Dark Fantasy: Magical Eye Knight – Chapter 89

Chapter 89: Roadside Encounters (2)

 

“Stay alert, you fools! The enemy is only one!”

 

Amidst the darkening expressions of the bandits, only one raised his voice and shouted. That bandit was quite large, and his voice was equally boomy, almost approaching Kry’s size.

 

Russell realized that he was the one leading the current group of bandits. The fierce aura of magic power flows through the man’s entire body.

 

It was remarkable that the bandit gang leader possessed such magical power. While it couldn’t rival Russell’s, it seemed to be at the level of an ordinary knight.

 

“Turn your heads around immediately! Those who don’t will have their heads turned by me.”

 

The man drew a large greatsword, proving he wouldn’t just stop at words, and swung his blade at one of the fleeing bandits.

 

“Aaargh!”

 

“Hihihihing!”

 

The man’s brute force was astonishing. He cleanly bisected the bandit’s and his horse’s torsos. The death throes of man and beast spread out doubly.

 

“Don’t run! Those who run will die by my hand.”

 

Despite being on a vast plain, the voice of the man holding the red greatsword spread widely. He swung his greatsword, drawing a long streak of red blood. The fleeing bandits pulled their reins and came to a halt.

 

With Russell holding a greatsword behind them and their leader in front with his greatsword drawn, the bandits didn’t have many choices. They turned their horses toward what they thought was the better option.

 

“Damn it, death either way!”

 

“Let’s go!”

 

Russell and the bandit group of slightly over thirty charged towards each other. The bandits kicked up an immense amount of dust, as if they were running with small clouds trailing behind them.

 

Then, with a gesture from the man with the greatsword, ten mounted bandits broke off. Their goal was to reach the hill where Kai and Aellasis were.

 

Russell could guess the man’s intention. He knew that Russell’s large figure and small girl on the hill were comrades, and he was trying to unsettle Russell’s mind.

 

Moreover, he seemed to think that his own strength and that of his twenty subordinates would be enough to deal with them.

 

Russell didn’t pay attention to the bandits running separately.

 

“Eehaa! Eehaaaa!”

 

“Hrraaaaaa!”

 

The bandits shouted incomprehensible battle cries. Their eyes were as glazed as those of drug addicts. The tremors of their horses’ legs, the feel of their curved swords in their hands, the endless surge of magic power, and the secretion of adrenaline in their brains were preventing their minds from functioning rationally.

 

Russell and the twenty mounted bandits grew closer by the moment. He could see their dirty faces, their sinister, glittering eyes, and their hair matted with sweat and dust.

 

Their bodies experienced a turbulent surge of magic power. It was slightly different from the normal flow of magic power. Unrefined. It’s not a true magic circuit, but rather a forced opening.

 

Russell’s eyes narrowed. A few days ago, he had been able to open Robin’s magic circuit because a considerable number of circuits were already in a ready-to-open state.

 

Even so, opening a completely closed magic circuit would have consumed a considerable amount of power. All he had done was create a tiny gap for mana to flow in. Of course, it would have been impossible without his eyes, which could visibly perceive mana and magic power, as well as his level of magic control.

 

Completely transforming a human body is a difficult task.

 

However, someone forcibly opened these guys when they should have remained closed. Whatever the method, it certainly wasn’t normal.

 

When forced open like that, the magic circuit and body became twisted. The magic power that should circulate normally would collide with the inherent life force, eventually causing abnormalities in the nerves and muscles. Perhaps they didn’t care about their wretched lives beyond tomorrow. Or maybe they were simply unaware.

 

However, there was not much time left to ponder that question. Russell gripped his dark greatsword. He couldn’t throw the axe, Final Frost, as the return spell hadn’t recovered yet. But the great sword was enough.

 

The sky was vast and clear, with only a few clouds. The self-immolating brilliance shone down on everything from the heavens. Russell and the twenty mounted bandits soon clashed.

