It took us three hours to reach the hamlet where the inferno beasts were sighted. We traveled over rough terrain; rocky hills and plains covered in thick, stubby grass. The weather was clear, so at least we didn't have to trudge through rain or snow. The sunlight seemed weak and washed out. It was freezing cold, but we wore warm clothing, so that wasn't a problem.

As martial artists, Leroy and I had no trouble making the hike. For us, it counted as a decent warm up. To my surprise, Cally kept us with us without issue. She was a wizard, so I thought she would slow us down. However, she proved hardier than expected. My opinion of her went up a notch.

Over the course of our journey, I attempted to make conversation with Cally, which she ignored. I guessed she was still annoyed at me for my attitude earlier. I didn't blame her. I acted like an ass. Still, as long as she did her job, it didn't matter.

The hamlet was a fortified settlement located at the top of a large hill. When we arrived, a middle-aged man with weatherbeaten features came out to greet us. At first he eyed us with suspicion. However, after we told him that we were from the Icefall Adventurers Guild, he warmed up to us a little.

According to him, a few days ago one of his sons saw the pack of inferno beasts near a nameless forest to the north of the hamlet. By some miracle, the son managed to evade them and returned home with the news. Afterwards, the man sent one of his other sons to report the matter to House Icefall.

I could guess what happened after that. House Icefall didn't have any spare retainers or soldiers to deal with the pack of inferno beasts, so they commissioned the Icefall Adventurers Guild to handle the matter for them.

After we learned as much as we could from the middle-aged man, my companions and I headed north towards the nameless forest. This took us another hour. We arrived at around mid afternoon.

The forest was small, only covering a few square miles, and consisted of fir trees. They stood tall and proud, like sentinels guarding the north. Their sharp, but refreshing, scent filled the air. A thick underbrush covered the forest floor, accompanied by a thin mist that gave the forest a mysterious atmosphere.

My companions and I found the inferno beasts' tracks when we reached the outskirts of the nameless forest. I wasn't the best tracker, but thanks to my experiences on Earth, I knew enough to get by. From what I saw, there were about a dozen or so inferno beasts in this pack. If left alone, they could become a serious threat to nearby settlements.

"I'll take point." I said, peering into the forest. "Leroy, you take the rear. Cally, you stay in the middle, where it's safest." I glanced back at my companions. "Any objections?"

They shook their heads with serious expressions on their faces.

"Let's go then."

With that, the three of us entered the nameless forest. The trees and the mist limited visibility and dampened sound. The thick undergrowth and rough terrain forced us to watch our footing, slowing us down. For most beginner adventurers, hunting inferno beasts in this sort of environment was a terrible idea. It was akin to suicide. However, not so for us.

The mist gave me a significant advantage, thanks to my fighting styles. Cally was a Water wizard, so it gave her an advantage as well. As for Leroy, well, the thick undergrowth and rough terrain weren't a problem for him. He could just cleave through it all with his greatsword.

In fact, the most difficult part of this job was finding the inferno beasts. As I said earlier, I wasn't the best tracker. In fact, rather than waste time trying to find them, it was faster to wander around and let them find us. I shared this idea with my companions, and they agreed to it.

Half an hour after we entered the nameless forest, our efforts bore fruit. Something roared in the distance. Moments later, another roar rang out, followed by a third and a fourth. The trees and the mist made it difficult to figure out where they came from, but it sounded like the inferno beasts had us surrounded.

"Oh good, here they come." I said in a cheerful voice. "I was starting to get impatient."

My companions gave me odd looks, before they shook their heads. Leroy and I drew our swords and took defensive stances, with Cally in between us. Meanwhile, she chanted an incantation and formed mudras with her hands. Moments later, blue magical barriers sprang to life around each of us. These barriers conformed to our bodies and followed our movements. Impressive.

Most First Circle wizards created spherical barriers that were rigid and remained in place. While powerful, they also hindered movement. Cally's barriers gave us all of the benefits with none of the downsides. Clearly, she was a step above other First Circle wizards. In fact, I would go so far as to call her a genius.

This led me to wonder why she became an adventurer. Any House would love to have someone with her potential as a retainer, and any minor noble family would want her as a daughter-in-law. Whatever the case, there was more to Cally than met the eye.

"There," Cally said after she finished casting her spell. "That should protect you from one or two fire breath attacks."

Leroy and I nodded, before we waited for the inferno beasts to come to us. It didn't take long. We heard them long before we saw them. The rustling of undergrowth, the cracking of tree branches, roars and snarls. Despite this, I didn't feel afraid. Instead, excitement filled me. Finally, for the first time since I transmigrated back to Lumina, I was hunting monsters.

