Their body resembled those of a dog, but the face was a mangled pile of flesh. Ulrich, if not for his enhanced sight, would have mistaken it for ordinary wild canines, seeing as their claws and teeth were no different from those of ordinary canines. Well, except for the part where the face, or rather, head, was built like glassblowing gone wrong.

  Skals? They look uglier than the bestiary drawing…

  Ulrich raised his hand in the air, conjuring a pair of dark arrows that swiftly transformed into spears. He gripped onto the spear body, eyes narrowing at the abominations that stood before him. At the same time, the canines ‘face’ opened up, their inner flesh black and purple, as the side was layered with razor yellow teeth.

  He charged forward with rapid steps, taking the initiative. As he got closer, the stench from their foul mouth made him wince, but he gritted his teeth and tossed the spear from his left hand. The spear, imbued with his physical strength and spirituality, was fast as it struck one of the unprepared Skal with great ferocity.

  Without paying it too much attention, Ulrich heard the splat sound of its head exploding, followed by an even stronger foul stench that filled him with the urge to vomit.

  No doubt, they had no dental hygiene, and whatever remained in their digestive track was completely rotten to the point that it spilled into the air upon death. Still, he was unyielding, holding the spear with two hands as he swiped the air with great strength, slashing at the three remaining Skals. His movement split the air with a piercing wind sound.

  He expected their body to split in half on contact, yet, the Skals had some kind of superhuman sense, allowing them to jolt back in time to minimize the damage. Having taken such a wide swing, he had to recover his posture, but the Skals, despite their abhorrent appearance, did not lack wits. In that fraction of a second, one Skal aimed its mouth at Ulrich and gurgled, shooting a stream of yellow substance at him. Meanwhile, the other two pounced forward, wanting to devour his flesh whole. Their movement was swift and coordinated, and anyone else would find the situation vexing.

  But Ulrich smiled as though it was all planned.

  When the yellow acid sped toward him, he sidestepped just enough out of its trajectory to not get hit, yet remained careful to hide the appearance of two new dark arrows created without using any incantation. It took no longer than a second for the arrows to fully materialize, and when they did, he turned his body, revealing the arrow while commanding it to pierce the two Skals that pounced on him. At the same time, he dashed toward the Skal in the distance.

  Caught off guard by the human cunning tactic, the Skal was unable to react in time. Following its primal instinct to survive, it attempted to flee, but Ulrich's smile widened as he tossed the spear in his hand, nailing the Skal into the loose dirt ground.

  Having finished the battle in less than a minute, Ulrich let out a breath of relief. He read about its traits and characteristics in the bestiary, to think such beasts were capable of tactics and coordination of such a level. Though, it only made them more predictable. After all, beasts were still beasts; how can they be compared to the cunning that humans possessed?

  The foul, rotten smell in the air grew, causing Ulrich to take several steps away from the corpses. As he did, another group of Skals arrived. Despite ending the battle smoothly, his action had no doubt attracted some attention in the surrounding wilderness.

  Once again, another battle erupted.

  Ulrich had no problem facing the Skals, so as long as the number did not exceed ten. Fortunately, for the next couple of hours, there were no groups bigger than ten that appeared, though there were some that came in seven or eight. In those instances, he did not hesitate to make a run for it; running was one of his most proud skills.

  Time passed, just as the four seasons came and went.

  The more he fought, the stronger he became. It wasn’t just about having more lesser runes accumulated within his Vital Rune, no, it was much more than that. This area of the wilderness was occupied mostly by wandering Skals, hence their never-ending numbers. And each fight solidified his understanding and adaptation when it comes to fighting Skals. In the beginning, the maximum limit that he could fight was four, five if he really wanted to struggle. That number gradually grew.

  Now that half a day has passed. Ulrich was certain he could handle eight!

  Standing a good distance away from the pile of Skal’s corpse, he let out a deep breath, then inhaled through his mouth while using a piece of cloth as air filtration. The more he kills, the stronger and fouler the stench becomes. However, he didn’t wander too far from his starting position; it was better to stay in this spot than wander around aimlessly. The stench, besides how vomit-inducing it was, are considered a deterrent for bigger groups of Skals.

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  As he sat on the ground, leaning against a tall, sturdy boulder, Ulrich closed his eyes to examine his Vital Rune deep in his psyche. When he first awakened, the rune was dim and weak, like a nascent soul. Now, it flourishes with countless specks that orbit it like planets to the sun. Looking at it, the lesser runes have almost covered his Vital rune entirely, with some gaps that need to be filled.

