At this moment, Hina, standing inside the circle of fire, was completely stunned. She was no dumbfounded, her beautiful eyes filled with disbelief.
Flames?!
Roya's sword… actually had flames on it?!
Hina widened her eyes in astonishment, staring at the Engetsu sword in Roya's hand, observing the crimson flames that coiled around the blade.
Roya could control fire!
Hina recalled the level 1 brown-backed giant ape that had been completely roasted. She had always wondered how it had died, and now it was clear… Roya had killed it!
Finally realizing the truth, Hina's gaze remained filled with near-incredible disbelief. In just a month, Roya had undergone such a dramatic transformation.
Even as Hina continued to stare in disbelief, Roya had already cut down all the beasts that charged through the fire circle. He then swung his sword at the ones writhing on the ground in agony, still ablaze, quickly dispatching them one by one.
Flames entwined around Engetsu, preventing a single drop of blood from sticking to the blade. All blood vaporized, leaving no traces on the battlefield.
The crimson flames danced around the sword like fire spirits, resembling golden-red flowers—beautiful yet chilling.
After slaying the last of the dozen or so attacking beasts, Roya swung his sword once more, and the flames gradually receded.
Only then did Hina slowly regain her senses, still wearing a look of disbelief. She couldn't help but ask, "You… are you really Roya?!"
"If not, then who else?"
Roya rolled his eyes at her, seemingly amused that she had finally realized.
Around them, the fire continued to burn.
Being in a jungle, the flames had already ignited the surrounding undergrowth and threatened to spread throughout the forest. If left unchecked, the entire island could burn.
"If this keeps burning, someone will probably intervene. But just burning a little… shouldn't be a problem."
"Then… let's continue the hunt!"
A glint of determination flashed in Roya's eyes. He let the flames burn freely for the moment and charged forward, dashing from the fire toward the remaining beasts.
The beasts closest to the blaze stared at the flames, their ferocity gradually suppressed and replaced by a natural fear of fire.
When Roya, wrapped in flames like a being of fire, surged from the inferno, the nearest beasts dared not approach him and tried to flee.
Seeing this, Roya was slightly surprised. Then, he tilted his head down, a small smile appearing, and with one hand gripping Engetsu, he unleashed a sudden sweep of his sword.
Hum!
A surge of intense fire coiled around the sword and instantly erupted into five fireballs, hurtling toward the nearest fleeing beasts.
The flames moved at incredible speed. The beasts could not dodge—some were struck directly, others grazed—and all were immediately engulfed in fire.
The beasts writhed and screamed in agony, but could not extinguish the flames.
Whoosh!
The flames, fueled by the beasts' thrashing, spread to the surrounding undergrowth and forest, transforming the area into a raging inferno.
Finally, all the remaining beasts lost their ferocious fighting spirit. They tucked their tails and began retreating, some disappearing into the depths of the forest.
But by this time, Roya would not let his prey escape.
"Thinking of running now… too late."
Roya's smile spread across his face, giving him a deceptively harmless appearance—if one ignored the flaming Engetsu sword in his hand.
Whoosh!
In the next instant, Roya surged forward, and the flames on his sword erupted again, sweeping across all directions.
Chaos ensued. All the beasts panicked under the flames, scattering in all directions. Some collided with the fire, others crashed into trees in their blind panic.
The fire in the forest blazed higher and higher.
Roya, with only a sword in hand, advanced with the burning forest behind him like a fiery backdrop. No beast dared challenge him.
Even level 1 beasts trembled before the inferno, fleeing in terror.
The scene had transformed into Roya alone, sword in hand, hunting a fleeing horde of beasts.
Hina, following behind, watched in astonishment. The flames seemed to roar inside her heart as well. Her eyes were filled with sheer disbelief.
Could this really be the same Roya?!
If not for the blazing inferno around them, radiating heat and intensity that intimidated the senses, Hina would have thought she was dreaming.
Flames scattered in all directions. Wherever Roya went, the area became a domain of fire.
In a forest, fire ruled supreme. In open terrain or a desert, achieving this effect would be impossible, even if Roya's flame powers increased tenfold.
Every beast in Roya's path fled in fear. Even level 1 beasts had no desire to fight against him, instead running in desperation.
Harnessing the raging fire, he swept across all directions.
Two… five… ten…
With each strike, the number of beasts falling to Roya's sword increased. Beasts below level 2 could not withstand a single strike, and even level 1 beasts were powerless against his flames, swiftly killed by Engetsu.
This live combat assessment, meant for regular camp recruits, could not stop Roya at all.
Wherever he went, destruction followed.
As Roya continued his slaughter, the inferno expanded, finally drawing the attention of other recruits.
In the forest, Drake fought a powerful level 1 beast. He looked slightly battered, while the beast bore many injuries.
"Ha!"
In the next instant, a fierce glint appeared in Drake's eyes. With a firm low shout, he swung his weapon decisively.
Thud!
Drake was knocked back by the beast's impact, but his weapon struck the beast's vital spot—victory was his.
After the difficult kill, Drake caught his breath beside the corpse.
"A level 1 beast… even without using my special ability, I can hunt it. Seems this assessment isn't challenging for me."
Drake nodded and prepared to continue hunting.
But suddenly, his expression changed as he noticed something in the distance.
The forest ahead was glowing crimson and the fire seemed to grow ever larger.
"Is… it on fire?"
A look of surprise flashed in Drake's eyes.
The wildfire showed no signs of stopping, spreading rapidly as if it would consume the entire forest. Drake's expression grew grim.
"This fire is huge… impossible to resist. It's already affecting the live combat assessment… how did the forest suddenly erupt into such a massive blaze?"