"I think you guys should relax. You've already seen what we're capable of," said Boris, trying to defuse the situation.
"Yeah, we've seen what you can do, but it's not like you have much mana left, right?" said the gang leader, drawing his sword with a confident grin.
(Damn, he's right...) thought Martyn as he checked his mana level.
[Mana: 500/1200]
He had recovered some mana on the way to the rift with Boris, but he had spent a lot in the battle against the celestial serpent.
"You don't have to die if you don't want to. Just hand over the celestial weapon and that's it," said one of the gang members with a sly smile.
"Not a chance... This weapon is ours," replied Martyn with a serious look, finding a solution to his lack of mana.
[You have allocated 20 stat points to intelligence]
[INT: 12 > 33]
[Mana: 1700/3300]
"Wow, the kid's got guts. He might be worthy of being a hunter. Too bad you'll have to die here," said the gang leader, lunging at Martyn. But William stepped in his way.
"I don't have much mana left, I hope you know what you're doing, kid," grumbled William, throwing a punch that was blocked by another gang member who stepped in between.
("Let's confirm their power level.")
[Skills]
[Analysis]
Martyn's eyes began to see a strong flame in the gang members' chests. He couldn't see the exact information, but he saw certain letters.
[C]
[C-]
[D]
[E-]
[D]
Each letter represented one of the gang members. His system analyzed them like a video game.
("I see, they're not that strong. We can win.") With more confidence, Martyn lunged at the weakest one.
"You're too cocky, kid. You'll be better off in the grave," said the gang member, swinging his sword at Martyn's face, but Martyn was ready.
[Skills:]
[Precise Cuts]
Martyn launched several slashes, taking down the gang member instantly.
[You have killed a human]
[Unfortunately, Loki does not recognize you]
[You have gained 1 experience point]
[EXP: 96/100]
(Damn, what does Loki have to do with this?) thought Martyn, grumbling, focusing his attention on the next weakest one.
"Shit, they still have energy! Be careful!" shouted the gang leader, still being held back by William and Boris, who had recovered some mana.
"You should worry about yourself," said Boris, swinging his katana rapidly. Each move unleashed a blue lightning bolt.
"Don't make me laugh. Those cuts won't do anything," said the gang leader, healing each damaged part, like a plant rejoining after being cut.
(A healing blessing? I need to end this quickly,) thought Martyn, attacking another gang member.
"You think that just because you took down my friend, you can take me on?" said the gang member, biting Martyn. For some strange reason, his teeth were metal.
[HP: 60/130]
[Warning: your HP is below half]
"Shit," Martyn quickly tried to stab the gang member's neck, but it wasn't effective since it was also metal.
"Let go of me!"
[You have allocated 10 stat points to Strength]
[STR: 23 > 33]
With the increase in strength, Martyn struck with the knife again, this time managing to damage the gang member.
[Precise Cuts]
"Shit!" The gang member screamed in pain but didn't let go of Martyn.
[HP: 48/130]
Without wasting time, Martyn attacked again, this time using his ability.
[Armor Breaker effect activated]
With that final message, Martyn managed to free his hands and defeat the gang member.
[You have killed a human]
[Loki respects you a little more]
[You have gained 2 experience points]
[EXP: 98/100]
Not entirely satisfied with his reward, Martyn focused on William and Boris, who were handling the remaining three gang members well.
("This isn't working out...") After signaling with his fingers, the gang leader leaped back, followed by the others.
"Fine, you win. The weapon is yours, but don't think we'll forget this."
With those final threats, the gang members left the rift, leaving the three boys exhausted.
"Damn, now I'm really done," said Boris, collapsing to the ground.
"Tell me about it, but now's not the time to rest. Let's grab the weapon and decide who gets it later," said William, walking toward the center, ready to take the weapon. The closer he got, the more power he felt.
"Alright, come here..." William reached out his hand, but before he could touch the weapon, chains grabbed it.
