Things Went Smoother Than Expected

Things Went Smoother Than Expected

Night had finally fallen.

After the sun dipped below the horizon, the air in the forest grew increasingly heavy.

Many of the monsters here seemed to be nocturnal, so as soon as the sky turned dark, they appeared in every corner of the forest and began to stir.

Under these circumstances, there was no doubt that the night here was far more dangerous than the day.

Fortunately, after the sun went down, Shien finally found a hiding spot that met his requirements.

It was a cave nestled at the base of a cliff.

If it's there, it should be enough to let me spend the night, right?

Hiding in the bushes to the side of the cave, Shien looked at the scene, but no joy appeared on his face.

Because—

No matter how I look at it, that guy doesn't seem like the type to agree to let me inside.

Looking closely, a monster was lying right in front of the cave.

It was a Demon Dog, as sturdy as a leopard, covered in spots with jet-black fur, and flames flickering across its back.

The Demon Dog seemed to be asleep, lying before the cave with its eyes tightly shut. Its back rose and fell rhythmically, and its breathing was quite steady, yet every breath was accompanied by intense heat. Flames even erupted from its mouth, nose, and the slits of its closed eyes. It looked just like a Hellfire hound guarding the gates of hell, which was quite intimidating.

Shien felt a bit helpless.

Although I had already prepared myself mentally...

After all, he had specifically followed the monster reactions fed back by his Enemy Perception skill, so encountering a monster was only natural.

However, seeing such a fierce beast right in front of him, Shien still felt a bit daunted.

Even though, according to the feedback from his Enemy Perception skill, this Demon Dog should be weaker than the Fierce Bird from earlier in the day—resulting in a weaker reaction from the skill—this time was different from the day.

This time, Shien wasn't being attacked; he had to be the one to attack the other party.

Only then could Shien occupy that cave and turn it into his own hiding place.

"Hoo."

Shien slowly adjusted his breathing.

"It's fine. With the Holy Sword in hand, there's no way I can't do this."

Shien tightened his grip on the Holy Sword, psyching himself up.

"The opponent is weaker than that bird from earlier, and I was able to kill that bird in one hit. There's no reason I can't kill this dog in one hit."

Shien told himself this.

However, this time, Shien didn't intend to engage the opponent head-on.

In theory, with the protection of the Holy Sword, plus the maxed-out Physical Resistance and Magic Resistance skills to weaken the damage he took, Shien should be able to win even in a head-on fight against a Demon Dog weaker than the Fierce Bird.

But, forgive Shien; he was, after all, a person from Another World who hadn't experienced much combat. To have him charge head-on at such a ferocious monster was really asking too much of him.

Besides, if he could win without any risk, why would he go and act recklessly?

Therefore, Shien tried his best to lower the sound of his breathing and footsteps, moving stealthily along the bushes and grass while concealing his figure.

"Skill acquired—Stealth—Learn?"

At that very moment, such a message flooded into Shien's mind.

Shien was stunned for a moment, then immediately checked it.

==========

Stealth

skill.

entering states such as hiding, lurking, or ambushing, it will eliminate scent, breathing sounds, footsteps, and even presence to a certain degree, depending on the skill level. If the skill level is high enough, it can also affect the surrounding environment and other individuals nearby.

==========

The appearance of this skill was like a timely rain.

Originally, Shien had been worried about being discovered by the other party.

After all, the opponent was a dog, and Shien had actually prepared himself for the possibility of being exposed by his scent.

But the appearance of Stealth completely eliminated Shien's worries.

Thus, Shien didn't hesitate to learn the skill and raise it to the max level.

With that, after the max-level Stealth was further amplified by the Holy Sword, the effect was absolutely explosive.

By the time Shien realized it, he had already arrived behind the Demon Dog without a sound.

The sleeping Demon Dog had exposed its entire body to Shien's eyes, completely defenseless.

Without delay, Shien struck decisively.

"Puchi!"

As the Holy Sword descended, the brilliant, sharp blade pierced directly through the Demon Dog's body.

"Awoo!"

The Demon Dog let out a shrill howl and finally woke from its slumber, opening a pair of red eyes that looked like they were burning, while terrifying, scorching flames erupted from its entire body.

Shien, who was within arm's reach, was hit squarely by the flames, instantly turning into a human torch and being scorched.

However, Shien's Magic Resistance skill seemed to have taken effect, and the Holy Sword's protection was also triggered, so even while bathed in the raging flames, Shien didn't suffer any damage, nor could he even feel a hint of heat.

Not long after, the flames vanished.

The Demon Dog, its body pierced by the Holy Sword, collapsed onto the charred ground. All the flames on its body had extinguished, and the ground beneath it was gradually stained red with blood, leaving only some surrounding weeds ignited and burning slowly.

"Skill acquired—Assassination—Learn?"

Having successfully killed the Demon Dog, Shien gained a new skill once again.

==========

Assassination

skill.

while in a state of hiding, lurking, or ambushing will increase the probability of a one-hit kill.

in a state of hiding, lurking, or ambushing, it will be possible to detect enemy weaknesses with a high probability.

==========

Undoubtedly, this was also a highly practical skill, and Shien immediately raised it to the max level while his heart was still racing.

"Thanks to these skills, things went even smoother than I imagined."

Shien pulled the Holy Sword from the dead Demon Dog's body and then instinctively stepped away.

Having killed a monster for the second time, Shien was finally getting a bit used to it, though the smell of blood still made him feel as if some psychological trauma had been awakened, making him hesitant to get close.

"But I can't just leave the corpse here, or monsters attracted by the smell of blood will definitely come to visit."

Considering this, Shien forced himself to endure the discomfort, first using the surrounding soil to bury the blood, and then dragging the Demon Dog's corpse into the cave.

The cave was filled with the smell of wild beasts, which was extremely foul, and it was littered with various bones and rotting meat, seemingly the souls lost under this Demon Dog's jaws.

"No wonder you ran outside to sleep; it stinks in here."

Shien was on the verge of tears.

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