The Wrong Hero

Chapter 13 - Satisfaction of a Sort

The first part of the plan was easy enough to enact. They went to the opposite end of town and took out the two mercenaries posted at the entrance. Sadeena rode on Dio while Keel was on JoJo, both chasing down the hidden members of the ambush group. It was a bit anticlimactic seeing them get run down like that. Dante didn't know what level these guys were, but it couldn't have been over 20. Or, maybe they were, and the stat gains were better than he originally thought. Whatever the case, everyone had gained a level from those 10 mercenaries.

When they returned to the town center, everyone there was ready. Rokkar and the ones who had combat experience took up positions for the ambush. There were only 11 warriors among them. Dante's party hid nearby, keeping a view of the roadway to the mansion. Some of the civilians started making a ruckus to draw out the guards. After a few minutes, men and women on horses came down. There were 10 in total, galloping rather close together.

With a formation like that, Dante altered the plan. Originally, they were going to wait for them to come right to the center and then surround them, cutting off their escape. But, if they wanted to pack so close together like that...

"Air Strike Shield IV!" Dante loosed his skill parallel to the ground. He had it a couple feet in the air, obstructing the path of the horses. The first four riders tumbled to the ground with their mounts, with another one not changing course in time and trampling one of his comrades. The others were able to continue to the center.

Arrows flew through the air at the downed mercenaries. These ones were better protected, having more metal in the armor, plus a few had helmets. However, even with that, they still took noticeable damage. Dante saw one in particular get an arrow through the eye, courtesy of the tanner.

When the arrows stopped, JoJo ran towards them with Rifana and Keel. The rest went after the ones that were surrounded in the center of town.

The axe Rokkar used was no halberd, but he was still able to hook a mercenary from his horse and throw him to the ground. He and two others hacked at the dropped mercenary, killing him in short order. When Rokkar turned around to find more enemies, a mercenary was almost upon him with her longsword drawn.

"Shield Prison IV!" The metal cage appeared between Rokkar and the mounted mercenary. She was flung from her horse as it collided with the prison. Rokkar gave a nod as he brought his axe down on this one as well.

Sadeena launched from Dio, harpoon in hand. "Zweite Thunderbolt" She finished her chant, striking a mercenary with her spell before finishing him with her harpoon.

As they rode by, Raphtalia slashed at another mounted mercenary as they tried to turn their steed around. He was knocked from the horse and held a hand to his side, trying to slow the bleeding. One of the townsfolk took a spear and thrust it into the mercenary's chest.

With their numbers being cut down so quickly, the remaining mercenaries tried to escape, but were unable. Any that were still on horses had their mounts killed from under them with arrows. Those on foot were run down by either Dio or JoJo.

The battle was already over. In the party, no injuries. For the townsfolk, a few injuries, no deaths. As for the ten mercenaries, nine were dead and one was injured with his wrists and ankles bound. Dante looked down at him.

"Listen," he began, taking a knee next to the bound man, "I've killed and tortured a number of people since coming here. A lot more than I thought I would. What do you say we skip the torture for you and you just tell me what I want to know, yeah?"

The man stared back at him, grimacing. He slowly nodded his head.

"Smart man." Dante stood. "So, about your friends..."