Under the influence of the Absolute Stealth skill, Wolvin continued to walk toward the glow of light at the end of the cave corridor with entirely silent footsteps. Not a single pebble shifted, nor could the sound of his breathing be heard.
As the stone corridor narrowed and then widened again, a fairly spacious natural chamber laid out before his eyes.
From where he stood, Wolvin swept his gaze around. On the right side of the room, not far from a burning torch hanging on the moss-covered cave wall, he saw two men standing guard. The two bandits sat leaning against the stone wall, appearing off guard and bored as they occasionally gulped water from their leather pouches.
However, it was the sight on the left and right sides of the cave that made Wolvin's jaw harden slightly.
There was a row of prisons made of thick iron bars embedded directly into the cave walls. Inside those dirty and musty-smelling cells, there were numerous people locked away, tied tightly with coarse ropes. Their clothes were shabby and covered in dust.
Not only humans, but Wolvin's eyes also caught the presence of several beastfolk races and even two elves held hostage by the bandit gang. The captives' faces looked pale, exhausted, and devoid of hope.
They truly treat the lives of others like hunted animals. Wolvin thought coldly. His killing intent surged, but he restrained it to avoid leaking his presence.
Wolvin meticulously observed the area in every corner of the cave, looking toward the ceiling, the shadows of the rocks, up to the blind spots to ensure there were no remaining bandits hiding.
After a few minutes of observing and ensuring that only those two men remained from the bandit group, Wolvin began to move.
The Night Wolf youth ran to close the distance with extremely light steps. Whether it was the dozens of people locked inside the prisons or the two chatting bandits, not a single one of them noticed the air anomaly as Wolvin, who was in stealth mode, ran past them in absolute silence.
As he moved closer, the Night Wolf youth touched the dimensional storage necklace on his neck. His beloved black dagger emerged from the void, and he immediately gripped it tightly in his right hand.
Wolvin ran even faster toward the two men who were still relaxing at the end of the cave. The distance between them was now only one meter.
Zrash! Zrash!
Two sounds of tearing flesh were heard almost simultaneously.
With extremely fast, deadly movements and a high level of precision, Wolvin thrust his dagger alternately. He directly stabbed the left chest of the two men, piercing through their ribs until he shattered their hearts.
The two bandits did not even have time to blink, let alone let out a scream. Their eyes bulged wide upon seeing a black dagger suddenly embedded in their chests out of thin air.
Thud! Thud!
The two men died instantly. Their lifeless bodies collapsed onto the hard, rocky floor of the cave.
After ensuring his enemies were dead, Wolvin canceled his stealth mode. His form appeared just like that from the empty air near the corpses, as if he had just stepped out of another dimension.
"Darling, everything is finished here!" Wolvin called out, breaking the silence of the cave.
The voice of a strange man suddenly echoing and bouncing off the cave walls spontaneously made all the prisoners inside the iron bars flinch in shock. Some of them let out stifled gasps.
They all awoke from their despair and became very curious about what was happening outside the cells. However, because their bodies and hands were all tied tightly by ropes, the captives could only wriggle on the dirty floor, unable to crawl near the iron bars to see who had come.
From the direction of the dark corridor where they originated, calm and steady footsteps were heard. Not long after, Calian's figure walked casually into the bright area.
The purple-haired youth looked around for a moment, then approached Wolvin, who was also walking toward him while casually dragging the bodies of the two men he had just killed.
"Are these two men the only ones left of the bandit group?" Calian asked with an expressionless face, glancing at the two corpses.
"Yes!" Wolvin answered without the slightest hesitation, tossing the corpses into a corner. "I have thoroughly checked the entire area around this cave. Only the two of them were left to stand guard here!"
The brief conversation was heard clearly by the captives. The arrival of the two strange youths who had easily incapacitated the guards without resistance slowly replaced their fear with a sliver of hope.
"W-Who are you two?" asked a female hostage from the elf race with a hoarse and trembling voice.
Hearing the question, Calian turned his head toward the cell on his right.
"The two of us are adventurers who happened to pass by and accidentally came into conflict with these bandits on the main road." Calian answered with a very calm face and tone of voice.
The female elf's eyes widened. "Have... have you defeated all the bandits out there?"
"Yes!" this time Wolvin answered in a cheerful and enthusiastic tone, as if reporting an ordinary hunt. "Rest assured! All of those bandits, including their leader, are already dead!"
Hearing the definite answer coming from the Night Wolf youth's mouth, silence crept in for a moment before sobs of relief finally broke out inside the cave.
Everyone inside the prison began to carve smiles on their pale faces. The burden of death that had been stalking them for days finally vanished. They realized that they could finally get out of the prison that had shackled their lives all this time.
However, amidst the touching atmosphere, there was one thing that left Calian and Wolvin slightly puzzled. The two of them stood staring at the iron bars that caged dozens of people, feeling confused about how to open the prison doors.
Calian looked at his spouse. "Wolvin, can you slash these iron bars with your weapon to free them immediately?"
The Night Wolf youth fell silent for a moment. He twirled his black dagger between his fingers. Although his dagger was a high-quality weapon that could pierce leather armor easily, he felt a little doubtful about cutting the thick iron pillars in front of him right now.
"I don't know for sure, Darling. But, I will try!"
Wolvin stepped forward, approaching one of the cells. He stared sharply at the iron bar pillar in front of him, preparing to slash the obstacle preventing him from freeing the hostages with his beloved black dagger.
Wolvin swung his dagger with full force.
Clang!