Chương 127: Chapter 123. Hunting wolves

A city guard looked Rayne over for the third time as Bran passed over their quest papers to his partner. It was still early morning, the air carrying a light chill that hadn't yet burned away with the rising sun. They stood near the northern gates of Haven City with Heins and Kesh right behind him, both still half-asleep and yawning without restraint. Rayne shifted his weight slightly, adjusting the strap of his shield as he waited.

He could only hope the cold air and the march ahead would wake them up properly before they reached the forest. Fighting lycans with dulled senses was something that would only put them and the rest in more danger.

"The papers are legit," the guard finally said after looking through the papers for longer than necessary. At once, the tension in his partner's stance eased, but the first guard did not step aside immediately. Instead, he looked at all of them, his gaze lingering on each face as if memorizing them.

"But I don't understand why you all are going out looking for trouble," he added.

"I heard there was enough of that in the dungeons already." Nate let out a small grunt, his eyes briefly shifting toward Rayne before answering, "Just some practice. We want to test out some skills against monsters." The guard's expression didn't improve. If anything, it hardened further. He glanced down at the papers once more, then back at them, as if confirming what he had read.

"And you chose lycans?" he said, disbelief clear in his tone.

"No wonder my old man used to say soldiers die young." Rayne kept quiet at the words, simply stepping forward and taking the papers back before giving a short nod of thanks as the guards moved aside to open a smaller gate to the side of the bigger one. The wooden gate creaked slightly as it opened, revealing the dirt road stretching outward toward the distant tree line. Rayne was the first to step through.

The others followed soon after, boots crunching lightly against the packed earth as they moved away from the safety of the city walls. As they walked, he could feel the weight of gazes from above, guards stationed along the walls watching them leave. He didn't need to turn back to know what they were thinking. A group of soldiers walking out to hunt lycans was not something that would go unnoticed. By the time night came, it would probably be another piece of gossip talked about in taverns.

Guards and soldiers were anyway mingling a lot from what he knew. He exhaled slowly, letting the thought pass. It didn't matter. What mattered was them finishing the quest, and returning safely. And most importantly, him getting the new skill. The dirt path stretched forward, cutting through patches of dry grass before eventually disappearing into the forest in the distance.

It would probably take an hour or two of march to enter it, and then everything would be in Bran's hands on how fast he could find the lycan's nest. But just as thought that, Heins broke the silence.

"Do you all think we shouldn't just go back?" he said, his voice carrying a hint of unease.

"That guard looked at me like I was already dead." Rayne slowed his steps slightly before turning his head back toward him.

"I didn't force you to be here, Heins," he said calmly.

"This isn't an official quest from the captain. You can turn back whenever you want." Heins shrank a little under the words, his shoulders dropping a little.

"But you convinced us," he replied after a second.

"All that talk about status potential and breaking through…" Jason let out a short laugh, and rubbed his hands together as he walked, a faint grin forming on his face.

"Yeah, I didn't understand half of what you said, but if Bran thinks there's something to it, then I'm not sitting this one out." He glanced ahead, toward the forest.

"I rather get past the first wall than drink myself to sleep."

"Yeah, don't worry, Heins," Nate added a moment later, a grin spreading on his face.

"I'll be right ahead of you. Nothing's going to happen." Heins frowned even more at that.

"That… actually isn't reassuring," he muttered. Kesh let out a laugh at his reaction, shaking his head as he walked. Nate simply snorted in response.

"You really don't know how to appreciate generosity," he said, his tone light. The tension that had been hanging over them eased after that, replaced by small bits of banter as they continued down the road. It wasn't loud or exaggerated, but it was enough to keep their minds off what lay ahead. Rayne listened quietly, his gaze fixed on the path in front of them, and felt extremely glad that Nate had agreed to come. Even if no one said it outright, he knew that each of them still carried doubts.

Lycans were not something soldiers casually went out to hunt, and they knew things could turn ugly at any moment. Still, they had come. After he had spoken about his theory on breaking past the first wall, Nate had been the first to show real interest in going to hunt the lycans to test his theory out. Jason and Bran had followed soon after. Out of all of them, the veteran had believed in his theory the most.

Once Bran agreed, Kesh and Heins had also fallen in line, likely not wanting to be left behind while the others took a risk that could push them forward. Only Quinn had stayed back, choosing the safer option. According to him, he wasn't anywhere close to hitting the first wall, and there was no point risking his life for something far away. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Rayne didn't blame him since he wasn't much of a fighter, and they already had a scout in Bran. Once everyone had agreed, even after he had asked them thrice to be sure, he had moved to consult Casper on lycans. As he had expected, the mage had argued against the idea the moment he brought it up. Taking on a lycan quest just days before the truthsayer trial was, in her words, unnecessary risk piled over an already unstable situation.

She had not raised her voice, but there had been a clear firmness in her tone that told him she genuinely believed it was a bad decision. Rayne had not disagreed with her completely. The risk was there, and he knew it better than anyone. Still, he had managed to convince her in the end, explaining his reasoning of wanting to test his new mana skills, no matter how flawed it seemed. It had taken time, more than he would have liked, but she had relented. She had even offered to come along.

