Chapter 13 — The Road to Level Twenty

Kael left the underground chamber behind.

He didn't look back.

The ancient gate had already disappeared beneath the stone.

For now, it was sealed.

Level 20.

That was the requirement.

Kael glanced at his status.

Name: Kael Darven

Age: 11

Level: 4

Rank: F-Rank — Initiate

Mana: 22/24

Strength: 11

Agility: 14

Vitality: 12

Intelligence: 14

Metal Control: 45

He had sixteen levels to gain.

At his current strength, that wasn't going to happen quickly.

And Kael had no intention of simply hunting weak monsters until he reached Level 20.

He needed to become stronger in every way.

His weapons.

His body.

His swordsmanship.

His mana control.

His Metal Control.

And most importantly—

His judgment.

The Stonefang Guardian had taught him something.

Sometimes the strongest move wasn't attacking.

It was knowing when not to fight.

A New Training Ground

Kael and the Golden-Eyed Nightfang traveled deeper into the western part of the forest.

The terrain gradually changed.

The enormous trees became slightly thinner.

Large rocky formations appeared between them.

Eventually, they reached a valley.

Kael stopped.

Below them was a huge open area filled with strange creatures.

Dozens of monsters were moving around.

The Nightfang spoke.

"This is the Ironwood Valley."

Kael looked at the monsters.

"What are they?"

"Mostly Ironhorn Boars."

Kael activated Threat Analysis.

[Ironhorn Boar]

Level: 5–8

Grade: Common

Species Potential: Elite

Trait: Iron Hide

Kael smiled.

"Perfect."

The Nightfang raised an eyebrow.

"You like fighting things that can charge through trees?"

"Not particularly."

Kael pulled out the Darven SG-01.

"I like fighting things I can actually survive."

The Nightfang laughed.

Hunting

Kael entered the valley.

The nearest Ironhorn Boar noticed him immediately.

It lowered its head.

A pair of metallic horns pointed directly at him.

Kael waited.

The boar charged.

BOOM!

The SG-01 fired.

The blast struck its chest.

The boar staggered but continued forward.

Kael moved sideways.

The creature passed him.

Kael spun around and slashed.

SLASH!

The katana cut through the weaker portion of its armor.

The boar collapsed.

[Ironhorn Boar defeated.]

[Combat experience gained.]

Kael immediately felt something.

Not strength.

Not mana.

Experience.

His movements were becoming more natural.

He didn't need to think about every action anymore.

The next boar charged.

Kael dodged.

The next one attacked from the side.

He jumped.

The SG-01 fired.

BOOM!

The creature fell.

Kael continued.

One.

Two.

Three.

Then five.

The fight became a rhythm.

Move.

Observe.

Attack.

Dodge.

Counter.

The more he fought, the more efficiently he used his energy.

By the time the tenth Ironhorn Boar fell, Kael's breathing was barely disturbed.

Then—

[Level Up!]

Kael stopped.

A familiar sensation spread through his body.

His muscles became slightly stronger.

His senses sharpened.

Mana flowed more smoothly.

[Level increased: 4 → 5]

[5 Attribute Points awarded.]

Kael opened his status.

He considered his options.

His Strength was still lower than his Agility.

His Vitality wasn't far behind.

His Intelligence was important for mana control and weapon creation.

After thinking for several seconds, he allocated:

+1 Strength

+1 Agility

+1 Vitality

+2 Intelligence

His status changed.

Strength: 12

Agility: 15

Vitality: 13

Intelligence: 16

Kael nodded.

"I'll need intelligence."

The Nightfang looked at him.

"Why?"

"Because eventually, raw strength won't be enough."

The monster smiled.

"Good."

The New Weapon

That evening, Kael returned to his temporary camp.

He opened another Darven weapon manual.

He had pistols.

A submachine gun.

An assault rifle.

A sniper rifle.

A machine gun.

A heavy weapon.

A shotgun.

But he wanted something different.

Something useful against groups.

His eyes stopped on a page.

Grenade Launcher.

Kael studied the design.

The weapon wasn't meant for precise attacks.

It was meant to control an area.

That could be extremely useful against monsters.

He began gathering materials.

Iron.

Mithril.

Magical crystal.

He also used a tiny amount of the strange black metal.

But this time, he didn't experiment with it.

He wasn't going to make the same mistake twice.

Kael worked for several hours.

His Metal Control moved the materials through the air.

He shaped them.

Joined them.

Infused them with mana.

Eventually—

A new weapon rested in his hands.

Darven GL-01

Type: Magical Grenade Launcher

Grade: Grade 4 Spirit

Quality: Good

Kael smiled.

"Another one."

The System immediately appeared.

[Weapon creation detected.]

[Basic Weapon Forging proficiency increased.]

[Basic Weapon Forging: Beginner → Intermediate.]

Kael looked at the weapon.

His arsenal was slowly becoming more versatile.

That mattered.

He didn't want to rely on a single weapon.

Something Strange

The next morning, Kael returned to the valley.

But something was different.

The Ironhorn Boars were gone.

All of them.

Kael crouched beside the ground.

There were tracks everywhere.

