His travels had seem him journey to the east, and around the mainland of Charon, seeing many things that were both fantastical and majestic - true works of divine beauty wrought by the hands of Ginma himself. This in it of itself was the purpose of his travels and exile so to speak that started his pilgrimage to learn about and see the beauty of the world proper. On this day he had found himself staring down a new beauty of natural wonder, in the Shadewood itself. Its size and stature was a thing to behold that gave him a feeling of grace as he took in that which laid before him. 

He had found himself here due to a job posting of all things, taking about the need to disrupt a group of bandits that was beleaguering several of the nearby waystation hamlets in the areas, stealing supplies and just generally haggering the locals and travelers alike, interrupting the flow of trade in the region itself. The task seemed simple enough in theory, but once present the scope of it was enormous to say the least. For one there were several waystation hamlets dotting the landscape, not to mention the Shadewood itself which gave an eerie feeling of being constantly... watched. 

Looking to the other two who seemingly had also answered the call, he spoke with a cheeriness that was quite unlike the backdrop of their current situation, "So.. Where do we begin? The largest of the hamlets? Or somewhere that's more of a middle ground with less walls and stuff? Or maybe one of the abandoned forts?"", his emerald eyes flashed from under his hood as he looked at the others, a visible translucent fire ever so slightly present within the depths of his gaze, giving them a slightly golden sheen. 

It was probably more simple then he was making it out to be, as their were several forts long abandoned that dotted the landscape too and those could easily be being used as a hideout. In his mind though, checking the towns meant possibly intercepting the bandits in actions while checking an abandoned installation meant they may have to lay in wait and indirectly cause suffering.

The little captain looks stoically to the sky. For the moment, she's alone; her metallic minions went off to scout several minutes ago. She doesn't face Kwang-Il as he speaks. She's waiting for something.

"Just be patient. The answer to that question should be showing up, right about..."

Several seconds pass. Nothing happens. Her existing frown deepens, as the timing hadn't quite worked in the way that she'd wanted.

Unusually, Veliky is an employee today, not an employer. Her motivations for accepting this job aren't obvious, but her value to the mission is. After all, she came with her squad of Blixtbots™. Still, as much as it may be strange to see her in a subordinate position, none find it more uncomfortable than herself. Something about being in equal standing with the other mercenaries bothers her... probably best not to unpack that just yet.

Finally, a welcome sight crests the trees: the tiny shape of a fluttering bat. But it's no ordinary bat. As it draws closer, its fabric wings, tin flesh, crimson lenses and hissing movements reveal that it's another of Veliky's more unusual bots. She holds out a finger, and the bat clutches it with tiny talons and hangs upside-down.

"Report," she says, as if speaking to a soldier. "Stalker, translate."

The bat begins to beep, click, whirr and buzz incoherently, though Veliky appears to know what it means, if only generally. As it does, another bizarre construct, this one shaped like a cat-sized spider, materializes on the ground in front of Heian and Kwang-Il. Its eight eyes are like crimson lenses. Stranger yet, it begins to speak in a high-pitched, squeaky, but monotonous voice.

"Conscripts Heian and Kwang-Il, translated report from Vampire-02: possible bandit incursion detected two miles north-northwest. Immediate action is recommended."

After finishing the displacer beasts they split up with Sarris. Heian soon stumbled upon an ad, recruiting people to fight off bandits. He took it and that's how he traveled with Veliky again. At least this time she was not the boss.

At first he wanted to drop the task, but Wood convinced him to try and get revenge on her. Of course Wood overdid his idea and Heian had to make the vengenance lighter. They will see how the situation goes.

She had robots. That was a pleasant suprise, it meant those worked hier. With enough resources he could recreate his legion. Then the bat spoke and his positive attitude dissapeared. Did Veliky design them in such a way on purpose? Or the technology actually was so limited? He really should focus on important stuff and not join every second party. Well, he was there, Veliky was there and their boss. Guess finishing this one won't hurt.

-Well, if a bat recommends... I'm all in - first pin landed. 
-Do you have any tactic in mind, Kwang? Those are organized groups, may even have some discipline. Rushing in with guns is a questionable move
2 miles... a magical distance for scouts. Far enough for enemies to not consider being watched, and close enough for news to still be relatively fresh.

"I told you it'd be easy as goblin pie, didn't I?" the archer boasted, grinning behind his mask.

