"Cunning thing."
Zong Shen had already seen through the Grassland Wolf's intentions.
The Grassland Wolf was trying to lure him away from the courtyard.
Without the protection of the courtyard's "newbie protection status," the Grassland Wolf could attack Zong Shen at its leisure.
Although this world had some game-like features, the Grassland Wolf and the three silly farmers under his command made it clear that the creatures living here had thoughts and feelings of their own.
This gave Zong Shen an even deeper understanding of this wondrous world.
Wolves were unruly and held grudges.
Since this Grassland Wolf had set its sights on him and his people, it wouldn't leave easily.
With that in mind, he didn't chase after it. Instead, he retreated step by step into the Lord's Courtyard.
Sure enough, the Grassland Wolf stopped backing away and stood still, staring intently at Zong Shen.
It seemed as if it wanted to devour him with its gaze.
Zong Shen didn't seem to care. He lowered his shield and One-handed Sword, then gave the Grassland Wolf a mocking smile.
Sure enough, the Grassland Wolf pounced again. This time, it seemed to have learned its lesson and didn't cross the boundary.
It only paced back and forth across the grass, three meters beyond the courtyard.
That was the nature of a wolf: the weaker you were, the stronger it became; the stronger you were, the weaker it became.
When Zong Shen retreated, it advanced.
It was trying to surround him and make him lose his nerve.
Just then, Zong Shen grinned and took the Hunting Crossbow from his back.
He pulled a bolt from the quiver at his waist and drew back the bowstring.
Even with Zong Shen's clearly enhanced strength, he could feel the powerful tension as he drew the bowstring.
This Hunting Crossbow was definitely no ordinary weapon!
Its attributes listed its piercing damage as 33, but Zong Shen still didn't understand what those numbers meant in practice.
He set the bolt into the Hunting Crossbow's firing groove.
Then he aimed at the Grassland Wolf.
Several meters away, the Grassland Wolf warily eyed the Hunting Crossbow in Zong Shen's hands.
It wasn't fully grown yet.
It was still growing.
An adult Grassland Wolf was much larger than this one.
A wolf king would be larger still.
The Grassland Wolf before him seemed to have become separated from its pack and ended up alone.
So, while it was still growing, it had never seen a Hunting Crossbow before. It only instinctively sensed that the thing was dangerous.
As Zong Shen raised the Hunting Crossbow,
he noticed another advantage.
A golden crosshair appeared before his eyes.
At the same time, golden circles marked weak points such as the wolf's waist, nose, and eyes.
The golden Strategy Guide beside him was flashing.
(Aim at one of the circles on this little wolf. At this range, you'd have to be blind to miss.)
Zong Shen understood the hint. He aimed the crosshair at the golden circle marking the Grassland Wolf's eye.
Then, without hesitation, he pulled the Hunting Crossbow's trigger!
"Clang!"
"Whoosh!"
The bowstring twanged as it snapped back.
Then came the sharp whistle of the bolt cutting through the air.
"Awoo!"
The Grassland Wolf's wail followed.
The bolt struck the Grassland Wolf right in the eye, burying itself halfway in. Its tail kept quivering.
Bright red damage numbers appeared above the Grassland Wolf's head.
[-50]
[-9]
[-5]
[-4]
The Hunting Crossbow itself dealt 33 piercing damage, and the Bent Crossbow Bolt added another 8 points. There might also have been a bonus from his own attributes.
This showed that the eye was an unprotected weak point, so the Hunting Crossbow's shot had dealt its full damage.
As for the other damage numbers, they were probably damage over time caused by the bolt after it had embedded itself.
Zong Shen quietly observed everything, gaining some understanding of how attacks and damage were calculated in this world.
There was no other way. In this completely unfamiliar world, he would have to learn and draw conclusions through trial and error.
At least he had the Strategy Module. Everyone else probably had to rely on their gaming experience and make blind guesses.
After the bolt hit the Grassland Wolf,
Zong Shen set the Hunting Crossbow down by his feet.
He grabbed his Kite Shield and One-handed Sword again, then charged forward.
The Grassland Wolf had [62/145] health remaining, already less than half.
Now that it was wounded and in pain, how could it possibly stay here?
It turned around unsteadily, tail between its legs, and tried to flee.
Zong Shen wasn't about to let it slip away right under his nose. Holding the shield in one hand and the sword in the other, he rushed after it.
The wounded Grassland Wolf moved much more slowly.
Zong Shen, however, was fast. With one slowed and the other quickened, he soon caught up with the wolf.
Gritting his teeth, he swung the rusty One-handed Sword in his right hand at the wolf's waist.
Blood sprayed out, scattering across the grass around them.
The stench of blood soon filled the air.
The One-handed Sword, though seemingly covered in rust, cut cleanly through the Grassland Wolf's fur. The wolf cried out, and a bright red damage number appeared.
[-22]
That damage was indeed lower than the Hunting Crossbow's!
The fur protected this part of its body. Although it was marked as a weak point, unlike the eye, it was still armored.
(You overlooked how your Strength attribute affected the damage calculation. Once you've finished adding points in [Personal], you'll be even stronger.)
When he grew puzzled, another Strategy Guide hint appeared.
After reading it, Zong Shen's doubts eased. He focused on the fight again.
The Grassland Wolf had now been badly wounded in the waist and eye. It had only 42 health left, and its movements had grown even more unsteady and weak.
"This is my first prey since coming to this world!"
"Die!"
Zong Shen gritted his teeth and slashed the wolf twice more!
[-22]
[-20]
The Grassland Wolf's health instantly dropped to zero.
All signs of life vanished.
A system notification appeared at the bottom of his vision. With a thought, Zong Shen brought it up before his eyes.
[You killed a LV3 Grassland Wolf] [Experience gained: 55] [Wolf Cavalry Recruitment Scroll ×1] [Grassland Wolf Corpse ×1 (click to dismantle)]
Then a flash of white light appeared.
A few points of light emerged from the wolf's corpse and entered Zong Shen's body.
They were experience points made visible.
Besides the wolf's corpse, a scroll covered in strange runes lay on the ground.
So it really was like a monster in a game!
It could drop equipment!
The three silly farmers, who had been watching from inside the courtyard, saw their lord display his might and kill the Grassland Wolf.
They ran out, cheering.
"Long live the lord!"
"If we follow in our lord's footsteps, we'll surely become nobles!"
"We'd gladly die for our lord!"
The three flatterers chanted their slogans and scampered over to Zong Shen.
They stared at the Grassland Wolf's corpse with longing.
In their eyes, it wasn't a wolf corpse.
It was meat! Fresh meat!
The kind that would sizzle and drip with grease if they put it over a bonfire!
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