Nearly three hundred people were panicking in the Lecture Hall. Yet, after seeing Michael fight, the paralysis that had gripped the room was finally shattering.
By now, about fifteen students had managed to break through their confusion, and focus their minds to manifest their own weapons. Just like Michael told them before they commanded their weapons to appear and successfully pulled their [Iron-Tipped Recruit’s Spears] from their unfamiliar inventories. After that, one of them took over the command and urged the group to form an amateur version of a military phalanx. The newly formed group confronted the four Hound-Foxes with their spears. It was definitely not an organized fight but it was better than nothing and waiting to be slaughtered.
At the same time, those who hadn’t yet figured out how to summon their spears in the panic were no longer staying entirely passive. Anything that wasn’t bolted down was flying through the air. Lecture clipboards, notebooks, heavy backpacks, thick textbooks, and loose auditorium chairs rained down on the beasts. Every improvised projectile that found its mark robbed the monsters of their momentum—a chaotic but effective distraction that kept the creatures from fully exploiting their agility.
„Guys, hold the line! Don’t back down!“ shouted a tall student from the upper tiers, trying his best to coordinate the spear-wielders’ clumsy attacks. „Flank them while they’re distracted! We outnumber them!“
A few other young men joined in, shouting commands and attempting to bring order to the sheer chaos. They wanted to contribute but achieved the opposite. There were too many giving instructions, causing more confusion and a lack of coordination. „Stop yelling and throwing instructions at us. Come here and fight if you have the guts!“ screamed the one who took command earlier.
Michael stood slightly to the side, his spear in his grip, his eyes locked onto the fray as he began to weigh his options. But before he could even start he was interrupted. The purple rift flared again as a fifth Hound-Fox fell onto the wooden desks. Its fur bristled and its teeth snapped open. Michael caught a full glimpse of it: a lean, canine-shaped body roughly the size of a large dog, its fur standing on end like static electricity given form. Its eyes were compound and faceted, and its claws scraped four shallow grooves into the desk it landed on before it even fully registered its surroundings.
His classmates were already struggling to maintain their clumsy formation against the existing threats, and if he left them to deal with this new arrival, their uncoordinated line would inevitably collapse. They might eventually kill it on their own, but the risk was too high. They most likely would suffer massive casualties or injuries. To prevent the situation from devolving into a complete disaster, Michael stopped thinking and surged forward to attack the new monster using his frist strategy of early attacking.
Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
Fortunately, ever since the very first monsters had dropped from the vortex, the surrounding students had desperately distanced themselves from the spatial rift, pushing toward the exits and the upper tiers to create as much distance as possible. The spot around the spawning point was entirely cleared of humans and their panic. This gave Michael a wide space, allowing him to engage the monster completely undisturbed and without the need to look after others.
As he closed the distance, he felt the difference in his physical capabilities. The automatic attribute increases from reaching Level 2 weren’t just passive numbers; his body and muscles were directly strengthened. It was not much and he still wasn’t a superhuman but he was undubtetly faster and stronger. He met the leaping hound-fox head-on.
Despite his boosted stats, it was clear that this battle would not end as fast as the ones earlier. The beast would not be caught off guard and was prepared. It immediately initiated fierce claw strikes, forcing Michael to step back and evade. The creature was fast, darting across the tiered seating and snapping at him from different angles.
Michael could barely keep up but he still pivoted, ducked, and countered. It was clear that he was still an amateur but the attacking beast wasn’t much more than a big dog.
The wood of the lecture desks splintered under the impact of the monsters weight whenever the creature leaped away. Sweat ran from his face, and his lungs burned with every breath, but he refused to fall back. Around him, the clash of the ongoing phalanx fight could still be heard which meant that the others were still holding on. Every muscle in his arms screamed in protest, yet the cold clarity in his mind didn‘t waver.
The exchange grew increasingly tense. The beast lunged, its claws scraping harshly against the shaft of Michael’s spear as he barely managed to parry the strike. Before he could adjust his stance, the hound-fox spun and lashed out with its hind legs. The creature’s razor-sharp claws caught him across the forearm, tearing cleanly through his sleeve and leaving a shallow, burning scratch across his skin.
Michael instantly felt the pain but as he was about to scream he urged himself to hold on. *Don’t get distracted!* He kept his concentration entirely locked on the beast’s movement, ignoring the pain and waiting for an opening he needed.
The opportunity came when the hound-fox attempted another aggressive leap, overextending its weight. Channeling all his speed, Michael sidestepped the trajectory, stepped directly into the creature’s guard, and slammed the heavy shaft downward to stall its momentum. With a sudden exertion of his strength, he reversed the weapon and drove the iron tip straight through its neck, pinning it to the desk.
The beast convulsed violently while screaming in disbelief of its nearing death. Seconds later he went completely still.
[You have killed a Hound-Fox (Level 1)]
[You have received 10 Experience Points]
Michael straightened slowly, his chest heaving, sweat running down to his forehead. His forearm throbbed where the claws had caught him.
He successfully killed it after the exhausting, hard-fought duel, but before he could even take a single breath or get a brief recovery step, the purple rift above the desks pulsed violently once more as another silhouette began to materialize.
He didn’t get the time he needed and was forced to fight without rest.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter