Tenahu frenzy

'Wait, why didn't I get the notification?'

It took me a while to realise because I had not used the effects of the skill since my first quest.

Granted, my battles since then either did not require it, or were too intense to think about using it. However, with the Tenahu it should be an ideal opponent to… reap the rewards from using the skill.

'No way, the dodge from before was not close enough?'

'Fine. No risk, no reward, right?'

"So let's go"

The Tenahu charged ferociously, closing the distance between us in a blink. It swiped its powerful claws across my chest, I jumped back avoiding the attack, then countered with a punch of my own to its head.

'Still nothing?'

The beast lost its balance momentarily but recovered swiftly and lunged at my throat.

I waited for the moment when his jaws started to close, where I could practically feel its canines on my neck.

<Accelerate >

-Snap!

I used the rune on my boots to boost my movement speed, bent my knees to lower myself below its closing maw, and delivered an uppercut.

[All stats+4]

Despite its head swivelling away from me, it managed to accurately swipe its claws towards my face.

As I prepared to dodge to my left to narrowly avoid its left paw, in my peripheral view, I noticed its right paw moving towards me too.

It must have been an instinctual action to catch me no matter what, and it would have worked if I dodged on instinct alone.

I dodged to the left as planned then leaped backwards the moment its right claws grazed my face.

[All stats +4]

[All stats +4]

"Soluume!' Ferine yelled in a panic.

"I'm fine"

The Tenahu rotated its body in the air and landed perfectly on its feet.

'Damn, its body is tough, my punches are not really effective. Do I have to use my sword after all?'

'No, I just have to wear it down'

The Tenahu got into position and opened its mouth to unleash the shockwave.

It roared.

'Earth Magic: Rock Wall'

I created a double layered wall this time, but still prepared to leap to the side if it did not hold up, however, nothing happened.

"Soluume behind-"

-BOOM!

Ferine's voice was cut off by the sound of the shockwave as it blew me through the wall and into the rocks and trees behind me.

I got cocky. I could not have imagined that the Tenahu would not only feint an attack, but also use the fact that my vision was block by my own spell to get behind me.

My muscles in my arms were torn. I barely managed to bring my arms up to block due to Ferine's shout, but still ended up with multiple contusions.

'Even with the damage reduction…'

Once again, I realised my arrogance. The threat levels were not for show. It was a clear indicator of how much damage I would receive from a direct hit.

My experience with the goblins warped my perception, I need to reset my way of thinking.

I poured magic into the waist coat to speed up my recovery.

'Wood Magic: Root Bind'

The Tenahu dodged the roots effortlessly, never allowing them to get close.

I added more roots and tried to predict the path the beast would take, then finally, I caught it.

The roots coiled around its muscular physique, tightening with each loop.

I knew that it would not hold it for long, which was fine as I just needed enough time to recover.

Sure enough, shortly after the roots caught it, the Tenahu broke free from the restraints and charged at me.

I got to my feet.

'Earth Magic: Rock Fist'

<Accelerate >

I dodged the incoming claws and punched the beast in its rib cage with a deafening blow.

The Tenahu rolled on the ground before coming to a stop beside a rock. The beast staggered to its feet.

'Earth Magic: Rock Pillar'

I created a pillar below it and sent it into the air before it regained its balance.

'Fire Magic: Fireball Barrage'

I stood below the Tenahu and pelted it with fireballs.

-Boom!

-Boom!

The Tenahu fell limply, creating a depression in the ground on impact.

The beast struggled to get to its feet but refused to stay down.

'Seriously?'

<Boundless >

I appeared above the Tenahu and punched its skull with my rock fist, finally ending its life.

I released the rock fist and reclined next to the Tenahu.

I gulped down a mana potion and released the tension accumulated during the battle.

"Soluume, we have to leave this place immediately" Ferine said in a panic.

"What? No celebratory kiss?"

"N-No, Soluume, please listen to me" she said.

I raised my brow.

"What's wrong?"

"There are four Tenahu headed this way" she replied.

"What?"

'Did the sounds of battle attract their attention?'

"Are they coming as a group?"

Ferine shook her head.

"No, Soluume, they are approaching from different directions." she replied.

'Should I run away? I could use a level up before facing the adventurers… But can I handle four at once?'

Although I realised and acknowledged my arrogance from before, my gut told me that I should not run away.

It was an indescribable feeling. I just knew that I would manage somehow, that my experience with the Tenahu will help me survive.

'This… is an effect of my trait, isn't it?'

I decided to listen to my gut.

"Ferine, are your arrows strong enough to pierce them?"

"Not without being enhanced with a reinforcement spell, but even then, it would not do much damage" she replied.

"That's fine, I just need you to provide support when you see an opening"

"Are you certain that you wish to battle four Tenahu, Soluume?" she asked with a look of concern.

"I'm sorry, but yes, I need the experience. I'm confident that the battle will go better this time with your support. You will back me up right?"

"Yes, of course" she responded.

"I will make myself their target and keep their attention solely focused on me. But that doesn't mean that they won't attack you if you fire at them, so don't remain in one position for too long"

"Understood" she responded.

"They'll be here soon, go back to the tree"

Ferine nodded and warped to a tree.

A few moments after Ferine vanished, four pairs of glowing red eyes glared at me.

I was completely surrounded, only separated by a few hundred meters on either side.

The menacing growl of four Tenahu reverberated throughout the area. Not only directed at me, but also at each other. I was prey after all, and it did not look like any of them were in the mood to share.

The Tenahu on my left focused its attention on the mini crater beside me, it stopped growling once it noticed the charred black mass laying within it. The beast's actions caused the other Tenahu to do the same. They stared at the fallen beast lying beside me, causing all of them to step back reflexively.

'Shit, they're on high alert now. I need to prevent them from working together or they'll be a real pain to deal with'

"Yeah, I did that to him. It was too easy, are you pussies as pathetic as him?"

I tried provoking them into attacking recklessly, but it did not go as planned.

They opened their massive jaws and roared simultaneously.

'Shit…'

The air trembled under the collective and booming roars of four Tenahu. Their shockwaves shook the ground, destroying the landscape as they headed towards me.

'Earth Magic: Rock Pillar'

The pillar lifted me off the ground and out of reach of their shockwaves.

<Accelerate >

I leaped off the platform as their combined attacks obliterated the column below and landed in a safe zone between their shockwaves.

I watched in surprise as their attacks collided with one another and cancelled each other out.

'So much for the hope of friendly fire'

Having noticed that their roars failed to reach me, they decided to attack me directly. They lunged at me, trying to slash my face with their giant claws.

The Tenahu directly ahead of me, pulled back it's paw moments before it would have made impact.

The other beasts had the same reaction immediately following the first. I used the split seconds of delay that it provided to create rock fists in both hands and moved around the beasts with acceleration to punch them in their rib cages.

As I punched the beasts, I noticed that each one of them had an arrow stuck in their front leg, specifically the one they would've used to slash at me.

'Great job Ferine'

My blows did not send the beasts far, they recovered quickly and charged at me, ignoring the arrows being shot at them

I could not prolong the battle; I had to throw everything at them to either wear them down or catch them off guard.

'Earth Magic: Rock Pillar'

I surrounded myself with large pillars on all sides, preventing their initial strikes from reaching me.

'Wood Magic: Root Bind'

While their attention was focus on getting through to me, I wrapped roots around their hind legs.

With their positions confirmed through the gaps in the pillars, I used my trump card to end the battle once and for all.

<Magic Power Amplification>

'Fire Magic: Inferno'

A tornado of flames surrounded each Tenahu, reducing them to ash before they knew what happened.

[Your Level Has Increased]