[The second mission has been issued…]
The three of them were startled and exchanged glances.
"The second mission has been issued," Raven said calmly. "Get ready, both of you."
They nodded and stared intently at the panel in front of them.
Second by second passed, yet the panel still didn't change. But a minute later, it finally did.
[The second mission is a simple one. You only need to form a group of three. Once that's done, hunt down ten level-two monsters, thirty level-one monsters, and one level-three monster. Reward: 1,000 experience points and a class awakening key! Complete it within two days. Those who fail… die!]
With that, the panel vanished, and silence fell over the three of them.
"Form a group of three?" Claire muttered, lifting her head to look at Raven and Rose. "Haven't we already done that?"
Both of them nodded in unison.
"You're right. No wonder there was a group formation notification earlier—it turns out the next mission is connected to that," Raven said with a faint smile.
He wasn't particularly surprised. After all, he had already guessed it.
He stood up and stretched his stiff body.
"What about you two? Do you want to start the hunt now?" he asked.
Hunting a level-two monster wouldn't be a problem for them. Even though he had never hunted a level-three monster before, it didn't seem like much of a threat—especially now that Rose had joined them.
"Of course. Let's head out now," Rose replied firmly, slowly rising to her feet.
Claire nodded and stood up as well.
"I agree. The sooner, the better."
"Great! In that case, let's start the hunt!" Raven declared firmly.
…
Fifteen kilometers away from Raven and his group, there was a massive cave teeming with various monsters.
Among them, the most terrifying were the goblins and the orcs.
Goblins might not be much of a threat, since they were only level-one monsters, but orcs were a different story.
They were level-two and level-three monsters. Most participants in this test would avoid them at all costs.
Apart from their large and intimidating bodies, they were also ruthless and cruel.
They would torture their prey, especially men. As for women, they would violate them and toy with them until they grew bored before brutally killing them.
At that moment, a man and a woman were walking through the cave.
The woman was incredibly beautiful. She was tall, with a slender figure, yet curvy in all the right places.
Her black hair was cut to her shoulders, and she wore glasses that made her look like a typical intelligent woman.
Meanwhile, the man beside her was tall and slightly muscular. His hair was golden, and his eyes were blue.
His face was quite handsome, though not to the point of making women go crazy.
Even so, he carried a unique charm and charisma—one that naturally drew others in and made it difficult to look away.
"Leo, I heard a growl from inside," the woman said, her voice clearly tinged with fear. "Are you sure you want to keep going?"
She turned toward him, her gaze carrying a faint plea.
Leo smiled and patted her left shoulder.
"It's okay, Reina. Trust me. I can take them all on," he said confidently. "Have you forgotten the skill I possess?"
Hearing that, the woman's tension eased slightly. Even so, the fear rising from deep within her heart couldn't be dispelled by words alone.
The two of them continued forward until they finally reached the deepest part of the cave.
"Wow! I didn't expect this cave to be this big. I'm not seeing things, am I?" Leo exclaimed in awe.
He rubbed his eyes, but his amazement only grew.
Unlike the entrance, the inner chamber of the cave was vast—at least ten meters high.
A row of purple crystals lined the ceiling, emitting a faint glow that illuminated the darkness.
Suddenly…
THUD!
THUD!
Heavy footsteps echoed from their right. Both of them froze and exchanged glances.
Leo immediately grabbed Reina's arm and pulled her behind a large boulder on the right side.
Moments later, under the dim purple light, they spotted a massive shadow.
As the thudding grew louder, the shadow drew closer and closer.
Finally, they saw what it was—a four-meter-tall orc.
Its appearance was terrifying. Its skin was a deep green, and two massive horns jutted from its head.
Its eyes were blood-red, and it clutched a club made from a giant tree trunk.
"O-Orc!? It's an orc!?" Reina cried out in panic.
However, Leo immediately covered her mouth and whispered softly, "Shh! Be quiet!"
Reina realized her mistake and looked at Leo with a face full of regret.
"Ograhh…"
The orc let out a low, indistinct sound that was hard to interpret.
It looked around from side to side, as if searching for something. The atmosphere grew tense and eerie.
Leo slowed his breathing, afraid that even the slightest sound would alert the orc to their presence.
Seconds passed one by one, and finally, the orc moved away.
Reina let out a sigh of relief, then gently pushed away Leo's hand that had been covering her mouth.
Leo quickly realized his mistake and apologized.
"Sorry."
Reina simply nodded without saying a word. She didn't like being touched by others, especially men.
But she couldn't bring herself to be angry either. After all, the mistake had been hers.
The two of them stepped out of their hiding spot.
"That orc was heading south. We should go north instead. That way, we won't run into it," Leo said with a serious expression.
He didn't know the layout of this cave. It was possible they might encounter another orc ahead.
But they had no other choice. They needed to find the third member of their party and start hunting level one, two, and three monsters.
Reina nodded in agreement. Shortly after, they headed toward the northern side of the cave.
…
"Is this the place? Are you sure?"
Raven stopped in front of a massive cave, about seven meters high.
Rose nodded and stared at the cave with a complicated expression.
"I'm not mistaken. This is indeed the place those scoundrels were talking about," she replied in a strained voice.
This cave was said to hold many secrets within it. At least, that was the information she had obtained from those scoundrels who had betrayed her.
"I understand. Let's go."
Just as Raven took a step forward, an email suddenly appeared in front of him.
Startled, he tapped it open. As he read it, his eyes widened.
"A hero?"