All three stopped to look at the pack of hounds occupying the front of the caverns. They had dark red fur that covered their entire bodies, sharp claws that extended out and pierced into the tough earth below, and wide jaws full of jagged fangs that dripped uncontrollably.
The largest of them stood in the dead centre of the largest cavern entrance. It had a deeper colour of red fur than the rest, and small wisps of flame escaped its mouth from time to time.
'The Boss of this keep,' he muttered inwardly.
It was video game logic. The largest monster = the most powerful, most of the time. But that was way too convenient for him.
He watched on. There was a small pause before all hell broke out.
Clyde and Andy moved a minute before Melchior. Both took to their feet and reached for the farthest hounds from the pack.
Andy pulled the dog close in an embrace, a deadly mistake. As soon as his hand made contact, its whole body combusted into a ball of flames.
"What the fuck!"
He threw it away and rushed to put his arm away quickly. Albeit a terrible second too late. As soon as he let go of the dog, a loud howl emerged from it, alerting the members of the pack to its location instantly.
And before Clyde or Andy could even begin to comprehend what was happening, they were bombarded by a small wave of beasts.
One hound jumped forward, swiping a fiery claw downward. The small paw made contact with Clyde's cotton clothes and burned straight into quickly, spreading and eating into the garments.
"Do something!" Clyde yelled to his companion, trying to put the never-ending flames out. They had already begun licking his skin and reddening it.
"I'm trying!"
Andy recovered his gait and hurtled forward, landing a clean blow on the hound's nose. It went barrelling back into the remaining group, but as that happened, another came from the side, chomping down ferociously.
The large blonde frowned, eyes full of righteous fury. Then he lifted a large arm up and drove his elbow down onto the oncoming hound's body. A large splat sounded out as the beast's body imploded under the direct force of his attack.
Although Clyde was practically shirtless, the first two Hounds' swift defeat gave them some breathing room.
"We really can't use our manifestations?" the smaller boy said, flexing his arm in the same motion he used to call for
Andy scoffed, casting a glance at Melchior, who just watched amusedly from the side. His eyes narrowed in on the bow and a quiver slung across Mel's back. That seemed to anger him a lot.
Clyde noticed it as well.
"He has a weapon!" the boy exclaimed. "Is that even allowed?! Does this mean we can use the manifestations?"
"Don't do anything stupid, Clyde. Follow the rules." Andy growled once more.
As he said that, he turned back to face the oncoming crowd of beasts coming upon them.
'They're going to die if they don't start taking this seriously.' Melchior rolled his eyes as he watched the charade in front of him.
He wasn't dumb or confident enough to rush forward without carefully taking stock of the situation. Clyde and Andy had Bonded Spirits a whole month before him, and even they still performed so miserably in front of these Lesser Flame Hounds.
There was no question that he'd slip up if he tried to imitate them. And even while taking his own performance from last night into account, that was a whole different situation.
He had access to all his skills, and he had to think even faster than usual. Which was why he had requested the weapon.
Charging it would have been a terrible decision. But besides that, he had discovered something useful while assessing the situation.
*******
[Status Window]
Name: Lesser Flame Hound
Race: Spirit Beast | Spirit Bond: N/A
Rank: Nascent-rank Spirit Beast
*****
[Attributes:]
Physique Lvl 1
Spirit Lvl 1
*****
[Abilities]
Fiery Claw, Ferocious Bite, Flaming Frenzy]
*******
Melchior had found that he could also see the status panels of Spirit Beasts while at a considerably close distance. This allowed him to properly gauge their power and access their abilities. He noted three things in particular.
First of all, the rank. Nascent rank, which was the second rank in the Spirit and Spirit Beast ranking system. Second of all were the attributes. The regular hounds only had two attributes; physique and spirit, which were the same levels as Melchior's.
And then lastly, the abilities. All the smaller hounds had the same three skills, with no exception. He tested it severally to make sure, and it was all the same thing. But even despite that, they still gave Clyde and Andy a decent fight.
They had a faint coordination with each other, which made their attacks way more effective than they would be if they were alone.
A sort of pack effect. Regular spirit beasts wouldn't be able to display this kind of power.
"Interesting."
All the smaller hounds had already gathered upon Clyde and Andy, and they were nearly drowning from the sheer number of them. Oddly enough, the largest of the Hounds didn't move at all.
It still sat where it was, staring down at the situation below.
'There's something else going on with that.'
Something which could help him.
So, after several minutes of watching and doing nothing, Melchior finally moved into action.
He descended the slope and headed straight for the centre cavern where the largest hound sat. He hadn't expected it to be easy, but the moment he got close to it, the beast raised a snout into the air and howled loudly.
All the hounds fighting the other two boys paused for a brief second, and their gazes were locked on him.
He continued forward as if he didn't notice it, and soon all hell broke loose. A large group split from the pack of hounds and sprinted straight at him quickly.
Faintly, heat and pressure gathered around him, causing bits and pieces of his clothes to light aflame with small sparks.
This was his first encounter with Spirit Beasts. And… it made him extremely excited!
Melchior retrieved the bow and notched an arrow into it, then he drew the string.