Robert raised his hand, signaling me to stay quiet.
The reptile-like monster slowly crawled across the forest floor, its thick scales scraping against the rocks.
It was larger than I expected.
At least two meters long.
Robert whispered.
"Don't rush."
I nodded.
My hands were sweating.
Robert pointed at the monster's legs.
"Those things are fast."
"If it charges, dodge sideways."
"What about its weak spot?" I asked.
Robert thought for a moment.
"Neck and eyes."
"Same as most creatures."
Easy to say.
Hard to do.
Robert slowly circled the monster from the left.
I moved to the opposite side.
The creature suddenly stopped moving.
Its yellow eyes flicked toward me.
Then—
It lunged.
"Move!"
I jumped aside just as its claws slammed into the dirt.
The ground shook.
Robert rushed forward and stabbed his spear toward the creature's side.
The spear bounced off the scales.
"Damn it!"
The monster swung its tail.
Robert barely ducked.
"Those scales are thick!" he shouted.
My heart was pounding.
Think.
Think.
The monster charged again.
This time toward Robert.
"Robert!"
I grabbed a large rock from the ground and threw it as hard as I could.
The rock hit the monster's head.
It didn't hurt it much.
But it distracted it.
That moment was enough.
Robert jumped forward and drove the spear into the creature's eye.
The monster shrieked.
It thrashed violently, smashing trees and dirt everywhere.
Robert held the spear with both hands.
"Hold it!"
I rushed forward and wrapped my arms around the creature's neck, trying to restrain it.
Its body slammed me into the ground.
Pain shot through my ribs.
But I didn't let go.
Robert twisted the spear deeper.
The monster screamed one last time—
Then its body went limp.
For a moment neither of us moved.
Then Robert laughed breathlessly.
"Hahaha…"
"We actually did it."
I rolled onto my back, staring at the sky.
"I thought I was going to die again."
Robert wiped sweat from his forehead.
"That's C-rank for you."
After resting for a while, we began cutting the monster apart.
The claws, scales, and some organs were valuable.
The meat would feed the village.
By the time we finished, the sun had already begun setting.
Dragging the body back to the village was exhausting.
But when we finally arrived—
The adventurer squad was waiting near the entrance.
One of them stepped forward.
A tall man with a sword on his waist.
He looked at the monster corpse and smirked.
"So."
"These are the guys who killed the tiger yesterday."
His eyes moved toward the reptile monster.
"And now you caught a C-rank monster too."
His voice sounded mocking.
"Impressive."
He slowly clapped his hands.
Then his expression turned cold.
"Maybe if you keep this up…"
"You'll get to see your son again soon, old man."
Robert froze.
"You—"
The man grinned.
"Careful."
"Don't get angry."
I glanced between them.
What was he talking about?
The adventurer turned away casually.
"Come on, guys."
"Let's go drink."
They walked toward the tavern.
Robert remained silent.
His fists were clenched.
I walked beside him quietly until we reached the stable again.
After a moment, I spoke.
"...Robert."
He sighed.
"You heard that, huh."
"Yeah."
Robert leaned against the wooden wall.
"My son left the village three years ago."
"He managed to enter the kingdom."
My eyes widened slightly.
"He works there?"
Robert nodded.
"That's what I heard."
"I haven't seen him since."
His voice sounded tired.
"I just hope he's doing well."
Before I could respond, someone approached.
A woman.
One of the adventurers.
She had long brown hair tied behind her head and wore light armor.
She smiled when she saw me.
"So you're the one who helped hunt that monster?"
I scratched my head.
"Something like that."
She crossed her arms.
"You're pretty impressive for someone your age."
"I'm Mira, by the way."
"Kazu."
She looked amused.
"You know… hunting C-rank monsters isn't easy."
"I'm honestly impressed."
Then she leaned closer slightly.
"Inside the kingdom, even some adventurers struggle with that."
I blinked.
"Really?"
She nodded.
"The competition inside the capital is brutal."
"Strong people everywhere."
Before she could continue—
A voice shouted from the tavern.
"HEY!"
A large man stepped outside.
"**Garrick!**"
He pointed at her.
"Hey, **Mira!**"
"Get over here."
His expression turned annoyed when he noticed me.
"And stop hanging around with poor villagers."
Mira rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, yeah."
She looked back at me and shrugged.
"See you around, hunter."
Then she walked back toward the tavern.
Night slowly fell over the village.
A few hours later I noticed Robert hadn't returned.
I frowned.
"Where did he go…?"
I decided to look for him.
The tavern was loud when I entered.
Voices shouting.
Mugs slamming on tables.
Then I saw him.
Robert was arguing with the adventurer squad.
"I told you already!"
"I don't owe you anything!"
The tall swordsman from earlier stood up.
"You old fool."
"You live under our protection."
"You owe us plenty."
I stepped forward quickly.
"That's enough."
Both of them turned toward me.
Robert looked surprised.
"Kazu?"
I grabbed his arm.
"Let's go."
For a moment the room was silent.
Then the swordsman smirked.
As we walked toward the door, he spoke again.
"You bastard."
His voice was cold.
I could feel his eyes staring at my back as we left the tavern.