NOVEL NEXT Chapter 74: Second
The forest sank back into silence, broken only by the rasp of Lanz's breathing.
For quite some time, it almost felt like everything had stilled, but then the scarred wolf finally made its move.
The scarred wolf's body shifted out of the shadows, heavy paws pressing into the soil with forceful steps, and the growl that crawled from its throat carried through the trees in a low vibration that pressed against his chest.
The second wolf wasn't rushing either, he learned to not do that in this fight.
Instead, it circled carefully to his left, keeping enough distance to wait for the opening it wanted.
Their movements weren't wild anymore, weren't the blind charges of beasts too consumed by their instincts.
They were working him together, tightening the noose one step at a time, and every breath he drew only made it clearer that they were measuring him down to the most minute beat.
Lanz's body felt heavier than before, every muscle stiff from the repeated bursts of mana and the strain of their weight against his guard, but nothing he couldn't still carry.
He forced another breath through his chest, tightened his grip on the blade, and made his call.
[Phantom Stride — Activated.]
But the scarred wolf didn't wait.
It immediately lunged with the full commitment of its weight, its body whipping forward, jaws stretched wide enough that half a torso could vanish between its teeth if the strike landed.
The pressure of its rush slammed against the air, a force that demanded he move or die.
Lanz's body blurred sideways, his boots grinding against the soil as the strain of another stride burned down his legs.
His lungs screamed from the pull, but he ignored the pain, already twisting his shoulders into the counter.
[Crimson Slash — Activated.]
His sword cut up into the opening, the fragment burning with the crimson flare as the call ignited through his arm.
The blade tore into the scarred wolf's ribs, the glowing arc ripping a long, deep wound across its side.
Blood scattered in hot streaks across the roots, dripping in violent sprays that marked the strike clean.
But even with the blow carved into it, the beast didn't collapse.
It twisted midair, body contorting in a vicious roll, and when it crashed against the ground, its claws were already coming back around in a brutal sweep.
The strike connected against his guard.
The sound rang out hard, and the force jolted his body so violently that pain shot straight through his arms, rattling bone and muscle with an impact that threatened to tear the sword from his grip.
His feet dug in, boots dragging trenches into the dirt as his body slid backwards under the weight of the blow.
The shock rattled through his helmet, his skull pounding from the impact.
He spat inside the visor, shook his head against the sting, and snarled through his teeth. "F*cking b*tch, that sh*t actually hurts."
The second wolf saw the gap instantly and lunged, body snapping forward in a blur of muscle and pale fur, claws tearing straight for the space he had left open.
It wasn't hesitant nor was it cautious — it was pure speed and pressure, a strike meant to carve him down before he could reset.
But Lanz forced his legs to answer.
His calves burned from the strain, but he didn't care.
[Phantom Stride — Activated.]
His form blurred out of reach once again, vanishing from the wolf's line of attack, and the beast's claws raked across the trunk of a tree instead, shredding bark and scattering wood in sharp cracks behind him.
By the time the wolf's momentum carried through the failed strike, Lanz had already reappeared, spinning mid-stride with his blade raised.
The fragment cut into its back in one heavy arc, tearing across flesh and ripping another cry out of the beast.
Blood trailed behind the blade's path, the wound clean but not deep enough to finish it.
The wolf staggered, snarling through its pain, and snapped back toward him with even more fury burning in its eyes.
Now both wolves stood bleeding, their snowy coats stained in violent streaks of red, bodies shifting around him in tense circles.
Their steps pressed low and heavy against the dirt, their growls filling the silence of the forest, and the pressure in the air tightened as they closed in from either side.
His chest rose and fell sharply, every breath dragging heat through his lungs until the air tasted raw.
Sweat clung to his skin under the all-black gear, sticking against the inside of the armor as the fight dragged on, but his stance didn't falter just yet.
His knees bent, his weight centered, and his grip refused to loosen around the fragment.
