Saul gripped his Magic Sword and shouted,
“What is the meaning of this?”
“What’s the meaning? Do you really have to ask? Hand over everything you’ve got. And the woman in the helmet, take it off. As for that pretty woman over there, come here.”
The ‘woman in the helmet’ must have meant Aina.
And the ‘pretty woman’ was obviously Kastel.
If they knew that pretty woman was the Black Witch, there was no chance they would be talking like that.
In any case, the fact that these bandits immediately demanded not only their valuables but the women as well told Saul everything he needed to know about what kind of men they were.
They were villains unworthy of sympathy.
Saul spoke again.
“We belong to the Lord’s Army! Blocking our path is no different from standing in the lord’s way. Step aside at once!”
Saul had anticipated a situation like this and even rehearsed what to say, but because he was unused to speaking this way, his words and behavior came across somewhat awkwardly.
That awkwardness only made the bandits look down on him even more.
“Hah. This bastard still doesn’t seem to understand what’s going on.”
“Hey. Let’s kill him and take the women.”
No sooner had the bandit spoken than the crossbows fired in unison.
Their targets were Saul and the horse he had been riding.
Saul immediately erected a Magic Barrier.
A hemispherical barrier formed in front of him.
The crossbow bolts failed to penetrate it and scattered across the ground.
“A mage?”
“Hey, use that!”
Rather than panicking after seeing Saul’s magic, the bandits immediately produced a countermeasure.
They had clearly attacked mages before.
Their answer was a special bolt.
Saul recognized what it was the moment it appeared.
A bolt imbued with magical power.
It had probably been specially crafted through magic or alchemy.
Whether it had enhanced penetration, exploded on impact, or possessed some other effect, it was clearly intended to break through magical defenses.
There was no reason to knowingly let them use it.
“Lightning Bolt!”
Saul thrust out his Magic Sword as he spoke the activation word, sending a large mass of lightning hurtling toward the bandits.
At the same time, Aina threw her axe.
The lightning reached the crossbowmen first.
The mass of electricity was more than enough to strike every bandit preparing to fire.
“Aaargh!”
Every bandit aiming a crossbow at Saul was electrocuted and collapsed.
Then Aina’s axe arrived.
Guided through the air by mana, the axe slashed through two bandits in a single pass.
At the same time, Aina charged into their midst with only her shield in hand.
She knocked aside an incoming sword with her shield, caught the axe as it returned to her hand, and immediately swung it into another bandit.
Even while fighting, she did not stray far from Saul.
If Saul found himself in danger, she intended to help him immediately.
Saul also charged at the bandits with his Magic Sword in hand.
“Damn it! Kill everyone except that pretty woman!”
The bandits rushed at Saul and Aina in return.
Both Saul and Aina apparently abandoned any intention of capturing them alive and attacked without mercy.
“Die!”
One bandit thrust a spear at Saul with a murderous shout.
The complete lack of hesitation in his attack made it obvious that he had stabbed people before.
Saul knocked the spear aside with his Magic Sword and thrust at the bandit’s chest.
The attack had come immediately after Saul cast a spell, but it was nothing exceptional, so he had been able to counter it.
“Damn you! Bastard!”
The bandit staggered backward.
The scabbard covering Saul’s blade had saved his life.
Then the man began swinging his spear even more violently.
Seeing that, Saul made his decision.
The dead could not speak, so he needed to leave at least someone alive for information.
But this was not a situation where he had the luxury of sparing everyone.
Having made up his mind, Saul evaded the incoming spear and drew his sword.
Then he knocked the spear aside with the scabbard and drove the exposed blade into the bandit’s unprotected body.
“Ghk!”
With a final gasp, the bandit collapsed, bleeding heavily.
It was the first time Saul had spilled human blood since being reborn.
***
In his previous life, Saul had seen many people lose their sanity amid the endless wars.
Some simply broke down.
Others became intoxicated by the pleasure of bloodshed.
Saul himself had been no different in his previous life.
After fighting on battlefields for years, he had grown accustomed to blood.
But he had always disciplined himself so that he would never become consumed by the pleasure of killing.
Thanks to that, he could remain cold and rational even now.
These bandits were merciless men.
There was no reason to show mercy to the merciless.
Saul calmly swung his sword and cast his spells.
It did not take long for the battle to end.
The only people still standing nearby were Saul, Aina, and Kastel, who had done nothing but watch.
“Are you all right?”
At Saul’s question, Aina bowed her head.
“Yes, Young Master.”
Neither Saul nor Aina had suffered a single injury.
By contrast, the nearly ten bandits had all either died or been badly wounded.
Aina seemed newly impressed by both Saul’s ability and his composure.
“You truly are remarkable. It’s almost as though you’ve done this many times before....”
At Aina’s words, Saul questioned himself.
‘Did I fight too well?’
Had he performed too skillfully for his supposedly first real battle against humans?
Still, being regarded suspiciously because he fought too well was better than fighting poorly and dying.
Saul answered only with a faint smile, and Aina did not question him further.
Saul approached one of the bandits who was still alive.
Covered in blood, the man stammered in terror.
“W-Who the hell are you...?”
“You don’t need to know. If you want to live, answer me. Where is your base?”
“Th-That....”
“I don’t want to handle this violently, but if you refuse to speak, I’ll have no choice but to treat you violently.”
Being a villain himself, the bandit quickly understood Saul’s meaning.
If he refused to talk, Saul would make him suffer terribly.
The fight was already over, and the bandits knew perfectly well that Saul could do whatever cruel thing he pleased if he chose to.
