Chapter 136 - Bandits in Pursuit

While the moon was descending across the sky, a man crouched silently in a distant tree, hidden among the leaves. He peered carefully at the small clearing with a single tent, a bedroll, and a young man sitting on a log in front of a small fire. The man in the tree was cautious and remained completely quiet. 

Rather than relay his findings verbally, he kept one hand behind his back. That hand clutched a naj crystal, opening and closing to signal his report.

Even further from the Oli's campsite, another group of men had gathered in the darkness of night. There were no tents and only bedrolls hidden with leaves or shrubbery. They always had at least one man on watch duty and another at the side reporting on the scout's signals.

"Lakd, that one is still awake."

"Uhh… Why did he have to get involved…" groaned one of the five men. 

"You know the kid, right? He trouble?"

That same man shook and chuckled nervously. "For you, there shouldn't be a problem."

"But you and your men seem a bit spooked. Is that the kid that stopped you last time?"

Nodding, the man humbly looked to his superior. "Yeah… That's the same kid."

"Oh? So someone will make this entertaining. He knocked you out with one blow, right?" When the large man clicked his tongue and looked away, Lakd smiled wider. "Then worst comes to worst, I'll be the one to take him on. You guys should be able to handle the rest. Or are Gamun and his men afraid?"

Everyone in that small circle chuckled quietly as Gamun gave Lakd a half-hearted glare.

"For now, let's test them out a little. We've got a few days so there's no need to go crazy at the first opportunity," Lakd continued. "Those deer are close by and pretty irritable. Why not guide them in the right direction and see what happens? If we see an opening to strike, we move. If not, we'll find a better opportunity later."

"But we outnumber them and--"

Lakd shook his finger at the men around him. Though he was quite strong, Lakd was also the smallest man sitting in the circle. But that made no difference to the larger, physically stronger men that immediately quieted down for Lakd to speak.

"Patience. We'll be patient. We only just found them and their fire seems to be newly built. If that's the case and the large kid in the bedroll was on guard duty before the idiot who lit a fire, it means the kid is savvy. I want to know how savvy. Then we'll attack accordingly and plunder everything with little to no loss. So have patience and good things will come soon enough."

As the others nodded, Lalkd smiled at Gamun. "Your men can handle the deer, right? Or is that too much to ask?"

"We'll be fine…" Gamun sighed, standing up and leaving the circle. 

Lakd and the other group leaders watched Gamun kick three bedrolls, waking up his small team. They grumbled a little but all accepted orders without question. In moments, Gamun and his three men were gone.

The bandits were patient as their leader had ordered. Gamun and his men were as well, being cautious to guide the deer in the correct direction as they would only get one shot. 

By the time everything was ready, the morning light of the sun was barely visible through the sun was still hiding from the world. 

Thud!

The gathered deer all flinched at the sound of something crashing into a nearby tree trunk. 

Thud! Thud!

As the herd hastily evaluated the origin of the first threat, two more tree trunks were hit on opposing sides. With only one direction available, the herd rocketed away, steering clear of any morning predators. 

Thud! Thud!

Again, two more trees were knocked roughly on opposite sides of the herd. In response, the herd sped up and continued forward to avoid any possible encounter. 

"Well done, Gamun…" Lakd silently praised his subordinate, patting him on the back. "Now, how will they respond? Follow the herd and keep your distance. If I give the order, we attack. If I remain silent, we wait for another chance."

Immediately, all five teams of bandits took off. The rampaging dear drowned out their footsteps as the scout remained hidden to keep a visual on the targets. Those bandits spread out while staying far enough back to see the scout's signals. The moment the scouts noticed a hint of confusion or chaos in the campgrounds, Lakd would lead his men on the offensive. But then…

RROOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAARRRR!!!

All bandits remained still as they noticed the rampaging herd change course. Each bandit remained silent and unmoving, not daring to get closer or give away their position.

Lakd was both caught off guard and amused. For a moment, he had thought that another beast had appeared to make things worse. However, the scout's signals stated otherwise.

"Huh… The kid did that?" Lakd sighed to himself, barely letting his own ears catch wind of his words. Making the hand signal to lie low, Lakd waited for more information from the scout. A minute or so later, Lakd got the signal that the campsite was cleared. 

The bandits quickly scanned over the smoldered fire and located the tracks of their targets. 

Smiling, Lakd nodded. "They're better than I thought. Hiding their tracks in the stampede to make things more difficult on anyone following them… And that roar… I'm glad we got to test them a little... 

"Send word to the boss and ask for reinforcements."

"Lakd, are you--"

"Wouldn't you rather play things by the vest?" Lakd stated. "Besides, I'm sure the boss will be interested in the kid. With enough convincing, we may get a new ally."

"Lakd, I don't think he's like that," Gamun humbly added.

"Well, it's worth a shot. Gel, Hurry back and fetch the boss," ordered Lakd, glancing to one of the men from his own small team.

"Of course."

As the speedy thief took off through the forest, Lakd smiled and led everyone else after their prey.