Ch 17. Fire Rats And Strengthing Pill

Outside the city, Wilderness 

Jit looked at Kewal with a smirk.

"If you want to give your brother and the orphanage kids a better life… you'll need money."

Kewal nodded hesitantly.

"Then let's go hunting. We'll earn some money first. After that, I'll pay the Tiger Guild a visit" Jit's eyes gleamed coldly, "and erase their existence."

Kewal's face paled.

"B-Boss… the Tiger Guild's leader is Level 81!" He gulped. "You're only Level 32. How do you plan to fight him?"

Jit let out a chuckle.

"I was just Level 30 earlier, but I still wiped out all the Tiger Guild members we faced—including you and that other guy… What was his name? Meh, doesn't matter."

Kewal gritted his teeth.

"But the Guild Leader isn't Level 50 like us. He's 81! And if he takes a Blood Pill, he'll become even stronger! If you face him head-on, you won't stand a chance!"

Jit's smile didn't fade.

"Afraid?" he asked, his voice calm.

Kewal hesitated.

"You think I can't win? Fine. Watch me."

Jit turned and started walking.

"Let's go."

Entering the Dense Forest

Jit and Kewal arrived at the dense forest's entrance. The trees loomed high, their thick canopies casting eerie shadows over the area.

Not long after stepping in, a group of wild boars appeared—massive creatures with thick hide, sharp tusks, and glowing red eyes.

[Wild Forest Boar]

Level: 46 - 53

Quantity: 15

Kewal's face paled.

"B-Boss… there are 15 of them!" he stammered. "Are we really fighting them alone?"

Jit cracked his neck.

"No need to panic. I'll handle them myself."

Kewal's eyes widened.

"Boss, this isn't one or two boars! There are fifteen! How can you possibly—"

Before Kewal could finish his sentence—

SCHLK!

The first boar vanished.

Then the second.

Then the third.

One by one, all fifteen boars disappeared into thin air in an instant.

Jit's status window flashed before his eyes.

You have killed a Level 47 Boar

+347 EXP 

You have killed a Level 49 Boar

+457 EXP

You have killed a Level 50 Boar

+537 EXP

You have killed a Level 53 Boar

+597 EXP....

[You have leveled up!]

+5 HP

+5 MP

+5 Free Attribute point

[You have leveled up!]

+5 HP

+5 MP

+5 Free Attribute point 

Kewal froze.

His eyes darted around. The clearing, once filled with rampaging boars, was now completely empty.

"W-What just happened…?" Kewal's voice trembled.

He had seen nothing. No movement. No attacks.

Just instant death.

"How… how did you kill them all in a second? I didn't even see you move!"

He looked at Jit in shock.

"The only person I've ever seen do something like this is… the Tiger Guild leader."

Jit didn't respond. He simply smirked and continued walking deeper into the forest.

Jit barely reacted. He turned to Kewal, his voice calm.

"Pick up the loot and follow me." We're just getting started."

Kewal, still in shock from earlier, quickly gathered the boar leather, meat, and monster cores and some others items before running after Jit.

The deeper they went into the forest, the more the air heated up. A faint burning smell lingered, and the trees had blackened scorch marks on their bark.

Then glowing red eyes appeared in the darkness.

A group of Fire Rats crawled out from the shadows, their bodies covered in crimson flames. Their fur burned constantly, yet they remained unharmed. Each time they opened their mouths, embers and flickers of fire leaked out.

[Fire Rat]

Level: 52 - 58

Kewal's face turned pale.

"Boss… are you seriously going to fight these things?"

Jit smirked. "Why? Scared?"

Kewal gulped.

"These things are incredibly fast. Not as fast as Rabbits, but still hard to hit. And on top of that… they can spit fire!" He gritted his teeth. "Even Level 70 warriors struggle to fight a whole group of them. We might handle one or two, but this many… this is suicide!"

Jit's smirk grew wider.

"Good. Then let's see how strong they really are."

Jit's Command: "You Will Kill Them"

Jit pulled out his sword, the sharp edge gleaming under the dim forest light. He turned to Kewal, his voice firm.

"This time, you are going to kill all of these Fire Rats."

Kewal's face twisted in shock. His hands trembled.

"I… I can't! Boss, I'm only Level 50! They are many, and their levels are higher than mine! Even if I try—"

Jit cut him off with a calm smirk.

"Don't worry. I'll weaken them first."

Before Kewal could even process what he meant, Jit vanished.

The next second—

A howling wind sliced through the forest.

The Fire Rats screeched as they were sent flying in all directions. Some crashed into trees, burning bark as they tumbled. Others rolled on the ground, trying to stand, but their legs refused to move.

