Further discussion of his two new skills led to no real change to the plan other than for Linus to try to avoid any injury at all and retreat if he did receive one, which had already been his personal plan to begin with. They started heading back towards the bandit camp, veering off of their original path to hopefully avoid detection and approach from a different direction. Luke led the way with Linus and Archie trailing as far back as they could without losing track of him to give a buffer for when they encountered the bandits again. Apparently they had covered more ground than Linus realized and with their slower, circuitous approach and the lack of adrenaline he started using [Invigorate] on himself and Archie to keep them alert and going. It was starting to get dark again by the time they got near. Luke signaled them to stop and dropped back to talk to them.

“The camp is about a mile in that direction, I suggest we start traveling parallel to it to see if we can catch any returning or departing patrols. If we encounter people and they don’t see us retreat first so we can strategize. Remember we are significantly outnumbered and it’s safe to assume most if not all will be at least Tier 2. Our goal is first to survive any encounter then to completely eliminate them so they can’t warn the rest of them. Hopefully we can set up ambushes to increase our odds. Any questions?” Linus and Archie shook their heads.

“Then let's start hunting.”

Dusk had fully fallen while the three carefully circled the enemy camp, with all three using their various forms of stealth. Both Linus and Luke were surprised and impressed by the effectiveness of Archie’s [Unobtrusive Presence] skill, unlike both of their more standard skills his didn’t actually hide him but rather made it so you didn’t notice. If you knew he was there you could force your eye to catch him but it was definitely a challenge. It was getting too dark for them to continue and they were discussing retreating for the night when Luke waved them silent.

“Heard a few in that direction.” He whispered to them. “Stay here while I investigate.” He disappeared into the dark woods without waiting for a reply from either of them. Less than a minute later he had returned and resumed his whispering.

“This is perfect. Looks like a hunting crew, there’s only four of them, two of which are carrying a deer between them. I’m going to lead us ahead of them so we can get in position. Once we get there myself and Archie will set up with me in front and him behind. Archie will aim for the second unburdened man while I engage with the first. Linus you’ll circle around them, try to ambush and take out both of the ones carrying the deer before they can join the fight. Any questions?” Once more they both shook their heads. “Great, let’s get going then. Follow my lead exactly and keep those stealth skills running.”

They silently crept forward, slowly passing the quartet of bandits then pulling further ahead. Once they had enough of a lead Luke motioned Archie to stop then tugged on Linus’ sleeve and pointed off to the side. Linus carefully crept away as they set up for the ambush. Once far enough away he settled in, waiting for Luke and Archie to make their move before it was his turn.

The seconds ticked by like molasses, feeling more like minutes. He could feel his chest getting tight with the anticipation and stress. The hunters plodded forward unaware of what waited as he gently eased his shortsword out of its sheath.

Finally the trap was sprung. Luke stepped forward and stabbed the first hunter with his stolen blade, while Archie threw a knife at the second man. The first took a deep wound to the stomach but pulled out his sword and proceeded to engage Luke who barely freed his sword in time to block the counter strike. Meanwhile the throwing knife was only a glancing blow to the shoulder of Archie’s target, who pulled his own blade and raced towards Archie as another knife was thrown.

As that unfolded Linus ran as quickly as he could to his target while maintaining [Sneaking] as they dropped the deer and moved to help their companions. He quickly caught up with one and launched a [Sneak Attack], the blade catching his target right in the kidney. A quick pull of the sword and push of the man had the bandit bleeding out on the ground as Linus used [Sneak Attack] on the next. Whether this man had better armor, some type of defensive skill or it was just dumb luck this time Linus’ strike failed to penetrate fully and got stuck. As the man turned the blade got pulled out of Linus’ hand, leaving him defenseless.

Linus tried to duck under the bandit’s sword but it cut into his shoulder before he dropped fully to the ground. In a panic he summoned a blade using [Mana Blade], stabbing the thin instrument typically used for alchemy into the bandit’s foot. The bandit screamed in response and adjusted his grip on his sword to stab down at Linus. Linus summoned another blade, ignoring the instant headache from pushing the skill so far beyond its original purpose, and stabbed it into the other foot before rolling away.

The blades both dissipated moments after he let go but it was enough to throw the bandit off and prevent the strike from landing. As the bandit recovered Linus got to his feet, pulling his punch dagger free with one hand and summoning yet another [Mana Blade] in the other. He was feeling a little lightheaded from the shoulder wound, which only intensified as he reengaged [Sneaking] as well. The bandit was still moving in his direction but hopefully in the low light he was difficult to track and counter.

He blocked an overhead swing with crossed blades then a slash with the punch dagger. His lack of reach kept him on the defensive and he simply struggled to keep the bandit’s sword from inflicting further injuries on him. If it wasn’t for [Blades] guiding him he’d definitely be bleeding out if not already dead. Several exchanges later he stepped backwards to avoid another swing and found himself tripping over a root and landing hard on the ground. The bandit approached, bearing his death until an arrowhead sprouted from his chest, followed by two more in quick succession. He was dead before he landed on Linus, trapping the poor noble between dirt and death. Linus tried to fight the urge but the dead man’s eyes staring him down inches away was too much and he hurled, vomiting all over the corpse before it was reflected back on him.

Thankfully moments later Archie showed up, prying the bandit off him and spamming [Cleanse] until the worst of the blood and vomit was removed from Linus.

“Archie I don’t tell you this enough but you are my favorite person in the world and I’m not just saying that because of this mess. Truly grateful. And Luke, impeccable timing. I mean a moment or two earlier so I didn’t see my life flash before my eyes and get crushed under a corpse would’ve been ideal but I’ll take what I can get.”

“Thank you sir, it’s a pleasure working for you, though let’s try not to make this type of mess a habit.”

“You’re welcome. Now let’s work on looting these bodies, hiding them as best we can and getting out of here before we encounter any more bandits. We are not prepared to handle any more than we just did.”

Archie and Luke picked through the bodies while Linus sat to the side, recovering from his near death and recent disgusting state. They found another three bows and quivers, several small knives, four swords, a couple of water flasks, a few light coin purses and some trail rations. Once everything of value was collected Luke started dragging a body before Linus stopped him.

“Leave them, I’ll take care of it.”

“Oh yeah and how are you going to do that? Actually get up and help now that you are done sulking?”

Instead of answering Linus focused on the ground beneath each body, reaching out to it and trying to shape it. He quickly opened and accepted the latest notification.

New Skill Available: [Basic Earth Manipulation] Accept | Decline

It was an old skill from his [Apprentice Earth Mage] class before he evolved it into his [Plant Mage] class and it felt good to reacquire it. As soon as he accepted the skill it was much easier to work with the earth, quickly swallowing the bandits and blood into the ground, leaving hardly a trace behind.

“Now let’s head out. I’m assuming you and Archie can grab the deer? I think it’ll be perfect for a late celebratory dinner.” Linus retorted before he started walking off.

“You are headed towards the bandit camp” responded Luke/

“Right, of course why don’t you lead the way.” Linus spun around without missing a beat while Archie and Luke picked up the abandoned deer and started leading the way.