The pale sun illuminated a frozen tundra below. Frigid winds swirled about in miniature cyclones, while fresh snow blanketed the earth.

Within the depths of this icy masterpiece, the crunching sound of snow echoed in a small, isolated crevice formed within a massive cliff.

“Huff… Huff…”

A figure heavily exhaled hot air through its hood as it marched uphill within the tunnel. The faint glow of the sun was still visible through the cracks above.

Garbed in a heavy fur coat, the traveler weaved their through the icicles that hung from the overarching walls while eyeing the exit up ahead.

Clutching the sides of their hood, they finally escaped the crevice, which had acted as a temporary shelter from the icy winds.

Chilly.

Jun thought to himself as he pulled the hood down. The howling wind swept past him as he caught his breath and inspected his destination point.

He stood at the top of a cliff, overlooking a massive canyon below. Distant sounds resonated from the canyon’s depths, causing him to reveal a faint smirk.

“You guys have fun distracting the corrupted beasts down there, while I’ll simply... get comfortable.”

He rolled his shoulders and neck as a brief warm up, while simultaneously summoning a long bow from his system inventory. After using the starter bow for a couple days, Jun realized that he needed an option with increased range for moments like this.

“Let’s see… ah, there they are.”

A small smile hung on his lips as he steadily took aim, letting his heart feel the potential trajectory of his mana arrow.

----

While Jun was enjoying his time up above, it was a different story down below in the canyon. A group of four girls were currently sprinting for their lives, racing toward a prebuilt campsite in the distance.

“Why did we choose this mission?! Couldn’t we have picked a different C rank mission?”

Tiana cried out as she subconsciously ducked her head, narrowly avoiding a bone spike speeding through the air.

”Screee! Screee!”

Piercing shrills came from behind them as a horde of quadrupedal monsters bounded through the frozen canyon. Bones seemed to grow out from their obsidian bodies, doubling as a type of ancient armor.

Rows of teeth lined their enormous maws, which opened and closed with each pant during their furious sprint. The beasts squeezed out every ounce of energy that their bodies could muster to reach their prey.

It was as if the group of girls were the most tantalizing dish in the world, and they were just within reach.

One of the beasts flicked its tail overhead in a practiced motion, sending a fresh bone spike hurtling through the air.

“We did try picking a different mission!”

Shireen responded in a panic while sprinting in a zig-zag pattern, treating the canyon like a warzone.

“Dumb Sela…”

Nelath grumbled under her breath while maintaining a consistent jog next to Lulu, who was running ahead with wide eyes.

“There it is! Get behind the barricades and then I’ll activate the formations!”

Lulu shouted behind her as she dashed the remaining distance with renewed vigor. The campsite in question was a forgotten outpost, which they temporarily commandeered as their current base.

Their mission was to eliminate the Wendil threat that plagued the northern lands.

While it was listed as a C rank mission, not all missions were created equal. Some missions recommended additional party members in order to successfully complete them, but it was only a recommendation that didn’t need to be followed.

Missions that suggested less than five members were considered standard missions, while five or more were commonly referred to as raid missions. Of course the suggestions were merely guidelines that could be ignored, especially if someone was beyond the target ranking.

In this case, Lulu and her group were a mixture of A and B rank, while Jun was currently D rank. Together, they made a solid party that was five strong.

The only issue was that the suggested number of members for the current raid was a staggering 20, making it one of the most difficult C rank missions available.

“Hurry your ass Shireen! Stop running in that silly pattern!”

Tiana shouted from behind the barricade where she was resting with Lulu and Nelath. More Wendils hurled their bone spikes at Shireen, the remaining target, with a vengeance.

“Aaaaahhhh!!!!”

Shireen screamed at the top of her lungs while frantically sprinting for the barricade. Bone spikes whizzed past her like a black hailstorm.

If one could slow down time, they would see the projectiles barely miss Shireen by the smallest of margins.

“How crazy is her luck?”

Nelath muttered while observing the spectacle, and it wasn’t just her who was mesmerized by their ditzy party member.

“What’s the chances of every spike missing? Did you see that one? It perfectly went through the gaps of the fingers…”

Tiana unknowingly portrayed an astonished expression as she watched her idiot of a friend navigate the battlefield with perfect accuracy.

“Help meee!”

