“You’re not coming with us tomorrow!?” Harvin said.

“Sorry… I need to train myself. The moles aren’t enough.”

“Hah, don’t worry about it! Most people don’t do this job for long. You should follow your own path in life!”

“Arild. Do you want me to inform the guild, or are you planning to go there on your own?” Captain Corinth said.

“I’ll go there in the morning. But right now, I want a drink!”

The bustling atmosphere of laughter and stories continued deep into the night.

…

Ahhh… I’ve got a headache.

Dragging my exhausted body out of bed, I got dressed. I ate breakfast at the inn today. I didn’t need to be out early after all.

After taking some time to gather my senses, I headed out to the guild.

…

The guild hall bustled with activity as usual. Adventurers mingled, sharing tales of their latest exploits. I made my way to the job board, scanning for any quests at my level similar to the pelt delivery job. None of them caught my interest. I needed something to grind for a day, something that would push my limits.

With a sigh, I approached the old man at the reception desk. He looked up from his paperwork, raising an eyebrow.

“Back already, Arild? Thought you’d be at the mines.”

“I need something that will make me stronger,” I said. “Do you have any information on level 20 monsters? I need a tougher challenge.”

The old man scratched his chin thoughtfully. “Level 20, huh? Well, the northern forest harbors stronger monsters the deeper you venture. No delivery quests for those, though. It’s more dangerous territory, so there won’t be as many adventurers around.”

“That’s exactly what I’m looking for,” I replied, feeling a surge of excitement.

“Just be careful,” he warned. “And I’ll remove your name from the mine protection job.”

“Thanks. I appreciate it.”

With my new goal in mind, I left the guild and headed to the northern forest yet again.

…

As I headed into the forest, I cut down any wolves in my way. They were more of a nuisance at this point. The air grew cooler as I ventured deeper, the trees denser and the path less trodden.

In the distance, I see the silhouette of a large creature. My vision focuses as I get closer. In the forest, a four-legged animal much larger than the wolves stood. As I got closer, I could make out more of the details. It looked just like an overgrown moonlight wolf, with the same shimmering fur and glowing blue eyes. The size of it being the only visual difference.

A boss version?

A boss version of a wild mob was news to me. Going by the logic of dungeons, it should be around 5 levels stronger. I can see over 10 normal wolves surrounding it, keeping watch for any prey.

My lightning infused body charged at the pack. The wolves noticed me; I didn’t intend to ambush them. I charged at them.

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It led the counter charge, with a speed that put the other wolves to shame. Before colliding with the monster, I jumped, floating over the large wolf’s body while performing a vertical slash on its back.

The wolf jolted, not prepared for such an attack. It seems I overestimated it, or maybe I’ve become much stronger than yesterday. I have allocated none of my free points from leveling yet, unsure of how to spend them.

The sound of lightning crackled as I easily cut down the normal wolves while whittling down the boss at every opportune moment. Its speed and agility surpassed all other wolves, but even so, it couldn’t quite keep up.

All the normal wolves were dead. Only the boss and I remained standing, the wolf looking gravely injured. Even if I were to run, I’m sure it would die from the wounds I inflicted. My sword thrust into its heart, below the neck. The boss wolf collapsed.

I inspected the boss to see if its details were different from the normal wolves.

[INSPECT]

- Moonlight wolf variant.

- A species of agile canines. Their fur shimmers in light and their eyes give them clear vision in the dark.

- Their pelt is often used to create clothing.

It only mentions it being a variant, but not how or why?

After looting it, I opened my inventory in curiosity.

[INVENTORY]

- Skill Book–Shadow Spike (C) – 1

- Low-Grade Mana Crystal (F) – 105

- High-Grade Mana Crystal (F) – 219

- Top-Grade Mana Crystal (F) – 1

- Moonlight Wolf Pelt (E) - 34

- Rockscale Litt Scale (E) – 20

- Crude dagger (F) – 12

- Crude Club (F) – 8

I got a skill book!

Out of the hundreds of monsters I’ve killed so far, none has dropped a skill book. But this monster appeared special. Either I got super lucky or only special monsters can drop skills. I wanted to learn the skill now, however it needed to be comprehended.

Should I spend some time reading here or wait until later?

A rank C skill sure is enticing, but I couldn’t lose my focus here. I’m not invincible. There could be monsters here that are stronger than me.

I’ll just practice it later.

That didn’t mean I would read the information on it later.

[Skill Book–Shadow Spike (C)]

- Summons a spike from the shadows. Range determined by proficiency.

- Grade: C

- Mana cost: 110

That seems amazing. I’m gonna be able to do ranged attacks with shadows. Then how strong were the spikes? Is it something that could pierce the rockscale litts? I worried about the mana cost. With my current mana pool, I could activate it 4 times in a row. Would it become infinite as well at higher proficiency?

I put the new skill out of mind for now and ventured further.

The humidity in the air seemed to increase.

I ran for another 10 minutes, seeing no more monsters or adventurers. The forest turned into a swampy marshland. Then I saw a new type of monster, nothing like I’ve seen before. Its body looked like the wet hairs you pull up from drains, but in green and the size of a silverback gorilla. Drawing my sword, I engaged the monster.

It ran towards me, traversing the marsh with ease while gargling some sounds. This must be their natural habitat. Careful not to be hit, I dodged.

I don’t know how this monster attacks; I see no obvious weapons, but it looks strong.

With zig-zagging movements, I made my way to the swamp monster. My sword sliced through its midsection, but no blood escaped its body. Only the out layer of its body fell off.

I tried again, this time cutting deeper into its body, feeling more of a resistance. The monster gargled in what I can only assume to be pain. At least physical attacks work.

The monster flailed its arms in wild attacks, hitting the environment. From the after-effects, I could see it had a lot of strength. At the opportune moment, I dodged between the attack trajectories and sliced its neck, cutting the head off.

[INSPECT]

- Samosh.

- A species of swamp creatures. Their bodies grow sedge and moss to camouflage themselves.

It dropped a top grade crystal, similar to the wolf variant.

I believe my basic swordsmanship is incomparable to before. My weapon feels like an energy of raw power, able to cut through anything. I’m sure it would even cut the litts at this point.

I found and killed another samosh, then a third, and then a fourth. However, I didn’t get any talents to my disappointment. These monsters roamed individually, unlike the tightly knit wolf packs, making grinding here less effective.

I should head deeper.