To bloodyredrose1994: Thanks a lot for the information regarding Mald and how much he has negatively influenced Itsuki to such an extent. I will try to explore this aspect in a later chapter once Eugeo's name has become so widespread that Itsuki's admiration for him would eventually turn into jealousy.
To AnimeFan13579: Do you have any better ideas? I really do want to solve this little loophole too, but since it's somewhat minimal in the grand scheme of things, I decided to just focus on the story itself instead of fixing this blunder that I accidentally made. I apologize if I failed to reach your expectations.
E.T. 2000: Thanks for the suggestion regarding the Yamai Twins weapons. Same thing for the idea where Melty learns Sacred Arts from Eugeo, I haven't thought about that since her appearance into this story is still a long way off. Anna getting a lamia form is an interesting concept but I'm not sure if I can give it the justice it deserves. I will keep this idea in archive though.
Don't you worry about the pope, he and his sect WILL be making decisive action in the near future as Eugeo becomes more problematic to their cause.
starwing1995: Sorry, but I have no idea about this Kamen Rider thing that you speak of.
TapHero: Thanks a lot for this idea regarding the monsters of the Cal Mira isalnds. I will definitely put it to good use when I finally reach that point of the story.
RainbowLightning101.1: Thank you for the kind words, I promise to do my best and never abandon this story. I also hate fanfics that got abandoned by their authors, so I promise not to do that to my own fanfic.
Drcause: As nice as it would have been for Naofumi to have his own lemon chapter with his harem, I don't think he's ready for a relationship just yet. Maybe when I reach Season 2 material, Naofumi would be more open for a romantic relationship with his female party members.
Pendragon: I just might use Magic Enchantment. I'm just not sure when it will happen though.
PhantomNightHour: Thanks for the compliments and I hope I keep improving so you and other readers could enjoy my fanfic more. Don't worry about the action scenes, more fights would happening in the next coming chapters since Eugeo and his party will be fixing Itsuki's mess. The same thing on Naofumi's side (kind of) as he will be taking care of the monster that took the Zombie dragon's place in this fanfic.
Camelot: I'm deeply sorry, but as interesting as it would have been to change Motoyasu and Itsuki to that extent due to Eugeo's influence, it's not going to happen in this story. My brain is simply not imaginative enough to create such a drastic storyline change and everything that happens after. Itsuki may have had a troubled past, but he shouldn't have become the massive jerk he was in canon once he was given the power and status of a Hero.
COUNT OF VOTES:
1.) The Princess' victims
Remove Kurumi, Just the Yamai Twins - 10
Replace Kurumi's Weapons - 7
Replace Kurumi with another character - 0
2.) The Mysterious Blacksmith
Tōtōsai - 1
Kaijin - 8
Hephaistos - 8
Brok and Sidri - 5
3.) The Reaction Story of Blue Rose Sword Hero
Yes, start it alongside BRSH - 22
(With Ren) - 3
(Without Ren) - 1
No, finish BRSH first - 7
RESULTS OF POLL:
1.) I apologize for those big time Kurumi fans, but the polls have spoken. The victims will now be the Yamai twins from the anime "Date A Live".
2.) Kaijin(Reincarnated as a Slime) and Hephaistos(Danmachi) tied up at the votes. Since the blacksmith's appearance is still a long way off, I will be redoing this poll. But this time, only these two characters.
3.) Looks like I will be doing some reaction chapters with Ren included in the observing cast.
961 Reviews, 1157 Favorites, 1313 Follows
Agnes, an 18-year-old Rabbit Demi-human, never fully understood what it meant to be a slave.
While she did indeed possess the Slave Crest that marked her as one, her overall treatment hadn't been nearly as bad as it could have been. She had her hardships, of course, being a Demi-human living on Melromarc soil, it was already a given.
Her father died due to a monster attack while her mother followed a few years later due to sickness. With no close relatives nor guardians to take responsibility for her care, Agnes was left at the mercy of the whims of the slave traders who one day passed through her home village. She was quickly whisked away and got sent to the nearest slave tent with many other unfortunate souls who were meant to be sold into the slave market.
But, as much as this terrified the still 10-year-old Agnes, she steeled herself and remained strong. She made a promise to her mother after all, that she will continue to live on. So that was exactly what she did, even if she was a slave.
Fortunately for the young bunny girl, she didn't have to stay in the slave trader's unsanitary confinement for too long. As luck would have it, a nearby lesser noble wished to hire a fresh batch of servants to replace the few that are now beginning to age from their rolls. And seeing that Agnes was still in pretty good condition as opposed to the others, she was quickly taken in to be a scullery maid for that noble's household.
She worked diligently under her master, who was apparently the head of a wine town, for good six years and had been doing quite well for herself all things considered. Although she was a slave, she was still provided with her daily necessities like food, water, clothing, and even a weekly day off like all the other maids that worked under that noble's employ.
And much to everyone's surprise, Agnes blossomed into quite the attractive woman once she hit puberty.
She had pale skin, purple-yellow eyes, light blonde hair that was longer on the left side of her face, and bangs reaching her eyebrows. Two long fluffy ears poked upwards out of the sides of her head with the same color as her hair.
As for the rest of her, she did not disappoint as she also developed a strong athletic figure with a decent-sized bosom. Her assets were regarded as perfectly balanced with the rest of her body while her thighs and leg muscles were noticeably more defined due to her heritage as a Rabbit Demi-human.
