Chapter 17 - Hunt

"What?! Like hunting a kobold? What happened to being careful?" Leo exclaimed with wide eyes.

Loki shrugged. "The situation has changed. I didn't expect we would experience the danger of our own kind this early in our career. Yes, I said we should avoid unnecessary risk, but I think staying weak is riskier than avoiding kobolds. And I'm not saying we should do it right away; I'm just putting the idea in your head."

"What do you think, Pandora?" Leo turned to Pandora for an answer.

"I-I don't know… But my previous parties also avoided dangers as much as possible. In the end…" Pandora responded with a sad tone. It appeared she was still affected by the men they encountered.

Seeing this, Loki immediately spoke to change the subject. "Our problem is not only about being weak but also about lacking experience. My plan at first is to slowly expose ourselves to the danger of the Dungeon and hone our capabilities. However, I realized Dungeon is far more dangerous. If we want to survive, we need to grow, and we need to do it as fast as we can!"

"I guess you're right. But don't you remember the last fight? I said I defeated that beast, but in reality, it took 4 Crawlers to make it happen. And in truth, I'm a little bit scared. Do you think we can do it again with just three of us?"

"Yes, we did, and no, I don't think we will get lucky again. But the thing is, what we fought was a Level 3 kobold. I'm sure there's going to be a Level 1 out there, and that's what we're going to hunt. With your shield, my Bleeding, and Pandora's entanglement, we will definitely win!"

Loki thought Leo would have been the first one to agree with him. However, it seemed Leo's promise to his Grandma put a heavy burden on him. Perhaps there was some good in that, knowing that Leo would have something that would stop him from doing something stupid.

Regardless, Loki needed Leo to agree with him. Because everything they did as a group had to be agreed upon by every member, or else it would lose its spirit.

Leo lingered while walking back and forth. Soon, he stopped and looked at Loki with serious eyes. "Do you really believe we can do it?"

"If we prepare and be careful enough, yes, I believe without a doubt that we can do it."

"Okay," Leo smilingly said.

Loki wasn't even surprised by how casually Leo took the conversation. This was the real him after all."

"But, what about our Quest? We only have a week of resources; do we have time to do both?"

"Well, our main objective is still our Quest, but this time we will also try to look for something to hunt. I don't think the two goals are that far apart, so don't worry."

Leo nodded.

Loki removed his attention from Leo and turned it to Pandora. "Are you okay now, Pandora?"

Pandora still nodded, but she seemed more aware than earlier.

"What do you think about our conversation? Do you have something to add?" Loki inquired.

"I-if we are going to hunt Kobold, I think I might be able to help with that."

Loki raised his eyebrows. "How?"

"I-I have a skill that lets me hear the voices of plants."

Loki touched his chin.

Hear the voices of plants? Now that I think about it, she also has the ability to control roots. Is her Class related to plants? Is that how she finds out about the kobold tracking us? Hmm, Interesting.

"Is it okay for you to tell us something like that?" Loki squinted.

"I-I don't know, but I know I can trust you both," Pandora responded.

"If that's the case, I think it is only fair if I also tell you about mine. I have three skills: [Back Stab], [Evading Blink], and [Dagger Mastery]. [Back Stab] is an offensive skill that, if I successfully land in the back of the enemy, will cause them to Bleed. [Evading Blink] is an escape skill that lets me avoid any attacks by blinking behind it. Finally, [Dagger Mastery] is a passive skill that gave me the ability to use any dagger with a masterful control. You can probably guess what Class I have, but don't worry, I trust both of you enough that I know I can leave my back to you."

"What, what, are we sharing our skills with each other? Then let me join!" Leo energetically said. "My three skills are [Guardian Shield], [Shield Bash], and [Shield Mastery]. My [Guardian Shield] allowed me to nullify a single attack no matter how big or small. [Shield Bash] is a skill that will stun the enemy if it lands. Lastly, [Shield Mastery] gives me the ability to wield a shield twice my weight. Hahaha, all my skill relies on my shield, so if I somewhat lose it during a fight, I will practically become useless.

That's good to know, at least now we can avoid an accident if Leo loses his shield.

"M-my three skills are [Regeneration], [Entangled], and [Plant Resonance]. [Regeneration] allows me to fasten the healing process of the wound. [Entangled] provides me the skill to summon roots and use them to trap my enemy. [Wood Resonance] is a passive skill that helps me replenish my stamina as long as I have wood in my possession.

Loki tilted his head. "Didn't you say that you can hear the voices of plants? Is that related to any of your skills?"

Pandora shook her head. She didn't answer immediately and seemed hesitant to do so.

"You don't have to tell us if you can't; we understand," Leo comforted.

Loki nodded. "That's right, you have already told us your skills; I think that's enough."

Loki felt like he was being hypocritical, as he had a lot of skills he didn't mention. In any case, he promised Father Laryatt to keep it to himself, and he had no plan of breaking it.

Pandora appeared calmer after listening to the two kids' words. "T-thank you."

"Now that we know more about each other, I think I can properly create a strategy if ever we encounter a Level 1 kobold," Loki muttered.

"So, what should we do now? Should we move to another place to look for Azure Flowers?" Leo asked.

"That's probably the best action we can take right now. Let's go to the east side this time; it's better to distance ourselves from those hoodlums."

With that, the three kids began moving to the east, hoping to find better luck in their journey.

After walking for an hour, Pandora stopped the group. "T-there's a kobold nearby."

"What?! Where?" Leo did his battle position, holding his shield and raising his mace.

"I-it was a minute's walk to the north."

"Let's see," Loki said.

The three kids crept toward where Pandora pointed. And there, they did see a kobold holding a dagger in its right hand.

Loki instantly noticed the number 1 on its head.

"It's Level 1, a perfect target." Loki smiled and turned to Pandora. "Does it have a group?"

Pandora shook her head. "I-I don't think so."

"Let's do this. I will go first and distract the wolf. When it turns around, Leo will use his [Shield Bash] to stun it. Then we will barrage it with attacks, and upon the kobold's recovery, Pandora will use her [Entangled] to seize its movement. If the kobold still survives that, we will retreat and wait for our skill to cooldown, and we will repeat the same combo. Do you guys get it?"

Leo and Pandora nodded.

"Here I go."

Loki launched himself from the tree and ran towards the kobold.

The kobold immediately noticed Loki's presence as it growled at him.

When Loki reached the wolf, the kobold used its dagger to stab him. He didn't react and waited. When the point of the blade was just a few inches away from his face, he used [Evading Blink] to dodge it.

His vision became disoriented for a second. First, he was in front of the kobold, and next, he was behind it. With quick thinking, Loki used [Back Stab] to attack the wolf. However, the wolf turned around and utilized its dagger to block.

A clash of metal reverberated through the wind.

Even though his attack failed, Loki wasn't concerned, because it was part of the plan. He was only a distraction. The moment the kobold turned around, Leo charged instantly.

The wolf realized that there was an enemy behind it, but Loki didn't let it escape or face Leo. He rained on the beast with slashes, leaving it no room to breathe.

"Shield Bash!" Leo screamed.

Loki jumped back, not wanting the wolf to hit him when Leo's shield pushed it.

The moment the kobold became stunned, Leo and Loki simultaneously attacked it.

Of course, Loki didn't let the opportunity be wasted and inflicted the wolf with Bleeding.

The battle went exactly as Loki had planned. When the kobold regained its senses, roots sprouted from the ground and slowly crawled to its body, halting its movement.

Loki smiled; he didn't expect it to go exactly as he imagined.