Night lay over Roen City like spilled ink, and the whole place reeked of death.
Tens of thousands of monster corpses were piled like mountains along both sides of the streets, their rot fouling the air across the entire city.
The heat of the summer night hastened the decay. Green-headed flies buzzed in droning clouds, circling above the corpse piles like storm clouds.
Maggots writhed in the flesh, a sight to turn the stomach.
The city guards burned bodies day and night without rest, thick smoke rising in endless columns, wrapping all of Roen City in a grey, choking haze.
The air was a mix of scorched char and rotting meat, enough to make anyone retch.
Yet no matter how fast they burned, the rot outpaced them.
Plague spread through the city like an invisible demon, silent and relentless.
In just seven days, it had broken out across the commoners' district.
Countless people began showing high fevers, vomiting, their bodies breaking out in festering sores.
The priests of the temple cast their healing rites without rest, but against the flood of the afflicted, their divine power was a drop in the bucket.
Far more people turned to bloodletting instead. The medical means of this age simply couldn't hold back a plague of this scale.
Inside White Stone Mansion, Orum sat in his bedroom, reading through a specialization manual titled White Raven Tactics.
Candlelight flickered, casting shifting shadows across his focused face.
Suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps came rushing down the hallway.
"Thud, thud, thud!"
The door burst open, and Carolina rushed in, panic-stricken.
Tears streaked her face, her pale golden hair in disarray, her ice-blue eyes brimming with despair.
"Master Orum!"
Her voice trembled with sobs, her whole body swaying as if she might collapse.
"Ris... Ristina, she's collapsed! She's fallen ill!"
Orum's chest tightened. The training manual of White Raven Tactics slipped from his hand and hit the floor with a soft slap.
He shot to his feet and covered the distance to Ristina's room in three long strides.
The moment he threw open the door, a wave of scorching heat washed over him.
The air inside the room seemed to be on fire.
Ristina lay curled up on the bed, drenched in sweat as though she'd just been pulled from water.
Her fair half-elven skin, normally so pale, now burned with an unnatural flush, like porcelain scorched over flame.
Her lips were cracked and peeling, her breath coming quick and shallow.
She had slipped into a state of near unconsciousness, letting out the occasional pained moan.
Orum reached out and felt her forehead. The searing heat made his pupils shrink in an instant.
That temperature had already gone past what a human body could endure!
If it kept rising, her brain would burn out.
"She's been infected with the plague!"
Orum ground his teeth and growled the words, then made his decision at once.
"Carolina, pack some spare clothes. I'm taking Ristina to find a priest right now!"
Carolina nodded in a panic, tears sliding down like a broken string of pearls.
Her fingers trembled as she tied the knot on Orum's travel pack.
Without hesitating, Orum threw back the blanket and lifted Ristina straight off the bed.
Both Ristina and her sister Carolina stood tall, a full one meter sixty-nine, their long legs perfectly proportioned.
But against the terrifying strength granted by Orum's [Bugbear Tendon +2], Ristina's body weighed next to nothing.
Holding her felt like cradling a feverish cat, her scalding body heat bleeding through her thin nightgown and into his chest.
"Carolina, you stay here and guard the mansion. Lock the doors and windows tight, and don't open them for anyone who knocks, no matter who it is."
His voice was stern, his eyes sharp as blades.
"Master Orum, I want to come with you too..."
Carolina's eyes were swimming with tears, her voice breaking.
She clutched at his sleeve, her knuckles white with the force of her grip.
"It's dangerous out there right now, the plague is spreading. If you come with me, it'll only raise the risk of you catching it too!"
His tone left no room for argument. He gently pulled his arm free of her grip and turned, striding away.
Behind him came the sound of Carolina's stifled crying. Something in Orum's chest stirred at the sound, but he knew there was no time to hesitate.
Ristina's condition was worsening by the second.
Orum rushed out of White Stone Mansion with her in his arms. The streets of Roen City lay empty in the depths of night, with only the occasional distant footsteps and coughing of the city guards breaking the silence.
The moonlight was pale as paper, casting a cold sheen across the flagstone road.
