Bern's Shock

After checking for snakes and insects, Lin Mo leaned against a tree, the Wolfbone Sword resting at his side as he briefly closed his eyes to rest.

His young body could barely endure the fatigue of a sleepless night, but even so, it still affected his condition to some extent.

In the end, his Constitution was still too low—only 4 points. If it had been raised like his Strength and Agility, he probably would not have felt so awful.

"Come to think of it, Brother Lin Mo, what team were you in before?"

During the break, Evan came over and asked curiously.

Lin Mo opened his eyes and shook his head. "I've never joined a team."

"Then you've always been on your own?!"

Evan was instantly stunned. When he had first started following Uncle Bern two years ago, he had experienced that difficult period as a novice, and it had been completely different from what he had imagined... Back in town, holding a wooden sword, he had fantasized about countless battles, imagining himself defeating enemies with all kinds of cool moves.

But once he entered the forest and faced real enemies, he could not even hold his sword steady. He did not even have the courage to fight Goblins.

Fortunately, Uncle Bern had been there to support him, allowing him to gradually grow into the qualified adventurer he was today.

Evan simply could not imagine how someone could face all the hardships and obstacles that had driven him to collapse countless times all by himself.

Bern and Miriam, standing nearby, also looked over in surprise.

Out of the unspoken rules among adventurers, they had never rashly pried into Lin Mo's past. Still, they were quite curious about this capable lone adventurer.

Why had he not joined an adventurer team, choosing instead to venture out alone?

He looked so young, yet he was so capable. When had he even begun his adventuring career?

It seemed those questions would finally have their veil of mystery lifted today.

Yet the truth that came from the handsome young man's mouth left them with an absurd, dreamlike feeling.

"More or less, though it's only been a few days. When I met you, it was my second day as an adventurer—and only the second time I'd left town."

After thinking it over, Lin Mo decided there was no need to mention Raine and the others. It would be better not to let anyone know that he had been conscripted into the forest, lest it cause trouble later.

"So he really is a novice."

Cody crossed his arms and leaned against a tree, unsurprised.

He had never doubted his own judgment. Lin Mo's mannerisms were no different from the novices he had seen before. Even during the battle just now, he had stayed in the back, looking hesitant about whether to step forward.

What puzzled him, however, was that the captain and the others did not seem very familiar with this kid. In other words, he was not some well-connected recruit?

The startled cries that followed interrupted his smug train of thought.

"Second day?!"

Bern, who had always remained composed—even when fighting desperately against the Blood Sea Gang—completely lost his composure for the first time. He stood up and stared at Lin Mo in utter shock, as though he were looking at a monster.

That was right. He had always sensed a subtle strangeness about Lin Mo. Some of his mannerisms really did resemble those of novices like Miriam.

But Bern had always assumed that was because Lin Mo fought alone and had never joined a team.

Because the strength Lin Mo displayed had nothing whatsoever to do with the word "novice," aside from both being human.

Even Bern himself, a knight whose ability to fight alone was relatively weaker, did not think he could defeat Lin Mo. A draw was more likely, with neither side able to do anything to the other.

And it had taken him a full twenty years to go from a novice to his current strength!

Now he was suddenly being told that this young man before him was a complete novice who had been adventuring for less than a week?

Where the hell had this come from? Was this still the Doria Kingdom?

Bern looked as though his entire worldview had collapsed. Evan was even more speechless, feeling as though the past two years of his life had gone to the dogs.

Only Cody was completely bewildered, unable to understand what the captain and the others were so shocked about.

In a daze, he seemed to recall what that kid named Evan had said when they first met. "He's really strong!"

But from beginning to end, Cody had never taken those words seriously.

How strong could a novice possibly be...

Besides, Evan's idea of strength was probably only strong from Evan's own perspective, right?

And Evan's strength, to put it bluntly, was nothing more than that of a rookie.

In this entire team, only Captain Bern's strength had earned Cody's approval. It was precisely because of Bern that Cody had chosen to join this team for the time being.

But now, seeing the unmistakable shock on Captain Bern's face, Cody could not help but begin doubting himself.

Had he really misjudged the kid? Did this brat actually have some skill?

Until the break ended, no one in the team said much. Mainly because Lin Mo had completely killed the conversation, sending the other three into a withdrawn silence.

As the sun climbed toward noon, they ate a little to replenish their energy before setting out once more, officially entering the Cat Demons' territory.

That was how it was described, but the distribution of monsters had always been a vague concept. This area naturally did not contain only Cat Demons, nor would they necessarily encounter them soon after entering. Everything still depended on luck.

And their team's luck did not seem particularly good.

The blazing sunlight beat down on them, making them feel dizzy. It was early summer, and the forest was scorching hot, with even the air faintly warping.

In such weather, the adventurers were still wearing armor, so naturally they were unbearably hot. Lin Mo's clothes were already soaked with sweat. Bern and Evan were even worse off; the two of them wore iron armor, and their armor had been heated scorching hot by the sun.

But this time was important, leaving them no room to rest.

Even monsters with daytime habits often chose to take brief rests during the sweltering afternoon, let alone creatures like Cat Demons that were accustomed to moving at night.

Noon was when they were most relaxed, most drowsy, and most vulnerable.

The forest filled with everyone's increasingly heavy breathing. Lin Mo wiped the sweat from his forehead and continued scanning his surroundings cautiously.

No matter when it was, one could not let down one's guard so easily.

That was the lesson a young man named Barnes had taught him with his life.

Bern and Evan were the same. The assassin Cody leaped onto a branch and looked farther into the distance.

Only Miriam seemed too drained by the heat to summon much energy. Still, as a Ranger, she was walking in the middle of the group, so she was not in much danger.

"Captain, I found the target!"

Besides lurking in the shadows and waiting for chances to launch surprise attacks, assassins often also served as the team's scouts.

Like Bern, Cody was an experienced adventurer, and he carried out his duties very competently.

"At forty degrees southeast, roughly over four hundred meters away. There are four Cat Demons in total. Two are resting, and one is feeding..."

The team members all tensed, instantly focusing with utmost alertness.

Seeing everyone's gazes turn toward him, Bern drew his sword and pointed it in the direction Cody had indicated. In a low voice, he said, "Prepare for battle!"