Lee was about to sit on the bed when an notification not seen before suddenly popped up with an alarm sound.
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WARNING!
HOSTILE BEINGS ENTERING THE VICINITY!!
Estimated time of contact: 2 hours 10 minutes.
Take necessary preventive measures!
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Quest!
'Protect the Eturt village from the tide of Cold Wild Wolves'
Reward: 200 Essence
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Lee jumped out of the bed and his mind was in complete turmoil. He saw burning revenge in those wolves' eyes, but never expected to track them down with smell alone. He took out his blade from the Inventory, opened the window and jumped to the ground.
Paulo, the Village-head was standing outside that door, feeling the light breeze in the dim light of burning torches. He was thinking about the young wanderer he met today. Not only did he save the carriages from a pack of wolves, he was willing to escort them to safety. According to Paulo, wolves do notretreat with a taste of defeat. They will hunt down their prey one way or the other. But, his mind was at peace now. He closed his eyes and held his band behind his back. The blissful moment he was enjoying was ruined by something that fell right next to him.
Paulo nearly screamed his lungs out. He stumbled backward, and fell on his buttocks. Under the damp yellow light of the torch, he saw the young wanderer standing in front of him. Lee extended a hand and helped Paulo up.
"I've lived long enough in the forest to tell that the wolves are about to gang up on us. Alert everyone. Get everyone to safety!"
Saying this, Lee ran to where Darwin and his team stayed. He relayed the message and they were all like 'Holy Shit!'. Darwin and those who were alright suited up to their armours. Lee ran towards the village square and saw men guiding women and children to safety. When he saw a man with spear, he asked him-
"Are there any other ways to get inside besides the gate?!" (Lee)
"No sir. There is only one way in and one way out!" (man)
"Where are these people taken to?!" (Lee)
"Some houses have bunkers under them. These people will be safe there." (man)
Lee started to walk towards the gate. Whenever he saw someone struggling or stumbling down, he would help them. After seeing that the villagers were safe, Lee rushed to the gate.
On the wall, Darwin and Paulo were thinking of a way to defend the village. When they saw Lee, they felt an unspeakable relief.
"Your intuition was right. Some guards did see some wolves lurking around. They never imagined that they would be scouts!" (Darwin)
"We don't have many men to defend. The walls are high enough to resist smaller packs. But, a larger pack can climb over." (Paulo)
"They are tracking my scent. As far as I am in front of them, they will leave the village alone!" (Lee)
Lee said in a determined tone. Both Darwin and Paulo were stunned.
"We cannot sacrifice you just to save a village. We'll defend the pack together." (Darwin)
Paulo agreed with Darwin. This young fellow was courageous and had keen instincts. The village can be built again - Paulo added to what Darwin said.
"Who said it's sacrifice?!" (Lee)
Darwin frowned on hearing his statement. Paulo couldn't see through his plans.
"I am not dying and no one is going to die. Let me make myself clear, We don't defend. We fight, especially I FIGHT!"
Darwin couldn't help but be amazed at this young man's madness. Before he could raise his disagreement, Lee had already walked towards the lookout tower on the wall.
'D, how much Essence do we have?!'
[We killed and absorbed exactly 39 wolves in the last fight. Each wolf gave 5 Essence. So what we got from the last fight is 195 Essence. 200 Essence was awarded on quest completion. The total Essence we have with us is 1,080 Essence.]
'Show my stats'
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Health: 20
Strength: 20
Vitality: 20
Agility: 20
Defense: 20
Endurance: 20
Sense: 20
Intelligence: 20
Resolve: 20
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'Increase all physical attributes by 20 points. Increase mental attributes by 10 points'
[Lee, are you sure?!]
'.....do it.'
[A total of 900 Essence spend. Balance 180 Essence.]
'Show the updated stats'
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Health: 40
Strength: 40
Vitality: 40
Defense: 40
Endurance: 40
Sense: 40
Intelligence: 30
Resolve: 30
=====
Lee was standing on the watchtower with eyes closed until he heard a noise from afar. He opened his eyes and saw a large pack of black fur slowly moving towards the village. His keen auditory sense picked up the noise of crushing bones of a rabbit from the mouth of a hungry wolf. Lee summoned the warning panel.
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Estimated time of contact: 30 minutes.
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'D, how did the timer go from 2 and half hours to half an hour?!'
[The scouts probably picked up the change in atmosphere and that might have triggered an early attack attempt.]
'Scan and tell the count of wolves'
[Scanning...there are 289 wolves in this pack]
'A little more than I thought!'
[Were you expecting a 110 or 120?!]
'No, 40 to 50.'
Lee didn't spend time chatting with D. He immediately got down from the tower and walked towards Darwin who was near the gate.
