The crunching of multiple footsteps rang out in the early forest air. The sky is still a heavy blue with the disappearance of the moon. Dew either drips or clung themselves onto the clothing of those brushing past the grown weeds almost a child's height.
Dawn is always the best timing to move without the detection of others. While everyone is worn from the fatigue of yesterday, they move in silence for the completion of their goal.
Xiao Fanyu and the rest of his team scoured the area cautiously while heading towards the location marked on the makeshift map. Silence works hand in hand with alertness in preparation for any possible appearance of enemies.
"We should be almost there," Zhitao murmured while observing the parchment in his hand. "Turn to the right over there. We shouldn't head towards the area facing the entrance of their camp." The group turns to circle around the settlement, choosing to appear from the side instead.
Minutes went past as the journey continued closer to the intended destination when something caught their attention.
"Leader, I think there were people camping here?" Traces of a lit fire were left with its tinders still giving out miniscule heat. Several tracks poorly covered by fallen leaves and dirt remain visible to those with experience.
Seven stretched out a hand to feel the surface of the ground around the campfire. "It's dry." A group clearly has slept here for the night and left only a few minutes before they arrive.
"Could they be a group of bandits?" Xiao Mei asked with her chin resting on an index finger in ponderment.
"Not likely," Seven answered in a confident tone of voice, "if it really were bandits they wouldn't have taken the time to hide their tracks." Would a hunter have any need to mask their tracks from prey they can kill at any time? Plus the footsteps weren't even properly covered. It's probably a crew of fairly weak players, a wonder how they could have survived so far.
"With how terrible they are at remaining hidden it's only a matter of time before they get caught. What should we do, Brother Xiao?" Zhitao turned to look at the man in charge.
"... …"
Xiao Fanyu raked the loose strands of hair away from his face before proceeding to walk, "leave them." In this tower if people are not partners then they are enemies. He does not have the compassion to help each person that crosses his way.
Steps continue forward in a steady fashion disregarding the fleeting image of a slender figure flashing past his mind.
Twenty minutes later.
The grass parted to reveal the bandit's hideout from a distance away. No one could be seen other than the two figures guarding the entranceway while drinking with leisure ease. Perhaps the bandits would not have imagined that there would be players brave enough to approach their encampment.
The area is tranquil enough that a normal person without knowledge of this place would assume it to be a comforting village.
"Good thing they are all asleep right now, which makes things much easier." Zhitao observed the scene before him as he spewed out a chain of commands. "Xiao Mei and Seven should observe the camp starting from the left while me and Cipher will go to the right. Brother Xiao should stay here in case anything were to happen." Staring at the only female in the group, the teenager spoke in a profound voice, "everyone should meet up again in half an hour. Try not to do anything that will endanger our lives."
With a twitch of thin eyebrows, an annoyed hiss rang out with a restrained snarl. "What do you mean by that!?" The young woman flared up with a glare. If Seven hadn't stopped her actions she definitely would have pounced on the kid.
"I'm not sure why you are so angry?" The teen asked with an innocent expression, pupils widening with collected moisture. "I wasn't saying this specifically to anyone in particular. Are your conscience acting up?" Pretending to wipe away the nonexistent tears on his face, the teen shrugged his shoulders with a hopeless sigh before giving a quick glance of pity.
As if unable to see the tenseness of the situation, Cipher stood up with a nod towards his leader before striding away. This movement marks the beginning of their plans to discover traces regarding an escape route.
_____
Unknown by the group that were busy with the discussion amongst themselves. A pair of clear pupils stare from above at a distance close enough to hear the details of their conversation.
"... …"
That figure maintained the posture of resting their face on top of their arms in a fetal position. Beady irises stare unblinking at the strong frame crouching with all the attention focused at the settlement.
The branch from under supported her whole weight in silent comfort as she shifts.
_____
"I haven't seen anything with a resemblance of a strange door or pathway inside." Cipher informed with Zhitao, "the camp is mostly made up of tents taken from other players and a loosely combined barrier made of wood."
