In the middle of a forest, a group of people escorting a child advanced toward Arsia’s capital.

“Arsia is at 3 days from here? It’s quite far!” The voice of the child spread through the area, startling a few small animals who were observing the group from distance.

Hains glanced at the child. “A bit. Remember that this area is filled with monsters, so please don’t get too far from us.” Seeing how Shu Himo’s eyes were sparkling at the sight of every creature—especially monsters—he feared that the child would vanish the moment he looked away.

Shu Himo felt an underlying concern in his voice, one completely unrelated to their rescue mission. Gazing at the man's bald head that—unlike the other elites—was devoid of animal ears, some memories resurfaced his mind.

The former Shu Himo had once heard a story from his mother, the story about a human child who lived in despair.

The child’s parents were killed in a raid from bandits, and he himself was sold to slave traders. Between torture and brainwashing attempts he spent a year in that hell, until the day a single woman tore apart the whole market.

Found the lone child who had lost his parents, the woman took him with herself and set free all the other slaves. She groomed him, transforming him from a poor slave to a great warrior.

Filled with gratitude toward her, the child vowed upon her grave to protect her descendants forever.

Shu Himo realized immediately that the child from the story was Hains. He started to see the man in a new light. Nevertheless, he did not want to be treated as a kid, even more so after the new revelation. He wanted to find a way to prove himself so that the elites’ attitude toward him would change.

As if lady luck had shone upon him, the event he wished for arrived right the next moment.

Twenty brown figures jumped down the trees above, ambushing the group.

Huge, hairy bodies and eight sharp-tipped legs ready to pierce their target’s body. Hundreds of red eyes searching an opening on their prey. Few drops of venom sliding down their fangs.

Leaping to their prey, wolf-sized spiders spread terror just by revealing their presence.

But… they chose the wrong prey.

Before their attack could reach their targets, the spider-like creatures found themselves split in half by a single sword’s slash.

“Kheliphods! We entered their territory, let’s move quickly before their queen notices us.” Hains’s voice was calm, not a single speck of anxiety present within. Normal kheliphods would range between rank one to three, so they did not pose much threat to the elites.

Most monsters' overall strength was valued in ranks, compared directly to the average strength of cultivators in certain cultivation realms.

Rank one for monsters with strength comparable to cultivators in the Blood Strengthening phase or lower. Rank two for monsters comparable to cultivators between Meridians Strengthening phase and Acupoints Opening phase. And lastly, rank three monsters were comparable to cultivators in the starting phases of the Dantian Core Formation realm.

The reason such grades were used instead of comparing the monsters to the cultivation phase directly, was due to a need of ‘classify’ the defense capability of a settlement. A rank one settlement was able to resist against rank one monsters, a rank two against rank two, and so on.

A rumor among the populace was that the term was first introduced by a past sovereign who liked ‘fancy words’ and destroyed any kingdom who did not adopt his scale.

Seeing how all his comrades died before they could react, the last kheliphod was trembling like a leaf. It stood hidden on a tree as it retreated, hoping it would not be seen. Its hope was however broken when it heard the voice of a child.

“That one’s mine!”

Standing on the muddy ground, Shu Himo stared straight at the remaining kheliphod. A smile crept on his face. His chance had come.

His words shocked the elites. “Young master!” Hains tried to stop him. “With all due respect, you are in the muscle strengthening phase, you can’t fight against a rank two monster by yourself!”

Those words were going through everyone’s head, but Shu Himo did not pay heed to them at all.

He slid his hand into the sleeves and took out a sword from the storage function.

The sword's sheath should be normally latched to the forearm, hidden entirely by the sleeves. In Shu Himo's case, however, it was still impossible to carry it in such a way due to his forearm's lacking length.

He held the blue grip with his hand as the light downing from the sky reflected upon the short blade. What stood out the most was the meager size of both guard and pommel, being hardly noticeable if not paying attention.

The thin blade reflected how its durability was forsaken, perhaps in hope to attain instead a superior speed.

It was the short sword he had stolen from the leader of the kidnappers. When Shu Himo had first taken the sword, he had asked the system which quality it was.

The answer was scrap. Shu Himo was not happy.

Even just thinking about it made him frown. But it wasn’t the time to get distracted. With the sword in hand, he stepped toward the spider.

Seeing how stubborn he was, Hains decided to let him try, believing that a painful experience may be useful for future situations. Still, he signaled to the others to intervene in case of danger.

The moment it was spotted, the kheliphod knew it had no way to run anymore and could only await its death. However, when it noticed that its opponent was just a child with barely any cultivation it felt looked down upon.

It may have been fine if those Dantian Core Formation monsters were the ones to kill it, but how could it accept to die against a child? Even monsters have some pride!

Noticing how his opponent was getting riled up, Shu Himo smirked. An invisible platform formed beneath his right foot, as his body inclined slightly forward.

It was at that moment that humans and monsters widened their eyes alike.

Albeit his speed was not even comparable to the Dark King Dragon’s, his figure was nevertheless blurry. Before the kheliphod could react, the child appeared just a meter away from it.

His arms were crossed, his right hand holding the sword toward behind his left side. Suddenly, he swung his sword toward the kheliphod. Without encountering any resistance, the sword cut through a leg of the spider.

“SKEEE!”

Hearing the scream from the kheliphod, Shu Himo didn’t stop his offensive. Abusing the spider’s panic, his gaze turned cold.

Stiffening due to the [Intimidation] skill, the kheliphod didn’t counterattack and jumped back instead.

Shu Himo stepped on the tree’s branch and used yet another [Hopper], dashing toward the now in mid-air kheliphod. He slashed with his sword, making a few centimeters deep wound in its abdomen.

In front of his display of strength, the kheliphod wasn’t the only one shocked. Thinking back at how they had underestimated him all along, the elites also felt a shudder sliding down their back.

The kheliphod’s survival instincts suddenly kicked in, and it quickly turned back to flee ignoring anything else. But how could Shu Himo allow it?

An invisible platform appeared beneath his left foot, and its thrust shot him toward the kheliphod before it could escape. Brandishing his sword, he slashed toward the monster and successfully split its body in half.

Impressed by the show, the elite’s brains went once again in a tilt. Seeing their reactions, Shu Himo snickered and returned to walk toward Arsia’s capital. The elites then noticed him and also started to follow suit.

Unlike before, while it wasn’t yet enough to make them look at the child in awe, they all looked at him with respect reflected in their eyes.

All seemed to be perfect, when a ‘Ding’ resounded in Shu Himo’s mind.

[Abrupt Quest: Escape from the wrath of the Kheliphod King!]

[When you killed the kheliphod, the system informed all the other kheliphods in the area of you trespassing in their territory. Escape before the rank 5 Kheliphod King kills you all!]

[Quest Difficulty: C+]

[Quest Reward: 6 BS points.]

[Quest Failure Penalty: -10 BS points for every elite’s death.]

WHAT?!

Shu Himo was speechless. He had finally found out why so many died against abrupt quests.