That part had caught him off guard for a moment, but he had refused. Not outright, and not in a way that would offend her, but firmly enough that she understood his stance. He had assured her that they would be fine, especially with the new mana skills he had gained. It wasn't as if he didn't want her with his party, but if Casper came along, there would be an even smaller chance of him getting a skill from the lycans. That wasn't something he could afford.

In the end, he had simply bought a few offensive potions from her instead. The gold he had accumulated was enough for it, and she had easily agreed since she could get more in the capital, handing them over while continuing to explain what she knew about lycans. She had spoken about their anatomy and habits, their pack tactics, and most importantly, their tendency to rely on instinct during a frenzy. That had been enough for Rayne to piece together a plan.

Once he was done with Casper, he had explained it to the others, and to his surprise, none of them had objected. If anything, they had agreed quickly. Now, as they continued walking toward the forest, all he could do was hope that the lycans, especially the alpha, would be reckless enough to fall for the trap they would set. As the thought lingered, Bran, who was walking beside him, spoke.

"I never asked you," the veteran said, his voice calm.

"How did you come up with that theory on status potential?" Rayne turned his head slightly, meeting his curious gaze and mulling on the reasons. Honestly, he always had some idea of it, but getting the Charisma stat had solidified the fact that the status had more than what it showed. Fredrick's case had proven it even more.

"Honestly, it's hard to explain," he said finally.

"It didn't come all at once. It was bits and pieces during the Pascar Plains campaign." He looked ahead again as he continued.

"Every time I fought something stronger, like the trolls, or even Marcus, I felt myself changing in a good way." He paused briefly, trying to find the right words.

"It was like something was easing, like a pressure I didn't even know was there being removed. It wasn't obvious at first, but after a while, it started to feel like I was breaking through invisible limits." He let out a small breath before adding.

"When I first arrived at Fort Algar, I was scared of fighting even a goblin. Now…" A faint smile appeared on his face.

"Now I can look a troll in the face and tell it how ugly it is." Bran let out a short chuckle at that, nodding slightly.

"Makes sense," he said.

"To break the first wall, you have to push past your limits. Not just your body, but your mind until the gods deem you worthy enough." He glanced ahead toward the forest, his expression settling back into something more serious.

"In fact," he added, "I'd say the mental barrier is the more important one to break." Hearing that, he almost asked Bran if he had been stuck at the first wall for so long because of such a case, but the thought stopped before it could leave his lips. It felt too intrusive for something the old man had not brought up himself. Instead, he simply nodded at his words and continued walking beside him, letting the conversation fade naturally.

The hours passed like that, filled with light banter from Jason and Nate, the occasional dry remark from Kesh, and Heins speaking from time to time. They took short breaks in between, no more than five minutes each time, just enough to drink water and let their legs rest before continuing forward. Eventually, the dirt road gave way to dense trees, and they stepped into the forest. With Haven City sitting at the edge of the Pascar Plains, the forest was not unfamiliar to Rayne.

The trees, the undergrowth, even the faint smell of damp soil in the air felt similar to what he had already experienced before. Still, the moment they entered, the group became alert. Bran moved ahead immediately, taking on his role as their scout without needing to be told. According to the guild, the lycans lived deep within the forest, making their nest inside an underground cave. It was the worst possible place to fight them.

Not only could they see in the dark, but they also structured their nests in ways that allowed them to overwhelm intruders within seconds. Rayne had no intention of fighting them there. He could see in the dark, but the rest of his party couldn't. If they were forced into such a space, it would only turn into chaos. If possible, he wanted to draw them out and fight them in the open. But before he could do that, they had to take care of creatures that saw them as easy meat.

About half an hour into their walk, a group of creatures dropped down from the trees without warning straight at them. They were small, barely reaching the height of a child, with thin limbs, dark grey skin, and elongated fingers that ended in sharp claws with their forms flickering at the edges and mixing with the green undergrowth. They were called shade imps, one of the common monster groups in the forest with their skills revolving around illusion.

Hence, even Bran didn't see them until they revealed themselves. But stealth was all they had. A single clean strike was enough to cut them down. Their bodies offered little resistance, and their coordination fell apart the moment their initial attacks failed to even land a proper mark as his party already had their shields out. In less than two minutes, all ten of them lay dead on the forest floor, and his party moved on without stopping.

Not long after, three green goblins attempted to ambush them from a distance, raising crude blowpipes to fire poisoned darts. This time, Bran spotted them before they could act. Three arrows flew in quick succession, and found their mark. The goblins dropped before anyone else even had to move. Encounters like that continued as they went deeper. Small groups of weak monsters tried their luck, relying on surprise or numbers, but none of them lasted long enough to pose a real threat.

Then, slowly, the attacks stopped, and the forest grew quieter. Rayne noticed it almost immediately. They had crossed into a different area now, one claimed by stronger creatures. Their pace slowed as vigilance took over. It wasn't long before Bran returned from ahead, his expression grim.

"I found the lycans," he said at once.

"Their footprints lead to a cave. A little to the left from here." Rayne let out a slow breath hearing that and paused, turning back toward the others, meeting their eyes one by one. Then, he spoke.

"It's time to set up the trap."

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