"Bang!"

The last slime collapsed, its core obliterated, and the golden glow on Ariana’s staff flickered out. She glanced at her mana reserves, confirming they were nearly depleted, then touched her stomach.

"Is it over?" she asked, more to herself, relieved she wasn’t too hungry yet.

Anyi scanned the clearing, his sword poised before finally planting it in the earth. "For now. There’s no telling if more will come. Take this time to rest."

"Perfect timing for a snack!" Ariana wasted no time, rummaging through Miruku’s backpack and pulling out some dry rations. Two of their four bags had already been emptied during their trek through the slime-infested jungle.

For most, such a large stash would have lasted far longer. But their journey had pushed them to eat more frequently. Thankfully, the jungle, despite being overrun with slimes, was still teeming with creatures and resources they could hunt or forage. The slimes, though ravenous, weren’t capable of disrupting the entire ecosystem, functioning more as decomposers than apex predators.

Their decision to carry provisions was precautionary, but after venturing deeper, they found ample wildlife and magical beasts—enough to sustain them without needing to resupply.

"Aniyi," Ariana said between bites, "When we entered, the recommended levels were between 1 and 10, right?"

He glanced her way. "So what?"

"Well, leveling up here is taking forever. Slimes only give 0.1 experience now, but we need 5,000 points to hit level 6. That’s 50,000 slimes just for one level." She paused, her brow furrowed in thought. "And what about when we get to level 7 or higher? What if the slimes give even less? We’ll be stuck killing 100,000, maybe 200,000 slimes. We only have ten years to defeat the monsters; we can’t spend it all in this jungle trying to reach level 10!"

Anyi nodded slightly, acknowledging her concern.

"So," Ariana continued, her golden eyes sparking with curiosity, "is there something else in this jungle that can help us level up faster? Or maybe we should stop hunting slimes altogether and find stronger monsters. The experience from them might be more rewarding, right?"

Her sudden insight surprised Anyi. She was of this world, unlike him, and hadn’t been exposed to the same knowledge he carried from his past life. Yet, after just one day of fighting, she had already begun to sense the imbalance in how they were progressing.

In Anyi’s memory, most Heroes failed to recognize this critical detail until it was too late. Heroes, after defeating their first wave of bosses, often fell into predictable patterns—hunting familiar monsters, repeating the same actions, and focusing solely on what they knew.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

The two paths for Heroes were clear: either die to stronger monsters after reaching a certain level, or continue grinding the same creatures until they faced their evolved forms. If you killed slimes, you would inevitably face the Slime King. If you hunted goblins, you’d encounter the Goblin Centurion. Skeletons? The Necromancer awaited.

This approach wasn’t inherently flawed—it ensured steady monster elimination and survival for a time. But in the long run, it slowed down their growth.

After a certain number of kills, the experience from a specific monster type would diminish drastically. The same was true for bosses. In order to maximize experience gain, it was critical to diversify, hunting new monsters before the old ones became ineffective.

In his past life, few Heroes had grasped this concept early on. Most had shared regional intelligence, focusing on area strategies rather than on the monsters themselves. As a result, many had fallen behind, unable to level up fast enough to face the ever-increasing threats. It had led to devastating losses.

Anyi’s mind was always two steps ahead, honed by a lifetime of playing RPGs. Among all the Heroes, his leveling speed was unmatched, save for a few, like the famed [Exterminate Hero] and others blessed with experience-boosting skills. His knowledge of monster types, their weaknesses, and the mechanics of bosses in these early stages made him a formidable strategist. Yet, it was his unyielding drive for vengeance that pushed him to act with relentless precision.

"You’re right," he said, his tone measured yet deliberate. "At our current level, we're far from ready. Before venturing deeper into the monster territories, we need to explore other ways to level up." He paused, eyes narrowing slightly as he turned toward Ariana. "As for whether killing other monsters will yield more experience, we won’t know until we try."

Ariana’s eyes brightened at Anyi’s agreement, a smile pulling at her lips. "Exactly! Actually, I’ve been thinking... maybe we should consider retreating for now."

"Retreat?" Anyi’s curiosity piqued as he raised an eyebrow. The thought of withdrawal seemed uncharacteristic of the Holy Maiden, whose purpose was always to protect and serve. They had already spent an entire day purging thousands of slimes, yet still hadn’t discovered their source. The mere mention of pulling back surprised him.

"If," Ariana began cautiously, "our current level really isn’t enough... and our attribute points aren’t balanced, just one day of fighting has left us exhausted. What happens if a high-level monster appears? Do we have the strength to face it?"

Her voice trailed off as she looked up at Anyi for his response, but what she saw startled her. Anyi was already moving, his expression sharp as he surged forward.

"Lay!" he barked, shoving Ariana down and stepping between her and an unseen threat. His sword flashed in the dim light, drawn in a smooth, practiced motion.

[Skill: Flame Thrust Lv: Max

Multiple release ——]

"Fire Dragon."

A roar erupted from the blade as a fiery dragon burst forth, its flaming form as thick as a tree trunk, tearing through the darkened forest. Trees vanished in the inferno, reduced to ashes in seconds. The scorching heat washed over them, illuminating the entire clearing with an intense, searing light.

Ariana’s heart raced as she scrambled to understand what had just happened. She glanced at Anyi in confusion and panic before her gaze darted to the edge of the fire’s light.

Barely two meters away, illuminated by the flickering flames, lay a grotesque, charred tentacle, its burnt flesh curling and smoking. The stench of seared flesh filled the air, an acrid smell that clung to the air. The creature, whatever it was, had been just moments away from striking.