Chapter 16

I Level Up Alone: Ragnarok Chapter 15

The outpost was naturally guarding the gate.

[They were probably mining mana stones in the dungeon.]

"That's right."

As Ber said, outside the gate, there were many carts loaded with mining equipment.

Seeing the carts filled with mana stones, it seemed that the miners had just finished their work and gone home.

Normally, such a large amount of mana stones wouldn't be left unattended like this, but it was possible because it was a field-type dungeon.

'There won't be any thieves brave enough to climb this mountain, infested with monsters, in the middle of the night to steal some mana stones.'

But there was a thief right here.

Crunch, crunch.

[Wow. This place is a mana stone paradise.]

Before long, Ber flew over to the carts and started eating the mana stones.

At first, he had shown some reluctance, but now he seemed to be enjoying it.

[These things have a surprisingly good crunch.]

Ber chewed on the mana stones while looking around.

After confirming that there was no one around, he called out to Shuhuo.

[Everyone seems to have gone home. Not even a single ant is in sight.]

-Count properly. You're the one who's like an ant.

[Oh? Young Lord, isn't your sword handle a bit too long? How about I take a bite of the tip?]

-Hmph. If you eat me, it will be harder to enter the sanctuary and find the artifact.

"Your words are correct, so stop drooling, Ber."

[Chomp. Got it.]

Shuhuo's words made Ber quickly respond and finish the last bits of the mana stone in his mouth.

Actually, eating a truckload of these mana stones would not recharge his power as much as eating one of Lakan's fangs.

But since he finally had a decent weapon to use, he couldn't ask for it, so he just had to eat the truckload of mana stones.

Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch.

-...

Lakan's fang trembled.

Ber was still watching him with a lingering gaze, even as he chewed on the mana stones.

At that moment, Shuhuo's hand holding the fang felt incredibly steady.

-Now, let's enter the gate. The sanctuary should be beyond it.

"Hold on."

Suddenly, Shuhuo changed direction and hid behind the outpost.

He narrowed his eyes and watched the gate.

'Someone is there.'

Just then, someone walked out from inside the gate.

But it wasn't just one or two people.

'Did the miners not go home yet?'

That was unlikely.

Staying until it got this dark would make the path out of the field-type dungeon too dangerous.

Moreover, mining wasn't something that could be finished in a day, so there was no reason to work this late.

If not, then they must be a raiding party of hunters, which was even stranger.

'With all the monsters outside the gate, what could a raiding party be doing inside?'

At that moment, Ber jumped onto Shuhuo's shoulder and whispered.

[Young Lord, something is off. I can smell the scent of beasts from them.]

'Beasts?'

Just then,

"…Grrr."

The faces of the hunters who had come out of the gate were revealed in the moonlight.

But their appearance was...

'Werewolves?'

The dirty fur covering their faces.

The sharp fangs protruding from their mouths.

To his surprise, the hunters were werewolves in human clothing.

'Is this a beast transformation skill?'

The first thing Shuhuo thought of was a skill.

Skills came in various forms, and occasionally, there were hunters who could transform into non-human forms.

However, the probability of hunters with the same skill gathering in one place was extremely rare.

'Unless it's the White Tiger Guild.'

But even the White Tiger Guild, which had many beast transformation hunters, wouldn't have gathered only one type of beast.

-It seems they drank the blood of my clan.

'Blood?'

Hearing this, Shuhuo looked at Lakan's fang.

-The blood of the fang clan contains great power. Lowly humans can gain overwhelming strength by drinking just a few drops.

"Does touching you mean being possessed?"

-No, quite the opposite. They didn't lose anything; they took the power of my clan.

"Took it?"

-Yes. I don't know which fool of my clan fed them the blood, but their power must have decreased as the blood was drained.

Shuhuo had a strange expression.

Drinking blood could grant a beast transformation skill.

He had never heard of such a bizarre way to obtain a skill other than through rune stones.

But since only two years had passed since the Great Cataclysm, strange new situations could arise at any time.

-But I can't understand this.

Lakan's fang muttered in a displeased tone.

-Who would expend their own power to create such mongrels…? What is happening in there?

Just as Lakan's fang was expressing its confusion,

Something truly strange happened.

The werewolves entered a warehouse near the gate and dragged out people bound with blue tape.

'What?'

Shuhuo's eyes widened.

"Mmmph…!"

The people, whose mouths were sealed with blue tape, trembled in fear.

The werewolves' mouths curved into long, cruel grins.

"Grr. Were you bored waiting during the day?"

"Since this is the last one, shall we let you breathe easily?"

"But in return, be quiet? We hate noise."

Rip.

The blue tape was torn off the people's mouths.

At that moment, their mouths erupted with desperate cries.

"Please, save us!"

"Please, just send us home!"

"Ah, too noisy. Do you want to be eaten now?"

Snap.

At the werewolf's words, the people's mouths closed simultaneously.

