Dark clouds loomed over the night sky that blocked out the twinkling stars, and a chilly, frigid wind blew onward, rustling the lush vegetation of the area which gave any passerby an eerie feeling. A deathly silence permeated around the village, as the surroundings seemed strangely devoid of any life with the absence of the regular insect cries and monster howls.

Torches were lit all over the settlement, and two large flames brightly flickered just outside the village gate. They resembled a scaled-down bonfire, and it was a simple attempt to ward off monsters that were generally afraid of fire. Besides the closed wooden gate under the torchlight, two individuals could be seen playing a card like game while they occasionally sipped from a bottle of weak rice liquor.

"phew, today's feast was satisfying, wasn't it!" one of the guards whispered. "Did you see those adventurers? They seemed ridiculously strong."

"Yeah, Yeah. Especially the one with the greatsword, the lad's got the air of a veteran general!"

"That's what I felt as well! What metal do you think that sword is made up of? It doesn't look like regular steel."

"Bah!, what steel? Do you think they are some run of the mill soldiers, who are given mass-produced weapons!? That sword must be made up of some precious metal. I would not be surprised if rare orichalcum was used to forge it!"

"Orichalcum!!" the other guard's eyes widened in surprise. He had a wistful expression for an instant but shook his head afterward with a bitter chuckle as he resumed the card game.

Both these guards were former soldiers that had retired from the army. The village sheltered many such military individuals. The majority of them had served as a militia for short a time, while some had been fledged soldiers in the regional lord's troops. Most of them were natives of the village itself, as the settlement had regularly supplied able-bodied man to the army.

These days, everything was taken care of by the adventurers, be it jobs of monster extermination or guarding the traveling merchant caravans. The soldiers in the army had reduced to become props for showing off, flaunting the many nobles' power.

But although they had minimal experience in life and death battles, their bodies never forgot the grueling training imposed upon, which they had to complete to clear out their term of service. Since they could not adjust to a farmer's life after retiring, most of them volunteered for the job of protecting the place as guards. In this way, the village constantly boasted a militant force of forty to fifty individuals. Before Legas' parents had started hunting down the monsters in the vicinity and efficiently clearing the area, these people were the ones who had dealt with any trouble in the past.

pat! pat! pat! pat!

While the two people continued their boring card game, faint thudding sounds suddenly echoed throughout the area, that stuck out like a sore thumb in the eerie silence. A frown instantly donned on the men's faces, their atmosphere growing vigilant.

"What's that?"

"...Don't know, sounds like footsteps?"

The amplitude of the sounds faintly increased with each passing interval. Both of the guards had confused looks, silently gazing at the other, but they did not dare to brush off the slight chill that went up to their spines. One of them hurriedly climbed atop the wooden platform beside the entrance, his waist looming over the wooden wall as he peered at the horizon into the distance.

"Did you notice anything? What is making that sound?" the other guard glanced upwards with curiosity.

Very soon he noticed the strange behavior of his friend, whose face had gone pale, his expression warped in fear as his legs trembled uncontrollably. Seeing the guard being in no state to answer, he joined him on the platform only to witness a frightening scene, that made him shiver in fright.

The humanoid silhouettes outlining the horizon that walked towards the village emitted a fearsome killing intent no different from that of a monster. Although the men could not see their faces, it was not difficult to imagine the ferocious and sinister smiles that may have been present on their lips.

"BANDITS!!" the guards shouted in unison as fear gripped their hearts. It took them quite some time to contemplate the dreadful scene. Their bodies tensed under the sheer pressure of the situation, as they felt their minds going haywire. How could their village face a bandit raid!? Such a thing had never happened since this settlement was established. What could the poor place possibly offer them? Will they, will they be willing to negotiate if the village surrendered and offered all of its resources?

Numerous questions floated in the guards' minds, but their mentality calmed down soon after. Their tensed body relaxed as soon as they got hold of their fears. The harsh training had not betrayed them in the slightest, immediately taking action realizing the crisis ahead.

HOOONNNNKKK!

An ear-piercing noise resounded throughout the valley, jolting awake the asleep village inhabitants.

On the far end of the village inside the hunter's hut, Legas sprang out of his bed on hearing the sharp noise. The blowing horn didn't stop after one note, continuously honking for a long time. 'The village is under attack!' was what the sound conveyed, inciting an expression of disbelief and confusion on the boy as he hastily made his way out.

"Lora!" Legas dashed towards the figure of the little girl who was cutely rubbing her eyes, standing just outside the door.

"Brother, what happened? What's that sound?" Lora muttered while rubbing her eyes.

The boy cautiously glanced in the direction of the entrance. The blowing noise had ceased, replaced by the distant murmurs and rustling of people within the village. Legas could not make out any concrete guess about the situation, but he knew that drastic trouble had visited them.

Shreya walked out from within the house while he was still trying to discern the incoherent ramblings filling the area. She wore a strange hunter's attire, her black hair was tied to a ponytail, and had equipped leather bracers on her arms and shins. A silver longbow carved with unique patterns rested in her hands, along with two quivers filled with arrows strapped to the back of her leather armor, and two short swords hanging from either side of her waist. A grave expression could be seen on her face as she walked towards the confused children.

"It's a bandit raid," Shreya growled, looking into the distance.

"Bandits!?" Legas exclaimed in shock.

As a hunter, Shreya's five senses were much more developed than that of a normal human. Her eyes and ears could pick up accurate information even from large distances, so there was no question of doubting her.

All this time, Legas had wrongly guessed, that maybe the monsters around the vicinity had swarmed the area. How could it be bandits? He glanced at his mother's face that had displayed a never before seen seriousness.

