"Swish!"
A figure clad in tight leather armor, Fabian, wielding two daggers, agilely leapt out from the dense forest.
With another tip-toed step, his whole body seemed weightless, darting forward several meters.
Behind him, everyone could clearly hear heavy breathing and muffled incoherent words in common tongue: "Food..."
"Food is running..."
Immediately, the owner of the voice burst out of the forest.
At the front and back, two robust Wild Boar People instantly entered Raine's view.
This was the first time Raine saw living Wild Boar People outside of monster illustrations.
They were about 1.8 meters tall, but their solid and muscular build was two sizes larger than that of an ordinary strong person.
Everything from the dense mane on their body, the arms comparable to an adult male's thigh, to the huge wooden hammer they wielded indicated that they wouldn't be easy to deal with.
"Raine, ready." Reya softly reminded him.
"Mm!"
Raine nodded, immediately focusing his mind.
A few seconds later, as the two Wild Boar People charged to the wet muddy ground.
"Fizz!"
A blue-white beam thicker than a thumb suddenly blasted from Raine's hand, hitting the wet muddy ground ahead!
Though also humanoid, Wild Boar People's intelligence was far superior to goblins, evident from their recent mumbling of unclear common tongue.
Seeing the sudden magic shot from the woods on one side, the two Wild Boar People quickly sensed something was wrong and began slowing down.
However, being so close to that wet ground, they had no time to stop.
Moreover, the white icy surface was rapidly expanding.
"Bang! Bang!!"
Instantly, the two robust Wild Boar People slipped on the suddenly appearing white ice surface, one after another.
"Well done, Raine!" Reya couldn't help but praise.
Then, she released the arrow that had been drawn back and aimed for a long time.
With a 'whoosh', in Raine's view, a special thicker arrow swiftly shot towards the Wild Boar Person who was just struggling to get up from the ice surface.
"Thud!"
Because of the long-aimed attack, the arrow undoubtedly hit the unstable standing Wild Boar Person, and due to this arrow's special nature, it deeply penetrated several inches into the Wild Boar Person's thick chest!
"Awo~~~" the opponent let out a piercing scream!
And Raine narrowed his eyes.
He observed the wound the arrow caused to the Wild Boar Person.
On the caravan ride, he knew Reya's big bow had a draw weight of nearly 150 pounds, and she skillfully mastered a combat skill 'Aimed Strike'.
Yet, even with such a strong bow executing 'Aimed Strike', it still couldn't pierce through the opponent for a one-strike kill.
This showed the Wild Boar Person's muscle density and physical defense were immensely strong.
If this target were an ordinary goblin, Reya's arrow would probably pierce through three in one shot.
But this arrow definitely made this Wild Boar Person feel heart-wrenching pain!
The moderately injured Wild Boar Person seemed completely enraged, with originally yellow eyes turning fully red, furiously roaring, he snapped the arrow and charged at Reya, heedless.
And the remaining Wild Boar Person originally wanted to follow its companion to trouble Reya, but just as it stood up, it repeatedly let out screams.
Three fletchless crossbow arrows were jammed in its face and near its neck's chest area.
The ones who shot were Chris and the other two.
Seeing their captain has attracted the attention of the other Wild Boar Person, they immediately launched an attack on this Wild Boar Person.
Now, the battle was unfolding smoothly according to the plan.
Including Raine, the current task of the four was to quickly kill this Wild Boar Person.
Facing the furious Wild Boar Person, even though Raine wanted to acquire its bloodline, even though his spear is a long weapon, he wouldn't choose to charge forward with a shield at this moment.
However, he did have some envy for Chris and Grande, both quasi-warriors, who could afford the expensive hand crossbows.
He once caught a glimpse of them in a weapon shop, the price marked as high as 18 Silver Coins, out of his current purchasing power.
At this moment, Raine cautiously joined Chris and the other two in surrounding the enemy.
Although Fabian had pre-poisoned the three's crossbow arrows, with time slipping by, the scales of victory in the battle would undoubtedly tilt in their favor.
But since they also had to assist their captain Reya, they couldn't drag it out too long.
Otherwise, if they waited for the poison to spread through the opponent's body and reach maximum potency, they'd have it a bit easier.
"Whoosh!"
Fabian shot another crossbow arrow, so close that it hit the Wild Boar's neck.
This strike made the Wild Boar Person let out a scream.
"Thud!"
The long sword in Chris's hand then stabbed into the Wild Boar Person's right-side rib cage, its blade cleverly avoiding the rib and stabbing into the gap.
But the Wild Boar Person's dense fur, thick skin, and solid muscle provided some resistance to the sword's penetration.
"Awoo~~" The increasingly furious Wild Boar Person slammed the massive wooden hammer down on Chris!
"Bang!!" Chris quickly raised his shield to block, but upon contact, his whole body was pushed back two steps as if hit by electricity!
From his slightly reddened face, it was clear that even though Chris exerted full strength to block, facing the raging Wild Boar Person's hammer blow was still quite challenging.
At this time, the Wild Boar Person raised the hammer again, seeming to continue its assault.
Just as Raine planned to rush forward to assist, Grande on the side flashed forward, using the iron round shield to fervently block the Wild Boar Person's descending hammer.
Meanwhile, Fabian maneuvered from behind the Wild Boar Person, quickly striking with his daggers.
This urgency made Raine's heart tense.
He intended to inflict significant damage on the Wild Boar Person, but at this rate, it seemed doubtful.
Therefore, although the air was thick with the Wild Boar Person's foul stench and harsh squeals, Raine immediately abandoned his shield to wield the spear with both hands, exerting all his strength, he thrust the long spear towards the Wild Boar Person's neck from the side.
"Hum-aw~~"
Despite the spear tip piercing the vital neck area, Raine's hands still noticeably felt resistance transmitted from the spear rod.
He continued to exert force, piercing through thick skin and muscle, the tip penetrated further, instantly unleashing abundant bright red blood!
This particularly vicious spear thrust by Raine drove straight from the Wild Boar Person's neck almost reaching its head, prompting the creature's final mournful wail!
Moreover, seeming worried the damage from this thrust was insufficient, Raine retracted and plunged the spear repeatedly, stabbing three times in quick succession.
This left Fabian and the other three stunned, thinking 'This mage apprentice is a bit savage!'
As the Wild Boar Person collapsed in front, Raine tensely glanced at the system's translucent sixteen-slot pack, a light cluster appeared and promptly became clear.
The beast icon with tusks and a high-standing mane, it appeared as a robust Wild Boar Person.
"Whew~~~" Raine sighed deeply.
Fortunately, Wild Boar Bloodline, acquired!
Raine's heart finally settled, a hint of smile appeared on his face.
Just as he relaxed a breath.
"Awoo!!"
Suddenly, a piercing roar from the distant forest instantly jolted Raine.
Huh?
Another Wild Boar Person?
The group couldn't help but show astonishment, raising their heads to look at the side of the forest.
Unlike the mournful cries when the previous Wild Boar Person died, this roar rapidly approaching carried a deeper, more robust, and furious presence.