CHAPTER 73: DUSKWITHER WOLVES

There was a concept Max had thought of introducing on the Third Floor, but he scrapped it because he considered it too dangerous for Silver-Rank Hunters.

It was to introduce Undead in the Whispering Pines region. To be precise, it was first to kill people with the creepy sound and then have their mindless husks attack the hunters.

He could have modified their abilities to bring down their danger level, but it was still troublesome, so he scrapped the whole idea.

Instead, he introduced normal monsters in it—though, of course, they were also pretty dangerous and could take down whole cohorts without anyone noticing.

But the situation was still better than dealing with those undead.

[Haha! Don’t worry, I didn’t actively change things in the world and just let it fill the holes with either the drafts you had or with your mentality. This whole thing was already planned properly, and there were no holes to fill, so why would it add things unnecessarily?]

’I see. You should have told me sooner,’ Max sighed.

[Where’s the fun in that?]

Max ignored her and said, "You two know about the dangers of this region, so there’s no need to plan or anything. Let’s just enter and warm up a little."

As dangerous as the Whispering Pines was, it was mostly for beginners of Silver Rank, as it was filled with Early-Stage and Middle-Stage Second Grade Monsters.

They had confidence in at least running away from those monsters, so they could afford to take some risks.

The two nodded, and they entered the forest. They had a lot to talk about, but they didn’t want to waste the time they could spend getting stronger.

That was their main goal.

The Whispering Pines were eerily silent, with barely any sound reaching anyone’s ears. This was one of its strange properties. While they would hear strange voices in their mind, their surroundings would remain sound-free.

Since it was the outskirts, they were still not hearing anything, but they knew they shouldn’t let their guard down.

As they walked in the strange silence, Max gave a side glance at his status, as it had been some time since he checked it.

---

[Status Screen]

Name: Maxwell Corelhelm

Rank: Level 1, Silver

Overall Level: 10

EXP: 8/188

Health: 100%

Stamina: 100%

Energy Reserves: 100%

Skill: Phasing, Armour Skin

Artefact: Everform, The Heart’s Desire

---

A smile formed on his lips seeing his status, and his confidence grew slightly. That made him keep his guard up even more, because he knew about the enemies lurking in the silence of this forest.

He felt an instant wave of gratefulness when his instincts tingled, telling him of the danger close by.

Max spun with a speed that would have left his past self dumbfounded and blocked a swipe of razor-sharp claws. The impact shook his hand slightly, but that was it.

"Thanks for revealing yourself," Max grinned and kicked the beast before him in the belly. The impact tossed it backward as it collided with a pine tree.

Before it could rise again, a heavy iron hammer landed on its jaw, shattering all of its fangs in one go. Its red eyes rolled back, as if struggling to hold onto its last breaths.

It was then they finally saw the appearance of the monster clearly, even though they already knew about it.

It was a Duskwither Wolf, a pure white species of wolf usually found in the Whispering Pines region. They specialized in their silent speed, which allowed them to kill their enemies before they could even sense the deadly predators.

Even if they somehow survived the sneak attack, a single wound would leave them with a [Bleed] debuff, making them lose blood quickly and grow weaker, allowing the predators to kill their prey.

The worst of it was that they always moved in packs, so encountering one Duskwither Wolf meant meeting a whole pack of them.

’Nice!’ Max smiled, seeing Stelle’s grin—noticing how she had injured the wolf rather than killing it. It was for him.

’Ah! My lovely girlfriend is taking care of me,’ Max was too happy, as he swiped his hand to the side with his Everform turning into a long lance, piercing through the hide of another Duskwither Wolf.

Instead of backing away, the wolf swept a powerful paw at him, threatening to tear his whole body to pieces.

Just then, Max skillfully ducked down while still pushing the lance deeper into the wolf’s body. The nasty smell of its mouth assaulted his senses, but he still continued until he had shattered its core within.

It was then a ravaging sound reverberated in his mind, taking him off guard even though he was prepared for it. It not only made his concentration break but also halted his movements.

That instant was enough for the wolf to open its wide jaw and aim for his neck. Just before the terrifying fangs could sink into his flesh, Max moved slightly and a dark spike formed on his shoulder, penetrating the wolf’s head through its mouth.

Its ocean-like blood dripped down the spike as it returned back to its original form.

Max kicked its body and clicked his tongue when he saw blood on his Light Armour. "I need to learn an auto-wash enchantment first."

[You have slain an Early-Stage Second Grade Monster. Gained 8 EXP.]

’Fun time’s not over,’ Max wiped his face and brandished his Everform into a double-bladed longsword.

He also reminded himself to not change the shape of Everform too much, as it consumed mana every time. The more complex and quicker he wanted it to become, the faster his mana would be drained.

The last change into a spike had dropped his mana by one-fifth of his reserves, showing how much it consumed when he needed it to transform in an instant.

"Dummy, do you wanna kill it or not?"

He turned around and found Stelle standing above the struggling wolf. Smiling, he went and finished off the two wolves she had managed to defeat.

[You have slain an Early-Stage Second Grade Monster. Gained 8 EXP.]

[You have slain an Early-Stage Second Grade Monster. Gained 8 EXP.]

"Get ready! They come in packs, so there must be more nearby—and their pack leader too."