Shireen dived over the barricade at the last moment. Lulu then activated the multitude of defensive arrays and formations that surrounded the camp. The only way in or out was a single entrance that could be opened or closed.

“Whew, that was scary! I can’t believe you guys just left me back there.”

Shireen brushed off snow from her long coat and swept back her curly blonde locks. The three girls stared at her strangely, letting a moment of silence encompass them.

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Lulu faked a cough before speaking up.

“Ahem, we should strategize how to deal with the remaining Wendils.”

She looked around the abandoned outpost, which was only comprised of a single cottage and a massive fire pit. Whatever was once left of this place had long given way to nature and wildlife.

Not a minute went by before the Wendils completely surrounded the base, attempting to claw their way through the barrier. A few of them even tried jumping over the barrier, only to find it to be a dome-like structure as they slid down the side.

“It’s a good thing Lulu’s formations have gotten a lot better. Imagine if she tried defending against all of these guys a week ago when she was still B rank.”

Each girl subconsciously shuddered when they thought about Lulu’s previously lack of ability, while the girl in question twitched her eye.

“This is only possible because of the system’s help after reaching A rank. There’s a big difference in what’s available from the tutorial store between B rank and A rank!”

Lulu tried defending her skillset while her friends pretended to whistle and look busy.

“Ugh, never mind. Sela chose this mission because she firmly believed we could complete it, so let’s not disappoint her.”

Each of the girls held massive respect for Sela, and not just because she was their senior.

Sela had been a part of their lives since diaper days, and she was the one that took care of them growing up. She was the dependable big sister to the entire group and each of them wanted to meet her expectations.

Tiana clicked her tongue while observing the surrounding beasts.

“Who would have thought all of the remaining Wendils would go berserk once we killed the small blue one.”

Nelath shook her head and let out a sigh.

“If you had studied a little… the blue Wendil was their future leader. We ended their entire lineage by killing the blue Wendil.”

Shireen’s eyes lit up as if she had gained a type of enlightenment. She slammed her fist on her open palm before exclaiming out loud.

“Oh! So it’s like we killed their dad.”

“More like their mom…”

Nelath gave a deadpan reply while Lulu was busily drew in the snow with a stick. After a few more moments, she finally looked up at the group and cleared her throat.

“I’ll open the entrance soon to funnel them in. Shireen and Tiana, you two take the front like usual. Nelath will clean up any Wendils that get through. I would help offensively, but I need to fix the damaged portions of the formation or we won’t be able to hold out much longer.”

Lulu walked toward the center of the outpost as she kept speaking.

“Just remember, the pack leader is still out there. We only killed the next generation leader, but not the current. The pack leader should be the final boss that will give us our mission complete. That’s the plan, so let’s get it done.”

Lulu immediately got to work by waving a simple black wand through the air. The moment she did, a vast amount of information appeared before her, causing her to frown and begin her tasking.

Seeing as their leader had already begun, each of the other girls summoned weapons from their system inventory while making their way to the entrance.

A long scimitar appeared within Tiana’s hand. It’s handle was well worn, showing just how much usage it received. At the same time, a classic pistol appeared against her waist. Engravings were etched into the side, which were the formations that powered the armament.

Next to her, Shireen summoned a pair of gauntlets that completely covered her hands. While both girls were of the fighter class, their combat styles were vastly different from each other. Shireen slammed her protected knuckles together indicating she was ready to take on the world.

Nelath trailed behind the two and simply shook her head while summoning her own set of weapons. When Nelath first became a scout, Sela had taken her on a guided mission to broaden her horizons.

However, instead of inspiring Nelath to venture down the path of bows, it only made her realize her distaste for the weapon.

Whether it was Nelath’s height or other measurements, her body had always been on the petite side. The moment Sela summoned her enormous crystalline bow and displayed the full power of a ranger, Nelath immediately threw away her own bow; it was simply not the path for her.

This was because the mere thought of using such a massive weapon made her feel incredibly self-conscious. Maybe because she was already small, but Nelath had a natural tendency to prefer smaller things.

She flourished two one-handed crossbows that were just larger than her hand. Naturally, everything was powered by her own mana through formations etched into them. She pulled up the scarf that covered her lower mouth, hiding the grin of anticipation for the upcoming fight.

