Chapter 178 Tax Collector in the Snowstorm

After advancing for a day's journey, they encountered a merchant caravan ahead. That evening, the Cavalry Captain explained the situation to Shaoke, and they set up camp not far from the caravan. The snowstorm did not weaken with the arrival of night; instead, it grew even more intense.

Watching the busy cavalrymen setting up tents, Shaoke declined their offer to build one for him. "I'll be fine in this carriage. It's more convenient," he said. He then took some high-quality magic powder and, following his usual method, laid out several Alert Wards around the carriage.

After finishing these preparations, some merchants from the caravan brought food to Shaoke's military unit. They hoped the unit would protect them for the remainder of the journey, offering sufficient payment in gratitude for their help. However, the Cavalry Captain quickly refused the merchants' proposal, explaining that they were not mercenaries but imperial soldiers currently on a mission.

After eating some dry rations, Shaoke leaned against a cushion and, by candlelight, began reading books on magical languages. Many of his Spell casting techniques required incantations in different magical languages, which placed considerable pressure on him.

Just before dawn, Shaoke awoke from Meditation. He took out his large spellbook to read and memorize the recorded spells, continuously reciting the incantations to improve his chanting speed. As he finished a chant in the Eze tongue, the sound of intense hoofbeats approached from the distance.

The peaceful camp quickly descended into chaos due to these unexpected visitors. Shaoke extended his mental senses to their maximum range, quickly detecting the general situation of the approaching force and relaying the information to the Cavalry Captain guarding him. "There are about a thousand of them, unarmored. They aren't soldiers—no uniforms or insignia to identify them. I see their bloodthirsty eyes. A black flag with red stripes has been raised," Shaoke calmly reported his findings to the Captain before climbing onto the carriage's front board to prepare for battle.

Upon hearing Shaoke's reconnaissance results, the Cavalry Captain's expression darkened, unable to hide his concern in time. He shouted loudly, "Prepare for battle! They're bandits—mounted bandits!" He then leaped onto his horse and dispatched several cavalrymen to guard Shaoke, ensuring the mage's safety.

"The scent of blood," Shaoke murmured softly, sensing the increasingly urgent hoofbeats and the howling wind carrying large snowflakes. The Captain, about to leave to command the cavalry, keenly overheard Shaoke's whisper. This reaffirmed his superior's warning: "The mage you're escorting is said to have just left the Death Mage Corps. I hear the mages from there are quite peculiar. Be sure not to provoke him on the journey."

Shaking his head to dispel the well-intentioned warning, the Cavalry Captain drew the saber at his waist and retrieved a steel javelin from his horse's saddle. He infused it with sufficient Aura, readying himself for combat.

Nearby, the merchant caravan frantically prepared for battle. Based on their experience, encountering a bandit force under such circumstances meant no survivors—only bloody slaughter and shameless plunder would satisfy the attackers. Although the caravan had some warriors, they couldn't accurately determine the size of the cavalry force. For now, they could only hope the riders weren't bandits.

Shaoke used his mental senses to lock onto several warriors at the front of the bandit group. Elemental Hand—this spell was quickly prepared. A three-to-five-meter-wide hand swooped down and slammed into the bandits who couldn't dodge in time. After a violent explosion, only scattered flesh remained of the targeted bandit warriors, proof of their former existence.

Once the mage's attack commenced, the Cavalry Captain immediately issued the order to charge. Ninety cavalrymen, their Aura flaring, advanced toward the bandit force. At a certain distance, relying on their rich experience, they hurled their javelins and swiftly turned to avoid being scattered by the enemy's main charge.

Dozens of Aura-infused javelins easily tore through the snow obstructing their view. When the bandits noticed this new wave of attack, they frantically twisted their bodies and mounts, trying to evade. Unfortunately, the crowded formation couldn't change direction quickly enough. Dozens of bandits were struck by the javelins. Riderless horses, now out of control, soon caused some disruption for the following bandit cavalry, slowing their advance slightly.

Shaoke's attacks didn't cease for a moment. One after another, massive hands were rapidly released, crashing down on the warriors among the bandits. Their swift advance left these warriors with no chance to dodge, forcing them to unleash their Aura in a desperate attempt to block the mage's assault. Sadly, those of lower rank had no ability to withstand the attacks of a third-rank mage, meeting the same fate as their earlier companions.

