The flames scorched the gaping wound on the Corroder’s belly, searing the flesh black. But the acidic fluid pouring from its mouth quickly extinguished the fire, and its regenerative power was nothing short of terrifying. In mere moments, the body that had been melted by Miles’s acid grenades was already starting to mend.

  Miles didn’t give it time to recover. He fired several flame rounds straight into the monster’s mouth. A burst of fire exploded from within, engulfing the base of one of its massive tentacles. Yet again, the mysterious internal liquid snuffed the flames almost instantly.

  Without hesitation, he switched to high-explosive rounds. But even those failed to breach the monster’s thick maw. A single grenade just wasn’t enough—and he was already out of hand grenades.

  Grinding his teeth, Miles drew his last four explosive throwing darts. Dodging a crushing tentacle, he dashed beneath the beast and hurled all four darts into its mouth.

  Boom!

  A series of synchronized explosions rocked its body. The blast blew several holes through its gut and severed one of its tentacles in half. The creature shrieked and staggered, that particular limb now too damaged to move.

  Miles immediately swapped to flash rounds, aiming for its face. He covered his eyes just in time.

  A blinding white light detonated.

  The Corroder howled in agony.

  Seizing the opportunity, Miles leapt onto its head and plunged the Greedy Fang into its skull. Black veins instantly spread from the blade, crawling over the monster’s head like a parasitic web.

  The Corroder roared and swiped at him with a claw the size of a car.

  Miles kicked off and flipped away.

  It didn’t die. Not yet. Even a fatal strike from the Greedy Fang only wounded it.

  Not giving it time to recover, Miles lunged again, this time stabbing the blade deep into its massive claw. But he didn’t retrieve it. He left the blade embedded—and the black veins spread rapidly, consuming the entire monstrous limb.

  In seconds, the claw withered into a brittle skeleton. The blade clattered to the ground, and Miles snatched it back.

  He dashed under the beast and rammed the Greedy Fang into his own thigh—again.

  His leg began to shrivel as the blade siphoned his energy.

  But it was worth it.

  With only one leg to stand on, the Corroder lost its balance and crashed to the ground in a thunderous roar. It struggled to rise using its remaining foot, but its enormous body was far too heavy.

  Miles climbed onto its head again. This time, with no massive claw to stop him, it was almost too easy. A smaller, weaker hand tried to swat him away—he batted it aside like a fly.

  He grinned coldly.

  The Greedy Fang plunged deep into the creature’s forehead.

  The black veins surged like wildfire.

  Its final roar faded into a whimper.

  Its flesh shriveled. Bones cracked and dried under the weight of its decay. The once-terrifying beast was reduced to a skeletal husk.

  Only then did Miles pull the blade free.

  "One hundred and fifty Constitution points, huh? No wonder that bastard was so tanky," he muttered with a smirk. "But in the end, high Agility wins. Speed kills."

  Ding!

  The familiar level-up chime echoed in his ears.

  The Corroder had dropped a whopping 50,000 XP—enough to push him up three full levels.

  Even the Greedy Fang had leveled up.

  This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

  Hunting high-level monsters was clearly the way to go.

  He opened his status screen:

  Miles – Demon Hunter Lv. 20

  Experience: 8%

  Strength: 10

  Agility: 17

  Constitution: 12

  Spirit: 10

  Greedy Fang – Lv. 7

  Attack: 400

  Experience: 22%

  When he returned to the bus, everyone stared at him like he was the monster.

  They had all seen how terrifying that thing was. The explosives barely made a dent. And yet, Miles had torn it apart like it was nothing.

  Reed muttered in disbelief, “So... that’s a Demon Hunter. Unreal.”

  Miles climbed aboard and flopped into a seat, finally relaxing. His nerves had been razor-sharp during that fight. One mistake—just one—and he’d have been pulp on the pavement. Nobody watching could understand how precise every move had to be. To them, it probably looked like he was playing with it.

  The convoy left the area in silence. Outside, military personnel were already waiting.

  As soon as the survivors disembarked, officers rushed in to take over and begin medical checks. Paige reported to a nearby commander, who nodded and ordered artillery units to level the district. Twenty cannons fired in ten volleys, and in minutes, Block 13 was flattened into smoking rubble.

  Miles leaned against a jeep and tapped to complete his mission.

  The reward for this Tier-G emergency task was generous—1,500 game coins and 20% experience gain.

  Not bad at all.

  His total coins now stood at 3,500.

  The rescue stats showed ten survivors saved.

