Chapter 94

“In the middle of the forest.” Part 1

An arrow split the air in two and buried itself viciously in the tender fur of the fierce wolf.

Then another clouded the animal’s vision, and soon after, one more arrow pierced its neck.

Followed by a sharp knife and a whispering voice.

“Sleep well!” Kalysto muttered just before tearing the neck of the huge brown-furred wolf. The next instant, a pair of notifications, one blue and one violet, opened to her left.

[You’ve gained 700 experience points!]

This would be the fourth wolf she had killed since they were unexpectedly surrounded by thirty-six more in the meadow near the large-horned rabbit warren that the palace guards had led all the heroes into. Including the wizards. Who, left without the vigilance of the court mages who had been sent to investigate the destruction of several villages and small towns in the south of the kingdom that had been overrun by monsters or ravaged by the demon king and his army, had no choice but to join the rest of the heroes for training.

Which had greatly slowed down their advancement, much to the annoyance of Rita, Eric and Madha who had devoted themselves body and soul to leveling up rapidly during the last week and a half, after the latter two had approached Kalysto as soon as Rita told them about the idea of escaping.

And now all three of them had been level 9 for 4 days. And they were desperate to get to level 10 and choose their element.

Although Kalysto had a strong suspicion that Eric had already chosen it, he just hadn’t informed them.

Three more wolves began to surround her while Kalysto could hear the clash of the swords of the seven soldiers who came with them to keep them safe and the screams of the rest of the heroes as they found themselves surrounded, along with Sandra’s thunderous scream as soon as the first soldier perished at the hands of three wolves.

“Shit!” Kalysto growled, but not because she was worried about the fallen soldier. But for the three five-foot-tall wolves that had rushed at her.

But it was not them she was most worried about, but the large white wolf with small brown spots on his paws that watched them all with great attention from atop a large rock, as if they were nothing more than his future dinner and he was selecting the best meat from an appetizing buffet.

But most interesting of all, was the pretty, pale crystal that seemed to sparkle on his plush fur.

Right in the middle of his forehead.

I want it. She thought, wishing it could give her some skill that wouldn’t end up like the disaster of the two-headed Sajhun. But barely had the thought danced through her head when the gaping mouth of a wolf clouded her vision.

Kalysto punched her hard in the jaw, changing her trajectory as she leapt to the left, trying to gain some advantage.

She immediately reached out to draw an ice arrow from her violet inventory, but the sharp teeth of another wolf buried themselves viciously against her forearm before she could string the arrow into her bow.

Kalysto immediately swung her bow, driving the point into one of the eyes of the huge beast that snarled at her, but the beast did not let go of her right forearm, quite the opposite, it buried its teeth even harder, causing pain to spread through the saintess’s body.

[The passive skill Pain Resistance has been activated.]

[The passive skill Mental Defense has been activated.]

All traces of pain disappeared on the spot and Kalysto dropped her bow and threw a punch on the wounded eye of the beast, followed by another and another and another. Until the wolf finally groaned and then growled, annoyed at its prey for the continued blows, and finally released the wounded arm to pounce on the other that had been assaulting him.

Kalysto could barely avoid the bite and threw a powerful kick at her attacker, sending him a couple of feet away from her. Then she took advantage and ducked down to retrieve her bow, just in time to avoid being devoured by the third wolf that knocked her to the ground. Kalysto could barely lift her bow and use it as a shield while doing her best to keep the beast’s muzzle away from her face as she felt a small rock digging uncomfortably against her back.

But the wood of the bow began to give way before the strong jaws of the animal that held her prisoner against the ground and its huge body, soon after a crunching sound resounded in her ears.

“Shit!” she growled, knowing that the flimsy wood of the bow the palace soldiers had given her would not last much longer. “I should have taken out the other one!” She reproached herself with annoyance. Then, with the toes of her boots, she kicked the crotch of the wolf above her, at the same time, the bow snapped in two. And as the wolf howled in pain with its muzzle too close to her, Kalysto buried the two halves of the bow against the animal’s thick neck. “Sleep well,” she whispered, tossing it aside and walking quickly away.

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But the stubborn animal instead of falling asleep shook its head, even though its eyes were trying to close and obey her command.

“Couldn’t you just be easy to kill?” Kalysto reproached him with annoyance and then kicked him in the snout from below, pulled out an ice arrow from her inventory and stuck it in his other eye. “Ice manipulation!” She snarled, spreading the layer of ice that covered the arrow so that it covered the wolf’s nose and huge snout. Leaving behind the wet arrow firmly buried.

The enormous animal shuddered and twitched, trying to break away from her, but by the time it did, it was too late.

Much of its face was already completely covered with ice.

And as the third wolf struggled to get rid of the ice that prevented it from breathing, the first one pounced on Kalysto again.

