The summer sun had already dipped past its zenith, and the sky was beginning to hint at the coming sunset. Rei straddled Seto’s back as the Gryphon soared through the air.
"To think they’d set up their hideout in a grove even though their main force is cavalry. It was completely unexpected. ...The Bloody Blade, was it? Their personalities aside, they seem to be quite skilled."
"Guruuu."
Seto purred in agreement with Rei’s murmurs.
Rei turned his gaze toward the ground, but he could see little more than the dense canopy of trees below.
Even with the information gathered from the prisoners regarding the approximate location of the hideout, finding a specific spot from the air without the aid of photographs was a difficult task.
Moreover, because the Bloody Blade traveled by land, their perspective was fundamentally different from Rei and Seto’s aerial view.
"Well, Ranga’s theory about them trying to flee the moment they spotted Seto seems plausible enough, but..."
"Gruuu?"
What’s wrong? Seto asked, turning its head back toward Rei. Rei stroked the Gryphon’s neck, telling it it was nothing.
As they continued to circle the sky above the grove—
Suddenly, Seto turned its attention away from Rei and toward a specific section of the woods below.
"...Hm? This is..."
He heard the faint sound of angry shouts and clashing steel. Then, the scent of blood hit his nose.
It was the music of battle, a melody Rei had grown all too accustomed to.
"Looks like we hit the mark. Did they have a falling out over whether to retreat, or was it a dispute over the loot? Either way, it’s lucky for us. Seto, head toward the noise."
"Gururururuuu!"
With a cry that said leave it to me, Seto flapped its wings and began its descent.
Once Seto found a suitable clearing to land in, Rei dismounted and began walking toward the source of the fighting, keeping his presence hidden alongside the Gryphon.
Five minutes later, an unexpected sight came into view.
He had expected to find the members of the Bloody Blade fighting amongst themselves, but instead, he found them locked in combat with a group of Goblins.
(No, given the presence of cavalry, I can safely assume these are the men we’re looking for.)
Despite the terrain being only semi-open with scattered trees and tents, the mercenaries skillfully maneuvered their horses to slaughter the Goblins.
Their horsemanship surpassed that of an average knight, confirming beyond a doubt that they were the Bloody Blade.
(Wait, Goblins? Why... No, I see. Lenora and Kenny mentioned it. Mirene said she took charge of those three rookies specifically to hunt down the remnants of a Goblin settlement that had been destroyed.)
Rei recalled hearing from Lenora and Kenny that an adventurer party had wiped out a Goblin village the day before.
They had complained that the resulting paperwork had kept them at the guild later than usual.
For Kenny, however, it had been a stroke of luck, as it allowed her to run into Rei just as he returned to Gilm.
"Gruuu?"
Seto purred softly, glancing at Rei while making sure not to be heard by the combatants.
Rei stroked Seto’s back and shook his head.
"If we jump in now, it’ll only cause more chaos. If the Goblins flee when they see you, the Bloody Blade might take the opportunity to slip away as well. We’ll watch for a bit. We move once the Goblins are dealt with. Our primary goal is to make sure these guys don’t escape. We’ll step out right when they’re too busy packing to notice us."
Seto nodded, and the two watched the skirmish between the mercenaries and the monsters for a short while.
"Though it looks like it’ll be over soon."
True to their reputation as a veteran mercenary unit, the Bloody Blade rapidly thinned the Goblins' numbers. Before long, the monsters realized they had no hope of victory and scattered in every direction.
As Rei watched, a man named Eberogi began shouting orders to his men to gather any dropped loot, weapons, and rare metals that could fetch a high price.
"It’s about time. Ideally, I wanted to wait for the subjugation force to arrive before making my move, but..."
Rei muttered this while glancing back, but there was still no sign of Ranga or the other soldiers.
If he waited any longer, they would get away. Making his decision, Rei let out a small sigh, retrieved the Death Scythe from his Misty Ring, and stepped out from the shadows with Seto.
"Come on, you lot! We’re leaving! Pack the valuables and the gear! And grab any monster materials those Goblins scattered for fun!"
While that voice rang out, Rei leaned against a tree and spoke, his posture ready for action.
"Heh, you’re quite quick to make a decision. I thought you’d have a bit more composure than that."
Twitch. The moment Rei’s voice reached them, the leader of the Bloody Blade froze.
He turned toward Rei like a rusted doll and whispered a single word.
"...Crimson..."
The name was exhaled with a slight tremor. Rei nodded, Death Scythe in hand.
"Correct. ...Now, I don't suppose I need to explain why I’m here?"
"...No. You’ve come to kill us, haven't you?"
Rei’s eyebrows furrowed slightly at Eberogi’s words.
Certainly, if they resisted, he would attack, so he couldn't exactly say he had no intention of killing them. However, he had no desire to inflict unnecessary harm if they surrendered quietly.
This wasn't out of any grand humanitarian sentiment. It was simply a matter of pragmatism—if he maimed them, it would be a hassle for the subjugation force to provide medical treatment, and they would fetch a lower price as criminal slaves if they were heavily injured.
Since he felt a sense of debt toward Daskar, he felt he could at least show that much consideration.
