Chapter 18

Ava swung the branch as Leon held the wolf back with his crossed weapons. The item hit the wolf’s head, and while Ava stepped back, Leon finished the monster. Pixels showered down.

“Now, that feels better, doesn’t it?” Leon asked, patting Ava’s back.

She nodded. “It actually does.” Ava looked at the ground and rubbed her round nose with the back of her hand. “I can’t believe I got fooled again.” She hit her head with the branch. “Stupid. So stupid.”

“Hey, you’re being too harsh on yourself.”

“I’m truly not. I’ve been fooled, over and over. But I just never learn, do I?” She threw the branch aside and refused to look at him. “What do you think Ai will do to us?”

Leon shrugged. “There’s no way of telling.” He grabbed her shaking shoulders. “Hey, you wanna talk about it?”

Ava backed away. “No. Don’t ask.” Then she smiled. “I’m going to go a little further in, okay? Maybe there’s a skill for gathering. I think I saw some type of mushroom.”

Leon frowned at her back as she made her way through the bushes, then there was a distinct cracking of branches. She’d likely started running. He wasn’t the only one with secrets, but what was hers? Until he knew, he probably wouldn’t reveal how he got here, either. She didn’t come here by an active choice. No one probably did, until the three people cleared the tower and were vocal about it, which was exactly Ai’s supposed grievance with him. There was no telling how people would react if he ever told them.

Leon put the weapons into his inventory and stared up at the nearest tree. Climbing was a rogue skill. Maybe he’d try to unlock it as well, since it was bound to bring something that resembled an offensive trait. How was he supposed to make use of the Warrior class if he actually couldn’t unlock anything useful?

He rubbed his hands together and sprang at the tree. He might as well try to do something while Ava got an outlet for her hopelessness. The one Ai put in her. He climbed the tree three times and then sat on the lowest branch. She’d be back when she was ready for it. Leon jumped off and approached the tree again, putting a foot in a hole in the trunk, and heaving himself up.

“Leon! Help!” Ava wailed. It sounded far off.

Leon froze halfway up the tree, trying to locate her direction. He jumped down. “Where are you?”

“Over here!”

Leon took off. “Activate insight.”

It did little, but it gave him more feeling about where to go, following the more ominous presence. It couldn’t be that dangerous, otherwise he’d probably picked up on it earlier. But for Ava, one wolf was enough. She’d already used her skill, Mob Mentality, so she had no way of defending herself.

Ava shouted again, and Leon would have picked up his speed if he could. He barreled through bushes, stopped to follow where his sense told him to, and continued onward. He stopped short when he saw her perched in a tree and crouched behind a bush. How did four level three wolves not give off more sense? He took in the scene with wary eyes. Ava sat on the highest branch that would support her, with the four wolves facing the trunk. They took turns jumping up toward her, and she squealed with each launch. Even though they had a bleak yellow color, they were too many.

“So, are you going to have fun?”

Leon’s heart thundered, and he spun his head around to look for her. A silver butterfly sat on his shoulder.

“This is your doing, Ai?” Leon whispered. “I didn’t expect you back so soon.”

“Oh, I told you I thought of something fun, and who knows how much free time I’ll have soon?” Her voice was silky-smooth. “I mean, do this, and I’ll even give you a valuable gift. It’s something you’ve been yearning for for quite some time. Of course, because it’s such a tractable thing, I’ll have to ramp up the difficulty a little.”

The butterfly left Leon’s shoulder and entered the tree crown above. Ai sat in it, swinging her legs. “Why worry about me? Worry about her. Who knows, the branch might suddenly get slippery.”

Leon clenched his jaw and looked at the monsters, jumping for Ava, trying to think of a tactic. Bushes surrounded the tree and a thin layer of green moss lay over granite rock. Not much to work with, unless he wanted to play hide-and-seek with natural trackers.

“Oh, is this all she can trust you, Leon? That’s not much when it comes down to it. It’s all about what you’re willing to sacrifice for someone else.”

“And what have you sacrificed?”

Ai shrugged. “Who said I had anything to prove?” She pointed her finger toward the tree. “Oops.”

