SWISH
As Chief Kobold leaned back, letting out a guttural laugh, I fired the arrow at that moment.
THUD SPURT
The arrow struck Chief Kobold right in the chest, and it let out a pained howl. However, even though I had struck him on its vital point and my arrow was channeled with huge amounts of mana, I couldn’t kill him in one strike. It was as expected since it was a boss monster and the distance was quite far away.
“GRRRRRRR!”
The other kobolds turned their heads in confusion, trying to comprehend what had just happened.
I was also confused momentarily. For some reason, the kobold was shining bright green as if it was marked with something, but I couldn’t understand what it was.
A tendril of green color was connecting me to the kobold as if it was showing me where it was. But, it was not the time to stop. I needed to attack the monster, after all, before they could react.
SWISH
Thus, before they could raise their guards, I fired another arrow, this time hitting Chief Kobold in the shoulder.
“ROOOOOOAAAAR!”
Then I proceeded with firing another three.
SWISH SWISH
It roared in agony, prompting the other kobolds to panic. However, the arrows I had released followed the trajectory of the green color I could see. Like my body instinctively knew where to shoot.
‘What is this?’
A lot more questions arose from my heart, but it was not the time to ask questions. It was time to attack.
With the element of surprise on my side, I continued to rain arrows down on Chief Kobold, targeting its vital spots. Its health steadily decreased with each well-placed shot. In a matter of ten seconds, I had already fired five arrows, and three of them hit.
The other two had missed since the kobold leader managed to get out of the throne he was sitting on and took cover instinctively.
The other kobolds began to scatter, their confusion turning into fear. They searched for the source of the attacks but couldn’t pinpoint my location.
After all, I was covered with shadows, and they could never see where I was. But to fire, I needed to get out of the shadows, which made it hard for me to attack without getting detected randomly.
“AUUUUU!”
“HOWL!”
“SNARL!”
Their snarls and howls filled the settlement as all of the other kobolds that were busy with mating were also alerted.
RUSTLE RUSTLE
Inside the forest, they started looking for the attacker, using their noses to find my stench. But they were spending their efforts futile. I had already used a stench-erasing perfume for such cases.
However, another interesting thing caught my eye. The kobold leader was behind the hut, and my vision was blocked.
But, after the last arrow hit, the same green tendrils of small lines were connected once again.
‘I am sure now. For some reason, I can mark the monster with my arrows.’
I had no time to rack my brain to understand why it was since the Kobolds were scattered around looking for my traces. However, the tendrils of green lines were showing me the location of the Kobold Chief.
He was staying in the same place, probably trying to get rid of his injuries.
“Dash.”
SWOOSH SWOOSH
Without wasting any more time, I quickly repositioned myself to get a clear shot at the Kobold Chief while activating my skill.
With shadows forming around me and my speed increasing, I found a spot where the hut wouldn’t obstruct my arrows, and the green tendrils of lines connected me to the boss monster once more.
With the Kobold Chief lying wounded on the ground, I took one final arrow from my quiver and nocked it on my bow. The green lines of connection still guided my aim, and I focused all my mana on this last shot.
I steadied my breathing and honed in on the target. The Kobold Chief’s labored breathing filled the air as it struggled to stay alive.
SWISH
With a deep breath, I released the arrow, and it sailed through the night air with deadly accuracy.
THUD SPURT
The arrow found its mark, piercing through the Kobold Chief’s skull with a sickening thud.
“GRAAA-” 𝑂𝒱xt.𝗇t
The boss monster let out a gurgled cry before falling silent, life extinguished. I could see the monster had reached its demise, and it was no longer alive.
The other kobolds, witnessing the fall of their leader, froze in terror. They had seen their once mighty Chief succumb to my relentless assault, and fear took hold of them.
What was the most primitive emotion for any living being?
It was fear.
And at that moment, all the kobolds around me felt the fear they had never felt for the first time.
“Grrr…..” “Snarl….” “Auuu….”
Making a lot of fearful voices, the kobolds tried to get away, scattering around. But there was just no way that I could leave those kobolds that would become my source of money to leave like that.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Seizing the opportunity, I swiftly drew my pistol and fired at the remaining kobolds. The gunshots echoed loudly through the forest, signaling the end of their reign of terror and the start of mine.
At this point, there was no need for me to hide my traces anymore, as the first stage was already cleared. No monster could rival me here unless monsters from deeper parts of the forest came.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
One by one, the kobolds fell to my shots, and soon, the forest was once again quiet except for the echoes of my gunfire that lingered in the air.
As the echoes of my gunshots faded away, the forest fell into an eerie silence. The scent of blood hung heavy in the air as the remaining kobolds realized they were trapped with no means of escape.
Their once fearless leader lay dead on the ground, and the fear that had consumed them now turned into madness. Their snarls and howls grew louder, filling the settlement with a cacophony of rage and desperation.
Even though there was a settlement, not every kobold was actually living there, as I could see another bunch of kobolds came and joined the group.
I watched as they bared their teeth, their eyes wild with fury. They knew they couldn’t defeat me, but they had reached a point where survival instincts took over, and they were willing to throw themselves at me in a desperate attempt to overpower and kill me.
‘What a good parent you are.’ I thought. The reason why half of them turned to me while the other half stayed on the backside was pretty obvious.