She wore the typical, standard issue maid outfit with only a minor modification at her behind to accommodate her tail. And to top it all off, she wore a black headband above her bangs and a hairpin to her left.
All in all, her life really wasn't that bad. She had always figured that things could have been much worse for her if she ended up with a deplorable master. While she wouldn't regard her employer as a kind one, she wouldn't consider him as cruel either. So she could count herself as lucky in that regard.
At least until the former king got ousted...
and the bandit raids began...
"Aaaggh!!!"
"Ouuggh!!!"
"Aaaggh!!!"
"Thud!" "Crunk!!!" "Bonk!!!"
Three low-tier thugs groaned in pain as they got sent flying out of the door for a good few meters before sliding across the dirt unconscious. Taken out by Agnes with a powerful roundhouse kick to the face as she and a few of her fellow slaves fought to the best of their abilities.
While the human inhabitants of the town evacuated to their respective bunkers, (underground shelters that were originally built for the Waves in order to hold out until the army arrived) Agnes and the rest of the Demi-human servants were instructed to fight the bandits. More than a few of the other maids broke down in tears as they feared not only for their lives but also for what would happen if they get captured.
They had heard of more than enough horror stories of the fates of any female slave that gets captured by bandits.
Fighting against the bandits directly was also not the best option and more than a bit frightening for them as most of the slaves were Level 1s to Level 5s. They had never held a weapon before in their lives as they worked primarily in the kitchens, while a few tended the livestock, plowed the fields, and harvested the grapes.
With the exemption of Agnes, who reached Level 7 thanks to her secret training regiments during her weekly day-offs, very few of the others even had the minimum strength to defend themselves. But as much as Agnes and the others wanted to flee to save themselves, they couldn't disobey the orders that were left for them by their master. If they ever tried to run, the slave seals would shock them before they could escape and would simply make themselves easier targets for the bandits.
Therefore...
"Listen up!"
unwilling to accept her fate, Agnes rallied her fellow servants as she fought with a blazing ferocity.
"No one gave us instructions on how to handle these bandits! So that means we can do whatever we want as long as we defend this mansion. Everyone, grab whatever substitute weapon that you could find! A knife, a fire pit poker, heck even a frying pan can work! Those with any kind of fighting experience, no matter how small, will go up front with me while the rest of you will focus on defending other parts of the house. Now move it!"
A few were a bit hesitant to act for a moment, but they eventually obeyed and submitted to the young yet strong-willed rabbit girl who has decided to take charge.
"I may be a slave, but I refuse to go down without a fight!" Agnes declared as she did a spinning kick to subdue the last of the first waves of bandits, purposefully ripping away some of her skirts so she can move her legs more freely. Forcing herself to forget about the leering eyefuls that she was probably going to get from the men due to her legs and panties now exposed. A few of her co-workers cringed at the sight but chose to ignore it as it was a necessary evil so Agnes can fight more effectively.
They barricaded all of the mansion's entry points as best as they could, moving nearby furniture in front of doors and windows in order to limit the number of potential breach points that the bandits can come through. They also armed themselves with whatever makeshift weapons that they could get their hands on; things like kitchen knives, cattle whips, and even a few pots and pans were taken in hand so they could use them to defend themselves.
It wasn't long before the rest of the raiders took notice of the local Lord's mansion and decided to target it first in search of loot and anything else of value.
So there Agnes stood, at the forefront with roughly 20 other servants in position throughout the house. The rabbit woman tensed and widened her legs as she stood in a fighting stance. A few of the younger slaves couldn't help but whimper as the voices of the bandits surrounding the mansion demanding entry grew.
One minute passed... then two passed... and then three... until they no longer bothered to keep track of the time as they all just focused on sensing the intruders for each passing second.
Unfortunately for them, as the bandits began to lose patience, so too did they begin to use more forceful means of entry.
The bandits at the front door found the mansion's pile of still unchopped logs and started using one of them as a battering ram. The sneakier ones who were either tall or were cooperative enough, gave one of the bandits a boost on their shoulders so they could reach the higher windows for forced entry.
A window at the back – one that was not properly obstructed by the maids due to them running out of furniture to barricade it with, was the first to be breached. A bandit broke the glass and tried to climb in but was fortunately stopped by the maid that was guarding it. Screaming in panic, the young woman swung a frying pan right at the intruder's face. The attack barely did any damage to the felon, but the blow was still enough for the man to lose his grip and fall to the ground. Although, another one soon took the first bandit's place in attempting the window.
While some of the raiders were occupied with that, those at the front were now starting to see some progress. The mansion's front door began to buckle as the wooden planks that made up the door started to give way under the constant pressure of the bandits' makeshift battering ram. The situation soon turned into a strange "push-of-war" as Agnes and the other servants pushed against the barricaded door to keep the raiders from breaking in.
Unfortunately for them, their battle of strength didn't last for long as the level difference between the two sides was just too much for one side to compete against the other. With another mighty charge of the wooden battering ram, the bandits were successfully able to break in.
From this point onward, the situation at the front door devolved into complete chaos as the few fighters among the servants fought against the bandits with everything they had.
But none of them more so than Agnes...
The young rabbit woman jumped over a pair of attacking bandits, flipping in mid-air to gather momentum, before slamming her two feet square at the temples of the confused attackers. Successfully knocking the two raiders unconscious.