Ava’s figure suddenly slanted forward, and she fell. She grabbed the branch with an arm and try to swing her legs around it, but they wouldn’t stay.

“Leon!”

Leon opened the inventory, took out the wooden and iron dagger, and sprinted forward, feeling every step on the moss-laden ground. He struck out his daggers at the first wolf as soon as he reached its back, got a message for a critical hit that he ignored, and another one for Warrior’s Build activating. He ignored them, and kicked the wolf on its haunches, and stabbed down the daggers once more into its back. The three wolves spun at him as the first one dropped lifeless to the ground, and they stared at him with black eyes.

They attacked.

Leon tried kicking at one, missed, got bitten in the leg, and pulled off his feet. He screamed from the pain of ripped muscles and aimed for the creature’s head with a dagger as another bit his arm and tugged. The fangs tore through Leon’s skin, and he struck out at the one on his leg. It hit the top of its head with a sickening crunch, piercing the fangs further into his leg. The dead creature sagged down, jaw slack, as the third wolf pounced toward his stomach and throat. The sudden lack of force in his leg made the wolf at his arm win its battle, pulling him further toward the tree, and the third wolf's fangs sank into his shoulder instead of the intended target.

“No!” Ava shouted. “You bastard!”

Through the searing pain in his leg, arm, and shoulder, Leon saw Ava let go of the branch. He wanted to shout a warning for her to keep safe, but it would come too late. Ava’s green-clad figure dropped straight onto the wolf at his arm, knocking it down and dealing a fair amount of damage. The fangs let go, and Leon pounded his fists on the creature standing on his chest with the hilt of his iron dagger.

He got a kick in on one of the legs and pushed the iron dagger deep into its stomach. Blood flooded out, soaking his shirt. He used his other shoulder and leg to get out from under the beast and crawled onto his knees. His vision swam as he stood, and he swayed on his feet. The last alive wolf took in a stance and shook its head, then looked at Leon, and at Ava, who’d just gotten up to her feet. She stood slightly bent over, staring at the monster’s body, arms in a guarded position, like she expected a fistfight. It launched at Leon, the weaker target, and he sprang aside, leaving him in pain, but letting the wolf land slightly behind him. He turned, raising his daggers.

“Come on,” Leon panted.

As if the wolf understood him, it started forward. Leon tried a kick, but his wounded leg couldn’t bear his weight, and he fell, the wolf landing over him. As the wolf snarled, Leon saw a flurry of green and red fly over him, and the wolf landed flat on Leon's stomach. Leon screamed at the stabbing pain through his body, and through the dimness, he heard Ava’s voice.

“Stab it! Stab it, now!”

Leon struck out blindly and hit something solid. He hoped it wasn’t Ava.

Pixels exploded over him, and at his right side, a pile appeared as Ava plummeted down on top of him. She rolled off, stood, and brushed off her dress.

“That could have gone worse,” she said.

“Nice drop, but be more careful, okay? What if the wolf had sprung on you?”

“Then you would have protected me, I’m sure.”

Leon rose on his elbows and winced.

“Hold on, let me heal you,” Ava said, grabbing his arm. Light emanated from her touch, and Leon saw the most current message about healing and bleeding stopped.

His whole body ached, and he dismissed all the warning boxes. It had been a close call, but with Ava here, they would get back alive. Damn Ai. At least she’d sent a common enemy, just too many at once.

A deep roar not far into the forest made shivers run through Leon’s body and Ava’s hands tightened around his arm.

“We should get out of here,” Ava said, staring in through the bushes. “Please, get—”

Heavy thuds thundered over the moss, and Leon got up on his feet. He swallowed. “Run.”

They ran as fast as they could, following the dirt path. Why did they have to look for more trees, today of all days? If they’d just hunted, they would have been close to Pura’s walls now. His whole body stung, and even though his passive for 10% less damage had helped him survive, he was bound to be low health. No time to check.

