Chapter 24: A Little Dragon’s First Hunt

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With Mongrel by my side, I stepped into the Crystal Forest—a perilous Soul Beast Nest teeming with high-ranking beasts. It was a place Hrymdra had often taken me to hunt together. I still remembered how she would let me catch something, and then we would cook it side by side and share the meal.

Those small moments had probably meant nothing to her, but to me, they meant everything. Because of that, I could not abandon her. I simply couldn’t. Not after the times we had spent together—and not when I still longed to share so many more with her.

I had to save her.

“Ugh, but I should still try to call my parents, the thing is, I can’t… or well, I have no idea how.”

And it wasn’t just that, there’s Time Dilation here, I’ve noticed it for a while. If I wake up and then return, hours might have passed or days.

Aunt might be dead or turned into… something else.

And even if I still wanted to gamble it, I already tried waking up and I can’t.

Something is interrupting my ability to do so inside this Realm, it’s like Nightmare Essence is spreading and trapping the souls inside.

If this keeps going, it’ll get worse.

The only option is to do it myself, I must do it, there’s no other way.

“Astraea, I’m here now,” I said.

[Good. I can see through you, Master. Hrymdra is fine for now. She has just fallen asleep. Her breathing is heavy, but… she still possesses a great amount of vitality.]

“That’s reassuring,” I nodded. “Alright, Mongrel. Let’s go hunting.”

We ventured deeper into the Crystal Forest, marveling at its breathtaking beauty. Towering trees of ice crystals shimmered in shades of blue and white, bathing the entire forest in an ethereal glow as countless colors danced across their surfaces.

The dim sun of the Ice Dragon Realm shone brightly enough today to illuminate the woods almost completely. Constant reflections of light rays wove through the crystals, turning the scene into something truly magical.

“So what exactly do we need from here?” Mongrel groaned, sounding as bored and annoyed as ever.

“You’re awfully chatty today,” I said with a smile. “I appreciate it.”

“Shut up and just tell me what we need…” he yawned.

“From my experience hunting with my aunt, the best Soul Essence-replenishing food comes from the meat and blood of the strongest monsters in this area,” I replied. “Their hearts work well too. We can also grind their Soul Cores into dust and add that.”

“But what kind of creatures live here?” he asked.

“You can see for yourself,” I said, glancing around. “We’re already surrounded.”

“Huh?!” Mongrel gasped.

Indeed, we were. At least five creatures had encircled us. They looked like white-and-blue werewolves, with oversized arms and stubby legs. Their massive heads bristled with sharp fangs, and their eyes glowed with feral red madness. These were the most common Soul Beasts of the Crystal Forest: Ice Crystal Wolves.

“AWOOOOOO!”

Among them loomed an even larger specimen—the pack leader—standing atop a nearby hill. It glared down at us with raw fury, fangs bared in a menacing growl.

[Ice Crystal Wolf: Rank 5]

[Ice Crystal Wolf Pack Leader: Rank 6]

They were strong, but not invincible. My Soul was only at Rank 2, so I could not afford to take direct hits. I would have to rely on my physical strength instead, just as I had done since arriving in this world.

That was where the Rogue Class would prove invaluable.

And so would my newly awakened Spiral.

“ROAR!”

The wolves lunged at me all at once. I vanished from sight using Stealth, then—

“Paragon!”

I summoned the knight clad in silvery-white dragon armor. It thrust its longsword forward, slicing through two wolves and leaving deep bleeding gashes across their bodies. They let out agonized yelps as I reappeared behind them, slashing their backs with Dragon Claw before following up with Baby Dragon Breath. A black-and-white beam of light and darkness erupted, blasting the wolves away.

BOOOM!

Both beasts were incinerated on the spot, their charred corpses collapsing onto the snow. The remaining wolves charged furiously. I answered by hurling knives at them.

Through Knife Throwing, three Chaos Knives materialized. Guided by the skill’s accuracy boost, they struck the wolves straight in the eyes, blinding all three at once. The knives—made of solidified Chaos Energy—then exploded, shattering their skulls and killing them instantly.

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“Wow, done already?”

I stood there, surprised by how effortlessly the Skills had worked. Before my Awakening, I could only manage weak Dragon Claws or small breath attacks—and a big one only if I pushed myself to the limit. Now, simply activating a Skill unleashed powerful effects almost instantly. These abilities seemed to draw from my own latent power while making everything feel far more natural.

“Grrr!”

RUMBLE!

The ground shook as the Pack Leader descended from the hill, howling with rage. Its aura flared bright red as it began absorbing the energy from its fallen pack.

“Hey, wait—what are you doing?!”

This was no ordinary Ice Crystal Wolf. It was a rare variant, nothing like the ones I had hunted with my aunt.

[The Ice Crystal Wolf Pack Leader (Rank 6) is enraged at the loss of its pack!]

[It has activated the Skill: Blood Sacrifice – Last Stand (Level 1)! It has gained 25% of the stats from all its fallen comrades, rising to Rank 7!]

“Are you kidding me—Guh?!”

“ROOOAR!”

The enraged werewolf swung its massive claws at me. They scraped across my scales, leaving cracks, but failed to pierce through. Still, one claw struck my face, slicing across my eye. Blinding pain exploded through me as blood poured down and my vision went dark on that side.

“Master!” Astraea cried out in panic.

“Get off her, you bastard!!!” Mongrel hissed. He transformed into a giant mass of tentacles and seized the werewolf, but the beast roared and began ripping him apart. “Ouch! That hurts!”

I quickly activated Harmonious Restoration. As the wound on my eye began to close, I darted behind the beast, shapeshifted my weapon into a long broadsword, and drove it deep into its back.

“Gryyyaaahhh!”

The monster screamed and vomited blood all over Mongrel before wrenching itself free. It kicked me viciously in the face and body with its powerful legs, then opened its bleeding maw and unleashed a searing beam of red light.

BOOOM!

Thankfully, I summoned my Tiamat Scale Shield in time. The shield absorbed the blast as I pushed forward and slammed the beast into the ground.

The roaring creature hissed furiously and manipulated the surrounding ice, forming dozens of icicle spears that hovered menacingly above me before hurtling down.