The woman smiled softly and explained, "Looks like it's your first day here. This is the cheapest price you can get for a room. After all, the E-rank beasts are the weakest, and you can defeat them in a group easily. But if you still think it's expensive, then you are free to negotiate accommodations elsewhere."

  Victor shrugged. "It's fair enough. We can afford it for now."

  Noah nodded and handed over five teeth from the bag. "We'll take five rooms."

  The woman accepted the teeth and placed them in a small chest behind the counter. She handed them five wooden keys with a bright smile on her face, each engraved with a number. "Your rooms are on the second floor. Enjoy your stay."

  Each of them took a key before ascending the stairs, splitting off to find their respective rooms. Each room was small but clean, with a simple bed, a desk, and a small window that offered a view of the village.

  Noah sat on the edge of his bed, staring at his longsword standing against the wall.

  His mind kept replaying the events of the day, thinking about how everything had changed abruptly.

  "Mom… Dad… Mia… I wonder how they are doing currently," he said with a soft sigh. "Maybe… maybe the life in my last life was better, even if it was uneventful."

  "…"

  "Sigh, no point thinking about it. I need to first survive in this hellhole. Those guys aren't half bad. I can team up with them for now and hunt," he said to himself.

  "But Daniel… why does that bastard seem so unreliable, even though he was useful? Haa…" He released a tired sigh as his mind replayed the events of the day.

  After a while, another thought crossed his mind as his gaze landed on the sword again. He had never wielded a sword before, and his clumsy movements during the fight had been painfully obvious.

  He couldn't afford to rely solely on luck and the others' skills.

  "Fuck it, I need to survive first if I want to even survive," Noah said with a determined tone. Standing up, he grabbed his sword before leaving his room.

  The hallway was quiet, with the others already settling in for the night.

  He made his way downstairs and exited through the back door of the tavern, finding himself in a small open area that seemed to be used for storage and deliveries. It was quiet and dimly lit, perfect for practice.

  Standing in the middle, Noah took a deep breath, unsheathing his longsword as he prepared for training.

  He planted his feet firmly and tried to recall what little he knew about swordsmanship from movies and books.

  "Alright, let's start with the basics," he muttered to himself.

  He practiced holding the sword correctly, adjusting his grip until it felt natural. He then moved on to basic stances, trying to balance his weight evenly and keep his posture steady.

  The sword felt heavier than he expected, and his muscles hurt with each swing.

  "Bloody hell, this is harder than it looks," Noah grumbled, sweat forming on his brow as he repeated the motions.

  His swings were slow and awkward at first, but he focused on improving his form rather than speed. Each movement became a little smoother, a little more precise.

  The sound of the sword cutting through the air filled the quiet backyard of the tavern, accompanied by Noah's rough breaths.

  He lost track of time while being immersed in his practice. His arms ached due to overexertion, but he pushed through the discomfort, knowing that solidifying his basics could mean the difference between life and death in this world.

  Unbeknownst to Noah, a pair of eyes watched him from one of the tavern's second-floor windows. Emma stood at the window, her eyes bright with admiration as she looked at Noah's dedication.

  "I-I need to be like him. I can't keep dragging my team back," she softly whispered, her fists clenched with determination. But looking at the late night, she sighed and closed the curtains.

  Back in the courtyard, Noah finally lowered his sword, panting heavily. His muscles screamed in pain and exhaustion, but his eyes flashed brilliantly as a faint smile formed on his lips.

  "That's enough for tonight," he said, sheathing the sword and heading back inside. His form had visibly improved, as his control over his body was far greater than an average human due to Soul Energy.

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  "If my stance was half as good as right now back when we were fighting that wolf, I wouldn't have suffered as much as today." He took a deep breath before heading back inside.

  Soon, he reached his room and dropped down on the bed, the day's exhaustion finally hitting his body as his eyes grew heavy.

  The warm rays of the morning sun came through the thin curtains, casting a soft golden glow across Noah's room.

  His eyes fluttered open. Stretching his sore arms, he slowly sat straight.

  "Ugh, fuck, did I overdo my training yesterday?" Noah muttered while flexing his arms, remembering the intense training he did yesterday.

  Noah took a deep breath while rubbing his face before freshening up and taking a bath.

  …

  Soon he returned to his room and wore his old clothes, which were already looking worn due to yesterday's hunt.

  "Haa… I don't know how long these clothes will last." He sighed before putting on his shirt and pants. His gaze landed on his longsword propped against the wall. With a determined look on his face, he stood and strapped it to his waist before heading downstairs.

  As he slowly descended the creaking wooden stairs, the sound of conversation came from downstairs. The smell of freshly baked bread and roasted meat wafted from the tavern's kitchen, making his stomach growl.

  'Looks like we can finally eat,' he thought before hurrying downstairs. Soon, he entered the main hall and saw his team already gathered around a table near the corner.