The houses lining the streets had their doors and windows shut tight, though here and there a faint candlelight leaked through a crack.
Orum's steps were swift. He meant to head straight for the Radiant Sun Inn and seek help from Felix.
As captain of the Ice Hawks Company and a member of the noble Greymane family, Felix always had reliable connections.
He'd surely know how to reach a healing priest at the temple.
Just then, Ristina let out a faint, weak moan.
Her eyes struggled open a sliver, her hazy ice-blue gaze slowly focusing on his face.
"Orum... Master..."
Her voice was so faint it was barely audible, every word costing her enormous effort.
"My illness... it's fine..."
She managed to force out a smile that looked worse than crying.
"Don't... don't worry... just... don't let me pass the plague to you, Master..."
Her pale lips trembled faintly, beads of sweat gathering at the corners of her eyes and mixing with her tears as they slid down.
She looked so fragile that a single touch might shatter her.
"Don't worry about me. I'm not some frail half-elf like you."
Orum gave her a confident smile. He wasn't afraid of the plague; the [Bugbear Shaman's Mana Liver] organ he carried granted him toxin resistance, and the moment an ordinary plague virus entered his body, his enhanced immune system would wipe it out instantly.
"Also, don't call me Master out in the open from now on. It's too embarrassing."
He added, a flicker of discomfort crossing his face.
"Just call me Lord Orum."
Ristina blinked, startled, and then warmth welled up in her eyes.
She summoned every ounce of strength she had left to nod, a smile breaking across her face, one that came from somewhere deep and genuine.
"Yes... Lord Orum..."
She repeated the title softly, her voice weak but strangely clear, as if she meant to carve those words into the very depths of her soul.
The moment she finished speaking, her eyelids grew heavy again and closed.
Ristina slipped back into unconsciousness, only the faint sound of her breathing proof that she still lived.
Orum could feel the body in his arms growing hotter and hotter, her temperature climbing as though it had no ceiling at all.
The urgency in his chest burned even fiercer. He clenched his jaw and pushed his pace even faster.
The terrifying explosive power of his monster-touched body unleashed fully, and he became like an arrow loosed from a bow, tearing down the street.
His footsteps struck the flagstones with heavy, muffled thuds.
Each stride left a clear print, or cracked an old worn stone slab, moving fast enough that his form nearly blurred into afterimages.
The scenery along the street streamed past like flowing water.
The night wind roared past his ears. About ten minutes later, Orum finally reached the inn where Felix was staying.
It was a luxurious establishment in the Ruby District of Roen City, grand and opulent in its architecture.
The main structure of the Radiant Sun Inn was built of white stone, three stories tall, its peaked roof adorned with gilded sun motifs that gleamed like fire in the daylight.
Above the front entrance shone the holy emblem of the sun god Ammanata, radiant day and night alike.
But when Orum arrived at the inn's entrance, he found the entire lobby sealed behind a heavy iron gate.
Two fully armed guards stood at the door, white plague masks covering their faces.
Their armor gleamed with a cold metallic sheen under the moonlight, hands resting on the long swords ready to be drawn at any moment.
Their eyes were wary and distant, hands on their sword hilts.
The moment they saw the unconscious Ristina in Orum's arms, they took a half-step back.
Their bodies tensed like bowstrings drawn taut, ready to loose.
"Halt! During the plague, no patients are permitted inside the Radiant Sun Inn!"
One of the guards barked, his voice muffled through the cloth over his mouth.
A flicker of fear crossed his eyes; clearly, he too feared infection.
Orum drew a deep breath, forcing down the urgency clawing at his chest, and spoke in a steady tone as he pulled out his mithril adventurer's badge with one hand.
"I'm a mithril-ranked adventurer, a member of the Ice Hawks Company. I'm here to see your distinguished guest, Ice Hawks captain Felix Greymane."
The badge caught the moonlight, gleaming silver-white, standing out sharply against the darkness.
At the sight of the mithril badge, the two guards' stances softened noticeably.
They exchanged a glance, and hesitation flickered in one man's eyes.
