According to the Red Widow scouts, a carriage carrying the season's final tax collection would be transported to the central treasury early the next morning. It was a massive sum, enough to cripple Count Henry's operations if stolen.
The entire camp was buzzing with preparation. Maps were drawn in the dirt, weapons sharpened, and horses groomed. Brenda, Zofia, and Nathan huddled over the main map, finalizing the interception point.
"The convoy will pass through the wheat fields just after dawn," Brenda explained, tapping the map. "It's the only place they'll feel safe enough to lower their guard. We hit them fast, disguise ourselves as the guards, and ride right into the treasury."
"And once we're inside?" Nathan asked, tracing the route.
"We take everything that isn't nailed down," Zofia said with a smirk. "And Brenda gets the ledger. Proof of his corruption."
"Exactly," Brenda nodded. She stood up, raising a large tankard. "Let's raise a glass to boost our spirits for tomorrow!"
"Hey ho!" The bandits cheered, their voices echoing through the trees.
Zofia hesitated. "We act early tomorrow morning; is drinking now okay?"
Brenda laughed, slapping her on the back. "Don't worry, they're used to it. These men need a little booze to keep the nerves steady. Besides, a happy bandit is a loyal bandit."
Zofia nodded and downed her drink in one gulp. The ale burned, but she felt nothing. Poison Resistance is handy, she thought. However, she knew appearances mattered. She swayed slightly, pretending the alcohol had hit her hard, to avoid Brenda enthusiastically pouring another round.
As the night deepened, the camp fell silent. Drunken bandits snored around the dying fires. Only Zofia remained awake. She climbed the wooden watchtower, the cool night air clearing her head. She gazed at the starry sky, wondering what her parents were doing right now. Did they miss her? Or were they just relieved the "odd" daughter was gone?
The next morning, the air was crisp and cold. Everyone was fully equipped, the scent of leather and steel replacing the smell of booze. Although it was just a theft mission, the entire camp had to be ready to face soldiers in case things went south.
The ambush went perfectly. As soon as the carriage crossed the golden wheat field, the Red Widows rushed out. They overwhelmed the soldiers and the driver before they could even draw their swords.
"Strip them!" Brenda ordered.
The bandits quickly donned the soldiers' uniforms. It wasn't a perfect fit, but from a distance, it would pass. They hid the real soldiers in the field, gagged and bound.
Zofia and Brenda climbed inside the carriage, replacing the tax officials. The rest of the "soldiers" took their positions around the carriage, and the convoy continued moving towards Burvioriola city as if nothing had happened.
They passed through the city gates without issue. The guards, bored and tired, merely waved the familiar tax carriage through.
They pulled up to the treasury, a squat stone building reinforced with iron bars.
"Open up! Special delivery for the Count!" one of the disguised bandits shouted.
The heavy doors creaked open. As soon as the carriage was inside, the trap was sprung.
"Now!"
The group acted immediately. The treasury guards were knocked out and tied up before they could sound the alarm. It was surgical.
"Load it up!" Brenda commanded.
While the bandits began hauling chests of gold onto the cart, Brenda moved to the back office. She tore through the desk, looking for the ledgers.
"Got you," she whispered, pulling out a stack of documents stamped with the Count's seal.
She opened the first folder. Her face fell.
It was blank.
She opened the next. Blank. And the next. They were all just scrap paper.
"What?" Brenda muttered, a cold dread settling in her stomach. "This... this is a trap."
"Brenda! We have a problem!" Zofia shouted from the main hall.
Brenda rushed out. "There's definitely a mole in the gang."
The main iron doors slammed shut. The side doors burst open.
Hundreds of soldiers poured into the treasury, lining the upper walkways and blocking every exit. They were armed with heavy crossbows and spears.
From the balcony above, a slow clap echoed.
"Ha ha ha, Brenda... Brenda... Brenda... so naive."
A man stepped out from behind the soldiers. He wore fine silk clothes that clashed with his rough, scarred face.
Brenda's eyes widened. "Ajeno?"
It was her second-in-command. The man who had ridden beside her for five years.
"So it was you," Brenda hissed, her voice trembling with rage. "I treated you like a brother! I saved you from the gutter! And you betray us to work for that pig Henry?"
Ajeno leaned over the railing, a smug grin on his face. "You're naive again, Brenda. I have no grudge against the Count; quite the opposite. You see, the Count's daughter and I... we're in love. Well, I'm in love with her dowry, mainly. But this?" He gestured to the trapped bandits. "This is just a small gift for my future father-in-law to prove my loyalty."
