The Hunt Begins

In the swamp.

The Swamp Gray Dwarves shouted and shot arrows toward the sky.

They still did not understand what Roger's look meant.

That was the terror only Magic Explosion Frogs could realize...

"Toughness."

A very special detailed attribute.

It represented the human body's resistance to its own negative states.

It must be noted that "resistance" was not equivalent to "immunity".

To give an analogy.

If a person was injured.

Then high Toughness could allow them to "resist" many negative states brought by the injury: pain, fainting, difficulty moving, and so on.

However, the wound still existed; they could not "immune" the injury away.

Therefore, high Toughness did not mean high immunity.

Even so.

"Toughness" remained a very worthwhile attribute to invest in.

In combat, higher Toughness could create a higher fault tolerance rate for adventurers.

And maxed-out Toughness could allow someone to linger on for a dozen extra seconds in extreme situations like cardiac arrest, a slit throat, or an exploded head!

Do not underestimate the effect of delayed death.

This world had Revival Scrolls.

Sometimes, coming back from the dead versus turning to ashes came down to just those dozen seconds! Therefore, when Roger clearly saw that the new attribute was indeed Toughness, he tightened the reins without hesitation.

He was signaling Misha to fly back.

The Flying Dragon Beast's relatively low intelligence made it difficult for Misha to understand Roger's intention.

Yet there were Swamp Gray Dwarves' crossbow bolts ahead, the master's residence in the rear, and Roger's forceful kiting on its neck.

So after struggling for just a moment, it turned its flight direction around.

Roger did not return to Dragon Tooth Village with her.

After breaking away from the Swamp Gray Dwarves' sight, he jumped straight down from the Flying Dragon Beast's back!

The 1st Ring Feat "Light as a Swallow" came into play once more.

Both Slow and Feather Fall took effect.

With a swish, Roger landed lightly.

He rolled a few times on the ground, unloading the last bit of momentum.

Then he quickly grabbed his backpack, moved in a few bounds, and the figure disappeared into the reed marsh.

The Hunt Begins!

In the southern part of Yellowstone Island, near a relatively clear lake.

Two crooked Locust Trees obscured the twilight of the swamp.

Visible mist rose from the lake surface, and coming with the breeze was the rough voice typical of Swamp Gray Dwarves.

They seemed to be cursing something.

Roger could not understand the Swamp Gray Dwarves' language.

Yet he could barely deduce that these Swamp Gray Dwarves were sentinels stationed around Yellowstone Island.

Their purpose should be to prevent anyone from leaving Yellowstone Island.

After finding the group of Swamp Gray Dwarves who had attacked him, Roger did not act rashly.

He walked a stretch along the perimeter of Yellowstone Island, and sure enough, within less than five kilometers, he discovered another Swamp Gray Dwarf outpost.

Are these the vanguard of the Swamp Gray Dwarves?

They have surrounded Yellowstone Island, and it looks like they really have big plans.

I wonder how many people their main force has.

Roger did not lower his guard in the slightest.

He knew very well that the Swamp Gray Dwarves and Magic Explosion Frogs were not prey of the same tier.

These Swamp Gray Dwarves were close to his level, and they had squad organization, astonishing defense, and fine weapons.

Aside from not having much brains, they were pretty much an elite army.

Judging from the setup of the outposts, the leader of the Swamp Gray Dwarves had a certain level of intelligence.

Rachel mentioned that the exile leader named Hanfulan allied with the Swamp Gray Dwarves...

I hope they can withstand the pressure.

Roger stealthily slipped back to his original position.

Whether Dragon Tooth Village could withstand the massive offensive of the Swamp Gray Dwarves and exiles was very important to him.

In order to safely hunt down a sufficient number of Swamp Gray Dwarves.

He had already prepared himself for long-term guerrilla warfare.

And that required them to hold enough firepower in a frontal engagement.

Otherwise, it would be very troublesome.

Dragon Tooth Village.

Restless Flying Dragon Beasts formed a team, circling low around the Banyan Tree.

Wherever the firelight reached were the busy shadows of villagers.

Reinforcing walls, moving supplies, preparing for battle...

The incident happened abruptly, and they had too many things to do.

Outside the medical room.

A pale-faced Rachel tried hard to soothe the startled Mi Mi.

After a while.

Mi Mi quieted down, leading the rest of the Flying Dragon Beasts to find an open space to rest.

"How is it? What happened?"

Cindy's expression was very serious.

Such a thing had never happened before—

The Flying Dragon Beast had returned, but the rider had vanished without a trace.

"Unclear. Mi Mi refuses to communicate right now."

Rachel bit her lip unconsciously: "I checked arrow marks on the wing. He might have been hit and fallen off."

"Are the Swamp Gray Dwarves' numbers already this dense? I clearly told her to take a different direction..."

Cindy shook her head:

"Hanfulan is more prepared than we imagined."

"This is a tough battle. We really need you, but right now, you must get some rest."

With a stern little face, Rachel insisted, "I have to go look for him, what if he didn't die..."

Cindy hurriedly grabbed her.

"Lord Roger will be fine."

Someone suddenly chimed in from the side.

Rachel shifted her gaze.

Eric carried a pile of stones as he walked over from the dark, saying earnestly:

"Let me tell you a secret: no matter how strong a monster is, Lord Roger only needs at most one move to instantly kill it."

"The Swamp Gray Dwarves are indeed very powerful to us."

"But to Lord Roger, dealing with them is definitely a piece of cake!"

Rachel was silent for a moment before she reluctantly agreed to go back and rest.

These Swamp Gray Dwarves are a bit tricky!

In the lakeshore grass.

Roger, who had been in concealment for a long time, could not help scratching his head.

The tricky part mainly lay in "Rough Stone Skin".

This trait guaranteed that the Swamp Gray Dwarves possessed super-strong defense, leaving non-vital attacks with zero chance of taking effect.

As for vital points.

Having observed for so long, Roger discovered that the Swamp Gray Dwarves' fatal weaknesses were only the back of the neck and eye sockets.

The crotch was suspected to be one as well.

Yet the Swamp Gray Dwarves did not give Roger such an opportunity for in-depth observation...

Time to move.

Roger took a deep breath, gently pulling the rope by his hand.

On the tranquil lake surface, plop-plop sounds suddenly came over.

The Swamp Gray Dwarves on the Locust Tree poked their heads out one after another.

Yet the fog was so thick that they could not see the specific situation at all.

Swish, swish, swish! A few crossbow bolts were shot over, but there was no other movement.

At that very moment.

Three irritable Swamp Gray Dwarves jumped down from the tree.

They thrashed about in the water for a while, then wielded their crossbows and went ashore to patrol.

While on the other side of the Locust Tree closer to the shore.

A deft shadow climbed up silently under the cover of night.

Only two guarding Swamp Gray Dwarves remained on the Locust Tree.

Roger's physique was as light as a feline's.

Under the enhancement of Cloud Mist Step, it did not take long before he climbed directly above one Swamp Gray Dwarf.

With a shing sound.

The Qing Fu Sword pierced all the way in from the back of the Swamp Gray Dwarf's neck, giving it a thoroughly chilling strike.

"You killed 1 Swamp Gray Dwarf"

"You gained 12 XP"

"Your 'Toughness' improved slightly"

"You used assassination to kill a monster for the first time, you obtained a new milestone - Assassin's Creed"

"Your Milestone Points have accumulated to 11, redeemable milestone rewards discovered, do you wish to redeem?"