"You also threatened my boys," retorted a squatter figure, a dwarf with a blood-covered axe. He cleaned it while glaring up at the archer.

"Got 'em moving, didn't it? Now, I recall you saying one quarter of the herd would be mine..."

Perhaps mid-robbery wasn't the best time for a negotiation, but it was a cattle robbery, and cows were fairly slow moving creatures all said and done. Two of the herdsmen had decided to try and get the herd back. When the bandits drew their weapons, one of the men fled. The other did not, and that was why the dwarf was cleaning his axe and Granth was recovering an arrow from his face.

"All I'm saying is you're overstepping your boundaries. This is my gang, not yours," the dwarf growled.

"Yeah, and that's why we're talking, Grombul. My gang and your gang have enough shared interests. If we started working together, the Devils and the Clasp could give this country a run for their money. We'd be tougher together, and could stake a claim over much more territory." Granth raised an eyebrow down at the dwarf, then leaned on in. "Ain't that what you want? More territory? More power? More money?"

The dwarf let out a long rumbling sound in his throat as he regarded the human. He didn't entirely trust the man, but the logic was sound enough, and the Deadwood Devils were proving surprisingly capable despite their small size. He kept walking alongside the cattle as the group herded the beasts into the forest.

"Suppose it's something to think about. That's not up to me, though," the dwarf mused. "It's up to the boss, and it'll take time to get the boss your proposal. I suppose such matters could be discussed at our camp, though..."

As the pair walked alongside the nervous cattle, the other bandits - three of them under Grombul's command and two of them under Granth's - kept up the rear. Grombul's men had their guard lowered, but Granth's boys were keeping a careful eye out. They had a large wolfdog with them, too, which growled and nipped at any cattle that moved too slowly to keep up with the herd.

It was a pretty sizeable band of thugs. Defeating them and retrieving all the stolen cattle safely wouldn't be easy.

He watched the others as the one known as Veliky had constructs of magic and metal that seemed to do her bidding which was odd to him, but not completely out of the ordinary. He had heard of construct like Arcane Golems before when he was in the Pale city, she must be one of the few that use them. Everyone he had met since leaving the monastery on his pilgrimage seemed to be interesting at least of that much he was sure. 

"Conscripts?,,,, As far as if I have any plans? Not really no. I think it ruins the fight if you plan it out too much... I would ask that if you don't like heat or flames that perhaps you shouldn't get close to me once we are in the thick of it though....", he felt obligated to at least notify his compatriots of his fighting style so to speak, even if it was in the most bare minimum of forms.

Two miles was not really that far so as he was talking he had already started moving in the direction that Veliky's construct had pointed them in, "Veliky, I like those constricts of yours - they seem very useful!", he was sincere and warm with his words as if the gravity of the situation was nowhere in sight for him. 

As they continued on their journey their job quickly came into view, and it seemed that the bandits in question where all ready in the process of doing something illegal - Cattle Robbing! He had only heard stories about it and so Kwang -Il found it to be slightly more amusing in person. THEY MOVED SO SLOW, why would you steal cattle? Other then their value it literally made you a slow moving target. 

Looking to the others he pointed out the group off in the distance before he spoke, "I think... we may need to focus on two things at once here. Who feels the most confident that they can get those cattle back? As I am pretty sure those people are not farmers.... The other two should engage the bandits as they are."

This Kwang-Il person is awfully relaxed, isn't he? Veliky would prefer at least a degree of professionalism, but it's better than if he were green and skittish. What's really gritting her teeth is another question entirely: where the hell are her other bots?

"Dividing our attention wouldn't be a problem if we just had... wait."

Across the way and to the side, a subtle, rhythmic flashing can be seen, like the glint off of a spyglass. Veliky's anger fades at the sight. She lightly grabs the brim of her hat and shifts it left and right, causing light to similarly glint off of the metal insignia on the cap. There's another glint from afar, and Veliky glints in return. This continues for some time, like a back-and-forth conversation. Finally, Veliky makes a sigh of relief and turns to those present.

"We've got three more on the field. One of them will deal with the cattle, one will provide ranged support against the bandits, one will join us in the fight."

She looks at the group of bandits. Seven, total, but most of them don't look very threatening, not for a party like this. The one with the bow looks experienced, however... could be troublesome.