Even during a plague, the standing of a mithril-ranked adventurer wasn't something to be dismissed.
"Wait here a moment."
The elder guard said gravely, then turned and pushed open the heavy oak door.
His footsteps hurried away, vanishing into the dim corridor of the inn.
Orum waited outside, Ristina's breathing growing weaker in his arms.
Her cheeks burned frighteningly hot, sweat soaking through her hair completely, strands sticking to her pale face.
About three minutes later, hurried footsteps sounded on the stairs.
Felix came rushing down, dressed in a white cotton robe, fully equipped as if he'd been about to head out himself.
His golden hair was somewhat disheveled, but what drew the eye most was the strange mask covering his face.
It was a mask that covered his nose and mouth, made of black leather and a metal frame.
Felix looked at Orum through the mask, a flash of gravity crossing his blue eyes.
He strode quickly out past the iron gate to examine Ristina's condition up close, his gaze lingering on her pale face for a long moment, brow furrowing.
"It's the plague, and it looks severe."
Felix's voice came out muffled through the mask, but the seriousness in his tone was unmistakable.
"Captain, I need to know how to reach a healing priest at the temple, to treat her."
Orum said it plainly, without preamble.
Hearing the request, Felix let out a bitter laugh and shook his head.
He raised a hand to rub his temples, the gesture heavy with exhaustion.
"Orum, you already know how things stand right now."
Felix sighed, his tone edged with helplessness.
"Every priest in Roen City is stretched beyond their limit. The line of people seeking treatment stretches from the temple gates all the way down the street."
He paused, his gaze complicated as he looked at Orum.
"The priests are busy treating nobles and important figures right now. They can't even keep up with the aristocrats alone. In a disaster like this, only Lord Morgan himself would have the standing to cut the line."
The words hit Orum like a bucket of cold water.
His face turned ashen in an instant, his fists clenching tight.
But he knew Felix was speaking the truth.
In this rigidly stratified world, life had never been valued equally.
A single finger of a noble was worth more than the entire life of a commoner.
Felix fell silent for a moment, a flicker of thought crossing his eyes, before he spoke slowly. "There is one way, but it's dangerous. Still, with your strength, it shouldn't be a problem."
"Head out of the city, to Lathander Monastery, deep in the mountains." Felix raised a hand and pointed north, toward a sky black as pitch.
"Ronald is there in seclusion. He has the power to heal Ristina."
Hope stirred in Orum's chest, but it was quickly followed by Felix's next words. "But the countless monster corpses left behind by the Green Cloud have been drifting downstream along Roen City's river channels." Felix's tone grew graver still.
"Those bloody remains have drawn in monsters from the surrounding forest."
"Goblins, ghouls, trolls, jungle black panthers, any of them could show up."
Felix spoke with grave seriousness. "The nights outside the city are extremely dangerous right now. Even seasoned adventuring parties won't risk leaving the city."
"Orum, you'll have to protect the patient while cutting a path through monsters at the same time."
"I'll go." Orum lifted his head, his eyes burning with unwavering resolve. "I'll leave right now."
"I knew you wouldn't be afraid." Felix looked into Orum's eyes and gave an approving nod, a faint smile crossing his face.
He pulled a folded parchment map from inside his robe.
"I can't accompany you on this trip. I need to go with Raygore to search for Melina."
Felix handed the map to Orum. "After the monster rampage, she went missing in the slums of Roen City. That situation is just as urgent."
Orum took the map, feeling the weight of concern in Felix's words.
Melina carried werewolf blood, and as a creature of darkness her identity was a sensitive matter in Roen City, one that could easily put her in danger.
She was an important member of the Ice Hawks Company. If something happened to her, it would be a massive loss for the team.
"This map marks the location of Lathander Monastery. It's about thirty kilometers from Roen City, at the base of the mountains in the northern part of the Black Forest."
Orum took the map, and by the brilliant light of the Radiant Sun Inn, he could see the route marked in red ink across the parchment, clear and precise.
The winding road looked like a vein, leading deep into the mountains toward the monastery.
Thirty kilometers was nothing to Orum. He could easily make it there within a single night.
