The alpha let out a low rumbling growl that made all of the other wolves join in. It was angry and did not appreciate my use of the dead bodies.

This is gonna hurt.

The alpha charged straight toward me, intent on killing me. Sweeping Slash wasn't going to work on this one so I dropped that skill. Heavy Blow was my only option.

I hadn't ever layered Heavy Blow on top of Penetrating Strike before, but if there ever was a time to do it, it was now.

The highest level Austin and I fought during our hunting trips was a level 13. Level 16 wasn't that much higher than 13, but this monster was different. All the bosses of the waves were stronger than their levels stated.

It was like they were a step above the normal monsters. Not only did they have a level advantage over normal monsters, but they also had a fundamental advantage.

If this were a video game I would expect it to have a blue name or something to signify a rare mob. I didn't know how monsters leveled and gained strength, but the bosses were strong.

The bosses from previous waves were at a level now that I could fight and they were much stronger than monsters at the same level. The fox boss was way faster and stronger than even the wolves of this wave and it was the same level.

I heard calls of retreat being sounded off behind me but I didn't listen. There was no way I was going to outrun the boss and it would only cause more chaos by running from it.

The only way forward was through.

Our plan for when the boss broke through the gate was to retreat to the cabin in the middle of our camp to fight there. It was the sturdiest structure after the walls and it was also the most defensible.

The number of wolves from the wave lingering around was few and could be handled without me anymore. I had to make sure I had the boss's full attention.

"Austin, keep them safe. I'll handle the boss!" I shouted to the man next to me.

We had always been close over the years we had grown up together but it felt like we grew even closer these past few weeks. Fighting together every day had a way of doing that.

It also had a way of getting people on the same page and understanding what the other was going to do.

The boss wolf was most likely stronger than me, even with my newly upgraded strength, and it would easily kill anyone who got in its way other than the two of us. If the boss started targeting the rest of my family, it would be a disaster.

I had to keep its attention while the rest of my family retreated to the cabin. Austin would then finish off all of the leftover wolves before coming to help me. I could only hope I would last long enough.

No one had fought a boss solo before and this would be the first. I couldn't fail or my family would die.

Instead of bracing for the alpha's charge, I instead countered with a charge of my own. Let's see who's stronger.

I knew deep down that I was going to lose but I couldn't stop myself. It wasn't so much as my pride being on the line as it was something else. The wolf had challenged me.

This uppity, up-junked dog challenged me. ME. Something in me was enraged at the thought. It was like in those shows where the warrior knew he was going to lose but he fought anyway. I had to fight anyway.

We started close enough together that neither of us picked up much speed before we met in the middle. The alpha was obviously faster than me but that didn't matter.

In my time of need, my axe answered. Heavy Blow paired with Penetrating Strike to create the most powerful swing I could.

Right before we collided, I set my feet and started my swing.

It started in the leg muscles leading up to my hips. Just like in baseball, the hips created the most power. I was going for a home run and the wolf's face was the ball.

I put as much power into rotating my hips as I could.

The strain continued up through my core muscles into my shoulders and down into my arms. I was asking my body for everything it had and more.

It was foolish to think that I could end it in one swing, but I was going to try regardless.

The axe head came screaming around the right side of my body and jumped at the chance to meet its foe.

It was glowing a splendid blue that looked like the inside of a glacier. Not the pathetic glacier blue Gatorade coined, but a blue everyone knew signified the cold.

The wolf had a skill of its own ready and I could see the colorless mana forming on its claws. It had the intelligence to not meet my swing with a bite.

My glowing axe met mana-empowered claws and a nasty screech bloomed from their union.

It was like nails on a chalkboard but worse. The screeching metal strained under the power involved. I was pushed back, nearly falling on my ass.

I looked up to see the wolf pushed back as well, favoring the leg opposite the one it used to block my swing.

I might not be at as much of a disadvantage as I thought.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

I looked down at my axe and saw that there were scratch marks marring the metal and the edge wasn't straight anymore with a large deformity in the middle.

It wasn't going to be able to hold up against what I was asking it to. Damn, I should have spent more time figuring out steel.

It was a regret now, but I thought I had made the better choice in the long run. If I focused on making steel I wouldn't have had the time to make the spearheads for the javelins or as many metal breastplates as I did.

My time was better spent on defending others.

The wolf didn't give me any more time to think and began its charge again.

After fighting the entire wave and being as drained as I was, I didn't have the mana to meet its every attack with both skills active. I would have to hope Fortified Body would be enough.

My axe suffered greatly from the lack of mana empowering it but I couldn't spare any. I was low already and empowering my body was more important.

Without Heavy Blow and Penetrating Strike to even the playing field I was losing.

My swings weren't strong enough to deflect the wolf's swipes and they started to land on my body.

My already ruined armor couldn't take it and was violently ripped apart. My breastplate had three large grooves cut into it from the claws and my leg armor was ripped completely off.

The only metal left intact on my body was the backplate. The breastplate and backplate were two separate pieces because I didn't have the skill to make one continuous piece yet.

I was fending it off as best I could with my axe but the beast was just too fast.

The wolf swiped low looking to cripple my leg and I used the haft of my axe to block. The strength of the swing caused me to unbalance and the wolf capitalized.

