Chapter 35 - 34: Unlucky? Lucky?
"They’re finally here!"
Hearing the roar from the forest, Rocky immediately stood up, tense yet also faintly excited.
He had finally encountered a demon!
This time he had come to hunt demons, and if he had to return empty-handed because he was defeated, that could be forgiven. But if he had to go back because he hadn’t encountered any demons, it would drive him mad with frustration.
However, in today’s world, not coming across demons was almost impossible. Even if none were found during the daytime, there were always encounters at night.
Liliya, who had just lain down, also stood up at this moment. She looked in the direction of the roar and listened carefully before saying to Rocky, "Not far from us, let’s go!"
After saying this, the two rushed toward the direction of the roaring noise.
"Remember, if there’s any danger, you run first."
Though they were speeding through the forest, Liliya did not forget to remind Rocky to flee if danger arose. Rocky, who was closely following her, nodded at her words, though it was unclear if he agreed.
Afterward, the two advanced quickly through the forest, one after the other. Liliya was known for her agility, which allowed her to move freely through the forest, and Rocky, relying on the enhancement provided by his Void Magic Armor, moved with ease as well. In such a manner, they soon traversed hundreds of meters into the forest as if walking on flat ground.
At the same time, the demon’s roars continued unabated, serving as invisible coordinates, continuously reminding Rocky and Liliya that they were getting closer and closer to their target.
"Stop!"
Once they heard the demon’s roar again, Liliya suddenly halted, realizing from the sound that they were very close to the demon. It was not wise to continue sprinting at this point, as it could lead to running straight into the demon’s embrace.
Seeing her stop, Rocky, who had always been following her, also halted and then drew the side sword from his Void Magic Armor, readying himself for battle!
"The demon is in that direction, go!"
Using her experience, Liliya quickly identified a direction and, after informing Rocky, briskly headed that way.
However, just as they were about to search for the demon, having barely taken a step, a loud noise suddenly erupted from the distant forest, followed instantly by a black shadow shooting out like a cannonball!
Had they been discovered?!
Seeing a black shadow fly out from the forest, both Liliya and Rocky were startled, their first thought being that the demon had spotted them.
But a moment later, they realized that this was not the case. The black shadow that flew out from afar crashed into a large tree while still a good distance from them and let out a miserable scream as it hit the ground.
Not a demon?
This unexpected outcome left Rocky stunned. When he took a closer look at the shadow, he found that it wasn’t a demon at all, but a person!
No, that was not quite accurate; to be precise, the shadow was a Beastman—a towering Beastman, more than two meters tall!
What was happening?!
The scene before him confused Rocky. He had expected a demon to rush out, but instead, it was a Beastman, and judging by the way the Beastman had landed, he seemed to have been sent flying?
"Don’t just stand there like an idiot!"
While Rocky was dazed, Liliya reacted swiftly and pulled him behind a huge rock to take cover.
Just as they had hidden, the demon’s roar sounded again, accompanied by the sound of heavy footsteps.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The heavy footsteps grew closer and soon caused the ground beneath Rocky to tremble, indicating something was approaching.
The severe shaking of the ground made Rocky, hiding behind the rock, unable to resist peering out to take a look. Soon enough, he saw the distant forest ambiguously reveal a massive figure!
The sheer size of the figure was astoundingly large by any measure, and with each step, the earth trembled along. And while its strides didn’t seem swift, it had covered the distance in merely a few paces!
"My God, what on earth is that thing!"
As he watched the enormous figure step out of the shadows, Rocky’s eyes grew wider and his face gradually paled!
Because in his view, the creature that emerged from the forest was unmistakably a monster!
This monster stood over three meters tall, resembling a humanoid rock. Every inch of it was made of stone, and its massive stone fists were as big as its head; the only things relatively normal about it were its eyes. However, in comparison to its huge stature, its eyes were as small as soybeans, just two little dots on its enormous head.
What was this thing?
"Demons..."
While Rocky was utterly dumbfounded by the monster before him, Liliya inhaled sharply next to him, for while Rocky didn’t know what the monster was, Liliya did—it was the demon they were hunting!
"It’s the Greyrock Demon... Damn it!"
After one glance at the demon, Liliya clenched her teeth fiercely. Hearing this, Rocky quickly retreated and asked softly, "Is that a demon? You recognize it?"
Liliya nodded, a worried look crossing her face.
"Is it a high-level demon?"
Rocky certainly noticed Liliya’s concern and quickly pressed for answers. They couldn’t really be so unlucky as to encounter a high-level demon right away, could they?
Fortunately, Liliya shook her head after a moment, indicating they weren’t that unlucky.
But after shaking her head, Liliya followed up saying, "This type of demon is called the Greyrock Demon. Although it’s a low-level demon, it’s very tough to handle."
"Greyrock Demons have no flesh and blood; they are entirely composed of stone. This thing is extremely strong, and its body is harder than diamond— not even a magic cannon can shatter it, which makes it really tough to deal with."
Liliya was absolutely right. At that moment, what they had encountered was indeed a Greyrock Demon, whose biggest characteristic was its toughness—so tough that even standing still and taking a direct hit from a magic cannon didn’t bother it!
However, the value of a Greyrock Demon was also extremely high. Despite lacking flesh, once killed, a Greyrock Demon’s body would disintegrate into Greyrock Stone chunks. Once refined, these chunks could be turned into incredibly sturdy Grayrock Steel, making it one of the most top-notch materials, more valuable than an equivalent amount of gold!
In just a few words, Liliya explained the situation regarding the Greyrock Demon to Rocky, leaving it unclear whether they were unlucky or fortunate to have encountered such a difficult yet valuable Greyrock Demon.
"I see... So what do we do now? Do we take action?"
After understanding the basics about the Greyrock Demon, Rocky asked.
"Wait a moment, let’s see how things unfold first,"
Liliya waved her hand and was not ready to act immediately, instead peering out to observe.
At this time, the Greyrock Demon once again took a step, but its heavy footsteps were not heading towards Rocky and Liliya. Instead, it was heading towards the Beastman who had previously crashed into the ground with a thud!
Meanwhile, the Beastman also got up.
The Beastman stood there bare-chested, his muscles sculpted and well-defined, and he wielded a broadaxe in his hand. He showed no fear in the face of the approaching Greyrock Demon. In fact, he even thumped his chest, full of fighting spirit!
"Who is this guy?"
Hiding behind a rock, Rocky glanced at the Greyrock Demon and then at the Beastman, utterly confused; he still hadn’t figured out what was going on.
However, Liliya next to him quickly provided an answer.
After looking at the Beastman, she turned to Rocky and said, "This Beastman, just like us, is here to hunt demons."
"He’s a Demon Hunter!"