The battle didn't last long, merely three minutes and in that short amount of time, the Joker humiliated the mage in every sense of the word. He didn't directly hit her but he made her feel totally powerless and helpless. She willingly gave up but refused to apologize, instead, cursing him and calling him a 'prick'.

Since no missions mentioned a church, the trio had to go around and ask the townspeople about any suspicious place. Upon further inquiry, they came to know why there wasn't a mention of a church.

Apparently, there's a low-ranked mission about a bandit camp a few kilometers South of White Raven. They built a base around an abandoned church and have been living there for months.

Many low-ranked adventures tried clearing that place but none of them returned. The mission was raised from C to B and apparently, there's a group of adventurers that are going to raid that place two days from now on.

Unfortunately, time was pressing and Arthur wanted to go back as soon as possible so he isn't going to wait for two whole days just to join another group.

The receptionist lady suggested that they go with a group for safety purposes but neither of the three wanted to go with weak strangers. Although they're SS-ranked adventurers, she warned them not to be full of themselves lest they get killed. After all, it's a bandit camp and there must be hundreds of them, excluding their leader, who's apparently an ex (A+)-ranked adventurer.

Still, it's not like any of the three cared, the Joker just defeat an S-ranked mage so easily so a measly bandit group shouldn't cause a problem. What's more dangerous, probably, is what's hiding in that church.

The card clearly showed an ancient church and it's their clue in this unfamiliar world. Individually, they were all strong, so for something or someone to summon them here, it must be to accomplish something absurdly difficult if not impossible.

"This better be worthwhile."-Arthur

"Hahaha don't worry, my cards are never wrong."

"Let's go to the weapon shop, I need a sword."-Leiu

"Come to think of it, I'm in need of a weapon too."

The Joker cheekily grinned at them while boasting:

"Unlike you two, my cards are all I need~~~"

…

Arthur bought a katana-like blade and Leiu bought a huge greatsword and casually put it on his back. As for paying, the Joker tricked the poor cashier yet again.

The trio didn't remain there for too long, they bought some rations to last them a few days and started heading South. The Joker some of his weird magic to store all the food and water in his cards.

With his hands behind his head and leisurely walking next to the other two, the Magician glanced at their two blades and asked

"So both of you are sword users? Interesting. Wanna fight?"

"It's not the time or place for that."

Arthur tacitly refused but Leiu kept staring at the Joker, clearly wanting to battle. Stuck between these two battle-hungry lunatics, Arthur sighed and explained:

"Look, where's here to investigate the church. You two can fight when we figure out what's going on."

They continued heading South and were met with no danger. There were some dangerous beasts such as bears or tigers but they avoided them to not waste any energy.

Unlike outside, their bodies are of mortals which means they feel hunger and fatigue so there's no need for pointless battles. After a few hours, the trio arrived near the bandit's base.

They started seeing some dirty-looking man with shabby armor patrolling the area. It's inconvenient to sneak like this, with the absence of his skills and or racial abilities, which allowed him to possess other bodies but Arthur had to make do what he had now.

Fortunately, the three were experts and moved with soundless steps, totally used to sneaking around. This made things easier as no one had to lecture the other or complain.

All the patrols they met were disposed of by the Joker, who threw his card and hit their forehead. The card easily slashed their skin and penetrated their skull, killing them on the spot.

It was an efficient and silent method which attract no attention whatsoever.

Very soon, they appeared in front of a 2-meter tall wooden wall which is neither sturdy nor thick. The Joker cut a hole through the wood using his card and entered the base along with the two.

They could see a big and dusty church that was half-destroyed, just like yesterday's picture depicted. The Joker killed 9 bandits but the place was still full of those mean-looking bastards.

As they hid behind a big boulder, the three discussed their plans.

"So… quiet or loud?"-Joker

"It's tiring to stealthily kill them one by one."-Leiu

"Right, we should kill them all then properly investigate. They aren't a threat to us."-Arthur

As they agreed on doing the same thing, the trio wasted no time and immediately got to action.

Their sudden appearance startled the busy bandits, which were either dozing off or doing some labor work. When three armed strangers appeared inside of their base and started slaughtering them left and right, the bandit panicked and sounded the alarm.

Unfortunately, the killing speed of the three was just too fast. Though they didn't have their skills, both Leiu and Arthur were still physically strong and are very good at using their blades.

Arthur's slashes were precise and swift, as for Leiu, he was an absolute monster. His greatsword, which has an incredibly heavy weight, was held by one hand.

He was waved his hand around, killing two or three bandits at the same time and causing slight tremors. If Arthur's style is silent and deadly, Leiu's is aggressive and overbearing. As for the Joker, he was going around and dismembering the bandits using his card.

At times, he would throw his cards and kill the far away archers and then he would leap at someone and start throwing punches and kicks. He seemed adept in weaponless close-range combat, so much that his movement seemed natural and too fast for the naked eye to grasp.

In ten minutes, all 135 bandits, including their leader, were killed. The ground was dyed red with their blood yet the three didn't bat an eye at such a sight.

"Hahahaha it's the first time I've met merciless bastards like me! Hahahahah"

The Trickster joked around while patting Leiu's back. The youth shifted his gaze to the eerie and silent church. Apparently, the bandits camped around the church and didn't enter it, for some reason. Even the leader was in a big tent at the center, which was strange since fortifying the church is better than mere tents.

"Strange…"

As the three inspected the church and their surroundings, they noticed something abnormal and out of place. Whether it's near the wooden walls or at the center, there's was an over-abundance of Mana crystals. Bandits prefer money, gold coins, not some Mana Crystal which will do them no good.

Staring at the crystals, Arthur had a very bad premonition.

"I think I know what we'll find."

He voiced his thoughts while thinking of the past, about that incident in the emperor's palace. He gazed at the other two and from the looks on their faces, they were aware of something too.

"It's those fuckers again!"

The Joker loudly cursed while spitting on the ground. As for Leiu, he clenched the hand that was holding the greatsword.

"Cthulhu. Is that why we were sent here?"-Leiu

"You're talking about those ugly looking monsters with many arms right? They're called Cthulhu?"

Arthur nodded his head and explained:

"Yes, they're abominations that shouldn't exist. Last time I met them, they were storing large quantities of those Mana Crystals though I didn't get to know their use."

"We're still not sure if it's them or not but the probability is high."-Leiu

Silence dominated the atmosphere for a minute or so before Leiu talked again:

"We should prepare ourselves. With our current strength, fighting them isn't going to be a walk in the park. Are you sure you want to enter?"

The Joker excitedly smashed his fists together and said

"I'm always up for a thrilling challenge!"

The two stared at the silent Arthur, who was pondering about something. He glanced at the closed door then at the two of them before speaking:

"We're in this together. Better finish it till the end."

The Trickster laughed while the youth nodded his head. The three walked toward the destroyed church and pushed the dusty door, which creaked.

For a normal door, it seemed heavy and a bit abnormal but it didn't cause a problem for Leiu, who was the one who pushed it. Their three silhouettes disappeared in the darkness beyond the door, which slammed shut.