“Kyaaaaah!!”

“Professor, call the professors!”

“Kiiiaaah- Save us…!!”

The atmosphere inside the Academy was chaotic. It happened to be during break time, and as a result, there were no prepared professors in the classrooms. Only students were inside the classrooms…

And to make the matter even worse, all of them were first-year freshmen.

In this desperate situation, I quickly shouted to Kim Chae-eun, “Chae-eun! Go through the back door of the classroom right now and ask the professors for support. It’s dangerous to stay here.”

“Jae-hyun, what about you?”

“Someone has to stop it. If we continue like this, all the students will be killed.”

“But I don’t want to! I want to fight too…!!”

“What?”

Kim Chae-eun’s strong denial caught me off guard. In such a life-or-death situation, I never expected her to firmly assert that she would stay too.

…Does she have the qualities of a hero? She’s quite different from other Holders, whose personalities I can usually read through. Kim Chae-eun is a completely new person I met in this world, and her words and actions have always been unpredictable.

Given the urgency of the situation and the lack of time, I didn’t hesitate and accepted the idea she presented.

“Alright. If you insist, then stay behind and never expose yourself to danger. Got it?”

“Yes! I’ll provide support from behind with my magic!”

“Okay, follow me.”

Kim Chae-eun was also an intermediate class student. As a mage specializing in [Freezing], her ability was at the level of an E-grade Holder.

While it might be challenging for her to hunt the monster, she could still help restrain it.

To be honest, I didn’t feel too worried about the threat of the monster. The one that appeared in the Academy was a B-grade monster named ‘Sizzling Salamander.’ It was a lizard with fiery scales, infamous for hunting humans with its flaming power.

Although it was a formidable foe for the students around the classroom, I wasn’t too concerned. Kang Juyeon and Park Jin-woo should arrive soon and swiftly deal with the monster together. I knew that they would form an unexpected alliance and quickly subdue the creature.

‘The Academy Monster Hunt’ was a crucial storyline as it marked the first major event where Park Jin-woo and Kang Juyeon confronted each other. It was also an important plotline that would continue into the middle of the story.

Hence, the key was to keep the ‘Sizzling Salamander’ restrained without causing further harm to the students.

“Over here!”

We rushed towards the source of the screams.

-Kiiiaaaah!!

It was the piercing shrieks of the Sizzling Salamander.

Following the sound, we quickly found the scene of the tragedy.

It was the classroom right next to the one we were in. That’s where it was causing a mess…

There were students with their bodies burned to a crisp and others pierced or killed by the creature’s tail… Their bodies were scattered around, without any chance of rescue.

The sight was spine-chilling…

Kim Chae-eun couldn’t help but retch at the gruesome sight.“Ugh…!!”

“Don’t look over there, Kim Chae-eun!”

Staying careless could be dangerous.

I did my best to help Kim Chae-eun regain her composure.

To be honest, it wasn’t easy for me either to witness such a scene. It was my first time witnessing a human massacre, and the fact that it could happen to me was quite frightening.

However, Holders had their Willpower fortitude by their ability stats. My Willpower stat of 12 helped me remain stable even in such a nauseating situation.

‘Chae-eun, can she use her magic now?.’

Holders with the Wizard-type rune must possess a high level of magic and willpower.

Although Kim Chae-eun is a magician-type Holder that deals with [Freezing] rune, her willpower is quite low.

Assuming everything went well, she should have been promoted to the upper class instead of the intermediate class. Perhaps, such weakness is normal.

“Chae-eun. Can you use your magic now?

“Huff, huff… Yes, I think I’m okay now.”

Perhaps my mental support has been somewhat helpful.

Kim Chae-eun gradually calmed her breath and prepared to cast her spell.

I, too, held the dagger I had on me with both hands, in a cautious combat stance…

To be honest, it was a reckless move.

A B-grade monster typically required a party of about five C-grade Holders to hunt it. Here I was, barely reaching D-grade level, and charging alone against a B-grade monster was close to madness.

‘But Park Jin-woo did it.’

At that time, Park Jin-woo, who was at the E-grade level, also engaged a monster.

He took the lead while Kang Juyeon provided support from the rear.

Adopting a simple two-person position.

And even though Kang Juyeon was already a B-grade Holder, she easily defeated the monster with her magic. But before that, it was entirely thanks to Park Jin-woo’s ability that the monster was restrained.