"I'll provide magical support where I can, but I don't think it needs to be said that I won't be of much combative help. Mostly, I'll just be coordinating the bots. Heian? You take the lead."

Veliky whispers in arcane gibberish, and her thumb and index finger begin to glow blue. She snaps her fingers, although she's wearing gloves so it makes more of a quiet thwap than a snap. Suddenly, three identical copies^{[1, 2]} of Veliky appear around her and start whispering to one-another in Halfling before scattering. Already, it's impossible to tell which was the original...

---

1. Clone Self
2. Replicant

Heian silently shook his head. Not for Kuang battle planning, the philosophy of his was smarter than many of actual commanders. He shook for his compliments towards Veliky bots, which apparently multiplied into three more. Soon Veliky too got covered by three mirages of her, even Wood couldn't tell which one is real. "Three additional stabs"
-Someone will have to get that archer down, he could cause some troubles when fighting others. I'd say in this case some kind of plan wouldn't hurt, and we always can adapt it in the heat of battle. I'll take care of archer, maybe stabbing some bandits on my way there, and you, Kwang, will try to get to axe dvarf. Does that sound good?

The archer intrigued him, he seemed far better organized and experienced than the rest of bandits, maybe excluding axe dvarf, and at the same time... kind of out of place?Heian was conflicted, on the one side he could gain a solid looking ally and perhaps get revenge on Veliky, on the other Kwang didn't do anything to earn a betrayal. "Sometimes sacrifices are necessary, but indeed not this time. Let's be on a <good> side and avoid killing the bandit. And Veliky probably have more tricks than just those mirages, vengenance can wait for a better opportunity"
Well, if Wood wanted to delay vengenance... there was a reason for that. Heian decided to stay with Kwang.

"Hold on," Granth muttered, raising his hand just slightly as he and the dwarf spoke at length. His eyes narrowed. "Did you see that?"

"See what?" asked Grombul warily.

That answered Granth's question. He scowled and eyed the forest, his bowstring taut, his muscles tense. He knew he'd seen light reflecting in the woods. Either someone carrying bright things was marching along, or...

"There it is again," whispered Granth, looking toward Grombul. "Keep the boys steady. Someone's sending messages with mirrors. Prepare for a fight."

No sooner had Granth said that, however, than a bolt flew out from the woods right at him! It was only thanks to his lucky sighting earlier and his readiness that he was able to move out of the way. The cow behind him, however, was not so lucky, and let out a thunderous "Moooooo!" before collapsing.

The herd was suddenly in full stampede. Several bandits had to leap out of the way to avoid being trampled. Granth cursed.

"Keep pace with the damned cows!" he shouted. "Use the beasts for cover! GO!"

Granth's boys didn't need to be told twice. Grombul's, however, were a bit slower on the uptake. Another bolt flew out and struck one in the leg, bringing down to the ground with pained convulsions as electricity ran rampant through his body. But that second attack was exactly what Granth needed to find his mark; he raised his bow and fired a quick shot in the direction of his assailant. The black-tipped arrow¹ zipped through the woods and struck metal. But it wasn't a man's scream that rose in answer; instead, it was more of a... crackle? A pop? And alarmed beeping?

Some sort of weird metal golem stumbled out from its hiding place in the trees, sputtering mechanical nonsense. Granth stared in confusion for a moment, then spotted more movement in the trees. There was a lot more trouble headed his way.

"Keep moving! And shoot THEM, Skinny Pete!" Granth barked as he rushed after the cattle to use them as literal meatshields. He loosed a couple mundane arrows in the general direction of the approaching adventurers, and the bandit with a sling let loose a shot with his fiery sling as well, spreading flames among the fall leaves as his burning bullet coursed toward the heroes.² Meanwhile, the bandits as a whole prepared themselves to be met head-on by a large group of warriors.

The bandits really weren't expecting what came next, however.

---

Abilities used: 1. Fear Tips (x1); 2. Enchanting Sigil (Fire).

The conversation about what to do was interesting as they seemed to have some understanding of tactics and battle at least, which meant it would be easier at least to get going with the task at hand. 

Answering only once before he took off at full speed towards the Dwarf he was told to go after, he spoke with a carefree attitude that was clearly backed by a measure of confidence, "Then the Dwarf man it is. Thanks for the extra assist Veliky! I am sure they will come in handy for getting this done before dinner time at least!", always  urged onwards by his never ending appetite he was off and away towards his target.