"We have a few archers to kill from range and spearmen to prevent climbing the wall. Me, you and 5 other knights can attack." (Darwin)
"Change of plans. I attack alone. You and the other knights stay on the wall and defend." (Lee)
"Are you crazy?! That's a huge pack of wolves! They can shred you if you're alone." (Darwin)
"I'm not trying to argue. Time is of the essence. Let's debate later!" (Lee)
Paulo was hearing their loud conversation. Lee ordered the guards to lift the gate. The two guards looked at each other and then looked at Paulo for a response. Paulo shrugged and said-
"Do what he orders!" (Paulo)
The gate was lifted about a man's height when Lee told them to stop. Lee stepped outside and ordered them to close it. The two men had no other choice but to listen to him.
"Hey, what is he thinking?! Some kind of hero?" (Guard 1)
"Shhhh....shut up! I heard that he's some kind of a hero. He saved the carriages that arrived today from wolves!" (Guard 2)
"Hope he's not crazy!" (Guard 1)
Lee was hearing their conversation, but didn't comment. He didn't have time to bother himself with other trivial matters.
Lee squatted with one knee down. He thrusted his sword into the ground and waited for the pack's arrival. All those on the wall went on high alert.
Ten minutes later, guards above the wall began to hear howls. It sent a shiver through their spine. Darwin noticed that some guards had their hands trembling. He couldn't do anything but sigh, and rest all of his hope in the youngster.
Lee, on the other hand, was thrilled. He didn't squat down for nothing. He was calculating his future plans after killing, absorbing and selling their corpses to the Shop. He had estimated to acquire about 395 Essence points. He was in deep-thought regarding how to spend them, when wolves' steps broke his moment. He stood up while taking the sword, and softly said-
"Y'all ruined my moment, you're gonna pay for it!"
Guards didn't hear anything he said, but saw what he did. They were visibly shaking, and morale hit the rock-bottom. They were barely conscious to stand. The next moment, all of them saw Lee disappear. Then, they saw it. He was like terror chained for a 100 years, finally unleashed. Only Darwin saw his movements, that too, faintly. His eyes couldn't keep up with Lee's agility.
Lee was taking his sweet time cutting down wolves. He channeled his strength to his legs to give a boost, but was more than he thought. He landed right amidst the pack, upon a wolf's back. The Foresight activated itself and Lee felt that time has slowed down quite a lot. Coincidentally, D told him that upgrading the Sense can help in perceiving surroundings more thoroughly and quickly.
Lee knows that there is a chance for wolves to disperse once they see that attacks are inefficient. So he guided his blade more efficiently to cut down more wolves. Soon, he had to move from the spot as dead bodies were piling up. He began to walk here and there while chopping down the wolves.
The morale of those on the wall sky-rocketed when they saw Lee drenched in the blood of wolves. They enthusiastically defended the wall against wolves. Everyone was on high-spirit and forgot the flow of time.
The pack began to thin out as time went by. The guards up the wall killed a few dozen, while Lee massacred the whole pack. When they thought that it was nearly over, a large howl came from a distance and the wolves suddenly retreated. Lee was able to chase and kill two, but didn't go further. The dark veil over the sky was about to thin, when an extra-large wolf came from the woods. It wasn't the common wolf they fought till now.
Smooth shiny deep grey fur decorated its muscular body with elegance. Its large paws left an impression on the ground. Its ears were erect. It stared penetratingly at blood-drenched Lee with its large deep green eyes. Its anger was well visible from its big sharp domineering teeth. The faint lighting from the horizon gave a feel of notoricity to the beast.
The guards literally fell on the ground when they saw this beast, some ran away with their life. Darwin tried not to tremble, but his body gave away. He glanced at Paulo and saw him lying flat on the floor, unconscious.
Lee used View. Instead of an information panel, D softly spoke in his mind.
[This right here is a Cold King Wolf. Aged 14 years. Health 30. Strength 28. Agility 26. Defense 35. Endurance 33. Sense 18. Intelligence 14. Remark: With your strength, It is possible to defeat it. But killing it is impossible!]
'Oh...then we only have to make it possible!'
The king wolf felt Lee's concentration swaying for a moment. Without a second thought, it charged at Lee. Lee, expecting this with the help of Foresight, jumped and did a forward somersault. As he passed over the wolf, his blade struck the wolf's right forearm's shoulder. Blood started to drip and it made the king wolf further enraged. The wolf lost all his reason. In its entire life, anything that wounded it ended up in its belly. This humiliation was unbearable for him.
Lee, seeing that even a king can bleed, began to run around it and continuously wounded it. Sometimes, it evaded his attack and once in a while, Lee was wounded. He felt that this beast is one worth fighting. Both monsters tested each other's strength and agility. They teased each other for about an hour.
Seeing that its attacks are not sufficient, it turned around to charge towards the wall. It was expecting Lee to come in front of it and block it, and utilising this moment to make him lose his footing and kill him. Lee saw through its trick. So, he decide to go hardcore. He immediately reached behind it and drove his blade through its ass!