The first inferno beast emerged from the mist like an evil spirit. It resembled a wolf with black fur, albeit with a thicker body and a stubbier snout. Its eyes burned red hot and flames licked the inside of its maw. Its head came up to my chest. The moment it saw us, it let out a vicious snarl.

The inferno beast stopped and opened its mouth to breathe fire at us. However, I didn't give it a chance. I enhanced my body with mana and dashed forward, weaving between the trees and through the thick undergrowth. I reached the inferno beast before it could finish its attack and lopped off its head with a single swing. It didn't even have time to yelp as it died.

The inferno beast's body tumbled to the ground. Fire spilled from its stump of a neck, setting the undergrowth ablaze. I danced away, avoiding the flames. However, before they could spread, water appeared out of nowhere and doused them.

I risked a glance back at Cally, who regarded me with those icy blue eyes of hers. A moment later, she turned towards Leroy, who was busy dealing with his own inferno beasts. However, just as I considered heading over to help him, three more inferno beasts appeared next to me, forcing me to look away from him.

All three inferno beasts snarled and charged right at me. Despite this, I remained calm and composed. Rather than retreat or evade the three inferno beasts, I stood my ground and lashed out at them with a technique.

[Threefold Slash]

I swung my sword three times in rapid succession. Each attack was more powerful than the last, but also put more strain on my body. The full technique was actually called [Sevenfold Slash], but I was too weak to use it. Instead, I resorted to a lesser version.

The first slash injured the three inferno beasts, drawing blood. The second slash inflicted lethal injuries on them. The third slash finished them off, cutting them to pieces.

At the same time, the ground beneath my feet rumbled and I heard an explosion behind me. I grinned. It appeared that Leroy decided to use one of his techniques, the one that shattered the ground. I glanced back and saw a cloud of dust mingling with the mist floating through the air. When it cleared, I saw the broken bodies of several inferno beasts on the ground in front of Leroy.

A few more stragglers attacked us after that. However, they posed no threat to us. We slew them with ease. Soon, the bodies of over a fourteen inferno beasts lay on the ground near us. The battle was over. We emerged victorious.

While I felt happy about this, I also felt disappointed. Killing the inferno beasts proved easier than expected. They posed no challenge at all. None of them even came close to breaking through Cally's barriers, let alone harm us.

Oh well. This brought us one step closer to reaching Bronze, the rank above Iron, so it wasn't a waste of time. Besides, the payment from this job would take care of our needs for a while. We would also make a tidy profit from selling the inferno beasts' body parts. If we completed a few more jobs like this, maybe we could afford a full set of armor for Leroy.

"I'm surprised," Cally said, looking around at all the carnage, "You two performed better than I expected."

I grinned at her.

"I told you that Leroy and I were more than capable of handling a pack of inferno beasts."

Cally nodded.

"Yes. You are a step above the average internal magic user." She snorted. "I still think you're an ass, however."

I shrugged.

"Fair enough. Now then. Let's collect what we can and head back to Icefall City."

Cally shook her head.

"No," she said. "This isn't the end of it."

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Leroy and I looked at her, confused. I opened my mouth to ask what she meant by that, but then I felt a slight tremor. In the distance, I heard the faint sound of a tree crashing to the ground. It happened again and again in rapid succession. The tremors grew stronger and the sound of crashing trees grew closer.. My blood ran cold when I realized that something big was heading in our direction.

"Grab Cally!" I shouted. "We need to leave now!"

Leroy hefted Cally onto his shoulder, eliciting a yelp from her, and followed me as I started running. A second later, a horrific howling rang out behind us. A chill ran down my spine. I recognized that sound. I heard it countless times in my past life, back on Earth. Two more howls answered the first, realizing my greatest fears.

We were being hunted by a pack of hellhounds.

Leroy and I ran through the nameless forest, driven by fear and desperation, with Cally hefted over Leroy's shoulder. The ground beneath our feet trembled and the sound of crashing trees reached our ears as the hellhounds chased after us. Every now and again, they let out a chorus of horrific howls, sounding like beasts from the depths of hell. Unfortunately, that was exactly what they were.

Hellhounds were demons, one of the most common kinds in fact. Mindless and vicious, they were driven by an instinctive urge to kill. Worst of all, they never traveled alone. They hunted in packs. Hellhounds were also large, about the size of a small house on average. Technically, they were equivalent to Tier Two monsters. However, just as monsters were stronger and tougher than humans, demons were stronger and tougher than monsters.

