The sun was setting, and nightfall was fast approaching. Amir knew it was time to begin his hunt for magic beasts. Standing before the guild's map, he carefully selected three locations where packs of beasts were known to roam. His plan was simple: take down three packs before returning to the city.
"Time to see what these new skills can do," Amir thought, a smirk tugging at his lips.
Leaving the city behind, he ventured into the massive forest, marveling at the towering trees that seemed to stretch far into the sky. Climbing up one of the trees, Amir settled on a sturdy branch, closing his eyes to meditate. His ability to sense mana fluctuations had improved drastically, now allowing him to detect anything within a 25-meter radius, even through the ground.
"I could've pushed this further if I'd focused on it more during training," he mused, though he had spent most of his time mastering the first part of his sword art.
Amir's eyes snapped open, glowing with a faint golden light. The dark forest around him became as clear as a moonlit night, his vision enhanced by a combination of mana and his affinity with the darkness element.
In the distance, he spotted a group of large, grayish wolves. One stood out among them, its fur shimmering slightly in the dim light.
"That must be the noble-class beast," Amir deduced, watching the pack prowl through the forest.
Magic beasts were categorized by class to signify their power and threat level. The pack Amir was hunting was led by a noble-class beast, a dangerous opponent capable of forming and commanding a pack of beast of its species.
General Class
Noble Class
Heroic Class
King Class
Disaster Class
Calamity Class
While most would consider hunting a pack alone a suicide mission, Amir's mistrust of others and the deadly nature of his sword art at night made him more effective solo.
Leaping from the tree, Amir sprinted through the forest, his form shrouded in darkness as he blended seamlessly with the night. His sword art, the 4-star Shadow Moon style, was lethal and perfectly suited for this environment.
With a swift slash, a dark arc of energy tore through the night, slicing one of the wolves in half. The pack panicked, searching for their unseen assailant, while Amir remained hidden in the shadows.
The noble-class dire wolf let out a powerful roar, sending a shockwave through the forest. It then ordered the pack to hunt Amir down.
"Great, it's using mana detection," Amir thought, slightly annoyed.
He darted up a tree, then twisted in mid-air, launching another moon blade that cut down two more wolves where he had just stood. Amir was targeting the weaker wolves first, knowing that a noble-class beast was far more dangerous with its pack.
Now down to three wolves, Amir moved like a ghost, slipping through the shadows as the pack leader frantically searched for him. The wolf let out another roar, but this time it couldn't pinpoint his location. It sensed danger and leaped back just in time, its teeth clashing with Amir's blade.
Amir stood before the beast, his sword dripping with blood, two dead wolves lying between them.
"You're cautious for a noble-class beast," Amir remarked, his voice cold. "I thought I had you with that one."
The wolf's eyes glowed blue as ice began to form around its claws.
"I've killed your whole pack. So, what's it going to be? Revenge or death?" Amir taunted.
The beast lunged at him, but Amir sidestepped with a shadow step, the wolf's claws grazing his cheek, leaving a trail of blood. A noble-class beast was comparable to an E+ or higher-ranked opponent, and Amir knew he was in for a tough fight.
Using his shadow steps, Amir dodged the wolf's relentless attacks, staying one step ahead as he unleashed a barrage of moon blades. The wolf dodged and countered, breaking through the energy blades with its icy claws.
The beast lunged at Amir, its deadly claws slashing through the air. In an instant, Amir vanished with a shadow step, reappearing just to the side as the wolf's claws barely grazed his face, drawing a thin line of blood. This noble-class beast was no joke—easily on par with an E+ rank or higher.
With a swift motion, Amir unleashed three moon blades at the beast, but it dodged each one with surprising agility. Refusing to let up, Amir switched tactics, altering his position as he fired off another barrage of moon blades, trying to throw the wolf off balance. He sent one blade low and another slightly higher, aiming to slice the beast in half. The wolf met the attack with its claws, shattering the energy blade and dispersing it into the night.
The dire wolf landed, its instincts kicking in as it leaped to the side. But it was too late. The last thing it saw was a black shadow with piercing golden eyes. In one swift, deadly motion, Amir's blade cut through the darkness, slicing the wolf's head clean off its body.