"There's an Ice Hawks carriage in the stable behind the inn, and it happens to be empty right now, so it'll move faster." Felix handed him a key along with a badge bearing the Ice Hawks emblem, a token that would secure passage from the guards.
"Captain." Orum called out to Felix just as he was about to leave. "About Melina, I'll keep an eye out. If I come across any clue on the road..."
"No need." Felix waved a hand, cutting him off. "Your most important task right now is saving Ristina. Everything else can wait."
Orum nodded and said nothing more. Carrying Ristina, he followed the guard around the inn to the stable out back, where he found the familiar carriage bearing the Ice Hawks crest.
The same two horses draped in understated blankets stood in the stable, well-rested and full of energy.
Orum carefully laid Ristina on the cushioned seat of the carriage, tucking a blanket around her before climbing up into the driver's seat and taking the reins.
"Hyah!" Orum called out low, giving the reins a light snap.
The horses immediately broke into motion, and the carriage rolled slowly out of the stable.
The wheels rumbled dully over the flagstones, an oddly clear sound in the stillness of the night.
Orum drove the carriage through the deserted streets, racing toward the city gates.
"Clatter, clatter, clatter, clatter!"
The sound of hooves echoed through the empty streets like a rapid drumbeat.
About fifteen minutes later, Orum reached the North Gate.
But the sight before him made his heart sink.
The gate was jammed solid.
Dozens of carriages, carts, and travelers on foot formed a long line.
It stretched back hundreds of meters, writhing like some enormous serpent.
The line was thick with anxious shouting, crying infants, and the bleating of livestock.
The chaotic noise wove together into a jarring symphony under the night sky.
"Hurry up! Hurry up!"
"Why is this taking so long?!"
"We've already been waiting three hours!"
At the gate, dozens of city guards were inspecting every person trying to leave, one by one.
Their movements were painfully slow, as if they were scrutinizing every travel permit under a magnifying glass.
Orum frowned.
He thought of the assassination attempt from a few days ago.
The Tiefling assassin had come close to killing Lord Morgan.
Afterward, the lord had placed the entire city under lockdown.
Now, anyone trying to leave Roen City had to pass strict identity checks, magical scans, and racial screening.
All to make sure no Tiefling was slipping out among the crowd.
At the current rate of inspection, it would be dawn before Orum's turn came.
And Ristina wouldn't last that long.
Orum clenched his jaw and made a decisive call.
He couldn't afford to wait any longer.
He jumped down from the carriage and tied the reins to a wooden post by the roadside.
Then he carefully lifted Ristina out of the carriage.
"The carriage stays here. I'll carry her through on foot."
The two horses seemed to understand, letting out a soft whinny.
Orum drew a deep breath and strode forward toward the gate, Ristina in his arms.
He walked straight past the waiting crowd, heading directly for the front of the line.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"
"Get in line! Get in line!"
Angry shouts erupted behind him immediately.
Someone reached out and tried to grab his sleeve.
Orum ignored them, cutting through the crowd like a loosed arrow.
The strength granted by [Bugbear Tendon +2] let him shrug off every grasping hand with ease, moving through the crowd like a whale parting a school of fish, without the slightest resistance.
"Move." Orum growled low.
His tone carried an authority that brooked no argument.
The crowd around him flinched at the pressure and instinctively parted, clearing a path.
The captain of the city guard stationed at the gate noticed the commotion.
He was a middle-aged man with a hard, resolute face, clad in silver chainmail.
A captain's badge hung at his waist.
"Halt! Anyone cutting the line, back to the end immediately!" the captain barked.
His hand rested on his sword hilt, eyes fixed warily on Orum.
Orum didn't slow his stride.
He pulled out his mithril adventurer's badge with one hand, holding it high.
Letting it catch the torchlight and gleam silver-white.
"I'm a mithril-ranked adventurer. I need to leave the city immediately."
Orum's tone was cold, his gaze sweeping across the captain like a blade.
At the sight of the mithril badge, the captain's pupils contracted slightly.
He moved his hand off the sword hilt, though the wariness in his expression didn't fully fade.
