Chapter 36 : Trap
Chapter 36: Trap
As he stepped out of the cave, fresh air filled his lungs.
Thanks to Calimacos’s efforts, no thieves were following them.
“Hide in the forest, Paul. I need to go help the captain.”
After setting Paul down, he brought over the hidden belongings.
He took out herbs effective for treatment and detoxification and placed them over Paul’s leg.
He was just about to head toward the cave.
Robin’s wrist was grabbed.
“It’s better if you don’t go. Didn’t you hear? If you go, you’ll only be a hindrance.”
“I can protect myself.”
“No. You lack combat experience. With that many coming at you, you’re just asking to get struck by a blind blade.”
He didn’t want to hear any more.
Robin knew the danger.
He also knew he would only get in the way if he went.
Even so, he had to go.
‘I trust the captain. But if something—just in case—goes wrong…….’
“I’m sorry, Paul.”
“You little brat, so stubborn.”
Robin went to retrieve his sword and headed toward the cave.
Paul could only watch him go.
“This is just… infuriating.”
Paul chewed on the herbs Robin had left him and looked up at the sky.
By the time Robin had helped Paul out of the cave—
Ralph, who had been watching with interest, stood up.
He lifted his right leg all the way to his chest, then slammed it down onto the ground.
Kwaaaang!
With a thunderous boom, the thieves who had been frozen regained their freedom.
Calimacos looked at him and gave a bitter smile.
“Our bandit group isn’t small, but impressive. To spread killing intent this strongly.”
“Thanks for the compliment, but let’s get it straight. I’m not great—you guys are just weak. Getting scared over this little bit.”
The thieves, gripping their weapons again, bristled with anger, but couldn’t rashly charge in.
As the saying went—half of battle was momentum. And Calimacos’s killing intent warned the thieves every single moment.
If you approach, you die.
Still, there was always an exception.
In Tupi’s eyes—stabbed earlier by Calimacos’s finger—anger boiled over.
“You bastard! What are you all doing! Get him!”
Tupi’s hand, pulling out the awl that had taken part of his fingernail with it, was stained red.
The awl lunged toward Calimacos’s throat.
Slice.
“Huh?”
Fwaaaash.
The wrist holding the awl was severed and shot into the air.
A fountain of blood burst from the cleanly sliced cross-section.
“Hh… hwaaaak! My wrist!”
It had been an immaculate draw of the sword, accomplished in the blink of an eye.
Calimacos lightly swung his sword to flick the blood off.
He tapped the sword against the back of his neck as if scratching an itch and spoke.
“If you want to die, then come first. I’ll send off the ones who want to go quickly.”
Tupi writhed on the ground, clutching his wrist.
At this rate he looked like he might actually die from blood loss.
Tupi’s screams of agony and his convulsions drained the morale of the thieves.
“He’s a skilled mercenary. Was he an adventurer?”
“No. Instead of just watching from over there, why don’t you come yourself? A one-on-one between captains.”
He provoked Ralph, but Ralph didn’t move easily.
Instead, he pulled a black bottle from inside his coat and opened the stopper.
Dark smoke billowed out and spread through the wide cave.
‘I feel demonic energy. That guy’s a Demon Tribe worshipper.’
The thieves inhaled the smoke one by one.
Their dying battle spirit flared up once more.
Even Tupi, who had been rolling on the ground, got up and glared at Calimacos with hostility.
“Calimacos, instead of this, why don’t you join us? We’ll treat you well.”
“A job offer, is it? Not bad.”
“Right, glad you’re thinking straight. There’s no way you can face all these men alone.”
At Calimacos’s answer, Ralph’s lips curled upward.
“What’s the average pay for a bandit group? I’m also curious about the benefits. I’m expensive, you see—cost a lot. And I’d need to be at least captain-level.”
Ralph’s raised lips slowly dropped.
Seeing Ralph’s expression, Calimacos became delighted and continued.
“Come to think of it, the guy standing guard earlier had a horribly ugly face. Was that because of the black smoke? If I join here, does everyone end up ugly?”
“Kicking away your chance at survival—idiot. What are you all doing! Hit him!”
