Chapter 134 Surprise
The convoy was in a narrow rocky outcropping when it abruptly stopped and a commotion sounded from all over the place.
In front of the convoy, on the road, there was a large tree log that blocked the road. This immediately made the guards alert as they unsheathed their weapons and surrounded the convoy defensively.
Then suddenly, heaps of men showed themselves as they rushed out on foot and horses from the sides. Then the ground began trembling and more horsemen appeared on the horizon out of nowhere.
By now, it was evident that the bandits had attacked the merchant convoy and a seemingly chaotic mess broke out with people screaming out in alarm and fear.
The mercenaries immediately swooped in as they raised their shields and blades to defend the ambush however they still seemed rather stirred and chaotic.
In little to no time, the bandits reached the convoy on their horses in force as they stared at the sealed carts and carriages lining behind the convoy.
The bandits wore savage expressions on their faces and had weapons unsheathed in their hands pointing straight ahead.
"Who are you people?!" Clovis yelled out from the back of his horse while being protected by the mercenaries.
Hearing this, a man with his face covered behind a scarf came forward on his horse and yelled back confidently, "Attention, you lot! Ye be trespassin' on our territory! Surrender now or prepare to meet yer maker! Those of ye who are fortunate enough to survive might end up servin' us! Heh, hehe!"
Hearing this, Clovis roared, "Who the fuck are you huh? This is the Duchy of Whitesburg that belongs to the Duke!"
The bandit furrowed his eyes pointing his sword in the direction of Clovis and mocked, "Ye' nugget! Shut the fuck up! I say this territory is mine so it's mine! Ya got some issue with that shithead?"
Clovis snickered and said, "Hmph! I, Clovis Sigrid, am not one to fear savages like you! I have more than a thousand mercenaries protecting me! Get lost or you lot will end up dead instead."
The bandit's eyes widened upon hearing this and suddenly he began laughing hysterically. Seeing him, the hundreds of bandits behind him also broke out into a laughing fit.
After some time, the bandit leader calmed down and said while chuckling, "Thousands? Haha… Ya boys, you hear? I'm so scared. Hahaha!"
And just as the bandit said this, the ground once again began trembling, and this time a lot more violently as the noise of countless horses' hooves beating the ground rang while the dust rose in the sky mightily.
Seeing this spectacle, the merchants and mercenaries' eyes widened with shock. As the countless band of horses and the men sitting on them approaches the blocked convoy, Clovis finally realized something.
Meanwhile inside the carriage in which Klein and Luke were sitting calmly without fear as a guard kept them informed from outside the carriage.
As Klein got to know that a second batch of bandits was approaching rapidly seemingly in much larger numbers, he turned to Luke and said, "You see? They are very cautious. They first sent hundreds of bandits to block our way knowing that we have 'mercenaries' in thousands. Only when they surrounded us and ensured that we could not turn back in time did they send their main force. This added to their previous snooping tactics, they are not just any bandit group. They are organized under capable leadership."
Luke smirked and said, "You are right, but in the end, they will all die."
Klein ignored this violent statement completely even though he pretty much agreed with it and decided to see what would happen.
Soon, the large main force of the bandits seemingly doubled in number as the convoy's guards also reached the blockage and joined the present group of bandits. Now, the entire convoy was surrounded by bandits and there was no way to escape without a fight.
The bandit in lead laughed again arrogantly and called out, "Well? Mr. Sigrid? Whatcha say huh? Why don't you surrender? We will let you live cause we're so generous. But since you trespassed on our territory, all that cargo gotta stay right here."
Clovis now had beads of sweat appearing on his scalp as his confidence weighed.
"Boss, what we doin'?"
At this moment, a particularly striking horse approached Clovis on which a striking muscular man was sitting with a grave expression on his face.
Clovis gnashed his teeth in frustration and felt like he was struggling to make a decision that did not escape the bandit's eyes.
In a moderately softer tone, Clovis said, "Uh… I- I cannot leave the goods here. Don't forget that we still have considerable force. We will give you some of the goods and leave, there's no need to come to blows. Otherwise, I'm not afraid to go down with all of you."
The bandits did not back off and instead became more unbridled seeing Clovis's defensive manner. They thought that Clovis was scared and that only boosted their confidence.
The bandit chortled and said threateningly, "Ayo~ I hear you have beautiful children… Do you want to see them sold as slaves? Hmm?"
Clovis's eyes narrowed and his body shook hearing this as he blurted, "You! Don't cross your limit?! You don't know who I am! If you do anything to me… The White Family will exterminate you all!"
The bandits laughed once again hearing this. Then suddenly, an abrupt silence fell as a voice resounded, "He seeks death, there's no use wasting our time! Attack! Kill them all!"
Hearing this mysterious voice from somewhere in the ranks of the bandits, the bandits screamed in fervor and yelled out war cries as all of them jolted the reins of their hoses and darted forward. At the same time, multiple twangs sounded as the bowmen unit of the bandits shot countless arrows at the convoy.
The leader of the so-called 'mercenary' band showed a faint smile seeing the bandits striding at them. He quickly walked his horse to the forefront and shot discreet glances to the lieutenants beside him.
The lieutenants nodded and passed commands to the smaller units using signs and gestures and their commands passed through the entire band in mere seconds.
Then the mercenaries shifted their positions strategically as their front flank moved forward in a close proximity while the inconspicuous groups at the back moved forward behind the front lines.
As the bandits came closer and closer, the tension and anticipation in the air soared while some of the merchants who had stuck to the convoy in hopes of passing safely were dumbstruck and terrified at the same time.
They had never ever heard of the bandits ambushing someone with such numbers and ferocity. In fact, they didn't even know that this many bandits even existed as they had never appeared with such numbers before.
The poor merchants knew for sure that they were doomed and could only say their final prayers. Seeing the horrifying scene of thousands of bandits coming at them ferociously, they had lost all hope and were only waiting for death.
In the carriage, Klein said as he saw the arrows raining down, "Brother, as promised, you can do whatever you want but be careful and please follow my instructions."
Luke nodded and grabbed his sword and jumped down the carriage.
Back in the carriage, Klein smiled and thought, "So it begins, let's see how these bandits fare against our elite men."
As the whistling air-piercing sounds rang, the arrows reached before the bandits as everyone expected a bloodbath and struggle to ensue immediately.
But what happened was against the bandit's wildest imaginations.
As the arrows were about the strike, a group of mercenaries stepped forward as elements of wind danced around them. Although the elements seemed faint and few, that was easily covered by the sheer numbers of the men who had elemental powers of wind in their bodies.
All these particular mercenaries swung their swords at the upcoming arrows as they all spoke in unison, "Wind Slash!"
Then the wind stirred as the elements of the wind manifested into reality, allowing the rules of the world to bend and causing wind slashes to be released from the swings of the blades.
The wind slashes flew straight passed the countless arrows from every direction completely putting all the arrows off-balanced. Then the special group of 'mercenaries' once again spoke in unison, "Wind Sweep!"
The wind this time directly stirred and violently as a strong breeze blew, completely blowing off the arrows from their course.
The bandits who were darting forward with their horses abruptly stopped shouting their outlandish war cries as they saw the scene of all the arrows falling limply as well as the 'mercenaries' smiling mockingly at them.
At this moment, the bandits realized that something wasn't right. But it was too late to turn back and so the bandit cavalry roared even more ferociously as it collided with the front row of the mercenary defense.
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