His arm trembled with every strike he had thrown, but he steadied it, jaw tightening beneath the helmet.
He wasn't about to let two overgrown dogs dictate the pace of this fight, and he sure as hell wasn't going to let them push him back step by step until he broke.
He drew in one long, heavy breath, his grin crooked even with the sting in his ribs.
His voice cut through the growls with a low drawl, mocking in tone even though his lungs burned.
"Alright," he said, almost casual, though his body screamed with strain. "Let's finish this ordeal fast, I still have boars to kill."
The scarred wolf didn't waste a breath this time.
Its muscles bunched, and it lunged with everything behind the strike, jaws snapping forward with brutality along with its partner.
Both came at him together, one from the front and one from the side, claws and teeth tearing through the darkness with enough pressure to rip him apart if he faltered for a second. Hell, maybe even a half a second.
But Lanz moved into the chaos, weaving through the violence with his body coiled tight.
His blade cut arcs through the moonlight, steel dragging flashing lights in quick bursts as he forced space between them.
Every clash shook through his arms, every block grinding his boots deeper into the dirt, but he kept pushing, never giving either of them the clean strike they wanted.
The weaker wolf overextended, its hunger outpacing its control, and that was the mistake it didn't recover from.
Lanz snapped forward, his shoulders twisting with the motion, and the blade carved through the air in one mean swing.
[Crimson Slash — Activated.]
His blade ignited along the edge, the glow trailing behind the fragment as it tore straight into flesh.
The cut ripped through its neck in a violent line, severing bone and sinew in one motion.
Blood burst across the roots as the wolf's body jerked, collapsing before its claws even hit the ground.
Its frame crashed hard against the soil, lifeless weight dragging the forest floor into silence for a heartbeat.
[EXP +15]
The system's cold notification chimed at the edge of his vision, but he didn't need it to tell him what had just happened.
His chest heaved with the weight of the exchange, air flowing swiftly into his lungs, but the grin still crept across his face under the helmet.
His eyes stayed locked on the scarred wolf, the last one standing, its growl cutting through the area louder than before now that all of its pack mates — the white wolf's only family really — was broken down to him and his alpha.
"Guess that makes you next," Lanz muttered, voice low, carrying the sarcasm of someone already convinced the fight was his.
He barely had time to breathe before the scarred wolf hurled itself at him again, its body a storm of muscle and fury that didn't give him a second to steady his lungs.
The weight slammed him into the trunk behind, bark exploding against his drip, wood cracking from the force.
"Motherf*cker, that hurts," he hissed, blood dripping out of his helmet.
The scarred wolf didn't back down.
If anything, its stance dropped lower, its muscles coiling tighter, and the blood dripping down its ribs only made its fury burn hotter.
It didn't matter.
Lanz got up, steadied his blade, boots pressing deeper into the soil, and lifted his guard with both hands ready.
Two wolves down. One left to go.
And he was NOT planning to drag this out.... or at least, hopefully.
End of Chapter 74.
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ALT SYSTEM — USER PROFILE: ZERO
Level: 16
EXP: 3 / 160
Next Reward:
Global System Tracking: DISABLED
World Rank Association: UNLINKED
Stats:
STR: 20 | AGI: 10 (Affinity) | VIT: 5 | DEX: 5 | INT: 17 | WIS: 5
[Available Stat Points: 3]
[Derived Stat — MANA: 90 / 90]
Skills:
[Quick Sever Lv. 1] (NEW)
[Crimson Slash Lv. 1]
[Phantom Stride Lv. 2]
[Instinctive Blade Lv.1]
[Predictive Guard Lv.1]
[Skill Fusion Menu: Active]
[Dev Tree: Tier 0 Access Granted]
[Developer Node – Fusion Core Anchor: Active]
[Skill Slot Available] (USED)
Equipment:
Aged Blade Fragment (??? Rarity) (Bound)
Training Ring (+1 VIT)
Bag :)
Ring of Genorya - ???