"Hic."

They clenched their teeth, afraid that even a breath might mean death, but they couldn't stop their teeth from chattering.

"Yes. Isn't it much better to be quiet?"

"We have heightened senses and hate noise."

"So, everyone? If you make noise again, we might get startled and bite your necks. Grr."

Thud.

The last words were not a joke, and the people's faces turned pale with fear.

Satisfied with their reaction, one of the werewolves said condescendingly,

"Yes. You've been captured for days and have a lot to say, but I'll listen to your last words. Just speak softly?"

The middle-aged office worker in the center spoke urgently.

"Um, if you need money, I can somehow…!"

"Tsk."

"No, wait! Listen to me! Instead of doing this, tell us what you want, and we can…!"

The werewolf looked at his subordinate with an annoyed expression.

"Kill him."

"Should we?"

"Even if it's annoying, let's take one of them with us."

"Grr."

Seeing the werewolf approaching him, the office worker panicked and shouted,

"No, wait! This is a crime… Gag!"

"Ugh, really."

The werewolf, holding the office worker by the neck, had a face full of irritation.

"I told you, I hate noise."

He skillfully drew a dagger from his waist and plunged it into the office worker's neck.

Crack!

"…?"

But something was off.

Thud.

The werewolf's neck was the one that was severed.

A sudden axe had flown from somewhere, separating the werewolf's head from his body.

"Ah…!"

The office worker, who had narrowly escaped, wet his pants at the sight of the werewolf's head on the ground.

"Grr?!"

Startled by the sudden turn of events, the werewolves bristled and drew their weapons.

"Who's there!"

"Who dares…!"

At that moment,

Assassins hidden in the darkness approached and slashed their legs with sharp claws.

Swoosh!

"Argh!"

[Shadow Leopard Lv.1]

Common Rank

"Razan?!"

The werewolves' eyes widened in shock upon recognizing their attackers.

The black shadow Razan was one of the most dangerous monsters in this forest.

However, due to their aversion to light, they never ventured near the gate, which was full of torches.

"Why is Razan here!"

"No, this isn't a normal Razan…!"

There was no time to talk.

[Roar!]

The shadow leopards pounced on them.

"Damn! Kill them!"

"Don't panic! It's just five of them!"

Clang, clang, clang!

Though startled by the sudden attack, they were veteran hunters who had been here for a year.

They weren't about to give up their lives to just five monsters.

But they didn't know something.

The owner of those five monsters, who was now behind them, was hoping for their deaths.

Rustle.

The axe that had decapitated the first werewolf, which had fallen to the ground, suddenly floated up.

And then,

Whizz!

Crack!

"…Gasp."

Another werewolf's head was separated from his body.

The werewolves' eyes widened in shock.

"Damn it!"

"What's with that axe!"

The stone axe that had beheaded two of their comrades was now circling like a boomerang, aiming for their necks!

"It's a skill! It must be a skill!"

"Where is it! Who's hiding behind us and…!"

But the owner of the axe had no intention of hiding.

"Let's…"

Shuhuo's eyes, hidden behind a hood and a black mask, reflected the cold moonlight.

"Save the civilians first."

[Truly a hunter's words.]

Whoosh!

A tremendous killing intent burst from Lakan's fang.

[Using skill: Contempt for the Weak.]

"…!"

At that moment, the werewolves' bodies stiffened.

[Effect: Fear activated.]

[All abilities of the targets are reduced by 50% for 1 minute.]

"Grr!"

Some of the werewolves roared and shook off their fear.

[Effect: Fear removed.]

But that brief moment was enough.

[Roar!]

Swish!

The shadow leopards slashed their Achilles' heels.

Whizz! Slash!

The stone axe, controlled by the dominion, pierced their hearts.

And then,

-You lowly mongrels.

Shuhuo's sword beheaded them.

"Grr…!"

The remaining werewolves, still alive, bared their teeth at Shuhuo.

"He's just one person!"

"Die! Grr!"

Their beast-like, base murderous intent focused on Shuhuo.

At that moment,

Ding.

[A new urgent quest has appeared.]

A quest window appeared before Shuhuo.

[Urgent Quest: Eliminate the enemies!]

There are people with murderous intent towards the 'player' around you. Eliminate them all to ensure safety.

Number of enemies to eliminate: 10

Number of enemies eliminated: 5

The quest had already started with half of the enemies eliminated.

[What a bargain.]

Crunch, crunch, crunch.

Meanwhile, Ber, who was happily munching on mana stones in a corner, let out a contented laugh.

[Oh, I can't stop. Why are the mana stones here so rich in mana? Could it be because of the sanctuary?]

Unfortunately, no one was there to answer him.

Everyone was too busy.

But then,

[…!]

Ber's joyful gaze turned cold as he stared at the gate.

[This smell…]

Someone with a scent similar to the fang lord was walking out of the gate.