*Ggrrrrrr ...*
*Ggrrrrrr....*
Several white wolves continued to growl at Zean, accompanied by sharp, intimidating stares that were clearly directed only at him.
There were about eight white wolves currently in front of Zean. Their white fur contrasted against the darkness of the forest, making their presence clearly visible. Furthermore, their white teeth, with bloodstains between them, and the small bits of flesh stuck between their sharp teeth, seemed to further enhance the fear and intimidation effect on anyone in this situation.
Anyone in Zean's current situation would undoubtedly feel a tinge of fear, even if only slightly.
"Facing eight white wolves at once on my first level seems like overkill, but unfortunately, I can't back down."
Zean gripped his sword's hilt tightly, preparing for battle, adopting a stance like an elite swordsman.
"Even in the early levels of EFO, I only fought wooden dummies, but now I have to fight eight wolves at once. No problem, let's get through this quickly and level up," Zean muttered, trying to shake off his nervousness.
There was a feeling of fear in Zean's heart, but he tried to push it away. The reason for his fear was clearly because Zeaan didn't fully understand what would happen to him if he died here. If it were in EFO, perhaps there wouldn't be the slightest fear plaguing Zean's mind, but the problem was, Zean had already concluded that his current location was probably not within the EFO server.
Another thing that made it clear that Zean couldn't retreat or escape was that he knew it would be impossible to escape from the white wolf, which possessed high speed and a keen instinct to lock onto the scent of a target. And if the wolf's strength was exactly the same as the one in EFO, with a standard level of around level twenties, then Zean's chances of retreating were practically zero.
"I think I'll have to cheat a little to beat you. After all, your level is too high for me to handle alone right now, especially with eight of you," Zean said, the tip of his sword still pointed at the wolf.
With his eyes still wary of the wolf, Zean opened his storage dimension and took out several items that might help him in his current situation. Some items that would also increase his chances of victory and ensure his safety.
"Thankfully, all my valuable items are intact, the ones I've been collecting for three years."
From his inventory, Zean pulled out three items at once: a silver ring engraved with magical runes, a transparent bracelet that appeared to be made of glass, and finally, a pair of black gloves.
Each of these items had a different effect: the silver ring, which generated a shield made of the user's magical energy; the transparent bracelet, which accelerated magical energy recovery; and finally, the gloves, which increased the amount of damage taken by attacks on targets or enemies.
It was the perfect item combination for Zean, which would at least increase his chances of survival and increase his chances of victory, even if the enemy he was facing was far superior in level or even when he was fighting multiple enemies simultaneously.
"Now, I will finish you all off, even if you attack me all at once!" Zean spoke to the pack of wolves as if they were human.
Of course, all he received was growls and hateful glares from the wolves.
A wolf darted toward Zean, its sharp claws already raised.
Meanwhile, Zean himself didn't flinch, nor did he move an inch from where he stood. He simply activated his ring, and right in front of him, a transparent shield formed around his body.
Brruakk...
The wolf ended up crashing into the shield Zean had created. Wasting no time, he swung his sword at the wolf, striking a vital point on the first wolf's body. The stab wound pierced through its body, causing it to stagger, though not completely kill it.
Several other wolves simultaneously attacked Zean, and just as before, he blocked each attack with a transparent shield, then launched a flurry of slashes and stabs.
"I think I can handle this pretty well," Zean muttered as he continued to focus on his attacks.
He continued to counterattack all the wolves that rushed at him, occasionally evading, then delivering slashes and stabs at vital points.
Two wolves finally lay dead on the ground after sustaining multiple slashes and stabs. Only six wolves remained, all six of whom had also sustained several wounds from Zean's sword.
Just as before, Zean simply read their movements, then launched counterattacks while evading.
The battle continued with the same pattern and strategy. After several minutes, Zean finally managed to subdue the eight wolves, although he actually had some difficulty defeating them all at once.
The silver sword he held had also now turned red, completely coated in fresh blood.
"Their bodies haven't disappeared!" Zean said, staring intently for a few seconds at the eight wolf carcasses now lying on the ground.
What Zean was doing now was waiting and comparing, wanting to see if the carcasses of all the wolves would turn into tiny fragments that would dissipate into thin air. However, after waiting a little longer, nothing happened to the wolf carcasses; they remained the same, unchanged.
"Well, I guess it'll stay that way. There's no point in waiting."
Zean walked over to one of the wolf carcasses, raised his sword vertically, and with a single, moderate thrust, stabbed the dead wolf in the stomach. His sword easily pierced the wolf's abdomen, while Zean felt the sharp sensation of the blade piercing through it.
"Yosh... This tastes like real meat."
Zean drew his sword again, fresh blood dripping from the tip of the blade.
"It would be a waste if I didn't keep all these wolf carcasses. I think the meat will be useful as a food supplement if I'm still in this forest in the next few days."
One by one, all the wolf carcasses finally went into his inventory.
Zean turned his gaze back to the path he had taken earlier. Although he still wanted to rest for a moment and felt a bit lazy to rush, Zean clearly couldn't give in to those feelings. He had to get out of the forest before nightfall. He was worried that stronger monsters would appear at night, which would only make things more difficult for him.