Despite the power of Shaoke's spell attacks, the bandit cavalry didn't panic upon encountering a mage. Instead, under their leader's command, they swiftly changed formation and continued charging toward Shaoke's position.

As the distance closed, the bandits launched their own attack. Nearly a hundred strong bows fired arrows, speeding toward Shaoke and the merchant caravan. Another group of bandits split off to surround the ninety or so cavalrymen.

Facing the whistling arrows, Shaoke quickly activated all his Defensive Spells and began preparing another spell. Cutting Wave—several-meter-long black ripples, concealed by the night, swiftly assaulted the approaching bandits. Unaware of this spell, the bandits only saw some of their comrades inexplicably sliced in half, causing panic. Some bandits, ignoring their leader's orders, quickly turned their mounts to flee, but their foolish choice soon brought a heavy price.

Bandit cavalry from behind crashed into the fleeing rider's mount, knocking him down. The bandit attempting to escape was soon trampled into a pulp by his former comrades' horses. Of course, Shaoke paid no attention to this; he was merely unable to suppress his excitement as he hunted the bandits in a frenzy.

After the enemy's attack, the merchant caravan quickly prepared bows to counter, but the merchants' arrows were inconsistent and lacked power, causing little harm to the bandits.

The makeshift camp formed by sturdy carriages was soon broken apart by the bandits' charge. Hired mercenaries and guards from the caravan, wielding weapons, fought desperately against them. No one considered fleeing, knowing that in such a situation, escape after defeat would only lead to being hunted down one by one by these bandits.

The Cavalry Captain led his unit back in time and hurled another volley of javelins to intercept the bandit cavalry charging toward their direction. Meanwhile, Shaoke climbed onto the carriage roof, repeatedly casting his limited area-of-effect spells to attack the bandits. The cavalrymen surrounded Shaoke in the center, wielding Aura-infused sabers to cut down bandits who reached them and using small shields to block the enemy's frenzied assaults.

The battle didn't last long. Under Shaoke's rapid Spellcasting attacks, black vortices inadvertently appeared where bandits were most densely gathered, violently tearing apart their Aura-less bodies. As black ripples swept through, attacking bandits were inexplicably severed in two—some writhing and howling on the ground, others trampled into pulp by their comrades.

Under the Cavalry Captain's orders, only about twenty cavalrymen remained to protect Shaoke. The rest, led by the Captain, charged toward the bandits, swinging their sabers. Although a few Aura-wielding bandits occasionally emerged to intercept, they were quickly hunted down under the cavalry's fierce assault.

Scattered bandits began to flee amidst the slaughter. After briefly observing the battlefield situation, the bandit leader, unconcerned about the others' fate, swiftly led a dozen Aura-flaring bandits to escape in the direction they came from. After all, his own life was paramount.

Without the bandit leader's control, the ordinary bandits fled even more desperately. However, under the relentless pursuit of numerous Aura-flaring soldiers, only a few bandits managed to escape the battlefield. The rest, amidst this frenzied slaughter, dropped their weapons and knelt on the snow, awaiting the victors' judgment. They had never faced nearly a hundred Aura-flaring soldiers before, especially ones who had fought year-round in the Bloody Fortress.

Everything was over. Riderless mounts wandered scattered across the battlefield, while some bandits not yet dead couldn't help but let out agonized screams.

The Cavalry Captain quickly assessed his unit's condition. Aside from a few cavalrymen sustaining minor injuries from sudden attacks by bandit warriors, there were no other casualties. Of course, this didn't count one cavalryman's mount having its leg cut by a fallen double-bladed axe.

The merchants' losses were considerable. After all, they didn't have many warriors to defend the caravan. Moreover, under their employers' orders, those warriors only protected the merchants and didn't participate in fully resisting the bandit assault. The ordinary guards couldn't withstand the bandit cavalry's charge, resulting in severe casualties.

However, these weren't Shaoke's concerns. They were only worried about whether the leg-injured mount could continue its essential duties. After the cavalryman applied a special ointment to his mount and with the aid of Shaoke's minor pain-relief spell, the mount's wound quickly healed. It just couldn't run at full speed for a while. Of course, given the weather and road conditions, rapid running wasn't possible anyway, so it wouldn't further delay their journey.