Agnes landed with surprising grace before sprinting forward to another incoming enemy. Taking advantage of her shorter stature, she slid underneath the third bandit's legs and slammed her fist onto his nether regions as she slid past. The man collapsed into a groaning heap as he held his injured manhood in pain.
A fourth bandit came around and tried to do a sneak attack as he rushed towards Agnes from behind, but unfortunately for him, her sensitive rabbit ears picked up on his approach. She jumped over the downed man, grabbed onto the fourth bandit's neck with her legs, before twisting her body in mid-air and leg tossed the man into the nearest wall. Hard! The man slid back down with a dazed groan as he passed out.
Not wasting a second, Agnes quickly changed targets as she went for another bandit that seemed to be overpowering one of her companions. Catching her fifth bandit unawares, she swiftly knocked the distracted raider with a powerful kick at the back of the head.
The woman's rabbit ears perked up in high alert as another ambush approached her from behind, this time by two bandits that seemed to be more in sync judging by their footsteps with each other.
Agnes then rushed for the nearest of the two, slinking her posture down as she went for the legs. She then swiped her leg into a sliding kick and tripped the guard onto his back before lounging over for the other one. Bracing her right foot on the taller man's leg, she smacked her left knee right at his chin, knocking the man down to the floor.
She swiftly turned to her eighth bandit as the man charged at her with a dagger in hand. Agnes felt slightly unnerved when she saw this, but she quickly regained her composure as she noticed how sloppy the bandit's stance was. Meaning that the felon was no master and had next to no skill in wielding his blade. The long-eared woman was quickly proven right as she was able to evade the man's slashes with relative ease.
Eventually, the bandit in question got aggravated and unintentionally overextended one of his slashes, giving Agnes the perfect opportunity to strike. By kicking the dagger at just the right moment, Agnes was able to fling it up high into the air before she slammed her other foot square on the man's throat, dazing him in the process. Taking advantage of this rare pause in mid-battle, Agnes grabbed the descending blade and used its pommel to strike at the back of the eighth bandit's head, rendering him unconscious.
Now finding herself with an actual weapon, albeit one that she had no idea how to wield properly, Agnes decided to simply hang on to it as it just might prove to be useful. She then went for her ninth bandit of this evening and the entire cycle of battle repeated itself all over again.
Unfortunately...
although Agnes and her companions gave a pretty good fight...
it eventually became apparent that the attackers are steadily gaining ground.
"Well now! Isn't this quite interesting..?"
Finding their valiant efforts to be amusing, a larger and more muscular member of the band of raiders decided to step forward to face Agnes. His voice alone already hinted to everyone in earshot of what kind of individual the speaker is, Agnes span round to face the said speaker.
"You've been waving that delicious ass of yours for a good portion of this evening you know. I've been watching you strut around, fighting against my comrades with those surprisingly fine legs of yours. But I think it's time for us to put them to much better use... if you catch my drift, hehehe..."
He was either the leader of their group or simply higher ranked in the hypothetical bandit hierarchy, he somewhat stood out among his peers. He wore baggy stone-washed pants, bands on his wrists, and a wolf pelt on his right hip. He also chose to be shirtless as Agnes had a clear view of his chiseled torso and his broad shoulders that complemented his muscular biceps.
As much as Agnes didn't want to admit, he looked strong and quite fine in the physical department, if only he wasn't a bandit and wasn't sporting a disgustingly perverted look to her more exposed legs and undergarments. Mentally preparing herself for the biggest challenge of her life, Agnes took on her signature stance while holding her weapon (the dagger she swiped earlier) in a reverse grip.
But before Agnes could even make a move,
"GLUURCKK!!"
The Boss bandit took one confident step towards her before quick as a flash landed a powerful punch directly into the rabbit woman's solar plexus. The blonde collapsed to her knees in a fit of coughing and gasping desperately for air. The blow came as such an utter surprise that it expelled all of the air from her lungs!
This single decisive act really did a number on the other servant's morale. Some of the maids who were close enough to witness this got distracted and were promptly subdued to the ground by their respective opponents.
"The hell?!" Agnes hissed in-between pants as she struggled to get back up and raised the dagger that she held as she tried to make herself to be as intimidating as possible. Something that she, unfortunately, failed miserably as Agnes could barely keep herself steady and on her feet due to the pain.
Seeing this, the Boss bandit and a few of his companions could only snigger in amusement as they leered over the rabbit woman's futile efforts to fight back.
And now that they got the chance to observe Agnes properly, their thoughts quickly shifted to the perverted kind. The Boss bandit paid very close attention to Agnes' hourglass figure, her well-proportioned breast, her magnificently toned thighs, and her glossy blonde bangs framing her beautiful oval country-girl face.
Agnes bristled and growled at the unwanted looks, but there was nothing she could do about that now. All she could do was try to regain her bearings.
Keyword "try"...
"Nghhh-gllh?!"
as the Boss bandit's large hand shot forward with surprising speed and wrapped it around Agnes's throat, lifting her high into the air and displaying an above-average level of strength with ease. She was taken completely by surprise that she even dropped the dagger that she was holding on to.
Agnes dangled helplessly in the Boss bandit's grasp as her impressive leg strength is rendered useless. With her legs being unable to reach her captor, she was a sitting duck! Or a rabbit in this case!
Her fingers scratched in vain at the Boss bandit's wrist, they looked childlike compared to his larger palms as he almost encircled the rabbit woman's neck.
