Chapter 37: Better Next Time (2)

Chapter 37: Better Next Time (2)

I sighed after seeing those guys completely bound. To better identify our bold attackers, the mage created a light orb to illuminate the area.

“W-we were wrong. Please, please have mercy on us just this once.”

“We didn’t know you were such esteemed people. I beg of you, please spare our lives...”

“Oh Lord Sea Dragon...”

“Please have mercy...”

However, the view that unfolded before me was rather strange.

「Bandits │ Those who steal from others for their own benefit. Many are even proud that they make their living from looting.」

「Hounds │ A domesticated beast. Brave and loyal.」

They were all classified as Thief mobs. However, those pathetically begging for mercy had rather muscular bodies and were fully equipped, whereas those calling out for Lord Sea Dragon or whatever looked so shabby that even ‘shabby’ was too good a word to describe them.

They didn’t even have proper swords, instead holding things like kitchen knives and harpoons, so I got the rough idea.

“You...”

Furthermore, there were leather belts tied around the latter type’s necks. There were multiple clues that left me unable to see them as part of the same group.

“Hah! You’re begging for mercy after trying to kill us!”

At that moment, the Inquisitor showed her anger by slamming her mace against the ground. It wasn’t weird for her to react like that, as she also tried to cut off another’s hands for simply stealing something.The debut release of this chapter happened at Ñøv€l-B1n.

“I’m not arguing that their sins are forgivable, but some appear to have some circumstances, Inquisitor.”

“They tried to kill us. If those spending the night here had been ordinary people instead of us, they would have died. And yet you still want to account for their circumstances?”

“Hey, are you blind? Can’t you see that those guys and these guys look completely different?”

“Aren’t both groups the same in that they attacked us?”

“Ah, I really can’t talk with you...”

That was a bit harsh. After confirming the Inquisitor’s iron wall-like temperament once more, I saw the prisoners shifting around.

The shabbier people kept praying while the proper thieves shifted their eyes. Those guys really couldn’t be redeemed, huh?

“Inquisitor, do you consider a crime committed due to oppression and coercion a sin, as well?”

“But... they almost harmed others.”

“You’re right, of course. A victim needn’t always be understanding of the perpetrator. However, were we harmed? Did we suffer irreparable loss? We didn't, right?”

Just before Deb died of extreme frustration, the Archmage stepped in and scolded her gently.

“Forgiving them and moving on is no different than turning a blind eye to what might happen in the future.”

“You aren’t wrong. However, there is a high chance that some of these people took up arms after being pressured by something or someone. In other words, unless forced to, they won’t do something like that again.”

“I-I’m not so sure about that.”

“Are you really unsure whether they’ll take up arms again, Inquisitor? That’s not true, right?”

“...”

“Understanding this difference is what we call mercy.”

A sage was a sage, after all. The Archmage immediately convinced the Inquisitor, who turned her head away from him.

“We made you wait a long time. It seems you guys have some circumstances. Could you tell me what happened?”

At that question, the heads of those bowing in prayer raised up a little.

“Are you... Are you letting us live?”

“If I’m able to empathize with your situation.”

The praying ones gained hope from these words. However, they were glancing toward the real bandits.

Furthermore, by pure chance, I successfully read the lips of one who looked like a bandit: ‘Say the right thing.’ I wondered if he knew I was looking at him.

“You bastard.”

However, before I could step forward to punish him, Deb kicked him in the head. I thought I saw some teeth flying around, but I didn’t really care because he had it coming.

“Just talk to us without looking at those guys.”

The Archmage added some words.

One of those praying rushed to tell us his life story.

“We originally lived by the sea. However, the sea has become so tumultuous that it has become impossible to catch any fish...”

“So, we tried to find food within the mountains, but these bandits who settled here...”

“They told us to rob travelers, or they would kill us!”

In short, they had been captured by the bandits, with some kept as prisoners in their stronghold and the rest mobilized for these kinds of raids. If that was true, these people were truly a pitiful bunch.

“Th-this is our first time being part of a raid. We have never killed anyone before.”

“J-just give us one more chance. We won’t ever do something like this again.”

Given their situation, I saw no need to kill them even if the system also classified them as bandits.

The real bandits over there were the ones to lead this attack, but they didn’t even participate in the raid properly.

Moreover, this situation had nothing to do with Demons. They were also among the people my character would have compassion for. I’d even overlooked the misdeeds of the Inquisitor and Archmage, who had fiercely fought with me over misunderstandings, after all.

“Do you really believe that?”

However, the Inquisitor didn’t budge even after that. I could distinctly hear Deb’s blood rising to his head.