“Waaaaaaah!”
Blades poured in from all directions.
Unless he had eyes on the back of his head, it was impossible to dodge this encirclement.
“The ones throwing away their lives are you guys.”
Calimacos moved half a beat faster than the thieves.
If he tapped a bandit’s blade with his fist, it lost its path and stabbed somewhere completely unintended.
He took one step to the side and leaned back—then a sword from behind stabbed the bandit in front instead.
The bandit who stabbed his own ally panicked, and in the eyes of the bandit stabbed through the throat—letting out a deflating hiss—resentment filled.
When the thieves tried to attack again, Calimacos leaped back, widening the distance.
“With teamwork this poor, what hope do you have. How can you attack your own allies.”
“You bastard! Dieeee!”
Clang! Chaeng!
Blades clashed, metal ringing throughout the cave.
One man fighting dozens.
Impossible—but shockingly, that one man didn’t fall easily.
With his back to the wall, he parried each rushing attack.
‘All greenhorns. Manageable.’
Though the clash looked evenly matched, slowly the thieves’ wounds increased.
Calimacos’s sword, dancing like a trick performance, gradually carved into their flesh.
“Damn it! This is do-or-die! Even if you get cut, you won’t die—so pile onto him all at once!”
One bandit threw aside concern for his life and lunged at Calimacos.
Thwip.
The cost was his life.
The bandit, stabbed precisely in the throat, collapsed before Calimacos.
And the moment his falling body blocked Calimacos’s sight—
The precariously maintained balance shattered.
Calimacos had been able to hold his own because he always moved half a beat faster.
When that rhythm broke, the hand wielding his sword grew more and more unsettled.
‘At this rate, I’ll be overwhelmed.’
That was when Robin returned.
It was clear at a glance that Calimacos was being pushed back.
Before a bandit’s sword struck down on Calimacos’s shoulder, Robin’s time slowed.
Without even realizing it, a dagger was already in his hand.
With all the strength he could muster, he hurled the dagger.
As time gradually regained speed, the dagger flew in a straight line.
Thud.
“Graaaagh!”
The trajectory of the sword aimed at Calimacos twisted.
Robin’s dagger had pierced the bandit’s wrist.
At the same moment Robin threw, Calimacos seized the opening.
Cha-cha-cha-chang!
After deflecting the five swords, he broke free from the thieves’ pressure.
Calimacos’s and Robin’s eyes met.
That alone told Robin his intentions.
Well done.
Robin was relieved—thankful he wasn’t too late.
“Everyone fall back!”
At Ralph’s shout, the thieves all turned simultaneously.
For the first time, Calimacos was caught off guard.
The thieves had moved more than five meters away from him.
Robin also looked at Ralph in puzzlement.
Ralph lifted his leg high, then stomped down toward the ground.
Drrrrrrrk.
“This is bad.”
The ground beneath them caved in.
With a short cry, Calimacos fell down into the pit.
“Captain?”
Robin couldn’t understand what had just happened.
The thieves snickered as they watched.
Ralph, too, burst into a bright, satisfied laugh.
“Kehahaha! You idiot! Did you really think there wouldn’t be traps in a bandit hideout?”
“That guy. He must’ve really thought he could beat us, huh.”
“Puhahat! Is he brave or just stupid? Did you see his face when the floor dropped? Kukuk.”
“That dimwit! He’s probably getting skewered alive down there!”
Robin’s breath grew rough.
He froze in place, unable to move.
It felt as if chains were tightening around his heart.
‘The captain… died……?’
“A… ah……”
His stomach churned.
His heart pounded like mad.
His vision blurred.
The thieves laughed loudly and yelled something toward Robin, but he heard none of it.
He wiped at the corners of his eyes with the back of his hand.
Sreung.
He silently drew his sword.
Step. Step.
“Boss, what’s with that brat. He’s coming at us with a sword.”
“That mercenary band treasured him dearly. Looks like he wants revenge?”
“That kid? Revenge? Kukuku.”
A bandit approached, tossing a dagger up and down.