"Mithril-ranked adventurers do have priority passage." The captain's voice was grave.
"But we still need to check. Are you two accomplices of the Tiefling assassin?"
The captain's voice cut sharply through the night wind.
His gaze moved back and forth between Orum and Ristina, watchful as a hunting hawk.
"I'm not a Tiefling, and neither is she." Orum said it plainly.
He turned slightly, letting the torchlight fall across Ristina's face.
"You can check for yourself."
The captain stepped closer, studying Ristina's features carefully.
Her pale skin looked like fine white jade, her delicate features carrying the elegance unique to half-elves.
Most telling of all were her long, pointed ears.
In the torchlight, their shape was unmistakable, and there were no classic Tiefling horns on her forehead.
"Human and half-elf." The captain confirmed, his tone easing somewhat.
"But we still need to run a magic scan, to make sure there's no disguising spell at work."
The captain waved over a young soldier wearing a mage apprentice's badge.
The soldier looked barely twenty, his face still youthful, a staff set with a blue crystal in his hand.
The young mage began chanting, his voice a touch nervous.
"Detect magic, reveal true form..."
As he chanted, the tip of the staff lit up with a soft blue glow, like a star fallen from the night sky.
He swept the light over Orum and Ristina, carefully sensing the fluctuations of magic within their bodies.
The blue light flowed gently across Ristina's body, rippling like water.
A few seconds later, the young mage nodded.
"Captain, scan complete."
"There's no trace of disguising magic on either of them."
The captain considered this for a moment, his gaze meeting Orum's steady eyes, and finally nodded.
"Let them through."
"But adventurer, I'll need to record your name and the purpose of your journey."
"Orum, adventurer of the Ice Hawks Company, heading to Lathander Monastery in the northern Black Forest to seek medical treatment."
Orum answered concisely, urgency threading through his voice.
The captain jotted it down quickly on a sheet of parchment, the quill scratching softly across the page.
Then he waved for the soldiers to open the heavy iron bolt on the gate.
"Creeeak..."
With a dull grinding sound, the massive oak gate slowly opened a crack, just wide enough for one person to pass.
Orum didn't hesitate for a moment. Carrying Ristina, he stepped through the gap.
He passed swiftly through the thick walls of Roen City.
Behind him came the heavy thud of the gate closing once more.
"Boom!"
The sound landed like a coffin lid slamming shut, chilling to hear.
Orum stood outside the gate and drew a deep breath.
The air outside the city was entirely different from within.
Gone was the char of burning corpses, but a rotting stench drifted in from deep within the forest.
He pulled out the map Felix had given him and studied the route carefully by moonlight.
From here, he needed to follow the northern road for ten kilometers before turning off onto a forest trail.
On the map, a warning was marked in red ink: "Northern Black Forest, active monster territory. Groups of three or more required for passage. Entry forbidden after nightfall."
Deep within the Black Forest, the old trail looked eerie and dim beneath the moonlight.
The trees on either side twisted like giant skeletons, casting warped, monstrous shadows.
Thick tree trunks bore deep gashes and scars, as if torn apart by the claws of countless monsters.
The night wind moved through the branches, letting out a haunting, moaning wail.
In this bone-chilling atmosphere, Orum moved swiftly down the rough path with Ristina in his arms.
His breathing was steady and controlled, his footsteps crunching softly against the fallen leaves.
Every step was placed with great care, fast enough to keep pace, but gentle enough not to jostle the woman in his arms.
The power granted by [Bugbear Tendon +2] let him carry her with ease, while the twin hearts and four lungs in his chest supplied him with an endless stream of stamina, letting him keep up this punishing pace for as long as needed.
The air was thick with the smell of rotting plants and damp earth.
Occasionally, a whiff of blood drifted in from somewhere in the distance, the aftermath of a monster's kill.
Orum's brow furrowed. The scent of blood was heavier than he'd expected.
It seemed Felix's warning had been right. A great many fierce monsters had indeed gathered in this forest.
Suddenly, Orum's sharp instincts picked up on danger.
