Before Olivia and the others could even react, the distance between them and the blue scythe monsters had already closed. The creatures, seemingly enraged after days of being outmatched, let out deafening roars as they attacked with ferocity, swinging their sharp scythes.
Those with R-grade potential—Olivia, Charlie, and two others—reacted swiftly, using their abilities to hold off the monsters, giving the rest of the group a precious moment to prepare.
"Boom!"
A yellow cage materialized, imprisoning several monsters, while a giant hand slammed down, crushing others. Olivia's rare area-of-effect skills instantly killed three or four monsters and temporarily slowed the advance of the others. Meanwhile, Charlie, activating his "Petrified Skin" skill, positioned himself at the forefront, only to be taken aback by the monsters' sudden strength.
Before upgrading his skill, Charlie had only an F+ defense, with the blue monsters' attacks barely scratching him at 3-4 damage points. But after leveling up his "Petrified Skin" to E+ defense the day before, he was shocked to find that a single attack had now taken 6 points of his health.
It became immediately clear—the monsters' power had more than doubled. If the blue scythe monsters were this much stronger, then the purple ones would be even more terrifying.
"Watch out! These monsters are hitting hard!" Charlie yelled to warn the others, realizing the danger.
Ru, who had been holding the line with his "Air Cannon" ability, blasting two monsters away, was also struck by one of the scythe monsters, and his health dropped significantly. "Damn, these things hit hard! One hit just took 15 health off me!" he shouted in surprise.
To put things in perspective, even the R-grade ability users like Charlie and Olivia couldn't match the damage output. While most of the team had drastically increased their attack power, their health had not kept pace. Charlie had the highest health in the group, around 500 points, which could increase to 800 with his skills active. But others, including Olivia and the other R-grade users, only had about 300 health points, and those with N-grade potential like Tom and his group were left with a fragile 100-200 health.
Previously, thanks to the quest scroll's effect, which had halved the monsters' strength, their attacks had been manageable, maxing out at 7-8 points of damage. Now, without that effect, the monsters had returned to their full strength, and their attacks had become dangerous again. A single hit from the blue scythe monsters could take 15 health points. For those with lower health, taking just 10 hits could mean death. And in the chaos of a battle, with multiple monsters attacking at once, death could come in mere seconds.
The realization that even the blue scythe monsters had become this strong meant that the purple ones were likely even more formidable.
As panic began to spread through the group, Alex was already acting. With his incredible D-grade agility, he swiftly moved through the battlefield, slaying five monsters in an instant. By the time Charlie and the others had fully adjusted to the situation, Alex had already cut the enemy's numbers in half, and the remaining monsters were quickly dispatched by the team.
Though they managed to defeat the monsters, it wasn't without effort. Only those with the highest damage output, like Olivia, could still one-shot the creatures. Others, like Tom, needed four or five hits to take down a single monster, a clear sign that the monsters' health had also doubled.
What should have been a routine battle against 30 or so monsters turned into a nerve-wracking experience, much like the very first day of the "game," leaving everyone uneasy.
Tom had taken five hits from the monsters, reducing his health by a third. As he downed a healing potion, he couldn't help but voice his frustration: "These monsters have scaled up way too much. Their speed and damage are on a whole new level."
The group had grown accustomed to feeling powerful, effortlessly cutting through monsters after leveling up so much with Alex. But now, with the quest scroll's effect gone and the monsters' strength restored, the challenge had returned, and the team realized that they had underestimated their foes. The increased speed of the monsters also meant that even with their agility, they were now vulnerable to more frequent attacks.
While they could handle a small group, even 30 monsters were now a real threat. If they encountered more, the accumulating damage could easily overwhelm the N-grade potential users.
Tom shook his head. "So the first week was just the tutorial phase, huh? This game's a lot harder than we thought."
As the group rested and discussed their next move, Olivia made a keen observation: "We expected the monsters to grow stronger eventually, but we underestimated them this time. Once we adjust, they won't be too hard to handle again."
The others nodded in agreement. The monsters' health had increased, but with the group's power, they could still manage. The blue scythe monsters likely had around 100 health points, and while they were faster, the team wasn't slow either.
Olivia continued, "The real issue is that this wild zone should've had around 100 monsters, including a couple of purple ones. But they're missing. With the new main quest, it's possible those monsters are heading toward the resource points."
Her theory caused a ripple of concern among the group. It was a plausible explanation. If the monsters were gathering at the resource points, they might be facing far more than just scattered enemies.
If the monsters were moving in groups, they would have to contend with hundreds, if not thousands, of creatures. Each wild zone had close to 100 monsters, and there were over 20 wild zones in the area. That would mean more than 2,000 monsters, with enhanced strength. The very thought made the team anxious.
Tom and the others started regretting not destroying the Belos crystals the day before, which might have prevented this overwhelming buildup.
"Let's focus on clearing the nearby wild zones first," Alex decided. "We'll deal with the resource points once we see what's going on there."
Charlie and the rest nodded, agreeing with the plan. After a short rest, they resumed their journey, with Olivia reminding everyone, "Stay sharp! Avoid taking on too many monsters at once."
Now that they were on high alert, the group set off toward the next wild zone, ready to face whatever new challenges awaited them.