No Man’s Land...
A small wooden cart slowly moved through the dense forest; its old wheels were creaking softly as they rolled over uneven ground. A lone steed pulled the cart forward at an unhurried pace while a cold wind whispered through the trees overhead.
The forest around them was unnaturally silent.
No birds chirped among the branches, and no beasts stirred within the undergrowth. The stillness in the environment carried an oppressive feeling, as though the entire forest were watching the travelers pass through it.
Inside the cart, several figures sat quietly beneath dark hooded robes that concealed their appearance and identities. None of them spoke. Their bodies remained motionless in meditative postures as they silently recovered their strength and mana.
Only the faint rattling of the cart disturbed the silence.
Then, suddenly, a sound was heard.
Swish!
An arrow tore through the air and landed directly in front of the cart.
The horse immediately halted with a startled snort.
The atmosphere changed, and several footsteps soon echoed through the forest from all directions as rough-looking figures emerged from the shadows between the trees. Their appearances were unkempt, their clothes were ragged, and their weapons were crude and poorly maintained.
The group consisted of several races.
Humans, elves, dwarves, titans, and vampires stood together among the bandits. Only dragons and phoenixes were absent from the gathering; these two races were never involved in acts they considered lowly.
At their front stood a bald vampire man with broad shoulders and crimson eyes. His rough face carried the confidence of someone accustomed to violence and robbery.
The group numbered several dozen in total.
One glance at their expressions was enough to reveal their intentions.
They were bandits.
The vampire leader stepped forward while resting a heavy machete over his shoulder.
"Choose!! Hand over all your belongings or try to resist and end up leaving your heads as well," he threatened the travelers in front of him.
Despite the threat, no response came from the cart.
The hooded driver remained completely silent; his face remained hidden beneath dark cloth. Even the figures sitting inside the carriage did not react.
The eerie calmness unsettled several of the bandits. Then, from inside the cart, a calm voice finally sounded.
"My turn."
The sound of shifting cloth followed as one of the figures stepped out from the carriage.
A young man slowly walked around the cart and stopped before the bandits. He reached up calmly and lowered his hood.
Sea-green hair fell neatly around his face, contrasting sharply against his bright blond eyes. His appearance was clean and refined, lacking even a single visible scar. Rather than a wandering traveler, he looked more like a noble youth who had accidentally wandered into dangerous territory.
The bald vampire immediately burst into laughter.
"Oh, a human noble brat!! It seems like we are in for a haul today."
Several bandits behind him laughed as well.
In response, the young man calmly summoned a finely crafted sword into his hand. The sheath was made of rich velvety material, and jewels on it gleamed faintly beneath the dim forest light.
With one smooth motion, he unsheathed it completely and lowered himself into a proper fighting stance.
The bandit leader scoffed loudly.
"So you choose the second option."
Around him, the rest of the bandits raised their weapons threateningly while the vampire himself pointed his machete toward the young swordsman.
Their confidence lasted only a few seconds.
Then the young man released his aura.
A powerful B-ranked pressure exploded outward from his body as the fire elemental mana erupted around him like a living inferno; the blade in his hand was covered in flames.
The smile on the vampire’s face vanished instantly.
Only he himself had reached B-rank among the bandits. Everyone else in his group was C-rank or below.
Still, after a brief moment of hesitation, he forced himself to stay calm.
They held the advantage in numbers, and this boy was likely the strongest among the travelers.
The vampire gritted his teeth and unleashed his own aura to resist the pressure.
Blood-red energy surged around him.
"Bloody bell of paralysis."
The vampire leader immediately cast his spell while smashing several glass bottles filled with beast blood against the ground.
Unlike high-ranked vampires, low-level vampires could not manipulate the blood flowing within living enemies directly. Instead, they relied on external blood sources such as dead beasts or sacrificed victims to cast blood techniques.
The spilled blood rose into the air unnaturally.
Moments later, it condensed into a massive crimson bell floating above the battlefield.
The bell rang loudly.
[Ding!]
[Ding!!]
The eerie sound waves spread toward the young swordsman.
The vampire burst into cruel laughter.
"Hahaha! "Bitch, this spell will paralyze you for a minute. Now I just need to walk over and finish you off."
Confident in his technique, he gestured toward one of his subordinates.
An elf assassin with darkness affinity immediately nodded and vanished from sight.
The next instant, the assassin reappeared beside the young swordsman with a dagger aimed directly toward his neck.
Meanwhile, the bandit leader shifted his gaze toward the silent, robed figures inside the carriage.
None of them had reacted even now.
Since he could not sense their cultivation at all, he assumed they were merely weak travelers frozen in fear of bandits, and this noble was the strongest among them.
Slash.
A severed head suddenly hit the ground.
The entire forest fell silent.
The bandits stared in shock at the rolling head of the elf assassin.
Before anyone could react, the young blond swordsman calmly flicked his blade once, scattering blood from its edge.
The blood bell floating overhead shattered apart the very next second.
A single sword slash had dispersed the spell completely.
"You!!!"
The vampire leader’s eyes widened in disbelief.
But before he could even process what had happened, more heads began falling.
The young swordsman moved through the battlefield like flowing fire itself. His flame-infused blade carved cleanly through necks with terrifying precision. Every movement was efficient and controlled without a single wasted motion.
One bandit after another collapsed before they even understood what was happening.
Panic immediately spread among the remaining survivors.
The vampire leader’s face twisted with rage as he rushed forward and intercepted the young man before the rest of his subordinates could be slaughtered.
"Who are you!!"
The vampire roared furiously.
"State your name before dying by my hands!!"
The young man stopped briefly and looked directly into the bald vampire’s crimson eyes.
His expression remained cold and emotionless.
"Just a puny human."
The moment he finished speaking, mana surged violently around him.
"Ember Bloom."
The whispered words triggered the spell instantly.
A massive burning rose erupted beneath the feet of the vampire leader and the surrounding bandits. Towering petals made entirely of fire bloomed outward in all directions, swallowing the battlefield within blazing heat.
The weaker bandits died almost immediately; their screams disappeared within the flames.
The vampire leader himself grimaced in agony as the fire consumed his body.
"Spell mastery at the level of a Grandmaster. Fuck, where did you guys find this guy!!"
The voice came from inside the carriage where the three robed figures sat calmly.
One of them finally removed his hood, revealing the face of Desmond Klembred, the dwarf prince.
Beside him, another figure lowered his hood as well, revealing Galeion Skybreak.
"I don’t know; ask Maximus and Ethan. They brought that human with us. What was his name again?"
A third man finally removed his hood.
It was Ethan.
"Alfred Draconis, heir of the Draconis house."