"Scum!"
Brenda roared, her control snapping. She didn't think; she just acted. She sprinted toward the stairs, intent on ripping his throat out.
"Fire!" Ajeno ordered casually.
A volley of crossbow bolts rained down.
Brenda didn't even have time to dodge. In an instant, her body was riddled with arrows. She staggered, looking like a pin cushion, and fell to her knees.
"Boss!"
"Madam Brenda!"
The bandits screamed in horror. Zofia froze. But then, something impossible happened.
Brenda didn't fall. She groaned, a low, guttural sound. The muscles in her back rippled. Slowly, one by one, the arrows were pushed out of her flesh as if rejected by her body. The wounds hissed and closed up before their eyes.
"What is that?" Zofia gasped. "System, analyze Brenda!"
"Answer. Brenda Ymur, Amber-rank ex-adventurer. Level: Unknown. Attribute: Wood. Class: Berserker."
"Berserker has regeneration?"
"Answer. Affirmative. Because she possesses the Wood attribute, her class's natural resilience is amplified. Her recovery ability rivals a high-level healing mage, though it is limited to self-healing only."
Brenda stood up, panting, her eyes glowing with a terrifying green light. She ripped the last arrow from her shoulder and snapped it in half.
"Ha ha ha!" she laughed, a sound devoid of humor. "Did you think I'd be defeated that easily, Ajeno? If it were that simple, the Red Widow gang would have been dead decades ago!"
Ajeno's smug grin vanished. "Kill her! Kill that bitch!"
"Attack!" Brenda roared.
The treasury erupted into chaos. The bandits, rallied by their leader's invincibility, charged the soldiers.
Zofia knew she couldn't hold back. "Nathan, protect Brenda's flank! I'll handle crowd control!"
"Sure!"
Zofia slammed her staff down.
"Earth Trap!"
The stone floor rippled and grabbed the ankles of the charging soldiers, tripping them. But there were too many. For every soldier they knocked down, two more took their place.
Brenda was a whirlwind of violence. She punched a soldier so hard his breastplate caved in. She took a spear to the gut, pulled it out, and stabbed the attacker with it, her wound healing instantly. But even she was tiring.
"We can't win this!" Zofia shouted over the din. "We need to leave!"
"No! I want his head!" Brenda screamed, eyes fixed on Ajeno.
"If you die here, he wins!" Zofia yelled back. "Should we fire the signal flare for reinforcements?"
"No!" Brenda grunted, blocking a sword strike with her bare forearm. "There must be an ambush outside; he knew our plan inside out. If the others come, they'll be slaughtered. There's no choice now but to carve a bloody path out."
"Okay," Zofia said, scanning the room. "I'll make a hole. Wait for my signal."
Zofia closed her eyes, gathering her mana. She ignored the screams, the clash of steel. She focused on the structural weakness of the side wall.
"Earth Trap"
The skill created a shallow pit under the wall and a hole was created just enough for one person to crawl through.
"Go! Now!"
Brenda knocked down three soldiers with a sweeping kick. "Everyone! Retreat!"
She grabbed a stunned bandit and threw him through the hole, then charged out herself, essentially acting as a human battering ram. Nathan and Zofia followed close behind, covering the retreat.
Outside was chaos. Rows of crossbowmen lined the nearby rooftops, waiting for them.
"They anticipated the breach!" Nathan yelled, deflecting a bolt.
Zofia grit her teeth.
"Water Blade!"
She swept her staff in a wide arc. A crescent of high-pressure water sliced through the air, cutting through the crossbows on the nearest roof. Screams replaced the twang of bowstrings.
An arrow flew in from a blind spot and embedded itself in Zofia's shoulder.
"Argh!" She stumbled, her concentration breaking.
"Zofia!" Nathan was at her side instantly.
"I'm fine!" she hissed, snapping the shaft off. "Just angry!"
She raised her hand to the sky.
"Lightning Strike!"
She didn't aim. She just called down the storm. Bolts of lightning crashed down randomly, turning the street into a flashing nightmare. The soldiers scrambled for cover under the eaves.
"Run!"
Brenda led the charge, smashing through a barricade at the city gate. They sprinted into the open fields, diving into the tall, dense corn stalks just as the city alarm bells began to toll.