5. first time monster hunt

Hao and Wei had left the palace.

For the first time, Wei was seeing the outside world with her own eyes.

She had tried imagining what lay beyond the palace walls many times… but she had failed.

All she had ever seen was the tall walls surrounding her home.

But now—

Before her eyes were small houses, ordinary people buying and selling things at stalls, vendors arranging fruits and vegetables under small shaded carts.

Then she noticed something that made her footsteps slow—

A Lizardman was talking to a woman.

"Can you catch the monsters properly? Don't kill them, just capture them!" the woman said.

"Yes, absolutely, ma'am," the Lizardman nodded.

They both walked past Wei and Hao.

"L-Lizardman…"

Wei whispered in shock.

"Oh—right. I forgot you're not used to all of this," Hao said casually as he walked.

Wei glanced at him from the corner of her eye.

"You're sixteen here… and they allow you to wander outside alone?" she asked.

"Yes. Why? In your world they didn't?" Hao smiled lightly.

"We've been trained in magic and combat since childhood. So there's nothing to fear."

Wei looked down a little sadly.

"I… I don't know. I only heard that people who still have parents aren't allowed to go out freely."

Hao looked at her quietly.

"So… you could go outside freely when you were young?" he asked.

"Yes. My parents died in a car accident when I was small. So I handled my family business on my own," Wei said.

Hao listened to her carefully… genuinely.

"Car? What is a car?" Hao blinked.

"It's like your monster-driven carriage… but ours was made of metal and ran using fuel," Wei explained.

"Does it run faster than these carriages?" Hao asked curiously.

Wei nodded, though her voice softened,

"Yes… ten times faster."

Hao watched her expression quietly.

"Do you… want to go back to that world?" he asked softly.

"No…" Wei smiled gently, but there was longing in her voice.

"I don't think anyone there is waiting for me anymore."

"But here… many people are waiting for you.

Mother, Father, Brother…

And me," Hao said, reassuringly.

Wei breathed out slowly.

"I don't think they were waiting for me… they were waiting for the real Wei. ... I don't even know what dreams she left behind."

"That's not true."

Hao's voice was gentle, but firm.

"From now on, you are Wei. The same sister I cared for… I care for now."

Wei nodded with a small smile.

"Alright. Then tell me about big brother Liang."

"Liang is six years older than us. He went to the university as a magic instructor. He even received the Best Knight Award," Hao said proudly.

"Best knight… the ones who use light magic, right?" Wei asked, remembering characters from anime.

"Ohhh. Smart. Yes—Knights use light magic. But not all of them.

Some become knights because they're simply powerful," Hao explained.

"So Liang is powerful," Wei smiled.

"Yes. He's almost as strong as the princes," Hao added.

Wei blinked.

"Prince… what were you saying?"

Hao chuckled.

"Yes, the twin princes of this kingdom."

Before Wei could ask more—

"We're here. Monster hunting forest."

Hao pointed ahead.

Wei followed his gaze—

And froze.

A dragon flew above the forest canopy.

"Hao… DRAGON!!"

Wei's excitement burst out.

Its scales were jet black.

A creature she had only seen in books or stories was right in front of her.

"Yeah, it's just a dragon. Focus."

Hao stopped at the forest's edge.

This was Dusky Forest — the place where beginners took their first hunt.

"You see dragons every day!?" Wei asked, the voice trembling with awe.

"Yes," Hao said simply.

"This is Dusky Forest."

"We're going inside the forest?" she asked cautiously.

"No. You'll find small monsters here near the bushes. They're called Slimes.

You only need to kill them," Hao explained.

"Inside the forest are stronger monsters and dungeons. Never go there alone."

"I understand. But… what is Slime's weakness?" Wei asked.

"Slimes have a core inside their body.

The weaker the slime, the bigger the core. Aim for it."

Hao handed her a small blade.

"Follow me," he said, going toward the bushes.

He spotted a green slime with a large glowing core—an F-rank monster.

"Watch carefully."

Hao drew his knife and struck swiftly.

The slime split cleanly, and its purple core rolled onto the ground.

"That's it. That's how you hunt.

You saw the core, right?"

"Yes," Wei nodded.

"Good. Then start.

Kill as many as you can to earn XP and level up."

Hao sat nearby under a tree.

"I'll stay here. Call me if you need help."

Wei smiled slightly.

"Alright… let's start hunting."

A faint blue shimmer passed in front of her eyes—

[ System Activated ]

XP gained from monster kills.

HP and MP stable.

"Ares… help me," Wei called.

> "Of course," Ares' deep voice echoed.

"Status window, open," Wei said.

A black screen appeared—

\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=

          STATUS WINDOW

\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=

Name: Wang Wei

Race: Human (Reincarnated Soul)

Job: Adventurer

Reward Option: Choose any 3 jobs later upon Rank Promotion.

Visible Rank: F

True Rank: (Hidden)

Shown Potential: C

True Potential: (Sealed)

Level: 1

XP: 0 / 100

HP: 480 / 480

MP: 1200 / 1200

Stamina: 300 / 300

\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=

ATTRIBUTE

Strength: 15

Magic Power: 42

Agility: 19

Focus/ will: 19

\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=

Skills

• Lumina (Lv.1)

\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=

Support Skills

• Dimensional Item Box (Lv.1)

• System Voice Link (Ares)

\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=\=

Wei exhaled.

"Alright. Let's do this."

She approached the bushes quietly—

Chap… chap… chap…

Three green slimes hopped around playfully.

She gripped her blade tightly and lunged—

aiming directly for one core—

But the slime's sticky body absorbed her strike, and the monsters noticed her.

They bounced toward her.

> "Slimes are slow… but once they cling, they drain HP."

Before Ares finished speaking, one slime latched onto her leg.

[ HP -5 ]

[ HP -10 ]

[ HP -15 ]

[ HP -50 ]

"My HP! If this continues—!"

Wei panicked, trying to pry it off.

> "Aim for the glowing part inside its body—NOW!"

Wei tightened her grip and struck with full force—

Straight at the core.

[ Monster Defeated ]

[ XP +20 ]

[ HP : 300 / 480 ]

[ MP: 1000 / 1200 ]

___

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