Forest of Sector Eight fell quiet again once the wolves melted back into the shadows.
Tall grass sighed in the breeze, and somewhere overhead a few unfamiliar birds let out sharp, lonely calls that echoed between the trees. To someone who didn't know any better, the place might have looked almost peaceful—soft light filtering through the canopy, leaves drifting down like lazy snowflakes. But the newly awakened hunters weren't fooled. They'd just stared death in the yellow eyes and felt its breath on their necks.
Rei wiped sweat from his forehead and let out a shaky laugh. "That… that was intense."
Aaron nodded, but his mind was already elsewhere.
He pulled up the system panel in the quiet of his thoughts.
Player: Aaron Emegrey
Class: Laborer
Rank: E
Level: 3
Experience: 150 / 800
[Attributes]
Strength: 17
Agility: 28
Constitution: 18
Spirit: 9
Free Attribute Points: 2
A faint golden shimmer crossed the interface.
[Level Up!]
[Level 4 reached]
One fight. Zero effort on his part. And he'd already climbed a level. The number still felt unreal, like something out of a dream he wasn't supposed to be having. He closed the panel before the smile could reach his face.
Seo Dojin crouched beside the dead wolf, running a gloved hand over its grey fur. "These bastards never hunt alone for long," he said, voice low and rough. "You see three, bet there's five more watching from the trees. Lucky for us they decided we weren't worth the trouble."
A couple of the students shifted uneasily, eyes darting toward the undergrowth like the pack might change its mind any second.
Seo Dojin stood, brushing dirt from his knees. "Relax. We're not poking around their den today. Push in a little deeper, find something on its own. Stay tight, stay sharp. No heroes."
The group started moving again.
The path narrowed under the thick canopy, sunlight breaking through in scattered golden patches that danced across the forest floor. Leaves crunched softly under boots, and the air grew heavier—damp earth, pine sap, and that faint metallic tang that always seemed to linger where monsters had passed. Every snapped twig made someone flinch.
Rei stuck close to Aaron, almost shoulder to shoulder. "You see how Luna handled that wolf?" he whispered, voice full of awe. "The frost just… spread across the wound like it was alive. That's a class skill, no question. B-rank stuff is on a whole different level."
Aaron glanced ahead. Luna walked a few paces in front, sword still drawn, her posture straight and alert. Her long black hair swayed with each careful step, but her shoulders never loosened. She scanned the trees like she expected the forest itself to bite.
"Yeah," Aaron said quietly. "She's good."
They'd only gone another fifteen minutes when Seo Dojin suddenly threw up a fist.
"Hold."
The line stopped cold.
The veteran hunter pointed through a gap in the trees toward a small clearing ahead. A massive shape was rooting around near a fallen trunk, tusks gouging the dirt.
"Ironhide Boar," Seo Dojin muttered. "Level three. Big bastard too."
The creature was enormous—easily twice the size of any normal boar—with thick, dark armored plates covering its back like natural iron. It snorted loudly, shaking its head, completely unaware of them for now.
Seo Dojin looked back at the group. "Same drill. Three volunteers. Don't get cocky—this one hits like a freight train."
This time the hesitation was shorter. The spear user stepped up right away. The fire mage from the wolf fight joined him. Luna moved forward without a word, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Careful," Seo Dojin warned. "These things charge straight and they don't stop. Stay out of the straight line."
The three of them crept closer.
The boar lifted its head, ears twitching. Then it let out a deep, rumbling snort and charged.
The ground trembled under its weight.
The spear user braced hard. The fire mage hurled a burst of flame that scorched the boar's shoulder and slowed it just enough. Luna slipped sideways, waiting for the perfect moment.
The spear scraped off the thick hide with a metallic clang. The boar roared and spun fast, nearly goring the spear user. He rolled clear at the last second, dirt spraying everywhere.
Luna struck.
Her sword cut a clean, beautiful arc across the boar's neck. Frost bloomed over the wound like cracks racing across ice. The monster staggered, legs buckling, then slammed into the ground with a heavy thud that rattled the leaves overhead.
The clearing went still.
A few students let out relieved breaths.
Seo Dojin nodded once. "Better. Much better."
Inside Aaron's head the system chimed softly.
[Nearby monster defeated]
[Shared experience detected]
[Reward: 25 EXP]
He waited, pulse quickening.
Then the system twisted the number in that strange, almost playful way it always did.
[Reward amplification activated – random factor applied]
[Final experience gained: 2,375 EXP]
The bar shot forward like a rocket.
[Level Up!]
[Level 5 reached]
[Level Up!]
[Level 6 reached]
A warm rush flooded through Aaron's body, every muscle waking up sharper than before. He flexed his fingers without thinking and felt that new strength humming under his skin like a quiet promise.
Rei caught the tiny change in his expression. "Brother Aaron… you're smiling again. What the hell is up with you today?"
Aaron shrugged, keeping his voice easy. "Just the air out here. Smells cleaner than the city streets ever could."
Rei looked at the dead boar, the dark trees, and the students still wiping sweat from their faces. He shook his head. "You're weird, man. Seriously weird."
A few meters away, Luna cleaned the frost off her blade and sheathed it with a soft click. She glanced toward Aaron again, longer this time, eyebrows drawn together like she was trying to solve a puzzle that kept changing shape. She didn't say anything, but the look lingered a second too long.
Seo Dojin knelt by the boar and started carving out a couple of decent hide pieces. "Grab what you can, kids. Even small parts sell back at the market. Good habit to build while you're still breathing."
One of the other students muttered loud enough for half the group to hear, "Waste of time dragging an E-rank Laborer all the way out here…"
A couple kids chuckled.
Aaron heard it clear as day but didn't flinch. He just bent down, picked up a small loose tusk fragment from the ground, and slipped it into his pocket. The system gave a tiny, satisfied ping in his head—nothing major, but the piece felt a little heavier than it should have. He smiled to himself, small and private.
If things kept rolling like this, it wouldn't be long before that "trash" Laborer label started sounding pretty damn funny to everyone.
And this hunt was still barely getting warmed up.