Chapter 30 — The Lord of the Green Territory

Kael did not enter the deeper forest.

Not yet.

After the encounter with the Verdant Serpent, he understood something important.

The Legendary Beasts were not his enemies yet.

They were the final walls.

Everything between Level 20 and Level 35 would be preparation.

Kael needed stronger weapons.

Stronger techniques.

More experience.

And most importantly—

he needed to learn how to survive against creatures that were already far beyond ordinary monsters.

The System had given him a new objective.

[Primary Objective: Reach Level 35.]

[Bloodline Progress: 11% → 20%.]

[Beast Path Compatibility: 2%.]

[Warning.]

[Direct confrontation with Legendary Beast is prohibited until required conditions are fulfilled.]

Kael nodded.

"Good."

He looked toward the enormous green forest.

"Then I'll hunt everything beneath it first."

Nightfang stared at him.

"You realize that includes the Territory Lords."

Kael smiled.

"That's exactly who I'm looking for."

The Territory

Kael spent the next several days mapping the eastern forest.

The deeper he went, the stranger the monsters became.

Level 20 beasts were common.

Level 25 beasts were no longer unusual.

But the higher-level creatures behaved differently.

They didn't wander randomly.

They patrolled.

They guarded specific regions.

They responded to sounds.

And occasionally—

they disappeared without leaving a trace.

Kael finally understood why.

The forest had a hierarchy.

At the bottom were ordinary monsters.

Above them were Elites.

Then Commanders.

Then Lords.

But above the Lords was something even more important.

A Territory Lord.

A creature powerful enough to control an entire region.

Kael discovered the evidence at the edge of a massive clearing.

Trees had been crushed.

Large claw marks covered the ground.

Several enormous stones had been split apart.

Kael crouched beside one of the marks.

His expression became serious.

"This wasn't a fight."

Nightfang sniffed the ground.

"No."

Kael looked around.

"It was a warning."

A System window appeared.

[Territorial Mark detected.]

[Owner: Unknown.]

[Threat Level: High.]

[Estimated Level: 35–45.]

[Grade: Lord.]

[Additional classification: Territory Lord.]

Kael's eyes narrowed.

"Thirty-five to forty-five."

He stood.

"I'm Level 22."

Nightfang looked at him.

"Now you understand why I said this was madness."

Kael didn't answer.

Instead, he looked at the marks again.

There was something unusual about them.

They weren't claw marks.

They were burn marks.

Green flames had scorched the earth.

Kael touched one.

His Metal Control reacted.

[Residual mana detected.]

[Element: Poison / Nature.]

[Source age: Less than 24 hours.]

Kael stood immediately.

"It was here recently."

A branch snapped.

Kael turned.

Nothing.

Then another.

Behind him.

He spun around.

Still nothing.

Nightfang suddenly growled.

"Above."

Kael looked up.

A gigantic serpent was wrapped around the branches.

Its body was thick enough to crush a tree.

Its scales were dark green.

Its eyes were yellow.

[Forest Venom Serpent]

[Level: 31]

[Grade: Commander]

[Potential: Lord]

[Traits: Venom Manipulation, Camouflage, Constriction, Regeneration]

Kael summoned the AR-02V.

The serpent attacked.

Kael fired.

The creature twisted between the shots.

Its body moved impossibly fast for something that large.

One of the bullets struck its scales.

The serpent barely reacted.

Kael immediately switched tactics.

"Metal Control!"

The ground erupted.

Metal spikes shot upward.

The serpent dodged.

Then—

its tail struck.

BOOM!

Kael flew backward.

He crashed into a tree.

Pain shot through his ribs.

Nightfang attacked from the side.

The serpent opened its mouth.

A cloud of green poison exploded outward.

Nightfang jumped away.

Kael covered his mouth.

"Don't breathe it!"

The serpent vanished.

Kael activated Threat Analysis.

Nothing.

It had disappeared completely.

He looked around.

No movement.

No sound.

Then his instincts screamed.

Kael threw himself sideways.

A massive body crashed through the tree behind him.

He rolled across the ground.

The serpent struck again.

Kael barely blocked with the katana.

The impact nearly broke his arms.

"This thing is too fast."

He retreated.

The serpent followed.

Kael fired the AR-02V again.

This time he wasn't aiming at the serpent.

