A pleasant cooling sensation instantly spread throughout my body and the pain swiftly ebbed. When the cooling sensation vanished, only a slight ache was left on my chest.

As for the wounds on my back that Luna’s healing medicine hadn’t been able to heal completely, they had disappeared without a trace.

Finally, I breathed fully. Then the flickering system screen caught my attention—the Stream was ongoing and several of the viewers were commenting.

I ignored them because most of them were just complaining about the fact that I couldn’t fight the Iron Tier Dark Beast for more than a few seconds.

If I hadn’t realized the difference between me and the Iron Tier Dark Beast, their comments would have stung, but they didn’t now.

’I need to find out approximately how strong people and beasts in each tier are.’ I thought, feeling a little embarrassed as I remembered I had ignorantly thought I could deal with the Iron Tier Beast after increasing my attributes by one or two points.

I found my daggers placed beside me. Grabbing them, I stood up and looked around. Immediately, my expression fell.

There were corpses everywhere, both Dark Beasts and Humans.

Most of the hunters had died, including John’s companions, Dan and Miles.

Despite myself, I froze in place as the reality hit me.

From the moment I woke up in the cave and saw the Dark Beasts, I knew I could die. When I found this world was a supernatural one and there were Beasts, Dark Beats and other kinds of threats, I knew many people should be dying every so often.

But knowing was one thing, but seeing the people you had talked with, watched them live their lives just a while ago, filled with hopes and dreams, die was another thing altogether.

I also realized, with a lot more clarity, that if I didn’t become strong enough soon, I would become one of them, and worse, they could be my family too.

I quickly snapped back to my senses and muttered, "Rest in peace, everyone."

Then, I clenched my daggers and jumped down from the wall before rushing toward Joshua who was fighting the Iron Tier Beast.

The battle was brutal.

Every time he landed a strike on it, the beast would strike back at him and make a new bleeding wound on his body or snap a bone or two.

He didn’t know how long he had been fighting it, but Joshua seemed to be on his last legs. There was practically no part of his body that wasn’t bleeding and his right leg and left hand had become limp, causing him to fall to even more disadvantage.

When I was a few meters away from them, Joshua noticed me and gave me a look that said, ’Don’t come closer.’

I, however, continued forward.

When he saw this, a helpless but enraged look appeared in his eyes as he glared at me and his lips moved, ’You... can’t... kill it.’

’I can.’ My lips moved and Joshua’s brows furrowed.

Slap!

This momentary distraction earned him a tail whipping on his right cheek which split and blood flowed out.

It was true that I wasn’t close with Joshua, but he had allowed me entry in the village, gave me a place to stay and saved my life just earlier —the moment I saw him fighting the beast, I knew it wasn’t Luna who saved me—warned me to stay away when he could very well use me as distraction and leave.

So, when I saw this scene, rage bubbled within me.

I accessed the system shop and my gaze landed on the new entries that had appeared earlier but I didn’t pay attention to.

[Piercing Strike (Skill): 500 SPs]

[Piercing Strike (1 Use): 60 SPs]

I mentally clicked on the ’one use’, and the system flashed the prompt.

[Are you sure you want to purchase: Piercing Strike (1 Use)?]

With a thought, the purchase was confirmed.

[Stream Points: 87→27]

Hu!

I took a breath when I was just five meters away from the beast and burst into a sprint and jumped over its body.

’Activate!’ I roared in my mind, raising the daggers over my head.

–

[Piercing Strike Activated]

–

As I flew over it, I stabbed it in the head.

Kacha!

The daggers pierced the bone plating, then entered its skull.

Joshua’s eyes widened in shock. He clearly hadn’t expected I could really kill it.

Roar~!

The beast didn’t immediately die, instead, it let out an anguished and enraged roar while flinging its head upwards, wanting to smash me, but using the daggers as leverage, I pushed myself to the side, successfully dodging it. I also didn’t forget to twist the daggers while doing so.

Roar~!

The beast let out another roar and slammed its front legs on the ground. Then, as if it could feel it was about to die, it moved to lauch a suicidal attack and kill Joshua, but Joshua had already moved back.

After just a step, its body went limp and while letting out a last, weak roar, it thudded to the ground and died.

I pulled out my daggers and looked at Joshua, "You alright?"

"Yeah." nodded Joshua and quickly said, "Go help John and—"

Before he could finish his sentence, an enraged roar resounded.

"You bastard!"

Joshua’s bloodless face paled when he heard this and looked over to see Randy launching suicidal attacks on the Iron Tier Beast he was facing, tears streaming down his eyes.

Joshua and I quickly swept our gaze across the area and saw the reason behind his madness—Oliver had fallen and the Iron Tier Beast was devouring his corpse.

Suddenly, I noticed John in the distance. He was standing there motionlessly as the Iron Tier Beast he had been facing walked over and opened its hideous mouth with sharp, jagged teeth.

"John! MOVE!!!" I shouted as I began rushing over. If he could dodge this and survive for a few seconds, I would be able to reach him.

And while I didn’t have enough SPs left to purchase the one use Piercing Strike again, I could end the stream and buy it.

Unfortunately, however, John didn’t seem to hear me and the beast chomp down on his head.

Crunch!