Chapter 91: The Black Daggers
A few minutes earlier....
Inside of a local tavern...
A group of shady men sat in a bar, enjoying a couple drinks as they were serviced by beautiful women, the atmosphere loud and carefree. They were a notorious gang around these parts, they were known as the Black Daggers, a bandit group that operated secretly within Aveldon.
Their leader, Lucien, was a tall muscular man wearing a black cloak rested his feet at on a rounded table, enjoying a glass of wine in his hand, his face a bit flushed from drinking too much of the stuff as he sat surrounded by beautiful women and having himself a great time.
Just then however, the atmosphere was shattered as a pair of hurried footsteps rushed into the room, the leader’s senses jumping up in alert as the rest of the gang turned to look at who was running towards them, a lowly member of the group.
"Sir!" The lowly bandit spoke he ran up to the group of bandits, resting his hands on his knees as he panted from exhaustion, sweat covering every inch of his body. "I bring urgent news!"
Lucien blinked, his expression turning serious as he dismissed the women surrounding him, the ladies leaving as the lowly bandit took his seat around the table.
"Speak, what’s going on? You look like you saw something terrible." The man spoke, his voice stern and analytical as he took a sip of his wine, studying the lowly bandit carefully.
"Quite the opposite," The bandit said, his eyes wide and full of excitement. "A merchant’s caravan has been spotted! A very rich one at that!" He spoke, his voice echoing with greed.
Lucien’s eyes widened, his body tensing momentarily as he’s conscious screamed with opportunity, a hungry grin spreading across his face.
"Oh~? I like the sound of that." He spoke, a dark chuckle escaping his lips. He glanced over at his henchmen, killers, robbers, and powerful ex-adventurers that wanted a more wild and fulfilling life, the job sounded easy and very profitable.
The lowly bandit sighed as his expression turned serious, his gaze lowering as he pitifully shook his head.
"Unfortunately however, the caravan’s heavily protected." The bandit began. "There were a lot of precious goods and cargo on the back, so much so that there are multiple adventurers protecting it as we speak."
The bandit leader thought about it for a moment, stroking his chin in deep contemplation. "Adventurers huh....how annoying." He muttered to himself in a distasteful tone. He was a powerful warrior, a [Midnight Swordsman] who’s swordsmanship and destructive power rivaled many peak B-Rank adventurers, and could even challenge A-Ranks with his sheer skill and will alone.
He gave one final glance to the men at his back, the bandits nodding as they immediately understood the look, already standing up to get ready for the assignment.
’Even if they’re a rich merchant, I doubt they would be able to afford a powerful adventurer for protection. Given that they are many in number, it could be likely that the adventurers are weak, and need to make up for that lack of strength in numbers.’
Lucien strategized, nodding to himself as he grinned in excitement, clasping his hands together as he rose from the table. A little bloodshed went a long way in achieving his goals.
The bandit looked up as he watched his leader get ready to move, his eyes turning serious and a bit concerning as he remembered an important detail that he forgot to tell, the thought of it making his power shudder.
"Hold on a moment, sir." The bandit momentarily stopped him. "Among the adventurers, there was a red haired woman who gave off a more frightening aura than the rest of them combined, I didn’t get a good look of her face, but we should be careful before making any rash decision."
Lucien’s eyes narrowed in deep contemplation, taking in the low bandit’s words as he looked at him. A woman who’s strength outshined multiple adventures, and by extension him? The thought intrigued him, but made the idea of the rewards far more alluring.
"Relax, she’s just one powerful person, we’ve got a plethora of B and C-Rank adventurers, even if she was an A-Rank, our sheers numbers would be more than enough to overwhelm her." He said, flashing a cocky grin.
"You’ve got nothing to worry about, that merchant’s treasure is as good as ours." Lucien said with a hearty laugh as he began to move, the lowly bandit smiling a bit as he felt a bit reassured by his leader’s answer, standing up to follow behind him.
The bandit group exited the bar, the gleaming sun stinging their eyes for a bit as they moved through the streets with great haste, passerby’s and locals moving out of the way due to their collective, intimidating aura and terrifying presence.
"Alright, where are they? Are they still here?" Lucien asked, his eyes scanning the crowd as they made their way to the entrance.
"Yes sir, though they are located at the entrance, ready to leave at any moment." The lowly bandit answered. His eyes locked onto the caravan, his hand shooting out as he began to point with his index finger.
"There! That one!" The lowly bandit said, the group’s gaze collectively following where he was pointing as they watched the people board the caravan, the sight of the wealthy merchant moving up to the front to begin riding his horse.
Lucien smirked as he watched the caravan began to pull out of Aveldon, he wasn’t going to let his prize escape him so easily. He turned his gaze back to his men, nodding as they immediately began to rush towards their own vehicles.
"After them! Don’t let them escape! I want you all to follow them!" Lucien ordered, rushing to leap onto his caravan, getting into the driver’s seat, the rest of his men climbing into the back as they began to follow behind the rich merchant, trailing away at a distance as to not raise immediate alarm.
’Hehehe~’ Lucien chuckled to himself inwardly, licking his lips. ’Women, treasures, all soon to be mine~’ He thought to himself, his eyes gleaming with malice and greed.