As Agnes continued to struggle but failed to break free, the Boss bandit gave an appreciative eyeful of the glistening porcelain expanse of the rabbit woman's legs and buttocks. Her subtle abs tensed and her muscular thighs flexed reflexively as her captor curled his fingers into a fist and began to repeatability punch her in the stomach.
"Aaagghhh!!!"
"Uunngghh!!!"
"Gluurrkk!!!"
The Boss bandit used his free hand to repeatability punish Agnes, slamming his fist into any vulnerable part of the rabbit's torso that he could find with excruciating right hooks. The perverted felon targeted her kidneys, her intestines, and her spleen with ruthless efficiency, making sure to deny the blonde woman a moment of respite. Every few punches, the man would land one hard uppercut onto Agnes's bladder, making her squirm and her thighs tremble.
Her groans and her yelps of pain was the only thing that could escape from Agnes' mouth as she was now struggling to stay conscious. Her sizable breasts jiggled with each impact as droplets of sweat started to accumulate over her body.
Agnes had always hated showing signs of weakness to anyone, especially against perverted and despicable men like these. However, the power of the Boss bandit's fist pounding into her torso at an exhausting pace felt like hard lumps of iron pulverizing the maiden's belly. It's just too much for her to take.
It wasn't until Agnes seemed to have finally given up her struggles that the Boss bandit stopped his assault. His shameless eyes traced the woman's exposed smooth skin and desired for more.
"Looks like we know who we're going to break first huh boys?!"
" " "YEAH!!!" " "
With the band of raiders in full agreement, the leader began to stroke Agnes' beautifully sculpted legs before settling on her buttocks. And to add insult to injury he even went out of his way to give her rabbit tail a big painful squeeze.
"Ungh! Don't touch me, you bastard!" Agnes screamed in protest as the Boss bandit molested her firm yet soft amazonian body.
His fingers traced up the woman's limber abdomen before grabbing the already tattered maid uniform that she was wearing with a tight grip.
"I don't think you'll be needing this anymore!"
Agnes immediately realized what the man was about to do, and understandably freaked out.
"N-no!"
The Boss bandit paid no mind to his victim's pleas as he mercilessly pulled his fist, ruining her uniform even more. Leaving Agnes with nothing but a few tattered fabric, her breast bandages, and her panties to preserve her modesty.
In one swift move, the bandit leader slammed Agnes' 5'5'' figure down onto the floor.
"UUUNNNNNGGHHH!!", Agnes cried out in anguish as the Boss bandit drove her body into the pavement, almost knocking her out cold with a back-breaking slam.
Her vision blurred, her memory hazed, and stars exploded behind her eyes. She felt her stomach sink as she trembled weakly on the floor. The Boss bandit, along with a few of his crew who weren't busy holding down their victims, towered over Agnes as they admired her bandage concealed breast that was also being soaked by perspiration.
They were almost mesmerized by the haggard rise and fall of Agnes' sizable rack, the blonde woman gasping for breath due to the one-sided beat down that she had received.
"Grab her boys!"
"Ahhh!" Agnes yelped when the leader, in a sadistic effort to torture her even more, gave the order to his minions.
Agnes did her best to resist the bandits that rushed at her, but it was simply no use as she was already gravely weakened. The bandits wasted no time in grabbing her by her arms and legs and pinning her down to the ground. The Boss bandit picked up the dagger that she dropped and began to excruciatingly cut her breast bandages one strap at a time.
At this point, as each strap of bandage falls away and reveals more of her goodies underneath, Agnes could do nothing but look away and start to cry.
It was just so unfair!
This world is so unfair!
She never really wanted anything grand in her life. Just a roof over her head... some food on the table... perhaps a few luxuries every now and then... heck, she might get lucky and find a man that she'd be willing to give her heart, body, and soul to...
but...
even that is asking too much...
All because she's a Demi-human slave.
Agnes tried her best to hold in the tears prickling her eyes, but her efforts failed her. She felt helpless and despair in her current situation, her body trembled as it was now coming back to her, and about to experience shame and humiliation.
But, just as the Boss bandit was about to remove the last piece of fabric that's preserving Agnes' dignity...
(*Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink!*)
a pair of needle-like daggers zipped around and across the room, entangling itself with most of the bandits in a web of chains.
And with a mighty tug, the wielder of the chained daggers flung the pieces of human filth off their feet and they were forcibly pulled away from the exposed Agnes and the subdued servants. The bandits were unceremoniously dropped, skidding across the ground as they soon heard the familiar tapping of a woman's high heels and the clinking of chains.
"Now then...~" spoke the new arrival as she revealed herself in the dim moonlight, an enraged yet alluring voice escaping her lips.
Both sides of the conflict couldn't help but shiver in fear, more so on the bandit's side, as they all got a good look at the new arrival. A woman of tall stature, light magenta hair that almost reached her ankles, pink eyes, a very seductive face and body that perfectly matches with her dark choice of clothes. They also noticed signs of her Demi-human heritage as a few patches of snake scales surrounded her face and a long and slender purple snake tail from her behind.
"seeing that you boys already had your fun...~"
The snake of a woman's smile is both arousing and terrifying, especially when her pupils turned into angry slits and her fangs extended to form a more toothy grin. Anna practically hissed as she sunk down on her preferred fighting stance and partially kneeled on all fours.