"Mom, I..."

"No, you can't come with me." Shreya flatly rejected.

Legas knew that bandits were people outcast from society, and they did not have the luxury to live in well-protected cities or villages. Rather, they generally dwelt in heavily monster-infested regions to escape from being captured by the government, either entering prison or getting flat out-executed. Anyone who survived such conditions was by no means a small fry, and should not be underestimated. The militia protecting the village consisted of retired personnel, who spent their days indulging in gambling and liquor. How could they even stand a chance?

"But mom we can just...."

"Legas!" Shreya roared.

Both the kids flinched under unexpected shout, before she moved closer to them, kindly patting on their heads. She knelt, looking into the two pairs of pure and innocent eyes, and spoke with as much gentleness she could muster.

"Legas, this is the native village of your father, how can I just watch it get destroyed, while I run away? How would I face your father ever again?

"Don't worry, our village has many people who can fight. With me assisting from the back we can defend ourselves. Plus there's also that group of adventurers you mentioned right?" Shreya assured.

Legas' tensed face calmed down at the mention of the adventurers. Although he hated himself for having such a reaction, he knew those four were at a level where they could easily vanquish some measly bandits.

BOOM!

At this point, an enormous explosive sound echoed throughout the area, as if a giant boulder had impacted the ground after falling through great heights. Colour instantly drained from Shreya's face, while the siblings were scared the hell out of their wits.

"Wh-what was that!"

"It's the adventurers! They are fighting the bandits." Shreya explained with difficulty as she got to her feet, looking into the direction of the sound with a flustered face.

"Legas, you must take care of Lora while you hide in the house. Do not come out carelessly, okay? If I find the situation to be too dangerous, I will return immediately.

"No matter how precious this place is, it pales in comparison to your lives," Shreya assured.

Legas weakly nodded his head, his face displaying a mixture of frustration and anxiety. Lora was unusually quiet throughout the whole period, as her pitch-black pupils reflected her mother's shrinking back.

"Also...." Shreya suddenly halted her steps. "You must promise me one thing.

"No matter what happens... you must never give up on life." Shreya's voice carried a stiffening heaviness, as she glanced back at her children. "I would never forgive you if that were to happen." She left behind some ill foreboding words, before sprinting away into the village.

Legas stood dumbstruck. He didn't like the way the abrupt request was put, but he was smart enough to know it's meaning. He didn't have an ounce of distrust towards his mother's skills, but having experienced hunting in the forests, he knew very well that not everything goes according to one's plans.

His mother was asking him to stay strong, and move forward, in case an unfortunate accident stirred up his life. But even though he understood the implication in his mind, his heart was not ready for such an event. He could not muster up the courage to even imagine such a situation, desperately wanting to shout, and stop his mother from diving into danger, but her figure had long since disappeared.

Lora had not spoken a word since and was silently gazing into the distance. Being her brother Legas understood her very well. The unusual behavior did not indicate calmness but rather was a result of being overly panicked. The poor girl did so as to not obstruct others around her, and it was her away from helping them cope with the situation.

He pulled Lora into his embrace, hugging her tight as he gently caressed her head. A flash of determination glowed in his eyes, as he inwardly vowed to protect her, no matter the cost. Be it a monster or a human, he would tear them apart if they ever threatened his family.

Just like everyone else in the village, Beti was jolted awake to the sharp noise of the horn. It was the loudest surprise for the people in the inn since it was situated very close to the village entrance. At first, she had trouble processing the situation and was not one to blame, since it was the very first time in her life she had heard such a signal.

Rushing out of her house, she found her parents who had warped expressions of shock and fear, shivering outside the inn. Her father's face was pale and he was barely able to stand, with his legs wobbling. Her mother supported him from the side, as streams of tears rolled onto her cheeks.

Gazing towards the entrance gate, she saw many of the regular patrons of the inn standing on top of the platforms, shooting arrows as they grit their teeth, while sounds of fighting and screaming could be heard just outside the gates.

Fear and trepidation grasped her heart when she noticed an arrow piercing into the head of one recognizable man, as his body lay in a pool of blood beneath the platform. Only now did she understand the intensity of the crisis that had visited them.

She could understand her father's reaction. After all, the inn was the closest to the entrance and it contained food, liquor, and money, the three very things a bandit would naturally covet. If they ever managed to break through the gate, rushing inside the village, her house would be the first to fall.

Suddenly, she remembered an important piece of information which her parents seemed to have forgotten due to panic, and a glimmer of hope appeared for a brief amount of time before it was overlapped by the veil of doubt. To confirm her suspicions, she immediately dashed into the inn, heading upstairs towards the second floor.

"Master Wizard," the girl shouted as she banged on one of the doors of the lodging room.

No response.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"Master Wizard!" she pounded the door with all her might, but it remained shut. The girl faltered back a few steps in disbelief before she hurriedly dashed back, grabbing a bunch of keys from the counter.

clack! The door lock opened to her surprise as she slammed the door open. Her panic-stricken face contorted even further, gazing at the scene in front. At first, she had expected the adventurers to be fighting the bandits outside, but if that was so, at least their luggage would have remained behind. But the room was so vacant, it seemed as if all of the events that occurred previously were an illusion.

Beti dashed towards the room at the side, still clinging onto a faint shimmer of hope. But as if fate itself was mocking her thoughts, she found the place to be similarly empty. The opened window let in a gust of frigid wind, making her body shiver in cold.

BOOM!!

An ear-splitting, explosive sound shook her eardrums which made her legs give away, kneeling on the floor. A bitter laugh resounded in the corridor, letting the dreadful feeling of hopelessness sink into her heart.