Chapter 191. Ravok’s Revenge

“I need men,” Ravok declared as he met with a different kind of broker in the shadowed corners of the Jungle's Claws.

“How many do you need, and at what rank?” the Rank 1 jackal demihuman asked, utterly unfazed despite speaking to a Rank 3 tiger demihuman.

“12 Rank 2s. Rogues and archers only.”

“10 mithril coins per day, per head, plus collateral. For every one of our men who dies, you surrender a permanent slave of equivalent rank as compensation.”

“That's fine.”

Without another word, the jackal produced a contract with the terms already written down. Ravok skimmed it, signed his name, added a drop of blood, then tossed a heavy pouch of mithril coins to the jackal. As for the slaves, ownership transferred automatically whenever one of the mercenaries was killed, so there was no need to corral them at this moment.

The kingdom's official slaves were useless for what he intended. Their contracts forbade them from committing crimes, regardless of their master's orders. They were obedient, but only within the bounds of the law. Ravok needed disposable men who would obey first and ask questions never.

Less than an hour later, he was leading a dozen armed figures through the forest. Humans, beastfolk, and demihumans of several races ran in disciplined silence behind him, each carrying only the equipment needed for a quick kill and an even quicker escape. They kept running without pause, pressing deeper into the wilderness, even through the dead of night.

Finally, they found their prey, a lone carriage, larger than average, parked off the main trail beneath a towering tree in a clearing free of undergrowth. It belonged to that accursed, cheating merchant who had dared to pull a fast one on Ravok.

They had likely hoped to put as much distance between themselves and him as possible before he caught up. Unfortunately for them, a carriage was far slower navigating a forest than a pack of seasoned Rank 2s accustomed to moving through the jungle. They had never stood a chance of outrunning their pursuers.

“Something's not right,” a dog demihuman with an unusually keen sense of smell muttered. “The campsite's too clean. Hardly any scent beyond the carriage itself. It's as if they never stepped outside.”

Ravok frowned but gave the professional's words due consideration. “He's a wealthy merchant with too many fancy gadgets. The carriage probably has spatial expansion on it. They wouldn't have had any reason to leave it.”

“Maybe. But it still doesn't sit right with me.”

Ravok's patience wore thin as his voice dropped into a low, dangerous growl. “Are you backing out?”

“No,” the dog replied after a brief pause. “But I've given my warning. Keep your senses on high alert because this has all the signs of an ambush.”

“Then you have nothing to worry about,” Ravok said as he explained the plan. “All I need you to do is keep them from getting away and pick them off from a distance once I head down there and engage them. I don't want a single one of them escaping. Do you all understand?”

All twelve mercenaries nodded without objection and readied their ranged weapons. Bows, throwing daggers, javelins, and hooked chains, all Rank 2 equipment, more than enough to bring down a mere Rank 2 harem party.

Without another word, they scattered into the surrounding forest, encircling the carriage from every direction. Several climbed high into the sprawling branches overhead, taking positions among the treetops so even the skies above the carriage were covered.

Then, Ravok charged forward with surprising stealth, closing the distance at remarkable speed. The moment he reached the carriage, he lashed out with his claws, ripping the side clean open and revealing its interior to be packed with potion bottles.

Suddenly, his instincts screamed in warning.

As a Rank 3, his reflexes were fast enough to hurl himself backward, raising his arms to shield his head just as a massive explosion erupted from within the carriage. Even then, the blast clipped him, sending him tumbling away with serious injuries.

All at once, hell broke loose as explosions erupted throughout the surroundings. Rocks on the ground, patches of bark, leaves in the treetops, and even branches detonated in a cascade of effects. Overbearing white light robbed the mercenaries surrounding the carriage of their sight, the stark contrast against the dead of night leaving them completely blinded. A pungent stench assaulted their noses, causing many to retch from sheer disgust. A shrill, high-pitched whine pierced their ears, robbing them of their hearing and throwing their balance into disarray. Tremors raced through the ground while the relentless explosions overwhelmed their sense of touch, further disorienting them and leaving them unable to make sense of their surroundings.

Then the battle truly began.

From the shadows cast by the brilliant light, Elyra and her clones struck first, silently slipping behind the disoriented mercenaries to slit throats, sever limbs, and drive blades through hearts. A heartbeat later, Bastion and the girls burst from a hollow in the giant tree nearest the carriage, white masks covering their faces as they charged into battle. Mounted atop Steve, his diamond steed, Bastion immediately unleashed Arcane Lockdown and Earth Rampart, sealing every avenue of escape before charging straight at Ravok, who was still struggling to recover his senses.

Seraphina summoned Akari, her phoenix, and immediately began bombarding the surrounding mercenaries Elyra hadn't already targeted. Ariel released her storm elemental and opened fire with her pistols, favoring precision over raw power as shot after shot struck heads with devastating effect. Lilia summoned her 5-meter-tall ice golem while Misty, her mist lynx, blanketed the battlefield in thick fog. At the same time, Lilia spread her mana threads throughout the area, empowering Bastion and the others with powerful buffs.

Of the dozen mercenaries, half were taken out almost immediately, their health nearly depleted while their mana continued to drain. They desperately reached into their emergency pouches for healing potions, only to discover they'd been stolen, leaving them helpless on the ground to await their fate.