The steps came closer, and Leon pushed Ava behind a tree. He stood beside her, taking a deep breath. The beats stopped close by, and Leon peered behind the trunk. A gigantic wolf, almost reaching the height of a double-deck bus with an orange level 5 Grey Wolf tag dancing above its head, stood between the bushes, head raised to sniff the air.

Its muzzle twitched, and Leon turned to Ava, pulling on her dress. He pointed up the tree and weaved his hands together to give her leverage. She swallowed, then clenched her lips tight, rose, and stepped as quietly as she could into Leon’s hands. The tree rustled as she grabbed the lowest branch, and Leon’s heart thundered. Now he just had to get up somewhere himself. There was no way he’d be able to beat the behemoth. He stretched his neck to look at the beast, who stood on guard, following the sound of the leaves above. The fur on its neck stood erect as the lips parted, showing a snarl of yellow, pointy teeth, and the stench of rotting meat came with each breath.

Leon swallowed and backed. The tree he’d spotted was only a quick sprint away. He didn’t want to turn his back to the monster, but he had to. He had to take the chance. The beast sniffed toward Ava, stepped closer, and bent its head upward, letting out a teeth-clattering roar, too mighty for a wolf.

Last chance. Leon sprinted from his spot, feet kicking up moss. A few strides later, he reached the tree and jumped toward it. He grabbed the lowest branch and swung his legs around it, trying to get up to keep climbing.

The wolf stared at the figure hanging like a monkey from the branch and barreled toward him, claws ripping up chunks of moss in its wake, gray fur glistening in the sun. Leon tried to get leverage off the tree, but he couldn’t swing his body enough to get on top of the branch. The beast crashed into it, sending Leon flying into a bush.

Leon sprang toward the next tree, which was closer to Ava but further away. With his heart in his throat, he sprinted through the bushes, slid, and fell. The beast ran toward him, and Leon scrambled backward, legs shaking too much for him to stand. The wolf took one bush that hid Leon in its teeth, ripped up the root, and threw it aside, nose twitching for the scent of the human. Leon tried to rise again, but his legs were like jelly. All he could do was to take cover under the remaining bush.

“Leon! Are you okay?” Ava called.

The beast’s head spun to the side to face the tree, and Leon turned, stumbling up on his feet. He got one step. Leon’s foot snagged, sending him headfirst onto the ground. The mossy patch between the bush and the tree gave way, twigs snapped, and he fell into darkness. He clawed to the side of the pit and felt something cold, hard, and moist. At his touch, it lit up. A ball encased in some kind of rectangular rock formation lit up the area. The light stayed even when he’d moved his hand.

Leon pressed his back against the dirt as the muzzle of the beast above entered the cavern, sniffing around, whiskers stroking patterns in the earth. The breath of rotting meat washed over him and sent ripples through his brown hair. He took a shaky breath and held it. The muzzle backed off, and a second later, a clawed paw came in, bending to the sides. Leon took out the iron dagger and held it to his chest, breathing out slowly. What was the best sort of action?

He swallowed as he looked at the claws. They were almost as long as his underarm, and though they didn’t seem razor-sharp, they were bound to deal a hefty amount of damage. But he’d encountered one of these things before, a being that was over his level. Heck, even if the beast was a lower level, the sheer size of it meant the slam of a paw would break him in one go, strong or not.

But he didn’t need to fight it head-on. He could fight it from here, as he’d done after the tutorial, and he got stuck in a tree. He had his iron dagger, and that should deal a little damage. Hopefully enough to make it back off or decide the prey wasn’t worth the pain. Big as it was, it was still just a clear orange, meaning he should be able to take it down with less damage than one would think.

Deciding, he slid closer to the moving paw. He gritted his teeth and slashed at it. The beast huffed at the sting, but didn’t give up the search. Leon sat, staring at the claws' movement, happy about the lighting.

“I’m fine,” Leon shouted, hoping Ava would hear him. “Stay where you are. It will go away, eventually! Otherwise, I’ll try to take it down hit by hit.”

“O-Okay!”

The voice came from the side of the space in there. That was both good and not. It wouldn’t give him an opening to attack the beast, but at least he knew Ava was close by. It had been better if she’d had the chance to slip away. Not only to get out of harm’s way, but to maybe get help somewhere.