A part of me wondered what these hellhounds were doing here. It was difficult for demons to enter realms other than the Infernal Lands, their native realm, unless they were summoned. There were exceptions, such as Earth with its Gates, but these were few and far between. Had someone summoned these hellhounds? No. That wasn't important right now. I could worry about those questions after we dealt with the hellhounds.

I killed thousands of them as a hunter in my past life. However, I was much weaker in this life. With my current strength, and given enough room to maneuver, I could handle one or two hellhounds. However, we were in the middle of a forest, which made it difficult for me to utilize my movement techniques. Not only that, but there were three hellhounds. This left my companions and I with one option for now: run.

To my dismay, the hellhounds moved faster than us. Leroy and I had to weave our way through the trees and watch our footing, to avoid tripping and falling over. Leroy also had to carry Cally. As a wizard, there was no way she could move as fast as a martial artist. The hellhounds, on the other hand, could just barrel through the forest. With their size and strength, even full grown trees proved just a minor hindrance to them.

I could have run off on my own, to save my own skin. I was faster than Leroy, and I wasn't burdened by another person. However, that meant abandoning my companions to die. I could not, would not, do that. Not if I wanted to look myself in the mirror ever again.

Our best option was to leave the forest, and then make our stand. While we would be more exposed out in the open, we would also have more room to maneuver. As long as Leroy and Cally kept one of the hellhounds occupied, I could deal with the other two. In fact, out of the three of us, I was the most suited to fighting these hellhounds.

In addition to my knowledge and experience from my past life, I also had my affinity for Lightning. In most cases, Lightning wasn't more powerful than the other elements. However, it was the bane of all demons. This was one of the reasons why House Sturm held such high status, and why the Church of the Sun held us in high regard. We were natural demon slayers.

After what felt like an eternity, the edge of the forest came within sight. However, it sounded like the hellhounds were right behind us. At this rate, we wouldn't have time to prepare a good defense before they reached us. To buy some breathing room, I stopped and turned around.

[Storm Cloud]

I breathed a black cloud imbued with Lightning, flooding the area right in front of me. It rumbled and crackled. Less than a second later, the hellhounds appeared. They were terrifying to behold. People called them hellhounds because they were quadrupedal and somewhat lupine in shape. However, instead of flesh, they were beings of darkness and flame made physical. Their mere presence set the forest around them ablaze.

The hellhounds let out roars of pain when they collided with my [Storm Cloud], forcing them to stop in their tracks. Good. That would buy us a few precious seconds. Considering the situation, we needed every advantage we could get.

I turned back around and rejoined my companions, who waited for me just outside the forest.

"What were you thinking?" Leroy shouted.

"Fight now, scold later." I said. "We can't outrun the hellhounds. If we don't defeat them now, they'll run us down and kill us."

Leroy still wore the wooden mask, so I couldn't see his face, but his body language radiated refusal. He wanted to flee from here and never look back. I didn't blame him. A hellhound was a dangerous opponent for a Second Star martial artist, let alone a First Star one like him.

"Brandon is right," Cally said, still on Leroy's shoulder, "If we don't stop them now, they'll kill us and wreak havoc in the area. We can't let that happen."

After a moment's hesitation, Leroy cursed under his breath.

"Fine!" He spat out.

Leroy put Cally on the ground and took up a defensive stance. A moment later, I heard the hellhound coming after us again. They had broken through my [Storm Cloud].

"Get ready!" I said. "I'll distract two of them, while you two handle the third!"

At least we were still protected by Cally's barriers from earlier, so we didn't have to worry about that.

A few seconds later, the three hellhounds burst out of the forest, knocking over several trees. They looked even more terrifying out in the open. All three towered over us. The moment they emerged, I dashed towards them. Scorching heat washed over me as I drew close, but I pushed through, protected by Cally's barrier.

[Threefold Slash]

I slashed at two of the hellhounds. My attack did little damage, but I expected that. My goal was to attract their attention. In that regard, I succeeded. The two hellhounds that I attacked snapped at me, their maws large enough to tear me in half with a single bite, but I avoided them by using one of my movement techniques.

[Lightning Dash]

In the blink of an eye, I moved in a straight line and appeared several feet away. This confused the two hellhounds for a fraction of a second, before they noticed me and charged in my direction. The ground shook with each of their steps. Thankfully, unlike inferno beasts, they couldn't breathe fire. A small, but welcome, blessing.

The third hellhound tried to join them, but Leroy shouted and thrust towards it with his greatsword. A layer of Water coated the blade, courtesy of Cally no doubt. The attack hit its mark, piercing deep into the third hellhound's body. It roared in pain, before it turned towards Leroy and Cally. However, the other two hellhounds almost reached me by that point, so I couldn't afford to split my attention anymore.