“Water blades!” she whispered, throwing them at the animal’s eyes, which, despite being wounded, jumped at her. “Ice blades!” she shouted, firing them at her enemy’s neck two seconds before he fell on her. “Ice daggers!” She continued, as she jumped backwards. And two beautiful daggers appeared in her palms at the same time as the wolf’s claws extended against her face. “Ice manipulation!” She continued, lengthening the blades of the daggers as the coldness of the ice handle kissed her skin.

But she ignored all the discomfort and faced her enemy.

The wolf’s first paw failed to catch her, but not the second. It crashed into the edge of one of her daggers, which severed the toes of one of its paws.

The wolf’s loud growl echoed in her ears as the second wolf joined its mate.

“Kalysto, I need a little help here!” Rita shouted.

“Yeah, me too,” she said in reply, as she watched out of the corner of her eye the only rogue in the group of heroes go to the aid of the future fire mage.

Knowing that would buy her some time, she returned to watch the two wolves in front of her, only to notice the huge claws of one of them just inches from her eyes. Kalysto jumped to the left, trying to avoid it, but found herself up against the fangs of the other wolf.

“Don’t you people ever get tired of teasing?” she growled at them. And she turned around, running as fast as her legs and her new stats would allow her to run and then jumped against the trunk of a tree and bounced against another, gaining some height, reaching a thick branch on which she climbed. “Ice arrows!” She called out, piercing the head of one of the wolves, which soon reached her and jumped on her.

But her arrows hit the target, and the wolf’s body fell lifelessly to the ground.

[You’ve gained 500 experience points!]

“For all the annoying work I have to do to kill them, they give very little experience," she was annoyed, longingly remembering the large amount of experience she gained from the horde of monsters that attacked the elves.

She immediately pulled an arrow from her quiver and shot it at the remaining wolf, right in the middle of its forehead, followed by five more arrows in its eyes, neck, and torso. Until finally the animal stopped and a pair of signs appeared to her left.

[You’ve gained 800 experience points!]

“Good, now I only have thirty-three more to go," she murmured as she pulled out a small bottle of low-quality holy water and sipped it. And standing behind the fallen body, she pulled out another arrow, this time one of the ones Caranthir had given her. Eagle eye! -She said and began to shoot arrows at the three wolves that were attacking Rita, the two surrounding Eric and Madha, and shot another batch of arrows at the group of wolves that were prowling around Koden and Edward. Helping them weaken their enemies enough for them to have a chance of survival against the wolves.

And it was when she sent an arrow against the small hole in the eardrum of the wolf that jumped on Rita, whose arrow pierced its skull from side to side, that she noticed out of the corner of her eye little Katia wounded and on the ground, struggling against one of the wolves while her mother fled in fear and ran into the forest, abandoning her young daughter.

[You have gained 600 experience points!]

I hope the wolves eat her! She thought spitefully as she shot a series of arrows at the wolf that held the defenseless young girl to the ground. Then she pulled out the last arrow with penetration stats she had left in her inventory.

“Duplication!” she whispered, and after saving the copy in her inventory, she launched the arrow against the head of the huge wolf, whose body fell lifelessly against the little girl who began to scream in fright. Drawing the attention of one of the soldiers.

[You’ve gained 1000 experience points!]

The same soldier who had been staring morbidly at the little blonde since they had left the castle.

“Katia, run!” Kalysto shouted as the slender young woman pulled her flimsy body out from under the beast, only for her face to lose all trace of color as soon as she saw the soldier licking his lips as he looked at her, approaching her.

Katia screamed, and her hands shook.

But her screams were lost amidst the battle and the growls of the wolves as the little girl ran in the same direction her mother had fled before, into the thick forest.

While the soldier pursued her with a malicious grin stamped on his filthy lips.

There was no way Kalysto wouldn’t recognize that nasty look.

Not when it was the same one her stepfather gave her before sneaking into her room in the middle of the night, behind her mother’s back.

Kalysto’s blood boiled at the unpleasant memory as her body was bathed in a numbing chill.

[The passive skill Mental Defense has been activated.]

Then she ran with all her might in their direction, dodging the bodies of the other wolves, and the trees that got in her way. She crossed the wide clearing in a matter of seconds until she finally reached where the fallen body of the wolf that had almost crushed the young blonde was lying and turned in the same direction they had taken.

Kalysto was completely focused on her target.

So much so that it took her mind a couple of seconds to process the heavy blow she received against her side as another wolf charged at her, causing her to crash and bounce off the thick trunk of a nearby tree.

A snarl escaped her lips as she watched the annoying creature that was interfering with her hunt.

And as the wolf lunged at her again, from a distance Kalysto could clearly hear Katia’s screams and pleas ringing in her ears.