  Paige approached and handed him a bottle of water, flashing a smile. “Feels different working with the military, doesn’t it? Much easier.”

  Miles drank half the bottle in one go and grinned. “Definitely. Beats running around, dodging patrols, and hoping I don’t get arrested.”

  She laughed. “So back at the WestCon Pharmaceutical lab... you were hiding from us.”

  He shrugged. “Would you have believed me if I’d said I was just there to hunt monsters?”

  “Probably not. But I do have a question. What would it take for someone like me to become a Demon Hunter?”

  Miles blinked in surprise. Paige, with her sharp military demeanor and soft features, had always struck him as someone born to command, not fight monsters in the shadows.

  “You’ve got a good life,” he said. “Becoming a Demon Hunter comes with a heavy price. It’s not a decision to make lightly. But I’ll let you in on a secret—humans can absorb monster genes and grow stronger.”

  Her eyes widened. “Wait... you absorbed their genes? Doesn’t that risk infection?”

  “Only Devourers can do that directly without getting turned. Demon Hunters use another method. Gene extraction machines—those pull monster DNA from brain cores. Much safer. Just... rare as hell. I don’t even have one.”

  “Then how did you become so strong?”

  Miles gave her a sly look. “That’s classified. Demon Hunters have secrets. If you really want to be one, you’ll have to learn to keep yours too. Secrets are your armor. Expose them, and you expose your weaknesses.”

  “Fine. But at least tell me where I can find one of those machines.”

  “Maya base probably has one. Other than that, no idea. That kind of tech? People guard it like treasure.”

  Paige looked away, her voice quiet. “If you ever find one… bring me with you. I need that power. I need revenge. My foster father was our squad commander. My brother… the team leader… he was his only son. We lost both at WestCon. My family’s gone, and I can’t do anything.”

  Miles softened. “Most Demon Hunters are driven by hate. You’re not alone.”

  He gave her a faint smile. “If I ever get that machine, I’ll share it with you. But you’ll need to keep it secret. The moment word gets out, everyone—Devourers, Hunters, even civilians—will come after us.”

  “I understand.” Her gaze sharpened. “Chicago’s center is under military control, but the suburbs are in chaos. The army doesn’t have the numbers to help everyone. We’re technically freelancers now. You interested in saving lives?”

  Before Miles could respond, a new notification popped up.

  Emergency Tier-T Mission:

  Objective: Eliminate all mutated bio-creatures around Chicago.

  Reward: 10,000 game coins, 200,000 experience points.

  Tier-T missions were incredibly rare—essentially hidden quests. Since teaming up with the military, he’d run into more of them than ever before.

  “Hey! Earth to Miles! Are you listening?”

  He blinked. “Sorry. Yeah, I’m in. As long as you keep the ammo coming.”

  “Deal. Follow me.”

  They jumped into the jeep, and Paige drove straight to the largest military armory in the area.

  As soon as she stepped inside, the soldiers saluted her. Paige made a sweeping gesture. “Take whatever you want—if it fits in the jeep and you can carry it, it’s yours.”

  Miles’s eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store.

  He strolled up to a six-barrel rotary machine gun—normally mounted on helicopters—and lifted it with one hand.

  “Damn, that’s got some weight to it,” he said, impressed.

  He hoisted crate after crate of ammo onto the jeep. Five boxes of high-explosive grenades followed. Other weapons? He didn’t need them. The Fox Hunter rifle on his back was enough.

  Watching him carry the heavy crates, the guards gawked in disbelief.

  Nobody had ever picked up that rotary gun with one hand before.

  Paige finished choosing her weapons and shook her head, smiling. “You really are a monster.”

  As the jeep tore away from the base, the soldiers finally dared to speak again.

  Their next stop: Silverpine.

  Once a picturesque farming village known for its tourism and local cuisine, it was now a zombie playground.

  Reports said the villagers had taken shelter in a mountaintop cave—once a scenic attraction, now their only hope.

  As they arrived, they found the village surrounded by over four hundred Rottenwalkers.

  Miles grinned.

  Standing tall in the jeep’s cargo bed, he hefted the six-barrel cannon and opened fire.

  Bullets poured out like rain, shredding zombies with each hit. The gun’s power was insane—rounds tore through four or five undead in a single shot.

  Within minutes, the field was cleared. The few remaining zombies barely had time to stumble before they were picked off by Miles’s rifle.

  Every Rottenwalker gave 100 XP. Another easy 50,000 XP in the bag.

  Not bad for a warm-up.