Within a few mihe vault of the bandits was discovered by Michalis, who immediately reported it to Drabsp;

  The group rushed to the location, but it wasn't a true vault, but rather a medium-sized room funing as a makeshift ste facility.

  ‘Well, what did I expect from bandits?’ Draco thought, surveying the room.

  The room was filled with stacks of Valis, along with various other valuable items, preetals and gems.

  Draco decided to take all the Valis along with the metals and gems, leaving the rest for the city officials to find.

  "What about the rest of the items?" Dimitra asked, notig the remaining objects in the room.

  "We will leave it for the city officials to find ahe prisohat still want to live," Draco replied.

  He uood that the city officials might just loot the remaining items for themselves, but he hoped that there might be a sensible individual among them who would use the moo assist the prisoners who had survived.

  Draco could see the worry in his siblings' eyes, as they had just witnessed aremely dark and disturbing part of the world.

  So part of the reason he decided to do this, was to appease their minds and assure them that they had dohe right thing.

  "Thank you," Dimitra muttered, sensing her brother's iions.

  She khat taking the prisoners with them would be a substantial burden.

  The prisoners were in a terrible state, with their limbs cut off, covered in filth, aally broken, resembling lifeless dolls.

  It was not something the siblings could fix, so it was best to leave them in the hands of the port city officials.

  "It's okay, you're just a kind girl," Draco replied, gently patting Dimitra's head and giving her a behind-the-ear rub.

  Dimitra wagged her tail in te, humming as she carried the st of the valuables they were to take back to the carriage.

  Draco closed the room and covered it with a stapty boxes before returning to the carriage.

  The bandits' bodies were still strewn around, but Draco didn't bother ing it up, as that was the responsibility of the city officials.

  "Hiyaa!" Draco yelled, urging the horses forward towards the port city.

  He wao arrive at the city before plete darkness, report to the city's soldiers, and tiheir journey.

  As he directed the horses, a sudden thought crossed Draind.

  ‘With the amount of loot the bandits had, they must have been doing this for a long time. The question is, why hasn't the city done anything about them?’ Draco pondered.

  It seemed impossible that the city officials would remain unaware of the bandits' activities, which led Draco to a troubling clusion.

  ‘It is possible that the bandits are being backed by someorong, or even worse, by the mayor of the city,’ he pieced together.

  ‘Shit, if that's the case, we might be framed as criminals by rep to the city officials. In that case, we shoulder the city. It would be best finding another route,’ Draco surmised.

  "Whoa," Draco said, suddenly stopping the horses iracks.

  "Everyone, get off the carriage," he instructed his siblings.

  Then he began iing each of their clothing and the carriage.

  "What's wrong, Draii?" Nikoos asked, ed.

  Draind was rag with the implications of his discovery.

  If the bandits were indeed backed by someone powerful, they could be in grave danger.

  He o ehe safety of his siblings.

  Thinking back at the whole sario, the bandits were awfully weak.

  Even more weird was that, they were situated close to a port city, a pce where trade was usually the highest.

  Passing merts apanied by meraries or escorts should have lo with the situation.

  ‘Is it possibly a rger anization’ Draco thought.

  "We o be cautious," Draco said, his tone serious.

  "The bandits we just dealt with might have been part of a rger anization, and we could be in trouble if we tinue our journey as pnned." he expined.

  Dimitra and the others listened ily, their eyes widening with worry.

  Draco expined his suspis, about the possibility of the bandits being backed by someone iial, and the risk of being framed as criminals.

  "We o be extra vigint from now on," Draco tinued.

  "We'll take a different route to Orario, ohat's less traveled, and keep a low profile. As for the prisoners we left behind, they will likely be found by tomorrow when someone else passes the area, so don’t worry" he expined.

  The siblings nodded in agreement, trusting in Draco's judgment.

  They kheir brother was always looking out for their best is, and they were willing to follow his lead.

  “We will o erase traces of our involvement” Draco said.

  Then he urged everyoo ge their bloody clothing so he would burn them.

  After that was done, he took out a map and quickly found a brang road, leading to the nd route he initially pnned.

  Going to another port city might have been another option but thinking more clearly about things, it wasn’t going to work.

  They had many valuable items which would look extremely suspicious after their luggage was ied.

  Even more suspicious was that they were kids, so he could already imagihe amount of trouble that would bring.

  There was no way that they wouldn’t be searched before entering any nearby city and even if they mao enter a city another iion would be do the port.

  He didn’t know how far ahe influence of the anization behind the bandits reached, so he wasn’t going to risk it.

  As the group settled bato the carriage, Draco took a deep breath, his mind rag with tingens and strategies to eheir safe passage to Orario.

  “We will travel through the night on the first pnned route” Dranounced.

  With that said, he redirected the horse toward a brang path away from the port city.

  ………………………………………………………………………………………………..

  The day…….

  The sun had begun to dip below the horizon, casting long shadows across the rugged terrain surrounding the port city.

