We came to help
Silence. No more snarls or frantic yips.
As the last kobold dropped dead, a hush enveloped the clearing again. The field lay littered with scorched earth, tangled roots, and the limp forms of over a couple dozen kobolds who had gambled on their numbers—and lost.
Kaden stood in the midst of it, legs shaking, battered spear dangling loosely in his grip. Every breath stung his lungs, raw from exertion and the smoky air.
At last, the tension that had kept him upright began to drain. He staggered, blood from his back wounds trickling down his sides.
His own heartbeat pounded in his ears, underscored by a fleeting hum—the System's subtle way of confirming his kills, his levels, his unstoppable forward momentum.
He exhaled, letting the final bellow of adrenaline subside, a grim half-smile tugging at his lips.
He could feel the difference: this new level brimming in his veins, knitting up the edges of his injuries through the synergy of Sanguine Roots' faint healing effect and his elevated stats. It wouldn't be a full recovery, but it was enough to keep going.
Nudging a fallen spear aside with his foot, he scanned the clearing one final time for threats. None. The only remaining movement came from the kobold caster—still tangled in the Sanguine Roots that crept around its ankles.
From the distance, he could see it thrashing and shrieking, fear bleeding through its every guttural note. Kaden dragged a breath into his aching lungs, forcing his battered legs to obey. On the way, he took care of a couple of boars that were still breathing.
[Ding! You have killed a wild boar]
[Ding! You have killed a wild boar]
The bonus experience points didn't hurt. Kaden smiled as he eyed the caster who might as well be a big bag of shiny experience points in his eyes. With this, he should level up again. Wait, what was his level now?
Snapping him out of his thoughts three figures caught his attention. Three familiar figures. Two men and one silver haird woman, the moon priestess.
Kaden frowned. "Didn't you already run the other way?" He continued walking forward and the other party did not stop either. They were a lot closer to the caster than he was and reached the kobold before him.
Then, without even glancing Kaden's way, the broad-shouldered man in the trio stepped up to the frantically writhing kobold caster. His blade gleamed in the dim, smoky light—no hesitation, no wasted movement.
A single, powerful thrust caught the caster beneath the chin, cutting short its guttural shrieks with a wet gurgle. The man turned to glance arrogantly at Kaden when unexpectedly a notification popped up.
Huh? Kaden froze as he stared at the prompt.
[Ding! You have killed the Kobold Magician]
[Ding! You have leveled up]
[Level 13 > Level 14]
[Ding! You have leveled up]
[Level 14 > Level 15]
[Ding! You have obtained the title Boss Killer]
[Boss Killer: You have slain your first Boss-level monster. Effects: +10% XP gain against elites and bosses, +5 all attributes while fighting Boss-level enemies.]
Kaden blinked. Clearly, the other party had arrogantly stolen his kill right in front of him but… he got the kill credit?
Did the final blow not matter because Sanguine Roots was still draining the caster's life? Did he get credited for dealing the majority of damage? That was not possible. While the system did take into account the damage done, the final kill was given a lot of weight. This was an established theory.
This was probably a freak coincidence with Sanguine Roots doing the last dot damage. Just dumb luck.
Kaden shrugged as he watched the expression change on the man's face from arrogance to confusion to anger. "Awkward." He chuckled lightly as he continued walking forward.
The man's eyes narrowed, flicking from Kaden to the dead caster, then to the faint crimson vines withdrawing from the mage's ankles. A vein of annoyance glinted in his expression, as though he resented not receiving the final blow's reward.
Kaden rolled his eyes. So much attitude from a kill stealer. Not that he was one to talk. He took care of another boar that was whimpering on the ground as he increased his pace and arrived at the scene.
"You finally made your way back here?" Kaden's gaze went straight for the silver-haired priestess.
To his surprise the woman was nothing like the rumors he had heard about. She looked rattled with fear stricken eyes and her body was shaking as her gaze flickered from one corpse to the other. She was basically a nervous mess.
Seeing Kaden so openly stare at the woman, the big guy's anger flared and he took a step forward. But the other man quickly stopped him.
"We came to help." He answered instead.
"Right," Kaden replied, raising an eyebrow. "You definitely did that to help me."
Seeing that Kaden was obviously not buying the shit that was being sold, the big guy lost his patience. "Why are you wasting time talking to him? Let's just get rid of him, grab the staff and leave."