*Buzz—*
Air currents howled into his ear canals, making his eardrums vibrate and hum.
The air during high-speed movement felt as viscous and sluggish as a mud pit. Black, rain-soaked hair clung tightly to his forehead, and the surface of his skin prickled with the minute stings of falling raindrops.
The woods, the meadows, and the distant, cloud-choked sky retreated rapidly behind him, stretched into blurred bands of green, grey, and black in his vision.
This was the exaggerated speed granted by the [Fang Hunt] buff—a speed that, in the eyes of ordinary people, looked like teleportation, vanishing from the spot in the blink of an eye.
He had long since grown used to it.
Countless hours of practice had raised his proficiency to lv3.
This allowed Xia Nan to gradually adapt to this state, where it felt as if the entire world had frozen and solidified.
His highly focused attention, combined with an Agility stat that had reached "7," enabled him to unconsciously ignore irrelevant surroundings while concentrating his entire mind on the enemy.
Even though everything else in his sight had been reduced to chaotic, meaningless blocks of color due to his high-speed movement, and his ears were filled with the roaring noise of rushing air...
The burly, robust figure of the Bear Goblin—even the swelling and undulating of the muscles beneath its skin and the swaying of the crimson mane on its back—was seen with absolute clarity in Xia Nan's eyes.
In fact, because all other distractions were filtered out, it became even clearer.
Closing in.
The pungent, foul stench of a creature that had long resided in a burrow surged into his nostrils with every breath.
Grasping the distance in an instant, he slowed his speed slightly and twisted his wrist. The executioner's longsword, which had been trailing diagonally behind him as he moved, carved a steel-grey arc through the air.
*Squelch!*
Blood splattered.
A bloody, gaping wound appeared across the densely maned back of the Bear Goblin.
Unlike the previous probing strikes that retreated immediately, this wound was deep—deep enough to make the Red Mane let out a roar of agony.
The creature spun its body, intending to smash Xia Nan with a fist capable of shattering boulders.
But just as it twisted its waist and abdomen, before its arm could even be raised...
The black-haired figure, enveloped in the sound of a wolf's howl, rapidly receded, escaping the attack range.
Had this happened moments ago, Red Mane might have pursued blindly.
Its powerful physical constitution gave it a margin for error far greater than Xia Nan's. It could be cut countless times, but as long as the opponent slipped up once and took a single punch, they would no longer be able to dodge and weave so annoyingly.
However, as it half-turned, the sound of air being torn from the side forced Red Mane to stay put and raise its left arm to block.
*Thump.*
A single-handed hammer with a metallic luster struck the back of the Bear Goblin's hand in a harassing light blow, producing a dull thud.
Blood that Adeline had just coughed up still lingered on her armor, but she had regained her mobility and joined the fray.
Compared to Xia Nan, who possessed [Fang Hunt] and could displace himself multiple times in a short period, she had no dash-type combat skills.
However, her exceptionally good constitution allowed her to stick close to the Bear Goblin, fighting in close quarters to draw aggro and hold the line for a few rounds.
And whenever she began to retreat under the Bear Goblin's rain-like onslaught, appearing as if she were about to buckle...
The familiar, long howl of a wolf would once again sound from Red Mane's blind spot.
"ROAR!!!"
The tacit, alternating entanglement between Xia Nan and Adeline seemed to infuriate the Bear Goblin beyond measure.
The sound waves of the roar sent ripples through the curtain of rain. Two thick arms swung in a wide circle like whips, forcing the two of them back.
Adeline had already retreated a few steps under Xia Nan's cover, easily dodging the attack.
As for Xia Nan, he simply performed a sudden brake and activated [Fang Hunt] once more to leap backward.
In the span of a few breaths, one round had ended.
Keeping his eyes locked on the Bear Goblin not far ahead, Xia Nan panted, taking the opportunity to recover his stamina.
Frequent use of combat skills during high-intensity fighting had placed a burden on his legs and waist; a numb, aching sensation diffused deep within his muscles.
It was still within a tolerable range.
To some extent, he found things much easier now than before.
Having Adeline's help was far more than a simple "1+1=2."
In battles at their level, the pressure difference between "one-on-one" and "one-on-two" was like heaven and earth.
With a teammate to share the aggro, Xia Nan no longer needed to devote all his attention to dodging; his attacks could be slightly more aggressive to inflict more damage.
The two looked out for each other; if one fell into trouble, the other could provide timely support.
He subconsciously glanced toward Adeline. Seeing that her condition was still relatively good, he breathed a small sigh of relief.
Unexpectedly, after being fed an entire bottle of healing potion with Abby's help, Adeline had not only been physically healed and regained most of her combat power, but even her mental state seemed to have been treated. Her previously frantic demeanor had calmed, and she had once again become the most reliable captain of the squad, as she had been when facing the goblins.
She did not overextend, focusing instead on harassment and support, helping Xia Nan leave wound after wound on the Bear Goblin.
The scales of victory seemed to be tilting slightly in their favor.
Yet, Xia Nan had no intention of lowering his guard.