  90%? 95? Ulrich estimated that with just a bit more push, he could completely cover his Vital rune, causing it to crystallize. As for the soul core from defeating Knight Henrik, he planned to use it right after advancing to Rank 2. By then, wouldn’t he be halfway to Rank 3 upon reaching Rank 2?

  Just thinking about it filled him with elation and joy. This sense of progression was something he hadn’t felt in a long while, given that he had to deal with the Twilight Order, Selena, and some other matters in the past. At the same time, his anticipation of meeting Rosaline and Anna rose to the max. Honestly, he would love to see the two ladies right now and head straight to Cadry Ruin, take the formula, and return.

  Unfortunately, that would have to wait. As that thought came, the ground trembled with deep thuds. His bottom ached as it was lifted in the air before landing back on the ground with each tremble.

  What the hell is going on?

  He stood against the bounder, peeking over the side to see what the commotion was all about, and his eyes widened. Not far from the pile of Skal corpses, a giant shadow appeared. It was some kind of beast he didn’t recognize. Either way, the size of that thing was frightening, easily over ten meters tall.

  As it moved closer to the corpse with heavy steps, Ulrich could see it.

  A flesh golem!

  That shouldn’t be possible, golem don’t wander far from their respective ruins. Goddess, he hadn’t seen any ruin around this area from the map given to him by the Ministry. So how was it that this golem was here?

  His thought came to an abrupt stop as the golem lowered its wriggling flesh that was its head and used its crimson, meaty hand to scoop up the corpses of Skals, then swallowed them. The crunching sounds of the Skal bones sent chills down Ulrich’s back, and he almost kicked the dirt to run away.

  Ordinary stone golems are quite common in many ruins, tasked with guarding the storage rooms and important areas. They were considered an alchemical construct made with esoteric knowledge and a bit of ritualistic magic. Flesh golem, though, that was another matter entirely.

  Ulrich held his breath, afraid of attracting its attention. And as he did, the golem's head froze, followed by a manic grin on its face. Rather, it had no face or eyes. The distinction of its feature was but a construct Ulrich made to comprehend the creature's appearance. Its ‘face’ was just a crimson ball of flesh, and when it ate, the front of this flesh ball tore apart its muscle to create an opening for the to enter.

  And that, that opening was precisely the smile that Ulrich interpreted. No doubt, it had noticed the little seer hiding behind the boulder through some method beyond his knowledge and understanding.

  I be damned if I don’t run now!

  Ulrich kicked the dirt, fleeing the scene without any hesitation, but he was a step too late. The ground trembled with great ferocity, as though it had gained living characteristics. Beneath his feet, countless cracks appeared, some aiming directly at his steps. Helpless, he jumped in order to avoid being snared by the crevices.

  As he did, a piercing arrow made of flesh whistled past his leg, piercing a hole through his thigh. He winced, but did not stop moving. This golem wasn’t just vicious in its behavior of eating corpses; it was as witty as the Skals he had encountered!

  Ulrich glanced behind him, hoping to gauge the distance between himself and the golem. And in that moment, his seer intuition flared with great intensity, and it urged him to move his head. So he did. A swift flurry of piercing flesh grazed his cheek, leaving him completely shocked. Had it been a second longer, his head would've been porcupined!

  How? Just how did that thing manage to attack him from the front despite the gap in their distance?! Could it be…?

  He glanced at the flesh that attacked him, and it felt extremely familiar. It didn’t take long for his intuition to tell him that the flesh from the front was the same one that pierced his thigh!

  Ulrich was certain it had lodged itself in the ground. Then, the truth dawned on him. That vicious golem can detach its fleshes controlled them telepathically, and that realization struck a seed of fear in his heart. Could it be that when he glanced back, the golem used that opportunity to send the same piece of flesh to his head?

  If not for his enhanced danger sense from his intuition, Ulrich suspected that his head would be filled with holes by now. What will happen if that golem decides to untangle more flesh from its colossal body in his direction? Wouldn’t he meet the goddess early?

  That it did. The golem's flesh separated from its shoulders, arms, and torso, forming several giant cannonballs. Looking at it, Ulrich's facade completely broke apart as two words escaped from his mouth:

  “I’m fucked.”