The next two Razorhounds appeared less than five minutes after Max resumed his hunt.
He heard their claws scraping against the stone before they emerged from the passage, and this time, instead of waiting for them to attack, Max charged toward the first one.
WHOOSH!
The Razorhound lunged, but Max twisted aside and slashed across its exposed shoulder.
SHNK!
"GRAAAH!"
The beast stumbled, and before it could recover, Max caught its neck with his left hand and drove the gauntlet upward.
The second Razorhound tried attacking from behind.
Max heard it coming.
He released the dying creature and dropped low just as the second beast sailed over his head.
BAM!
Its claws struck the wall, sending fragments of stone scattering across the floor.
Max rushed forward before it could turn around.
SLASH!
A deep wound opened across its neck, and the beast collapsed after a few desperate struggles.
Ding!
[Razorhound slain.]
[EXP +10]
[Razorhound slain.]
[EXP +10]
[EXP: 70/100]
Max looked at the corpses and grinned.
"That was much easier."
He had sustained neither a serious injury nor much exhaustion from the exchange, which was considerably better than his previous fights.
After removing their mana cores, Max held one between his fingers and considered eating it.
His current EXP was already seventy, so three more ordinary kills would be enough to raise his level without consuming any cores.
’Actually, why should I rush?’
Max returned the core to his backpack.
He had entered the Gate specifically to become stronger, but increasing his Stats wasn’t the only way to accomplish that. His current physical abilities were already sufficient to fight Razorhounds, while [Feral Instinct] still had plenty of room for improvement.
If he kept making himself stronger through leveling and core consumption, the ordinary Razorhounds would eventually stop presenting much of a challenge.
For now, he wanted to see how far his combat ability could improve without relying on additional Stats.
The cores could wait until he reached the boss.
Max crouched beside the two corpses and used [Devour] on each.
Ding!
[Feral Instinct: 22% >> 27%]
[Feral Instinct: 27% >> 31%]
The increases were smaller than what he’d received previously, but the changes were still noticeable.
Max stood and glanced at his Status before continuing.
[Fatigue: 19]
It had risen from twelve to nineteen during the fight and the preceding journey, although he wasn’t particularly tired yet.
He dismissed the screen and continued deeper.
The next chamber was considerably larger, with several pillars scattered around the uneven floor.
Max had barely entered when four pairs of pale eyes appeared from different directions.
"Four this time?"
GRRRR!
The first Razorhound approached from the front while two others moved toward his sides. The fourth remained behind, watching for an opportunity.
Max flexed the gauntlet.
"Alright, let’s see what you’ve got."
WHOOSH!
The first beast rushed forward, but Max moved aside and caught its shoulder with his claws.
SHNK!
Blood sprayed across the floor.
Before he could follow up, another Razorhound lunged from his right.
Max ducked beneath its jaws, then planted his left hand on the ground and swung his leg backward.
BAM!
His heel struck the creature’s jaw, knocking it off balance.
The third attacked immediately afterward.
SKRRRT!
Its claws ripped through his shirt and grazed his side.
"Fuck!"
Max twisted away before it could bite him, but the fourth Razorhound was already moving to intercept.
For a moment, all four creatures pressed him from different directions.
However, unlike their previous encounter, Max wasn’t panicking.
His body remained low, his eyes constantly shifted between the approaching monsters, and he was beginning to recognize which attacks deserved his immediate attention.
He deliberately allowed one Razorhound to approach closer than the others.
The moment it lunged, Max stepped around it and used the creature’s momentum to slip through the formation.
The beast crashed into another Razorhound.
BANG!
Max immediately attacked the wounded one.
SHNK!
His claws sank into its throat.
Ding!
[Razorhound slain.]
[EXP +10]
[EXP: 80/100]
The remaining three rushed him again.
Max met them without retreating.
Their claws scraped against stone while their jaws snapped around him, but he was gradually forcing the exchange in his favor.
Another Razorhound collapsed after Max tore through its neck.
[Razorhound slain.]
[EXP +10]
[EXP: 90/100]
The next creature tried escaping toward the opposite passage, but Max caught it before it could get far.
THUD!
Both crashed against the ground, and Max finished it with a downward strike.
[Razorhound slain.]
[EXP +10]
DING!
[Level Up!]
[Level: 4]
[Fatigue: 0]
A sudden warmth spread throughout Max’s body.
His muscles tightened as his strength increased, and the exhaustion that had been gradually accumulating disappeared. The cut along his side still hurt, but his limbs felt fresh again.
’Oh?’
Max hadn’t expected the change to be quite so noticeable.
Unfortunately, the last Razorhound wasn’t interested in giving him time to appreciate it.
"GRAAAH!"
The beast lunged.
Max reacted immediately.
WHOOSH!
His body moved faster than he’d intended, carrying him well beyond the creature’s jaws.
Max’s eyes widened slightly.
’That was fast!’
He pushed off the ground again, closing the distance before the Razorhound could recover.
BAM!
His shoulder slammed into the creature’s side, sending it crashing against the wall with enough force to scatter loose stones.
Even Max was surprised by the impact.
The beast struggled to stand, but the gauntlet was already descending.
SHNK!
[Razorhound slain.]
[EXP +10]
[EXP: 10/140]
Max stared at the corpse before slowly clenching his fist.
The difference was incredible.
His entire body felt stronger and more responsive, while the movements that had already been improving through [Feral Instinct] became easier to execute.
A grin spread across his face.
"Now I understand why Players are so obsessed with leveling."
Unfortunately for the dead Razorhounds, Max was far from finished.
He harvested their cores before using [Devour] on all four corpses.
[Feral Instinct: 31% >> 46%]
Four corpses had collectively increased its mastery by fifteen percent, and the diminishing gains confirmed that each new Razorhound was teaching his body a little less than the previous one.
Still, forty-six percent was already an enormous improvement over the ten percent he’d started with.
Max looked toward the deeper passages. There were more Razorhounds waiting. And he intended to find every last one.