Sunlight pierced through the thinning mist, scattering mottled rays across the clearing.
The few forest panthers lounging on the rocks instantly shed their lazy posture, muscles coiling like springs, luminous eyes all locking onto Kiriya at the same time.
They didn't immediately pounce.
Instead, they let out low, threatening growls, circling the stones with measured steps — displaying an intelligence far above the earlier monsters.
"Speed types, huh…"
Kiriya's gaze sharpened, not underestimating them for a second.
He summoned his clones again, MP dropping by 100 points. Two mirror images appeared, flanking him left and right, forming a triangle formation with his true body.
"Go on."
With a flick of thought, the left clone dashed forward first, charging straight at the nearest panther.
The beast's response was lightning-fast — almost literally a streak of black lightning.
It didn't take the strike head-on, but instead twisted its body at a vicious angle, dodging the thrust entirely. Its claws arced straight for the clone's throat!
-155!
The clone took heavy damage.
Kiriya didn't even frown. His real body and the right-side clone launched into motion simultaneously.
"Blink Step!"
The just-off-cooldown skill activated once more — Kiriya's true body blinked into the fray. The black iron sword traced a gleaming arc, aimed straight for the panther's exposed flank.
-270! (Weak Point Critical!)
A staggering damage number floated up!
The panther let out a pained roar, its aggro bar slamming instantly onto Kiriya. It spun, fangs bared, about to bite down —
But at that very instant, Kiriya had already issued the command, swapping positions with the left clone whose HP was now critically low!
The panther's claws raked through nothing but the dissolving phantom.
Kiriya's real body now stood squarely in the beast's absolute blind spot — right behind it.
"Phantom Thrust!"
Without missing a beat, his blade stabbed precisely into the same wound.
-280!
The panther's HP bar dropped to zero.
With a strangled whine, it collapsed to the ground.
[EXP Gained: 120]
The remaining two panthers, seeing the scene, snarled as they leapt in unison — faster, fiercer, deadlier!
"Good!"
Kiriya's battle spirit flared. He sent the last surviving clone to intercept one of them, buying himself time. His real body inhaled sharply and faced the other head-on.
Sidestep. Slide. Slash!
His movements were smooth as flowing water.
Each of the panther's lunges came with a gust of rank wind — claws grazing just past his coat by inches, each dodge breathtakingly close — yet never once touching him.
-264! -269! -265!
He struck with calm precision, every single Phantom Thrust sinking into its limbs or belly — not as devastating as a weak-point crit, but ruthlessly consistent.
Fifth strike landed.
Sixth strike — now!
"Phantom Blade — Trigger!"
The sword flashed pure white as the sixth blow struck home, tearing deep into the panther's neck with bonus critical force!
-390! (Massive Critical!)
The second panther fell.
[EXP Gained: 120]
[Level Up! Current Level: 6!]
[HP: 1700/1700]
[MP: 1100/1100]
Strength (STR): 170
Vitality (VIT): 150
Defense (DEF): 130
Agility (AGI): 160
Luck (LUK): 12
A golden light washed over his body. HP, MP — fully restored.
Kiriya didn't waste the moment — instantly summoned two fresh clones, surrounding the last panther, which had just torn apart the previous clone.
The conclusion was foregone.
[EXP Gained: 120]
[Current Level: 6 (140/600)]
When the battle ended, Kiriya slowly sheathed his sword.
The chain of high-intensity fights, plus the fine control of his clones, left him mentally tired — but far more than that, he felt exhilarated.
That feeling — walking the knife's edge, merging instinct with technique into flawless execution — this was exactly the thrill he sought.
"Hey! Finally found you!"
A somewhat familiar voice called from behind.
Kiriya turned and saw Yuna, the bow-wielding girl, and her swordsman companion running toward him, slightly out of breath.
They must have been following his trail.
Kiriya's brow twitched slightly. "What's wrong?"
Yuna came up to him, hands on her knees, panting a few times before looking up — eyes shining with admiration and curiosity, all previous complaints long forgotten:
"You were amazing just now! Taking down three panthers by yourself! And what was that skill? Why can you make two copies of yourself? And swap places with them? Is that a hidden class?!"
Her questions tumbled out like beans spilling from a jar.
The swordsman next to her — ID: Bran — scratched his head with a grin:
"Man, that was some god-tier play. We were so caught up watching you fight that we nearly got backstabbed by monsters again."
Kiriya glanced at them, voice as flat as ever:
"Basic mechanics."
Then he turned, clearly intending to head deeper into the forest.
"Wait!" Yuna hurriedly stopped him.
"Um… thanks for saving me back there. If not for you, I would've lost EXP for sure. Please — take this!"
She once again held out the 15 copper coins, her expression firm.
Kiriya looked at the coins, then at her stubborn face.
After a moment's silence, he finally reached out — but only took five coins.
"Alright. Consider it repair costs."
He even offered a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
(Yep, equipment durability loss.)
