Chapter 17: The Bait
I've always had this side to my personality, where I become excessively cool-headed and emotionless in stressful or emergency situations.
This trait has helped me solve various problems since I fell into this world, but I felt it had also become somewhat sharper, perhaps due to the influence of the Outer God.
'But, I’m not really excited about this mission.'
I was currently walking with heavy steps toward a place famous for the appearance of bandits.
Were it not for the talk of a black market in the coastal city, I might have avoided this kind of thing as much as possible.
'Of course, I heard that these men are particularly fierce...'
Fierce to the point that they were famous not just for simple robbery, but for cases of murder for pleasure and rape.
"Luminaris" should have sent a subjugation force a long time ago, but a combination of factors—lack of personnel, the remote location of this area, and the fact that they only recently started their rampages—allowed them to continue their spree.
'Ander said it’s best to eliminate them all, but applying private justice without any kind of trial...'
The source of this information was Ander.
He managed to convey information about the villains who deserved removal via Layla's pet owl.
'I want to avoid this if I can... but I have no choice. I must harden my heart to survive, and to achieve my goal.'
To ensure the success of this plan, I had already laid out every detail meticulously.
But my facial expressions must have looked very troubled, because Talia spoke up.
"......Are you alright?"
"Yes, I’m fine. I’m sure everything will be okay."
I said, without looking at Talia.
'I’m supposed to be playing a role, what are you doing asking me if I’m okay? Well, I suppose this much doesn't matter.'
There was something more bothersome than Talia’s simple slip of the tongue.
At the moment, Talia was a bit intimidating.
A sense of tension and embarrassment was evident in her voice as well.
"They said it was a safe road."
"And with this appearance, no one will notice a thing. Don't worry about it, all we have to do is go and find him."
Talia answered in a deep, heavy voice that she understood.
A meaningless conversation, lines I had written for the plan.
And regardless of Talia's awkward acting...
'......Why did she have to look like this?'
The Talia before me now was not the blonde girl I knew, but a large, muscular man.
That was the result of using a transformation potion I managed to get from Layla.
'I, on the other hand, chose this look on purpose.'
A handsome young man with black hair and green eyes.
According to Layla, transformation potions were expensive and hard to come by, so she couldn’t be picky about the appearance of Talia's potion.
Nonetheless, for a girl in the prime of her youth to end up with this look...
'At least Talia seems to like it, which is a relief.'
Before we set off, as I was explaining the plan and the lines she needed to memorize, I finally had to ask.
-So... are you okay, Talia? I've thought about it over and over, but you really drew the short straw with this look.
-I like it. I look like a warrior.
-......Really?
-Yes! I feel like I could beat up those kids who used to mock me for not having parents!
Even though it was fake, Talia smiled as she flexed her bulging muscles.
'Well, this look does suit the plan.'
I deliberately placed my hands on my waist, raised a finger, and began to speak in a rather obnoxious tone.
"You know the agreement, right? You have to protect me, no matter what. And be careful not to scratch that precious cargo! My plan is perfect, so nothing should happen, but still—"
"Hey, you! Stop right there!"
What perfect timing.
Bandits.
"Tell your porter to put down all the bags. Unless you want an arrow in your knee."
Why an arrow in the knee, of all places?
An annoying voice echoed from somewhere among the bushes and rugged rocks.
They must think they are well-hidden as they aim at me.
"B-bandits? But they said in the village that this road was safe...!"
A mocking laugh answered my words.
This was the moment the extra info I requested from Ander paid off.
It seems the bandits plant people in places like taverns to lure passing merchants by recommending the route as a safe one.
'I’m the person who fell for the trick. A clumsy, naive young master wearing ragged clothes that can’t entirely hide his noble features. But that’s not all.'
I reminded myself of my role and continued acting calmly.
"Talia, get ready to fight! We must protect that trust, no matter what!"
In fact, the bag Talia was carrying contained nothing but some tree branches to bulk it out.
I rushed toward Talia, looking around anxiously like a cornered rat.
"What are you doing, Talia! You have to get ready to fight!"
"Ah... alright..."
"Do I have to explain again how important that trust is? It would be an honor for you to protect it with your worthless life!"
As I was intentionally shouting with a tremble in my voice, Talia looked at me, stunned by my acting.
"I’ll give you money! Whatever you ask!"
I was intentionally showing discord.
No matter how degenerate bandits are, they don’t want to get hurt or take unnecessary risks.
"Are you going to stand there and watch me fall into danger?!"
This time, I made my voice sharp. Talia opened her mouth, looking rather confused.
"M-ma'am? I told you this plan was reckless. If we face bandits—"
"You stupid, dullard! Why are you calling me that!"
With that, I piqued their interest.
To prevent the bandits from rushing in immediately.
To allow them to gather enough information as I intended.
I covered up Talia's awkward acting by scolding her.
"I told you to fight with your life on the line... hاه? What are you doing now!"
Talia dropped the bag and started running for her life.