Using his enhanced strength to bound faster towards his target it was almost more like leaping then running as he utilized his enhanced strength in the most practical way. Once he was close enough to have eyes on the Dwarf and the bandits around him that began scurrying about along with the cattle that stampeded around, he began putting his plan in motion - Smack things with his staff. 

Activating his heat cloak around himself and the flames on his staff he charged at the dwarf man with impunity and attempted to strike him in the chest with one of the ends of his staff. The heat cloak that surrounded him and permeated the area would burn the flesh of those near Kwang-Il and coincidentally gain conflagration stacks that would begin to cause them to immolate. As he didn't view the cattle as enemies they would be unaffected by his conflagration, the bandits however were not so lucky.

||Heat cloak, Igneous Staff, Conflagration from pyromancer||

The mechanical being that stumbled from the trees is relatively short, only standing slightly over 5 feet tall, but its lifeless, red eyes lend it a certain menace. It wields a heavy-looking crossbow, but its focus appears to be moreso centred on its wound: relatively minor, as the arrow only grazed its shoulder, but the arrow's fell magic seems to cause it some distress as it would to a person. It speaks in monotonous scratchings, like claws against bark.

"Alert: fight or flight protocols overridden. Engaging immediate retreat."

But, before it can make good on its words, the tiny tycoon known as Veliky - or, rather, a replicant^[1] of one - steps out of the foliage beside the bot, performs some sort of arcane incantation, and then slaps the spell unceremoniously into the bot's shin.

"Belay whatever that was, Bishop. Resume artillery. Target the slinger," she calmly orders.

The spell^[2] resets Bishop's mechanical mind, cleansing its processor of the foreign influence. It beeps - or perhaps chirps - in recognition of the order, crouching down and training the cross on Skinny Pete.

"...Messy start," the replicant remarks.

Then, another, identical halfling steps from the trees beside her. But this one isn't a copy. One might even call it the 'real deal.'

"You're telling me," she replies to herself, and to herself. Suddenly, this one raises her hand and points dramatically forward, her voice resounding supernaturally as she shouts "Attack!"

The order fills the air with such terrible omen, like a judge's sentence, terrifying in great spite of the woman's stature. It fills her allies with the will - and the power^[3] - to enact the offenders' punishment. And, to add to the confusion of multiple Velikies, another two appear on the battlefield^[4], bold and commanding.

It's then that Bishop's bolt is fired at the slinger. The loud KEH-CHOU it emanates makes it clear enough that this would be a lethal shot, but one that could be avoided, especially in the chaos of the stampede. But Veliky rarely relies on chance. Just before it flies, a robotic bat suddenly swoops down, assailing the slinger's face with its fabric wings and emanating noisy beeps, whirrs, buzzes and clicks: a crude, but effective distraction.

Meanwhile, Veliky's other underlings work to herd the herd and cull the crooks. One of Grombul's bandit's is stops in his tracks when he's startled by the sight of a mechanical dog, red-eyed as the other constructs are, standing perfectly still about three yards in front of him. He quickly throws a knife at the pooch, only for it to pass right through the image. Of course, he wonders if it's some form of illusion, meant to only to confuse him. But no - it's far worse. Suddenly, the dog is right next to him. He's knocked to the ground by something - presumably the dog, but it's just standing there. His neck is yanked violently to and fro, but it's the sudden appearance and slashing blade of Rook that puts an end to him.

It seems, now, that the bandits are being attacked from three fronts, and things are appearing far less advantageous for them than they once were.

---

1. Replicant
2. Calm Emotion
3. Inspiring Presence
4. Clone Self

Heian had to admit, the bots Veliky brang worked well. e rushed in, following Kwang to not alarm the archer. When he was close, Heian tried to turn rapidly towards him, but the move got disrupted by a bandit that appeared on his way. He had to block a stab, that turned into a vertical slash after blocking, before responding with his own hit. The bandit blocked, but was not prepared for a kick that made his leg bend mid air. His enemy lost the balance and Heian easily eliminated an obstacle with a quick neck cut. 

He took a moment to check on the battle field. Kwang had no problems whatsoever, turning every bandit in his range into a walking torch. The dvarf however still held the ground, his beard not yet on fire. 
Veliky on the other hand had some problems with her robot. Heian smiled viciously at the sight.
Seeing Veliky struggle made him change his position a little, which probably saved his life. An arrow hit his right arm, bringing him back to field. 