For the first several seconds, I avoided the hellhound's attacks while looking for an opportunity to strike. I couldn't defeat both of them in a head-on fight. If I took even a single blow from one of them, I was done for. Cally's barrier offered me some protection, but not enough to withstand a blow from a hellhound. So, I needed to play smart.

The problem was, I also needed to kill these two hellhounds as soon as possible, so I could help out Leroy and Cally. While they were both powerful for their level, they weren't a match for a hellhound. At best, they could hold their ground.

To that end, I took a risk and ran between the two hellhounds. They tried to attack me at the same time and ended up colliding with one another. This caused them to turn on each other for a brief moment. I took advantage of this to get behind them and used one of the techniques I created, inspired by my heritage.

[Storm Dragon's Claw]

It was similar to [Threefold Slash], but imbued with Lightning, so that it resembled a claw attack from a storm dragon. Using it drained a significant portion of my mana reserves, but the results were worth it. Unlike my attack from earlier, [Storm Dragon's Claw] bit deep into the hellhounds' bodies. They roared with pain, before whirling around to attack me. However, I danced out of their reach.

Good. I just needed to pull off a few more attacks like that to kill them. Unfortunately, since hellhounds were beings of darkness and flame instead of flesh, it was impossible to inflict crippling injuries on them without cutting off entire limbs. Otherwise, the only way to weaken and kill them was by inflicting enough damage.

I dashed forward and to the left, aiming for one of the hellhounds' side. It turned to follow me, opening its mouth to snap at me. Rather than continue forward, I pivoted and swung my sword, aiming for the hellhound's open mouth.

[Storm Dragon's Claw]

My sword bit deep into the hellhound, inflicting grievous injuries. It stumbled where it stood, unable to move for a second. A thrill ran down my spine, and I decided to take advantage of this opening to kill the hellhound. However, just as I went for the finishing blow, the other hellhound pulled an unexpected move. It slammed into its companion, throwing the first hellhound towards me.

I tried to avoid the first hellhound using [Lightning Dash], but I moved a fraction of a second too late. Its body clipped me, shattering Cally's barrier. Flames licked my body, burning my skin, while the force of the blow sent me flying backwards. When I hit the ground, I rolled to control my movement and used my momentum to leapt back onto my feet. Despite my recovery, I wasn't in good condition.

A large chunk of my clothes had burned away. The skin beneath it was scorched red. My body felt battered and bruised, though it didn't seem like anything was broken. Thank goodness for small miracles. While I could still move and fight, I wouldn't be as fast as before. Given that speed was my greatest advantage here, my chances of winning this fight just went down.

At least I only had to deal with one hellhound. The other one lay on the ground, unmoving. Being slammed by its companions must have killed it, or at least incapacitated it. Either one worked for me. Demons cared little for others, including their own kind. They were more than willing to sacrifice each other to achieve their fucked-up goals. Well, I wasn't going to complain. That just made killing them easier.

The remaining hellhound charged towards me. Despite my body's protests, I took a stance. In order to kill it, I would need to take a risk and push my body to its limit. This would incapacitate me, leaving me unable to deal with the third hellhound, but I didn't have much choice at the moment. After that, it was all up to Leroy and Cally.

However, before the hellhound even made it halfway towards me, something neither of us expected happened. The temperature in the area plummeted as a wave of frost coated the area next to us.

We both looked over to see the third hellhound, the one facing Leroy and Cally, coated in a thick layer of ice. The ice started to crack and melt as the hellhound struggled to break free. Before it could, Leroy leapt into the air with his greatsword held high. With a roar, he slashed down, aiming for the hellhound's head. The head exploded, killing the hellhound.

I stared at this, stunned. Ice magic? How was that possible? Unless… Later. We had one hellhound still standing. I dashed towards it, moving as fast as I could with my injured body. It noticed this and charged towards me. However, unlike before, I no longer faced it alone.

A shard of ice flew through the air, embedding itself into the hellhound's side. Leroy slashed at it with his greatsword, inflicting another wound. Despite this, the hellhound continued to charge at me with a single-minded determination. I guess it wanted to kill me before it died. Unfortunately for it, that wasn't going to work.

[Storm Dragon's Claw]

I slashed at it four times, pushing myself beyond my limit. My bones cracked and my muscles tore. Pain wracked my entire body. However, it was worth it. The fourth slash, imbued with the power of Lightning, was significantly more powerful than the first three. My attack minced the front half of the hellhound's body. It collapsed to the ground a few feet away from me.

It was over. We had survived.

That was my last coherent thought before my strength left me and I fell forward. Darkness swallowed me up before I even hit the ground. In the distance, I heard my companions calling my name, before I knew nothing.

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