Yuna blinked, then quickly smiled back, realizing he didn't want to embarrass her, yet didn't want to take too much.
"You're actually kind of nice, even if you look all cold and stoic. Are you heading back to Green Town? I heard there's some weird quest there with really good rewards."
"Weird quest?"
Kiriya's attention sharpened at the phrase.
"Yeah," Bran chimed in,
"We just came from there. The town guards say the shadow wolves deep in the forest are way more aggressive lately — even attacking herb-gatherers in broad daylight.
The mayor is calling for adventurers to investigate. Our level's too low, so we didn't dare take it."
Shadow wolves? Usually level 7–8 monsters — highly aggressive.
Kiriya's mind clicked — perfect for quick leveling, and quest-related monsters usually came with better rewards than grinding random mobs.
Kiriya slid his sword into its sheath, scanning the slightly messy battlefield one last time.
He had a much clearer sense of his combat efficiency now — and the conclusion was obvious: he needed to level faster.
And Green Town was the only supply hub nearby — and his gateway to higher-level quests.
Just as he turned to leave, Yuna came jogging over again, face still flushed from the fight but eyes sparkling.
"Um… thanks again!" she said earnestly.
"You're heading back to Green Town, right? Can we come with you?"
Bran caught up and nodded eagerly:
"Yeah, bro, let's go together. We could even farm a few mobs along the way."
Kiriya paused, turning to look at them.
He did prefer solo play for efficiency's sake — but he wasn't heartless.
A barely-there curve lifted the corner of his lips, softening his voice:
"Thanks, but no. I'm faster alone."
He hesitated a moment, then added — almost as friendly advice:
"Your teamwork still needs work. Train more around here first. Go deeper only once your levels are higher — it'll be safer."
Then he nodded slightly at the two of them.
This time, his smile was a little more visible — carrying the easy, distant air of a lone wanderer.
With that, he turned and strode away.
His figure flickered between the trees, vanishing quickly without even using Blink Step — yet still moving far faster than a normal player.
Yuna stared at his disappearing back, blinked, then elbowed Bran.
"Hey, did you see that? He totally smiled just now! And he actually gave us advice!"
Bran scratched his head with a grin:
"Yeah… sure, he still turned us down, but he doesn't seem that unapproachable anymore. He's right — we do need more practice. Come on, let's go hunt some goblins and test our teamwork!"
Kiriya moved swiftly along the edge of the forest, navigating as if the path was carved into his memory.
He knew exactly where Green Town was.
As the main hub for early-game adventurers, its location was impossible to forget.
Soon, the sound of running water reached his ears — the familiar small river appeared ahead, its surface glittering under the sunlight.
He crossed the wooden bridge with ease.
On the far bank, an open clearing spread out, and beyond it stood the wooden palisade walls of Green Town.
Guards still manned the gate, and players bustled in and out, the place lively as ever.
Kiriya headed straight for the town square.
There, beside the large bulletin board, stood a middle-aged man in fine robes, brow deeply furrowed — the words [Green Town Mayor] hovering over his head.
Many players surrounded him, but he seemed to reject most of their inquiries with a shake of the head.
Kiriya waited until the others left, disappointed, before stepping forward:
"Heard there's trouble in the forest?"
The mayor looked up, noticing Kiriya's level — Level 6, the highest he'd seen so far — and his eyes lit up, though his expression remained worried.
"Yes, brave adventurer," he said gravely.
"Something is terribly wrong. The shadow wolf packs in the deep forest have grown unnaturally aggressive, leaving their dens to attack travelers even in daylight. We have already lost three of our best herb gatherers. Even the guards we sent nearly didn't make it back…"
He hesitated, then continued grimly: "They report that the wolves' eyes glow a strange, unnatural red — they are stronger, blood thirstier. I fear something darker is at work behind this."
[Ding! Accept Town Mayor's Quest: Investigate the Shadow Wolves' Anomaly?]
[Quest Objective: Travel to the depths of Green Forest, slay 10 Enraged Shadow Wolves, and collect 5 samples of [Dark Miasma].]
[Quest Rewards: EXP 1500, 1 Silver Coin, Green Town Reputation +100, 1 Random Uncommon-quality Equipment.]
The rewards were generous — especially the Uncommon gear and silver coin — far above what any starter village quest could offer.
Kiriya didn't hesitate for even a second.
"Accept."
The mayor exhaled in relief.
"Thank you, adventurer. Please be careful. If you discover anything unusual, report back immediately. May the forest guide your path."
Kiriya nodded once, then turned toward the blacksmith.
He had his gear repaired, sold the wolf meat, panther pelts, and other junk to the general merchant, netting nearly 50 copper coins.
Fully prepared, he glanced once more at the quest glowing in his log, then turned his gaze toward the forest — the deeper part, where the trees grew thicker and the light grew dim, hiding untold secrets and dangers.
Level 10 and the mystery of the hidden class — both were waiting ahead.
He tightened his grip on the sword hilt, and with long, confident strides, stepped once more into the shadows of Green Forest.