At the edge of the forest, the battle had erupted into a frenzy of steel and blood. Roderick's men, Awakened warriors, tore through the bandit ranks with precision and ferocity.
While they were not the strongest, as many of the town's forces were sent to the battlefield, they were all trained warriors who had worked under a knight like Roderick.
Their blades gleamed in the early light of dawn, cutting down bandits left and right as they surged forward toward Korvan's hideout.
The forest floor was slick with blood, and the cries of the dying echoed through the trees. Bandits fell one after another, desperately calling for reinforcements, but the attack had come too swiftly. They hadn't expected such a well-coordinated assault, and their panic was palpable.
"Help! Get the others!" one bandit screamed as he clutched a gaping wound in his side, his face pale with fear.
