Chapter 19: The Fall of the Higuma Bandits
"The secret passage is under that bungalow." The Fourth Commander pointed toward an inconspicuous single-story house in a corner of the stronghold, then led the way.
Kaizen Reiya glanced over. There were several bungalows scattered throughout the stronghold; this one was utterly unremarkable. For Haig to hide there to recover from his injuries... he certainly wasn't easy to find.
If not for this Fourth Commander trading information for his life, Kaizen and the others would never have dreamed that a Level 30-plus figure, one who could summon wind and rain in this region, would be so cautious as to hide in such a place.
Kaizen couldn't help but frown. This guy is indeed a sly old fox.
"The secret passage is under the bed where Haig sleeps. There's a mechanism. Press it, and the bed flips over, allowing entry to the passage below. Then the bed flips back to its original position, leaving no trace visible from the outside."
The Fourth Commander told Kaizen everything he knew.
Kaizen listened, his expression growing serious. This is not an easy opponent to deal with.
He kicked the door open and entered. The room was already empty.
"The secret passage is right here." The Fourth Commander walked over and reached for the bed...
"Don't move!"
Kaizen's expression suddenly changed.
But it was too late. The Fourth Commander's hand had already pressed the so-called mechanism...
Without a second thought, Kaizen shot backward out of the room.
He had no time to retreat far before a deafening BOOM erupted. The house, along with the Fourth Commander, was blown to pieces by the explosives buried beneath it.
The ground cracked and sank.
"What a sinister bastard. Much harder to deal with than Higuma."
Kaizen wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. If he hadn't been alert and fast enough, he would have been blown to bits just like the bandit.
Hmph! Kaizen sneered. "Haig, did you think blowing up the secret passage means you can escape? You've successfully pissed me off. You still have the Dragon Egg coordinate fragment on you, and more importantly... you're still injured..."
Now, the 30,000-strong Higuma Bandits were wiped out, and Haig was injured—more severely than Luffy. Kaizen wasn't afraid of him flying away.
Kaizen called over a centurion captain and ordered him to mobilize a full-scale manhunt for Haig.
This guy dared to mess with him, Kaizen Reiya. He would have to pay a heavy price.
But before that, it was time to collect some interest. The Higuma stronghold had plenty of loot. In their haste to escape, they hadn't had time to take all the gold, silver, and jewels.
Most of it had been plundered by them over the past year.
"Boss Kaizen! Found three chests of silver coins!"
"Boss Kaizen! Found a chest of gold coins!"
"Boss Kaizen! Found a high-grade Yellow Class martial art: Dragon Claw Hand!"
"Boss Kaizen! Found a low-grade Mysterious Class martial art: Seven Injuries Fist!"
"Boss Kaizen! Found a Black Iron weapon: a black short sword!"
...
It had to be said, the bandits Higuma and Haig, with 30,000 men under their command looting everywhere, had amassed an undeniably massive fortune.
In gold coins alone, there were 30,000.
There were also countless copper coins, silver coins, and other treasures.
But now, after years of Higuma and Haig's hard work—or rather, hard plundering—all their accumulated wealth belonged to Kaizen.
"Not bad, not bad. This time, I've hit the jackpot. The total value is at least a hundred thousand gold coins."
Kaizen looked at the mountains of gold, silver, copper coins, and other treasures before him, nodding in satisfaction.
With this money, he could commission a custom-made golden weapon specifically designed to target the Life Gate of the King of the Near Shore.
Ahem. I never expected the bandit leader Higuma and his uncle Haig to give me such a generous gift.
Just then, the villagers who had gone to find carts returned with them.
They began loading the goods onto the wagons.
Kaizen waved his hand, and the carts started the journey back to Windmill Village.
The villagers stared at the small chests filled with gold, silver, and copper coins, the treasures stuffed into the carts, and the bows, knives, spears, and other equipment, feeling as if they were in a dream.
Even as the carts began moving, they still looked dazed, unable to process it all.
Originally, they had all thought attacking the Higuma Bandits was simply a suicide mission.
Over six hundred people against thirty thousand? On the surface, the disparity was unimaginable.
They had all believed they were doomed.
Yet, against all odds, a miracle had happened. That god-like man, Kaizen Reiya, had single-handedly destroyed the 30,000-strong Higuma Bandits.
From start to finish, if they were honest, they had contributed nothing to the battle's outcome. They even suspected Kaizen had brought them along just to have laborers to haul the loot back.
This was both a immense relief and a source of secret joy, but above all, they were utterly shocked by Kaizen.
A force of 30,000, led by the Level 20 bandit leader Higuma, with the Level 30-plus Haig backing them... this terrifying bandit group had been utterly destroyed, except for Haig, who had escaped.
And it was all done by a single Level 18 Player.