Intruder?

[Ding!]

[Your level has increased: 2 ⇾ 4]

[2 attribute points are available to reallocate.]

"Huff... huff... just a few more monsters, and I'll finally reach level five," Reisou muttered between heavy breaths, having been hunting monsters for a while.

Thanks to the earlier increase in energy points, he could prolong the use of his abilities, allowing him to complete two out of the three mission objectives.

Now, he took a moment to focus on leveling up before facing the boss.

As he tried to recover his breath, two wild boars charged at him with their deadly tusks. With a swift leap, he propelled himself into the air and landed on a sturdy tree branch. From his elevated position, he tightened his grip on his lance, ready to strike.

✫| Enhancement |✫

With his strength amplified, Reisou hurled the lance at astonishing speed, the weapon slicing through the air like a bullet. The wild beast didn't even have time to react before the lance struck its head with deadly precision.

The other boar, enraged by the sight of its fallen companion, furiously charged at the tree, attempting to bring it down. However, its efforts were in vain. Reisou then jumped from the branch, landing skillfully on the boar back.

✢| Fury |✢

Without hesitation, Reisou activated his skill, delivering a powerful kick to the wild boar's head. The blow stunned the animal, causing it to stagger.

In an instant, he sprinted toward his lance, gripping it tightly. With a swift motion, he launched the weapon again, delivering the final blow and ending the battle.

The exhaustion weighed heavily on his body, but he continued his journey, this time focusing on finding a safe place to rest.

A few minutes later, Reisou found a small cave and decided to rest there for a while. After checking inside and confirming there was no danger, he sat on the ground, taking a moment to recover from his fatigue and check his status.

'status.'

+++++++++

[Overview]

Name: Aragaki Reisou

Age: 16

Class: Lancer

Element: Wind

Level: 4

XP: 48/120

Titles: Intruder (???)

Race: Human (Awakened)

HP: 84/100

EP: 41/110

STM: 23/80

SP: 0

WP: 0

ATB: 4

[Attributes]

STR: 10

AGI: 8

END: 9

INT: 7

CHA: 7

DEF: 8 {+6}

ATK: 8 {+1}

ATS: 8 {+2}

[Skills]

Intimidation (1⋆) and Fury (1⋆).

[Techniques]

Enhancement (1⋆).

Note: The star rating system ranges from one star (1⋆) to seven stars (7⋆).

[Talents]

Culinary (Beginner), Mathematics (Beginner), Polearm (Intermediate), Public Speaking (Beginner).

+++++++++

Reisou thought for a moment about how to spend his attribute points and decided to put three into endurance and one into intelligence, as his two main abilities relied heavily on both attributes.

Enhancement, while similar to Fury in temporarily boosting his stats, was less powerful. It offered a modest two-point increase to attack, strength, and agility.

Fortunately, it only consumed seven energy points upon activation, with a thirty-second cooldown and an additional three points drained every five seconds. It also caused less fatigue than Fury.

When combined, the two abilities significantly boosted his attributes, temporarily raising him to the level of a C-rank Hunter.

The drawback, naturally, was the heavy drain on both his stamina and energy, making it difficult to sustain for extended periods. Even so, this wasn't bad at all for an beginner.

After resting for nearly an hour, Reisou left the cave and began scanning the area for monsters. However, something unexpected happened—faint human voices reached his ears from a distance, causing him to tense up instantly.

He had forgotten that the GK card teleported him to an existing Gate, which meant other Hunters could already be inside. This made things more complicated, as entering Gates without a license was strictly prohibited.

Given that he was just a student with no team or license, encountering fellow Hunters was bad news. In fact, it could result in Reisou's expulsion from school and the loss of his chance to become a professional Hunter.

Reisou quickly started moving in the opposite direction of the voices, determined to avoid any chance of contact.

Just to be cautious, he put on a theatrical black mask he had brought from home to cover his face and pulled up his hood. Finally, this thing he had received from a "friend" came in handy.

"Aaaahh!"

"Haaahh!"

As he put distance between himself and the voices, Reisou could faintly hear screams in the distance and assumed those people were going to die.

"May God have mercy on your souls," Reisou whispered, offering a silent pray. 

He even thought about trying to help, but it would be too risky. They could be facing an elite monster, which sometimes appeared even in low-ranking Gates. 

And it was unlikely to be the Gate boss, because when attacked, the entire dimension darkens.

"I think it's better to kill the boss before someone finds him first," Reisou thought as he ran away.

- - -

Meanwhile, on the other side of the forest, near a high hill surrounded by towering trees, two figures ran, their synchronized screams echoing through the forest as a horde of furious wild boars relentlessly chased them.

