NOVPUBOn the snowy plains, the frantic footsteps of the young man were as unstable as a kite with a broken string.
The sound of the bandits’ footsteps was growing louder, like the summoning of the Death God.
From the moment he stepped onto this chaotic snowy land alone, he had made a mistake.
The rocks and ice fractures scattered on the snowy plain presented a slightly undulating terrain. The minute differences caused light to cast shallow shadows on them, revealing only a hint of grayish-white color. These rocks, both tough and sharp, varied in shape and were scattered on the snow, as if they were natural sculptures. However, for those not accustomed to living here, they were dangerous obstacles that were hard to see clearly.
Finally, the delayed steps of the young man tripped him onto the ground. Before he could stand up again, he was almost caught by a few burly men.
"Keep running?"
With the bandits’ voices rising, a hand reached out to grab the young man. Immediately, a transparent barrier flickered with a silvery glow emerged in front of him, like an air-built barricade appearing suddenly, separating him from the bandits.
The bandits all halted their steps because of this sudden barrier.
Facing this barrier, their brief surprise was soon replaced by a hint of cold laughter.
The most robust among them sported a ferocious grin, and he struck the barrier hard with metal tools, causing sparks to fly as if from a forge.
"How long do you think this can hold us back?"
The leader of the bandits had a glint of greed and brutality in his eyes.
"This thing can only stall us for a while. If you remove it voluntarily, we will treat you better afterward."
The other villains also joined in the mockery, encircling the barrier as if enjoying a game of "cat and mouse."
"I am the eleventh head of the Candis Family! A legitimate nobleman of the empire! You let me go to Chinston City, Viscount Chinston will give you money!"
Trapped within the final line of defense and without a place to escape, Shaar shouted out loud, with the cold air causing a sting in his lungs.
The bandits hesitated and then burst into laughter.
They were mocking the young man’s words and his overly innocent proposition.
They did not know whether the young man was treating them as fools or thinking that he could fool them into going to Chinston City and have the Viscount kill them all.
"Are you trying to amuse us in this desolate place?"
"The infamous Assassin Family of legend, how come you are so weak?"
"Perhaps it has been too peaceful for so long, even the Demon Race turns into cowards."
"You’re right. Who would want to come to a place like this in the north, even if they weren’t able to be married off and lived peacefully in the south?"
"We just want to enjoy the warmth of a southern lady as soon as possible."
With every attack on the barrier, their wild laughter followed.
"But I’m a man!"
Shaar collapsed and said.
Although his looks were not bad in his family, he was not mistaken for a female. Maybe it was due to the long hair braiding habit brought about by their elven ancestry, combined with poor visibility in the snow and his bulky clothing.
If he had known about the horrific law and order situation in the north, he would not have stepped into these snowy plains to leave the Hezishan Province for an appointment!
"A pretty boy? That’s even better! It makes me grow more impatient!"
Suddenly, the bandits became more excited.
"?!"
Shaar shivered. It seemed like these people had figured out his gender long ago, and they were just messing with him.
The moment he understood this fact, he felt that these bandits were even more terrifying than a billion murderers!
This was too much for him to accept.
He would rather die than be captured by these men!
But as a Second-Order, how could he possibly defeat these bandits who were likely Third or Fourth-Order?
His family simply didn’t have the money to hire guards for him.
In the imperial capital of Herram, Sixth-Order super masters might be commonplace. Still, in those border areas, a Fourth-Order was already considered a powerful adventurer or mercenary.
In other words, in their region, it was quite tough to find guards above the Fourth-Order, unless the Hegemony Branch or the Branch of Mourning Clan were commissioned.
The only thing that was still protecting him now was the First-Order Pink Holy magic left by his ancestors. The barrier was about to collapse.
Fear was about to consume him.
This was a type of Holy-level magic that was close to Epic.
It belonged to Spirit and Telekinesis magic, it would manifest the heart image of the family head and turn it into a weapon.
But to him, it was merely a barrier like a protective umbrella.
No family head’s weapon had ever been as cowardly as his.
And its effect was getting weaker and weaker due to his fear.
Looking at the barrier that was starting to crack and the few burly men who were still licking their lips with lewd smiles on their faces.
"Lady Goddess, please save me!" 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝑝𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
In despair to the point of nearly collapsing, Shaar could only helplessly look up and yell.
The only response was the bitter wind and a faint echo on the empty snow plain.
Suddenly, there was another burst of sharp laughter.
"Hehe, you’re really pitiful, praying like a maiden. If prayers were useful, then wouldn’t there be no bad people in this world?"
"On this snowy plain that even mercenaries dare not easily tread, there are no more brutal villains than us. You might as well imagine in advance what we are going to do to you!"
"The Church of the Goddess of Destiny is considered a heretic church now. Are you trying to summon an evil god to save you?"
However.
Amidst the rounds of laughter.
After a while.
The sound of rustling leaves was heard from the dense woods about tens of meters away from them, and the snow fell in waves.
"By rights, this should be the only road ah."
"Sikder, we should hire a scout. You really don’t have talent in this area. If it weren’t for the sound, I wouldn’t have found this road if I had followed you around again."
"Say that again, and I’ll deduct points from your goodwill."
A man and a woman emerged.
The two were dressed in outdoor-style warm fleece jackets, wearing sun hats, holding walking sticks, looking at the map, and looking ahead.
The few muscular men who were still vigorously smashing the barrier temporarily stopped their actions, turned around to look at the movement at the edge of the snowy forest.
After seeing clearly, the corner of the bandits’ eyes twitched uncontrollably.
Are these two here for mountain climbing tourism?
Afar.
The young man and woman came out from behind the bushes laboriously, and the joy appeared in their faces as they discovered they had reached the main road.
They immediately looked in the direction where there were traces of people.
"Excuse me, the direction to Chinston City is…"
The sentence of the green-eyed youth ended halfway abruptly, his eyebrows furrowed, and his expression immediately turned serious.
"Hey, you over there, are you engaged in illegal activities like robbery, restricting personal freedom, kidnapping, trafficking, or even organ harvesting?"
The youth pointed their way, speaking in a tone full of righteousness and severity.
-----------------
Desperately asking for your monthly votes! Xi Zhi is knocking his head on the ground in gratitude!