He came to an abrupt halt, his eyes sweeping the darkness around him like a hawk's.
His muscles went taut in an instant, snapping into combat readiness.
Years of battle experience told him something was watching from the shadows.
The temperature of the air around him spiked suddenly.
A wave of scorching heat surged out from the bushes lining both sides of the road, washing over him.
In the span of a single breath, the surrounding air had climbed to nearly eighty degrees Celsius, as if he'd been dropped right beside a furnace.
Orum could feel his skin start to scorch, sweat beading on his forehead.
"Hisssss..."
A low, sinister hiss rose from the darkness.
Accompanied by heavy breathing and the rasp of scales scraping against the ground, like a whisper from death itself.
The sound came from three different directions, heavy footfalls closing in.
Orum's heart began to race, both of his hearts pumping in tandem, driving blood through his body in a surge.
The next instant, three massive dark shapes burst out from the bushes.
Their forms became visible in the moonlight: three enormous fire salamanders.
Each beast stretched nearly two meters long, its body as thick and powerful as a ferocious crocodile.
Their skin was covered in crimson scales that caught the faint moonlight with a metallic gleam.
At the center of each scale glowed a dull red light, as if some undying flame burned within.
The eyes of these fire salamanders radiated a molten orange glow.
Their pupils were slitted like a serpent's, locked squarely on Orum and the woman he carried.
Hunger and cruelty burned in their gazes, as if they were already savoring the meal within their grasp.
"Hsssss!"
A bone-chilling hiss tore through the air.
The three fire salamanders opened their massive jaws, and deep in their throats, blazing light surged to life at once.
The heat around that rapidly coalescing fire warped the very air.
"That's not good!"
Orum's pupils contracted sharply. In almost the same instant, all three salamanders' throats flared with blinding red light.
A terrifying pulse of magic rippled through the air, enough to make his heart pound.
"Whoosh."
Three scorching fireballs, each over half a meter across, erupted from the salamanders' mouths.
Tearing through the air with a shrieking whistle, converging on Orum from three directions at once.
The fireballs cut through the darkness, streaking three trails of orange-red light through the night sky.
Fallen leaves on the ground burst into flame the instant the fireballs passed, scattering sparks in every direction.
The orange glow lit up the entire forest, the shadows of the trees dancing wildly in the firelight, like something out of hell.
The air filled with an acrid, burnt smell, thick enough to make it hard to breathe.
In that split second, Orum pulled Ristina tight against him.
The terrifying explosive strength of [Bugbear Tendon +2] unleashed all at once.
His whole body sprang upward like a compressed spring released to its limit.
His body twisted in midair, movements as fluid and swift as a leopard's.
The three fireballs grazed past just beneath his feet, the searing shockwave whipping his clothes and hair.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Three deafening explosions rang out.
The fireballs slammed into the spot where Orum had been standing, the blast throwing up huge clumps of dirt, stone, and burning leaves.
The aftershock of the explosion echoed through the forest, firelight illuminating dozens of meters around.
The trees nearby had their bark scorched and split by the heat, sending up thin streams of smoke and licks of flame.
Orum landed steadily, his feet planting on the charred ground.
The soles of his shoes scraped against the earth with a sharp screech, carving two deep grooves into the dirt.
He glanced down at Ristina in his arms, and only after confirming she hadn't been hurt during that dodge did he let out a breath of relief.
She remained unconscious, her pale cheeks flushed unnaturally in the firelight.
The sweat on her forehead had thoroughly soaked her hair, her breathing so faint it was barely perceptible.
"If you're going to block my path, then all of you can die."
Orum muttered through clenched teeth, his eyes turning cold and vicious, like a beast pushed past its limit.
Having missed their first strike, the three fire salamanders adjusted their positions at once.
They moved on all fours with startling speed, their thick tails striking the ground with heavy, dull thuds.
Each strike kicked up clouds of dust.
Stones and dead leaves flew through the air, like the first signs of an approaching storm.
The salamanders moved with terrifying speed, their crimson scales catching the moonlight in flashes of metallic cold.
They opened their jaws again, gathering power.