The rest stumbled about in blind panic, crashing into tree trunks, eating dirt as they tripped, or slamming headfirst into Bastion's walls. Before they could regain their bearings, the summons closed in while a relentless barrage of ranged attacks rained down from seemingly every direction. Within moments, every mercenary had been brought down, leaving them battered, drained, and completely unable to continue the fight.

Ravok, however, fared far better. He'd managed to defend himself from the carriage's explosion and was less affected by the sensory assault that followed, allowing him to evade Bastion's charge with ease. He even had the presence of mind to swat aside the whipsword attempting to coil around his foot and the raw strength to tear through the Arcane Shackles binding his arms and legs.

"GRAAAA!!!"

He roared in fury as his body swelled by nearly 50%, towering over Bastion even while the latter remained mounted on Steve. Then he lunged, driven by unbridled wrath and hatred, his dagger-like claws bared. Each swipe came with terrifying speed and force, gouging chunks from Steve's diamond body, tearing through Bastion's Diamond Armor, and shredding his shield and armor. He tanked Bastion's counterattacks of Light Lance, Light Burn, and Arcane Sentry without slowing, wholly focused on killing the accursed merchant.

That was when a Deathflare slammed into his back, scorching his fur. Bullets hammered his head, cracking his skull, while daggers sliced through the tendons above his heels, threatening to cripple him. A Shield Bash crashed into his face, forcing him backward. In an instant, he found himself surrounded, attacks raining down on him from every direction.

“Fucking useless mercenaries!” he roared in anger.

“Blaming your own incompetence on others again?” Bastion taunted, activating Taunt.

It proved effective as Ravok roared and charged at Bastion once more, only for his instincts to suddenly flare with a deadly warning, snapping him out of the Taunt. Only then did he notice that Bastion had swapped his sword and shield for what looked like an enormous gun, one that radiated a threat unlike anything he had ever experienced. Every fiber of his being told him a single hit from that weapon would kill him.

Without a moment's hesitation, Ravok used Jump to reach the treetops, breaking free of the encirclement just before Bastion could fire his Rank 2 cannon. Even that wasn't enough as a thunderous blast erupted behind him, followed by searing pain tearing through his leg. Looking down, he saw that everything below the knee was gone.

Ignoring the agony, Ravok continued his desperate escape until Bastion's Arcane Lockdown blocked his path. After several powerful swipes, he shattered the translucent blue barrier and pressed onward. The brief delay, however, gave Bastion and the others enough time to catch up and inundate him with a relentless barrage of skills.

Shadows coiled around his body, slowing his movements and forcing him to expend more and more strength just to keep moving. Arcane Shackles bound his limbs to the surrounding branches, demanding even greater effort to break free. Frost crept across his body, further dulling his movements, while bullets relentlessly hammered the back of his head, steadily draining his remaining health.

He managed one final leap, but he was no longer fast or strong enough to reach the next branch. A thunderous roar erupted behind him as something ripped through his chest, draining the last of his strength. His body tumbled from the treetops into the dense undergrowth below.

The sound of hooves approached.

Ravok looked up to see Bastion staring down at him from atop his diamond steed, the humiliation outweighing even the agony of his dying body.

“Damned... cheating merchant,” he rasped.

Then his health finally bottomed out, and he died with his eyes still burning with fury.

“That was easier than I expected,” Lilia commented as she dispersed the fog blanketing the surroundings. “I thought a strength-based Rank 3 would put up more of a fight.”

“The cannon made all the difference,” Bastion replied as he stored Ravok's corpse, making absolutely sure he was dead. “Unlike the hyena woman, whom we were aiming to capture alive, Ravok didn't have to survive. One shot to his center mass from the cannon was enough to end the fight.”

They proceeded to clean up the battlefield, round up the prisoners, regroup with Selyn and the panthers who had remained in the hollow during the fight, and climb into the original main carriage. The one that had exploded was an expensive decoy, identical in appearance to the real carriage but packed with Seraphina's outdated explosives. It had been a steep price to pay, sacrificing such a costly quantity of explosives just to catch a Rank 3 off guard, but the gamble had paid off.

As Bastion harnessed Steve to the carriage, preparing to continue their journey to the capital, a group of feline demi-humans arrived mounted on giant cats, their bows drawn and ready to fire.

“Halt! You're suspected of having committed a crime. Submit to our investigation, or we will open fire.”

“Under whose authority?” Bastion asked evenly.

“By the authority of Captain Tavin of the Forest Rangers,” the man replied, gesturing to the insignia on his uniform.

“With all due respect, I'll have to decline. For all I know, you could be bandits who killed a squad of Forest Rangers and stole their uniforms. Besides, suspicion alone isn't sufficient grounds for me to submit to a search of my person and belongings. If you have evidence of a crime, present it.”

Captain Tavin's expression darkened.

“How dare you defy a lawful order! Surround them!”

Bastion and the girls immediately formed up around the carriage, weapons at the ready as they braced for another fight. Then, a familiar ethereal female voice drifted in on the wind.

“What's all this, then?” she asked, a hint of amusement in her tone.

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