Rabbit hunt (Part 1)

Somewhere in the outskirts of the forest…

"All five of them are dead?"

A young man around his twenties sat on a wooden throne, stationed on a human-sized boulder.

"Yes, sir! Unfortunately, your brother and his lackeys were found cut in half deep inside the forest area that we have yet to explore..."

His golden eyes shone with interest and excitement, but not a single emotion could be seen on his face. His frail body didn't suit the throne he was occupying, but none of the people surrounding him posed any objections.

"Strange. There aren't any high-level monsters here that they couldn't have handled. Send a message to the others and tell them they must be careful. There might be an enemy group camping in that area. Tell them to be on the lookout, and if they find anyone suspicious, report it to me first!"

"Yes, sir! But about your brother… Shouldn't we take revenge?"

Finally, a tiny smirk appeared on the young man's face, making the group surrounding him shiver slightly.

"Nonsense! That idiot always liked to piss people off! I'm not surprised he ended up dead. It was only a matter of time, and I can't always be there to protect him. Don't forget, our main priority here is survival and building a city where people can live and work."

"But, sir…"

The wooden throne suddenly burst into dust as the man stood up and glared at the lackey who'd spoken. The smell of manure and urine filled the air as the poor guy was so scared he lost control of his body.

"Silence! Who do you think you are, rookie? Huh? I've been here for a week. I know better than any of you how this world works. If you dare question my decisions again, I'll make sure you suffer the same fate as my idiot brother."

"Y-yes, sir! My apologies!"

"Now scram…"

"Yes! Let's go, men, we have orders from the boss!"

"AYE!"

"Interesting… I hope I get to meet those people soon. I need many strong players if I want to achieve my plans. Hehe… Rest in peace, my idiot brother. I am so happy you're out of my way! Hahaha..."

If Lee Gaon could see this person right now, she would fight him on the spot to the death.

…

"Malrang! Use your Hellfire Breath attack!"

"Woo!"

A small tree, around two meters tall, instantly turned to ashes. It had been half a day since I'd left the den with my new companion. So far, we hadn't run into any monsters, so we started practicing combo attacks in our free time to learn more about each other.

"Good job, Malrang! Your attacks are really powerful! I don't think a normal level 1 or even level 2 monster could stand a chance against you!"

"Woo!"

The fox looked overjoyed at my praise. Ever since I saved it, Malrang had become very affectionate, so much so that it kept riding on my shoulder.

Cute!

"Malrang, our goal today is to find monsters to hunt; we need to level up!"

"Woo!"

Wait… Can monsters level up as well? I never gave it much thought, but considering that they're living beings like me, it would only be natural for them to be able to increase their level.

"System help!"

-Welcome to Customer Service, Lee Gaon. How may we serve you today?-

"I wish to know if monsters in this world can level up and evolve."

-All monsters in this world are living creatures. They can level up by slaying other monsters or humans. After reaching a certain threshold, every monster is capable of evolving into a higher life form.-

Good. It seems that Malrang will be able to level up together with me.

"I also wish to know if it's possible to share experience points with monsters or other humans."

-In order to share experience points with a monster, you must first get the creature's acknowledgment. Very affectionate monsters will cast Soul Link on you themselves; you are only required to accept their offer. However, sharing experience with another human being requires forming a party. This can be done by a handshake and chanting in your mind, "Party request." If both of you agree, the party will be formed. You can host up to a ten-person party. However, experience is divided equally between party members. The more party members you have in one party, the less experience one receives.-

I'm not sure if I want to form a party with someone unless there's a monster I can't slay alone…

"Woo! Woo!"

"Hmm? What is it, Malrang?"

The fox, which had been resting on my shoulder, suddenly touched my forehead with its paw, and a brilliant light started shining where the contact was made. I felt warm and light as a feather; each second felt like an entire lifetime. I could feel its emotions and intentions, as if we'd become one being.

A sudden message popped into my mind.

-The Purple Foxterit has offered to form a Soul Link with you. Click YES to agree and NO to decline. Disclaimer: you can only form one Soul Link in your life.-

It was hard for me to trust anyone, but I felt I could trust this monster. I could feel we were very similar.

YES!

The light coming from the fox's paw grew much brighter, and I could feel the connection between us strengthening rapidly. It was an odd sensation, as if I could see through its eyes and feel Malrang's heartbeat. 

It was a connection not only through the system but also by spirit, something that would not have been possible in my old world.

Fascinating!

It lasted only an instant but felt like an eternity. As the light slowly dissipated, I saw Malrang's happy face close to mine.

Soul Link. What an amazing ability!

"Jump down, Malrang. I want to test something out."

