Chapter 147: Awakening [ XXVII ]

Dragun quickly recognized them as the same bandits he had seen two days prior.

According to Vishirk, the bandits in Yellow River City were backed by a powerful underworld organization that primarily utilized their services for its own benefit.

Dragun knew of only one powerful underground organization, and that was the cult—the Cult of Ember Justice!

Thus, he immediately suspected that it was the scheme of Alister.

"What is he planning this time?" Dragun thought, a deep frown forming on his face.

As Dragun was analyzing the situation, the manager of the inn quickly ran to close the door out of fear of being attacked by the bandits.

He tried to usher Dragun inside with him, but Dragun refused.

As soon as the manager shut the door, two of the bandits who were destroying the nearby restaurant suddenly tilted their heads in his direction and spotted Dragun.

The two smirked before alerting their colleagues, and soon all five bandits began strolling toward the inn.

Dragun gritted his teeth and braced himself.

"Dragun Winterseed," one of the bandits called out his full name as they approached.

This made Dragun realize that the incident was no simple coincidence.

"How do you know my name? Who sent you after me?" Dragun asked through gritted teeth.

The bandits laughed loudly at his reaction.

They stopped a few meters from him and stared at him with grins on their faces.

"We have received a mission to kill you. So please, kneel down, let us get it over with," said one of the bandits.

"Better do what he says, this way your death will be fast and painless. Fighting for your life is useless because you will die either way," another added, mocking Dragun.

Dragun didn't reply to any of their words, finding them ridiculous. What kind of fool would lay down his life to be killed easily?

"If you five think you can kill me, then you are truly dumb and delusional. Whoever sent you to meet me doesn't want you to kill me because he knows you can't, he's simply using you to cause a commotion and reveal my identity and presence," Dragun said through gritted teeth.

He knew all too well about Alister. **Back when he had newly joined the cult, Alister had been his mentor, guiding him through the dark alleys of the underworld. Alister often arranged missions for wanderers like Dragun, sometimes even using them to assassinate others under false pretenses. But after most missions were completed, the true purposes Alister had for them were always revealed shortly afterward, leaving chaos in their wake. Having witnessed this pattern repeatedly during his three years under Alister's wing, Dragun naturally learned not to trust his decisions immediately.**

However, the bandits started laughing at him.

"You are truly delusional. You think you, a mere Tier-1 mage, can take on five Tier-1 knights? The mission was accurate about your character when it called you a dreamer and told us not to believe any of your words," the bandits replied, laughing at him.

Dragun shook his head.

Everything they had just described was exactly what Alister would do.

If he really wanted to kill him, he would have sent Tier-3 or Tier-4 knights. But instead, he sent weak Tier-1 knights and lied to them about Dragun's power to give them false hope that they could defeat him.

"There is no need to have mercy on you anymore," Dragun snorted.

He stretched out his hands toward them, signaling them to come closer.

"Come at me with all you've got. I want you all to go out fighting at your peak," he challenged.

The bandits looked at each other and smiled.

One of them, holding a sharp throwing axe, sent it flying toward Dragun with insane precision and tremendous strength.

The other four kicked into action as well.

Three of them were close-range fighters with daggers clutched in their hands, while the last one wielded a sharp katana.

As they attacked, time seemed to slow down in Dragun's perception. **He could feel his heartbeat steadying, his senses sharpening. The axe was still hurtling toward him, spinning menacingly through the air. The metallic glint of the blades in the hands of the close-range attackers caught the sunlight, creating a blinding flash. The ground beneath his feet seemed to pulse as the bandits charged, their footsteps echoing like distant thunder.**

Dragun moved to the side and evaded the axe before chanting a quick wind magic spell.

Immediately, the wind around them became powerful, pushing the close-range fighters back before they could even get closer.

All five of them were blown back several meters away.

They were disoriented by the fall, but it only made them more furious and ready to slaughter Dragun.

However, Dragun didn't hold back after the first attack, he conjured several ice spears in the air, ready to strike.

The bandits had just gotten up and were ready to attack again when they saw several sharp ice spears floating in the air behind Dragun.

Their eyes widened immediately, but it was too late as Dragun sent the ice spears darting toward them without mercy.

"Fuck! The mission only told us about his weak magic element affinity and nothing else!"

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"This... we are dead!"

They all cursed desperately as death approached them in the form of the sharp ice spears.

They even tried to run away from the spears darting toward them.

But even with their enhanced speed as Tier-1 knights, they couldn't escape the ice spears.

The area was soon filled with the gruesome sounds of flesh being pierced and feeble cries of pain as the bandits met their unplanned deaths.

Dragun watched everything with a cold expression on his face.

He already knew at this point that Alister wasn't really trying to kill him.

But he wondered what dark reason Alister had for the events he had stirred so far. First, he tried to get him arrested, and now he tried to cause a commotion with Dragun at the center by sending weak knights to kill him openly!

While Dragun was busy pondering his situation, the people who had been hiding from the bandits emerged from their hiding places and stared at the corpses of the bandits, then at Dragun. **Their eyes were filled with a mix of awe and gratitude. Whispers spread among them as they cautiously approached, their steps hesitant yet hopeful. Mothers clutched their children tightly, while shopkeepers and artisans looked at the fallen bandits with relief etched on their faces.**

"The bandits have been defeated by this powerful, good man!" the owner of the restaurant exclaimed joyfully.

The others joined in and began praising Dragun.

They went to the corpses of the bandits and took back their belongings that had been stolen.

The inn also opened up, and the people inside joined in thanking Dragun for saving them.

Dragun didn't stay outside to bask in the praises. If he did, he would only be helping Alister draw attention to him.

He went back into the inn after making sure everything was over.

The inn manager gave him five free hours to use the mana pool to show his appreciation for slaying the troublesome bandits.

Dragun naturally didn't reject the offer.

He returned to meditating.

After about two hours, Vishirk returned and was quite surprised by what he saw outside.

Dragun told him what had happened and also told him to prepare himself as both of them were set to return to Winterseed.