I had no intention of letting Talia participate in the upcoming battle.
"No! You ungrateful...!"
I feigned a sense of betrayal.
Then, immediately, despair.
"Get back! Don’t come closer! If you touch me, 'Luminaris' will come for you!"
Exactly when I thought the time had come, my hair began to grow.
The black hair turned into long blonde locks, and my skin became smoother as my features softened.
"Seems you tried to be clever, little one? Turns out you're just a stupid bitch who thinks she's smart."
The short-lived effect of the second potion faded, and the form of my first transformation appeared.
Layla had grumbled about why I was wasting money this way, but seeing the bandits reveal themselves and approach, it was clear the effect was perfect.
'A foolish young lady who got herself into danger due to a poor plan. Do they really think someone like this exists?'
No, it's more accurate that they wish someone like that existed.
And here I have fulfilled that wish perfectly.
"Hehe... boss! Isn't this a real stroke of luck?"
"What are you looking at, you dog? I'll pluck those eyes out right away."
Oh, the boss is here too.
The gang wasn't large originally, numbering no more than twelve people at most.
"Grant me the blessing that leads to the darkest depths. <Forbidden Transformation>. "
After reciting the prayer just in case, I stood up on my feet.
When my face—which I had deliberately scowled to look as if I had been crying—appeared, the bandits' joy increased even more...
"......Huh?"
In the next moment, my robe absorbed the hand of the bandit who had reached toward me.
"W-what is this!"
"That bastard, his arm...?"
The bandit, whose arm was devoured in an instant, collapsed to the ground, blood gushing everywhere.
"You... damn bitch!"
The whistle of a club echoed in the air as it swung toward me.
But my robe moved on its own, and its edge extended like a tentacle to catch the weapon and crush it.
"This is a witch! She tricked us!"
"But, just one bitch like this...!"
The robe shot out a tentacle, piercing through a bandit's head.
The tentacle wriggled, wrapping around his head before severing his neck completely. Then the severed head disappeared under the hem of the robe.
"Grab her all at once!"
Fools.
Exactly as expected of thugs who lived in corruption without knowing their place, they were still rushing toward me, believing they could win.
They swung their swords toward my head, and arrows were launched from the back.
Of course, my superior robe easily blocked the attacks, and the arrows failed to penetrate it.
"What is that damn piece of cloth!"
The bandits fell one by one before the robe's tentacles.
I killed one or two, but for the rest, I settled for crippling them by breaking their legs or tearing their tendons.
"Seems my acting skills are still alright."
After successfully hunting the bandits, I sighed with relief.
I hadn't done something like this since high school, so I was worried I might have lost my touch, but fortunately, that wasn't the case.
'At this rate, I shouldn't face any problems in the future. I should practice different roles on thieves from time to time.'
Once she confirmed from a distance that the situation was under control, Talia returned, dragging her bear-like body.
"Well, it worked."
"Mm... it worked very well."
"Wasn't that a bit overkill?"
At Talia's words, I glanced at the scattered bandits.
"No, not that, I mean you, sir. Did you really need to stack two transformations like that?"
Talia was asking if it wouldn't have been better to walk around as a woman from the start.
"They would have been more cautious then. This way, it looked like my transformation had faded and all my tricks had been revealed. This makes them think there’s nothing left to be cautious of."
"Wow... seriously, why do you put in all this effort?"
Talia said, shaking her head in disbelief.
"We even hid in the forest to transform, then went back to the witch's house. And we had that conversation about the witch evaluating the trust."
"Yes, we did."
"We even stopped at the village tavern we didn't need to go to, just to hear the false information the bandits were spreading."
"It's good to be thorough. Especially since we are targeted by 'Luminaris' and mercenaries."
I said, using the robe's tentacles to gather the bandits in one place.
"Thanks to all that, I was able to make sure there wasn't anyone else watching us."
Talia tilted her head, asking what I meant by that.
"If someone other than the bandits were following us, they would have attacked the bandits to 'save' us. It would have been a perfect opportunity to claim a large reward."
Of course, this wouldn't have worked on someone who could see through the transformation, or someone who had been tracking us stealthily from the start.
But there was nothing I could do about a case like that anyway.
"Sir, what did you do for a living...?"
Well... many things happened.
I remembered a past I didn't want to recall and sighed.
"Ah... sir? You damn pervert!"
I thought I had subdued them all.
One of the bandits stood up, raised a dagger, and rushed directly at me.
"......Ah."
I didn't want Talia to see this.
The robe got excited at the taste of blood and acted first, swallowing the bandit whole.
With a sickening crunching sound, the robe devoured the bandit, and he died without even letting out a proper scream.
"Ah... a pervert, he called me."
I said with a wronged look, but Talia nodded in agreement.
"He was a bit of a pervert."
"......Just go and watch. Don't even think about coming closer until I give the signal."
I looked at the gathered bandits and sighed.
"Because now I must summon them again."
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