This wasn't his target, some other bandit just got sniped by the robot. But the archer definietely spotted Heian, judging by his bow aiming at him

Skinny Pete was preparing to launch a sling stone just as the bolt struck him in the stomach. He'd been looking toward another direction, unaware of Bishop's deadly aim focused on him, and the terrible shot nearly knocked him over. But the foul little man kept his sling's momentum going, spurred on by spite alone.

The dread archer loosed a couple quick arrows toward the crossbow-wielding robot. He was the obvious threat. Perhaps that alone might not have been enough to bring the golem down, but Skinny Pete loosed a fiery sling stone¹ just a second later. The flaming projectile coursed through the air, flying straight for his attacker's head. The slinger finally keeled over, bleeding out on the ground.

That was bad enough, but there was another pair of metal men - well, one metal man and one metal dog - tearing apart what was left of one of Grombul's lads.

Granth scowled. Skinny Pete wouldn't survive. That'd make three men down, leaving only himself, Grombul, two thugs and a dog. The odds weren't looking good. Granth growled, then pointed angrily over toward the flanking robots.

"HANDLE IT!" the Bandit King shouted at the top of his lungs.

Granth's mace-wielding lad was already on the move. He rushed forward, but instead of charging the robots directly, he slammed the full weight of his body into a fleeing cow shoulder first, sending the huge bovine avalanching down toward the metallic monstrosities!

Meanwhile, Grombul was locked in a rough fight. It was him and his best lad against one man, but the one man was dancing about with his flaming staff, striking quick enough to hold them both at bay. Each second that passed, the air around him grew hotter, and his clothes were beginning to ignite. The dwarf swung his two-handed axe in a wide arc, trying to catch the nimble fighter's legs as his now smoking companion rushed behind him to get a swing in with a club.

Granth offered the dwarf no help. He had his own problems to deal with.

The dread archer took aim with his bow once again, moving into cover behind some of the fleeing cattle as he raised his longbow. The pair of halflings standing next to each other had to go, he decided. He came to a stop, took careful aim, and loosed two more black-tipped arrows² in quick succession, one at each of them. That would keep them from helping their allies, he hoped.

As for the last man... Heian would have had a clear path toward Granth, and Granth's attention had shifted away from him after he landed an arrow. Was that an opportunity to strike? Or did the archer have another trick up his sleeve?

The battlefield didn't make anything easy, however. The cows were stampeding; fire was spreading across the dry forest from the various fiery weapons being swung around; and just as importantly, the wolf was missing, forgotten in all the fighting.

---

Abilities used: 1) Enchanting Sigil (Fire); 2) Fear Tips x2

The chaos of the battlefield quickly unfolded, becoming more and more violent as each moment passed. The ebb and flow of the fight thus far was give and take still, despite the early ground they had gained, which became even more evident as the bandits began to retaliate and fight back with everything they had. Spurned onwards by the leader who shouted orders to them whilst seemingly loosing arrows into the creatures Veliky had been utilizing. 

Not having time to really think about the greater situation at hand, he had begun to be surrounded by the Dwarf and his friends, and their rebuttal was stunning to say the least. The Dwarf swung wide with his axe aiming to take Kwang-Il's legs out from under him, something he wasn't exactly keen on.

Choosing to instead use his staff as intended he pushed one of its tips hard into the ground under him and lifted himself upwards  so that his body was suspended in air as he balanced on the staff, narrowly avoiding the axe swing and club strike, however the resounding smacks on his staff were enough to make him lose his balance as he careened into the ground unceremoniously. 

The wind taken out of him he could barely react as the club man followed up with a hard slam of his club into Kwang-Il's stomach, taking the air out of him again. Coughing up blood as he laid there his head was spinning as he gasped for air before he knew that he had to react. The conflagration would do what it was supposed to, if he could keep the bandits locked in combat with him at least. 

Swirling his mana throughout his form he kipped up with a backflip as he created a small distance from the Axe Dwarf and Club man, before he utilized his bracers and magic to erect an earthen prison around them. Two sets of stone walls arose quickly from the ground leaving  the three of them boxed in to a twenty foot diameter space. 