"What the...?" Surprised, Martyn and Boris watched as the weapon was pulled back until it stopped as if someone had grabbed it.
"Thanks for that, guys," said a female voice that was invisible. Apparently, she had a blessing of invisibility.
(Is this another bandit? I should see...) Martyn activated his skill towards the floating weapon.
[Skills:]
[Analysis]
[Error]
[Your level is too weak compared to the target]
Martyn received the same message as with William and Boris. This wasn't just any bandit.
"Shit, again? Show yourself!" shouted Boris, angry.
"Sorry, but I don't plan on sticking around, so..." The chains began to glow with a bright light, blinding the three boys.
"Here's a little gift, goodbye," said the voice, which seemed to disappear.
"Shit!" shouted William, angry.
When the effect of the chains ended, the three boys noticed that the rift had vanished. The beautiful place from before was now just a memory.
"Damn, who was that girl?" asked Boris, frustrated. He had worked hard for nothing.
"Nobody knows. She could make herself invisible," responded William, also angry.
"For now, the best thing is to get out of here. If we stay, the other aspirants will think we have the weapon."
Explaining the situation, Martyn prepared to leave. He didn't want to get involved in another unnecessary fight.
"You're right. It was a pleasure fighting with you guys, but I'll take my own path," said Boris, putting away his katana.
"I think it would be better to cooperate, don't you?" William hesitated.
"I'm not really one for teamwork, but thanks for the offer. See you," said Boris with a bright smile, starting to walk away.
"Alright, I guess we should do the same," said Martyn, beginning to walk.
"Fine," replied William, following him.
After that great effort, Martyn and William managed to survive several hours.
[You have killed a monster]
[You have gained 20 experience points]
[EXP: 45/200]
"Wow, Martyn, are you some kind of genius? You get better with every fight," said William, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"Not really, I'm just good at spotting weak points," replied Martyn, a bit nervous.
His continuous improvement was due to constantly hunting monsters, allowing him to level up and improve his stats.
He decided to allocate 5 points to strength and 10 points to agility, now having:
[STR: 38 points]
[AGI: 30 points]
"I wanted to allocate more points, but..." Martyn looked dejectedly at the message on the screen.
[The representative has not completed more trials, he cannot become stronger until then]
The Norse gods had put a limit on his power.
"I see... I guess I need to improve too," said William with a smile.
{Wow, it looks like they've made it}
Interrupting their conversation, the large screen reappeared in the sky.
{"Of the 98 that were left, only 30 remain, so you should be proud. You've passed the hunter's test!"}
The representative of the test began to speak. It seemed the hunter's test had come to an end.
"It's strange, the allotted time hasn't passed yet," said William, puzzled.
"They probably ended it because of the number of participants left," replied Martyn, not taking his eyes off the screen.
It made sense. Although the hunter tests follow strict rules, it's known that they don't always stick to them precisely.
{"Now you'll all be returned. It's time for you to become real hunters"}
Following the representative's words, a portal identical to the one they used to enter appeared in front of William and Martyn.
"Alright, it's time to go," said William with a proud smile, stepping into the portal.
(Wow, did I really pass the hunter's test? This is incredible,) thought Martyn, who couldn't believe what had just happened. This was only the beginning.
Savoring the excitement, Martyn stepped into the portal, returning to the initial room.
Around him were several people who had also completed the test. Among them, Martyn recognized Boris, the troublesome white-haired boy, and the bandits who had escaped.
"Well, I'm surprised, there are more than last time."
With a mischievous and somewhat insensitive voice, a different representative entered, accompanied by several bodyguards.
"Congratulations to all of you. Passing the Roman faction's hunter test is an achievement you should be proud of."
The man began to congratulate everyone with a charismatic smile.
"Without a doubt, you are ready to be hunters, but I'd like to give a special congratulation to the girl who managed to get the celestial weapon. Please come forward."
Following the man's call, a girl with completely white hair stepped in front of everyone.
"Hi, I'm Selene, the next number one hunter."