As soon as I sensed someone behind the door, my intuition told me what to do. Enough time had passed for me to Equip my weapon—I just needed to decide how to use it.

The Technique of the Wheel of Fortune Concept—Lucky Strike—now was a part of me. According to its description, it could either be activated randomly without any cost or by will using Vita. In the second case, it would randomly take either barely any VP or a bunch of it.

The moment the Level 8 kobold stepped into the room was the moment the point of my spear pierced his neck in a Critical Lucky Hit. I barely felt any resistance from his Field. This time I did one-shot my opponent—someone who also was one Level higher than me. Though it had cost me a whole ten points Vita—the limit of how much the Lucky Strike could take from me—out of my thirty-five, I thought it was more than worth it. It was strange, though, that my Luck couldn’t help me with the random nature of the Technique.

I still had three untested abilities: the Surge of Mirage—Mirage Veil, the Mystic Art of Wheel of Fortune—Lucky Charm, and the Psionic Art of Solitude—Social Distance. I wanted to use the last two—or rather three, considering I hadn't finished off the Level 7 damaged by the Phantom Bolt—doggies to test them.

As I had disposed of the Level 8 soundlessly, it would take at least some time for the others to catch up. It seemed that they split up to find me—a really foolish decision. No one had left for the stairs, though—I would have noticed it.

I concentrated as I used Lucky Charm. Unlike Spells, Mystic Arts were unconventional and had different ways they were to be used. This, in particular, required me to rub my hands palm to palm while channeling Mana to them. After ten seconds of doing so, a round talisman made of yellow parchment appeared there with a pentagram inscribed on it. It was small enough to fit into my palm and looked like something a child could have made for their shop class.

The Charm sure appeared unremarkable considering its cost—for ten MP, I could have cast two empowered Phantom Bolts. But I knew that its effects were more than worth it. I put the talisman in my pocket just in time for the Level 7 who had survived my earlier ambush to find the fresh corpse of his tribesman.

The kobold, who stood just outside the open door, looked at me in shock and screamed. Maybe he would have had the chance to last a few seconds more if he tried to run instead. His shout abruptly ended as his heart was impaled by the bronze-colored spear. His death took me to Level 8, so it wasn't for naught.

Oh, I almost forgot about the Quest.

I learned from my mistake of taking the Dungeon Quest too late—as a result, my first kobold kill didn't count towards the Quest’s total ten. Now that it was completed, I could get another one, wouldn't want to waste the remaining two kills.

I was interrupted by an angry shout. The Level 10 Bulldog and another kobold two Levels lower were almost here already. I left the room and faced them in the hallway, which was about eight feet wide. I decided that both for the sake of training and the future Quest, I would leave them alive but helpless and take their lives a bit later. It wouldn't be the first time for me, would it?

The Level 8 kobold's initial position was closer to me, but the Bulldog overtook him within seconds as the fiery luster covered his body again. Before the Level 10 could get too close, I gave him a glare containing five points of Mana, activating my only Psionic Art—Social Distance. In spite of the lame name, it wasn't something to be underestimated.

Using a Psionic Art felt like turning something from your imagination into physical reality or giving a mental command to a living being. It was something that one could only experience on their own to truly understand.

The Mana of the Art touched the Bulldog, but he didn't even flinch. Not until his charge brought him fifteen feet away from me. His body contorted as if he had collided with an invisible wall and one-third of his EF disappeared. When kobold recovered from the unexpected impact, he glared at me with unhidden anger but couldn't step any closer.

The Social Distance Art hadn't created any transparent barriers, as the Level 8 proved by getting closer to me without any obstruction. Instead, it affected the mind of the enemy afflicted with it like a psychological illness. It wouldn't work for long, and it wouldn't hurt the Level 10 as long as he didn't try to get any closer during that time. On the other hand, this Psionic Art wouldn't do anything if I was the one to approach him, and it would even be canceled if I were to get too close. It was a good way to keep someone at bay or to catch a rushing enemy off guard. It couldn't be used offensively, at least not at my current Mastery level.

I dodged the thrust of the Level 8 kobold's shortspear as I activated the Mirage Veil. At this moment, the bounds of gravity and air pressure were loosened on me, and my already fluid movements became even more effortless. At the same time, each of my actions left an afterimage, and a vague multicolored luster covered both my body and weapon. The power of Surge that had made the Elite's fur as hard as stone now was on my side.

My current opponent was really slow, and his weapon had a shorter range than mine. If I were serious, it would be over in a moment. Instead, I used his clumsy attacks to get used to the Elemental enhancement brought by the Mirage Veil. He thrust at my shoulder, but the tip of his spear passed by harmlessly just an inch away. He pierced my head, but it was only an afterimage I left. I moved like a ghost, and his offense hit only empty air.

