Chapter 211 - 209 ~ Pretty Little Monster
Silence.
A peaceful, silent night. Rare, but one Laika appreciated.
The days of being part of ... a rcenary group, to put it nicely, were always filled with death, thievery, blackmail, and a myriad of other unsavory actions those with power and a sick mind would often enjoy.
He did not. Not every mber of the Death Spreading Brigade enjoyed such things. Many, including himself, only tolerated such behavior for their own survival.
They were rcenaries. People who gained their livings through violence.
So rcenaries were lucky to be recruited by nobles or rchants to train their household soldiers or be their bodyguard. He was not one of them.
Through unfortunate circumstances, a series of poor decisions forced upon by the situation, and his lacking judgnt in people, he, along with many others, were forced into this quagmire, filled with psychopaths.
He never took pleasure in robbing people, especially regular villagers and commoners. He knew they were simply trying to make it day by day, just like himself.
He never took a life, unless necessary for his own safety. He never touched those who had surrendered. And he would always leave so coppers or silvers to his victim secretly, enough for them to live for a few days.
It was all he could do. He never hoped for his victims to forgive him, if they even lived. It wasn't why he did it.
He did it simply to alleviate so of his guilt, which he doubted would ever disappear.
Laika sat on a wooden crate, leaning back onto the rocky walls of the cave. In front of him, another wooden crate with a small lantern. A fire-lit one. They were not rich enough to afford magic lanterns that used magic stones to light up.
His sword, a regular steel sword sheathed inside his scabbard, laid on his lap. It was a sword he had used since before the rcenary group was reduced into a group of bandits.
It was old, but it was of quality made, and one he was most familiar with. It was a gift from an old friend. The last gift he had received from him before an arrow pierced through his forehead in the war with the Empire.
His dark brown eyes stared at the ceiling, watching the flickering shadows of the lantern dancing on its uneven surface, as he reminisced the good old days.
"A woman...?"
Just then, a soft voice echoed, followed by a heavy thud. It was the voice of soone he knew. The one stationed just a few distance away for him to guard the path into the main base.
Laika imdiately stood up and held the hilt of his sword, ready to draw it at a mont's notice.
He focused his senses. Though already in his forties, his battle-trained senses and instincts were still sharp enough to detect anomalies around him. They were even sharper than most of the younger ones, who still lacked experience.
The first thing that reached his senses was the sll of iron.
No, it was sothing even more familiar. It was the scent of blood.
His body imdiately tensed.
'An attack...? How are they this deep without alerting anyone?!'
He was guarding the section of the cave which was quite near the center, where most of the rcenaries and supplies were gathered to rest or relax.
If they've reached here without alerting anyone, then they must be powerful enough to kill all the guys before him and sneak by.
In other words... They were most certainly stronger than him.
He took a step back, readying himself to flee and alert the others.
It was then that his senses picked up yet another thing.
A sound. The sound of footsteps.
It was nothing like the sound of heavy boots. It was light, but still unlike anything he would've expected.
It was echoing – sothing he wouldn't expect from soone trying to sneak into a lair of bandits.
And it sounded like they were wearing... heels? The kind those noble won would wear to look fashionable and taller. They were like fancy slippers, but with a thin support that raised their heels up to make them be on their toes.
He heard a similar sound when so of the others forced a captured noble lady to enter the cave. It was the last ti he had ever seen her.
It then clicked.
He heard the guy in front of him say "woman
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