Yet they still refused to speak easily.
“We don’t know.”
“Roast us, boil us, do whatever you want.”
At the bandits’ answers, Saul turned toward Kastel.
“Would you handle this for me?”
“Of course.”
Having no idea who Kastel really was, the bandits blustered instead of becoming afraid.
“Hah. I don’t know what kind of woman you are, but you think we’ll just open our mouths that eas—”
They never finished.
Kastel merely extended her hand.
The bandits could no longer speak or even scream as foam gathered at their mouths.
Saul had expected something like this and remained calm.
Aina, despite her combat experience, had clearly never seen anything like it before and looked unsettled.
“What in the world is....”
“There are many ways to inflict pain with magic. Teacher is an expert, so they won’t die.”
Understanding what was happening from Saul’s explanation, Aina asked no more questions.
After a while, Kastel lowered her hand and smiled.
“If you do not wish to talk, that is fine. I should actually thank you. It means I get to enjoy myself longer.”
Did she truly enjoy this?
Or was she simply an excellent actress?
Even to Saul, Kastel’s smile did not look false.
From the perspective of the bandits being tortured, she must have appeared every bit the vicious ‘Black Star of Ill Omen.’
“The choice is yours. You can suffer forever as your entire body feels as though it is being torn apart, unable even to die... or you can tell me everything and be released from the pain.”
The bandits surrendered immediately.
“P-Please spare us!”
“We’ll tell you anything!”
“Good. Where is your base?”
“K-Keep following this road until you reach a fork! Take the left path no matter what! There’s a cave farther up—that’s our base!”
Saul confirmed that the bandit’s testimony matched the information he already possessed.
It was probably reliable.
“Good.”
Having heard everything he needed, Saul stepped forward.
He swung his sheathed sword, knocking all the surviving bandits unconscious.
“Now, let’s go to the cave.”
Kastel asked,
“Would it not be better to finish them all before we leave?”
She meant that since they were criminals guilty of crimes deserving death anyway, simply killing them all would be easier.
Saul shook his head.
“There’s no need to go that far. The survivors can stand trial and receive whatever punishment the law decides.”
Aina nodded as well.
No matter how vile the criminals were, whenever possible, it was proper for them to be judged and punished according to the law.
Kastel tilted her head at their decision, but eventually accepted it.
“Understood.”
Kastel waved her hand.
Every bandit who was still alive fell asleep.
She had put them to sleep with magic.
Having made sure the surviving bandits could not cause any trouble, Saul’s group began climbing the mountain path.
The path was too difficult for horses, so they had no choice but to continue on foot.
It was fairly steep and rugged, but neither Saul nor Aina was weak enough to become exhausted merely from climbing a mountain trail.
The problem was Kastel.
“Huff... huff....”
At the sound of labored breathing, Saul turned around and saw Kastel clutching her chest.
“Teacher?”
“…….”
Kastel waved a hand as though it were nothing.
But anyone could see that struggling to breathe while clutching her chest was far from normal.
Startled, Aina asked,
“Are you all right?”
“……”
Kastel could not easily answer, so Saul spoke in her place.
“Let’s rest for a while.”
“Ah, all right.”
Aina was plainly bewildered.
She had never imagined that the ‘Black Witch’ could suddenly display such weakness.
Saul, on the other hand, calmly observed Kastel.
This was not the first time he had seen it.
He knew the cause as well.
Irregular attacks caused by the lingering aftereffects of poison.
These attacks were the clearest evidence that Kastel had never fully recovered from her old injuries.
They did not happen often.
Even Saul, who had spent years close to Kastel, had witnessed fewer than ten of them.
“Young Master. That....”
Saul cut Aina off.
“Please keep it secret.”
“O-Of course. If it’s something I’m not supposed to know, I won’t ask any further.”
Saul gave a bitter smile and offered her a little information.
“It happens occasionally. I heard it usually occurs after she exerts herself too much or when she isn’t feeling well, but I didn’t expect it to happen now.”
“Why does this happen to her?”
“Let’s simply call it an aftereffect of an old injury.”
Saul said nothing more and had no intention of explaining further.
But Aina was intelligent enough to make a reasonable guess.
The once-undefeated Black Witch Kastel had suffered only one injury severe enough to leave lasting aftereffects like this.
Her battle against the Kingdom of Gamelda’s strongest warriors, the ‘Garcia Siblings.’
And her defeat.
“……”
Fortunately, Kastel’s attack did not last long.
After resting briefly, her breathing stabilized and her expression relaxed.
Once she had recovered, Kastel approached Aina.
“Lady Aina.”
“Yes?”
“Please keep what you just saw a secret. From your family as well.”
Meeting Kastel’s icy gaze, Aina immediately understood.
If this secret became known, Kastel would be furious.
“Y-Yes. Of course.”
“Thank you.”
Saul waited until Kastel had fully settled before asking,
“Teacher. Can we move again?”
Kastel nodded.
“It has passed now, so there should not be another problem for some time.”
Saul nodded in return.
“Then let’s continue.”
“Y-Yes....”
With the brief disturbance over, Saul’s group resumed their journey.
But Aina’s thoughts were complicated after witnessing something so unexpected and then being told to keep it secret.
‘To think Lady Kastel suffers from an illness like that....’
She felt as though she had accidentally learned a secret she was never supposed to know.
And then there was Saul.
He had remained perfectly calm even after witnessing Kastel’s attack, and earlier he had cut down people without hesitation.
Aina felt as though she had seen far too many strange and surprising things today.