During the ride, Agares kept Nyx active to help him navigate his way to the border. He took a route through the forest to help hide his presence. If Helderic and the people at Caer Vireth Palace knew Agares was still alive, they would increase security in every city.
Agares continued to spur his horse through the dirt road in the middle of the forest. Due to the silence, Agares could hear faint mysterious voices from within the woods.
[Be careful, Master. I detect someone in this forest]
"How many?" Agares asked briefly.
[Five people]
The lightly armored man nodded. Besides helping him with navigation, Nyx had also helped him detect the presence of other people. Agares didn't know if other people also had access to this interactive system.
Agares jumped down from his horse and stood tall. His right hand drew a black sword from its sheath and swung it sideways, ready to fight.
Sure enough! Agares saw five people coming and surrounding him from all sides of the forest. They weren't wearing armor, only long pants and leather jackets. Their weapons weren't the seven hero weapons, just daggers and small swords.
"You have surrounded me. I can guess that you are trying to rob me," said Agares firmly.
"You talk too much for someone who's about to die in our hands. How about we make this easy?" asked one of the men, who was bald and fairly athletic.
"Hand over your sword, armor, horse, and magic bag. Maybe we'll let you go," he said firmly.
"Tch! Who are you to give me orders?" asked Agares.
"You're arrogant, lowly adventurer. Don't blame us if you die here!" the man shouted, waving his hand to signal his four bandit friends to kill Agares.
The four charged forward at the same time, aiming their weapons at him. Agares saw them and dodged by jumping backwards.
The four bandits were startled; they hadn't expected Agares to move that quickly despite the light armor on his body. This made the four even more furious and eager to kill Agares.
[You don't need to worry about sword techniques. When you get the Saber Job, you automatically learn the basic sword techniques]
"Is that so? That's quite helpful."
What Nyx said was completely true. When Agares tried to block an attack from one of the bandits, he managed to hold him off with good sword techniques and stances, like a palace knight.
"If this is how it's going to be, it won't be difficult for me to defeat you!" Agares said firmly.
Agares kicked the bandit's body, sending him flying backwards. With the sword technique he had learned as a hero with the Saber Job, Agares chose to run towards them to attack.
A fight ensued, with the bandits trying to hurt Agares one by one. They managed to do so, scratching the man's cheek. Agares was shocked, apparently not yet familiar with the sword technique he had learned.
Once again, Agares leaped far backward while wiping the blood from his wounds. The bald man laughed, clearly mocking Agares by saying he wouldn't be able to defeat him and his friends.
"I need to learn sword skills more thoroughly. Can I use my skills, Nyx?" Agares asked.
[Of course. You can use your first, second, or third skill.]
[You just need to activate the skill. You can follow my words]
Agares listened to the fairy Nyx perched on his shoulder. The interactive system could only be seen by Agares, so he didn't have to worry about others noticing Nyx's presence.
"Activate the skill!" Agares said firmly.
"Saber Skill: Shadow Cleave!"
[Shadow Cleave Skill Activated]
[-50 Mana]
[Mana: 450/500]
Purple dark energy gathered around Agares' body, as if his body was absorbing the dark energy from the forest. The five bandits looked shocked, sensing that something was wrong with the adventurer in front of them.
Agares' eyes opened and glowed a deep purple. Both hands gripped his black longsword, then he swung it horizontally, sending a shadow of a sword attack toward the five bandits.
"WHAT?! A skill attack?! Don't tell me he's—"
SLASH!
[+150 dmg] [Critical Attack]
[Weakened]
[Reduce ATK]
Before they could dodge or defend themselves, the bodies of the five bandits were split into two halves, cleanly severed at the waist. Blood spurted and flowed freely from their severed bodies.
[DING! Congratulations, you have obtained Darkness Essence]
"Darkness Essence?" Agares asked.
Nyx flew in front of Agares, displaying a separate panel explaining various things that happen after someone kills a human or monster.
[If a human kills another human, they will receive Darkness Essence, which can corrupt their mind and soul. But that only happens if their element isn't darkness.]
[If a human kills a monster, they will receive contribution points and dropped items from the monster's body. The quality of dropped items and contribution points varies depending on the monster's level]
"Save the information about dropped items and contribution points. Explain to me the use of the Darkness Essence," said Agares firmly.
[Darkness Essence is an evil power that emerges after someone kills another human. Typically, they require soul-purification abilities to remove Darkness Essence. However, your case is different]
[Your affinity is darkness. The more Darkness Essence you obtain, the more you can condense it and turn it into a bomb that triggers a Soul-Destroying Explosion]
[The Soul-Destroying Explosion technique is an inherited technique from the demon clan. I have no further information about it.]
Agares reached out his hand and saw five black-purple points of energy floating above his palm, the Darkness Essence. This was becoming more and more interesting to him. He had to know what the Soul-Destroying Explosion was and how to create it using the essence.
"So, my soul and mind won't be affected by this essence because my affinity is darkness. Am I right, Nyx?" Agares asked.
[You are right, Master!]
Agares smiled and clenched his fist, allowing the Darkness Essence to stay in his body. For now, his focus was on getting out of the forest and continuing his journey to the eastern border.
He saw the bandits lying dead with pale, white faces, their eyes bloodshot and blood flowing from their mouths. Agares knelt down, searched them, and managed to obtain 43 copper coins, 24 silver coins, and 8 gold coins.
For weapons? Agares had no interest at all!
"Someone... help me!"
"Get me out of here!"
Another voice was heard after the fight ended, coming from inside the forest where the bald man had stepped out. What a surprise! Agares saw an old, abandoned hut with the door boarded up with wooden planks.
There was something inside that made the door of the hut be locked like that. It caught Agares' attention.
As he got closer, Agares could hear the woman's cries for help more clearly. When Agares opened the door, he saw a woman sitting slumped with her hands and feet bound by iron chains.
Not only that, but Agares saw rotten bread and milk in the hut. The man suspected that she was a woman who had been kidnapped by bandits.
"Who are you?!" the woman exclaimed in shock.
"Were you kidnapped by those bandits?" Agares asked.
"Keep them away from me!" she pleaded, clearly terrified.
Agares fell silent. He explained everything to the woman, the truth about the lives of the five bandits. He even invited her to see their bodies for herself.
She needed proof, but she was too weak to walk. Agares sighed. He closed the hut door and walked back to the forest path. He dragged the body of the bald-headed man whom Agares suspected was the bandits' leader.
The hut door opened again, Agares threw the bald man's body inside. The woman tried to get away while screaming, her face pale with shock as she watched the bastard's organs spill out of his chopped stomach.
"How is that?" asked Agares, pulling out his sword and stabbing it right into the man's head.
The woman was in shock, slowly trying to steady her breathing. What she saw before her was something she had never imagined before.
"You've killed them," the woman said.
"Can you take me away?"
Agares narrowed his eyes, glancing sideways, "Where?"
"The City of Berdiver."