Chapter 195 – Up In Flames.

“The possession skill must have formed a connection with the god of blood. Quite fascinating.”

A wisp of black light drifted around Rusty as he picked himself up. The five cult members who had followed them and the bandits were defeated, but the visions still troubled him. Worse, he could not absorb any of the enemies’ skills.

“It is not fascinating at all.”

Rusty said this as he dragged a cultist’s body and laid it with the others. These people had trailed him and could make corpses speak, so he planned to burn them all.

“(ᵕ—ᴗ—)”

“It is okay, Gleam. I can carry them myself, but I will need you to cast a fire spell on them after I finish.”

“(˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)”

Rusty placed the last cultist among the others and stepped back. The pile before them contained not only the cultists but also most of the bandits he had stripped, including their leader. His guides had advised him that burning everyone together would draw less suspicion than targeting only the cultists. It was a tedious task, but after about an hour he finally gathered them all.

“Good. Now don’t forget the flammable oil, the wood will do the rest.”

Alexander’s white light brightened the area slightly as he spoke out.

“I know.”

Rusty found a barrel filled with oil that had been used for the torches and poured it over the pile of dead bodies. Once everything was ready, it was Gleam’s turn to act. She stepped closer and prepared a sparkling spell. Lifting her head high, she exhaled a wide burst of fire that struck the pile and instantly ignited it.

“I’m glad I can’t smell this…”

The flames consumed the pile of corpses with a sharp hiss. The fire spread quickly and grew into a roaring inferno. Gleam reduced the strength of her flames once the wood and other materials Rusty had added began to burn on their own. Soon, a massive blaze filled the center of the bandit camp, consuming everything and everyone that had been part of it.

Although many lives had ended that day, Rusty found himself thinking that the fire looked beautiful. The flames danced and shimmered as the first light of dawn touched the horizon. While he watched the fire, he also took a moment to examine the new skill he had gained during the mission.

There was also a second skill connected to his puppeted armors.

The next skill was interesting, although he was not sure how useful it would be. The main issue was that he rarely used his puppet armor ability. It consumed too much of his precious mana, and the puppets he created were not very strong. He could usually defeat monsters on his own much faster.

Still, if he ever learned to control a large number of puppets, they could become a real advantage. His eyes were different from other people’s, and in theory, he could use his puppets to see the blind spots of others as well as his own. It might even be possible to position a puppet behind him to watch his back and warn him of any approaching ambushes.

These were the only two new skills he had received, and his level was now above twenty. He would reach the next threshold soon, but the system was not offering him much in terms of power. He was not sure if that was entirely a bad thing, since he often neglected some of his existing skills anyway.

“We should not waste time here. Free the prisoners, Rusty, and let us retreat for now. I am sure someone will come once they notice the smoke.”

Alexander called out to him as he looked through his skills. Rusty turned from the flames and glanced toward the darker edge of the camp where the prisoners had been kept. The main problem was the wooden cabin where the bandit leader had stayed, which stood close to the burning pile of corpses. There was someone inside, so he needed to get them out first.

“Ah, I should probably disguise myself first and Gleam, hide for now.”

“( •̀ ᴗ •́ )و”

After activating his loadouts, he changed into a set of armor commonly worn by adventurers and wanderers. He covered it with a plain black robe and made his way toward the bandit leader’s home. With a strong kick, he sent the door flying open. Inside, he saw a naked woman trembling and crying on the bed. Her arms and legs were bound, and her wrists were bloody, showing that she had desperately tried to escape.

“W-what, who are you? What is happening? P-please, no.”

“This woman seems terrified. We need to set her free.”

Alexander remarked as Rusty stepped inside. Rusty did not free her right away. Instead, he looked around the cabin, which was cluttered with empty ale tankards. The bandit leader had spoken of a treasure and claimed to have hidden it somewhere, but his guides believed he was lying.

“She can wait. We should find the treasure first. I am sure that greedy bandit hid it here,”

Said Aburdon as he urged Rusty to search the area. His reasoning made sense. The cabin was accessible only to the leader and no one else. It would be more logical to keep his valuables here than to bury them somewhere in the forest where other bandits might find them. The leader was probably never alone except when he was here, which could only mean one thing.

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“Oh…”

As Rusty searched the cabin, turning everything upside down and making the woman even more anxious, he noticed something unusual. There was an object beneath the bed that looked out of place.

“Ahhh! No, please!”