Spitting more blood onto the earthen floor, he squared up again as he prepared for another rush of attacks from his captives. 

||Used the Recasters twice and two casts of Earth Wall. Recasters 1/3 uses remaining for thread. Recasters: 3 times per thread cast a spell twice with one cast.||

With three projectiles hurtling toward it, Bishop can only raise its crossbow in an attempt to intercept. To its credit, the crossbow does provide excellent coverage, but the arrows pierce its hull nevertheless, one in the right of the stomach and one in the right shoulder. The sling bullet it does manage to block, but the flaming stone smashes the crossbow beyond repair and ignites it.

Now, Bishop keels and kneels, emanating a series of distressed, rhythmic beeps. Its crossbow has been dropped onto a pile of dry leaves: a catastrophe in the making.

Veliky and Veliky need not even glance to know what happened. Bishop is out of commission. What's the Common phrase? 'For the birds?' It's that, it's done. Veliky, Veliky, Veliky and Veliky have their own problems: two of them, one aimed at each of the copies beside Bishop.

"Arrow." "Arrow."

Their warnings to one-another are almost simultaneous, as are their clumsy shifts to shove one-another out of the trajectories of harm. They both fall on their respective butts with identical oofs, and the arrows fly over their indistinguishable hats. At once, they rise, patting themselves semi-clean.

"Excellent timing. Scatter?" "Same. And yes, scatter."

Abandoning Bishop to its fate, the original and the replicant (which, at this point, could truly be either) take to a more forward approach, joining the other two Velikies just outside the fray, though remaining dispersed. Observing them move and attempting to discern the real one - if there even is a real one - is like watching one of any frustrating memory games at a carnival. What makes it worse is that at least two of them have visibly performed magic.

But Rook cannot rely on mind games to solve the predicament it finds itself in. It slashes at the stampeding cow, immediately paralyzing it and leading to crash uglily to the dirt, but this does nothing to save Rook, which is trampled and trapped beneath nearly one ton of crushing cattle-weight: alive, but utterly immobilized.

As for Lag Switch, the cow, just like the knife from before, passes straight through the unmoving jackal. The bot isn't there, and it hasn't stopped, meaning it could be anywhere in the sea of black, white and dust...

Elucidation comes swiftly, as the image of the mechanical hound suddenly transports just beside the mace-swinging, cow-tipping brigand. Metallic weight hurtling into his stomach sends him careening into the grass. Now, both Rook and the bandit are pinned; only, the bandit's plight has teeth of steel wrapped around his neck! He struggles against the iron jaws, but what he sees is a static image of a dog-golem perched on top of him, like a painting in three dimensions. It may as well be invisible!

Lag Switch jerks the bandit's neck left and right. Its shallow, but sharp canines dig into his neck. Finally, manages to grab hold and pry them away! But this only allows him a moment to glimpse his doom, as another cow tramples them both, shattering skeletons of bone and steel.

On of the Veliki watches the whole event, unimpressed.

"Gyt za ae..." She snaps her fingers again, producing a fifth Veliky^[1]. The constant casting has taken a toll on her mana, as is evident by the first thing the replicant does: stretch and yawn.

"So, I'm on cow duty, now?" the replicant wearily queries.

"Yes. Get to it."

The replicant nods lazily before jogging with surprising alacrity to the side of the stampede. This will not be easy. 

---

1. Replicant

Archer's attention got drew away by Velikys commanding the crossbow mech. Or he wanted Heian to believe that, whatever the situation was the path seemed clear. 
Until a cattle hit him from behind like a ram.
Where did it come from?! thought Heian as he raised from the ground. e soon got his answer, the cows spreaded out and made the battlefield even more chaotic, with several Velikys in between, mechs doing whatever and Kwang for some reason doing acrobatics. 
"Chaos, frirnd. Chaos"
Heian "heard" pure joy in Wood's "words". The demon had an unhealthy affection to havoc when it happened and if Heian would get knocked down, the chaos would only grow exponentially.
-Try to focus please

Kwang meanwhile trapped the dvarf in a stone cage, helping them in turning the tides. It was now between archer and Heian, Veliky bots shouldn't have problems with the rest.
Why the guy ignored him however, considering Velikys a bigger thread?
Heian slowly moved backwards, circling the bandit from another side in case of a potential trap. It probably was a dumb move, if traps were present they would be all around the archer and not just on one line, but usually he didn't risk without a reason behind it.