"Here it is…" Arthur looked at the hole in a dead tree that was barely covered with vines.
It had formed due to the natural decay of the wood and served as the perfect way of entering for Arthur.
He simply cut the vines that stood in his path and entered through the hole.
On the otherwise, Arthur saw more trees, but these weren't as densely packed. There were even a few stumps spread here and there, having been cut a long time ago. But the biggest difference was that Arthur could spot light.
This wasn't just light from the sky either, but from fire!
There were small lamps set up along a path that went deeper into the area.
'Need to be very careful now…' Arthur thought to himself as he continued to stay in the darkness.
He followed the path lined with lamps and soon spotted several bandits. They were seemingly patrolling the area and were equipped with both armor and weapons.
'They're similar to the ones I met on the way back from Ocher Plains.' Arthur could tell from their appearance.
He also used Dragon's Insight and confirmed his guess.
>Dragon's Insight has been successfully activated!<
~DING~
——
Target: Forest Bandit x 12
Race: Human (NPC)
Class: Warrior
Level: 15
***
Target: Forest Bandit x 10
Race: Human (NPC)
Class: Archer
Level: 15
***
Target: Forest Bandit x 6
Race: Human (NPC)
Class: Mage
Level: 16
***
Target: Forest Bandit x 8
Race: Human (NPC)
Class: Thief
Level: 15
***
Target: Forest Bandit x 6
Race: Human (NPC)
Class: Swordsman
Level: 15
***
Target: Forest Bandit x 10
Race: Human (NPC)
Class: Shieldbearer
Level: 15
***
——
"Fifty two… that's a lot just to be patrolling…" Arthur gulped as he saw their numbers.
While individually they wouldn't pose any problem to him, if all of them attacked him Arthur would be hard pressed to resist. Only if Brambles was also there to fight with him, would he have any luck.
But of course, Arthur didn't wish to fight them right now. Even if he could summon brambles, it would simply end up spoiling his plans.
Not to mention, there was a certain chance that it would only bring out more bandits.
After all, these were just the patrolling bandits, who knew how many more there were?
'More reasons to be careful.' Arthur said in his mind, increasing the distance between him and the bandits.
Darkness provided him the much needed protection and ensured that Arthur wasn't found out. A few minutes later, he had gone further deep and soon spotted small huts that had been built by the bandits. There were at least thirty such huts with several more tents mixed in along with them.
"This… this is way more than I expected…" Arthur was shocked at the discovery.
As far as he could recall, there were never this many bandits in his last life.
'Just how many bandits did Dozla take with him when he left this place?' Arthur wondered. 'Though it also makes sense as to how he can afford to throw bandits at Roran Town like that. He simply has too many of them here.' He reckoned.
This made Arthur relieved that he had gone with this plan, instead of his original one which was to charge in. It would have worked if their numbers were lesser, but with this many, Arthur would have just ended up dying.
Still, this was not Arthur's stop. He went further and soon saw a large cave. This area could be considered the very end of the Trunel Woods.
They opened up at the base of the mountain and were lit up by more lamps. There were more bandits here, and they were going in and out of the cave. Some were carrying items, while some were just guarding the area.
'That's the place. Now to find a way to get in…' With his eyes on the target, Arthur thought of the next step.
His way in would be none other than Bandits that he would be disguising as.
But he wouldn't be using the best disguise tool that he had.
'The Veil of Thousand Skins is for later… I can't waste its use on just a normal bandit.' Arthur thought to himself as he looked out for a bandit that was of a similar build to him.
He looked among the Shield Bearer Bandits, as they were wearing the most armor as well as a helmet that fully covered one's head.
Only by wearing that would Arthur be able to blend in well. If his face was exposed, there was a great chance of others spotting him as an intruder.
Sure enough, a few minutes later, Arthur spotted a suitable target. But now the issue was, how would Arthur be getting to him?
Thankfully, since the Bandits were also humans, they had to follow a certain pattern and do certain tasks.
Thus, when the bandit went to answer Nature's call, Arthur went after him.
With how dark it was, the Bandits could piss wherever they wanted, as along as it was away from the main area.
The walls and patrols in the camp had also made the Bandits somewhat carefree. They simply didn't think that there would be someone daring enough to infiltrate and attack them. This served as an advantage to Arthur, with the bandits being blissfully unaware.
Once Arthur was far enough from the camp, he started to do his business, pulling down his pants.
It was at this time that Arthur made his move. He came up from behind and directly grabbed the neck of the bandit. Arthur made sure to muffle the mouth of the Bandit so that he couldn't make any noise.
"HMM!" Then using all the strength that he had, Arthur twisted the neck of the bandit.
~KACHA~
[-100% HP]
[Critical Hit!]
[Fatal Hit!]
>Player Arzhur has killed the Forest Bandit!<
>Player Arzhur has obtained 2% Experience!<
'At least they give a bit more experience than the Orcs.' Arthur thought.
But a moment later, Arthur was surprised.
>Player Arzhur has successfully fulfilled the hidden conditions!<
>Player Arzhur has obtained the skill: Stealth!<
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m