Chương 6: The Forest of Death

By then, Luke had given up on joining the official Tutorial that year. He didn't know the exact cutoff before the System closed the portal, but he guessed it was somewhere between two weeks and a month. That was usually enough time for someone to level up and make it out. Now, though, none of that mattered. The Tutorial was gone. The portal was gone. And if Luke didn't find a way out soon, he would be gone too. Over the past few days, he had explored every open part of the cave.

The place was roughly circular, but only half of it was exposed. The other half was swallowed by a dense forest so dark it didn't look natural. It began like a wall at the cave's midpoint, cutting the floor in half. Luke had never gone in there. Not once. And the monsters didn't go near it either. That told him everything he needed to know. The boss was inside.

He opened the System interface again and scrolled through the notifications until he found the message about the sealed doors at the northern edge of the cave. [Notice]: This is the final floor of the Dungeon and houses the Forgotten Temple. These doors can only be opened from the inside if you possess the Statue Key, currently guarded by a Boss. There was something in that message. Luke read it again carefully. Just like the statue's words, the System played games with language.

It gave hints without giving answers. And there it was. The first clue. He didn't need to kill the boss. He only needed the key. Which meant there was a way out. A stupid one, probably suicidal, but a way. Level as much as he could. Enter the forest. Steal the key. Run. His eyes drifted to the old leather bag left behind by the dungeon's last occupant.

"You cleared the whole floor before going in there, didn't you?" he murmured.

"To level up. To have some kind of chance…" Luke could picture it with uncomfortable clarity. Someone like him, trying to get stronger before the final confrontation. Someone who had come up with the exact same idea. Someone who had probably felt clever for about five minutes. Someone who had packed a bag, made a plan, and walked into the dark. And died for it. Now, staring at the silent trees under the violet glow of the crystals, Luke was about to repeat the same madness. He could take the slow path.

Kill one monster a week, stretch out his life, delay the inevitable. But that was all it would be: delaying death. Eventually the monsters would run out, and after that would come hunger, weakness, and a miserable end. Or he could gamble everything. Slaughter every remaining creature, climb as high as he could, and face whatever was waiting head-on. Luke looked at the forest one more time, then at the bag on the table. He remembered the statue. That solemn voice." Death awaits you on both paths.."

The only question was whether it came fast or slow. Luke snapped his holster shut, grabbed the bag, and turned toward the darkness. It was decided. He would take the fast path and meet death head-on. One week. That was how long Luke had survived after deciding to confront the boss. Seven days of hunger, knives, blood, and bad decisions. Long enough to regret it. Not long enough to stop. Now arrows sliced through the air as he ran.

"Shit!" he snarled, weaving between the trees. Three kobolds were right on his heels, riding giant rats. And because the universe apparently hated him, they could shoot. Arrows hissed past, tearing bark from trunks and snapping branches all around him. Luke wasn't retreating. He was leading them in circles. He climbed over fallen logs, leapt from branch to branch, and changed direction before his enemies could adjust their aim. And it wasn't just in his head anymore. He was faster now.

Not "training paid off" faster. System faster. He felt every shift of his weight, judged each branch under his fingers, and knew in a split second whether it would hold. His mind was faster too. His memory sharper. He could recall the smell of moss, the taste of blood, every moment of the last few days with almost painful clarity. More arrows came. Luke dropped between them and rolled the moment he hit the ground. In the same motion, he threw a knife. The blade split in midair.

One kobold went down, its throat pierced clean through. Before Luke could move, one of the rats charged and slammed into him. He crashed against a tree. Pain exploded through his back, then his shoulders. The creature sank its teeth into him hard. Luke screamed. His body panicked. His mind didn't. He punched the rat in the snout. The creature stumbled back. His shoulder bled, but his focus stayed ice-cold. He threw another knife. Dead on. The second kobold collapsed with a choked sound.

[You have slain Cave Kobold - Lvl 4] There was no time to rest. Luke took off again, dodging more arrows between the trees. Two kobolds. Three rats. He burst through a bush, slid across the damp ground, knocked an arrow aside with his blade, and threw another. Right on target. The knife buried itself in the kobold's eye. The creature shrieked and fell backward. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Luke spun and grabbed a fallen blade. Then he moved. Fast.

The last kobold barely had time to react before Luke drove the knife deep into its neck. Clean. Silent. [Your class [Assassin] has reached Level 4!] (+2 Agility, +1 Strength, +1 Vitality, +1 Perception, +1 Free Point.) The moment he leveled up, the world sharpened. Luke felt the change before he understood it. His body moved first. Thought came second. Strength surged through his limbs, his reflexes sharpened, and his balance adjusted on instinct. One of the rats lunged.

Luke twisted in the air and kicked the creature square in the snout. The impact drove it back, stunned. Three rats left. Nearby, the kobold that had fallen was groaning in pain, half-conscious. A second rat leapt at him with a growl. Luke rolled aside, drew four blades, and threw them in one smooth motion. Halfway to their target, each one flashed with [Twin Blade] and split. Eight knives flew. The knives punched into the creature from every angle, and it collapsed mid-attack.