  Sergeant Alistair and his patrol of Guardsmen marched steadily toward the bandit encampment, their boots g on the snow cravel path.

  This was a routine excursion for them - colleg the monthly "tribute" due to the city's corrupt mayor.

  The mayor had long ago struck a deal with a major bandit , allowing them to operate freely in exge for a hefty cut of their spoils.

  Alistair and his measked with ensuring this arra remained iurning a blio the bandits' activities iurn for their share.

  As the dipidated encampment came into view, Alistair raised a fist, signaling his men to halt.

  "Alright, you know the drill," he barked.

  "Keep your ons ready but don't draw unless provoked. I'll do the talking." he said.

  The Guardsmen fanned out, sing the perimeter warily.

  Alistair strode up to the front main gate and bellowed, "Hail the camp! We've e to collect our tribute!"

  Sileno response.

  Alistair's brow furrowed. "That's odd. Where's Vargus? He's usually the first o to greet us." He gestured to one of his men.

  "You, take a squad and iigate. I don't like the look of this." he instructed.

  The man and three uardsmen cautiously approached the gate, ons at the ready.

  Alistair watched tensely as they disappeared inside.

  Moments ter, the man came running back out, his face pale.

  "Sir! Something's wrong - the camp is in disarray, and all the bandits are dead!" he reported, gasping for breath.

  Alistair's eyes widened. "Dead? What happened?" he asked.

  "I..I'm not sure, sir. It looks like they were attacked - brutally. There are bodies everywhere, and the prisoners..." The guardsman shuddered.

  "You'll o see for yourself." he said.

  Exging a worried gh his men, Alistair hurried into the encampment, his boots g on the snow.

  The se that greeted him was one of utter age.

  Bandits y strewn about, their limbs twisted at unnatural aheir faces frozen in expressions of terror.

  But it was the prisohat truly horrified Alistair.

  Dozens of them were lined up in the tral courtyard, their hands a mutited.

  Many were still alive, their bnk eyes staring vatly, drool dribbling down their s.

  "Merciful gods..." Alistair breathed, his stomach ing.

  He turo his men, who looked equally shaken.

  "Fan out and search the camp. Find any survivors and put them out of their misery. Then gather up whatever and valuables you - we o report back to the mayor." he instructed.

  The Guardsmen hurried to carry out their grim task, their boots g on the snow as they moved through the age.

  Alistair k by one of the prisoners, a faint glimmer nition in the man's eyes.

  "What happened here?" Alistair asked softly, but the man only whimpered in respoears streaking down his face, his mind clearly broken.

  Shaking his head, Alistair rose, stabbed the man in the heart and tinued his search, his boots leaving prints in the blood-stained snow fkes.

  As he rounded a er, he spotted a lone figure dragging a mutited body.

  "Hold it right there!" Alistair barked, drawing his sword.

  "By order of the mayor, you are under arrest!" he said.

  The figure froze, then slowly stood upright, their hands raised.

  Alistair's eyes widened as he reized the disheveled, wild-eyed young woman standing before him.

  "Evelyn?" he breathed, his sword wavering.

  "What in the seven hells are you doing here?" he questioned.

  Evelyn's looked him in the eye, her gaze filled with unbridled hate.

  "As you see, taking back what’s left of my husband." she replied.

  Alistair felt a chill run down his spine. "You...did you do this? And why? These men were uhe mayor's prote!" he asked.

  Evelyn's eyes narrowed. "Prote? Is that what you call it? They mutited my husband and killed him along with a lot of other i people, also leaving my children to starve! The mayor turned a blind eye, and you..." She pointed an accusatory fi Alistair.

  "You were plicit in their crimes!" she yelled with hate.

  Alistair opened his mouth to respond, but the words died on his lips.

  He knew she was right - he and his men had willfully ighe bandits' atrocities, more ed with maintaining their own position than serving justice.

  "I...I'm sorry, Evelyn," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

  "But I 't let you go. You will have to e with me and expin what happened here." he threatened.

  He could easily tell by looking more closely that she wasn’t capable of such a feat.

  She was also likely the one whht all the prisoner from within the encampment.

  Evelyn's expression hardened upon hearing him.

  "Then you leave me no choice." She said, drawing a dagger from her belt, her eyes burning with a cold fury.

  Alistair braced himself, his sword raised, but in his heart, he knew he could n himself to strike down the woman he had once loved.

  As Evelyn charged forward, he squeezed his his sword tightly, while stu a dilemma.

  Stab !!

  The sound of a stab echoed within his ears, and Alistair stood shook on what he had just witnessed.

  His sword had pierced Evelyn in the chest.

  “A..ah" he wao speak but the words couldn’t e out.

  Evelyn grabbed his trembling hands and stared directly into his eyes, almost as if looking into the depths of his soul.

  “I hope that all you evil men will burn in hell” she whispered, her weight pulling the sword along as she dropped to the ground.

  Alistair stood there frozen watg her bleed out until her body y lifeless on the snow cround.