She grinned, brushing off her gloves. “Not bad.”

Movement caught her eye to the right. A group of red, dog-sized lizards slithered through the grass, their long bodies moving with unsettling fluidity. Their teeth, massive and unnaturally long, jutted out from their mouths like needles. One hissed, its long tongue flicking out as it turned toward her.

Jennifer slipped her knife from her belt and adjusted the heavy gauntlets on her hands. She didn’t wait for the lizards to strike first.

The first one lunged at her, jaws snapping, but Jennifer sidestepped and slammed her gauntleted fist into its head. The creature’s skull crunched under the impact, and it crumpled to the ground. A second lizard darted in from her left, but she spun, catching it with an uppercut that sent it flying.

She didn’t have time to admire her handiwork. Another lizard charged, and she crouched, driving her knife into its belly as it leaped. The creature thrashed wildly, its claws scratching against her armor before it went limp.

One by one, the lizards came at her, and one by one, she took them down. Her fists flew in a flurry of punches, each impact sending tremors up her arms. The knife in her hand became an extension of her movements, slashing and stabbing as she worked to keep the creatures from surrounding her.

I don't think I want long teeth as a power.

By the time she finished, ten lizards lay dead around her. Jennifer crouched by the nearest one, pulling her knife free from its body. The blade was sticky with dark blood, and the stench of the creatures was starting to make her gag.

She wiped her face with the back of her arm, grimacing at the sweat dripping into her eyes. “Disgusting,” she muttered, pulling the first lizard’s corpse closer.

Jennifer worked quickly, using her knife to extract the spines from their bodies. Each one was slightly curved, smooth, and surprisingly light for its size. They’d fetch a decent price at the Hub, and she needed every bit of coin she could earn.

The last spine came loose with a sickening squelch. Jennifer sat back on her heels, catching her breath as she wiped the blade clean on her gauntlet. She glanced at the pile of extracted spines beside in her bag, satisfied with her haul.

Then the air shifted.

It was subtle at first, a faint prickling against her skin that raised the hairs on her neck. Then came the wind, sharp and sudden, slicing through the tall grass and sending strands whipping around her face. Jennifer barely had time to react before she felt a sting across her cheek, hot and sharp.

She flinched, her hand flying to her face. When she pulled it away, her fingers were smeared with blood.

Something moved in the grass ahead, too fast for her to see clearly. Her heart pounded as she scrambled to her feet, gripping her knife tightly. Whatever it was, it was big—and fast.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

The grass parted, and a blur of dark scales lunged toward her, teeth bared and glinting like razors. Jennifer braced herself, knowing she wouldn’t have time to dodge—

A streak of fire shot past her, so close she felt the heat on her skin. The fiery projectile struck the creature mid-lunge, engulfing it in flames. The beast let out a horrible shriek before collapsing into the dirt, its body smoldering.

Jennifer turned sharply, her breath catching as a figure landed lightly on the ground nearby. His fiery red hair was unmistakable, and his amber eyes seemed to glow faintly as they locked onto hers.

“No way,” she whispered, her voice barely audible.

He adjusted the bow composed of flames in his hand, his gaze scanning the horizon briefly before returning to her.

“You’re new,” he said.

Jennifer nodded, still trying to catch her breath. “Yeah.”

He muttered something under his breath, too quiet for her to hear.

She blinked, shaking off her shock. “Thanks a lot"

"You nearly died."

"Yeah. I wasn't expecting this place to have such strong monsters."

He said, “You got unlucky, walking into a false gate. The monsters in here are mixed with much stronger ones."

She wanted to protest, but seeing the speed of that crab, it was hard to believe he wasn't telling the truth.

"How do I tell a false gate apart from a real one?"

"No twisters."

"What. But I was told that meant a lot of monsters in the gate was killed."

"Gate world, the gate is just the transportation... and yes, that is one of the main reasons why false gates are created."

"Huh. Damn."

Without another word, Jennifer left.

The sting on her cheek throbbed faintly, but her mind was elsewhere. His face. It felt like she had seen him somewhere before. It didn't matter too much she figured. She just had to be much more careful.

Back at the Monster Slayer Hub, she found herself trading. Just like the day before, the room was buzzing with people.

The large, stone-floored hall smelled faintly of dried blood and leather, mingling with the earthy scent of recently harvested monster parts.

Jennifer stepped up to one of the counters.

“What’ve you got?” A middle-aged man asked briskly, his voice flat but not unkind.

Jennifer dropped the bag onto the counter with a soft thud. The faint smell of blood wafted up as the clerk untied the bag and peered inside. He grabbed a pair of gloves and reached in, pulling out one of the long, curved spines.

“Red lizard spines,” he noted, holding it up to the light. He turned it in his hands, inspecting it for damage or defects. Satisfied, he set it aside and pulled out another, then another, working through the bag.

After a few minutes, he nodded and pulled a small scale from beneath the counter. One by one, he weighed the spines, occasionally jotting down notes in his ledger. Jennifer tapped her fingers lightly against the counter, her patience wearing thin but knowing better than to rush the process.

She wished she was dealing with the clerk from the day before. She would be on her way home already.

When he finished, he set the spines aside and looked up at her. “Good haul,” he said. “Decent quality. Fifty bronze coins for the lot.”

Jennifer felt a small surge of satisfaction as the clerk reached into a metal lockbox and counted out the coins, sliding the small pile toward her. She swept them into her palm.

“Thanks,” she said, pocketing the money.

The clerk nodded and turned back to his ledger without another word.

As Jennifer left the Resource Trade Room, the weight of the coins in her pouch brought a faint smile to her face. She hadn’t been a Slayer for long, but already the difference in income was staggering. Back at her old job, she’d toiled for hours to earn just 15 bronze coins in a single day. Now, one hunt had brought her more than three times that amount.

To be fair, she had almost died but it was worth it.