“Are you actually blind?”

“What?”

“Can’t you see the huge difference in their clothes? Or perhaps the traces of leashes around their necks or rope burns around their wrists? Even if there’s no camaraderie between thieves, they certainly would never do that.”

Cruuunch.

...It wasn’t just enough but actually too much. I sometimes couldn’t properly control my strength or know how much force to use, to the point of unintentionally breaking my enemies’ cervical vertebrae like this.

I didn’t do it on purpose, and those people were criminals.

I tried to convince myself that there were extenuating circumstances.

“What’s going on?!”

“An intruder?!”

Bark, bark!

Actually, that cave looked a lot like a dungeon.

Bam!

I beat the guys coming out with my bare hands and let my thoughts wander. Coming here was actually worth it.

At the end of the long, ordinary rock cave were carved stairs and partially cracked and collapsed pillars. On the walls, naturally-formed rocks stuck out.

“...Is this a historical site?”

This cave didn’t appear artificially created. Rather, it looked like they had refined the cave into this form. It was then that another bandit took the place of the other one.

“You bastar—!”

Bam!

“Urgh!”

I thrust my fist into the face of the bandit who stuck his head out from behind a corner, kicked the hound, and turned on my light.

There were some torches that the bandits left behind, but my own light was much brighter.

“Kill him!”

However, there were just too many flies here.

I swatted away the arrows flying toward me with my gauntlet-clad arm. After I swung my hand around at the beat of one, two, and a half, all the arrows broke or bounced in different directions.

However, was that the end of it?

I rushed forward and landed aflying knee in the face of one of the guys shooting arrows at me. I also took my dagger out of my pocket and threw it at the person behind him.

My aim wasn’t great, but the distance between us was short. The dagger pierced into the back of his sword-wielding hand.

I fell to the floor, dragged down by gravity alongside the bandit’s collapsing body. Stomp. I didn’t forget to step on the chest of the guy—the one I hit with my knee kick—who landed before me.

Bam!

At that moment, I twisted my body to perform aspinning kick. My enemy, who lost his timing to attack because of a dagger being stuck in the back of his hand, was struck in the temple and immediately fell to the floor.

My hand brushed away my fluttering coat to keep it out of my way, and then I entered the cave behind the guys I had just cleared.

Although it was heavily damaged and cracks could be seen in the walls, I still recognized some murals. Rock fragments, which seemed like great places to take cover, jutted out of the ground in the cavity’s center.

I attacked the nearest target while using the rocks as cover and checked for hidden objects. Following the instructions of [Survival Instinct], I stepped on a rock to avoid flying arrows and spun my body.

Tap.

My body rotated 180 degrees, passing 3m in height to reach the cave’s ceiling. I placed my feet on it. I could see two enemies hiding behind rocks after tilting backward a little.

Bam.

I put some strength into my feet to bounce off the ceiling. Of course, I had no intention of letting my head meet the floor, so I immediately spun around and landed on one of the guys I had just seen.

As I hit the guy in a critical spot right between his neck and shoulders, he fell to the floor with an accompanying crunching sound.

“Hiiik!”

The other guy seemed to have pretty good reflexes as he swung his sword at me. My back bent slightly to avoid the blade before my left arm punched him in the side.

Bang!

My target flew far away.

However, at that moment, an arrow flew toward me. It was aiming for my head, but I dodged it by jumping as far to the side as possible.

My lips curved up.

“You bastards.”

Behind the rocks, the bandits were looking at me with creeped-out faces.

“How dare you?”

My legs kicked the ground, launching my body forward like a bullet. My energy-covered fist hit precisely where the person who had fired that arrow was.

Baaam!

The rocks on that wall shattered. If that guy’s legs hadn’t given in, making him fall to the floor, his body might have ended up like that instead. Of course, even if that hadn’t happened, I would have avoided him and hit the wall instead.

“A-a monster...”

Incidentally, my Attack Power was higher than I had imagined.

I tried to lightly jump and run around a lot early in the morning to get a feel for my strength, but I couldn’t really practice hitting something because there wasn’t any target around and it would have created too much noise.

As such, I had no idea my punch held such destructive power. If I had known, I wouldn't have hit so hard.

“Uuurgh...”

However, it didn’t collapse, at least. Let’s be satisfied with that. I should just ignore it.

Thinking these things to myself, I pulled out my arm from the rock wall. The person sprawled out before me looked up, his crotch turning dark and wet.

Clatter.

Clatter, ting.

Clink.

The sound of weapons being dropped began flowing out like a symphony.