And I’m in a similar situation…

Or even at a higher level than Park Jin-woo. There was no reason I couldn’t do it.

-Kiiiaaaah!!

The monster’s roar resounded once again, and I bit my tongue.

“Such an annoying pig-like squealing.”

The noise was unbearable. The monster had a vocal range that made you wonder if there could be creatures like that. After screaming and making its presence known for a while, the Sizzling Salamander finally spotted us. It was the beginning of a full-fledged duel.

-Kiiiaaaah!!

The Sizzling Salamander’s tail swung at an incredibly fast speed. I raised both daggers in my hands and managed to block it.

Kang- Kaga-“Choking…?!”

But it was too powerful to be stopped.

It sent me flying, and I experienced excruciating pain as if my entire body was covered in bruises.

‘Damn it. What’s with that strength?’

I couldn’t help but curse. How did Park Jin-woo manage to engage such a monster? My Toughness stat was merely 8, which was way too low to withstand such a ferocious attack.

I quickly changed my strategy. Engaging the creature with lightweight daggers was ineffective. I needed to generate some ideas using a slightly heavier sword. I threw away the daggers and drew the two-handed sword I always carried on my back for the class <Sword Momentum and Combat Breathing>.

-Kyeee?!

And at that moment, as the Sizzling Salamander charged recklessly, it let out a scream of agony. Upon closer inspection, its tail and the surrounding air had frozen like ice.

“Jae-hyun, are you alright?”

I heard Kim Chae-eun’s voice next to me, snapping me out of my daze. Nice save! She had regained her composure and cast a spell that hit the Sizzling Salamander’s tail directly with the possessed skill of [Freezing] rune, called [Frozen Fog].

The elemental affinity between the Sizzling Salamander and Kim Chae-eun’s [Freezing] rune magic created a potent effect. Even considering its resistance, the impact was significant.

‘Does Chae-eun have a high magical power?’

Moreover, hunting down a monster with B-grade magical power requires five C-grade Holders, so my intention was to stall it till the other Holders arrive.

Because I know that if I hold it for a while, Kang Juyeon alone can take care of the monster.

But Kim Chae-eun’s support, with her magic, was astonishing.

Kim Chae-eun’s magic seemed to have grown quite powerful, possibly reaching C-grade or even due to a highly-developed rune.

Maybe her lower Willpower stat was compensated by her exceptionally high magic stat, creating an asymmetrical balance.

‘In any case, it’s an opportunity.’

With the Sizzling Salamander temporarily restrained by [Frozen Fog], I rushed towards it with my sword.

Even though my strength and speed were far from sufficient to strike the creature, I had the [Sword] rune, which had reached level 4.

“Haaap…!!”

I instantly cut off the frozen tail and continued with two more slashing motions in quick succession. [Sword]’s possessed skill, [Combo]…!! Despite my strength being insufficient against it, the three swift slashes were powerful enough to cut through the sturdy lizard’s tail.

-Kyeeee…!!

The Sizzling Salamander screamed in rage, causing a ruckus. Insane. It was the result of my ability stat, which was just E-grade, giving a meaningful blow to a B-grade monster. It wouldn’t have been possible without Kim Chae-eun’s [Frozen Fog], and the help of [Combo], a possessed skill granted by [Sword] at level 3.

I finally understood the importance of ‘Possessed Skills’. They appeared in the original story too, but experiencing it firsthand was on a completely different level. Possessed Skills granted by runes seemed to sometimes surpass the limits of ability stats.

‘I should test out [Quarter Knives] and [Poison Claw] later.’

My other Possessed Skills are [Quarter Knives] and [Poison Claw]. [Quarter Knives] allowed me to throw four daggers and concentrate all my magic into one, trap-like skill, much like a game of Russian roulette. On the other hand, [Poison Claw] used the [Venom] rune to enhance my nails, turning them into venomous weapons for clawing.

Both were highly versatile skills, but they were unsuitable for facing a monstrous creature like the Sizzling Salamander, which boasted tremendous strength. I would have to try them out next time I had a chance.

-Kiiii, kyyyyy!!

Is that all you can do, you bastard?

I sighed inwardly, feigning tension as I held onto my sword.

Though it has lost its tail…, It still possessed formidable strength, and the ability to manipulate ‘fire’, an even angrier monster after consecutive attacks.

Sizzling Salamander.

It was the start of the second round against the creature.