Sleeping in the same room as Richard and Miguel, Reymond’s ears twitched at the sound of a distant howl. In a city where there was no distracting sound of cars and machinery, the howl was clear.

He stirred awake, lifting Miguel’s muscular arm off his chest.

’This guy... turning around in his sleep.’

Slipping into a pair of slippers he had found earlier, he stood up and headed out of the room. Going down the stairs, he spotted Richard’s mutated beast and stiffened.

The mutated cat looked at him for a moment, then looked away. He sighed in relief, glad it didn’t attack him.

He headed towards the kitchen, getting a glass of water to drink. Unfortunately, he couldn’t stay for long since the stench of rotten cow meat filled the room.

Stepping out, he settled the cup on the receptionist desk, then frowned.

"That howl... must belong to that wolf," He said, remembering the beast they had seen earlier today. "I just hope it doesn’t come here."

He said to himself, oblivious of the fact that two people were missing from the hotel.

............

Slice!

Leon’s black blade swung upward, grazing the wolf’s shoulder as it leaned back to avoid his attack. He didn’t stop, stepping closer to press the offensive.

From behind, Selene’s ice spikes shot at the beast. It dodged a few, but Leon’s blade forced it to sustain damage from the others.

The spikes dug into its flesh, freezing the blood in their area of impact.

’This bracelet is very useful.’ she thought as she changed position, trying to target the beast’s open flank.

Leon continued to attack with heavy, calculated swings, forcing it to receive more of Selene’s attacks while it dodged his own weapon.

The beast growled threateningly, its head whipping towards Selene. Then, crouching low, it prepared to lunge.

Leon read its intentions and also crouched. The moment it tried to jump over him, he lifted off the ground, swinging his sword at its exposed belly.

Bang!

The hit connected cleanly, and the beast was flung to the side, crashing into a nearby car. It flattened the vehicle easily, standing up again to glare at the duo.

Blood dripped from its injured side, but it was smaller than Leon expected.

’A direct hit like that only scratched it...?’ He almost couldn’t believe his eyes.

Selene’s eyes narrowed, and she whispered to him, "There’s something different about this one. I think it’s stronger."

Leon could only agree with her. Although the silverback gorilla had been tough to kill, it had been a pure brute with great defense.

This wolf, however...

The asphalt cracked under its feet as it shot at them like an arrow. Leon responded with a timely swing of his heavy blade.

Clang!

Unsurprisingly, he was thrown back by the exchange. He quickly stabilized himself midair, but then his eyes widened.

’She...!’

He looked up, seeing the wolf raise its claws at the silver-haired girl.

Her expression hardened, and she realized she wouldn’t be able to dodge in time. So, she prepared to tank the attack.

Expending 80 mana points, she created a thick wall of ice on her left. The beast didn’t care. It smashed its claws towards her, landing directly on the wall of ice.

Crack!

The shield barely lasted two seconds before it shattered. Selene’s eyes widened in shock.

Before the claws could reach her, a wall of solidified shadows rose between them, temporarily slowing the claws’ deadly advance.

Crouching some distance away, Leon decided to try something new as he forced the shadow wall to hold out for a little longer.

The veins on his temples bulged, and he gritted his teeth as he struggled to focus on using his ability in two different means.

’Shadow... step!’

His surroundings abruptly switched, and he appeared from Selene’s shadow. Feeling the shadow wall crumble from the beast’s strength, he reached out and roughly grabbed her by her collar, yanking her back.

At the same time, the wall of shadows crumbled, and the claws sliced through the air.

A wound split open on Selene’s stomach, but it wasn’t deep. She winced from the pain, but her expression barely changed.

After stabilizing herself, she cast a subtle glance at Leon. If he hadn’t pulled her back, then there was a high chance she might have been disemboweled or cut in half.

The thought alone sent a chill down her spine, and she realized this creature before them wasn’t merely a Tier One Evolved wolf. It was a very strong one, probably between Level 30 to Level 40.

The wolf paused, seeing that its attack had barely done any damage to the duo. It began circling around them like a predator, searching for any signs of weakness.

Leon’s expression looked tired, but his eyes continued to swirl with darkness.

"You stay back and provide support. I’ll keep it away from you."

Although Selene felt the instinctive urge to argue, she suppressed it and nodded.

Holding his sword tightly, Leon decided not to give the wolf a chance to attack them.

He abruptly dashed at it, forcing it to halt and step back. However, his hand was already outstretched, and he had his sword swinging at its head.

The wolf bared its teeth in the direction of his blade, using its Fang’s to block his attack.

Clang!

Leon was surprised, feeling the recoil transferred to his arm. ’Strong!’

The wolf recoiled with a low growl. One of its sharp canines had cracked, and blood was flowing from the damaged gum.

Its intelligent green eyes locked on him with fury, and it dashed straight at him. Leon sidestepped, letting the claws miss him by a few inches. Then, he sliced upward with his blade, dealing a small wound to its strong hide.

At such a close range, the wolf turned its head and tried to bite off his head. He couldn’t dodge, but he wasn’t scared.

From the distance, a thick ice spear struck the wolf’s neck, digging deep into its flesh and causing it to yelp in pain.

The beast jumped back and swiped at the weapon stuck in its neck, shattering it with its strength. Blood flowed from the wound and dripped to the ground in large drops.

Leon also jumped back, standing beside Selene. Without turning to her, he said, "Thanks."

She replied with a nod, and they both concentrated on the beast towering above them. Although it was stronger and more dangerous, it was now bleeding, and its injuries were going to accumulate over time until...

’You’ll die,’ Leon thought, locking eyes with it. ’Don’t get it mixed up. You’re the prey here. And I... no, we... are your predators.’

His black eyes continued to swirl with an emotion akin to madness.