Others gathered around Robin as if they found it entertaining.
“Kid, is the guy who fell into the trap your dad or something? Too bad. That pit is ten meters deep and filled with sharp spikes.”
“Look at the murderous eyes on him. Hey kid, you mad? Hm? And what’re you gonna do if you’re mad.”
With the flat of his dagger, the bandit smacked Robin’s cheek.
Robin steadied his ragged breathing and glared at the bandit.
His face was expressionless to the point of coldness—his eyes gleamed with killing intent.
“I’ll kill you.”
Spat.
Blood spurted from the bandit’s wrist.
He had wanted to slice it clean through, but only managed to cut halfway.
It wasn’t quite what he wanted, but the bandit’s artery was severed and he dropped his dagger.
“Argh! Fffuuuuuck!”
Before the falling dagger hit the ground, Robin snatched it up.
Thud. Thud.
Thump.
He stabbed the bandit’s thigh and abdomen in quick succession, making him collapse while vomiting blood.
It was too precise and swift an attack for a child.
Yes. A ten-year-old’s blade had killed a grown man.
Blood splattered onto Robin’s cheek.
The beautiful, doll-like child lifted his head, his face pale.
His appearance—almost unreal—was eerie.
“You crazy little brat!”
His first kill.
So what?
It didn’t bother him.
It wasn’t enough.
He felt he needed to grind down every human in front of him.
The vermin who killed the captain.
Trash useless to the world.
Die.
“Kh…!”
“He’s not an ordinary kid!”
“You guys over there! Don’t just watch—get over here and kill him!”
Robin’s mind spun sharply.
The rushing thieves appeared endlessly slow.
Felix, Brandok, Mirian, Torgen, Paul.
Compared to them, these thieves felt like children playing games.
Compared to Calimacos, they didn’t even deserve comparison.
There was no way he would die to such trash.
Clang! Kaang!
The thieves who had mocked Robin no longer wore smiles.
He wasn’t only blocking the attacks of three or four adults—he was counterattacking.
The surreal sight left the thieves visibly shaken.
Even stranger—the air around them changed.
Faintly, but enough that a weight seemed to settle on the thieves’ shoulders, fatigue building.
Ralph sensed the change first.
‘A brat using killing intent? I can’t leave him alone.’
Ralph rose, lifting his huge club.
When disguising himself as a mercenary, he had carried a sword, but he didn’t actually know swordsmanship.
Until he became the bandit chief, Ralph had swung only a club.
Even skilled swordsmen couldn’t easily escape his clubbing.
“You useless lot—struggling with just one kid! Idiots! Move!”
The chief’s command was absolute.
The thieves stepped aside to open a path toward Robin, bowing their heads.
Walking down the path formed on both sides, Ralph looked down at Robin.
“Huff… huff……”
The murderous light in Robin’s eyes hadn’t died, but it didn’t stop his stamina from draining.
Small wounds covered Robin’s body.
Handling the thieves alone was already difficult, but now Ralph stepped forward too.
‘Nothing changes. I’ll kill him.’
Standing right before him, Ralph smirked.
“I think I understand why that mercenary band protected you so much. With a bit of polishing, I could sell you for a high price. Kid, I’ll overlook what you’ve done so far. Join the bandits.”
“Shut up and fight.”
“Can’t be helped then. I’ll have to send you to that one–eyed bastard.”
Whoooom!
Ralph’s club swung toward Robin’s torso.
For a bandit, it was fast—though not impossible to react to.
Robin raised his sword to deflect it.
Thud.
His arm failed him.
A jarring sensation shot up his arm, ruining his timing.
With a single blow from the club, he was flung far away.
Kudangtangtang.
He rolled across the ground, disgracefully.
He had blocked with his arm before the club landed.
His right arm hurt horribly.
It seemed broken.
He forced himself to rise immediately—but what filled his vision was the club.
Thwack.
“Khuh…”
Hit in the solar plexus, Robin fell to his knees.
“This is why brats who don’t listen need a beating. Kid, show me those nice obedient eyes.”
His eyelids felt heavy.
Robin’s vision grew darker and darker.