(Half an hour later)

Reggie swayed on the muddy ground. He felt the strength leave him minutes ago, causing him to run out of breath and breathe haggardly. He didn't know what fueled him to go on but… he kept the fight up.

"H-ow… how is he still…"

He muttered the words to no one but himself. He gritted his teeth, gathered what little strength he could and lurched forward but slipped after a few wobbly steps. He barely kept himself from losing balance and falling down. His mind was willing but his body was on the brink of giving up. Just when he regained his bearings, he reflexively snapped his head to the side and barely avoided an incoming jab to his head. His opponent was relentless. Like a machine that never got tired, but it used the same moves over and over and Reggie learned the pattern by now.

He ducked under a wide sweep he saw coming and his legs gave in. He stumbled on the ground and quickly rolled away out of reach, just to be met face first with the spiked metal head of a mace. The impact to the head hurled him in the air and a few meters away. He crashed to the ground hard and laid motionlessly in the spot where he slid to a stop.

The left side of Reggie’s face was mangled and caved in, his left eye ruptured and he bled from his ear. He blacked out for a minute and when he came to, he saw the outline of two large non-human skeleton frames. The flickering light coming off surrounding fire revealed one of them, who gave him so much trouble, to be a lizardman and the other figure was an orc.

"You're alone Reggie." He heard a voice coming from the third figure approaching. He tried to raise his head but couldn't move. He was paralyzed and the only movement he could make was to follow what's in front with his one and only eye.

"No need to get up. You've… endured a lot - I'll give you that! I've no doubt you have a lot of questions, starting with the two staring down at you from above."

Bones paused and glanced around before continuing.

"The one you've so strenuously fought with is Skully, the Elite Lizardman and the other one is… well, he is a work in progress! Both are my golems and me and you? We had last met earlier today."

[gurgling sounds]

"Yes, it is me! Jones!" Bones exposed himself as the mastermind behind the attack.

"You're the only one left in the camp, Reggie. While you were fighting, I had the orc here go around and finish off everyone else. It took time and a few escaped but…"

Bones shrugged, then continued. "No matter! I looked for Iam in his office but he wasn't there. Couldn't find him elsewhere either - Where is he Reggie?"

[...]

[.....]

[???]

"Ah shit! You can't talk at all!?" Bones exclaimed with wide open arms in incredulity.

*exhales in frustration*

I guess I'll head down to the underground facility. I could've guessed Iam was there. If not..

"Skully, let's go." Bones turned away and started walking in the direction of the tunnel. Skully quickened his steps and followed right from behind. Reggie's breathing finally slowed down. Bleary eyed, he slowly blinked until closing them shut for a few seconds. When he opened them again, he saw time elapse in slow motion. The same spiked metal head that put him in this state, now descended ever so slowly tow -

[splat]

The tunnel leading underground was unguarded, as expected. The orc eventually caught up with Bones and Skully, but stopped dead in his tracks right a few meters away from the entrance. Bones turned around, puzzled why his golem had stopped when he sensed the orc had simply shut down.

"Already out of juice eh?"

Well I didn't expect him to last long on the temporary created nucleus but the duration this time was quite short! It's been what? - Two-three hours?

If I had to guess the reason, I'd say it's due to my low level Create Bone Golem skill. The orc skeleton level might have something to do with it too. Once we finish things here I'll infuse the orc with the mana core and once my [Weakend] status expires, I have to make sure to merge the core with Soul Spark! With two of them by my side, things are looking pretty good!

"You did good… " Bones paused for a second, realizing he didn't give a name to the new golem. "When we finish here, I'll make sure to give you a proper, fitting name!"

He stored the golem safely in inventory then walked over to Skully waiting by the entrance. They both entered the ominously quiet tunnel and started going down the slanted ground. The clear sound of their footsteps echoed as they descended. The absence of a loud grinding, vibrating, whirring and clanking noise of machinery made Bones question whether there is anybody left down there.

Unfortunately, the chaos that ensued above ground didn't escape the notice of the watchful bandits stationed underground. Immediately after entering the facility, a dozen bodies of slaves littering the floor entered Bones' vision. He gave his surroundings a once over and noticed the conveyor was still operating, but didn't see anyone processing the stones - Which was, given the situation, obvious.

It seems that quite the scuffle happened down here, and the bandits seemed to leave in quite a hurry too.

The position of the dead bodies indicated that the slaves tried to run away, and the injuries inflicted indicate they were cut down ruthlessly and without hesitation.

[Bang bang]

The highly sonorous sound drew Bones' attention from his inner thoughts and he followed the hollow sound to the cages at the far end of the facility where slaves frantically charged the iron doors, desperate to knock them off its hinges and set themselves free. Bones sent Skully to go and break the lock with a bunt of his spear while he averted his focus to the enclosed area to the side. He walked over and took a peek inside. The place was trashed with broken equipment, glass cluttering the floor and most of the drug repository wiped clean.

For someone in such a hurry to leave, they sure did a good job cleaning this place.

When he turned around, he saw many of the slaves free and rushing toward the exit. The rest were more vigilant, hesitant to escape and approached the exit with caution. Bones spotted a singularity amidst a group of people. A very young girl, an elf with a tribal tattoo going around her neck and down her back. She noticed him staring and threw him a defiant glare before she, too, ran off. Bones chuckled, then contemplated something for a few seconds before heading straight for the office.