The fire deep in their throats burned brighter still, like three small suns about to detonate.
The magical pulse grew stronger, and the surrounding temperature climbed sharply.
The dead leaves around them began to smoke, the dirt baked dry and cracking.
They were clearly preparing to unleash a second volley of fireballs.
But this time, Orum didn't choose to dodge.
A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and his body launched forward, advancing instead of retreating.
He shot forward like a cannonball fired from its barrel, charging straight at the nearest and largest of the salamanders on the left.
His speed was staggering, his legs kicking up a trail of afterimages against the ground, each step leaving a deep footprint behind.
The terrifying explosive power of [Bugbear Tendon +2] accelerated him to his absolute limit in an instant.
The ground gave way beneath each footfall, sinking several inches deep with every stride.
The salamander on the left clearly hadn't expected its prey to charge in first.
It hastily spat out a blazing fireball, but the angle was off, and it only grazed past Orum's shoulder.
The creature's head jerked up in alarm.
For the first time, real fear flickered in those orange eyes.
It saw Orum leap high into the air, descending like a mountain crashing down from the heavens.
The moonlight formed a silver halo behind him, making him look like death itself descending.
"Shatter!"
Midair, Orum shielded Ristina with one arm while raising his right leg like a war hammer.
His muscles pulled taut like steel cables, veins standing out clearly beneath his skin.
Both his hearts pounded furiously, pouring surging power into this single strike.
His right foot, carrying force enough to level a mountain, came down like the hammer of a god, landing squarely on the center of the salamander's skull.
"BOOM!"
An earth-shaking crash tore through the forest.
Accompanied by a sound like an explosion of cracking bone, the salamander's skull shattered beneath that single stomp as easily as an eggshell.
Its head caved in completely under the impact.
The hard skull burst apart into shards that scattered outward like bullets.
Crimson blood erupted from the shattered skull in a fountain of gore.
White brain matter mixed with yellow fatty tissue splattered in every direction, a horrific sight under the moonlight.
The stench of blood instantly saturated the entire forest.
Worse still, the pressure of the blow sent both of the salamander's eyeballs flying clean out of their sockets.
They shot into the night sky like fired shells, letting out a strange, muffled pop.
The eyeballs arced through the air, trailing thin threads of blood vessels and optic nerve.
They finally landed with a wet slap against a tree trunk ten meters away, leaving two sticky pools that slowly slid down the bark.
Having taken such devastating damage, the salamander's massive body convulsed violently.
Its thick limbs went slack, its tail thrashing against the ground in one last desperate spasm.
Gouging deep pits into the earth, dirt flying everywhere.
Then, it went still for good.
Just then, a status window flashed abruptly into the center of Orum's vision:
[You have killed 1 Fire Salamander!]
[Stage reward available: Monster Organ, Fire Salamander's Flame Organ! Spell-like Ability: Fireball!]
[Next stage reward: Kill 10 Fire Salamanders to receive an advanced reward!]
Orum glanced at the notification, the corner of his mouth curling into a cold, satisfied smile.
Fireball? Perfect for dealing with those damned monsters.
He'd burn every last one of those green-skinned bastards to ash.
But he had no time to look over the reward in detail right now, because the remaining two fire salamanders had already flown into a rage.
"ROAR!"
The two salamanders let out furious roars in unison, the sound echoing through the forest.
Leaves rustled and shook loose from the trees, night-roosting birds and beasts fleeing in terror.
Seeing their companion cut down so brutally, the orange glow in their eyes burned even more fiercely.
Like two stars on the verge of going nova.
The fire building in their throats nearly overflowed, the magical pulse reaching its peak.
The surrounding temperature spiked violently, dead leaves nearby catching fire on their own.
The salamander on the right struck first.
It swung its thick tail in a wide arc, like a steel whip, sweeping toward Orum's waist.
The strike carried the shriek of air being torn apart.
The tail split the air with a sharp, keening whistle.
Its crimson scales caught the moonlight in a cold, glinting flash.
A blow like that could snap a tree as thick as a bowl clean in half.
At the same time, the salamander behind him opened its jaws wide.
