Chương 50: Dangers Of Travel

The mid-day sun peeked through the canopy of leaves as Joel comfortably rode his chestnut horse. It was the second day of their trip and a significantly more comfortable experience. Not only was the weather nice and cool, but the riding was easier on him. After the first day of travelling, Joel realized horseback riding, like everything here, was not a simple task. His inner thighs were on fire after the first few hours, and he walked around bow-legged at camp. He felt like he deserved some MIGHT for all of this.

Worse, the ache wasn't damaging enough to affect his HP, so it was a waste to heal the soreness. All the same, he refused to endure this for the rest of the trip. He'd spent the last evening scrolling through class features until he had found what he needed. [Horseback Riding Proficiency] appeared in a few of the classes, but only the Paladin class had it available at level one. It was the easiest 100 EXP he'd ever spent and something he'd want to be good at eventually anyway.

"You've taken to riding well," Siv said, pulling up next to him.

"You're a quick learner."

"Tell that to Alis," Joel replied with a sigh. The previous evening had also included the first of his magic lessons with the mage. They started with basic spellbook ciphering. He'd remembered that much, and that was it. Even on the road, the travel was exhausting and he'd been distracted looking for his newly acquired proficiency. Alis was not particularly pleased.

"I had to bribe her with a share of my spiced cheese to continue teaching me."

"You likely could've avoided such a tax on your favorite snack. My sister would've turned around by morning anyway." He watched Alis riding next to Al.

"She's always been fast to forgive small offenses."

"I keep messing up like that. Say the dumbest things at the dumbest times. Just not used to how things are around here now."

"Now?" Siv asked curiously.

"Sorry, I meant I'll never get used to how things ever are around here," Joel said jokingly, hoping to deflect away from Siv's question.

"Just completely unsure about everything. All the customs, traditions, niceties, and all that."

"You'll learn, though such norms are more lax in Haefen than the rest of the duchy. One of the many benefits of being a guildtown, especially since ours is close to the Oldenroad." The Oldenroad was supposedly some big road that connected all the important cities in Lorent and beyond. He'd picked up that much while talking during their long ride. Supposedly the duchy of Lorent was one of the big three human states, which all used to be under one kingdom long ago.

He'd coaxed that much out of them by playing up the slightly amnesiac foreigner. Joel felt bad for lying but he doubted that they'd believe him saying that he had returned to his childhood, full-dive VR game. It had helped him learn as much as he could about how the world had changed. He'd never been a huge lore nerd or anything; most of what he knew was through osmosis at best, bits and pieces picked up by just playing the game for so many hours. Not to mention, it'd been early access.

There wasn't a plethora of mythos or legends to get into. At least the shaded forest around them was still similar to the woods nearby the lodge. They still had some distance from reaching the Oldenroad, travelling on dirt paths or simply cutting through whatever foliage was in their path. Al had told him that their travel would become considerably easier once they arrived at the main road. Not only that, it'd become much safer as guards from local lords would more likely patrol that road.

Joel had noticed how 'wild' things seemed once they'd made some considerable distance away from the lodge. He hadn't fully realized it during his travels with the Burton gang. Supposedly, while the main settlements were usually quite safe, the large swaths of land between them were not. Beasts, bandits, and monsters could be found everywhere and anywhere. It was another reason why Freewalkers existed. A raised hand from Al interrupted his thoughts and halted their horses.

"What's going on?" Joel asked, moving side to side in his saddle to try and see what was ahead of them. He heard it instead.

"Oh! Woe is me! I am to die! Death comes for me!" a shrill voice shouted out from the distance. More hysterical wails continued.

"Doomed I am, with this wound. Oh, won't anyone save me? Won't the gods!?" Siv and Joel rode up next to the others to see who it was. Approximately a hundred paces down the forest road, a man laid leaning against a fallen tree. One of his trouser legs was stained a bright red. He clutched at it in anguish, still crying out. The man was dirtier than anyone Joel had seen, and he'd walked through Perellan prison. It was unmistakable that this was a trap. Even Joel could tell that much.

The 'blood' stain was too bright, and a tad too purple, likely smudged berries. Not only that, no one bellows on like that if they're that close to death. The shared glances with the others told Joel that they thought the same.

"How many do you think are hiding?" Alis said casually. Her tone was almost lazy, but her green eyes looked around the surrounding trees.

"There'll be at least eight of them. I doubt they'd try their luck with less. They should've seen that we're armed, so it's likely that there's a handful of archers too." Al turned to Siv.

"Cover us if they shoot." Siv gave a nod and clasped his amulet.

"I'm dying!" the man screamed out.

"Why won't anyone save me…" His voice trailed off dramatically, and he seemed to slump his head, before springing back up.

"I'm gon' die!"

"What's happened, friend?" Al shouted out, using his hands to cup around his mouth.

