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But he knew better than to let his guard down. This was Deadwood Pass after all, and the real threat hadn\'t even appeared yet.

The air became cooler as they neared the middle of the pass, and up ahead, the caravan slowed as figures emerged from the rocky outcroppings. A group of bandits, larger and more organized than the last, appeared, their weapons glinting in the dim light as they spread out to block the road.

These weren\'t the terrified stragglers that had retreated earlier—these men had the confidence and arrogance of seasoned mercenaries.

Their leader, a tall man with a scar running across his face, stepped forward, his voice carrying over the pass.

"Stop right there!" he barked, raising a hand. His eyes gleamed with greed as he scanned the caravan. "Hand over all your goods and the women. We might just consider letting you live."

The merchant\'s assistant gasped, her face pale as she clutched the edge of the carriage. The merchant himself swallowed hard, clearly unnerved by the new threat. But before they could react, Ardel stood up, his voice loud and steady, exactly as Adrian had instructed him.

"Leave if you value your lives," Ardel warned, his tone carrying a calm confidence. "You don\'t know who you\'re dealing with. If you make the Bright Stellar Magus angry, you will all die."

The bandit leader let out a bark of laughter, echoed by his men. "Do you really think we\'re going to fall for that trick? We\'ve heard all about your little game." He spat on the ground, his sneer widening. "This time, there\'s no escape. Attack!"

With that, the bandits surged forward, their weapons raised, bloodlust in their eyes.

But just as they were about to strike, a voice—cold and commanding—rang out from the carriage. It was the same voice that had sent the previous group running in terror.

"Die, you vermins."

A blinding light exploded from the carriage, enveloping the entire area. The world turned white, the light so intense that even the bravest bandits froze mid-attack, shielding their eyes. The sheer power of it pressed against them, suffocating, as if the sun itself had descended into the pass.

The light lingered for what felt like an eternity, ten long, excruciating seconds where no one could move, could think. And then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the light vanished, leaving the pass in eerie silence accompanied by several screams.

As the light disappeared, everything came into view.

The bandit leader, who had led the charge with arrogance, lay dead on the ground, his body charred and lifeless, his eyes open wide, still filled with confusion. Scattered around him were the bodies of his men—over a dozen of them, fallen where they stood, their faces twisted in horror.

Only four bandits remained standing, their legs trembling, their eyes wide with disbelief and terror. The survivors looked at one another, too shocked to speak, too afraid to move.

And then the magus spoke again, his voice colder than before.

"If any of you wish to try again," it said, "I will not leave a single one of you alive."

The remaining bandits didn\'t need to be told twice. They dropped their weapons and bolted into the shadows, their retreat quick and frantic.

Hidden within the cliffs, other bandits who had been watching the scene unfold—the ones who had been sent by other groups to observe the caravan—stumbled back in terror. They, too, fled into the safety of the rocks, unwilling to test their fate against such overwhelming power.

The once-crowded path was now empty, only filled with the bodies of the fallen bandits.

Inside the carriage, Adrian chuckled softly though his mind was still accepting the fact he killed people again, his eyes still closed as if nothing had happened. Ardel glanced at him, a small smile spreading across his face. "It worked," he whispered, impressed at how flawlessly the plan had gone.

He wasn\'t that much affected since he was an original person of this world and has seen this type of scene a lot.

The merchant and his assistant, however, were far from calm. They stared in shock at the aftermath of the battle, their faces pale.

Although they didn\'t exactly see what happened, they knew everything was over, and in just 10 or so seconds.

"That... that was... What was that?" the merchant muttered under his breath, his voice shaking.

"Who... who are you?" The assistant added, her suspicion about their strength being replaced by shock.

Adrian opened his eyes, the mischievous glint still there. "What do you mean? Didn\'t you hear?"

"I\'m the Bright Stellar Magus."

The merchant\'s assistant opened her mouth to speak but found no words, her wide eyes darting between the lifeless bandits and Adrian, whose serene expression betrayed none of the violence that had just transpired.

The merchant himself fumbled for composure, his knuckles white as he clutched the reins of his seat, too stunned to even consider their miraculous survival.

Adrian let out a soft sigh, noticing their stunned expressions without needing to look directly at them. He shook his head slightly, as if amused by the predictable reaction. \'Of course, they\'re questioning it\', he thought. \'Stellar Magus? A young man like me?\'

In truth, Adrian wasn\'t one—far from it.

But the Bright technique that he created using Forbidden Light\'s power came in handy. He had wanted to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, but in this world, mercy was a fleeting luxury. To survive, one had to display overwhelming power—real or not.

The merchant, his lips trembling, finally managed to find his voice. "M-Magus..." he began, though his tone was hesitant. "Forgive me for...doubting your abilities earlier. I never imagined..."

His assistant, still pale, nodded shakily. "Is it... true?" she asked in a small voice. "Are you really the Bright Stellar Magus?"

Adrian leaned back in his seat, his face calm but with the shadow of a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. He offered no direct answer, letting the title linger in the air between them, as though acknowledging the claim without fully committing to it.

"Does it really matter what you believe?" Adrian replied, his voice smooth. "We\'re alive, aren\'t we?"

The merchant nodded vigorously, too afraid to press further. The assistant, though still shaken, cast a glance at Ardel, who had taken his seat once more, his expression unreadable. She remained silent, her gaze fixed on Adrian with a mix of awe and uncertainty.

\'With this, I think we\'ll reach Vesper\'s Peak without further trouble,\' Adrian mused.

Now that word of their \'Magus\' had likely spread among the bandit groups, no one would dare challenge them again. Not unless they were foolish enough to test fate or had a strong individual or move useful against a Stellar Magus.

However, he knew no Stellar Tier individual would waste their time and power in a place like this. Though there might be a Lunar Sage or Stellar Savant, they wouldn\'t risk their life or men just for a mere little caravan.

\'Though there\'s a loophole that might backfire on us as well.\' Adrian thought. \'They may think we are escorting a precious treasure with the help of a Stellar Magus. And, wealth makes people often blind and lose their mind...\'

\'But, this is the best plan I could think of... Had I been more smart... There are probably many more effective ways... Sigh... Whatever, let\'s see what happens...\'