I Didn't Say I Wouldn't Kill You

"Keep moving forward. Since they're slaughtering the villagers here, their hideout should be nearby."

Though none of them could be called good people, they couldn't bear to leave these villagers to rot in the wilderness. They dug a large pit and buried the dead, a small gesture to ease their own consciences.

"This country is truly chaotic. In my country, something like this would never happen." After offering a prayer, Kaiser Lynn stood up and spoke.

Though they belonged to different nations, Kaiser Lynn still felt sympathy for these villagers.

"Never happen? Or just happen without you knowing?" Shirakawa didn't believe any country was completely free of bandit gangs.

"Something like this definitely wouldn't happen. When you come to my country, you'll feel the difference between our two nations."

"Oh, then let's wait and see."

Having witnessed the end of a tragedy, none of them were in good spirits. As they walked, no one spoke a single word.

"Look, there's a small path over there. Do you think it leads to the bandits' hideout?"

At that moment, Kaiser Lynn spotted a fork branching off from the road they were supposed to take.

"Probably." Shirakawa pulled out a map he'd bought on a whim before leaving the city, just in case they got lost on the road.

Shirakawa noticed the path wasn't marked on the map. "Looks like the bandits built this road themselves."

He folded the map away and turned to the others. "Are you ready? If you don't want to go, you can wait here for me."

"We've been ready for a long time." Shanks and Buggy looked eager, especially Shanks, who could barely contain himself.

"Of course I'm going too. Staying here alone feels more dangerous." Kaiser Lynn also spoke up.

"Alright, let's head up the mountain."

For some reason, when Shirakawa said those words, his right eyelid twitched violently, as if something bad was about to happen.

"Hopefully I'm just overthinking it."

"What's wrong?" Seeing Shirakawa press his right hand over his eye, Kaiser Lynn asked him.

"Is something uncomfortable?"

"Nothing. Let's keep moving." Shirakawa forced a faint smile.

Hearing that, Kaiser Lynn didn't press further.

Walking along this path, even though it led deep into the mountains, they didn't spot a single animal—not even a carcass.

The further they went, the stronger Shirakawa's sense of foreboding grew.

Unable to suppress his unease, Shirakawa stopped.

"Why aren't we moving?" The moment Shirakawa halted, the three behind him also stopped. Shanks asked in confusion.

"I feel like our destination is very dangerous."

"What, are you scared?" Buggy said with contempt. A bunch of ordinary people—what danger could there be?

"I'm not afraid. I'm worried you all might be in danger."

"Relax, with me, Buggy the Great, around, she won't be in any danger." As he spoke, Buggy flexed his muscles.

But he hadn't heard Shirakawa clearly. Shirakawa had said "you all," but Buggy thought he meant "her alone."

Shirakawa was about to explain further when a voice cut them off.

"Hey, who are you people?" Shirakawa turned around to see a group blocking their path. Shanks and Buggy immediately drew their weapons, ready for battle.

"Did you kill those villagers down the mountain?" Since they'd already run into people, Shirakawa didn't bother with pleasantries.

Besides, the way the other side was dressed made it obvious they weren't good people.

"Oh, you mean those lowlifes? Yeah, we did it." The speaker's tone was almost smug.

"Why?" Shirakawa ground out through clenched teeth.

He couldn't understand how they could bring themselves to do it—not even sparing women and infants. They were no different from beasts.

"Why? Do we need a reason to kill? We kill whenever we feel like it, hahahaha."

"What, are you people here to avenge them?"

"We're here to kill you." Now that the real culprits were confirmed, there was no need for more words. Talking to these beasts was a waste of time.

"Buggy, Shanks, let's go."

"Alright, I've been itching for this." Shanks charged forward instantly, taking down one bandit.

"Kid, you dare kill our men? Get them! Tear them apart!"

Though the enemy had numbers, quantity couldn't match quality. In no time, only the leader remained.

Shirakawa walked toward him step by step.

"Don't come near me! Don't come near me!" The man flailed his hands in panic, collapsing to the ground, trembling all over.

"Did you ever think about how those defenseless villagers felt when you killed them?"

Shirakawa crouched in front of him, speaking word by word. He wanted this man to feel the despair those villagers had faced before death.

"Please, spare me! It wasn't me! It wasn't me!" He knelt before Shirakawa, kowtowing frantically until his forehead split open. But Shirakawa felt no pity at all.

"Are you saying a ghost did it, huh?"

"The Great General ordered us to do it. We never planned to kill them in the first place."

"The Great General? So that means this Great General is the mastermind behind it all."

"That's right. It's him."

"Then who is this Great General?"

"I don't know. He showed up at our camp a few days ago out of nowhere, and our boss told us to call him the Great General."

"You. Get up. Lead the way. I want to see for myself just who this Great General really is."

"Fine, fine, fine. As long as you don't kill me, I'll do anything."

"Stop wasting words. Move it."

"Yes, yes, yes." The man hurriedly nodded.

He walked ahead, with Shirakawa and the others following behind. After about half an hour of walking, Shirakawa and his group finally caught sight of the Mountain Bandits' camp.

It had to be said, this camp really did look somewhat similar to the camps Shirakawa had seen on TV before.

"The Great General should be in the camp right now." The moment he finished saying this, a blade suddenly reached his neck and slit it.

His eyes went wide. Even in death, he probably never understood why he was killed.

"I never said I'd spare you. Leading the way was your own choice, wasn't it?"

Now that they had reached their destination, he had no more use. And Shirakawa would never let someone like that continue living in this world.