All the adventurers, except Brakkon, had been killed. Their bodies were thrown deep into the forest. Meanwhile, Brakkon was hung upside down.
His entire body was smeared with honey—the same honey Dyren had bought earlier at the market. Initially, Dyren had planned to use the honey to cook meat, but he had changed his mind.
"I heard the ants in this forest really love honey. They'll welcome you with a feast," said Dyren.
He smiled and turned around. Without a trace of pity, Dyren walked away, leaving Brakkon behind—alone.
Mira and Mara also left. The day was getting closer to night. They still hadn't found a single Thornboar. Even though that was the main reason they had entered the forest in the first place.
The forest grew darker. The sun began to sink and almost disappeared. If they didn't find a Thornboar in the next twenty minutes, they'd be stuck there at night.
"Shouldn't we go back now? At night, monsters become even stronger," suggested Mara.
Mira and Dyren didn't seem to care much. They kept walking forward. Meanwhile, Mara kept glancing back. She wanted to return, but they were already far from the forest's edge.
Mara held the end of Dyren's sleeve. "Are you sure you still want to keep going?" she asked again.
Suddenly, Mira and Dyren stopped. Their eyes moved rapidly, scanning the surroundings. Mara realized something was wrong. She swallowed hard and gripped her Magic Staff tightly.
"What's going on?" asked Mara.
"They're coming," Dyren replied.
"W-what? What's coming?" Mara began to panic.
The bushes ahead rustled violently. Not just from the front, but also from the left, right, and behind them.
Mira and Dyren both smiled. What they had been waiting for had finally arrived. Their smiles widened.
"Come on then!" they challenged.
From behind the foliage, the first figure emerged—a massive Thornboar. It stood nearly three times the height of an adult human, its body covered in black quills that moved as if they were alive. Its breathing was heavy and hot, steam puffed from its snout like a war machine. Its eyes glowed bright red. Its gaze radiated pure rage.
Mara's eyes widened when she saw the creature. "This…"
She nearly fainted and collapsed, but Dyren caught her in time, helping her stay upright while still holding her Magic Staff.
"There are a lot of them," Dyren said.
Mara turned sharply. She was in shock. Just one of those things already seemed impossible to defeat, and Dyren casually said there are a lot?
"You're joking, right?" Mara muttered in disbelief.
Dyren pointed toward another rustling bush. Mara followed his gesture.
Then, one by one, more of them emerged. Two. Three. Until there were seven in total. They formed a circle, surrounding Dyren, Mira, and Mara from all directions.
"These… aren't ordinary Thornboars," Mara whispered, her voice barely audible.
"Correct," Mira answered, her eyes unblinking as she stared at the beasts. "These are Nightfang Thornboars. They only appear near nightfall, and they're a much stronger variant of the regular Thornboar."
Mara took a step back, her hands trembling as she held her Magic Staff. "We can't fight seven of them at once… They're not even our target… If we push forward, we're going to die."
"Running away?" Mira scoffed. "We've come this far, and now you want us to let go of such a delicious hunt? You must be joking."
"But Nightfang Thornboars are ranked A+. There's no way we can win. We're only ranked C—it's suicide."
Mira looked annoyed at Mara's words. Dyren drew his sword, and a greenish-black aura began to radiate from his body. He felt completely different now.
"Just stay behind us. Let us handle this," Dyren said calmly.
Mara was stunned by those words. "You're only a rank F adventurer. What can you possibly do?"
Dyren didn't respond. Instead, he activated his skill. In a flash, dozens of skeletons appeared. But that wasn't all—he also summoned Sniffy (the Cerberus) and The Headless King.
Those two massive undead creatures materialized. Mara stood frozen, her eyes widening. She could sense it—those undead were incredibly powerful. Perhaps the strongest beings she had ever seen in person.
"What kind of creatures did you summon?" Mara gasped.
Dyren didn't answer. He was focused on the battle. According to Mira, the Nightfang Thornboars were powerful monsters—but how strong exactly? Dyren wasn't sure.
He was ready to fight with everything he had. He thought it would be a fierce battle, just like when he fought Mira before.
"Sniffy, protect the mage girl!" Dyren said, pointing toward Mara. "You can do that, right?"
"Ghooooff!!" Sniffy growled in reply.
"What about me?" The Headless King asked.
"Of course, you'll assist me," Dyren replied.
The Headless King nodded. He agreed, but as he looked around, he seemed confused—even puzzled. He glanced at Dyren again.
"My lord, where is the powerful enemy you spoke of?" The Headless King asked.
Dyren furrowed his brow. "What do you mean? These boars are the enemies I was referring to."
"These…" The Headless King scanned the area again. No other monsters were there. "These are… nothing but weaklings to me."
Dyren squinted at him. He turned his head toward The Headless King. "Are you sure?"
The Headless King raised his sword. He activated Aura of Dread. In an instant, all Nightfang Thornboars had their stats reduced by 25%.
Then, The Headless King swung his sword. A mighty slash infused with dark aura.
Slaaasssh!
The slash cut everything within a hundred-meter radius. Trees were sliced cleanly—and all the Nightfang Thornboars were killed. Their bodies split in half.
Dyren and Mira were stunned. Mara glanced at The Headless King with an annoyed expression. She had wanted to fight, but everything was over in an instant.
"You stole my prey," Mira complained.
The Headless King turned away, avoiding eye contact. "My lord, my duty is complete. May I return now?" The Headless King pleaded a bit.
"Ah, right."
The Headless King disappeared. Mira clicked her tongue in frustration. She had wanted to punch him in retaliation, but the creature had vanished.
Mara, standing beside Mira, gulped. Her eyes didn't blink for several minutes.
"They were all… defeated with a single strike." Mara turned to Dyren. "Just how powerful are you?" she asked.
***
Today's mission was complete. They had managed to obtain seven Nightfang Thornboars. Dyren stored their corpses inside his inventory. The night had completely arrived. They decided to return home.
"Finally, my first mission is done," Dyren said in relief.
He smiled. He felt like this was getting interesting. At first, he didn't like this world. But now, he was starting to enjoy it.
"After we eat, let's celebrate." Dyren turned to Mara. "Would you like to join us?"
Mara was still in shock from what had just happened. She looked at Dyren differently now.
"Ah. Yes, I'll join," she replied awkwardly.