Amir stood in the darkness as his eyes glowed and stood over the dead magic beast.
'A few months ago, I would piss my pants if I was ever in your presence. Now I'm standing over you as the hunter and you the hunted.' Amir thought as he lamented on the past
Things had truly begun to change for him. He was now the hunter, and he was never going to be back on that side of life again. Amir spent the next few minutes putting the Dire wolves in his magic ring.
'Okay, two more packs to go.' Amir thought as he walked through the forest.
He was determined to take out these packs tonight, eager to rack up as many stats as possible before leveling up.
Amir encountered another wolf pack and swiftly dispatched them just as he had the previous one. As he was collecting their bodies, he sensed something unusual in the distance. Immediately, he erased his presence and concealed himself.
A pack of giant bears lumbered into the area, grabbed the wolf corpses, and began to walk away. Amir's eyes widened in surprise as he observed them.
'They're all noble class... what the hell?' Amir thought to himself, astonished.
His curiosity piqued, Amir decided to follow the bears. Soon, he saw them reach a small clearing with a cave entrance, which they all entered. Unable to resist the urge to investigate further, Amir cloaked his mana signature almost entirely and downed a potion from his magic ring, entering full stealth mode. He waited a few minutes before cautiously making his way into the cave.
As he moved deeper inside, Amir noticed a light source up ahead, even though he was still within the cave. Stepping into the light, his eyes widened in shock. He dropped to the ground, not wanting anything to detect him. The cave opened into a massive chamber, so vast it felt as if he had entered the heart of the mountain.
'My god, how could the city be unaware of this?' Amir thought, a chill running down his spine.
Tens of thousands of magic beasts filled the cavern, all of them noble or heroic class. Amir could hardly believe his eyes. A gathering of this magnitude was impossible to comprehend. If these beasts launched an attack on the city, it would be catastrophic. The marquis was reputed to be strong, but how could even he fend off such a massive beast tide?
The thought of thousands of people in the city being slaughtered and devoured made Amir's stomach turn. He didn't care much for people, but the sheer scale of death was nauseating.
Suddenly, Amir noticed that the other magic beasts were avoiding a particular monster—a massive creature with the head of a bull and muscles larger than Amir's entire body. A gigantic, jagged sword lay beside it. Amir's face paled.
'Is that a Minotaur?' he thought in panic.
Minotaurs were magic beasts that evolved from bull-like creatures and were always heroic class or higher. Judging by how the other beasts behaved around it, this one was at least king class.
Amir knew he couldn't stay here another second. As he began to back away, he bumped into something—a large Ravi growling at him.
"Oh shit!" Amir shouted as the beast lunged. He barely dodged, spinning his body to slice the Ravi in half. Without wasting a moment, he bolted through the cave, every muscle in his body propelling him forward.
The Minotaur sensed him and let out a deafening roar that echoed through the entire cavern.
"Holy shit! Why did I have to explore the deep dark cave?!" Amir cursed as he sprinted with everything he had.
Two minutes later, he burst out of the cave and made a beeline for the city. At full speed, the city was only ten minutes away, but he knew the magic beasts would start chasing him. His eyes glowed golden as he cracked the ground beneath him and pushed forward even faster.
Amir felt something beside him and leaped just as something shot past him. He saw five noble-class dire wolves in pursuit. One of the wolves leaped at him, and Amir deflected it with his sword, trying not to lose speed. The blade blocked most of the attack, but his arm was slashed, and blood began to flow. Another attack came at his neck from a different angle. He kicked off with his right foot, narrowly dodging it, but the claws grazed his neck, causing more blood to gush out.
"God damn it! I'm not dying out here tonight!" Amir yelled.
He kept running, but something tore at the back of his foot, sending him tumbling. Rolling to his feet, he pushed himself up and continued sprinting. Another attack came from his left, and he pivoted on his right leg to change direction.
Desperate, Amir pulled a coin from his magic ring, his eyes glowing brighter. Three dire wolves were closing in, ready to tear him apart.
"Come on, work this time, damn it!" he shouted, flipping the coin.
It suddenly vanished, and with a burst of incredible speed, Amir shot toward the city gates, leaving the forest and his pursuers behind.