Chapter 17

Black Dog left the dead enemy chief lying on the ground and led his close subordinates to the two-storey house. "Mount his head on a spike and let them see it," he said.

Sounds of metal clashing and faint yells of battle were still coming from the edges of the camp. There was still some resistance to be eliminated until the whole camp was under control, but Big Mountain's death would seal the matter.

Gasper followed Black Dog along with most of the lieutenants. Yellow Dog had run off to handle the resisting enemies. Black Dog, on the other hand, was now going to check his spoils. It was certain that most of the wealth in the camp would be in Big Mountain's residence.

They walked through the broken door of the house and the bandit lieutenants spread out to search for the anticipated wealth. Black Dog stood in the middle of house, leisurely looking around with a triumphant smile. His left shoulder was still bleeding, but he was taking in the victory without a care.

Gasper pretended to search around with the others as he watched the ecstatic bandit chief. The latter was beaming with fulfillment when the faint yells from outside thickened into loud shouts and shrieks. Black Dog frowned and listened intently, while the lieutenants around him slowed their search and waited in doubt.

Soon, Yellow Dog ran into the house with a pale face. "Chief," he panted. "They . . . they've surrounded us. Everywhere. They're attacking, chief. Too many."

"Calm the fuck down," Black Dog yelled. "Who are they? And how many are there of them?"

"They bear the Viscount's banners," Yellow Dog said, still panting. "They're everywhere. We couldn't count them, but they're more than us. Many more than us."

Black Dog gritted his teeth and looked around. "Go and reinforce the men around the camp," he yelled at his lieutenants. "Form the best defense you can."

The bandit lieutenants complied hurriedly and ran out of the house, leaving only Gasper, Black Dog, and Yellow Dog inside.

Gasper wasn't too surprised. It was one of the scenarios he'd anticipated. He'd expected the Viscount to make use of the opportunity and eliminate the bandits in the east, and he was right. He looked at the back of the bandit chief and wanted to sneer but held it in.

Black Dog was silent for quite a while before taking a deep breath. "So . . . you take me for a fool, huh?"

Gasper felt as if all of the blood in his body froze. A surging fear grabbed his chest as soon as he heard Black Dog's words.

The bandit chief turned around with a furious grin while glaring at Gasper, then he lunged at him with his sword and slashed.

Despite the shock, Gasper had raised his sword once fear had gripped him. It proved to be wise, because he used the raised sword to block Black Dog's ferocious slash. The block was only half successful as the strike pushed him backwards and his back hit the wooden wall.

"You bring me the news of the Viscount's rider," Black Dog laughed. "And I attack Big Mountain's camp. Then the Viscount's men somehow surround us here." The bandit chief pointed his sword at Gasper. "An awful coincidence, don’t you think?"

Yellow Dog who was standing at the side, gaping, finally came out of his stupor as he heard Black Dog's words. He raised his sword and pointed it at Gasper too.

Gasper winced from the pain in his back and balanced himself. He stared back as Black Dog leveled his sword towards him. Then he charged at the bandit chief with a yell.

Black Dog was visibly surprised by Gasper's courage then lunged at him as well. Another clash ensued between the swords and Gasper was pushed back again.

This time, however, he changed his direction and hopped out of a window. This wasn't a battle he could win. Not when he was outmatched in both quality and quantity. He ran away from the house as Black Dog's roar followed him. He hoped that he could lose him among the burned tents and the confused bandits in the camp.

Gasper dashed through the camp with the palisade as his target. He took a few turns to confuse his pursuer, but he could still hear him giving chase. Suddenly, he heard a dense whistling sound from above.

Damn it!

He dived down and grabbed a fallen shield for cover. Then a rain of arrows fell on the camp. Only one arrow hit the shield Gasper had raised over his head, but nothing else came near him. He looked back and saw Black Dog deflecting an arrow then heading in his direction and closing the distance between them in an instant. Gasper stood up holding his sword and preparing for combat.