[You have slain Cave Rat - Lvl 4] The next rat came right after. Luke threw a knife straight into its face. The rat squealed. Without stopping, Luke sprinted forward, grabbed a branch with both hands, swung himself up and forward, and slammed a brutal flying kick into the creature. The impact drove the embedded blade deeper into its skull. [You have slain Cave Rat - Lvl 4] The last rat didn't wait. Its tail lashed toward him. But Luke wasn't the same weak kid who had fallen into this place anymore.

He caught the tail in midair, spun with explosive force, and hurled the monster into a tree. The creature hit hard and howled in pain. Before it could recover, Luke was already on top of it. One motion. Knife to the throat. Smooth. Precise. Final. [You have slain Cave Rat - Lvl 4] The kobold staggered to its feet, limping, two knives clenched in its hands. Luke didn't wait for it to find its balance. He moved first. The first knife buried itself in the creature's foot. The second pierced its shin.

The third struck its arm. The kobold lost its balance and fell. Luke surged forward, kicked the monster in the face, and dropped onto it without hesitation, driving his blade into its neck. [You have slain Cave Kobold - Lvl 4] [You've reached Level 2! Human (Rank F)] (+1 bonus point to all attributes, +1 free point gained) Luke leaned against a tree and took a deep breath. But he wasn't tired. His body had been restored. Cuts, bruises, muscle strain, all of it was gone.

The full regeneration triggered by his racial level-up had wiped away every injury. That had always been his greatest fear in this place: getting hurt. A broken leg down here wasn't an injury. It was a countdown. That was why Luke never hesitated in combat. Hesitate, and you die. He climbed the nearest tree and settled onto a thick branch. This was the boss's territory. A few creatures wandered through it, but rarely. For days, he hadn't found any. A damp breeze moved through the leaves.

Luke looked down at himself. His shirt was in shreds, his pants were torn to the knees, and the sole of one shoe was half coming off. He had tied it in place with a cord made from plant fibers. He looked like a walking pile of rags. He ignored the sorry state of his gear and opened the System interface.

Name: Luke Level: 2 Race: Human Rank: F Class: Assassin (Lvl 4) Profession: – Titles: – Health Points (HP): 170/170 Mana Points (MP): 100/100 Stamina: 90/90 Stats: Strength: 14 Agility: 21 Endurance: 9 Vitality: 17 Perception: 15 Intelligence: 10 Free Points: 2 Class Skills: [Basic Blade Handling (Common)], [Knife Throwing (Common)], [Twin Blade (Common)] Race Skills: [Identify (Common)]"Looks like… nothing. Again." Great. The System was stingy now. No race skill. No new class skill.

"So skills are getting rarer now," he thought, staring at the tree in front of him. I need more skills. Something like the one that splits the blades… Luke let out a sigh. Without overthinking it, he spent his last two points: one in Vitality, one in Intelligence. Updated Stats: Strength: 14 Agility: 21 Endurance: 9 Vitality: 17 -> 18 Perception: 15 Intelligence: 10 -> 11 Free Points: 2 -> 0 [Health Points (HP): 170/170 -> 180/180] [Mana Points (MP): 100/100 -> 110/110] Luke gave himself a small nod.

That's two more knives I can create. Or three extra uses of [Twin Blade]. And ten HP might be the difference between dying in one hit and not dying at all. He knew that, as an assassin, he should be prioritizing Agility and Perception. But here? In this place? Surviving mattered more than some perfect build. Min-maxing was cute when you weren't starving in a murder forest. More health meant more room to screw up and not immediately die. Luke climbed down from the tree.

He had been wandering the boss's territory for four days without food or water. Since leaving the gazebo, he hadn't managed to light a fire. The only reliable flames were the enchanted torches back there. Even if he tried making one by hand, the ground was too damp. Worse, fire would draw attention. The lake beneath the waterfall was his only source of clean water, but it was too far away now. Fortunately, his racial level-up had fully restored his body, hunger and thirst included.

That alone had bought him a few extra days of survival. But Luke knew he couldn't rely on it forever. He was alone. And the deeper he went into that place, the quieter the world became. Then a glow flickered through the trees ahead. Luke stopped. It wasn't the cold violet light of the crystals above the cave. This was different. Warmer. Flickering. Fire. In the same instant, he crouched, two knives in his hands. He moved silently, step by step, until he began crawling across the damp forest floor.

Tension coiled in his chest like a knot. With every meter, his heart beat harder. With every second, his body screamed at him to turn back. But Luke kept moving, brushing aside low branches and sliding beneath hanging leaves. Then he saw it. A golden-orange flame burned at the center of the clearing. Fire. Real fire. Not crystal light or enchanted torches. Flame, heat, life. Luke's eyes widened. His body locked up. He had found the boss's domain. He swallowed hard.

The clearing looked like something out of a ritual nightmare, but that wasn't what turned his blood cold. His eyes fixed on the creature at the center of it all. Whatever it was, it wasn't just another dungeon monster. The rats had been animals. The kobolds had been enemies. This felt like a mistake the world had made on purpose. Every bit of air left his lungs. Frozen. Breathless. Thoughtless. Only one thought echoed through his mind. Not a boss. Not a monster. A demon.