"Are you ready to face the consequences~?" Anna asked in a terrifying tone.
The bandit leader tried to get the chain off of him but was unable to do so. The other bandits that were caught in her chains were also unable to free themselves.
"Wh- what are you idiots all waiting for?! Get her!" He shouted at the lackeys that hadn't been caught up in Anna's chains.
The unbound bandits quickly but clumsily readied their weapons to charge at who they thought was just another plaything with a trick behind her sleave. They had the strength in numbers, after all.
Boy were they in for a nasty surprise.
Anna's smile turned into a look of utter rage as soon as the bandits jumped at her.
"You just blew your last chance to run – and now, you scumbags are in for a world of hurt!" She said as she unleashed her onslaught.
A few minutes ago...
Taking advantage of Arthur's speedy mode of travel once again, Eugeo and his party (where I will now refer Eugeo as Kirito and Kirin as Yuuki) arrived at their destination to find that a bandit raid was already in progress.
"Do you think we could interrogate one of these bandits into telling us about the revolutionaries?" Kirito asked in suggestion as he pulled the Legendary Sword from his sheath. Said blade quickly vanished from view as Alice automatically morphed herself into the [Illusionary Sword] , activating its Exclusive Ability {Invisible Air}.
"We could..." Anna agreed with Kirito's suggestion but also added her input as she also prepared her twin chained needles, "though I think it's best that we question the leader of this raid instead of just asking a random grunt."
"I approve of that idea." Yuuki nodded in agreement as she unsheathed her blade, "Mother has always thought me that going for the head of a group almost guarantees both a swift victory and a well of information."
"That sounds great and all... but what about the rest of the town?" Rifana fretted worriedly as she witnessed several houses being ransacked by the bandits, bringing back painful memories of how her own village was pillaged. Although her own situation could be regarded as worse, as the Castle Knights who were supposed to help them rebuild were the ones who joyfully torn them down.
"I think it's best that Anna take the lead in searching for the bandit leader while the rest of us take care of the lesser thugs," Alice shared her opinion as she gave the town a quick Map Scan. Upon seeing the great number of raiders that were scattered throughout the town, she added, "We may have to be more forceful this time and make sure that not even one of these bandits manages to escape. It's best that we keep the element of surprise until we reach the Northern castle."
Kirito and the girls didn't have any problems with Alice's plan and were just about charge forward when Arthur spoke up.
"Hey! What about me mother?!"
"Oh! I'm so sorry sweetie," Alice apologized sheepishly as she explained herself to their son, "While Anna and Rifana's appearances are somewhat common enough to not attract too much attention, both your Filolial form and Human form are just too recognizable for us to risk you joining us in the fight. So unless you can..."
Alice wasn't able to finish her sentence as she and the others watched how Arthur suddenly disappeared in a plume of smoke. And much to their surprise, once the smoke dissipated, the group saw that Arthur had regressed back into his more normal Filolial form.
"What about now mother? Father?" Arthur asked in hopeful eagerness as he didn't want to be left out of the action, "Can I join the fighting now too? Can I?"
" "Uhh... well..." " both young parents, along with Yuuki, Anna, and Rifana, were very surprised that Arthur had the ability to do this all along.
"I guess we no longer have to worry about Arthur being recognized, huh Alice."
"I guess we don't," Alice replied to Eugeo before focusing on her adopted son.
"Alright, you can come with us. But if it's possible, see if you can find other filolials in the town's stables and try to recruit them into helping us."
"That's an idea! It would be so much easier to keep any bandits from escaping if we have an army of filolials on our side," Eugeo complemented Alice on her plan before deciding to add, "Although Rifana should also go with Arthur just in case he needs help. I'm pretty sure Arthur has grown so used to his Kingly form that he might feel outbalanced in his less evolved form."
" "Understood Master/father." "
And with that, the heroic party soon dispersed. After leaving their carriage safely hidden behind some trees and vegetation, they went with acting on their respective roles on this fight and rescue mission.
Anna dashed forward with extreme speed before doing a running jump high into the air towards the rooftops. Deciding to parkour above the homes in search of the presumably elusive Boss bandit, her long hair fluttering behind her as well as a portion of her clinking chains. She also made sure to subdue the occasional bandit whenever an opportunity presented itself as she went on with her search.
Rifana also wasted no time in perching herself on Arthur's back. The partially disguised filolial quickly scampered off in the direction of where he heard his nearest brethren. All the while barreling over any bandits that were unfortunate enough to be in the way of his path.
The disguised Sword Hero and his partner were quick to jump into the fray as well. But unlike the time when they faced the monsters of the Wave, they also made sure to only use the blunt side of their blades when taking down the bandits.
Yuuki charged forward with a strangely familiar energetic glee as she danced around her opponents with relative ease.
Sliding under the first bandit's slash and going in between the man's legs before delivering a blunt strike behind the man's head. Going for her second bandit, who wielded a sword and a buckler, she delivered an acrobatic kick from below that pushed the small shield out of the way before striking a blunt blow at his waist. The third bandit charged at her with an overhead slash, but he left his chest and torso completely vulnerable, allowing Yuuki to exploit it with a pummel punch at the stomach.
A fourth bandit tried to attack her from behind but was effortlessly parried by Yuuki when she sensed his approach, before delivering a paralyzing blow at one of his thighs. The fifth bandit turned out to be a spearman as he charged forward with a flurry of quick stabs. Yuuki successfully deflected each one though before cutting the spear in half and delivering a spinning kick to the face.
