Blood was heavily pouring down on the ground; tears went down my face; I was already losing the mental battle after the first hit; my mind was already blank after receiving the most painful blow I've ever received; one wrong move, and it was already over for me.

I stood up slowly, taking deep breaths to steady my movement and prepare for the golem's next attack. My dagger was already ready, firmly in front of my face as I braced myself to fight back.

*"This is bad... but this one hurdle won't stop me...."* I smiled at the golem; my arms and legs were squeezed so hard I could feel each muscle fiber ripping apart, but the danger in front of me could not compete with the pain I am experiencing every second.

The golem suddenly turned around; each step it took shook the ground hard enough that it vibrated everything near its vicinity.

*"There must be a core inside the golem somewhere....."* I sprinted deeper into the forest in hopes of finding a hiding spot, The large golem all of a sudden sprinted in the same direction I went.

With each step the golem took, one by one the trees fell. The golem could not care less for the environment because its only goal was to finish me off.

After countless trees were destroyed, I could only hide behind a large boulder before the golem could spot me.

*"Is there anything I could do....."*

A stream of thoughts was running inside my mind; in every situation, there was always a solution; I only needed to rely on my problem-solving skills and logical thinking.

"The quest! I only need 1 more herb, and I can get a skill!"

I leaned towards the left side of the boulder; the golem was standing in place, scanning its surroundings with its yellow eyes; the herb was still on the golem's head.

Before I could retreat, the golem finally spotted me, staring in my direction before sprinting again and shaking the whole area.

*"If I use the boulder as a stepping stool..... Maybe I can reach the herb.... I only have one shot!"*

I had devised a plan that could either kill me or help me defeat this golem. I only had one try at jumping to harvest the herb on its head.

I tensed my muscles, ready to jump towards the danger. The golem's thunderous footsteps grew louder, shaking the ground beneath my feet. As it burst through the tree line, I launched myself off the boulder with all my might.

*"It's now or never!"*

Time felt like it slowed down as I jumped towards the golem, suddenly both of its arms raised, like it was ready to catch me, its yellow eyes fixed on my approaching figure. I stretched out my hand, my fingers were twitching desperately to harvest the herb.

Just as my fingers touched the plant's leaves, the golem's arm swung towards me. I twisted in mid-air, barely avoiding its fatal blow. With no time to spare, I snatched the herb and tucked into a roll as I hit the ground.

Pain shot through my body as I tumbled across the forest floor, but I clutched the precious herb tightly to my chest.

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"Yes! I caught it!"

// QUEST: A Small Start: Herbs Harvested, 10/10 //

// REWARD : Nature Infusion Skill Rune //

// EFFECT: Empowers the user with the essence of nature, effect may vary depending on the environment //

//COOLDOWN : 5 MINUTES //

The window suddenly showed up in front of me, showing the description of the reward I had obtained. Until a small rune spawned in the palm of my hand, the rune pulsated weirdly; its color in the middle flashed a green gradient.

Without hesitation, I grasped the rune tightly, feeling its energy course through my veins. The golem, enraged by its herb getting snatched, suddenly changed the colors of its eyes, it went from a light yellow hue into a deep red color; In a quick moment, the golem suddenly charged towards me faster than before. I only had mere seconds to act.

I channeled my spirit and strength into my hand once more; this time I had the resolve to destroy the rune and gain its power, crushing the rune in an instant.

A burst of energy suddenly erupted from the core of the rune; the stream of energy circled my arms and chest until it covered my whole body.

*"This feeling, it feels like I am in front of a warm furnace...."*

The warmth was a familiar and comforting feeling as the energy flowed through my mind. With each pulse, I absorbed more knowledge about this skill rune. It felt like something I had been doing for ages, even though it was my first time. As the stream of energy suddenly ended, my mind was already ready to cast this new skill without any problem.

// YOU HAVE LEARNED NATURE INFUSION //

With newfound power surging through my veins, I faced the charging golem head-on. My dagger, once a tool I couldn't rely on, was suddenly surrounded by a green aura, I could feel the forest's energy flowing through me, connecting me to every blade of grass, every leaf, and every root beneath my feet.

*"Nature Infusion!"*

The dagger's aura became stronger, and I felt a surge of strength and agility. The golem's large fist came crashing down, but this time, I was ready. I dodged with supernatural speed, the ground where I stood moments ago shattering under the impact.

*"I should go for the legs to destroy its balance!"*

I shifted swiftly behind the golem, slashing the joint made out of pebbles with all my might.

"That's one!"

The golem suddenly lost control of its left leg, the thigh that was made with different sizes of rocks and pebbles suddenly collapsed, losing its balance and suddenly the weight of the body leaned towards the missing limb, leaving it defenseless.

I wasted no time. With the golem off-balance, I sprinted toward its right leg, my Nature-Infused dagger slicing through stone with ease. The golem's massive body stumbled wildly, its arm swinging in all directions to keep its balance.

"And that's two!"

The golem, no longer able to maintain control, collapsed onto the ground with a loud crash. The impact was so powerful that it caused the surrounding area to shake. Its body was destroyed, with its arms crushed into smaller pieces and only its core remaining intact in the middle of its shattered form.

*"It's finally over.... Only one more thing to do...."*

I climbed up the towering body of the golem, digging up the debris and rocks in its chest until it was completely exposed.

"Here it is!"

The core of the golem was well hidden within the shattered remains of the body, glowing a faint yellow light even in its weakened state. My hands were shaking as I cleared the remaining debris, revealing a yellow orb, glowing faintly and beating like a human heart.

"Its time to say goodbye jumbo rock!"

With my dagger still infused with green aura, I raised it high, aiming for the core of the golem, as I stared down at it, for a brief moment, I could feel a strange connection, as if the core itself was alive, waiting, watching.

"Here goes nothing!"

I stabbed deep into the golem's core, and a sudden pulse of energy released towards my face, I didn't react, I only had one goal and it was to finally finish this thing off, with each passing moment, I stabbed deeper, the intensity of the energy was also increasing as I got deeper.

The core finally cracked, revealing a hollow inside that was once filled with energy to power up the golem. With one final push, the core shattered into pieces, and the light within it extinguished. The remains crumbled to dust in my hands, leaving nothing but the stones around me drained of life.

// SECRET OBJECTIVE: Kill an enemy 20 levels higher than you //

// SECRET OBJECTIVE COMPLETED: WEAKEST VS WEAKEST //