 

Having charged without any particular formation, the bandits came almost in sequence, and Russell’s greatsword carved through their bodies in the order they arrived.

 

“Huaaaaaah!”

 

“Die. . .ugh! Khukhuk!”

 

A black trajectory. Fleeting screams and shouts. The bandits’ heads were bobbing up and down in a playful manner. The bandits’ expressions were still filled with excitement, their faces not yet realizing their own deaths.

 

Warm blood splattered across the brown earth. The green grass trembled slightly at the newly bestowed crimson robe.

 

After cutting down four of them consecutively, the man with the greatsword charged at Russell.

 

“Kraaaah!”

 

The magic power was visible even outside his skin. The bandit leader gritted his teeth and swung his greatsword. The force behind that sword was so ferocious that the air split with a shrill scream.

 

Russell appeared ordinary. He didn’t have any magic power, and he wasn’t even wearing armor. He wore a thin black coat and tied his long hair back.

 

Despite the dusty air that would make one blink, Russell didn’t close his eyes. He swung his greatsword towards the incoming greatsword, aimed at his neck. There was no sound of air cleaving. A silent roar.

 

Jjwwaang!

 

They crossed paths with a thunderous boom. The outcome was clear.

 

The great sword shattered into pieces and scattered. The impact transmitted through the wrist, elbow, shoulder, and waist completely obliterated the man’s right side.

 

The bandit leader coughed up blood and fell to the ground.

 

As he crumpled to the ground, the startled bandits circled around Russell. A few caught in his greatsword’s radius had their chests ripped open and died on the spot.

 

After breaking through the bandit group, Russell turned Kry around. Behind him, the bandit leader was kneeling and coughing up blood, while the remaining bandits, now around ten, were still staggering.

 

Further back, the riderless horses had lost their vigor and stood motionless on the plain, panting heavily like innocent children of the wind.

 

The bandits appeared stunned by the sudden downfall of their once-powerful leader. Their pale faces looked at each other pitifully.

 

“Aaack! What is this?”

 

“A wizard! Magic, khuhuk!”

 

Then a scream from the hill grabbed everyone’s attention. Except for Russell, the bandits’ eyes widened.

 

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

 

“Hwaap!”

 

Kai charged head-on against the horse that was lunging at him from the front, muscles bulging. The bandit intended to trample him, but little did he know that Kai would leap up and wrap his arms around the horse’s neck.

 

“Kueek!”

 

“Hihihihing!”

 

The bandit’s neck snapped as he was thrown off and the horse collapsed to the ground, unable to withstand Kai’s strength.

 

Kai was faithfully carrying out Russell’s orders.

 

“Kraaa!”

 

Kai charged forward with a thunderous roar. He kept close to Aellasis and grabbed the horses of the approaching bandits, slamming them to the ground. The horses running across the grassland couldn’t overcome Kai’s strength, so they rolled roughly to the side.

 

“Arrows! Bring the crossbows!”

 

The bandits hurriedly lifted the crossbows they had loaded on the sides of their saddles. But before they could pull the triggers, ice arrows came flying faster.

 

“Kak!”

 

An ice arrow pierced a bandit’s neck and chest. He thrashed around, feeling the cold sensation creeping into the middle of his esophagus, and then fell forward. The blood that flowed out was frozen.

 

Startled, the other bandits looked in the direction the ice arrows had come from.

 

“What the hell!”

 

“Wizard! Wizard! She’s a wizard!”

 

With an expressionless face, Aellasis raised her hand. The result of the gesture by a girl who looked sixteen at most was astonishing.

 

Magical power surged, and the moisture in the air quickly gathered and solidified. It froze. Five long ice arrows stormed toward the bandits.

 

The bandits, who had fallen off their horses without major injuries, pulled out the scimitars at their waists. They dodged or deflected the ice arrows that flew at them. It was surprising agility for mere bandits, but it was possible because the ice arrows weren’t particularly fast, despite their appearance.

