Chapter 6: The Forest of Death

By this point, Luke had abandoned all hope of joining this year’s official Tutorial. He didn’t know the exact time limit the system allowed before the portal closed, but he estimated something between two weeks and a month. That was the usual window for someone to level up and move on.

But now, it didn’t matter anymore. His priority wasn’t advancement, it was survival. Over the past few days, he had explored the entire cavern. He discovered it was circular in shape, and he had already covered half the territory. The other half was covered in a dense, dark forest.

Luke had never entered it. Not once. Not even the monsters got close to it. That told him everything. The boss was in there. He opened his system interface again, scrolling until he found the notification about the sealed doors at the northern edge of the cave.

[Notice]: This is the final floor of the Dungeon and houses the Forgotten Temple. These doors can only be opened from the inside if you possess the Statue Key, currently guarded by a Boss.

There was something about that message. Luke reread it carefully. Just like the words spoken by the statue, the System played with language—giving hints. And there it was, his first clue: he didn’t need to kill the boss. He just needed the key. Risky. Insane. But it was a plan. Level up as much as possible. Enter the forest. Steal the key. Escape. His eyes drifted to the old leather pouch left behind by the dungeon’s last occupant.

“You… cleared the entire floor before heading in, didn’t you?” he muttered. “To level up. To give yourself a chance…”

He pictured the scene: someone like him, trying to grow stronger before the final confrontation, someone who had the exact same idea and died for it. Now, Luke stared at the silent forest, half-lit by the violet shimmer of the crystals. He was about to repeat that same madness. He could’ve chosen the slow route: kill one monster a week, stretch out his life, delay the inevitable.

But that’s all it would’ve been, delaying death. Because soon, the monsters would be gone, and what would follow was starvation, weakness, a miserable end. Or he could bet everything: slay all remaining creatures now, level up as far as possible, and face fate head-on. He looked once more at the forest. At the pouch resting on the table.

He remembered the statue. That solemn voice: “Death awaits you on both paths.”

“The only question is whether it will be quick or slow.”

Luke closed his holster with purpose, picked up the pouch, and turned toward the darkness. He was decided; he’d take the quick method and face death head-on.

***

One week. That’s how long it had been since Luke decided to face the boss. And now—arrows sliced through the air as he ran.

“Shit!” he growled, weaving between trees.

Three kobolds, mounted on giant rats, were right behind him… and unfortunately for him, they knew how to shoot. Arrows ripped past, striking bark and branches. Luke didn’t retreat—he circled, climbed trees, leapt from branch to branch. He didn’t just feel faster now—he was. He could calculate the weight of his body with every step, feel the strength of each branch beneath his hands, know in a split-second whether it could handle his movement.

His brain was faster. His memory sharper. He could recall the scent of moss, the taste of blood, every moment of the past few days with painful clarity. More arrows. Luke dropped between the enemies, rolling on impact. He threw a knife—it split mid-air. A kobold dropped, its throat pierced clean.

Before he could move, a rat slammed into him. He smashed into a tree. Pain lit up his back, then his shoulders. The creature bit down hard. He screamed, but his mind stayed calm. Still. Like a lake. He punched the rat’s snout. It reeled back. His shoulder bled, but his focus… was ice. He threw another knife—dead on. The second kobold collapsed with a choking sound.

[You have slain Cave Kobold – Lvl 4]

No time to rest. He sprinted again, dodging more arrows between trees. Two kobolds. Three rats. Luke burst from a thicket, sliding across the ground. He deflected an arrow with his blade, then threw. Direct hit. The knife buried itself in the kobold’s eye. It screamed, fell backward.

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Luke spun, grabbed a fallen blade, rolled, and lunged at the final kobold. He drove the knife deep into its neck. Clean. Silent. Deadly.

**Your class [Assassin] has reached Level 4! (Class Bonus Points Acquired)**

The moment he leveled up, he felt it—his body responded instantly. Strength surged through his limbs, reflexes sharpened, and his balance adjusted on instinct. One of the rats charged. Luke twisted midair and kicked its snout. It staggered back, dazed. Three still alive. Nearby, the fallen kobold groaned in pain, half-conscious.

A second rat lunged with a snarl. Luke rolled to the side, drew four blades, and threw them in a fluid motion. Mid-flight, each one split with a shimmer of Twin Blade—eight knives flew. The creature was impaled in multiple spots and crumpled mid-charge.

[You have slain Cave Rat – Lvl 4]

The next came right after. Luke hurled a knife straight into its face. It shrieked. Without pause, he sprinted forward, grabbed a branch with both hands, swung his body up and forward, and slammed into the rat with a brutal flying kick. The impact drove the embedded blade deeper into its skull.

[You have slain Cave Rat – Lvl 4]