Sorrowful Journey (1)

A couple of days passed as we finally managed to make it to the foot of the Grand Mountains, which, by the way, sure lived up to their name.

Jasmine learned well from me, so I decided to teach her how to do one of my old footwork from my former life. Even though I'm not the best teacher, I have the experience of teaching since I was a captain in my former life, so my explanation is not incomprehensible.

My footwork name is Flash Step. As the name implies, you need to be fast, and it's to avoid close-range attacks. In my past life, I created Flash Step when I was still 20. I always used it when I fought enemies in close combat.

But since this is a magic world, I think my Flash Step can be further advanced to a new level with the help of mana.

Art teaches others his Feint Step.

In the carriage, I observe the outside until... Helen's alarmed voice rang in my ears.

"BANDITS! PREPARE TO ENGAGE!" she shouted, as a rumble of footsteps came from our right and rear.

I realized I forget that before Arthur met Sylvie, the Bandits attacked.

"Submit, O' wind and follow my will. I command and gather you around in protection. Wind Barrier!" Instantly I feel a gust of wind forming a tornado around Mum, Angela, Art and me. Then the wind bent into a sphere around us.

Angela was holding out her wand, concentrating on keeping the barrier active while arrows constantly bombarded the barrier, only to get redirected to a different direction.

Mum pulled me and Art in close, trying to shield us using her body from whatever might get through. Thankfully, her efforts didn't seem to be necessary as the barrier held strong.

In a matter of seconds, the tarp covering the carriage was torn to shreds and I get a better view of the situation at hand.

We were completely surrounded, shit.

Just from what I could see, there were at least thirty bandits. Our current situation was unfavorable at best, as both our path forward and our retreat back were blocked off by bandits wielding swords, spears, and other close-range weapons. On the mountainside to our right, there were archers positioned atop a cliff, their bows aimed at us, while only the steep edge of the mountain with the looming fog beckoned to our left.

Jasmine, Durden, and Dad seemed to be fine, with no visible injuries, but Helen had an unhealthy pale complexion that seemed to be a result of the arrow jutting from her right calf.

A bald man with multiple scars deforming his face and a body of a bear carrying a giant battle-ax spoke out. "Look what we have here. Pretty good catch boys. Leave only the girls and the kids alive. Try not to scar them too much. Damaged goods will only sell for less," he snorted with a smirk that revealed a nearly toothless mouth.

I see that Art's getting enraged by the man's words but stoped as Dad yelled out, "There are only 4 mages and none of them seem to be conjurers! The rest are normal warriors!"

Faint mana fluctuations around a person's body made mages distinguishable compared to normal humans, only apparent if studied closely. As for whether they were an augmenter or conjurer, making an inference based on physical structure and the weapon they were holding gave me a pretty solid idea.

I could visible see how quickly Dad reverted back to his former adventurer days when he had once led the Twin Horns as his expression held the wisdom that could only come from experience. He donned his gauntlets, shouting, "Safeguard Formation!"

Adam quickly arrived behind us as he faced the back of the road, spear pointed, while Jasmine and Helen came to our left with both of their weapons unsheathed, facing ahead. My father and Durden faced the mountainside, positioning themselves to protect us from the archers overhead. Meanwhile, Angela maintained her position, preparing another spell as she kept her wind barrier active.

"Gather and guard my allies O' benevolent Earth; do not let them be harmed!"

[Earth Wall]

The ground rumbled as a four-meter earthen wall transmutated up from the ground curving up in front of Durden.

Using that moment, Dad burst forward, raising his gauntlets in a guard position against the arrows of the enemy archers.

Moments later, Angela finished her spell and unleashed a torrent of wind blades, aimed at the front and back of the path. That was apparently the cue as Adam and Jasmine shadowed behind the wind spell, arriving in front of our distraught enemies that were covering their vitals against the flurry of blades. Helen remained, her arrow nocked and bow drawn, imbuing the tip with mana that shined in a faint blue light.

It didn't take a genius to realize that this arrangement was ideal for protecting valuable goods or people. With two layers of protection from the conjurers and an archer mage ready to snipe anyone who managed to cross the assaults of Adam, Jasmine, and Dad into the defense line, it was a standard, yet, well thought out formation.

"Warrior coming your way, Helen!" Adam shouted as he dodged the swing of a mace, delivering a precise swipe to the jugular of the unfortunate bandit. His eyes widened as he dropped his weapon, desperately trying to seal the fatal wound with his trembling hands as blood spurted out through the gaps between his fingers.

Mum was holding me firmly in her bosom as she tried to shield my eyes from the scenes of gore happening around us. Art and I could see clearly what's happening, this reminds me of the battlefield but without the guns.

Meanwhile, a scruff, middle-aged man wielding a machete lunged towards Angela, hoping to disrupt the spell. Although the wind blade spell didn't seem all too powerful, it provided a painful distraction that was keeping us on equal footing, despite our lack of numbers.

The fierce sound of the show came only after the arrow had done its job. Helen's shot had carried a force powerful enough to pierce through the armored chest of the machete-wielding bandit and lift him up and back a half-dozen meters, nailing him into the ground.

Damn, that's so cool.

Helen's eyes narrowed as she nocked and drew another arrow. Focusing, I could faintly see the mana gathering into her right eye as she shut her left. Soon, another reinforced arrow streaked through, followed by a sharp hiss, ignoring all opposing air resistance as it closed in on another enemy fighter.

This man vaguely resembled a smaller Durden, except more muscular and more angular of a face. His brows furrowing in concentration, his giant sword, which was his height, had somehow reached the arrow in time, generating a sound of a bullet hitting metal. The enemy fighter slid back but wasn't harmed as he anchored his greatsword into the ground, using it to balance himself. However, before even having the chance to smirk in content, a second arrow pierced through his forehead. It was a grim sight, seeing the light drain from his eyes.

Jasmine was engaged in an intense duel against an augmenter, whose weapon was a long chain whip. It looked like Jasmine was at a disadvantage since the range of her two daggers was lacking. She was doing all she could to dodge the erratic movements of the whip.

By now, it was evident the enemy had realized how much she was struggling as he jeered while licking his lips. "I'll make sure to treat you real well before we sell you off as a slave, little missy. Don't worry, by the time I'm done training you, you'll be begging to stay with me," he hissed, followed by another lick of his lips.

Surveying the battle, I saw that the earth wall was holding strong, none of the arrows being able to penetrate through. Focusing on Durden, I watched his left hand that was directed towards the earth wall as he maintained a constant flow of mana to keep it from collapsing. He formed a narrow slit in the middle of the wall to gain vision on dad and the archers scattering, trying to run away.

"Take heed, Mother Earth, and answer my call. Pierce my enemies. Let none of them live."

[Rupture Spike]

-To Be Continued