Twisting her foot and adjusting her stance with the grace of a dancer, Yuuki met her sixth bandit with a skillful redirection of his sword before making another blunt strike at the chest. A seventh bandit arrived with a heavy ax but its swing was easily dodged by the quick-footed swordswomen before receiving a strong kick between his legs. This process of deflecting and attacking repeated itself in a deadly dance of blades as she took down her eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, twelfth... until they eventually lost count. Leaving behind a trail of unconscious bodies in her wake.
Kirito couldn't help but feel enamored by the beauty and grace Yuuki displayed with her swordsmanship. Something that was only amplified by the bright and cheerful smile Yuuki had on her face as she seemed to be having a blast during the entire ordeal.
'As amused as I am in seeing you notice Kirin's beauty in battle, I highly suggest that you get back to work.'
'Guh! Right! Of course!'
Shaking his head to get back in the game, Kirito released a weak {Air Burst} skill to get some breathing room before getting right back to his own carnage of non-lethal blows.
So far, none of the bandits were able to put up a decent fight against Kirito. A combination of Kirito being simply higher leveled and more skilled with the sword, along with the fact that the blade that he was wielding is invisible. Leaving the bandits with no visual cues on where Kirito's sword was going to strike next.
Facing several spear and sword wielders, who he had intentionally allowed to surround him, the disguised swordsman took the stance in preparation for a Sword Skill. Lowering himself to the ground, making it look like he's going to pounce, the invisible sword took on a slightly red hue as he activated a seldom-used Sword Skill.
The real Kirito once told him that this particular technique, appropriately named {Serration Wave}, was a relatively weak Sword Skill. A single-hit skill that affects a wide area with a small vacuum wave of wind, meant to send opponents off their feet instead of doing heavy damage. A far cry from all the Skills that he had unlocked from the Legendary Sword up to this point, but for the situation that he was currently in, it was perfect.
"Serration Wave!"
With the power of his higher levels along with the passive boost from the [Illusionary Sword] form, the formerly weak Sword Skill evolved. Turning it into just the right attack that he needed to safely disable these lawbreakers without using excessive force. Using any Weapon Skills against human opponents was out of the question at this point since it would be complete overkill.
As the two leading bandits at the front tried to stab him with their spears, the seemingly weak slash that Kirito released grew into a powerful blast of wind pressure. Successfully disarming a good number of the bandits that surrounded him by sending their weapons up in the air while a few were knocked off their feet. Giving Kirito the perfect opportunity to leap through their ranks, dodging around weapons and taking them down at random intervals just like what Yuuki had been doing.
One of the bandits that managed to hold on to his sword charged at him with reckless abandon. With no skill or finesse whatsoever in his strike, Kirito dodged the swing with ease before sending a crippling blow at his back. The second bandit tried a wild swing with his halberd but ultimately failed when Kirito redirected the heavy blade onto the ground, causing it to get stuck. Before the bandit could pull it free, he was quickly knocked out with a blunt blow to the head.
The third bandit was able to take Kirito slightly by surprise as he came at him with a spiked mace, an unconventional weapon for Underworld standards. Kirito wasn't able to deflect it completely, so one of its spikes managed to scratch his cheek. Ignoring the pain, the disguised Sword Hero made quick work with him with a solid blow to the knee before checking his injury. Fortunately, it was a very shallow scratch and it also missed his ear, so it shouldn't be much of a problem.
A fourth bandit then came with a claymore, aiming for a low swipe for the legs. Sensing the danger, Kirito skillfully dodged the swing with a low jump before slamming his fist at the bandit's armpit. The bandit predictably yelp in pain as he lets go of his weapon before getting grabbed by Kirito at the arm and being swung at another approaching bandit from the side.
The sixth, seventh and eighth bandits tried triple-teaming Kirito with a combined charge but were swiftly sent flying by another {Serration Wave}. The ninth bandit tried to do an overhead strike from the air but ultimately failed as his shouting gave away his position. Kirito easily deflected the airborne attack before delivering another crippling blow to the head. The tenth bandit charged at him in a blind rage, so it came to no surprise that he overextended his stab and was easily subdued by Kirito when he dodged the attack before making a swift strike at the spine. It was by this point that Kirito had also lost count on how many bandits he had taken down. Simply cycling his battle strategies with dodge, deflect, strike and repeat. Along with the occasional {Serration Wave} for good measure whenever he needed some breathing room.
With confusion and fear gradually spreading throughout the bandits' ranks, any form of collaboration and unity between these mercenaries was eventually thrown out the window. Resulting in a few going at it with relentless abandon while some decided to just cut their losses and flee while they still had the chance.
Unfortunately for them though, the chaos of battle soon revealed that they were all as good as defeated by this point. Which is something that was emphasized even more when Arthur made his presence known with his small army of his filolials standing by his side, effectively blocking any escape routes that the bandits might take. And with this being the final nail on the raiders' metaphorical coffin, the remaining bandits were completely decimated by the combined might of Kirito's party and Arthur's army of filolials.
"Are we clear?" Kirito asked Alice as he, Yuuki, Rifana, and Arthur began gathering up the unconscious and injured bandits together. Materializing a good amount of rope so they could be tied up and secured for arrest later on.
