Death March I

Alex was placed at the front of the squad as they escorted the prisoners back to the compound. Initially, the prisoners were cursing the slayers and threatening them constantly. However, the squad refused to tolerate their shit and repeatedly struck them with the stocks of their weapons. Eventually, they became silent after the repeated abuse.

The group marched for some time before encountering any threats. At first, they thought it would be an easy march because they had cleared out most of the monsters they had encountered during their journey to the hardware store.

However, much to their dismay, it would appear during the brief time they spent scavenging, new hordes of monsters began to occupy the regions that the slayers had worked hard to clear out. Resulting in a series of skirmishes with higher-level mobs than they initially encountered.

Alex noticed rather quickly that a group of lizardfolk similar to the one he had encountered prior was stalking the slayers. Though this time, there appeared to be two lesser lizardfolk and around ten lizardfolk mongrels, he was lucky to have backup this time, for if he were alone, he was unsure whether or not he could defeat the horde without special circumstances.

The rest of the slayers appeared to have also noticed the lizardfolk which were lurking about. As such, they had begun to take the necessary actions to prepare for combat. Though Alex was confident in their ability to defeat the lizardfolk, the others were not of the same mindset. Their rifles had little effect against the robust scales of the lizardfolk mongrels and were virtually useless against the thick hides of the lesser lizardfolk.

In truth, the slayers were not equipped for a fight of this caliber as most of them had used their skill points unwisely during their initial levels. Believing their rifles were infallible, they had chosen buffs that enhanced their perception and decreased their appetites, which had proven effective for survival until now.

The slayers began to think about abandoning the prisoners and using them to cover their escape when Alex charged out like a raging bull towards the closest lizardfolk. Of course, had Alex known the effect of rifles was limited against these opponents, he probably wouldn't make such a decision. Nevertheless, he had already charged the enemy, and they had begun to engage the humans.

Brandon cursed as he witnessed Alex rush towards the lizardfolk like an absolute moron.

"fucking idiot!"

However, in the next second, the slayers were stunned to see what Alex had done to the lizardfolk mongrel. Alex charged at it with full force, throwing a flying knee to its forehead. Enhanced by his iron limbs and the force of the charge, the skull of the lizardfolk mongrel was cracked upon impact. Though it survived the initial onslaught, it did not have time to counter-attack as Alex had brought his elbow down vertically onto its cranium sending its soul to the afterlife.

The familiar message appeared in Alex's vision once again

[You have slain a Lizardfolk Mongrel and gain 75 xp]

Alex had little time to observe the message as three lizardfolk mongrels quickly surrounded him. The nearest lizardfolk attempted to pierce Alex's skin with his spear; however, it failed to leave a mark due to the effects of Iron Hide. After all, the lizardfolk mongrels did not have the strength required to pierce his skin.

Alex used this moment to counter-attack, push kicking the creature in the gut, and sent it flying into a nearby wall. The wall collapsed from the force of the kick and crashed on top of the mongrel. However, it managed to survive.

The other slayers had recovered from their initial shock and were no longer complacent; they began to fire upon the lizardfolk mongrels. Though the intermediate caliber rounds they fired had little effect against the enemies.

Generally speaking, it would take around 4 rounds center mass to pierce the hides of the mongrels, and it had to be a tight grouping. Under the pressure of combat, this was difficult for the slayers, who mostly lived peaceful lives until a few days prior.

Nevertheless, through a combined effort, they managed to alleviate the pressure on Alex as he continued with his slaughter. At this point, Alex wished there was some party system, so he and his team could share the spoils. However, he did not have time to experiment with the system and chose to continue his onslaught.

Alex fought his way through the tide of lizardfolk racking up experience points left and right. Though the rounds fired from his team managed to injure the mongrels, Alex had generally dealt the finishing blow, much to the chagrin of his teammates. They began to regret how they had spent their skill points.

Cassie was laying fire down upon the lizardfolk who approached Alex; at this point, he was their best chance for survival. She inwardly thought that she would definitely abandon her rifle if she survived this encounter and find a new path to walk upon. She wondered just how many people were like Alex and had such a solid foundation early on.