The once-deadly monsters now lay on the ground, their bodies twitching in pain.

Jit stood among them, his sword still clean.

Kewal stared in disbelief.

"What… what did you do?!"

Jit grinned, his eyes sharp.

"I simply made sure they won't fight back."

He gestured toward the fallen Fire Rats.

"Now, it's your turn. Finish them."

Kewal stared at Jit in pure disbelief.

"How strong are you really?"

Jit smirked, his expression calm as ever.

"I can defeat Level 90 monsters easily."

Kewal's jaw nearly dropped.

"What?! That's impossible! But… your level is only 32!"

Jit's eyes narrowed.

"Don't ask questions. Come here and finish them. You're my subordinate now, so you have to get stronger."

Kewal swallowed hard. He gripped his dagger tightly and stepped forward. The Fire Rats, still wriggling on the ground, couldn't resist.

With swift, precise strikes, Kewal finished them off one by one.

[Status Notification]

You have killed Fire Rat

+564 EXP

You have killed Fire Rat

+534 EXP

[You have leveled up!]

[You have leveled up!]

Kewal froze for a moment, then his face lit up with excitement.

"Boss! I leveled up twice in a row!"

Jit simply nodded, not surprised.

"Good. Now pick up the loot."

Kewal gathered the dropped items, sorting through beast materials and small cores. Then, his eyes widened.

"Boss, I found this!"

He held up a small, glowing red pill with a faint golden hue.

"I think it's some kind of attribute-enhancing pill."

Jit took the pill and activated his Appraisal skill.

[Appraisal Activated]

Item Name: Strengthening Pill(Rare)

Rank: C

Effect: After consumption, increases Strength by +2 and Fire Resistance by +1.

Note: If the user is 18 years or older, Strength will not increase.

Jit's eyes gleamed as he examined the Strengthening Pill (Rare).

"This is a great item."

He clenched the pill in his hand, thinking.

"If these Fire Rats drop Strengthening Pills, I need to hunt more of them. I have to buy these pills for Sonu and Soni to increase their strength. But this one also boosts Fire Resistance… ."

"Looks like this hunt is turning out better than expected."

"These pills are Rank C, but they're rare because they also grant Fire Resistance…" he muttered. "Increasing Fire Resistance before turning 18 is almost unheard of."

He smirked, realizing just how valuable they were.

"If I sell these at a medical shop, I can earn 2,000 gold coins per pill."

Kewal's eyes widened in shock.

"T-Two thousand gold coins?! Per pill?!" He stammered. "That's a fortune!"

Jit nodded.

"That's why we're going to hunt more of these Fire Rats."

His gaze turned cold as he looked deeper into the forest.

Kewal gulped, his fear slowly turning into excitement.

"Boss… how many do you think we can find?"

Jit smirked.

"As many as we need."

With that, the two ventured further into the forest, ready to hunt down every Fire Rat they could find.

4 Hours Later

Jit and Kewal stood in the middle of a battlefield. The ground was littered with monster corpses that had already begun vanishing, leaving behind various loot monster cores, beast materials, and weapons.

After hours of hunting, they had slain 100 Fire Rats and 150 other monsters.

But despite killing so many Fire Rats, they had only obtained 17 Rank C (Rare) Strengthening Pills.

Jit picked up one of the pills and examined it closely.

"Even after killing a hundred, we only got 17… These pills really are rare."

Kewal wiped the sweat from his forehead, exhausted but exhilarated.

"Boss, we've hunted so many monsters… Look at all the loot!"

Around them, the ground was covered with various dropped items ,weapons, monster materials, and glowing cores of different sizes and colors.

Kewal couldn't help but grin. "We're rich, boss!"

JIT'S level has increased by 6 and Kewal level has increased by 5.

Kewal clenched his fists, excitement shining in his eyes.

"Boss! After Level 40, I've never gained more than two levels in a single day! But today… my level increased by five!"

Jit smirked. "That's just the beginning. In the future, your level can reach 200 or even higher."

Kewal's heart pounded. Level 200? That was a level only legends reached. But hearing Jit say it so casually, he couldn't help but believe it might be possible.

Jit stretched his arms, cracking his neck. "Alright, that's enough hunting for today. Pick up all the loot we're heading back to the city."

Kewal nodded and quickly started gathering the dropped items.

"I have many things to take care of today.

"And We've got another hunt waiting for us there…" Jit said

Kewal shivered at the cold glint in Jit's eyes.

"You mean… the Tiger Guild?"

Jit nodded, his voice cold and firm.

"It's time to erase them."