized by a pack of bandits. Then, it was reasonable for them to have been on guard and ended up attacking them, sort of.

Although, Zenith was still very pissed at how they tried to harm the lady.

"Lady Ariel, I will handle this. I am a knight, so this kind of thing also relates to my job. There doesn't need to be violence. Please do not worry and stay here." Zenith spoke, eyeing the tied up people as he crouched down and began to speak to them.

Zenith conversed with the anxious bunch, trying his best to diffuse the situation and try to figure out why they were so pressured and scared at the appearance of a newcomer. Granted, they came rather late at night, but that shouldn't completely justify their outlandish reactions.

Thus, Zenith tried to compromise with them to reach an equilibrium that the two parties can both attest to.

In the end, Zenith came back bringing good news.

"Lady Ariel, I have persuaded them to let us stay here for a night, but they asked us if we could take down the bandits for them." Zenith spoke.

The pair looked strong, at least they were stronger than the ones who were supposedly 'guards' of the town.

Rather than a town, it resembles more of a village. It was prone to bandit attacks, so it seemed.

It was quite the unfair trade. They would have to face many enemies just to stay inside the town for one day.

Xu Jiaqi was teetering between the realm of good morals and just plain desire to elevate herself.