 

Aellasis frowned. She couldn’t bring out the power and speed she had when she had fought the monsters in Errandis territory. At that time, her body had grown after receiving Russell’s magical power, but now she was just in her normal state.

 

No matter how much of a dragon she was, it had only been half a year since she had hatched from her egg. The characteristic of dragons growing stronger as they aged meant that, in other words, she had to age in order to become stronger.

 

“Capture that little girl! We need to take her alive!”

 

Greed and lust filled the bandits’ eyes as they gazed at the beautiful face of the white-haired girl, Aellasis. They charged up the slope, their scimitars raised.

 

Their feet, as strong as their desires, kicked up clods of dirt.

 

However, beside her now was her large bodyguard, the orc Kai.

 

Kai snorted loudly through his large nose. Black tattoos covered his brown skin, and his pale red mane fluttered. He spread his legs wide and raised his tightly clenched fists. His steel teeth gleamed in the sunlight.

 

“Vul-can.”

 

The orc, who had finished his prayer in his own way, confronted the bandits who were running towards them. The bandits’ scimitars, imbued with magical power, flew towards his neck, chest, and other vital points, but Kai didn’t dodge.

 

The bandits heard the sound of cutting leather, certain that the orc would collapse at any moment. But the scimitars couldn’t cut into Kai’s skin more than a certain thickness.

 

“What the?”

 

The face of the bandit, who had exclaimed, contorted.

 

“Dieeeeeeeee. . . . . . . . . .”

 

With his nose and mouth completely crushed, the bandit breathed his last and fell backward. As the bandits looked on in shock, Kai, who had been crouching down, swung his arms.

 

“Uwaaaak!”

 

The bandits, who had significantly stronger strength than ordinary people, were pushed back helplessly. And Kai’s fists immediately rained down on them.

 

Kai went on a rampage after confirming that the scimitars weren’t working. He crushed wrists and kicked bandits, sending them flying. Kai kicked a bandit, causing him to vomit blood and fly backward, while he swung at the bandit whose arm he had crushed by the wrist.

 

Kai used two bandits as human clubs, causing them to fall limply to the ground. When the human clubs became nothing more than flesh and bone, Kai threw them away and charged at the five remaining bandits.

 

Kai ignored the wounds on his body from the scimitars. Just then, the two bandits, knocked out by the human clubs, shook their heads and stood up.

 

“You son of a bi━.”

 

“I’ll eat you alive!”

 

They charged at Kai with animalistic cries. The bandits’ unexpectedly strong magical power and wild movements slowly pushed Kai back.

 

‘Should I release the Vulcan’s aura? But if I do, I won’t be able to move properly for a while.’

 

After using it to fight Russell last time, Kai spent the whole night groaning from the backlash. He hadn’t been able to clench his fists properly for a while after that, either.

 

He could use it again after three days, but if he did, his body would be in a state where he wouldn’t be able to follow Russell’s orders for a while.

 

Just then, Aellasis shouted.

 

“Back off, Kai!”

 

Kai leapt back without hesitation at the young girl’s words. And Aellasis converted enough of the magical power she had gathered.

 

Crackle!

 

A blue thunderbolt flashed. The lightning that shot out of the girl’s small hand headed straight for the scimitars the bandits were holding.

 

“Kkeu-geu-geuk!”

 

Five screams echoed. The lightning bolts were connected like chains, drawing a shining line between the swords.

 

The bandits couldn’t even let go of their hilts, so they trembled. Their eyes rolled back in their heads, and foam dripped from their mouths.

 

Aellasis had quickly given up on the ice arrows when she saw that they weren’t very effective and thought of other attacks she could use. The girl shouted.

 

“Now!”

 

Kai was amazed by the young girl’s magic. He had seen Aellasis in her adult form in Errandis territory, but it had only been a glimpse.

 

In addition, there was a big difference between how Aellasis looked then and how she looks now as a girl, and most importantly, he had been out of his mind with rage over the death of Chief Arcule. That was why he hadn’t realized Aellasis was the woman of ice and lightning.