The office was empty, of course, with papers scattered on the floor, chairs knocked down and a desk cracked in two. If Bones knew any better he would think someone was having a hangover fit.

"T-they left through the office!"

Bones glanced at the slim figure of a woman standing by the doorway. When she saw him she hesitantly took a step back and was about to bolt away.

"I've no interest in harming you. You said they left? Who, the guards?" Bones asked. The woman contemplated for a moment before nodding.

"What do you mean they left through the office? Was Iam with them?" Bones continued.

"I-i don't know who Iam is but if you mean their leader then no. He was carried - he was drunk and didn't want to leave so they carried him inside and then, they were gone." The woman calmed down and explained.

They disappeared? A hidden door maybe?

"Do you kno-" Bones started but stopped as the woman had already left while he was focusing on the walls. He looked around but didn't see any obvious signs of the hidden doors. He approached the desk and forcefully opened the drawers, one by one. In the last one at the bottom, he found a ledger and a small wooden plaque on top of it.

"I'll be damned."

Bones picked up the plaque for closer inspection. The plaque seemed like a normal tablet made of wood, the size of a playing card with a Thief's Guild insignia engraved at the center. There wasn't anything special about it which made Bones frown and wonder if it was a fake one. He stored the plaque and picked up a ledger. The book contained a list of various transactions, schedules and notes Bones didn't bother to read right now. He stored the ledger too, then walked over to the doorway and checked to see if everyone had left the facility.

Once he confirmed he was alone, he returned to the office and stopped in front of the back wall. He focused on gathering the mana within, on the feeling of containing it and releasing it all at once in a blast around him.

[Boom]

The shockwave resulting from the Mana Blast rattled the walls of a small enclosed area, causing multiple cracks to appear and posing a danger of a cave-in. Bones stood still for a moment. Waiting to see if it will all come crashing down on him before he inspected the damage done to the walls.

It wasn't enough? If there is a hidden doorway, I would've seen the indications or signs of passage by now. I don't think the walls could handle another Mana Blast.

Bones took a few steps back, hoping to see better from a distance when he tripped on a broken tile and fell backwards down.

[??]

Greatly surprised from the tripping, he stood up and took in sight many broken and cracked tiles you can see through just beneath the barely standing desk. His blast did provide results after all! Bones gripped the sides of the table and flung it at the side wall where the desk hit and broke in half from the impact. Bones crouched and started ripping the damaged tiles off until he made enough of an opening to go through.

"There you are! Soon Iam, soon!" Bones mumbled, then came down the shallow steps into another underground tunnel. The passage was cramped, narrow and allowing for a single person to pass at the time. The stone walls had a rough, uneven surface, and were clearly dug out with the purpose of providing an escape route.

Bones walked down the dark tunnel for around twenty meters when he detected feeble flickering lights coming off the light bulb on the wall, no doubt nearing the end of its course. At the fifty meters mark, the ground inclined and he was now ascending until he reached the steep steps leading outside. Bones climbed the poor made stairs and stepped on the grass and into the forest, most likely on the other side of the valley. He spread out his senses but didn't detect any living presence.

*exhales*

"He escaped I guess. Doesn't matter. I got what I came here for! I do wonder what was in that chest though… What do you think, Skully?"

[...]

"Uh, Skully?" Bones shouted, to no avail. He turned around but Skully wasn’t there. Bones focused so much on the tunnel that he forgot to issue the following order.

Around fifteen minutes later, Bones came back, this time with Skully following behind him. Bones put back on his thick and made-for-winter outfit, goggles and hat, and proceeded through the forest until he found the road. Then continued traveling while taking the bandit's ledger out and skimming through the contents. Iam was meticulous about keeping records and Bones found a particular entry of interest.

At the first signpost, he changed course to a new destination. A small town of Ascot, at the border where the Thief's Guild headquarter was situated and operated.

At the break of dawn, a group of three bandits just returned from their assignment and entered the now burnt down and demolished bandit's camp. There wasn't a single structure left unaffected by the fire but what truly sparked an outrage and expression full of shock and disbelief on their faces was the amount of blood dying the snow red. They drew their weapons, shared a knowing look and a nod, and separated while searching for survivors. They met back in the middle, in front of the remains of what used to be a mess hall and where now lay the mangled body of Reggie.

The three had somber expressions and mixed feelings about everything that transpired the night before. By all means, the bandits were not a family, but Reggie was a comrade in arms and the state they found him in… The only reason they deduced the man lying in front of them was Reggie was because they were familiar with the clothing he wore. The front of his head… was entirely flattened - not a single part resembling a face anymore.

The three were in a quandary on what to do now. Iam wasn't among the dead and they suspected the raid was the work of adventurers coming to claim his head, but the brutality of it all… It looked more like work of the bandits and if it really was another bandit leader that made the move, then the three of them wouldn't be safe no matter where they go. Upon further discussion, they decided to go straight to the Stronghold, a fortress located in the Seven-Hill Range to the east, and seek an audience with the Bandit King.