Chapter 19

Leon sprang toward the next tree, which was closer to Ava but further away from the wolf. 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 had a color stronger than his level. Heck, even if the beast had a yellow tag, 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. 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.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

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 1 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. [Accept]

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, the wolf drew back again and didn’t appear. Did he have to lure it each time in order to beat it? 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.

Congratulations: You have discovered a dungeon!

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

[Close]

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.