Boosting

The next day, Celine headed out of the basement like they had planned. Her task was to attract the rat colony's attention and lure them into the trap that they had prepared.

Celine was filled with confidence earlier, but in truth, she was incredibly nervous. One wrong move and she will be in grave danger.

At this moment, she was already near the rat colony's nest. She could see the rats from her position.

Celine calmed her tense nerves with a deep breath. She then threw a rock towards their nest which enraged the rats.

Squeak! Squeak!

A series of angry squeaks echoed in all directions.

The alpha of the colony sensed her location and it immediately commanded a bunch of rats to chase her.

Seeing them rushing at her, Celine made a quick escape. She didn't know how many rats were chasing her, but she couldn't care less. Her main priority now was to lure them towards the ambush site that the group had prepared.

Suddenly, a Black Rat managed to overtake her and it took the chance to swipe its claws at her back.

Celine twisted her body and rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack. 'It almost got me!' Her heart sank. If she was just one second late, she would have been at death's door.

After barely evading the rat's claws, she made a quick turn to the left and sprinted with all her might. Her face was full of sweat. She could also hear the furious beating of her heart. 'Almost there!'

Celine could already see the ambush site.

'Almost there!' She screamed in her mind.

More than ten angry Black Rats were chasing after her and the distance between them was slowly decreasing.

Just as one of them was about to pounce at her, it suddenly tripped and rolled over the ground.

The Black Rats behind it also tripped and fell.

"Now!" Celine shouted.

A figure appeared from above the roof and sent multiple fireballs in succession which hit the Black Rats.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Boom!

The weakest Black Rat immediately died after being struck by a fireball, while the others managed to survive with serious injuries.

"Rendell!" James shouted.

As soon as his voice fell, another figure emerged from above the roof. He swooped down and punched the biggest rat, sending it flying towards a nearby electric post.

He didn't stop after that. He incapacitated the remaining rats and tied them with a rope to prevent them from escaping.

"You guys can come out now," Rendell shouted after tying the limbs of the last rat.

Except for Kent, Ralph, and Phillip who were still recuperating, Aurora and the others stepped out from their hiding spot. They nervously watched the tied-up Black Rats while walking close to each other.

"Mom, I'm scared!" Goldie held her mother's hand while hiding behind her. Her elder sister, Sherry, was also hiding behind her.

"Don't worry, you two. Uncle Rendell has already subdued them." Marie whispered to them while hiding her anxiety. The sight of the huge rats made her scared, but she didn't want to look weak because her daughters were there. She needed to be strong for them and her husband.

'Uncle?' Rendell's eyes twitched when he heard their conversation, but he was too lazy to correct them.

"Ericka, they look scary…" Aurora muttered while holding Ericka's hand.

"I have already tied up their limbs. Use this opportunity to kill them while they are still unconscious. If you hesitate for a long time, they will wake up and attack you." Rendell warned them with a serious tone.

Hearing this, everyone became more nervous.

"Who will go first?" Rendell scanned them one by one.

No one spoke for a moment.

"Let me do it." Marie volunteered while pretending to be calm.

Rendell stared at her. He could see her legs shaking, but he didn't expose her. He just nodded at her and handed her his sword. "Use your full strength to stab its head." He reminded her.

Marie took the sword while nodding her head. It felt heavy in her hands.

She took a couple of steps and stared at the unconscious Black Rat in front of her. It looked terrifying and she almost lost her grip on the sword. 'I must get stronger for my family!' She thought as she raised the sword with both hands. With a scream, she pushed down the sword and stabbed into the Black Rat's head.

Blood splattered all over her clothes as the sword penetrated the rat's skull. The sudden attack awakened it, but it soon died after a few seconds of fierce struggle.

Marie weakly slumped into the ground. She saw a series of notifications popping up on her status screen, but she was too shocked to comprehend what was happening.

"Good job. You should get some rest now." She heard a gentle voice behind her.

Celine helped her stand up and brought her back to the rest of the group.

"Mom, are you alright?" Sherry and Goldie worriedly looked at their mother. The blood on her clothes made them terrified.

"I'm fine." Marie forced out a smile as she patted their head.

"Who's next? I need two volunteers this time."

The others stared at each other upon hearing his words. A moment later, Aurora and Ericka stepped forward.

Rendell handed his sword to Aurora, while Celine handed her sword to Ericka.

"You can do it," Rendell whispered.

Aurora was surprised to hear that. She didn't expect to hear it from him. It gave her some strength and confidence. "Thank you."

She was disgusted by the sight of the Black Rat. She fiercely grunted as she stabbed out her sword.

The Black Rat had a vigorous vitality so it didn't die immediately. It was also stronger compared to the Black Rat that Marie killed. After more than a minute of thrashing around, it eventually died from excessive blood loss.

You have slain a [Level 5 Black Rat]!

You leveled up!

You leveled up!

You leveled up!