He had seen with his own eyes this Bear Goblin smash through a defensive line single-handedly, severely injure Adeline—who was close to achieving a professional level—in an instant, and effortlessly slaughter Berg.
He knew naturally that achieving victory was far from as simple as it looked.
The most dangerous moment of this battle would be when Red Mane realized its stamina was being depleted and that it faced the risk of defeat.
As he pondered this, the Bear Goblin, which had just forced them back, suddenly moved.
It wasn't an attack, nor was it a pursuit of either party.
The piercing, ear-splitting roar stopped abruptly.
Astonishment, surprise, horror, worry...
A complex, human-like expression suddenly appeared on that furry face filled with rage and hatred.
Then, ignoring the two people confronting it, Red Mane abruptly turned its head, gazing far into the depths of the forest—the direction from which it had come.
Xia Nan didn't know exactly what had happened.
But seeing the Bear Goblin's bewildered expression—like someone who had gone out to raid with their team only to find their home base being stolen—Xia Nan would have been more than happy if the opponent decided to stop fighting and retreat home to provide support.
A battle of this intensity against an enemy of this level was not something he, who had not even obtained a professional level, should be facing.
However, the "Mass Taunt" the creature had previously cast on everyone seemed to have a side effect. No matter how anxious Red Mane appeared, it still could not choose to abandon the two it was fighting and retreat alone.
Instead, with an attitude of "hurrying to end the fight," it charged straight toward Adeline.
It must be said that in its haste, Red Mane chose the correct target.
Slightly less flexible and far lacking in muscular strength compared to the monster, Adeline's body—though stronger than an average adult male—was an undeniable disadvantage against Red Mane.
It was almost a total crush.
Without a teammate's help, if Adeline faced a full-power Bear Goblin alone, she could likely only barely hold on for a few rounds using her rich experience before being defeated.
If Red Mane wanted to end the fight quickly, she was the breakthrough point to break the current equilibrium.
Xia Nan could not stand by and watch his teammate be severely wounded again.
Almost the instant the Bear Goblin turned and exposed its back to him, he activated [Fang Hunt] and charged out amidst the howling of the winter wolf.
Accompanied by the sudden stagnation of compressed air, the distance between them was rapidly erased.
The burly, long-haired figure expanded rapidly in his pupils. As his arm coiled, the executioner's longsword was ready to swing.
He only waited for the moment the opponent attacked Adeline and had no time to worry about his rear to unleash that sharp, piercing strike.
And at that exact moment, the Bear Goblin—caught between one pursuer and one escapee—suddenly paused its massive body.
*Boom—*
The dark-red aura that had allowed it to smash through defenses and collapse houses suddenly erupted from the surface of Red Mane's body.
It exploded like a bomb in a manner never seen before.
As the shockwave surged, Xia Nan felt a flash of dangerous dark-red light before his eyes. He instinctively raised his arm shield to cover his chest.
The next second, a colossal force slammed into the shield.
The phantom wolf head enveloping his body was instantly scattered. He was sent flying, tumbling several times in the air before finally regaining his center of gravity and landing clumsily on his feet.
His knees bent, and his left hand gripped the ground to steady himself. A sharp pain radiating from his chest and abdomen made him instinctively look down.
What met his eyes were the chainmail rings of his armor, glowing with red light and twisted out of shape.
Judging by the degree of damage and the feeling in his body, it was foreseeable that not only the chainmail but also the leather armor beneath it had sustained damage.
The high price of nearly a hundred gold for the two pieces of armor flashed through his mind.
There was no time to grieve.
Xia Nan looked ahead, his expression darkening.
The good news was that Adeline had been in a dodging state with her defenses up, so she hadn't taken too much damage from the energy blast and remained in good condition.
But the bad news was...
Taking advantage of the brief moment the energy burst pushed them back, the Bear Goblin had rushed to the other side of the battlefield and retrieved its weapon.
—That pale bone club with hollow carvings on its surface.
*Hum...*
It was the noise produced when the dark-red aura boiled violently.
Xia Nan felt a sudden sense of dread.
"Watch out!"
Shouting the warning, his body activated once more amidst the wolf's howl.
The response was the Bear Goblin's suddenly increased speed, bolstered by the aura, and the eerie sound—like a baby's wail—produced as air squeezed through the hollows of the bone club.
Strangely, that sound, which was merely uncomfortable to the ear, now merged with Red Mane's low growl and the distant humming of the rising aura.
It pierced through his ear canals and echoed continuously within his skull.
His consciousness blurred instantly.
"Something's wrong!"
Sensing that the bone club's eerie sound had some sort of mind-confusing effect, Xia Nan, while his will had not yet succumbed, immediately reached into his waist pouch.
With a squeeze of his fingers, he threw all three fire-oil bombs he was carrying toward Red Mane.
*Boom—*
Murky dust and black grease exploded with the sparks, and a surging wall of fire instantly swallowed the Bear Goblin's body.
His blurred and distorted consciousness suddenly cleared, and the light returned to Adeline's eyes.
Facing the pale bone club smashing toward her chest, she crossed her two iron hammers in front of her.