"Aaaaah!" x 2

Noticing the beasts getting closer, the two mustered their remaining strength to climb a tree, throwing themselves onto a sturdy branch to escape the oncoming danger.

*Thud!

*Thud!

The wild beasts were slamming into the tree, causing it to shake slightly as they attempted to bring it down and kill the duo.

"Huff... huff... w-we almost died," a teenage boy with scruffy blonde hair and yellow-brown eyes, dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and black pants, breathed out in relief.

He was exhausted after running through the forest for minutes, trying to shake off the wild boars.

Earlier, his dumb sister had drawn their attention by killing a baby boar.

"Why did you have kill that baby boar? Now we're stuck here!" the blonde boy shouted, pointing an accusing finger at his sister.

"How was I supposed to know that killing that thing would bring an entire army of boars?" a girl with long strawberry blonde hair and red-yellow eyes, patterned like a cross, shot back.

She wore clothes similar to his, including a dark blue jacket and black shorts that ended just below the knee. Two natural red horns sprouted from her head, giving her a distinctly unique look.

"Damn it, my Nano reserves are running low! I can't even fight anymore. If we die here, it's your fault, Power!" the boy said, his voice filled with frustration.

"My fault? It's your fault for being dumb and not coming up with a way out of here instead of just complaining!" she snapped angrily. "Anyway, my Nano reserves are lower than yours, so Denji, you're going to have to carry me out."

Upon hearing it, Denji furrowed his brows, baffled by how shameless his sister was.

"Me? Carry you? I can't even move right now!" 

"Weakling," the girl muttered, lying on the tree branch like a lifeless corpse.

While they kept bickering, the horde of wild boars under the tree suddenly began collapsing one by one, their heads bursting like overfilled balloons with loud, grotesque pops.

When they saw that all the boars were dead, Denji and Power cheered together, their voices filled with relief.

Using the last of their strength, they stood unsteadily and climbed down from the tree to the ground.

"It seems I didn't arrive too late," a calm voice echoed behind them, causing both to turn and face a very beautiful woman.

She had long, light red hair tied in a loose braid, and her yellow eyes carried a distinct pattern of multiple red rings. She wore a simple white shirt, black tie, black pants, and a dark overcoat that rested casually on her shoulders.

The woman approached them with a gentle smile, her calm demeanor giving her the appearance of an elegant, harmless young woman.

"Miss Makima!" they both said in unison, their voices filled with a mix of surprise and respect.

Taking the opportunity, Power quickly pointed an accusing finger at Denji.

"It's his fault," she said without a hint of shame.

Denji's eyes widened in disbelief before he shot back, accusing her instead. The two immediately fell back into bickering, squabbling like a pair of children.

Makima maintained her smile but raised her right hand, signaling for them to be silent. The duo quickly complied, and for a brief moment, her smile vanished, replaced by a cold, emotionless expression as she sensed something was off.

Though Makima seemed gentle and harmless, that was far from the truth. She was, in fact, a highly respected National Hunter and the leader of the Akuma Hunter Guild, one of the most powerful in Japan. Only a few could rival her in strength, beauty, and influence.

Occasionally, she would venture out personally to scout fresh talent for the guild and last week, while walking through a poor residential area, Makima came across a pair of impoverished siblings with extraordinary potential to become powerful Hunters.

Both possessed remarkable Nano reserves and powerful Innate Skills, which, with proper training, could elevate them to S-rank status within a few years.

The siblings in question were Denji and Power, who had depended on each other since childhood, after their parents tragically lost their lives in a failed expedition within a B-rank Gate.

When Makima offered them a substantial sum of money and food, it was an offer they couldn't resist.

Now, as official members of the Akuma Guild, the siblings joined private expeditions in reserved E-rank Gates every day after school, with Makima personally overseeing their training. Of course, due to their exotic personalities, chaos always followed them. 

"What's happened, Miss Makima? Did the Gate boss show up?" Denji asked, his voice filled with curiosity as he watched Makima stand silently, her eyes staring deep into the forest.

She turned her head towards him, offering a calm and gentle smile, the kind she always wore.

"No," Makima answered, then shifted her gaze back to the forest. "But I think we have an intruder."

"Intruder?" Denji and Power said simultaneously, both puzzled.

This was a private Gate, reserved only for Akuma Guild personnel, so the idea of an intruder showing up was quite surprising.

"You two, head back to the encampment and get some rest."

After giving her instructions, Makima said no more. She simply vanished from sight. Denji and Power, still bewildered, exchanged looks before following her command.

Far away from their position, Makima gracefully landed atop a giant tree, her face devoid of emotion as she gazed at the horizon.

"Interesting," she said calmly, a slight smile forming on her lips.

Then, Makima disappeared once more, following the source of the strange energy that had captured her attention.