The bandit leader was momentarily panicked when he saw a massive burst of fire incinerate the rain of arrows. He wondered how there could be a master capable of such magic within the caravan.
But when he looked closer and saw only a strangely dressed boy charging toward them, he let out a cold snort and immediately waved his hand for his subordinates to surround him.
“Don’t panic, men! He’s just a brat! Finish him off first, then deal with those guards!” the bandit leader shouted contemptuously.
However, they completely underestimated the combat prowess of this bare-handed youth. Bolstered by wind elements, Starlight’s footsteps were as fast as lightning. To the bandits, he was a mere blur before he appeared in front of the nearest men.
Seeing Starlight close in, the thieves hurriedly drew the machetes at their waists and slashed at him fiercely.
But they had no way of knowing that Starlight was an opponent even a Shadow Leopard, renowned for its speed, struggled to catch. The blade light that seemed like a flash of lightning to them was like slow motion in Starlight’s eyes. With a simple roll, he dodged them effortlessly.
While evading, Starlight’s hands did not stop moving. With a graceful wave, several spikes condensed from light elements shot from his palms like bolts of electricity. Before the thieves could react, several bloody holes appeared on their bodies.
Although these attacks were not fatal, the intense pain caused them to curl into balls and scream in agony, their weapons clattering to the ground.
Starlight had no intention of being a cold-blooded killer. He merely glanced at them before charging toward the other bandits, seemingly intent on defeating all his opponents single-handedly.
Only after Starlight made his move did the caravan guards finally finish assembling by the old man’s side. The group watched in stunned silence as the boy tore through the bandits like a tiger among sheep, momentarily forgetting what they were supposed to do.
It was the old man who recovered from the shock first, roaring at the guards beside him, “What are you standing there for? Go help him! Are you grown men really going to let yourselves be outdone by a child?”
The guards finally snapped out of their daze and moved into action. They left a few men to protect the old man while the rest followed in Starlight’s wake and charged into the fray.
Starlight paid no mind to the movements of the caravan guards behind him. In his perception, the bandits before him were absolutely no match for him; it didn't matter whether he had help or not.
He was like a sharp blade thrust deep into the bandits’ ranks.
Elements of various colors erupted from his hands. Any thief he touched was either pierced by light cones, frozen solid by white frost, or knocked over by violent winds.
For a time, this group of nearly a hundred thieves was completely unable to halt his advance.
“What kind of monster is this?! Is he some kind of human-shaped magical beast?”
The bandit leader grew frantic at the sight. It was his first time seeing a mage fight with such a reckless, close-quarters style. In the span of a dozen breaths, a third of his men had already fallen.
Although the bandit leader possessed decent strength himself—enough that a dozen of his underlings couldn't touch him in practice—he now felt a profound sense of helplessness looking at this boy who fought like a god of slaughter.
“Aren’t mages supposed to stay at the back and provide support? How can one fight like this? No! He’s too strong!”
In the brief moment he spent thinking, another dozen men were struck by Starlight’s magic and collapsed. Cold sweat poured down the leader's face, his heart filled with terror.
“This target is too tough! Retreat!” Realizing the situation, the bandit leader immediately issued the order to withdraw.
The bandits, who had already been routed by Starlight, turned and bolted toward the forest the moment they heard their leader’s command.
Seeing the bandits retreating, Starlight immediately stopped. He knew the principle of not pressing a desperate foe too hard, as wounded prey often fought back with the most ferocity.
“Watch out, the side!” Noah’s voice suddenly rang out. Starlight instinctively ducked. A silent black shadow streaked past, crossing the space where his chest had been a second ago and snapping a tree as thick as a bowl behind him.
“He dodged that too?!” Having already retreated into the forest, the bandit leader lowered his heavy crossbow and shouted in disbelief.
This was a heavy crossbow he had specially commissioned. The cost of each bolt was extremely high, enough to cover a month’s worth of food for many people.
The advantage of this heavy crossbow was that it was silent and incredibly powerful. He had never missed an ambush before, yet today, an unknown brat had easily avoided it.
Before he could recover from his surprise, he saw a beam of white light shooting straight at him. He instinctively raised his arm to block it, but the white light pierced right through his metal bracers and his shoulder, leaving a finger-thick hole.
The sudden, excruciating pain scared him out of his wits. He didn't dare look back at the boy again as he fled desperately into the depths of the forest.
As the tree severed by the bolt tilted to the side, the violent vibration caused countless leaves to fall, obscuring Starlight’s vision. This gave the bandits the opportunity they needed to drag their wounded comrades back into the woods, leaving behind only a dozen unlucky souls who were completely unable to move.
Only then did the caravan guards catch up. They showed no mercy to the heavily wounded, dying bandits; with swift falls of their blades, they gave them a quick end.
However, when their gazes turned toward the black-haired youth not far away, they all hesitated. No one dared to step forward and speak to him.
No one had expected the attack on the caravan to end as quickly as it had begun. In just a few minutes, the once-arrogant bandits had been sent fleeing in total disarray. And the one responsible for it all was the boy they had all initially viewed as a weirdo.
After clearing the battlefield, the guards watched Starlight from a distance with traces of awe in their eyes. Not a single person dared to disturb him.
At that moment, Starlight was not paying attention to their expressions or actions. He stood still, not because he was resting or on guard, but because he was whispering to Noah at his waist.
“Noah, why didn't you say anything earlier? I thought something happened to you!” Starlight asked with some concern.
“I don’t want too many people to know about my situation. You can handle trivial matters like people talking to you on your own. If there’s an emergency, I’ll warn you. It’s safe for now, so let me sleep for a bit...”
“Uh... alright. Then tell me what I should do now?” Starlight wanted to ask more, but Noah fell back into silence, looking once again like an ordinary old book.
Just then, the old man approached. Seeing Starlight standing motionless, he thought the boy might be injured. He was about to offer his concern when Starlight turned around, and their eyes met.
“Young man, are you alright?” The old man scanned Starlight’s body, his heart full of shock. After such a fierce battle, Starlight didn't have a single drop of blood on him, let alone any wounds.
“Um... I’m fine, sir. Those ambushers have been driven away. If there’s nothing else... then I’ll take my leave. Sorry!”
Faced with the old man’s concern, Starlight felt a bit awkward. He gave a casual laugh and prepared to depart.
But the old man called out to him, sincerely inviting him to join the caravan and promising him a handsome reward.
When the reward was mentioned, Starlight realized that he was currently penniless. If he wandered into a town like this, he would likely find himself in trouble.
Although he had no concept of the value of the old man’s offer, he braced himself and agreed, following the crowd back to the caravan in a bit of a daze.
The old man seemed very happy to have Starlight join. After all, having a powerful mage join one's caravan was rare and excellent news; it greatly increased their safety.
Normally, very few mages were willing to take on the thankless job of a guard. Even if there were a few scattered here and there, they were usually half-baked. How could they compare to the youth before him?
And so, Starlight followed the caravan onto the highway leading toward the Violet City-State, officially beginning his life of adventure.
Rate on N.U.