"I be dying, can't you see!?" the dirty man shouted back, grabbing at his leg even more theatrically. This was followed by some of the loudest groans Joel had ever heard.

"You have to help me!" Al repeated the question.

"We will provide aid, but I still require you to tell us what occurred here. What happened?"

"U-uh, I'm a merchant and I've been r-robbed a-and left for dead! Thank the gods that you're here. To save me. Please. Or… I'll die." Joel covered his mouth to stifle the laughter that threatened to escape. This was about the worst acting he'd ever seen.

"Oh no!" Alis squeaked into a falsetto.

"We have to save him!"

"Yes, save me from death!"

"What's your name, friend?" Al called out.

"Uhm, I guess I'm Beesberg."

"Oh, we must save him! We must!" Alis batted her eyes at the rest of them, clutching her hands together as if she was pleading with them. She was clearly enjoying this.

"They left you alive?" Al shouted back plainly.

"Yes!"

"Why?"

"I, uh, I b-begged for my life!"

"You're quite the lucky man! It's unusual for roadway robbers to leave people alive." Beesberg screamed loudly out of nowhere, sudden enough to surprise Joel.

"I'm going to die!" This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

"This is a trap, for sure, right?" Joel whispered, now a little unsure, over to Siv, who nodded back.

"He's fine and it is certainly a trap. I've already spotted one of them." He nudged his brow to one of the flanking trees. Sure enough, a younger man, equally dirty, was crouched behind a trunk, an arrow notched and waiting. His muddied state might've been a passable disguise if Siv hadn't stopped to spot him. The hiding brigand's stare was glued on the exchange between Al and the 'injured' man.

"They must've covered themselves in mud before deciding who was to be the bait," Siv chuckled, slightly shaking his head.

"May the Lady bless them."

"Stop whispering and come help me," Beesberg cried out once more, following it up with a wobbling wail.

"Well, we'd love to do that. But we're afraid that your people might try to make us into pincushions." Al pointed directly at the one Siv had mentioned, and then ten more spots in the tree line. One of his gloved hands dropped close to the greatsword tucked next to his saddle.

"I suggest we work this out peacefully." Beesberg, if that's what the man's name was, looked utterly confused and flabbergasted, providing a moment where he wasn't howling about his impending death. He looked to one of the spots that Al had pointed to, his expression asking what to do.

"We outnumber you three to one!" shouted a booming nasally voice, somewhere further down in the bushes.

"Leave your things and the horses, and we'll let you leave with your lives!" Alis scoffed, turning to Al.

"I can blast them all if we need to hurry this along. I wouldn't even need to use fire." She already had her wand in hand, though hidden under her other arm's sleeve. Al signaled her to stop.

"No, let's show Joel that there are methods we employ other than violence. Just be ready otherwise. I'd prefer none of us getting an arrow through the neck."

"They must be desperate to try and rob obvious adventurers like us," Siv said, as he dipped his head to mumble something softly.

"You better not be praying for them! They're trying to steal from us," Alis snapped, scolding her older brother, who frowned. Al called out to the voice.

"Ay, you have us outnumbered. You might be able to kill us all, even if we are Freewalkers." He let that hang in the air before continuing.

"That said, I think my companions and I would likely do our own measure of harm to you. Maybe, maybe, if you're lucky, we won't get you all." Al's tone was still as friendly and conversational as ever, but you'd be a fool to miss the warning. There was a long pause, only the rustling of leaves in the wind.

"Why are you doing this?" Al yelled out once more.

"Though this isn't the Oldenroad, you all risk your lives by engaging in banditry. If a lord's men caught you, there wouldn't be a trial. They'd string you up as is their right." This time, Beesberg answered while still leaning on the fallen tree.

"We're hungry!" Al furrowed his brows at that.

"I see several hunting bows between the lot of you. And as far as I know, these woods are free to seek game within."

"Nothing to hunt," the voice in the trees shouted back.

"From rabbit to stag, most of everything's been spooked out. Whatever's leftover is taken by the wolves, and we ain't hunting those beasts."

"So you'd risk the noose instead? Hunt the wolves or go home to your loved ones," Alis shouted out. Joel bit back at commenting on the fact that she wanted to blast them a minute ago. The voice laughed back bitterly.

"You think we haven't tried? Already lost two of ours to the damnable creatures. These wolves are larger than any I've ever seen. Only a fool would try to hunt them. The way I see it, it's safer to risk hanging." Now getting a proper look at some of the would-be robbers, Joel had to admit that they did look haggard, even covered in mud. Al was being gracious in his warning to them.

Even with their bows and arrows, Joel was certain that Alis could effectively remove them alone, if what she'd done in the Sanctum was any proof. He wasn't sure if he was exactly ready to face ten arrows to the face, but hopefully Siv would cover them. Joel still gulped and tried to stay cool, noticing that some of the filthy archers looked tense.

"Listen, friend, we want no bloodshed here unless you wish to press us for our belongings." Al flourished a handsome smile.