  Leah waved him over with a smile. "Morning, Noah. You're up later than I expected."

  Noah chuckled, taking a seat beside her. "I might've overdone it yesterday. Needed the extra sleep."

  Daniel smirked, leaning back in his chair. "Practicing your swordsmanship in the dead of the night, eh? Your grunting was loud enough to reach the second floor yesterday. It really pumped me up to train as well."

  Victor shook his head with a chuckle. "Stop your bullshit. You went straight to sleep as soon as we got here."

  Daniel's eyes twitched. "You can keep quiet, and no one will think you're mute."

  Emma, sitting quietly at the table, gave a small nod. "I-I saw you practicing too. It was... inspiring." Her voice was soft but filled with determination, a stark contrast to her usual timid demeanor.

  Noah turned his head to Emma before giving her an encouraging nod. "You should practice as well. We need to improve as much as we can to survive in this accursed world."

  The rest of the group nodded their heads as their expressions turned serious.

  Noah raised an eyebrow as he saw the atmosphere shifting. "Anyways, what's for breakfast?"

  "Good enough to fill our stomachs," Leah said, passing him a plate of bread, eggs, and a strip of smoked meat. "The tavern is quite generous with their food. The meals are enough to power a hunter throughout the day since the meat is from the beast we killed yesterday."

  Noah looked at Leah in surprise. "Oh? You got the meat of that beast? I thought Garrick took all of it."

  Victor shook his head. "No, he only took the payment for dismantling the wolf without destroying its precious parts like claws, teeth, and other things. He came to give us our part in the morning."

  Noah's eyes flashed with surprise. "Oh? That's quite generous of him."

  As they ate, Victor cleared his throat. "We need to make plans for today's hunt. We barely survived yesterday, but with that success, we can hunt a beast like that much more easily. We need more Soul Energy if we want to reach E Grade as soon as possible."

  Leah nodded, her expression growing serious. "Yes, the outskirts of the forest were doable, but we need to push deeper if we want to face stronger beasts and improve rapidly."

  "Deeper means riskier," Noah said, chewing thoughtfully. "We barely managed with that wolf yesterday. If we run into a pack or something stronger, it could be the end of us. And we have yet to know what level of beasts are there in the forest."

  Daniel shrugged, tossing a piece of bread into his mouth. "We'll just have to be smarter. Stick together, and plan better. Besides, we're already stronger than we were yesterday, thanks to that Soul Energy."

  Emma fidgeted with her fork. "M-maybe we should stay near the outskirts a little longer? Just to be safe."

  Victor gave her a reassuring smile. "We'll take it step by step. We're not going to rush deep into the forest."

  Noah finished his eggs before exhaling a breath. "Let's set clear goals first. We need to decide how many beasts we need to kill before heading deeper into the jungle. I remember Garrick mentioning that beasts also have grades, and E-tier beasts can be multiple times stronger than the one we faced."

  Leah pulled out a rough map the villagers had provided. "Here's the forest layout. The outskirts are marked in green, and the deeper zones are in red. I say we hunt at least three more beasts before heading further into the red zone tomorrow."

  "Sounds reasonable," Victor agreed. "We'll focus on killing the lone beasts on the outskirts first, then retreat before nightfall."

  Daniel grinned. "Perfect. This will help us grow strong enough to face beasts at the outskirts of the red zone."

  Emma hesitated but finally nodded. "I-I'll try my best."

  "Good," Noah said, standing and placing his plate aside. "Let's finish up and get moving. The sooner we start, the more kills we can get."

  The group nodded in unison before quickly finishing their meal. They double-checked their weapons and supplies before heading out.

  All the passing people looked at them with shining eyes.

  "Look! That's the first group who returned with a Soul Beast," one of the crowd members muttered while pointing at Noah's group.

  "Yes, I heard two more groups returned with a successful hunt," a young man said with admiration in his eyes.

  "But I heard the bearded man, another lean man, and the muscular woman who left alone never returned. Most are saying they died inside," a villager said with a look of pity on his face.

  "Yes, but the young man who went solo returned alive, albeit barely and heavily injured, but he had successfully killed a weaker Soul Beast," another one shared an astonishing piece of news.

  Noah raised his eyebrow, hearing the villagers' words. "So those guys died, huh?"

  Victor shook his head with pity. "They could have lived far longer if their arrogance hadn't blinded them."

  Daniel, on the other hand, looked surprised as he said, "That young man actually managed to kill a Soul Beast all on his own."

  Noah shook his head. "That's useless. He's already heavily injured. Who knows how long he'll take to heal? And in that time, if he dies from Soul Poisoning…"

  His words trailed off, but everyone understood their implications. Their hearts beat faster as they thought about what would have happened to them if they were injured.

  "Anyways, let's go. We need to find beasts to hunt as well," Daniel quickly said before rushing forward.

  Noah shook his head with a smile before following after him.