They were trying to protect their children. But, it was just a futile effort that came from the depths of their programmed instincts. After all, even if I hadn’t killed them, another bunch of Hunters would come and do the job for me.
“Come on then, if you dare,” I said. But for some reason, I felt like my voice was colder than usual. It carried an air of confidence and authority that seemed to stop them in their tracks, if only for a moment.
SWOOSH SWOOSH
But that moment was all I needed. With my daggers in hand, I launched myself at the closest kobold, my speed, and reflexes enhanced by my activated [Dash] skill.
The kobold lunged at me, but its attack was clumsy and uncoordinated. With a swift movement, I dodged its strike and plunged my dagger into its chest, ending its life in an instant.
The other kobolds roared in a fury and rushed toward me, but I moved like a shadow, deftly avoiding their attacks and striking them down one by one. My enhanced agility and reaction time allowed me to anticipate their movements and counter with deadly precision.
Their desperation only fueled my determination. I had come prepared for this, and I refused to be overwhelmed by a pack of rabid monsters.
I left everything to my instincts, and the vision that I had seen at that time seemed like it took over my body as my body moved swiftly, like a man that was born to kill.
BANG! BANG!
In between the close-range combat, I skillfully switched between my daggers and pistol, taking down the charging kobolds with deadly accuracy. The sound of gunshots echoed through the settlement, mixing with their desperate cries.
The madness in their eyes seemed to intensify with every fallen comrade, and they became more ferocious and reckless in their attacks. But it was in vain. I was a hunter, born to hunt.
I was the vengeance born from the moon; I was the one whose sole reason was to pluck the demons from this world, whose whole reason to live was killing and extracting vengeance.
In the future, I would be facing stronger and stronger demons…. There was no way I was going to let myself be overwhelmed by a bunch of nobodies.
THUD THUD THUD
One by one, the kobolds fell until only silence remained. The once bustling settlement was now a graveyard of defeated monsters.
“Grrraaaa….” “Shriek!”
HOWL
As the last kobold fell to the ground, a strong wind blew at that moment, carrying the smell of blood and dead bodies…. It seemed like the moon shone bright red for a second, like the blood on the soil of the forest.
Then the moon was covered by clouds of dark color, and my vision was obscured by them.
THUD THUD
Following that, the rain started pouring heavily, wetting my clothes. It was a mana rain, and I knew it was not the time to reminisce about the thing that was happening here. Mana rains were the types of poisonous rains which, in the end, made it important to be protected from them.
“Huff…. Huff… Huff….”
Breathing heavily, I stood amidst the fallen kobolds, my heart pounding with the adrenaline of battle. It was a fierce and brutal fight, but I emerged victorious in the end.
“Fucking hell….” I mumbled, my heart beating getting slower and calming down.
With the immediate threat gone, I took a moment to survey the area. The forest had returned to its quiet state, but the scent of blood and death still lingered in the air. The fight was over.
However, my job had yet to be finished.
Grabbing the cloak, I got for these types of situations and put it on. The sound of rain droplets pushing the cloak entered my ears, and I started picking my haul up.
As I retrieved my arrows and wiped the blood from my daggers, I couldn’t help but wonder about the strange green lines that had connected me to the Kobold Chief. It was a mysterious power that I had never experienced before, but at the same time, I instinctively knew how to use it, like someone was guiding me.
‘It was related to the color of my mana. Then, was it because it was green?’ I asked myself. I didn’t have definite answers, and I was tired of thinking for a while. I needed to rest, not because I was tired physically, but because I was tired mentally.
I mean, I was also tired physically, but potions could cure that. The mental part was something different.
Walking around the forest, I collected the bodies of the dead kobolds one by one until only the boss monster’s body remained.
Chief Kobold was larger and more muscular than the others, with sharp claws and teeth that showed his position at the top of the Kobold hierarchy. Its body was covered in scars and battle wounds, evidence of the many battles it had fought to maintain its dominance over the settlement as well as the evolutions he passed.
Its fur was a deep shade of brown, and its eyes, once filled with arrogance and cruelty, now stared lifelessly into the dark sky. I took a moment to study its body, noting the different characteristics and features that set it apart from the other kobolds.
With the grim task done, I retreated to a drier area, setting up a makeshift camp under the shelter of a large tree. I sat by the campfire, the rain still pouring down around me, and took a moment to catch my breath.
The adrenaline rush from the battle had subsided, and now exhaustion weighed heavily on my shoulders. My muscles ached from the intense combat, and my mind was filled with memories of the fight.
It was normally time to grab another recovery potion, but since I had cleared all the monsters here, I could use another thing.
Grabbing the vial from my bag, I looked at the mixture I made in order to increase my training efficiency.
“GULP!”
Gulping it in one go, I endured the pain all around me as I sat on the ground.
“Kurgh-”
After a second of squirming and crawling, the effects of the potion subsided.
Taking out some rations from my bag, I began to eat, replenishing my energy. The sound of raindrops hitting the leaves above provided a soothing rhythm, and I felt a sense of peace despite the violent events that had just occurred.
I decided to rest for a while before continuing deeper into the dungeon. The rain showed no signs of stopping, and it wouldn’t be wise to venture out in such weather. I entered the tent and made myself comfortable.
Lying down on the damp ground, I closed my eyes and let my body and mind rest. Just like that, the first day in the dungeon reached its end….
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You can check my discord if you want. You can see the illustrations of characters there.
The link to the discord server is in the description of the book.