"From what I can tell, yes, we are in the clear," Alice confirmed after giving the Map a once over just to be sure before noticing something, "Anna seems to have found and subdued the bandit leader. She looks to be surrounded by a good number of unmoving bandits."
"Really? That's great!" Rifana exclaims as she pulled several unconscious mercenaries together to add to the pile before asking, "Where is she anyway? I thought that, considering Anna's strength, that she would have finished up with the bandit leader early before re-joining us here."
"That is true..." Yuuki mumbled in agreement while Arthur simply nodded.
"Alice?" Kirito wordlessly asked as he looked at his still invisible sword.
"She looks to be in the town lord's mansion." Alice promptly answered.
After spending a few minutes rounding up the mercenaries and tying them up in a tight bundle of ropes. With the exemption of Arthur, who stayed behind to stand guard and keep the normal filolials organized, the disguised Hero party quickly caught up with Anna in the Lord's mansion.
"What the..?"
"This is..."
"a bit..."
"excessive..?"
Kirito, Alice, Rifana, and Yuuki (precisely by that order) reacted when they saw the carnage that Anna left in her wake. Everyone was understandably disturbed by the level of violence that must have occurred that would leave this kind of picture behind.
A few mercenaries were beaten up black and blue while others were reduced to bloody messes on the floor. There were even a few who got plastered to the walls and ceilings as their mangled bodies were indented to the surface that they happened to land on.
On the bright side, after some close observation, Anna was still able to hold herself back. The injuries weren't enough to straight-up kill these bandits but excessive enough that their defeat by Anna's hands must have been incredibly painful. And to make the enraged Anna even scarier than she already is, she was still in the middle of interrogating/torturing the bandit leader while suspending him several feet in the air upside down within her web of chains.
"Is that all?! You better not be lying about this – or give me a reason; I beg you – I'll have these girls castrate you and your cronies! And after what you almost did to them, I bet they'll be eager to do it!" Anna viciously threatened, with the knife she had picked up from the ground approaching where his groin was located at.
"No, no! Please! I'll tell you everything! Please, anything but that!" The no longer intimidating Boss bandit whimpered pathetically.
Kirito was just about to approach Anna, (who coincidentally had her back towards them and was too absorbed in relishing the torture to notice them) to tell her to stop when...
"E-E-Excuse me."
Taking their attention away from Anna's horror session with the Boss bandit, Kirito and the others looked to their left and saw several maids all lined up to meet them. All of them belonged to different races of Demi-human with the ringleader at the front being a blonde rabbit woman. Kirito noticed how said blonde seemed to be wearing a multitude of men's clothes that were several sizes too big for her, as well as them staring at him and Yuuki in awe due to their Hakuko disguises, but decided not to comment on it as to not embarrass her.
"Are you by chance Sir Kirito? Miss Anna's master and future mate that she was talking about?"
"Uhhh... yes, yes I am," Kirito replied with tints of red on both of his cheeks, Yuuki and Rifana looked at him with amusement before shaking the embarrassment off. Gesturing over the appearance of the decimated main hall, Kirito asked, "Anyways, what exactly happened here?"
"Weeeellllll..."
And so, Agnes and the rest of the rescued maids went ahead and recounted to Kirito and his group how things transpired in the mansion.
Telling them how their master, who happens to be the town lord, had given them the absolute order that they must defend his mansion no matter the cost. Thus preventing them from evacuating or fleeing for their safety. This understandably made Kirito and his party quite upset.
Agnes then retold how they placed the entire mansion on lockdown. Sealing off every door and window as best as they can by barricading them with all the furniture that they could find. They also armed themselves with the best makeshift weapons that they could get their hands on, like kitchen knives, fire pokers, and frying pans in preparation for battle.
Kirito nodded in approval as he knew just how effective a makeshift weapon can be in a fight. He remembered how he managed to somewhat hold his own against the Integrity Knight Eldrie back in Underworld despite having nothing but the chains that he had wrapped around his arm.
The group couldn't help but admire and respect the maids when Agnes' recollection reached the part where the maids valiantly fought the raiders. Even after the bandits managed to break through their barricades.
But their admiration soon turned into boiling rage when Agnes begrudgingly admitted about the humiliation that she endured at the hands of the bandit leader. All of a sudden, the carnage that Anna had left behind and the torturous interrogation that she was currently conducting didn't seem so excessive anymore. Everyone could agree that this level of violence is somewhat justifiable.
"I see..." Kirito mumbled as he glanced at Anna, she continued to shout angrily at the Boss bandit, delivering a few more punches to him. The man's face now looked bloody, swollen, and bruised.
"I suppose it should come as no surprise that she went this far. After all, Anna knows fully well what it's like to be humiliated by despicable men."
Agnes' eyes widened upon hearing this.
"I managed to save her just in time," Kirito assured, causing Agnes and the maids to sigh in relief, before adding, "But I guess it's only natural that she'll develop a deep hatred for men like them."
"I can't say I blame her," Yuuki commented.
"Same here," Rifana agreed.
'I think any self-respecting woman would be more than furious towards animals like them,' Alice added as she expressed her disgust.
Just then, Anna gave a blow that knocked the bandit unconscious. He was then carelessly dropped to the ground when Anna unraveled her chains.
Seeing that Anna's business with the Boss bandit was done, Kirito decided that it was time to let his presence be known.
"Uhhh... Anna," Kirito called out sheepishly as he approached Anna by himself, "Have you gotten what we needed?"