"You took two strikes from me without losing your sword," Black Dog said. "I never thought that you were a Warrior as well. How much did the Viscount pay you for my head?"

Gasper frowned as he eyed the Sky Warrior warily. "I was never one of you to begin with, you fool."

Black Dog heard the words and his face fumed with a furious red. Gasper could even see a vein bulging on his forehead. "Cursed bastard. I won't let you make it back to your Viscount. Let's die together then."

"You want to kill me?" Gasper smiled, trying to annoy the bandit chief. "Just like Big Mountain wanted to kill you? We both know how that ended, though."

Black Dog gritted his teeth and attacked. He begun with two quick thrusts that Gasper avoided at the expense of some of his balance. The bandit chief followed with a wide sweep that Gasper blocked with all his strength.

Gasper eyed his numb arm then looked at Black Dog's left shoulder. "Your bleeding is getting worse," he said. "Why don't you just surrender. The Viscount might let you live."

"How many times do you think you can fool me, you fucking runt?" Black Dog growled. "I will take your petty life tonight. Don't think that you can change that."

Gasper braced himself as Black Dog lunged at him again. He blocked a slash then avoided another thrust. He tried to counter with a swing of his own, but the bandit chief blocked it easily and struck at him again. Gasper blocked once more as his joints ached. Each strike increased Black Dog's superiority, even though he was injured. In single combat, the disparity between Sky Warriors and Earth Warriors was easy to distinguish. Only a godly swordsman could stand his ground against a superior Warrior. Gasper was just a good swordsman, but he didn't fancy himself a god of the sword. He knew that he had to come up with something to survive. Perhaps he could hold on until the Viscount's men enter the camp and interfere with their combat. If only he had an attribute, he would have had the advantage over the injured opponent. But a Warrior attribute was just a distant dream for him. He gritted his teeth and prepared to survive no matter what.

It was then that he heard the intense whistling sound again. He glanced above at the falling arrows then looked at Black Dog. The bandit chief had braced himself and was ready to deflect the descending arrows. Gasper saw the shield on the ground but hesitated.

Fuck it.

He lunged at Black Dog with a series of quick slashes. The bandit chief hadn't expected a suicidal approach from Gasper and he stepped back in surprise, hesitating whether to block Gasper's attacks or deflect the coming arrows.

In the end, he managed neither. The arrows were too close for either of them to block now. An arrow buried itself in Black Dog's leg, while two others pierced through Gasper's armor and into his shoulder and ribs. The arrows didn't stop his flurry of attacks, though. The first slash was randomly blocked by Black Dog, but the following two strikes connected, drawing blood from the bandit chief's right shoulder and face.

Black Dog held his bloody face and roared then charged at Gasper with a heavy swing of his sword.

Gasper evaded the mindless swing and stepped to the side. Then he narrowed the distance between them and drove his sword through Black Dog's ribs.

Both of them fell down, but only one was alive. Gasper pulled out the arrow that was stuck between his ribs as the pain shot through his body. Then he pulled the other one stuck in his shoulder which was slightly less painful.

The roars of battle were already echoing from the edges of the camp. The gates of the camp were probably still open and the ramps still fixed on the palisade. The camp had been waiting to be attacked, and the Viscount's men overran it like a sweeping wave.

When Gasper picked himself up from Black Dog's corpse, he heard the sound of metal behind him. He turned and saw Ard's soldiers surrounding him, their blades pointed at him. He was drenched in Black Dog's blood from head to toe, unrecognizable. That was good, though, since the Viscount wanted him to pose as a bandit.

He dropped his sword. "I surrender. Take me to the Viscount or your commander. I have something that they certainly want."

The surrounding soldiers hesitated. It seemed that their commands were to kill all the bandits they met. But an older one among them spoke. "What are you waiting for? Bring him to Sir Robard. Let him decide what to do with him."

The soldiers nodded then approached Gasper and dragged him towards the outside of the camp. He felt a slight dizziness as his injuries bled then a calm call of comfort summoned him.

He accepted the summons and let go of his consciousness.