A fireball, even larger than before, was already forming in its throat.
Over a meter across, its heat so intense that the surrounding air boiled and warped.
The blazing red light lit up the entire forest, dazzling as a miniature sun.
Orum let out a cold snort.
Facing an attack from both front and behind, there wasn't a trace of panic in him.
He suddenly dropped low, letting the thick tail whistle past just above his head.
His clothes and hair whipped up, fluttering like a black banner.
The salamander's tail swept through the exact spot where Orum had just been standing.
"CRASH!"
A thunderous boom.
The blow snapped a tree as thick as a bowl clean at its base.
Splinters flew like a shower of blossoms.
The severed trunk crashed to the ground with a heavy, muffled thud.
As he dodged, Orum drove power into his legs.
His body shot forward like an arrow, straight at the salamander on his right.
His speed was so blinding it was nearly impossible to track his movement.
He leaped high once more.
This time, his right leg gathered even more terrifying force.
His muscles pulled taut as steel, the veins beneath his skin standing out like coiling black-green serpents.
"Die!"
Orum let out a furious roar, the sound cracking like thunder.
His right foot descended like a hydraulic press falling from the sky, driving down once more, precisely at the salamander's head.
The creature tried to dodge.
Its head jerked sideways at the last moment, fear flashing through its orange eyes.
But Orum was simply too fast.
It only managed to shift its head a few inches, not nearly enough to escape death.
"CRACK!"
Another horrifying sound of shattering bone.
Though the blow didn't land square on the center of its skull, the sheer force still crushed half the salamander's head into ruin.
Its left eye, along with most of that side of its face, was pulverized into paste.
Shattered bone fragments punched through the skin, exposed to the open air.
Blood sprayed out like a geyser, drenching the ground around it red.
The heavy stench of blood flooded the entire forest in an instant.
"SCREEE!"
The salamander let out a shrill, agonized scream.
The sound was gut-wrenching, echoing through the night sky.
Its massive body thrashed wildly across the ground, its thick tail flailing at the dirt without direction.
Gouging deep pits into the earth, dirt scattering everywhere.
But its life force was draining fast, the thrashing growing weaker and weaker, its breathing coming in increasingly ragged bursts.
At last, the salamander convulsed a few final times, then went completely still.
Its body began to stiffen, the orange glow fading from its eyes.
Orum landed steadily and turned to face the last remaining salamander.
His eyes were as cold and indifferent as if he were looking at a corpse already destined to die.
Not a trace of emotion showed on his face.
The last fire salamander had been utterly broken by fear.
It had watched both of its companions get brutally slaughtered within the span of mere seconds.
An instinctive terror sank into its very bones.
Its body began to tremble, its scales letting out a faint scraping sound.
The fireball gathering in its throat flickered hesitantly.
The magical pulse grew unstable, as if it were torn between fighting to the death or turning to flee.
Its orange eyes swirled with conflicting emotions: fear, rage, despair.
Orum didn't give it a chance to think.
He shot forward again, faster than before.
The ground caved into a deep pit beneath his feet, fragments of stone flying everywhere.
The terrifying explosive power of [Bugbear Tendon +2] unleashed to its fullest.
"Trying to run? Too late."
Orum smirked coldly as he leaped, coming down for the third time, aiming straight for the salamander's skull.
Like death itself descending from the heavens.
The last salamander closed its eyes in despair.
It didn't even try to fight back anymore, only letting out an instinctive, mournful cry.
Waiting for death to arrive.
"BOOM!"
A third thunderous crash exploded through the forest, like a peal of thunder.
The final salamander's skull burst apart like a watermelon.
Blood and brain matter splattered across the ground and the surrounding trees.
White brain matter mixed with red blood, forming what looked like a bloody carpet under the moonlight.
Orum slowly straightened his body and looked around.
All three massive fire salamanders now lay dead on the ground.
The forest trail had been stained a dark red with blood, the thick smell of it hanging heavy in the air.
His breathing remained steady, only a faint sheen of sweat on his skin.
[Fire Salamander Kill Count +1!]
[Fire Salamander Kill Count +1!]