In the end, in order to prevent some future headaches, Ryan was forced to approach the fortress. It would be a pain to attack the monsters if they scatter around, but things will be relatively easier if they have the chance to attack Ryan.

"This dungeon master probably doesn't know many of my skills, so I should take it slow for the time being," Ryan said.

"What should I do?" Femradiel asked.

"Keep your focus on the dungeon master's presence," Ryan replied. "If they move or if you feel anything strange, just report it to me as fast as possible."

"Support role again, huh," Femradiel said and then sighed. "I suppose it can't be helped."

Since that dungeon master probably was aware that Ryan already defeated one of its allies, he would have to play it safe for the time being. Ryan's strategy was simple, try to look like someone who was struggling and then make the dungeon master show itself.

As expected, when Ryan had shown himself, from the windows of the fortress, the rangers began to fire arrows at him. There were hundreds of them, so Ryan had to fly backward and down a little bit since the speed and their power were more impressive than he had imagined. The second volley soon came before Ryan could equip his weapons, so he was forced to create an ice wall to protect himself that quickly shattered.

When that happened, Ryan's crossbows were already in hand, so he managed to knock down the arrows with his bolts. While Ryan was trying to hold back, he could do at least that much. Otherwise, he wouldn't have defeated the monster's army that morning. In the blink of an eye, Ryan fired at the enemies inside the building and killed ten of them with headshots. Upon noticing that staying indoors wouldn't help them, an army of armored crocodiles left the fortress. From other entrances of the massive building, Ryan also felt the presence of some archers leaving to join the fight.

"I guess I should fight at ground level… it will be easier to repel long-ranged attacks that way and I will conserve some mana," Ryan said. "Also, the armored crocodiles will feel more compelled to charge at me."

Ryan decreased his altitude until he reached the ground. At the same time, the armored crocodiles got close enough to fire some magic projectiles at him, but those were so weak that Ryan completely obliterated them with his bolts. His attacks also had enough power to hit some of the monsters and knock them down, but not nearly enough to stop an entire army.

When the monsters got close enough, and the archers that left the fortress also found him and fired their arrows, Ryan activated and used Evading Shot. His arrows pierced the heads of some monsters, killing them, but also changed his position. In the end, he completely dodged the arrows and the charge at the same time.

The monsters frowned since Ryan moved while dodging the attacks extremely fast and at a pretty absurd distance, but since he returned to using basic attacks, they resumed their actions quickly.

"Ah, this is a pain," Ryan thought. "Holding back is just too annoying and goes against everything I believe."

"If that is the case, why don't you fight in close quarters?" Femradiel asked. "You certainly aren't a specialist in that style, so you certainly will struggle for real. Not only that, those creatures have a lot of endurance, so despite your status, not even your best melee weapon will kill them in a single attack. Not that you have many decent melee weapons now."

While that was the case, Ryan didn't need any decent melee weapon. All the monsters in front of him had one, after all. So, he just had to borrow them for a while and then pick another once they became worthless. After storing away his crossbows, Ryan used Telekinesis to pick two cutlasses from two corpses in the ground. While he didn't use a weapon like that before, Ryan quickly got used to its balance.

Steel Cutlass

Effect: It makes the target bleed and loses twenty points of health per five seconds. This effect can be stacked.

Strength + 100, Speed + 50

Durability: 100/100

"Not bad for a monster's weapon," Ryan thought. "Now that I think about it, I can make a killing in this world since their weapons won't disappear."

That was a good chance to level up his melee classes, so when the monsters got close enough again, Ryan activated his buffs that increased strength and speed. At the same time, he dashed toward the monsters and pierced his newest weapons in two of the armored crocodiles' throats.

You obtained 900 coins.

You obtained 900 coins.

Ryan frowned when he received those messages, maybe he underestimated the power of his buffs, or perhaps the throat was really the weak point of those beasts. Either way, Ryan didn't stop there. Before the monsters could understand what was happening, he cut the throat of four other monsters. However, his two swords broke after that.

"What the hell…" Ryan frowned.

"Don't lose your focus," Femradiel said and then used Telekinesis to grab the weapons of the fallen monsters. "You are causing critical hits one after the other, so it is only natural that the monsters would die after you pierced their throats. Besides, those weapons aren't suited for your base level of strength."

Congratulations! The skill Sting has leveled up.

Congratulations! The skill Concentrated Strike has leveled up.

Congratulations! The skill Strong Arms has leveled up.

Ryan also noticed that his stamina and mana were being depleted at an insanely fast pace, so unless he keeps that rhythm, he will run out of steam. Unfortunately, the monsters surrounded him pretty quickly. It was a pity for the armored crocodiles, but Ryan's mobility was just too much for them. After using Flash a single time, Ryan left that dire situation behind. However, much to his surprise, a massive rain of arrows began to fall on the battlefield, and this time Ryan was caught off-guard since he didn't imagine the armored crocodiles would be sacrificed that quickly…