Our one-sided dance continued for about ten seconds, after which the effect of the Social Distance expired on the Bulldog. Now, the Level 10 joined us with a furious blow of his two-handed mace.

The blunt weapon glowing in flame-like luster rushed at my neck from the left. If I had no EF to protect me, the force behind the hit would break my neck in one go. Even with the Field, there was no guarantee that it would fully block the impact.

I could have avoided this attack easily enough, but wouldn't it be a waste of the ten MP I had used just before the battle? I looked right into the bloodshot eyes of the Bulldog as I waited for the mace to fall upon me. The impact never came.

The Lucky Charm that I kept in the pocket materialized before the weapon just as the latter was mere inches away from my neck. The heavy stone head of the mace and the silly-looking talisman met each other with a loud crash. The Charm disintegrated in shiny light, but at the same time, it reflected all of the force behind the blow back at the Level 10 kobold.

The two-handed mace bounced back into the Bulldog's face, sending him stumbling a few steps away from me and taking away the remaining two-thirds of his Essence Field. My EF, in comparison, was still full.

At the moment of my "distraction", the Level 8 kobold tried to stab me in the gut, and I decided to check how much it would hurt, just to know the limits of my EF. From a normal person's perspective, it was something only a madman would do—who bets his life on the defensive power of an invisible magical barrier?

The hit forced me to take one step back, but other than the pushing force, I felt nothing. Out of my one hundred thirty EF Points, a bit more than forty were gone. Just as expected, my defensive capabilities weren't that good, and at the moment, I didn't even have my Cloak Equipped.

So I could be easily killed if they corner me, I concluded but didn't feel threatened in the slightest.

I had less than ten points of Vita left after using all of my abilities so far, so I decided to end it quickly. Almost effortlessly, I jumped above the Level 8 kobold's head and thrust my spear down at him. He had no chance to protect himself or to dodge. My weapon struck right at his head with a Critical Hit, halving his EF, which was full until now. With three more swift attacks, I depleted his Field and then made two round wounds at his legs, making him kneel from pain and despair.

The Level 10 had tried to obstruct me while I dealt with his friend, but he was too slow and not accurate enough. The afterimages from the Mirage Veil and my half-aerial moves made it impossible for him to keep up.

When the Bulldog joined the Level 8 in kneeling before me with his legs maimed, I turned off the Surge. I had barely any Vita or Mana left but otherwise unharmed.

Under the angry wails and curses of the two kobolds, I leisurely viewed my notifications. Well, maybe not so leisurely considering my heavy breathing and slight migraine—the fight had taken more of a toll on me than expected.

You've successfully ambushed a higher Level opponent, killing them in one attack! Impressive!

Ambush reaches lvl 7. Your Fate is increased by 2.

Stalking reaches lvl 7. Your Nerve is increased by 2.

Note: Your Nerve increase is postponed until your Body reaches 9 or more.

You have slain a [Shadowbark Kobold - Bronze, Level 8]. You receive a 10% Bonus EXP for killing a being above your Level. You receive 8 Lesser Essence Coins (LEC).

Quest notice: Shadowbark Kobolds slain: 10/10

You've completed a Common-Rarity Quest—[Dungeon: Shadowbark Kobold Slaying Part 1]!

Distributing the rewards. . .

You receive 50 Lesser Essence Coins (LEC). You receive 20 Contribution Points (CP).

You've received a new Quest!

Do you want to take [Dungeon: Shadowbark Kobold Slaying Part 2] (Uncommon)?

Level up! You are now Level 8! You receive 4 Free Attribute Points (FAP).

You have slain a [Shadowbark Kobold - Bronze, Level 7]. You receive a 20% EXP Penalty for killing a being below your Level. You receive 7 Lesser Essence Coins (LEC).

Well, this is a lot of notifications just after one fight. . . I whistled with surprise. Wait, isn't this the first time the System actually asked me if I wanted to take a Quest or not? I guess the Novice and System Quests are mandatory, and this one isn't.

I answered with a firm yes and opened up the page with the next part of the Quest. It had taken me long enough to complete the first one, but I wasn't the same as before.

[Dungeon: Shadowbark Kobold Slaying Part 2] (Uncommon)—You've taken the first step towards doggie genocide, but you're still a long way away from becoming their nightmare. Teach those impudent whelps some respect!

Objective: Kill 20 Shadowbark Kobolds of any variation (0/20)

Kill 10 Shadowbark Kobold Warriors (0/10)

Reward: 150 Lesser Essence Coins (LEC), 40 Contribution Points (CP), +5% Affinity with Cat Concept

Difficulty: Level 7-12, Normal

Not bad, I thought as I read about the reward for my first Uncommon-Rarity Quest, not bad at all!

Not only did this Quest promise me some cash and CP, but it even increased the Affinity of one of the Concepts I already had. Perhaps it was only expected for me to have some connection to cats. Plus, Concepts of the Biotic Category were the only ones I hadn't tried in combat yet.