 

As the lightning bolts stopped, the bandits collapsed to the ground, smoke coming out of their skins and mouths.

 

Their bodies continued to tremble as a result of the electric shock. Kai grabbed the fallen bandits’ collars one by one.

 

The bandits tried to get up somehow, but it was impossible with their bodies still affected by the electric shock. They could only look with terrified eyes at Kai’s large brown hand approaching them.

 

SNAP!

 

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

 

The bandit leader spoke, trembling.

 

“Ku-ruck, what are you idiots doing?. . . Don’t you see that bastard just standing there? He must be tired, too. Go! Go stab that bastard in the heart with your swords!”

 

Unlike what the bandit leader said, Russell wasn’t tired at all. Neither was his horse, Kry.

 

Russell got off Kry. Kry thrust his head out as if to ask if he was really that tired.

 

He pushed Kry away with a smile and swung his greatsword. It was fine to swing it while riding a horse, but the stability that came from solid ground was something else.

 

As he got off his horse, the other bandits got off their horses too. Their horses were already drenched in sweat from chasing their original target before and from the recent charge towards Russell.

 

The bandits took out crossbows, javelins, and battle axes from their saddles. Then they ran forward with a roar. It was a reckless charge that didn’t take formation, vanguard, or rearguard into account, like when they had been on horseback.

 

Russell moved like lightning. At least, that’s how it looked to the bandits.

 

They were definitely fast, too. They had awakened the magical power they had always dreamed of and developed extraordinary physical abilities. However, they still couldn’t reach the real thing.

 

The spear blade and axe crossed paths with Russell. They intended to attack from outside the long reach of his greatsword.

 

The spear blade seemed like it would pierce Russell’s stomach any moment now, but it didn’t. Russell raised his great sword from bottom to top.

 

That simple movement severed both the spear shaft and the axe-bladed spear shaft. They collapsed, severing their waists in the process. Their entrails spilled out onto the ground. Hot steam rose up.

 

Russell took the lead before the bandits could be shocked by the sight. He didn’t stop. Russell charged at them with another fierce movement, like a beast pouncing on its prey.

 

The targeted bandit swung his scimitar down with a strange sound that was a mix of a scream and a groan. Nahilnir was faster. The corpse, split from the groin to the crown of the head, fell dead in two.

 

It didn’t take long for the remaining bandits to die. 10 seconds. 1 second per person. That was the end of their remaining lives.

 

They tried to run away, but they couldn’t escape the clutches of Russell, who ran across the ground as if he were sliding. Eventually, they all lay dead on the ground. Russell was the only one standing.

 

Whoosh. The wind blew, fluttering his hair and coat hems. For a moment, Russell felt the wind all over his body. The thick smell of blood seemed to be dissipating.

 

He approached someone who was still alive. The bandit leader was there. Blood flowed endlessly from his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears.

 

Russell looked down at the slowly dying man. The magical circuits that had been artificially and forcibly opened were eating away at him. It seemed like it would be difficult to recover.

 

Russell spoke.

 

“How did you awaken your magical power? You should know. Your circuits aren’t in a normal state right now.”

 

The bandit leader chuckled.

 

“Fuck you, you son of a bi. . . . . .”

 

The man, who had been laughing weakly, coughed a few times, then stopped breathing. He was dead. Russell looked down at him for a moment, then shook Nahilnir. There wasn’t any blood on it, but it was close to becoming a habit. Russell sheathed Nahilnir and turned his head towards the hill.

 

When he focused his magical power in his eyes, the distant hill came closer, as if it were right before him. Both Kai and Aellasis were safe. Just then, as if she had felt his gaze, Aellasis jumped up and down and waved her hand.

 

It was an overly cheerful sight amidst the corpses, but she was a dragon after all. And there was no particular reason for her to act any differently just because she was a human.

 

Russell chuckled and turned his head back. The surviving people were staring at him with their mouths wide open.

 

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