"Probably the only place that could be hidden is the Chief's house?" Seven guessed with uncertainty. Droopy eyes slanted a glance in the direction of the settlement before adding information from his own discovery. "We haven't found anything worth mentioning on our side as well. Although we did find an abandoned corpse covered by some bushes." Rummaging through his pockets, the middle-aged man retrieved a small golden ring as evidence.
"The dead body does not look like a player nor does he seem to be associated with the bandits. Other than this ring on its body, there are no other items worth looking at. I suspect someone might have already searched through that corpse before us."
Moving on…
The settlement is not at all very complicated as the oval-shaped place is surrounded by a wooden barrier. The only entrance is the one at the front with two lazy guards keeping watch. Tents, discarded bones, clothes, and trash litter the whole area which oozes with a disgusting smell of rotten waste.
The only dwelling that is not a tent would be the dilapidated wooden house located right behind a throne made of bones. Placed near the center of the camp, those tents circle around as if trying to protect something from others.
"If the door really is in there then we need to find out." The team rummaged through their memories to form a plausible plan.
Abruptly, as if recalling something, Xiao Mei reached into her bag to pull out a round object. With the diameter of a green golf ball this item snuggles on the palm of her hand.
"How about I bomb them with this?" Small but powerful in strength this mini explosive is much more dangerous than how it looks on the outside. "I still have a few more in my inventory." The young woman declared with a proud smirk lifted on her face.
"Wow~" Zhitao exclaimed in amusement, "that's nice. What do you think?" Eyes slanting to the side where Xiao Fanyu is, the teen asked for the opinion of his peer.
"It's plausible." Nodding in approval, Xiao Fanyu immediately thought of a plan, "let's do this. How many do you have in total?" Counting with a total of five mini explosives at hand, the group made a quick plan. "Xiao Mei and Seven will each take a direction of the settlement to position at. When I give the signal, each of you will throw a bomb towards the camp. This sudden attack will surely cause alarm to the sleeping bandits, it would be even better if a few died during that time."
"Amidst the confusion I will show myself to them and try to divert their attention away from the camp. I'm not sure how many would follow but while some leave the camp, Cipher will sneak in to investigate the cabin while Zhitao goes on a lookout for approaching enemies." Pausing for a few seconds to ruminate the words said, the young man then ended the conversation with one last warning. "This plan was made too abrupt, that's why there might be problems we might have overlooked. If any unforeseeable circumstances arise..."
The young man's phoenix eyes narrow with a sharp glint hardened by trails marked by blood. "Survive. Only the living has the luxury of the last laugh."
This statement is akin to a hammer that pounded on the surface of their beating heart.
Survival.
The calmness of each person's eyes changed to an unwavering determination to live as they clench their palms tight.
"Phff! Don't worry Brother Xiao, I've had enough of those stinky bandits for a while now. Let me show you how many I can take down before fleeing!"
This statement successfully caused a simple wave of amused chuckles to ring amongst them.
Seeing the results caused by his speech, Xiao Fanyu stood up with a satisfied stretch of indolence. Rolling out the tense muscles concentrated on the neck and shoulders, this careless motion lacks solemnity. But is it also due to the confidence of these set of actions that settled the taut minds of his teammates.
Giving out a light smile, Seven also copied the actions of his Leader to sweep away the stress. "The Leader always gives me a sense of peace."
Soon, the group split in preparation for the proceeding plan.
"... …"
Xiao Fanyu stares emotionless at the quiet camp before him, fingers fiddling the round object like a harmless toy. Listening to any sound of unusual noises or movement with closed eyes, those dark pupils of his gradually reopens. Sharp eyesight caught the signal from the right given from Seven then the one from the left.
Assuming Zhitao and Cipher had also arrived on point, the youth took a deep breath. Cold irises flash with a tint of excitement and expectation as his hold on the bomb tightened.
One step.
Two steps then three.
Standing at a distance close enough to throw but far enough to run when there is a chance. Xiao Fanyu chuckled in a mocking manner when those two guards still had not detected his presence.
'How foolish,' he scoffed in his mind.
Perhaps they won't even know what happened even till the last moment their vision blackens.
And truthfully, that was exactly what their last thoughts centered upon because the moment those two guards finally sensed the change.
The deafening sound of the explosion swallowed them whole.