Murim Recurve

"Master, there are bandits before us, 30 of them!" One of the servants shouted as the remaining four grabbed their weapons and shields, intending to protect the horses first. As long as they retained their mobility, they wouldn't be surrounded and be placed in a dangerous situation.

The bandits hadn't arrived at their front alone. But, they were also on their back, preventing them from escaping. And, they had timely arrived at a far-off place, revealing their location first.

This was in an effort to scare the passengers by making them feel their front and back were blocked. Typically, the passengers might try to run off into the forest. And, this was exactly what they preferred. After all, they knew the forests quite well and would track the people, capturing them once they had tired themselves by running through the forest terrain.

Typically, this worked. In other cases, the carriage would stop as the people within would try to negotiate or retaliate. Either way, it was their win.

Standing at the front of the group of thirty was a middle-aged bandit, the leader of the group. He was the one who came up with such an elaborate plan, always managing to obtain his prey. Moreover, he didn't always strike in fear the cities would launch a punitive force against them, only taking action occasionally when needed.

This was the reason his bandit group had reached three digits by now, a sizeable force in the wilds.

Upon hearing the shouts from her servants, Re'Bah put down her book, peeking out through the carriage window as she noticed the group of bandits positioned far away to their front. Their carriage hadn't stopped yet, proceeding at the usual speed.

She then turned around, noticing another group converge far away to their back, realising the plan of the bandits, "Fairly smart."

She then replied to the servants, "Continue, don't stop."

Upon hearing her words, the servant that was controlling the horses gulped in fear as she continued to ensure the horses didn't stop. They were all women and had an innate fear towards bandits.

If it were just a small group of bandits, they would be able to kill them easily. But, considering the size of the bandit group, they didn't have the confidence in surviving while protecting the horses from harm, not to mention safeguarding their master.

But, after hearing the words of Re'Bah, the servant made eye contact with the two servants seated behind her, nodding once. They got ready for whatever that might happen next.

The distance between them continued to reduce as they could hear the raucous noises from the bandits to their front.

"Boss, they are all women. All are pretty!"

Hearing the sounds of their discussion, the servants shuddered for a moment, intending to kill themselves in the unlikely case they were defeated. But, considering the casual command from their master, they knew that today wasn't the day they were supposed to die.

And, just as they had expected, a hand stretched out from either side of the carriage window, condensing a sphere of blue radiance, summoning a Balou, the Burkurel Re Clan's Pranic Avatar. Summoned on the left was the Balou of Re'Bah, and summoned on the right was the Balou of Re'Kha.

They had timed it right, only summoning the Pranic Avatar when the carriage had approached close to the group of bandits. On seeing that the carriage intended to just ram them, the bandits snickered, readying ropes tied to stones, intending to throw it and hook the legs of the horses.

This way, the horses will tumble, bringing the carriage down with them. It would make picking off the passengers on it easy after that.

But right at this time, the servant controlling the horses lashed out with a whip, making the horses sprint faster, accelerating the carriage. The sudden change alarmed the bandits for a moment before they noticed the Balou be summoned on either side of the carriage.

Upon seeing that, the bandit boss shouted, "There are Harmonisers within. Scatter through the area, don't let them target you! Attack with projectiles!"

Upon his shout, the bandits no longer stayed as a group and escaped towards the sides, hiding behind the trees. Some of them took up positions, aiming at the carriage with their bows. But, before they could launch them, the Balou on either side sprang into the forest, flattening numerous trees in the process, disrupting the aim of the bandits.

Both simultaneously used their large jaws to clamp upon the stems of a tree each, crushing to sever it before carrying the severed parts. Then, they continued to run using their massive bodies, accompanying the carriage as the canopy of the trees held in their mouths shielded the sides of the horses.

With just one action, they blocked their sides.

And, as the bandits had scattered into the surrounding forests to target their sides, their plans fell. The front was free now, and no matter how many arrows fell, they lost all power by hitting the branches of the trees.

The horses were uninjured, continuing to run as the servants ensured they didn't become flustered. Each Balou reached the nose of Re'Kha in height. And considering their bulky bodies, their every step caused thundering sounds.

Moreover, they were defensive units, barely injured when the arrows landed on them. And, the trees they held protected the entire carriage, from start to end, making the attacks of the bandits useless.

"Dammit, what do we do now, boss?"

"They will escape at this rate."

Hearing the shouts of the bandits, the bandit boss motioned with his hand, telling them to stop attacking as he gazed at the window of the carriage, noticing a pair of eyes within stare right at him, causing him to shiver in fear.

Fear!

It was like a prey gazing at a predator; the bandit boss's tremendous experience outlined this fact clearly. If he attacked any further, they would be annihilated, down to the last men.

"Let's retreat." The bandit boss said to the shock of the bandits. They had thought it would be easy prey since their superior numbers would be able to annihilate even well-guarded caravans.

But, they knew that their boss was wise, a reason they managed to survive for so long as bandits. So, without any questioning, they turned around and fled.

'Who the heck was that? What a monster!' The bandit boss fled as he glanced at his hands, noticing that they were trembling crazily like he was buried in snow.