(Actually, it feels like the rumors about me are getting a little out of hand...)
Suppressing a sigh, Rei kept his expression neutral.
"That depends on you. If you surrender quietly, no one has to bleed. But if you insist on resisting... then the result might be exactly what you just predicted."
"..."
Eberogi quickly weighed his options and reached a bleak conclusion.
It was clear that Rei knew exactly who they were. Even if his men scattered into the woods like the Goblins had, Rei would undoubtedly hunt him down personally.
No matter how confident he was in his riding, outrunning a flying Gryphon was a physical impossibility.
Should they all charge at once? No. Even if the boy looked young, he was an alias holder adventurer. They couldn't win a fair fight, and Rei would surely strike the leader first.
He briefly considered using his men as human shields, but he knew that if they caught wind of it, they would turn him over as a peace offering in a heartbeat.
In the end, Eberogi had only one choice.
He dismounted and tossed his longsword to the ground.
The clatter echoed through the clearing. One of his subordinates spoke up, his voice trembling.
"Boss, what are you doing?"
"Can’t you see? I’m surrendering."
"What!?"
Disbelief and denial washed over the group.
Eberogi continued, his voice firm.
"Listen up. This is the adventurer with the Crimson alias. Do you think you can win a fight with him? Do you think you can run? I don't. I’d rather be sold off as a criminal slave than be slaughtered like a dog for trying to play hero."
He didn't mention it aloud, but he held a faint hope that they might find a way to escape before being sold.
But—
"Don't—don't mess with me! Sold as a slave!? There’s no way in hell I’m doing that!"
One man screamed, and several others roared in agreement.
"He’s right! I’m not being made a slave! I’d rather kill this brat and make a break for it!"
"Crimson? It’s just a bunch of hyped-up rumors! Look at him—he’s just a scrawny little kid! We can take him if we all go at once! Right, boys!?"
One by one, the men gripped their weapons, their faces contorted with desperation.
If they had been thinking clearly, they would have recognized the vast gulf in power between themselves and Rei. They were skilled enough to know better.
However, the terror of their impending capture drove them to ignore reality.
It was a state of being half-crazed with desperation—a panic state not unlike the Goblins they had just finished fighting.
"Hey, stop! Even if you get past him, what are you going to do about the Gryphon!?"
Eberogi and a few others who had managed to stay calm shouted at them, knowing that an attack would mean their deaths. But logic was useless against men in a panic.
"Let’s do this! If we take him down, we still have a chance!"
"Ooooooooooh!"
The group of nearly ten men, both cavalry and infantry, let out a war cry to bolster their own courage.
With longswords raised, they charged at Rei.
"You fools—!"
Eberogi tried to stop them, but it was too late. The lead man closed the distance, his blade held high for a strike—
"Go to sleep."
With a quiet mutter, Rei thrust the butt end of the Death Scythe forward. It buried itself deep into the lead attacker’s solar plexus.
"Gefuh."
The man’s breath left him instantly as he lost consciousness.
His longsword clattered to the ground as he collapsed.
It was fortunate for him that Rei intended to capture the members of the Bloody Blade alive.
Because of that intent, the butt end of the weapon only knocked him out rather than punching straight through his leather armor and his body.
Whether that was truly "lucky" given his future as a slave was another matter entirely.
"Oraaaah!"
Enraged by Rei’s nonchalance, another man swung a battle axe the moment his comrade went down, hoping to catch Rei off guard.
In the next instant, a sharp metallic ping rang out. Before the attacker realized what had happened, his battle axe had been cleanly severed.
It wasn't the wooden handle that had been cut, but the solid metal head of the axe itself.
The man froze at the impossible sight, creating an opening that was more than enough for Rei.
A single flash.
Using the handle of the Death Scythe in a horizontal slash, Rei struck the man across the chest. The blow shattered his ribs through his leather armor and sent him flying.
He slammed into a nearby tree with a sickening thud and crumpled to the dirt.
"..."
The sight of a grown man being swatted aside like a fly forced the remaining attackers to a freezing halt.
While such a feat wasn't entirely unheard of for a high-rank adventurer, seeing it firsthand made them realize they had no desire to experience it for themselves.
"That’s enough!"
Eberogi’s roar cut through the silence, seizing the moment of hesitation.
The men, shocked back to their senses by their leader's voice, turned to look at Rei again.
Rei rested the Death Scythe over his shoulder, a faint smile on his face that radiated total confidence.
Beside him, Seto crouched low, ready to spring at a moment's notice.
"You see now. The moment we ran into someone like him, we lost. Don't make this any more pathetic than it already is."
"But..."
One man tried to protest, but Eberogi shook his head in silence.
He was telling them that resistance was futile and would only result in more useless pain.
Watching the exchange, Rei spoke up.
"It looks like you’ve decided to stop wasting your time. I appreciate it. And besides..."
He glanced toward the thicket he had emerged from.
A moment later, the sound of rustling leaves filled the air as Ranga and the members of the subjugation force stepped into the clearing.
"As you can see, there’s no way out. Just give up."
Rei’s words were the final nail in the coffin, crushing the spirit of the Bloody Blade as they realized their situation was truly hopeless.