CHAPTER 326: TIME TO SEND YOU TO THE AFTERLIFE

The leader of the bandits sat on top of his horse with a smug grin plastered across his scarred face, tapping his fingers lazily on the hilt of his sword.

The past week had been painfully dry, nothing but scraps, frightened peasants with nothing worth stealing, and the occasional wandering trader who barely had two coins to rub together.

But today...oh, today was different.

Before him sat a proper merchant carriage, sturdy, well-built, with heavy wheels and reinforced corners. The kind that screamed treasure inside. Even better, it was guarded by more men than usual, which meant whatever was in there was valuable enough to protect.

That only made him more eager to get his hands on it. Of course, better guards also meant more risk, so he’d been patient, waiting for the rest of his crew to arrive before making his move.

And now they had.

A horrifying smile spread across his face as he glanced at the caravan’s guards, who stood tense and ready, eyes locked on him and his men.

Behind them, he could almost feel the fear radiating from the merchants huddled inside the carriage, trembling at what they surely knew was coming.

Then, something else caught his attention, and made his mood soar even higher.

Off in the distance, standing at the crest of a small rise, was another group. Four figures: three women and one man.

They were clearly adventurers, or at least people foolish enough to travel together without hiding themselves. The leader’s eyes gleamed with interest.

Even at this distance, the women were striking, two of them demi-humans, which would fetch a very fine price on the slave market. The thought made him lick his lips.

Shame, though, he was already tied up here. Couldn’t exactly run off to chase them down now.

But then, something surprising happened.

Instead of running the moment they spotted the bandits, the distant group just...stayed there, watching. And then, to his utter delight, they began walking toward him.

He almost laughed aloud. Fortune is smiling on me today. First the merchant haul, then this little band of beauties and their token man. He could finish one job, then sweep the other up without breaking a sweat.

Still, he cocked his head slightly as he noticed something odd, leading the group was a small girl with cat-like ears, her smile far too calm for someone supposedly walking toward their doom.

She moved with an almost playful confidence, which...well, it was odd. But he shrugged it off. If she wanted to deliver herself to him, who was he to complain?

The guards noticed her too.

"Hey! You there!" one of them shouted, waving his arm urgently. "Get back! These are bandits, dangerous men! We’re about to fight, leave now, while you still can!"

Others joined in, their voices raised in panic.

"Go! Don’t get caught up in this! Run!"

But the approaching group didn’t even slow down.

Three stayed behind the cat-eared girl, their eyes sharp and focused, while she kept walking forward, her small frame utterly unfazed by the shouts and warnings. Step after step, she closed the distance until she was right in front of the bandit leader himself.

And oh, up close, she was even prettier than he expected. Cute face, bright eyes, almost delicate in appearance, it was enough to make him grin even wider.

"Well now." He said, his voice dripping with mockery. "What’s this? Little girl, why’d you come so close? Did you want to be captured that badly?" He chuckled low, his men behind him laughing along. "What, am I so handsome you just couldn’t help yourself? Came running straight to me to offer yourself up?"

He leaned forward in the saddle, eyes glinting.

"Don’t worry, I don’t mind at all. You want me that much? Fine. Just wait right there. I’ll finish slaughtering these guards..." He jerked his chin toward the caravan. "...and then I’ll take you."

His gaze slid past her to the rest of her companions, and his grin widened into something lecherous.

"And I’ll take the rest of you too. You’ll make me rich."

The bandits roared with laughter, the sound echoing across the dusty plain, while the guards stood frozen in dread, unsure what in the gods names they were watching unfold.

But just when everyone, guards, merchants, and even a few of the bandits, were wondering if the group that had approached was either suicidally brave or plain stupid for walking into the middle of a soon-to-erupt battle, the small cat-eared girl suddenly tilted her head and smiled at the bandit leader.

It wasn’t the nervous smile of someone in over her head.

It wasn’t even the sly smirk of someone with a plan.

It was...innocent. Warm. Like she was just greeting a friendly stranger in the middle of the street.

"Hey, mister." She called out, her tone casual, almost conversational. "Can I ask you a question?"

Her voice was light, like she was chatting about the weather, and it made the bandit leader blink before his lips curled into a grin.

"Of course, dear." He said in a polite tone, leaning on his saddle horn like a gentleman humoring a child. "You can ask this mister anything you want, and I’ll absolutely answer." His grin turned cruder. "You can even ask any dirty questions, and I’ll gladly answer those too."

His men erupted into snickers and jeers at the suggestion.

But the girl, Aisha, wasn’t fazed in the slightest. Her smile didn’t even flicker.

Instead, she tilted her head the other way and asked, almost sweetly,

"Your name is Hector Cisvel, isn’t it?"

The man chuckled, about to make some comment, but she continued before he could get a word in.

"And you’re the leader of the "Red Boar" bandit group that’s committed..." She began counting on her fingers, still smiling like a schoolgirl reciting a nursery rhyme. "...sixteen murders, thirteen kidnappings, two hijackings, a large number of rapes, and multiple cases of human trafficking and slave-selling."

The laughter died.

For a heartbeat, the leader just stared at her, caught off guard by how precisely she’d rattled off his crimes. His jaw worked silently for a second.

How in the hell...?

For a fleeting moment, a flicker of caution sparked in his mind, was she some kind of spy? A threat?

But then he really looked at her. The frail, delicate frame. The bright, innocent eyes. That utterly harmless smile. She didn’t look like she could lift a kitchen knife, let alone a sword.

His gaze then drifted over her companions:

The dog-girl behind her, wearing a silly grin that made her look like she barely understood where she was.

The thin boy who looked like he’d be blown over by a strong wind.

And the girl on the horse, who seemed to be struggling just to stay on the horse, sliding in the saddle like she might tumble off at any moment.

Any lingering wariness vanished.

He scoffed, straightening up. "So you know who I am, huh?" He said, voice swelling with pride. "Seems my name’s gotten pretty famous if even a pretty little thing like you’s heard it."

This made his men howl with laughter again, some of them pumping their fists and shouting.

"Boss is the best! Boss is the best!"

But Aisha didn’t respond to the cheering. She simply turned her head, her smile unchanged, and began pointing at the other bandits one by one.

"And your name is Walter River...and yours is Jim Haffter...and you’re..." She listed them effortlessly, her finger darting from man to man.

Instead of being alarmed, the bandits actually cheered louder.

"Boss! She knows our names too!"

"Even the little one knows us! We’re famous!"

The bandit leader grinned even wider, clearly enjoying the attention.

"Tell you what, little girl." He said, leaning forward with a lecherous glint in his eyes. "If you want my autograph, I’ll give it to you, if you accompany me to bed later and—"

He was just about to finish his sentence when Aisha suddenly cut him off.

Her voice was still soft. Her smile still sweet.

"I see." She said lightly. "Since I’ve already confirmed all of your names..."

"...I can properly send you to the afterlife now."