Everyone she had met had been quick to embrace rifles and disregarded all else. The exceptions were the sentries who couldn't find a rifle to use; thus, they were generally equipped with weapons scavenged from monsters, though they were not advanced enough to display the fantasy weapons' effect properly.

However, this battle clearly showed the strengths of using the system to enhance one's natural abilities, rather than relying on the technology of the old world. After all, Alex relied solely on his knowledge of martial arts and his enhanced body to butcher these monsters.

The battle lasted a few minutes; at this point, all that remained were the two lesser lizardfolk. Cassie and the others could no longer support Alex as their weapons were completely ineffective against these creatures.

A wicked grin appeared on Alex's face as he cracked his knuckles. The two lizardfolk roared at him, thoroughly enraged by the slaughter this human had been responsible for. The three of them charged simultaneously; one of the Lizardfolk was equipped with a two-handed sword, while the other lizardfolk was equipped with a pair of daggers.

The blackened lustrous material which these weapons were made out of clearly put conventional metals to shame, and Alex could sense an aura of danger exuding from them. He knew it would not be wise to take these weapons head-on, unlike those of their minions, which were of inferior quality.

Alex's kept his distance from the weapons of the two, using his superior footwork to evade their strikes and keep them off balance. He would dash in and out of range, throwing a few combinations of punches and kicks before disengaging.

Though individually, his strikes failed to deal significant damage to the thickened scale hides of the lizardfolk after the damage accumulated and their scales began to crack. Their bright white flesh had revealed itself.

Cassie took advantage of the situation and fire a shot into the soft flesh of the lizardfolk who wielded the two-handed sword. It fell to its knees, roaring in pain as it grabbed its bloody gut. Alex rapidly dealt a roundhouse kick to the head of the lizardfolk knocking it unconscious. Afterward, a malicious smile spread across his lips as he stared down the remaining lizardfolk.

The lizardfolk lunged towards Alex with its daggers as its enraged roar echoed across the wasteland. However, Alex was waiting for such an opening; without the second lizardmen pressuring him, Alex ducked behind the lizardfolk's lunge; standing behind it, he grabbed upon its exposed waist and utilized a suplex to slam it headfirst into the concrete.

The vicious suplex snapped the lizardfolk's neck, killing it instantly.

[You have slain a Lesser Lizardfolk and gain 150 xp]

Alex smiled proudly; this was a great victory. However, he noticed there was still another lesser lizardfolk that was unconscious and bleeding out. He walked over to its body and placed it in a headlock; after cranking its neck, he ended the monster's life effortlessly.

[You have slain a Lesser Lizardfolk and gain 150 xp]

[Level Up! You are now Level 5!]

Alex smiled excitedly at the results. The combined kills from this expedition were enough for him to level up to level 5! He was delighted with his position as a slayer. The other slayers gawked at him while he smiled like an idiot. They could only guess what had made him so happy.

After the skirmish was over, Cassie walked up to Alex and hit him on the shoulder; though she immediately regretted it, her hand nearly fractured from the impact.

"Goddammit!"

she cried out in pain as she pulled her hand back; after calming down, she began to berate Alex

"That was my kill! How could you finish it like that?"

Alex felt amused by her scolding and chuckled in response

"Your kill? If I didn't break its scales, you wouldn't have been able to do shit to it!"

Cassie turned around and pouted with no response. Alex had a point. If not for his strikes, she would have never had an opportunity to wound the creature. Still, she considered what Alex did to be intolerable. As compensation, she picked up the two lustrous black metal daggers in which one of the lesser lizardfolk had used and stuck out her tongue. "These are mine!"

Alex scoffed at her childish behavior and let it go. If the feud could be squashed like that, then let it be. Gunnar brought over the prisoners in which he had been watching throughout the battle. If not for him, they would have fled during the chaos. As such, he demanded the large two-handed sword in return for his actions.

Alex had no qualms about this and allowed him to take the sword; he shrugged his shoulders and responded with an old quote he once heard from a fighting game.

"Weapons are just tools; true strength lies within me."

Alex thought he sounded pretty cool just then, but the rest of the squad cringed in response. What kind of bullshit was this jackass spouting now? Either way, it was time to get a move on. With that said, the feud ended, and the group began their death march one more. This would be the first of several encounters.