"Woo."

The fox nodded its tiny head, jumped down to the ground, and obediently sat, wiggling its tail while looking at me with excitement.

Inspect!

-Purple Foxterit. Level 1. (60%) Mystic grade demon fox.-

-Basic Abilities: -

-Level 1 Hellfire Breath - The user can cast a high-temperature fire attack.-

-Soul Link - Link two souls together.-

-Stats:-

-Level 2 Stamina -

-Level 6 Agility-

-Level 4 Magic-

-Level 2 Defense-

-Level 1 Strength-

-Level 4 Mana (240/240)-

-Level 4 Mana Regeneration (2/s)-

-Special Stats:-

-Level 7 Body Regeneration-

-Level 2 Magic Growth-

-Level 1 Agility Growth-

No wonder it could heal overnight!

My eyes shone with admiration for this small creature.

It appears my guess was correct; I can fully see Malrang's stats and skills after Soul Link.

Having the ability to inspect my friend fully was a big relief. I can now plan our future fights and understand its strengths and weaknesses.

"What are you doing, Malrang?"

I was confused when I saw the fox looking at me, its pupils shining with a yellow light. Was it also inspecting me?

"Woo."

It shook its tiny head and jumped back onto my shoulder.

"So, Malrang, do you think we can find some monsters nearby?"

"Woo!"

The fox nodded and began sniffing the air.

Is it searching for a monster by scent?

After what felt like a minute, the fox focused its attention to my right.

"Have you found anything?"

"Woo!"

It nodded, and I got cautious as well.

"How many?"

The fox patted my shoulder four times with its paw.

"Four, huh... Let's go take a look."

"Woo!"

We traveled quickly through the thick forest until I spotted them. Four small, rabbit-like creatures were munching on tree bark.

"Rabbits? Did you bring me here just because you're hungry?"

"Woo…"

The fox shook its head and focused on the rabbits, as if prompting me to inspect them.

Inspect.

Level 3 Forest Rabbito (rare monster)

Basic Abilities:

Slash Punch

What the... those creatures are level 3? And there are four of them. I can't be reckless, or we'll both die…

I whispered to my companion. "Malrang, you go around them and wait for my signal. I'll bait all of them into one location. When they're all stacked together, jump in and use your Hellfire Breath!"

"Wee!"

"Be careful!"

The fox quickly jumped down and stealthily ran to the other side while I prepared to engage the monsters myself.

Their fur is weird; I've never seen such a pure silver color in my life.

The rabbits' fur looked like silver, but what scared me most were the size of their paws. Each of their paws looked bigger than a human foot. 

If I get hit by one of those paws, I'll be seriously injured.

As I hid behind a tree, I remembered two new skills I'd recently acquired: Soul Shackle and Darkness Steps. There hadn't been any explanation when I first saw them.

I should inspect them in the user menu before the battle.

-User Menu-

-Level 1 Soul Shackle (20 mana) – After casting, the user can bind a target for 1-5 seconds, depending on the target's soul strength. Up to six targets at a time.-

-Level 1 Darkness Steps (10 mana/step) – The user can wrap their legs in darkness energy, gaining bonus agility (5%). Each step provides 1 stack (max 5). The effect lasts until canceled or mana runs out.-

Amazing! It was a great idea to increase my mana first; now I can stack Darkness Steps up to five and keep dodging the rabbits until they're in position for Malrang to attack.

I waited patiently for the perfect chance to strike. One minute… two minutes… The rabbits remained calm, unaware of the two hunters preying on them. 

Time to move!

Stepping out of my hiding spot, I moved stealthily to attack the rabbits.

First step!

My legs, from the feet to the knee, instantly ignited in darkness flames. 

Second step!

The darkness flames grew denser, and I felt myself becoming lighter.

After five steps, I arrived in front of the rabbits. I quickly summoned my scythe, and without giving the monsters time to retaliate, I launched my kinetic slash at the two in front of me.

Clang

The sound of metal against metal rang out as sparks flew everywhere. My kinetic slash, which had injured level 2 Ratabo, was completely blocked by the rabbits' fur.

I've failed!

The rabbits quickly became aware of my presence, turning and pointing their paws at me as if to say I'd regret messing with them. Well... In a way, I did, but it was too late for regrets.

This wasn't good; I had to move fast and try to soul shackle them when they gathered in one spot.

I knew I couldn't show fear in front of them now; their demeanor screamed to me that they had at least some battle experience.

Before I could react, the first paw was already in front of my face.

So fast!

I wasted no time activating Space Distortion and dodging to the side. It took me one second to activate and deactivate the skill, saving my mana for a longer battle.