Wouldn't it be kind of ironic to fight kobolds using the power of those they consider food?

There were some more notifications for me to read, though.

You've successfully used your Concepts in battle! Your understanding of Mirage, Wheel of Fortune, and Solitude Concepts reaches new heights!

Mirage Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 1.

. . .

Mirage Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 5. Your Mastery over Mirage slightly improves! [Illusory Existence I] becomes [Illusory Existence II]!

Mirage Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 6.

Mirage Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 7.

Wheel of Fortune Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 1.

Wheel of Fortune Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 2.

Wheel of Fortune Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 3.

Solitude Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 1.

. . .

Solitude Concept reaches Neophyte-lvl 4.

I learned a lot of things from those messages. First of all, Concepts improved greatly after a battle for some reason. Second, my Mirage Concept improved at a significantly higher rate than any other, but that was only to be expected. Third—at level 5 Mastery, passive abilities improved, though I still couldn't be sure if it was always the case. The "Illusory Existence II" did pretty much the same thing as its inferior version, but better. I felt that moving with the second level active was just a bit easier.

A loud shout interrupted my thoughts, "Chief Velgo won't forgive you, dirty animal! Woof-woof-wooooooof!"

I glanced at the Bulldog, who glared daggers at me. I didn't doubt that abilities that could kill with a glare alone existed, but this kobold obviously had none. I felt sorry for the pitiful doggies, so I slowly approached them, spear in hand.

"Rest in peace," I whispered as I closed my eyes. I wasn't a believer, and they wouldn't be dead forever, but I thought that there should be at least some kind of ritual for these kinds of situations.

Quest notice: Shadowbark Kobolds slain: 2/20

Shadowbark Kobold Warriors slain: 1/10

I granted both of them a quick and painless death with my spear—or as painless as being stabbed through the head could be, at least. I didn't think that they would complain after respawning anyway. The cat had told me that the monsters lost their newest memories after being killed. It was convenient for both of us.

The two kills gave me twenty-eight Lesser Coins more and some Experience, but not enough to bring me to Level 9.

"Chief Velgo, huh," I muttered. "It's a familiar n-name, isn't it?"

Ciesta materialized a few feet away from me. I couldn't help but admire how perfect her stealth was—I had a long way to go.

"That's the Dungeon Keeper and the leader of the Shadowbark Tribe," she said. "I'm pretty sure that he's a Champion-Tier monster, and his Level should be between twelve and fifteen. In normal circumstances, you'd need at least four Players to fight him, but those requirements aren't so strict for Bronze Rank."

Before I knew it, she had entered her Ciestopedia mod. I didn't interrupt her, as most things she said were important.

The cat continued, "As a sentient monster of a low-Grade Race, Velgo should be weaker than most Champions in direct combat but way more dangerous, especially in his own Dungeon. Keepers can usually assign up to five Minions to stay with them in the Hall as Guardians, but even more can enter temporarily under a time restriction. In fact, Keepers could even gather all of their subordinates at once if it's only for a few minutes. . ."

"So if I t-try to sneak up on him, passing every other kobold, t-then he'd have a bunch of them rushing to his help?" I guessed at what Ciesta was trying to imply. "So to defeat him, I'd better get rid of as many of the s-small fries as possible. A-assuming that I would be strong enough to face him on my own. . . him and the five strongest kobolds he chose as his bodyguards. . ."

The more I talked, the less enthusiastic I became about the whole dog-genocide thing. Earning Experience and money was important, but unlike the monsters, I didn't have a second chance if they got me. I had dealt with five ordinary kobolds easily enough, but I wasn't invincible. One mistake could cost me my life. Also, I had one very obvious flaw.

Condition

Essence Field: 82/130

Vita: 4/40

Mana: 8/40

Health: 98%

Physical Fatigue: 73%

Mental Fatigue: 59%

Status Effects: Healthy, ???

For all my awesomeness, I severely lacked in the two Sub-Attributes responsible for how long a Player could last in a battle—Endurance and Wisdom. For this reason, both of my Fatigues built up way faster than I liked. After a short one-sided fight, I was more than halfway towards physical and mental exhaustion.

"Think positively," Ciesta said in a monotonous tone that didn't match the content of her words, "thanks to your Balance and Willpower, you can recover from fatigue way faster than others. You just need to rest for a bit. Or you can choose Meditation as your next Skill at Level 10."

"I'd prefer to t-take Evasion," I shared my opinion. "I c-can’t use a faster r-recovery if I don't survive the actual battle, right?"

"You have a point." Ciesta nodded and started to walk away.

"W-where are you going?" I blurted the question.

She gave me an annoyed look. "Did you forget why we are here?"

Oh yeah, the cats! This was the actual reason why I attacked the five kobolds. It wasn't just for the sake of Experience Points and Essence Coins, right? Right. . .