“Get ready!”

Lulu swiftly rebuilt sections of the barrier that had already collapsed, at the same time she opened the entrance. As if that were some sort of signal, the horde of Wendils rushed to the opening with reckless abandon.

Tiana and Shireen greeted the mass of snarls and screeches with adept precision.

With a simple sweeping motion, Tiana’s scimitar cleanly bisected a beast followed by a pistol shot at another incoming foe.

Shireen adopted a fluid style of attacking by bobbing and weaving through the incoming swipes. Whenever an opening presented itself, she punished it with an incredibly satisfying punch that never failed to send her opponent flying.

Behind the two fighters, Nelath rapidly fired her crossbows into the crowd in an attempt to thin the numbers. Occasionally a Wendil would slipped through the front line, which caused Nelath to briefly divert her focus and turn the loose end into a pin cushion.

Each time a Wendil fell in combat, it’s body crumbled to ash and a black miasma would dissipate into the air. This was the fate for most corrupted beings that plagued the various worlds.

Minutes of intense combat went by before a noise sounded in the far distance, ringing through the air like an incoming artillery shell.

Peeeewwwww!

Each girl smiled and fought even more ferociously than before upon hearing the incoming projectile. The unaware Wendils continued to pile themselves high at the entrance. The only thing driving them was a deep thirst for vengeance.

CRASH!

The Wendils had no time to react as a powerful mana arrow made contact with the massive group at the entrance. The arrow pierced through the first body, meeting no resistance at all, before scattering into numerous smaller arrows that ricocheted through the horde.

The Wendils weren’t given any chance as each of the smaller arrows neatly punctured through critical body parts. For a small moment, everyone paused in silence as the opposing groups eyed each other.

Suddenly, almost all the Wendils collapsed one after another, while the surviving beasts backed off to wait for reinforcements.

“Looks like Xin was able to find a good spot.”

Tiana smirked as she looked off into the distance trying to locate her group member. Shireen stood next to her while also scoping out the surrounding cliffside in an attempt to find Jun.

“Well that was easy!”

Lulu came up from behind the group, pretending to dust off her hands.

“The offensive formations are in place now, but it looks like they won’t be needed. Really, who taught that girl how to use a bow? Sela says that she only gives slight hints during training, and yet Xin makes vast improvements each day. Incredible.”

The other three girls gave a wry smile while their thoughts sorted themselves out.

It must really be a blessing to have talent.

So strong…

Xin will be popular with the boys!

“It’s not over yet until the leader shows itself. Ideally it should come out soon, I think. So it’s probably lurking somewhere nearby. Keep your eyes peeled!”

Lulu gave out some simple commands before taking a seat nearby. She procured a book from her system inventory and began reading the complex theories within.

“Tsk. She sets up these formations just so that she can read more about formations. Talk about efficiency. Anyway, I wonder where the leader is at?”

Tiana shook her head before looking out into the canyon.

----

Meanwhile, Jun yawned with a stretch from his vantage point. The ongoing snowstorm and gloomy lighting made it difficult for one to see into the canyon, but Jun didn’t need visibility to detect his enemies.

Kill… Kill them all. My kin, all dying. KILL!

“Aiya, so loud. Found you.”

Jun stood tall as he took aim one more time. He closed his eyes and focused all of his senses on one thing, a particular beast’s soul screaming for vengeance.

Buried beneath the mounds of snow was a small alcove embedded in the opposite side of the canyon. Within this alcove prowled a large sapphire blue Wendil.

A murky blackness filled the Wendil’s eyes, while its bone armor covered its entire body except for a couple of sensitive areas. It constantly growled in a low hum and paced back and forth as if it were waiting impatiently.

Peeeewwwww!

The Wendil pack leader cocked its head to the side as it heard a strange whistling sound. The noise grew is volume while a foreboding sense of danger took ahold of the Wendil. Immediately, it lurched itself towards the alcove’s entrance, but it was too late.

CRASH!

A massive mana arrow impaled the Wendil to the floor with a destructive slam, filling the air with shards of ice and plumes of dirt. Once the dust settled, the Wendil’s limp body slowly disintegrated to ash, joining the rest of its clan.

Jun’s mouth creased into a smile as the system flashed a message in front of him and his group.

“Mission complete. Time to return.”