Chapter 4: Bandit Camp

"Hahaha, my mom isn't worth that much money, just one pie is enough." The old soldier laughed heartily, completely disregarding Alexander and his group.

But this also gave Alexander an important piece of information - they were going to war. He had only undergone one training session, and now he was heading to the battlefield?

Thankfully, he had decent weapons on hand. As long as he was careful, he should be fine. Lord Harley led 10 Saint Martin Knights, 5 Saint Martin Swordsmen, 5 Saint Martin Infantrymen, 10 Saint Martin Light Infantry, and over twenty servant soldiers. Yes, Lord Harley belonged to a faction known as the Saint Martin Kingdom, located in the northwest corner of the continent. It bordered five other nations, frequently engaging in warfare and emphasizing martial prowess.

Most importantly, Lord Harley hadn't brought any archers. Because Lord Harley's ancestors were esteemed knights, their family had never favored archers. In other words, the entire Saint Martin Kingdom disliked archers. They didn't even have archers in their military structure, though there were substitutes - crossbowmen.

The crossbows of the Saint Martin Kingdom were highly accurate, but their loading speed was slow. This didn't hinder the valiant charge of the Saint Martin Knights. In their eyes, after a volley, their iron hooves could trample through enemy lines.

Lord Harley naturally advocated for knightly charges. Despite leading over fifty people, his true main force consisted of only ten Saint Martin Knights. The rest were just there for show.

Except for Alexander's group, the servant soldiers had an important task - to absorb the enemy's arrows and engage them in combat, creating opportunities for the Saint Martin Knights to charge.

In other words - they were cannon fodder. Fortunately, shortly after setting off, Alexander received accurate information that it was just a routine bandit suppression, not actual warfare. Otherwise, with Alexander's current combat power, he would likely become cannon fodder.

...

Lord Harley led the troops into a forest where the visibility was poor, so he promptly sent out knights for reconnaissance.

After a while, a knight returned with a report: "A bandit camp has been found, and the hostages are likely inside."

Alexander heard this and immediately understood what was happening. This bandit suppression mission was likely to rescue the hostages inside.

If he saves the hostages, is it considered a meritorious service?

[Triggered Task: Rescue the Merchant's Brother]

[Rescue the merchant's brother without harming him to complete the task]

[Task Reward: Experience +100, System Currency +100]

Alexander's eyes lit up upon hearing the task rewards from the system. This task was now his to accomplish.

"You guys, go in first and check it out. The rest of you stay outside, don't let any bandit escape," Lord Harley quickly arranged the battle plan.

Led by the Saint Martin Swordsmen, they charged in, while Lord Harley and the knights were responsible for encircling outside and killing any bandits trying to escape from the camp.

Judging from the size of the camp, there probably weren't many bandits. Under the leadership of the Saint Martin Swordsmen, the battle shouldn't be too difficult.

Sure enough, when the bandits saw Alexander and the others charging in, they were all stunned. They hadn't prepared for battle at all; some were even holding cups of rum.

Of course, some of them quickly reacted and began throwing stones at Alexander and his group. The Saint Martin Swordsmen and infantrymen in front quickly raised their large shields, and Alexander also raised his oak shield. Others had to rely on their bodies to withstand the stones.

Luckily, the Saint Martin Swordsmen were brave, charging forward and cutting down several bandits. Others quickly followed suit.

Instead of fleeing immediately, the bandits raised their weapons and charged towards them. More bandits rushed out from the caves. Roughly counted, there were over twenty opponents, but their equipment was very rudimentary.

For a moment, the air was filled with shouts and clashes of swords, blood splattering everywhere.

Alexander hid behind Odo and Victor, throwing knives. His skill in throwing knives wasn't great, but as long as he threw them, they would cause damage. Out of the three throwing knives, one missed, but the other two injured two people.

Then Alexander and his two companions charged forward, beating up the two injured bandits. Especially Alexander, wielding his long sword, swiftly dealt with one enemy with a stab. The other bandit didn't resist for long and was subdued shortly after.

[System: Killed bandit, Experience +10]

[System: Killed bandit, Experience +10]

The system's voice continued ringing in Alexander's ears. He was quite satisfied with this harvest. In addition to the benefits from the system, Lord Harley had also promised a reward of 5 denarii for each person killed.

This money can be used to buy freedom and restore Alexander and his two companions to the status of free citizens. According to the prices in Lord Harley's area, it would take about 50 denarii for each person to buy their freedom. So, the three of them would need a total of 150 denarii to become free citizens. Fortunately, they had already killed two people, which earned them 10 denarii.

Under the leadership of the Saint Martin Swordsmen, there was a frenzy of killing. The bandits were nearly wiped out. The remaining ones couldn't escape and ran into the Saint Martin knights who were patrolling outside.

Seeing that the outside bandits were all taken care of, Alexander immediately rushed into the bandits' cave. As soon as he entered, a long knife came swinging towards him.

"Boss!"

Odo was right beside him and quickly pulled Alexander back, saving his life. If it hadn't been for the timely dodge, Alexander would have been done for.

In the dim light of the cave, Alexander saw two bandits glaring at him fiercely. Feeling angry, he raised his oak shield and long sword, ready to advance.

"Boss, don't rush in."

Victor timely stopped Alexander. After all, the three of them were only slightly stronger than farmers. The bandits were seasoned fighters; if they got into trouble, what would they do?

Alexander calmed down and confronted the bandits at the entrance.

"Huh?"

Sharp-eyed Alexander noticed that the two bandits seemed to be moving awkwardly. On closer inspection, he realized that both of them were injured.

"Let's go together; they're both injured!"

Alexander understood the principle of beating a dog in the water and quickly led Odo and Victor to charge over.

The two bandits looked fierce, but they had already been injured in the fight and couldn't run fast. Alexander and his companions quickly caught up and subdued them without killing them.

[System: Captured one bandit alive, Experience +10]

[System: Captured one bandit alive, Experience +10]