"Eeeep!" Anna let out an uncharacteristic squeak as she robotically swiveled her head. Seeing that her master and mate was standing behind her, and had most likely witnessed her savage side, it terrified her. Having known her master to be a kind soul, Anna was sure he wouldn't approve of such behavior.
"M-Master?! U-Umm, y-you see..." Anna stuttered in a panic-fueled fluster. Trying to think of an acceptable excuse on why she went overboard, flailing her arms around while doing so.
While this is going on, Kirito just stood there and couldn't help but see this flustered side of Anna to be extremely cute. It reminded him of those cute and peaceful moments that his best friend once shared with Ronie and Tiese.
"Who knew Anna had this adorable side to her? She always seemed so mature and dignified when she speaks and flirts with you."
"I know…"
Seeing that Anna needed some kind of assurance, Kirito steps into the Serpentine's personal space and decided to take a page out of his best friend's book. Something that he noticed the original Kirito would do whenever his sword apprentice Ronie needed encouragement.
"Huh..! Mmmmm~"
Kirito reached out and gave Anna a head rub, calming her down from her fluster-induced panic. Reducing the once strong and vicious warrior of a woman, into something like a submissive puppy that simply wished to please her master. This caused Kirito to be a bit concerned, seeing just how much power he had over Anna, and that wasn't even including the Slave crest.
Kirito promptly removed his hand, much to Anna's dismay, but she quickly recovered her normal seductive composure just as Yuuki and Rifana joined them along with Agnes and the maids.
"So... putting what you did to that man aside, what were you able to gather from him, Anna?" Kirito asked with a more serious tone.
"Nothing good," Anna, replied in great concern as she explained to everyone what she managed to squeeze out of the Boss bandit.
Telling everyone how the new king of the North doesn't seem to have the skills necessary to rule over a country. Their motives in starting the whole revolution in the first place were certainly less than pure as they used quite a lot of dirty dealings to get what they wanted. Furthermore, they had also employed a large number of bandits and outlaws to join their ranks to keep the people from resisting his rule.
"Fortunately, this was only their first large-scale raid on this village. The early ones that we heard about from the last town were more like testing the waters, to see how the people would react to an attack, which they find it lacking," Anna added.
"This explains why there weren't any town guards outside that could have at least tried to repel the bandits. This town doesn't have any organized defenses, to begin with," Kirito pondered in thought.
"But why would this town lack any kind of manpower to defend it?" Yuuki asked out loud.
"Yes, even my hometown – that got attacked by the Wave, no less – still had some measure of protection from the men who survived the disaster," Rifana commented.
Kirito and his party all looked at Agnes and the maids for answers, Agnes being more than willing to share, "This town has become very complacent with its safety partially because of the previous king. The previous king had quite the taste for wine, making this place one of the more protected places in this kingdom thanks to the soldiers that used to patrol it in regular intervals. And with how very few monsters ever come around here, the people have grown lax."
"Well... I guess that makes sense."
'That's true... that's what happened to our people back home. The Taboo Index of the Axiom Church caused the people to stagnate.'
Kirito and Alice thought between themselves before focusing on the immediate problem that needs fixing. Looking at Agnes and her entourage, Kirito offered them a choice that they could never refuse.
"Do you wish to be free?"
"But... how? We're slaves under a town lord's employ. Hakuko's might have some semblance of power in the country Siltvelt; but here, that influence means nothing."
"Let's just say I'm someone with friends in high places," Kirito said with an assuring smile before grabbing the invisible blade attached to his hip, "along with the power necessary to back up my words and leave it at that."
Agnes and her fellow maids could only stare at the confident Hakuko. Completely clueless on how Kirito was going to keep those seemingly impossible promises.
I plan to upload my latest fanfic next which is titled "BRSH: Canon Cast Reactions" before January ends.
The title speaks for itself, it's basically a Reaction fanfic where a selected few characters from Sword Art Online and Rising of the Shield Hero will be watching and reacting over Eugeo's journey.
NEW VOTING POLLS:
1.) The voting poll for the mysterious blacksmith that forged Free and Saika ended in a draw. Since his/her appearance is still a long ways away, I decided to redo the poll with just these two. So please vote so we can have a true winner.
- Kaijin (Reincarnated as a Slime)
- Hephaistos (Danmachi)
2.) Which boss monster do you wish Eugeo and his friends to fight against at the next Wave of Siltvelt?
- Screaming Death "Alpha of the Whispering Deaths" (How to Train Your Dragon franchise)
- Golden Wolflord "King of the Riftwolves" (Genshin Impact game)
- Corrupted Spirit of the Forest (The boss monster at the final episode of Danmachi Sword Oratorio)
3.) Where do you wish Anna to have her special night with Eugeo?
- The Inn where Eugeo and Alice had their first time.
- The hotspring in Springvale
- The royal castle of the Northern Territories
4.) In the upcoming Reaction fanfic of Blue Rose Sword Hero, I originally intended for only Asuna and Yui to come from the SAO universe. But thanks to my fellow author "Arementi Revnant", he suggested that I include Knight Alice too.
- Yes, please include Knight Alice
- No, Asuna and Yui are enough
As always, thank you for all the reviews, favorites and follows. I'm open for compatible suggestions and any advice that you readers could give. As for those nasty Reviewers who loves to Insult us authors, please just leave us alone.
Stay safe from the Coronovirus and stay indoors as much as possible!