It used its powerful jaws and clamped down on my shoulder drawing blood.

Pain clouded my mind for a moment and threatened to overwhelm me. During the bite, I heard a snapping sound and I lost the feeling of my left arm. My collarbone was broken. It bit clean through the ruined metal of my breastplate and deep into my shoulder drawing blood.

My collarbone couldn't take the pressure and even with Fortified Body, it broke. After the successful attack, the wolf shook me like a rag doll and threw me off my feet.

I landed a few feet away and rolled to a stop in the mud. The pain in my shoulder intensified from being thrown onto the ground.

"Uughhh." An involuntary groan escaped my body. I wanted to stay down. I wanted the pain to go away. I wanted to be back home.

This is your life now.

Get up!

It felt like my body was fighting my decision to get up but my command won out. It seemed to know the torment I was asking it to endure.

I lumbered up onto my knees before planting my feet firmly below me. I used my axe as a brace to get standing before I hefted it for battle once more.

It was awkward to swing with one arm but my strength wasn't just for show. I made the axe before I got Body of a Barbarian and with that boost, it was enough to swing it with one hand.

Albeit it was awkward to swing because of the size.

The wolf and I exchanged more blows and I was thoroughly losing now. The loss of an arm was too crippling. The strength of my swings diminished too much.

The wolf knew it was winning and intensified its attacks. Deep gashes adorned my arms and legs, causing blood to flow freely from my body. My shoulder only got worse as the battle continued.

I didn't notice when it happened but the strike that pierced my breastplate went deeper than I thought and ripped open my chest. It might be easier to list where I wasn't bleeding from than from where I was.

I was knocked down a few more times but I always got back up. I can't lose. My body was failing me. I had enough mana for one more full power swing, but after that I was empty.

I didn't even know if my body could make the swing. I gathered my mana anyway.

If I was going down, I was going down swinging.

The mana started to gather in my axe when I saw the largest firebolt I had ever seen enter my vision. It was bigger than the wolf's head it was so large.

The wolf shifted its attention to the new threat and tried to defend against the incoming missile. There was no way I was letting it do that.

I completed gathering the mana in my axe and lifted it for one last swing to distract the wolf.

It knew the power my swing held and didn't know how strong the fire bolt was. I was forcing it to choose between the two of which to block.

It moved to dodge completely when a new addition joined the fray. A spear glowing so bright it almost looked like a ray of sunshine. I knew it was Austin. The sun was hidden behind rain clouds and was nowhere to be seen he could be the only source.

Looks like he finally upgraded a skill.

He had been trying for weeks. Ever since our fight with the boar where I upgraded Power Strike he had been trying the same. He hadn't been able to do it, but it looked like he did now. It seems high-stress situations really make you pull out everything you have.

The wolf was cornered. Its dodge countered and it was left with only one option, defend. It couldn't defend against the attacks coming from three different directions and could only choose one. At most two.

It chose to defend against the attack it knew was strong. Mine. It was a bad decision for the wolf. My swing at this point was mostly bravado and had no real substance behind it.

My left leg was completely shot now and I could barely rotate my hips with all the wounds. My shoulders actively fought against my swing and only one arm was on the axe.

It seemed showing it my full power was a wise decision. If I hadn't started the fight with my most powerful attack, the wolf wouldn't have chosen my attack to defend against now.

It knew how powerful my swing was and judged wrongly that it was the biggest threat. It may have a bit of intelligence but wasn't smart enough not to be deceived.

As all of the attacks landed, it swatted the axe out of my hand. I didn't have enough grip strength to keep hold of it any longer and it soared off behind me.

I got to watch as it realized I was bluffing. It brought a smile to my face.

Austin's spear landed and penetrated deep into its hind leg and the fire bolt blew up its side. Fur caught fire and the wolf yipped in pain.

Arrows thudded into its coat followed by more magic.

Austin's spear flew in and out with such speed I could hardly see it.

My vision was swimming and the world was spinning. It seemed the blood loss was finally catching up.

The battle moved farther and farther away from me and I watched the wolf get whittled down. It was surrounded and facing too many attacks. It tried its hardest, but it was out of mana. It had used most of it trying to kill me.

Well, succeeding in killing me. If it wasn't for my family I would have died. I did my job. I held it off for as long as I could and my family came through.

I barely heard the chime of a notification signaling the end of the wave. There was a pounding in my ears that drowned everything out. A rhythmic thump that maybe took too long to realize was my heartbeat.

The ringing from the explosion didn't help, nor did the screeching of my axe.

I took a moment to internalize the fact I was still standing.

I fought against an army and I was the one left standing. It felt euphoric. Someone more crude would say orgasmic. I had shown my mettle and was revealed the victor.

After everyone heard the chime they started frantically running around. Healers were called for and potions were brought out. I didn't have the sense of mind to survey the destruction. Hell, I could barely stand and was a second away from unconsciousness.

The last thing I remembered was Abigail coming up to me with a worried look on her face. She had a red potion in one hand and the other was glowing with a healing skill. She was fretting with worry and started pulling my ruined armor off to check for wounds.

She was saying something but it didn't register. I was fading out and sounds fell away.

I wanted to reassure her and tell her I was alright but I couldn't bring up the energy. I only managed to mumble a few words that I'm not sure she heard.

"I'm still standing."