?


    Tyler carefully examined the "rat," and it was clear that this creature, the size of amon rabbit, could not be an ordinary beast.


    Its status information revealed that it was a magical creature, to say, a demon.


    ━━━━━━━━━


    Carrion Rat? Nameless, Male, 1 year old


    Carrion Rat - Lv11


    Skill Slot: 1/1


    Life Energy: 0/163


    Endurance: 0/128


    Magic Energy: 0/57


    ━━━━━━━━━


    (It seems the rat has mutated into a demon... This is troublesome.)


    Last night, as Tyler and Thini were about to leave the impoverished area, it was the footprints of this Carrion Rat that made him stop.


    Afterwards, Tyler checked the map of Sunny Town and found that the area was on the eastern edge of the town, only a stone''s throw away from Sunny Forest.


    Rats are known for their burrowing habits and preference for darkness.


    Tyler immediately suspected that the Carrion Rats had formed a poption and dug tunnels near the garbage heap, leading to the outskirts of Sunny Forest.


    For this reason, Tyler rode to the outskirts of Sunny Town at midnight to verify whether his conjecture was correct.


    Unfortunately, his guess was correct.


    The garbage heap became the pantry for the Carrion Rats, and Sunny Forest served as theirir.


    Tyler''s purpose in revisiting the garbage heap was to kill as many Carrion Rats as possible and block the tunnels leading out of town, preventing the rats in Sunny Forest from reaching the town.


    A single carrion rat might not pose much of a threat, but with the terrifying reproductive abilities of rats, an entire poption of fully-grown Carrion Rats might destroy Sunny Town.


    Tyler spent over ten minutes thoroughly inspecting the periphery of the garbage heap, shooting down seven Carrion Rats of varying sizes.


    He then found the three entrances to underground caverns on the ground, stuffed them with straw to block them, poured oil on them, and set them aze, immediately igniting a raging fire!


    (This way...the rats in the caves will be driven to the other side by the thick smoke...)


    Tyler had two purposes for setting the fire: one was to drive the Carrion Rat poption into Sunny Forest, and the other was to cause the copse of the underground caverns beneath the garbage heap, eliminating the problem for good.


    The fire spread along the straw Tyler hadid out, eventually reaching the garbage heap.


    Not all the garbage in the heap was mmable, but with high enough heat, anything can burn. Gradually, the garbage heap caught fire, and a plume of gray-ck smoke drifted slowly above Sunny Town.


    "There''s smoke to the east."


    "Yeah, it seems to being from our town?"


    "It should be from the slums. Are the poor people burning straw?"


    "It''s only just summer, not the wheat harvest season yet, right?"


    In the Quest Guild, bounty hunters waiting to form teams looked out the window and discussed the matter.


    Hearing their conversation, Emilia''s heart clenched.


    - (The eastern slums...isn''t that where the demi-humans live?)


    Emilia ran out of the Quest Guild and looked eastward. Under the scorching sun, there was indeed a plume of smoke drifting in the wind. An ominous premonition welled up in Emilia''s heart.


    In her haste, she didn''t bother asking the branch chief for leave and headed straight for the slums.


    In the impoverished area, Tyler held his hunting bow, ready for battle.


    Under the dual assault of the raging fire and thick smoke, Carrion Rats asionally emerged from the underground caverns, risking their lives.


    Tyler''s task was to deliver the final blow with a single arrow.


    As the fire grew more intense, the structure of the garbage heap became unstable. Every once in a while, there would be a crashing sound as part of it copsed.


    The impact of the copse was transferred to the ground, and after several impacts, two of the three entrances had already caved in.


    Only one was left, which wouldpletely block the path of the Carrion Rats.


    "Mom, look, look! I told you there were big fat rats!"


    "Stay back! It''s dangerous!"


    "It''s not dangerous. That kind-hearted brother is killing the rats!"


    Themotion Tyler caused attracted the demi-humans nearby. Fortunately, these demi-humans who had experienced hardship knew the importance of self-preservation and quickly took the children away.


    Some of the younger, stronger demi-humans volunteered to help Tyler, but he refused them all.


    He didn''t want any casualties among the demi-humans, as it would diminish the positive effect of this incident on him winning over Emilia.


    The burning garbage heap emitted a loud explosion. After another copse, thest entrance was blocked, and Tyler''s heart finally settled.


    However, at that very moment, a thunderous crash resounded as a colossal shadow leaped from the summit of the garbage heap.


    With a piercing screech, it lunged toward Tyler!


    In the critical instant, Tyler raised his iron shield in the direction of the red light warning. The shadow collided forcefully with the shield, sending Tyler flying several meters away.


    "Screech!"


    Immediately, Tyler scrambled to his feet and sprinted without a second thought. Despite his hand feeling numb, he clung to the iron shield, his only means of defense.


    "Screech!"


    The enemy shrieked and pursued Tyler. ncing at the periphery of his vision, Tyler discerned the true nature of the shadow.


    ━━━━━━━━━


    Giant Carrion Rat ? Nameless, Male, 3 Years Old


    Giant Carrion Rat - Lv32


    Skill Slot: 2/2


    Life Energy: 451/623


    Endurance: 278/452


    Magic Energy: 137/195


    ━━━━━━━━━


    (Ah, I see—an evolved carrion rat. No wonder it possesses such strength...!)


    The Giant Carrion Rat was considerablyrger than the Carrion Rat, its sizeparable to a wolfhound. Its teeth and ws had grown significantly, as if armed with over a dozen dagger-like des.


    However, the true challenge for Tyler was its speed—the very reason he had hesitated to attack the rat swarm the night before.


    Unless he could maintain distance, Tyler''s bow and arrow would be useless.


    "Screech!"


    As the Giant Carrion Rat lunged for him again, Tyler''s left hand remained numb and immobile. He had no choice but to raise his guard with his sword. At that moment, Tyler noticed the rat''s magic energy decrease significantly, and an ominous purple-ck glow emanated from its ws...


    Tyler hastily discarded his sword and rolled away. Immediately, he heard the sound of his sword being cleaved in two!


    (...!)


    As the Giant Carrion Ratnded and readied itself for another attack, Tyler, with his back against the wall, hurled two oil barrels from his waist, aiming straight for the enemy''s forehead.


    The Giant Carrion Rat''s reaction was swift; it shattered the barrels with a swipe of its ws. However, the oil from the barrels drenched its body as they broke.


    —『Combat upation skill ''Heart of Focus - Lv5'' has been activated and remains in effect...』


    Tyler, separated from the Giant Carrion Rat by the raging fire of the garbage heap, fired three consecutive arrows.


    The arrows pierced through the mes, igniting as they went, and became ming projectiles that struck the Giant Carrion Rat, setting its oil-soaked body aze.


    "Screech!"


    Apanied by the agonized screams of the Giant Carrion Rat, the mes engulfed its entire body, turning it into a burning fire rat.


    Yet, the Giant Carrion Rat did not fall.


    Instead, it charged even more frantically toward Tyler!