"I cannot fix your problems, but I can spare five silver coins so that you and your men can feed your families. Take it freely with four blessings."

"They've got more than that! We want more!" Beesberg yelled out. He flinched pitifully with a yelp as Alis narrowed her eyes at him. This time, Al didn't respond. The pause was unbearably loud until he finally said something.

"You'll take five as our charity to you. The wise man recognizes when he's been given a gift and does not demand more." More rustling was accompanied by whispers.

"W-we'll take your offer kindly and thank you for it," the nasally voice yelled out finally.

"Alright, let's move the tree, boys." One by one, each of the hunters popped out of the treeline. Every one of them was as filthy as Beesberg. An older man, full quiver on his back and bow in hand, approached them carefully. He gave a nervous cough that exposed him as the one speaking to them from the woods. Up close, the man looked emaciated with his hollow cheeks.

"Thank you for not, uh, killing us all. I'm Umbert," he said, wiping muddy sweat off his brow. Behind him, the other men began heaving the large tree trunk off the road.

"Al."

"So you're Freewalkers." Umbert looked up at the rest of them.

"Huh. I guess we're lucky you were feeling gracious." He glanced awkwardly at Al's coin pouch.

"So the silver…?" Joel noticed that Alis was withholding her scornful sneer at the man.

"Of course." Al counted out five silver coins and pressed them into Umbert's palm. Compassion flashed briefly across the young Freewalker's face.

"Siv, you think we can spare—""Already on it," Siv said, off his horse and loosening one of the saddled sacks. He took out an armful of packed rations before handing them over to Umbert, who looked overwhelmed.

"Thank you, thank you," Umbert said excitedly as he took them. Al trotted his horse closer.

"We plan on continuing north, can you tell us of anything else we might have to be worried about ahead? Other than the wolves?" Umbert flinched at their mention.

"Hm. If you're wary of knights, there's been some heavy patrol closer to the Oldenroad. We had to stay off the beaten path for a day or two."

"Looking for would-be brigands perhaps?" Al commented with an accusatory look.

"No, no, no." Umbert shook his head vigorously.

"You good folk were our first and last attempt. I swear it. Much too many knights mustered for simple outlaws. There were over two dozen or so, all armed to the teeth." Joel thought back to when Ysobelle and her knights had stopped them at the road.

"Purple flowers on their banners?"

"The Durandts? Ysobelle's?" Al asked. It made sense that he'd know them by their sigils, being a count's son.

"I thought I overheard them moving southwest from Wardenhal." Umbert scratched some mud off of his cheek, taking a moment to think.

"Now that you mention it… I don't remember seeing any banners and they weren't any sort that I recognized. We were more worried about getting away from their horses' path."

"Bannerless knights? Robber knights, perhaps." Al massaged his chin.

"That'd be troublesome."

"In dozens? That's enough to do tidy work as mercenaries instead," Siv pointed out, handing over the last of the rations.

"After all, not all lords are keen to offload work to the Freewalkers." He caught Joel's vacant expression and smiled.

"A lord might be a bit prideful and stubborn, or the issue might be a touch too embarrassing to offload to the League."

"Where were they?" Al asked Umbert, who was yelling at his fellow hunters to hurry with the log.

"Ah, um, you might see them if you keep going this way," replied the muddied man.

"By now, they might be two days ahead. Maybe a day and a half. It looked like they were headed to Dagalt village, or perhaps past it."

"Well, I really hope they aren't robber knights then," Joel said. He saw Al and Siv share an amused look, but Alis was slightly scowling.

"No, no, no," Alis said, folding her arms.

"This is not our responsibility. We're going straight back to the guild."

"It's on the way," Al pointed out.

"It wouldn't even be a detour. We're meant to take the road through there." Now Alis was fully scowling at him, but he held surprisingly firm.

"I'm not even saying we do anything. Just take a passing peek, make sure everything's okay, and then we move on."

"A small bonus would be the chance to sleep somewhere with a roof." Siv hoisted himself back onto his saddle.

"Rest the horses too." Alis rolled her eyes at her brother.

"I know what you're doing. Fine, I can see when I'm getting outvoted again."

"Hey, I didn't get a vote," Joel objected.

"You don't get one yet," Alis declared playfully and it was Joel's turn to roll his eyes.

"And were you going to choose otherwise anyway?"

"Maybe."

"Liar." The loud tumble of the log being rolled off the beaten path interrupted all of them. A small cheer went out amongst the hunters. A louder one followed as they spotted Umbert lifting the ration packs that were wrapped around his arms.

"My thanks to you, may you have safe travels," said Umbert as he hurried off to hand out the food, not realizing the irony of his words. They trotted their horses past the men, who were already happily munching on some of the rations. Joel spotted Alis lagging behind them, handing out handfuls of spiced cheese. She caught his stare as she rode up next to him.

"That's your share, by the way." Damn it.