Frontier Beasts were divided into ranks, starting from Weak Beast all the way up to Origin Beast. The difference between each rank was not just strength, but what they could do. Most of them carried Traits, which were almost the same as Hunter Class skills, except they were unstable and shaped by instinct instead of control.

A Common Beast had no Traits at all, so they fought like normal wild creatures. An Uncommon Beast carried one Trait, which already made it dangerous because it could break basic combat logic. Epic Beasts carried two Traits, and that was where fights started turning dangerous even for trained Hunters. Higher ranks only made things worse because each evolution added more Traits, making them harder to read and harder to kill..

If anything, Rohan knew battling a Standard Epic beast as Level One Hunters was a suicidal plan but he was willing to bet all his stocks on him and the rest to win the battle.

The beasts he had fought to keep Man Of Swarm safe after kidnapping him were just Common Weak Beasts with zero traits or threat but an Epic possessed two traits which made the battle much serious than it seemed.

The huge bear-boar beast stepped into the clear space between the trees. Its yellow eyes locked onto the place where the team was hiding. The ground shook a little every time its heavy paws hit the dirt.

Barry gripped his iron spear tightly. His knuckles turned white. He looked at Dominion, then looked back at the monster. The name tag above its head still glowed brightly: [Standard Epic Beast].That meant this thing had two special traits. It was not just a dumb animal. It had dangerous powers hidden inside its body.

"I will take the front!" Barry shouted as he jumped down from his branch. He did not wait. He ran forward with his spear pointed straight at the beast’s chest.

"Wait!" Priscilla called out, but it was too late.

Barry used his short speed skill. A light blue glow wrapped around his boots, and he moved twice as fast. He closed the distance in a second. He thrust his spear forward with all his might, aiming right between the bone plates on the monster’s shoulder.

The sound was like metal hitting a stone wall. The tip of the spear hit the dark hide, but it did not go deep. It only made a small scratch. The beast did not even bleed. It slowly turned its massive head toward Barry, its curved tusks gleaming in the dim light of the forest.

The monster roared. The sound was so loud that the leaves on the trees shook, and small bits of dirt fell from the branches.

Suddenly, the air around the beast became very heavy. This was its first trait. The ground under Barry’s feet turned into soft mud instantly, pulling his boots down. He tried to pull his legs out, but he was stuck. He could not move his feet at all.

"Dominion, help!" Eric yelled from above. He jumped down and landed on a thick root, his hands glowing with pale light as he started to draw a rune on his arm.

Dominion was already moving. She dropped to her knees and slammed both palms against the hard earth. "Stone wall!" she cried out.

The ground in front of Barry cracked open. A thick slab of grey stone shot up from the dirt, standing right between Barry and the beast. It was just in time. The monster slammed its heavy bone-plated shoulder into the stone wall.

The wall broke into a hundred pieces. The force of the hit sent a wave of dirt and sharp rocks flying everywhere. Barry was thrown backward out of the mud, rolling across the forest floor until he hit a tree trunk. He groaned and held his side, his spear slipping from his hand.

The beast was not stopped by the wall. It kept moving forward, its amber eyes fixed on Dominion now.

"Get back!" Priscilla ordered. She leaped into the air, her green armor flashing. She held her black sword with both hands. As she swung it down, a wave of cold air rushed out. Three sharp icicles formed in the air and shot toward the beast’s eyes.

The monster was fast for its size. It raised its thick arm to block its face. The icicles hit the bone plates on its arm and shattered into harmless white dust. But the cold magic did its job. Faint blue frost started to spread across the beast’s fur, slowing its movements down.

"Eric, now!" Priscilla shouted as she landed lightly on the grass.

Eric finished his rune. The glowing marks on his forearm turned bright red. "Rune of Strength!" he yelled. He ran forward and jumped toward the beast’s side, swinging his short blade with enhanced power. The blade cut into the side of the monster’s leg, past the thick fur.

Red blood spilled out onto the grass. The beast let out a sharp cry of pain.

But the wound only made it angry. The monster’s second trait finally activated. The faint scars across its back started to glow with a dark, angry red light. The frost from Priscilla’s magic melted away in an instant. The beast’s muscles swelled, becoming even larger than before. Its speed doubled.

Before Eric could pull his sword back, the beast spun around. Its long, heavy tail, which was lined with small bone spikes, whipped through the air.

The tail hit Eric right in the chest. The light plating on his scout outfit cracked under the pressure. Eric flew through the air like a rag doll and crashed into a thick bush, coughing hard.

"Eric!" Barry raised himself up, using his spear to stand. He was limping, but he refused to stay down.

The beast turned back toward Priscilla and Dominion. The red glow on its body was getting brighter and brighter. Every breath it took released a cloud of hot steam into the cold forest air. The ground around its paws began to crack from the pure heat it was producing.

Dominion tried to raise another stone structure to block it, but she was running out of energy. Her hands shook as she touched the ground. Only a small mound of dirt rose up, and the beast crushed it effortlessly under its foot.

Priscilla raised her black sword again. Her face was pale. She knew they were in deep trouble. A Standard Epic Beast with a rage trait was too much for two common classes and two superior classes who did not know how to fight together yet.

Behind them all, near the shadow of a giant mossy tree, Rohan stood perfectly still.

He had not moved since the fight started. His hand was resting casually on the hilt of his Steelwind Sword. His eyes were not full of fear like Eric’s or Barry’s. He was just watching. He watched the way the beast moved, the way it used its traits, and the way it left its left side open every time it swung its right arm.

"We need to move back!" Barry yelled, his voice cracking. "We cannot pierce its armor while the red light is active!"

The beast charged. It was heading straight for Priscilla. Its tusks were lowered, ready to tear through her armor.

Priscilla bit her lip. She did not run. She stood her ground and began to channel all her remaining magic into her black sword. The blade turned completely white with ice, freezing the grass around her boots. She prepared to meet the charge head-on, even if it meant taking severe damage.

The distance between the monster and Priscilla closed rapidly. Ten feet. Five feet.

Suddenly, a dark shape flickered across the ground.

Rohan vanished from his spot by the tree. He did not use a loud skill or a bright light. He just moved into the shadows cast by the thick canopy above.

The next second, he appeared right beside the charging beast, right in its blind spot. His Ironhide Vest held firm against the wind as he drew the Steelwind Sword. The metal blade caught the dim light of the forest, turning into a silver blur.

Rohan did not aim for the thick bone plates on the back. He did not aim for the tough skull. He thrust his sword directly into the small gap under the beast’s front shoulder joint, where the skin was soft and thin.

The sword slid in smoothly.

The beast roared in surprise and agony, its massive charge veering off course. It missed Priscilla by inches, crashing heavily into a large rock pile instead. Dust and debris exploded everywhere as the giant creature thrashed around, trying to find the person who had just caused it so much pain.

Rohan landed lightly on his feet a few paces away, his sword already back in a defensive stance. The shadow around his boots seemed to twist slightly, waiting for the next move.

The beast pulled itself out of the broken rocks. The red glow on its body turned even brighter, almost blinding to look at. It turned its amber eyes toward Rohan, completely forgetting about the others. It raised its massive paws, ready to smash the ground.