But the tracks weren't moving away from the valley.

They were moving toward one location.

Kael followed them.

After several minutes, he found something disturbing.

A large Ironhorn Boar was standing in the middle of a clearing.

It was injured.

But it wasn't attacking.

Behind it were several younger boars.

The adult boar stepped between Kael and them.

Kael lowered his weapon.

"You're protecting them."

The boar growled.

Kael didn't move.

He noticed something.

The creature wasn't afraid.

It wasn't behaving like a normal monster.

It was acting like a parent.

Kael slowly lowered the GL-01.

"I'm not here to kill you."

The boar continued staring.

Then something moved behind the trees.

Kael's Danger Sense activated.

[Danger detected.]

He immediately raised his weapon.

The injured boar did the same.

For a moment—

Kael and the monster stood side by side.

Then a creature emerged from the trees.

A huge black panther.

Kael recognized it.

Not the Night Crystal Panther.

This creature was different.

Its body was covered in dark scars.

Its eyes were completely white.

The System activated.

[Ashfang Predator]

Level: 16

Grade: Rare

Species Potential: Lord

Traits: Shadow Step, Blood Scent, Predator Instinct

Kael's expression changed.

"Level 16."

The Ironhorn Boar charged first.

The Ashfang disappeared.

WHOOSH.

It reappeared behind the boar.

Kael fired.

BOOM!

The creature dodged.

Kael fired again.

It vanished.

"Shadow movement."

Kael immediately switched tactics.

He activated Metal Control.

The Darven GL-01 floated beside him.

The katana came out.

He created a formation of metal fragments around himself.

The Ashfang appeared.

Kael attacked.

CLANG!

The creature blocked his katana with one claw.

The force pushed Kael backward.

He immediately used the grenade launcher.

BOOM!

The magical projectile exploded beside the creature.

The Ashfang was thrown sideways.

The Ironhorn Boar charged again.

This time, the panther was distracted.

The boar struck it.

The Ashfang stumbled.

Kael saw the opening.

He rushed forward.

SLASH!

His katana cut across the creature's shoulder.

The Ashfang roared.

Then its body blurred.

It disappeared.

Kael's eyes widened.

"Where—"

A claw struck his side.

THUD!

Kael flew backward.

He hit the ground.

Pain spread through his ribs again.

He immediately rolled away.

The Ashfang appeared above him.

Kael fired the SG-01.

BOOM!

The creature jumped away.

Kael stood.

His breathing was heavier.

The fight wasn't going well.

The Ashfang was simply too fast.

He needed another approach.

Kael looked at the surrounding terrain.

Then at the Ironhorn Boar.

Then at the trees.

An idea appeared.

He didn't need to defeat the Ashfang alone.

Kael grabbed the GL-01.

He fired toward the ground between the trees.

BOOM!

The explosion sent dirt and branches everywhere.

The Ashfang jumped away.

Straight toward the Ironhorn Boar.

The boar charged.

CRASH!

The two collided.

Kael moved.

He didn't attack the Ashfang.

Instead, he grabbed the injured boar's younger offspring and pulled them away from the battlefield.

The adult boar stared at him.

Kael shouted:

"GO!"

The boar hesitated.

Then it understood.

It turned and ran with the younger boars.

The Ashfang noticed.

It tried to pursue them.

Kael blocked its path.

The creature stared at him.

Kael raised the katana.

"You're not getting them."

The Ashfang growled.

For several seconds, they stared at one another.

Then—

The creature turned.

It disappeared into the trees.

Kael remained still.

He didn't chase.

The Nightfang appeared behind him.

"You let it escape."

Kael lowered his sword.

"It wasn't my fight."

The Nightfang smiled.

"You're learning."

Kael checked his status.

The battle had given him considerable experience.

But no level-up.

Not yet.

He wasn't disappointed.

He had learned something more valuable.

Not every victory required a dead enemy.

Sometimes—

protecting something was enough.

Kael looked toward the direction the boars had escaped.

Then he noticed something lying on the ground.

A small black crystal.

The Ashfang had dropped it.

Kael picked it up.

The crystal immediately reacted to the Darven mark on his hand.

[Unknown material detected.]

Kael's expression hardened.

Again.

The same strange reaction.

But this time, a second message appeared.

[Connection established.]

Kael froze.

[Hidden inheritance fragment detected.]

[Progress: 2%]

He stared at the number.

"Two percent?"

The Nightfang's expression changed.

For the first time, it looked genuinely worried.

Kael slowly looked at it.

"What?"

The Nightfang didn't answer.

Kael's eyes narrowed.

"You know what that means."

The monster looked toward the deepest part of the forest.

"I know what it means when the inheritance starts moving."

Kael waited.

The Nightfang finally spoke.

"It means something else has started moving too."

Far away—

Deep beneath the Dark Forest—

One of the ancient chains snapped.

CLANG.

The sound echoed through the underground darkness.

Then silence.

A voice whispered:

"The heir has reached two percent."

Another voice answered:

"Then begin the second stage."

Above ground, Kael continued staring at the strange crystal.

He had no idea what the second stage was.

But he knew one thing.

Whatever was happening—

It had already begun.