The paw stretched in further, but then it stopped and Leon breathed out. This would be as good a place as any, really, to wait it out. It didn’t seem like the wolf could get at him here. He smiled. One bit at a time, he could defeat this monster. Leon crept forward and slashed out with the iron dagger to the top of the paw. The creature huffed and tried to claw to the side, but Leon struck at it again, and a third time, dealing sixteen to eighteen damage each time. If only there was a way to see how much further to go.

The paw withdrew, and in came the muzzle again, twitching for his scent. Problem was, in a few hours, it would be dark outside. There was no way he could let Ava sit in the tree, just waiting for Ai to do something again because Ava and he bored her. He had to try to do it quicker—if it ran off, fine. If it stayed, he would take larger hits at it, and hope they’d make it back in time.

Leon gripped the dagger tight, then he lashed out, leaving a long gash in one part of the upper lip. The wolf snarled, showing the yellow teeth again, and Leon flung himself forward, piercing the iron dagger through the lip. The iron dagger shattered in his hand as the wolf backed out, howling. The shards fell onto the ground and lay glittering. With a watchful eye for the return of the wolf, he snatched up the shining piece.

‘You have received Iron Shard’

‘You have unlocked a Class Quest:

Collect ten iron shards, two pieces of wood, and one cloth, and take them to a blacksmith to forge an iron sword.

Reward: Iron Sword

Reward: 150 EXP

First time information: Class Quests cannot be accepted or denied and have no time limit.’

Well, shit. How was he supposed to beat the monster now? He stored the shard and pulled out the wooden dagger and sword, leaning his back against the wall, watching the opening.

After several minutes had gone, he put the weapons away, crept toward the opening, and grabbed two of the thick roots going through the walls. He climbed to the top, stopping to peer out. His hair moved with the breath of the beast. It lay just a few feet from the opening, faced his way, but with its eyes toward Ava’s tree. It drew a deep breath and its gaze snapped back to Leon. It snarled and launched forward, and Leon let go, falling into the cavern again. He backed off just before a claw hit the wall behind him, creating a deep mark.

Leon swallowed. Not going away. Well, at least he knew. He drew out the dagger and stabbed at the paw, and as it hit and dealt seventeen damage, the wolf drew back again and didn’t appear. In order to beat it, he’d have to lure it each time? Leon cursed and crawled a bit further than the light reached, feeling along the wall for more, or an end in the pitch blackness. A few feet in, he found another lantern that sprang up. This must be the everlights Hert had talked about earlier, but from the way the smith had said it, they were just that—everlights. Shining always.

“What are everlights?”

‘Everlights

Everlights are present in every dungeon and other dark areas open for exploration. Everlights will shine from the first moment they are touched and can never be damaged or destroyed.’

So this was a dungeon? Maybe it led somewhere, maybe to another exit? If he could sneak out someplace, maybe he could get help. Leon crawled further, feeling along the wall, and a sense of dread washed over him. He backed off, and the feeling disappeared. He frowned and continued until the feeling got so strong he could barely move. He touched the everlight on the wall, and a message flashed up in his peripheral, almost blinding him.

‘You have discovered a dungeon!

Congratulations. You have discovered a new dungeon. Dungeons that have not been previously looted carry better rewards. This dungeon will be added to your knowledge bank and when [locked] [hidden] and [locked] becomes available.

Recommended level: 90’

Leon backed away slowly. What the hell did a level 90 dungeon do in an F-ranked forest? No way he could stay here for the night. He might never wake up. He sat on his knees and rubbed his face. Chance it with the wolf, or chance a night in a level 90 dungeon? Less than an hour ago, four level three wolves had almost finished him, and the system told him that the dungeon was for level 90 players? Why the hell did they expect a player of that status to come down to an F-ranked forest?

Leon hit his head on the floor. Stupid. Think. Don’t go in circles. A course of action that wouldn’t result in death. There had to be one. But only the same plan came up. Both would be choices that could end his life, and a known danger was less scary than an unknown one. In theory.