The Smiling Death

"So, where is this village chief?" Amon asked as he walked beside Marcus.

"How would I know?" Marcus replied with an annoyed sigh, clearly growing tired of Amon’s endless questions.

"Well you are the great Marcus. Thought you are all knowing."

"Shut up!" Marcus said loudly..

But clearly it had no effect on Amon. He was really a thick skinned man.

"Wait. I’ll ask someone," Seraphina said.

She walked over to a middle-aged villager standing nearby.

Ever since the group had entered the village, many of the villagers had been secretly glancing at them with expressions of curiosity and admiration.

Their clean and expensive looking clothes made them look different from all villagers.

After exchanging a few words with the villager, Seraphina returned to the group.

"The village chief’s house isn’t far from here," she said.

"Sera~ you are a life saver. You deserve to be our team leader. You are the best." Amon as usual didn’t let go of his chance to praise Seraphina.

She gave him soft smile in return. Then said,"Let’s go."

The five students continued walking through the peaceful village.

The atmosphere was calm and relaxing.

Children played happily along the dirt roads while farmers worked in the nearby fields.

The gentle spring breeze carried countless cherry blossom petals through the air, creating an almost dreamlike scenery.

Before long, they arrived in front of a large two-story wooden house surrounded by a spacious and well-maintained garden.

Compared to the other homes in the village, it was noticeably larger, though it still retained the simple charm of countryside architecture.

"This should be it," Seraphina said.

She stepped forward and knocked gently on the wooden door.

A few moments later, it opened.

Standing there was a woman who appeared to be in her forties. Her dark brown hair had begun to show a few silver streaks, a subtle sign that age was gradually catching up with her. Her calm gray eyes swept over the five young visitors before a warm smile appeared on her face.

"Oh my," she said kindly. "You must be the students from the academy who accepted our request, aren’t you?"

Seraphina smiled politely and nodded.

"Yes. We are."

"I’m glad you’ve arrived."

The woman stepped aside and gestured for them to enter.

"Please, come in."

The group thanked her before walking inside.

The interior of the house was modest yet welcoming. Everything was clean and neatly arranged, giving the place a warm family atmosphere.

She led them into a spacious living room where several simple wooden sofas had been arranged around a low table.

As everyone took their seats, another person entered the room.

He was a middle-aged man who appeared to be around the same age as the woman. Carrying a wooden tray filled with cups of freshly brewed tea, he greeted the students with a gentle smile before placing the tray on the table.

"Please, help yourselves."

The woman smiled.

"My name is Sarah."

She gestured toward the man beside her.

"And this is my husband, Toren."

Toren gave them a small nod in greeting. He sat beside Sarah.

Sarah then continued.

"I am the village chief of Eriye. It was I who submitted the mission request to the academy."

The group introduced themselves one by one before Amon decided to ask the question that had been on everyone’s mind.

"Could you tell us everything you know about the bandits?"

Sarah’s warm expression gradually became serious.

She took a slow breath before answering.

"The group consists of eight people. They’re a relatively small bandit group, but that doesn’t make them any less dangerous."

"They usually ambush traveling carriages and rob merchants or ordinary travelers."

She paused briefly before continuing.

"They’ve also robbed some of our villagers whenever someone traveled alone. Fortunately... they’ve never directly attacked the village itself."

For a brief moment, silence filled the room.

Then Sarah lowered her gaze.

"...But they still took someone from us."

The students immediately became serious.

"A few weeks ago," she continued quietly, "one of the young women from our village went into the nearby forest to gather medicinal herbs."

"She never came back. We searched everywhere for her..."

Her voice trembled slightly.

"...A few days later, we found her body floating in the nearby river."

The room fell completely silent.

Sarah clenched her hands tightly.

"...She had been sexually assaulted by them and then they murdered her."

A heavy silence filled the living room.

Amon slowly clenched his fists.

Marcus’s expression turned cold.

Aisha’s eyes burned with anger.

Even Eliana lowered her head sadly.

Seraphina quietly closed her eyes for a brief moment before opening them again.

None of them interrupted Sarah.

She took another deep breath before continuing.

"Our village is small. We survive through farming."

She gave a bitter smile.

"Very few people here pursue strength or combat training. Those who possess talent usually leave the village in search of better opportunities. To become adventurers."

She continued further. "We simply don’t have enough capable fighters to deal with a group of armed bandits."

"So..."

She looked directly at the students.

"We had no choice but to seek the academy’s help."

Toren who sat beside her spoke."They continue attacking travelers, especially during the night. They’ve also stolen livestock, crops, and supplies from the village on several occasions."

Seraphina nodded calmly.

"We understand the situation, Chief Sarah."

She spoke with quiet confidence.

"We’ll do everything we can to resolve this matter. Whether that means capturing them alive...or eliminating them."

Sarah and Toren looked at the five young students before smiling gratefully.

"Thank you. Knowing that the academy sent all of you here already gives our villagers hope."

She slowly stood up.

"In the meantime, please make yourselves comfortable. You may rest here for a while or look around the village if you’d like."

She smiled warmly at them.

"In meantime my husband and I will prepare a place for all of you to stay during your mission."

The group nodded appreciatively.

"Thank you very much," Seraphina replied politely.