He aimed at the trees.

Shots shattered branches.

The falling branches blocked the serpent's movement.

Kael finally saw it.

"There!"

He fired.

The serpent twisted—

but Kael had already prepared the second attack.

GL-02.

The explosion sent the creature crashing into the ground.

Kael rushed forward.

His katana struck.

The serpent's scales cracked.

But before Kael could attack again—

the serpent regenerated.

Kael froze.

The wound disappeared.

"...Regeneration."

Nightfang growled.

"You cannot win by trading damage."

Kael stepped backward.

The serpent attacked again.

Kael didn't fight.

He ran.

The creature pursued him through the forest.

Kael deliberately led it toward the clearing.

Then he stopped.

The serpent lunged.

Kael smiled.

"Got you."

He slammed his hand into the ground.

"Metal Control!"

The metallic fragments he had scattered throughout the forest earlier rose simultaneously.

They formed a huge cage.

The serpent slammed into it.

Kael immediately fired the GL-02 into the ground beneath the cage.

The explosion launched the serpent upward.

Kael summoned the SR-01.

He didn't aim for the head.

He aimed for the exposed throat.

BOOM!

The shot struck.

The serpent fell.

Kael charged.

His katana flashed.

This time, the creature did not regenerate.

Its body went still.

[Forest Venom Serpent defeated.]

[Level Up.]

[Level 23.]

Kael dropped to one knee.

His ribs hurt badly.

His breathing was uneven.

But he smiled.

"One."

Nightfang stared at him.

"One what?"

Kael looked toward the deeper territory.

"One step closer."

Something Larger

Kael searched the serpent's body.

He found a dark-green crystal embedded near its heart.

[Venom Core — High Grade]

Kael's eyes lit up.

But before he could touch it—

the forest became silent.

Every monster disappeared.

Birds stopped calling.

Even the wind seemed to vanish.

Nightfang immediately turned toward the west.

Kael slowly stood.

"What is it?"

Nightfang's eyes narrowed.

"The Territory Lord."

A massive shadow appeared between the trees.

At first, Kael thought it was another serpent.

Then the creature stepped into the clearing.

It was enormous.

Four powerful legs supported its heavily armored body.

Its head resembled a serpent, but two black horns curved backward from its skull.

Green flames burned around its mouth.

Its scales looked almost like metal.

The System tried to analyze it.

The screen flickered.

[Target detected.]

[Analysis failed.]

[Species: Verdant Horned Basilisk]

[Level: 41]

[Grade: Lord]

[Potential: Overlord]

[Classification: Territory Lord]

[Traits: Venom Dominion, Verdant Armor, Regeneration, Territory Control, Predator's Authority]

Kael's expression changed.

Level 41.

Potential Overlord.

And he was only Level 23.

The Basilisk looked at the dead serpent.

Then it looked at Kael.

Its eyes narrowed.

Kael slowly raised his katana.

The Basilisk didn't attack.

Instead—

it released a roar.

The entire forest shook.

Hundreds of monsters answered from the distance.

Kael's System exploded with warnings.

[Territorial Authority activated.]

[Multiple hostile creatures detected.]

[Estimated enemies: 100+]

Kael stared into the darkness.

Eyes began appearing between the trees.

Dozens.

Then hundreds.

Nightfang stepped closer to Kael.

"We need to leave."

Kael nodded.

For once—

he didn't argue.

"Agreed."

The Basilisk watched them retreat.

It didn't chase.

It didn't need to.

Kael had already received its message.

Come back when you're strong enough.

Kael looked over his shoulder.

His fist tightened around the katana.

"Level 35."

The Basilisk roared again.

Kael smiled.

"Next time, I'll be ready."

Far deeper inside the territory—

the Verdant Serpent opened one enormous eye.

It had felt the confrontation.

And it understood something.

The human wasn't ready.

But he was becoming ready much faster than expected.

[Bloodline Progress: 11.4%]

[Beast Path Compatibility: 2.3%]

[New Objective: Defeat or survive a Territory Lord.]

Kael stared at the final message.

Then he looked toward the massive Basilisk's territory.

His expression hardened.

"Then that's my next target."

But this time—

he knew better than to attack immediately.

He had fourteen levels left.

And the forest had just shown him how difficult every single one would be.