I Received System to Become Dragonborn

Mark took the opening and immediately driving his sword deep into the lion head's eye, the blade punching through bone with a wet crunch.

He yanked it free in a spray of blood and flesh, then pivoted aside without pause as Thorne's heavy sword finished the job, cleaving through the beast's exposed neck.

Kaela didn't wait for the corpse to fall, her keen eyes caught the flicker of more movement to her right.

Another beast was already lunging at her with its jaws gaping wide.

Kaela spun and threw one of her daggers mid-motion. The blade flying in the air and hit her target accurately, embedding deep in the throat of a serpent head.

She dashed in after it a second later, retrieving her second dagger in a reverse grip as she closed the distance.

Selene changed her stance and also changing the rhythm of her chant. Blue sparks now crackled around her fingertips.

With a snap of her hands she released a blast of condensed flame — this time smaller, but sharper — that struck the lion head's muzzle and seared through its nostrils.

Thorne grunted and charged again, his sword swinging in a brutal arc that cleaved through one of the beast's forelimbs, nearly severing it at the joint.

The creature reeled back in pain, but Kaela was already there. She leaping onto its back then drove both daggers into the base of its skull in a single savage motion.

The beast convulsed, then crumpled forward. It was dead before it hit the ground.

Only one more remained.

Mark's heart pounded in his chest, but his grin only widened. He turned toward the last beast, which now hesitated in the mist.

Its green eyes flicked between the four hunters, as if sensing its doom.

But they gave it no chance to retreat.

Jan's arrow was already nocked before the last beast could even twitch. He already aimed since a second ago. His breath slowed, everything else fading — the mist, the distant crackle of flames, even the pounding of footsteps. Only the beast's green eyes stayed sharp in his vision.

Thrum!

The string sang as he loosed. The arrow cut through the fog like a streak of light and hit its targe, piercing the flank of one serpent head. The creature shrieked, jerking sideways, but that was exactly what Jan wanted.

Hund was already charging in. The big man let out a fierce roar as he closed the gap, his sword raised high over his shoulder.

The beast snapped at him with its remaining heads, but Hund met it head-on, his blade coming down in a vicious diagonal slash that cleaved across the snout of the lion head.

Bone cracked, blood splattered, and the monster staggered back, but Hund pressed on, slamming his shoulder into its chest to shove it off balance.

Esther's chant flowing fast and smooth. A glowing rune circle flared beneath her feet as she lifted her staff.

A lance of pure white flame burst from the tip of her staff — thin as a spear but sharp enough to punch through steel.

It screamed through the air and punched clean through the eye of the second serpent head, exploding out the back of its skull in a spray of black gore.

The beast howled, staggering drunkenly as two of its heads hung limp and useless now.

Jan didn't stop. Another arrow was already in flight and hit deep into the soft flesh of the beast's inner thigh, causing it to buckle on one knee.

Hund took the opening.

He roared again and lunged, bringing his heavy sword around in a brutal slash. The blade connected with the beast's exposed neck, cleaving deep through muscle and spine.

The last creature gurgled, its body spasming as black blood gushed from the massive wound.

Hund wrenched his sword free with a grunt and kicked the beast backward.

It collapsed heavily onto its side, shuddered once, and then went still.

The mist hung heavy for a moment longer. The forest become quiet agaain except for the hunters' ragged breaths.

Then even that silence settled in.

All six beasts lay dead now, their strange otherworldly forms broken and still across the bloodied ground.

The silence lingered, but none of them lowered their weapons.

Mark smiled at Jan's party then scanned the mist, his sword still slick with blood, knuckles white around the hilt. Beside him, Thorne's heavy breaths rasped through clenched teeth, his gsword resting but also still ready.

Kaela stayed low, daggers dripping with blood, her sharp eyes flicking left and right, searching for the faintest sign of more movement.

Selene muttered under her breath, a small ember dancing on her fingertips, ready to ignite if even a shadow twitched wrong.

Hund grunted and wiped his blade against the matted grass, but his posture remained tense, half-expecting another beast to come lunging through the mist.

Esther's staff still glowed faintly.

Watching them all, Eccar couldn't help but smile. He had fought alongside many Elves in his time. Elves would attacking from afar, barely shifting from their elegant stances. Deadly but most of the time in small fight like this they will attack from their place with minimal movement.

But these humans… they threw themselves headlong into the fray, cutting and slashing in brutal, close quarters. They moved fast, struck hard, and never relented until their enemy lay dead at their feet.

Fierce and swift, just like how he himself fought. This was the kind of battle he could respect.

Eccar's smile widened as he straightened.

But Mark wasn't ready to relax. He turned sharply to Jan. "You're the sharpest among us here. Are we clear?"

Jan had already begun before the words finished leaving Mark's mouth.

His bow lowered, he shifted his stance and let his senses stretch outward, beyond the lingering blood and death.

His eyes scanned the tree line, tracing every shadow. His ears picked through the mist.

He took a slow step forward, then another, turning in a slow circle as he read the forest like a familiar trail.

Long seconds passed.

Finally, Jan straightened and glanced back at the group.

"No more. They're gone. Nothing's moving out there now… not even the small things. We're clear."

The tension in the air eased. Weapons dipped lower. But none of them dropped their guard completely.

The blood was still fresh on the ground, and though the beasts were dead, the next will come. And the journey still long. freёwebnoѵel.com

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