*CLANG!!!*
The crisp sound of metal colliding rang out across the field.
Bright red blood sprayed uncontrollably from Adeline's mouth. Her chest caved in, and she was sent flying like a ragdoll, rolling across the ground amidst splattering mud.
"Fuck!"
Cursing inwardly, Xia Nan did not slow down, charging rapidly toward Red Mane.
The Bear Goblin's physical strength was simply too formidable, and with the dark-red aura, it possessed an explosive power far beyond that of an ordinary adventurer.
Even with the interference of the three fire-oil bombs allowing Adeline to regain her senses and defend at the critical moment, she had still been hit head-on by the bone club and was forced out of the fight with severe injuries.
And it had only been a few minutes since she drank that healing potion.
Xia Nan still had supplies, but in this tense moment where every second decided life or death, there was no chance to pour them into an unconscious teammate.
Right now, the only thing he could rely on was the cold iron sword in his hand.
*Hair is weak against fire.*
In his sight, the Bear Goblin was roaring and struggling under the scorching flames, its two thick, tree-like arms waving wildly, creating gusts of air.
The continuous curtain of rain falling from the sky and the dark-red energy on its body were extinguishing the flames surrounding it at a visible speed.
At this moment, only one thought remained in Xia Nan's mind.
"This is the only time."
This was his only chance.
Without a teammate to distract the enemy, his battle with Red Mane would return to the previous state of exhausting dodging and an inability to deal effective damage.
Moreover, due to his gradually declining stamina and the Bear Goblin's sudden berserk state, the situation would become even more perilous and desperate, making a comeback nearly impossible.
To turn defeat into victory, to reverse the situation...
To survive.
This was Xia Nan's last chance.
Without a hint of hesitation, he played his final trump card.
—A fantasy creation called the [Coin of Fate], the only "Epic (Pink)" item Xia Nan possessed, granted by the Halfling God's favor, was gripped tightly between his fingertips.
*Tinkle.*
{The brass coin was flicked upward violently during his high-speed movement, piercing through the rain curtain. The metal surface friction against the cold air produced a faint but crystal-clear chime.}
The phantom wolf head composed of rain droplets and shredded leaves howled past. All his focus, all his strength, was gathered in an instant, soaring to the limit.
{Splashing raindrops collided and shattered into crystalline sprays. The copper coin flipped upward, alternating between the blurred image of a long-haired woman and a wind-swept cloak.}
His figure came to a sudden halt, his soil-stained leather boots leaving deep indentations in the muddy ground. His knees bent, and his muscles and bones creaked.
He converted the impact inertia granted by [Fang Hunt] into a powerful force that drove the twist of his arm.
[Whirlwind Slash]!
{The coin reached its highest point and hovered briefly. Under the pull of gravity, it mapped a descending trajectory. A raindrop reflecting steel-grey sword light drifted down, landing precisely on the portrait on the obverse of the copper coin. A silver light flashed. The blurred face of the long-haired woman became clear in an instant. The Goddess of Luck, seated high within the Divine Kingdom, lowered her gaze, casting a bright and curious look. The strings of fate plucked and vibrated; a nearly non-existent, tiny probability was magnified infinitely. A "Miracle" was thus triggered.}
The sharp, steel-grey arc of light was stretched into a curved line.
Yet, a second before it was to tear through fur and carve into flesh...
It paused instantaneously.
Space distorted like a vortex.
A silver-white elliptical sphere, like a dolphin breaching the surface of the river of time to breathe, appeared out of thin air.
His highly focused attention allowed Xia Nan to capture a few pieces of information in a span of time no longer than a blink
...
【"Titan Umbilical" Type II - Gravity Core】 Category: Item Level: / Description A hub device for the artificial gravity field generation system that dynamically adjusts curvature parameters via superconducting rings. Note "Warning! Curvature anchor is shifting, spacetime continuity coefficient collapsed to 0.3... (static and mechanical screeching)... Harmonic singularity restart failed!" "Dammit, what the hell is this place!?"
...
He had no time to digest the information, nor any possibility of pulling back his strength.
In the next second, the "Gravity Core," plucked from the fragmented currents of spacetime by the invisible hand of fate, shrank back into the distorted spatial singularity.
But Xia Nan's blade, in the instant before the silver-white device vanished...
Landed on its metal surface, which emitted a faint blue glow and was covered in strange patterns.
*Dong—*
Spacetime froze at this moment.
Invisible gravitational turbulence erupted and surged.
Raindrops suddenly suspended in mid-air, then abruptly shot upward toward the sky, as if gravity had reversed in an instant.
Falling raindrops collided with ascending droplets, splashing countless tiny crystalline flowers in the air; the entire battlefield's airspace was suddenly nothing but a sheet of silver-white.
{The brass coin flipped and fell, landing softly in the mud.}
The burly, robust body slowly collapsed, revealing the black-haired figure standing behind it, holding a longsword with a dazed expression.
Xia Nan stood in place as surges of abundant power from an unknown source washed freely over his body.
Flashing before his eyes was a massive amount of semi-transparent characters—more than he had ever seen since crossing over to this world.