As we continued down the highway, two men standing in the middle of the road came into view in the distance. On the left, the forest pressed close to the roadside, while the right side was a rocky area—an ideal ambush spot.

Since I had enhanced my vision, I could see clearly even from about a kilometer away. Nir and I were traveling northward, far off the road, just at the edge where we could still see the carriage.

“Stop right there!”

Enhancing my hearing, I could pick up the voice of one of the men blocking the road. It was right around the area where the two groups of three were hiding near the roadside. Nir and I were positioned even further behind them.

There was enough space to pass, but ignoring them completely wasn’t an option in case of an actual emergency, so Alyssa stopped the carriage.

“What’s the matter?”

After halting the carriage, Alyssa took the lead and addressed the men.

…Hmm, the ones in hiding behind them are starting to move. I could sense a small fluctuation in magic power. Ah, looks like Rio noticed too—she just put up a Force Field.

Observing from behind, I could clearly see the overall situation.

“Our comrade is injured… We could use some help.”

Ah, I see. They want to lure us in under the guise of checking on the injured, then ambush us from behind.

“This way.”

The two men beckoned us while turning their backs, heading into the forest on the left side of the road. Their body language suggested they weren’t wary of us at all, as if to say, “See? Nothing suspicious here.” But with the hidden presences still around, the whole thing reeked of a trap. Unless all twelve others were also injured, this setup didn’t make sense. And the fact that they were positioned at the four corners of an invisible perimeter was another dead giveaway.

Besides, there was no way we would leave our escort target without their approval.

Recalling Alyssa’s teachings, I mentally scoffed. Did these guys not even know the basics of escorting?

“Hey, over here! Hurry up! It’s urgent!”

One of the men, growing impatient, turned back and called out. Meanwhile, Alyssa was just about to consult Fleur.

However, it wasn’t just these men who were losing patience. Arrows and spells suddenly shot out from the forest and the rocky area behind us.

“Hey! It’s too soon to attack!”

Seeing this, the two men hastily drew the swords strapped to their waists and rushed forward.

These guys had no coordination whatsoever…

Well, since they had made the first move, I supposed it was time for us to respond.

“Alright, Nir, let’s go. You take that side.”

“Woof!”

As we sprang into action, the incoming arrows and spells were deflected by Rio’s Force Field.

“What the!?”

“Wh-What’s going on!?”

With the enemy momentarily startled, Alyssa and the others dismounted and advanced toward them. Meanwhile, Nir and I reached the ones who had been launching attacks from behind. Before they even noticed, I knocked them out with precise strikes to the back of their necks.

On the other side of the road, Nir sent his targets flying. As I silently offered a prayer for the men soaring through the air like characters in a gag comic, we regrouped with the others.

“You hiding over there, come out! We know you’re there!”

Having easily taken down the two men in front, Alyssa called out to the remaining enemies. However, none of them emerged. Perhaps they were hoping that if someone else stepped out first, they could use them as a distraction and escape.

“If you won’t come out, we’ll just start blasting magic into your hiding spots.”

To make our intentions clear, I conjured a one-meter-wide fireball above my head and aimed it at the rocky area. Beside me, Rio conjured over a dozen ice spears, pointing them toward the forest.

“They’re not coming out…”

Alyssa muttered, but just as she said that, they still refused to move. Also, was it really okay that Alyssa and the others were watching us instead of keeping an eye on the enemy?

“Maybe they can’t see our magic from their position.”

To make it more obvious, I doubled the size of my fireball and moved it higher into the air. Rio did the same, increasing the number of ice spears and raising them above her head.

“Wait, wait! We surrender!”

Panicked, the remaining men finally revealed themselves. As expected, the number matched what I had sensed—two from the forest and four from behind the rocks. Their equipment was hardly uniform, but they all had gear suited for frontline combat.

Adding them to the ones groaning on the ground, the total came to fourteen.

“Are you all bandits?”

“…Damn it, this isn’t what we were told…”

No one answered Fleur’s question directly, but that last remark caught my attention. What exactly had they been told?

Bandits, when captured, were usually enslaved as criminals. If they were killed during a counterattack, they had no right to complain. Naturally, they weren’t about to admit to their crimes.

“Well, whether you admit it or not doesn’t matter. But what did you mean by ‘this isn’t what we were told’?”

“Tch… We just heard rumors that an auction shipment was being transported with rookie escorts.”

“Rumors?”

“Yeah! And what the hell is up with you guys? That familiar of yours and your magic are totally unfair!”

Getting mad at us won’t change anything.

Anyway, if we captured bandits, we were supposed to hand them over to the city guards. Alyssa had mentioned that part of the reward money came from selling criminals into slavery.

“The sun will be setting soon. Let’s get going and take them all with us.”

“…All of them?”

Fleur glanced around at the fourteen captives, including those who were still unconscious.

“It’s fine.”

With Earth Magic, I quickly created a large cage with bars, enough to contain all fourteen of them.

The bandits, who had been grumbling just moments ago, suddenly fell silent.