The Hunting Field, WhiteLeaf Forest, was formed by the explosion of the C-rank Dungeon, Belachwood Hollow.

And the reason any C-rank dungeon turned into a Gate was that nobody was able to conquer it in time.

A C-rank dungeon meant hunters from level 51 to 100 could enter and attempt to clear it, yet no one succeeded.

Clearly, it wasn’t normal by any means.

And Soren already knew the reason from the game, as it was because of a Tier Breach.

---

[Monster: Albino Lizard]

[Race: Beast]

[Level: 60]

[Rank: B]

[HP: 15,500 / 15,500]

[Special Traits:

> Phantom White Escape – An evasion trait that erases presence for brief moments, nullifying tracking and enabling short burst movements in distorted intervals.

> Lightless Camouflage – A concealment-type trait that bends light around the body, rendering it nearly invisible in most environments.

> Ghost Instinct – Sixth sense that picks up subtle shifts in the environment, steering it away from danger and toward hidden opportunities and valuable finds.

---

Unlike humans, a dungeon generally followed a strict tier hierarchy, meaning an E-rank dungeon contained E-rank monsters, and a D-rank dungeon contained D-rank ones.

Even if a D-rank dungeon had other monsters, they would only be E-rank, never higher.

However, there were always exceptions where a lower-ranking dungeon contained higher-tier beings.

Generally, such cases were mostly seen in higher-tier dungeons from A-rank and above.

It was because, as the dungeon rank increased, so did the nature of the monsters inside.

For example, if it were a dragon, even a hatchling that appeared in an A-rank dungeon could still be S-rank. It didn’t need to cross level 200.

In fact, even in the C-rank dungeon Ember Rift, where Soren had been before, the Earth Drake that scoffed at him in disdain and did not attack was a B-rank monster.

When such an oddity happened, hunters described it as a Tier Breach, meaning the dungeon had deviated from its normal structure, making its conquest significantly harder.

The Albino Lizards residing within that C-rank dungeon, Belachwood Hollow, were the same.

Same as the one in front, tilting its head cutely.

’Damn...I didn’t know it was an Albino Lizard at level 60.’

Soren slowly distanced himself, putting up a safe distance while paying attention to the lizard in front.

He had already noticed this guy before by using his evolved ’Artemis’s Sight’ before. He just didn’t know its level was so high, not to mention its B-rank.

But Soren also knew that this guy wasn’t actually hostile to him. If he noticed anything yesterday, it seemed rather curious.

Right now, it was staring at him with those oddly cute reptilian eyes, tilting its head slightly as it chewed on a black object of unknown origin. Its snow-white body made the whole scene even more disarming.

Strangely enough, instead of looking dangerous, it came off as almost adorable.

"Little guy...what the heck are you trying to do?"

But Soren didn’t only have this guy to worry about, after all.

Currently, he was already being surrounded by a large pack of wolves howling in anger.

To be honest, Soren should probably run away using his Dimensional Anchor, as those wolves were clearly at a higher level than the boar he just killed.

But he didn’t, because his unique skill, Fortune Sight, was telling him not to.

’Golden aura, and there are two of them.’

Soren had already made a habit of scanning everything he came across with his unique skill recently.

It was a luck-based skill, after all, that could predict omens and good fortune.

And it seemed his persistence had already paid off, as he could see two golden auras spewing out in front, one from the lizard and the other from the black object in its mouth.

Of course, there was also that dark omen he could see from the deep forest, coming rapidly in his direction.

He had to hurry up.

*Tchik-tchik*

As soon as Soren asked, the Albino Lizard suddenly chirped a bit weakly, before slowly coming closer to Soren, its eyes wary.

But when it saw that Soren didn’t move and was only looking intently, it quickly came a bit closer, before throwing the dark object directly below Soren’s leg.

"Hmm?"

For a moment, Soren glanced at the object, realising it was a compass.

Only, it was rusted and black, with faint engravings along its rim that were barely visible, as if they had been worn down by years of use and neglect.

Just as Soren was about to use his ’Keen Sight’ to scan it, though, he suddenly saw the Albino Lizard lowering its head and prostrating in front.

The movement was stiff and awkward, but unmistakably deliberate, like a human attempting to bow before a king.

And yet, its eyes never left his face, locked on him with an almost unsettling focus, as if waiting for judgment.

’What is it doing?’

Soren was completely bewildered by the strange display. To be honest, he had a guess, but that only made him more surprised.

After all, wasn’t this beast at level 60?

+It was higher in level than him, for heaven’s sake, not to mention its uniqueness of having B-rank status.

Such a monster was lowering itself in front of him as if in submission? That too, when he did nothing at all.

’Is it tricking me, or is this the effect of my...100 luck points?’

Soren was speechless when, suddenly, a system prompt rang out.

---

Ding!

[A heavily injured B-rank Albino Lizard has sent a request to form a beast pact with you.]

[Do you want to accept it?]

[Please note that forming a pact with a soul-damaged entity might have a negative effect on your own soul.]

---

Only...the prompt gave him another surprise out of the blue.

’Injured?’

For a moment, Soren was confused and scanned the guy below, but saw no injury whatsoever.

Its pristine white body was as flawless as always, with not even a speck of dirt.

There was no indication that it was injured, let alone heavily.

"Hm?"

Just as Soren was confused by the System’s prompt, he noticed the Albino Lizard’s eyes trembling.

It was very faint, and the little guy tried hard to hide it, but he caught it immediately.

*Roar!*

But as the wolves’ howls grew louder and a dark aura began to seep through the surroundings, the Lizard started to tremble more openly, this time with its whole body shaking.

"Tchik-tchik!"

And yet, it didn’t run away in fear.

Instead, it let out another sound, almost urging Soren to make a decision, as if it refused to leave until he accepted it.

’So it is indeed injured. Is it trying to make a pact with me to save itself?’

If so, then it made perfect sense. In fact, that black compass might be its bribe for this.

’Quite intelligent!’

Soren thought when suddenly he felt the atmosphere around him shift abruptly, followed by an imperceptible seismic wave.

"Watch out!"

Fortunately, he had been paying attention to his surroundings from the beginning.

So, the moment he felt something wrong, he directly lunged at the trembling Lizard, grabbing it by the neck, before abruptly jumping high into the sky.

Of course, he didn’t forget to take that black compass with him too.

*Boom!*

Sure enough, the instant his figure left the position he had been standing in, jagged shadow spikes erupted from the ground, tearing through the air with a foul, suffocating presence.

If he had been even a fraction of a second slower, he would have been pierced without a doubt. Even the metallic sheen on his skin might not have been enough to save him.

*Roar!*