Chapter 43: Beast Under the Moon

[Wolfman Level 50]

[A bloodthirsty Beastman Species that only moves in moonlit areas. The lost descendant of the legendary Holy Silver Race, its appearance means the Curse has already begun to spread.]

[Thrust B / Claw Slash A / Three-dimensional Maneuvering B / Bloodthirsty B / Frenzy A / Beast Intuition B / Symbiosis B / Energy Storage A / Moon God’s Curse A / Intimidation C / Suppression B / Rolling B / Dark Assault B / Wolf Fur C / Moon Star B / Moonlight A / Splash A / Dual Personality A]

Blaze took a step back. This momentary show of weakness instantly struck a nerve with the bloodthirsty Wild Beast.

Releasing the Silver Goat, the Werewolf dashed in front of Blaze in a flash, opening its bloody maw to bite down on his neck.

[The Skill Level has increased.]

[Black Shadow Stealth F — E]

[Can dive into transforming shadows for 60 seconds.]

The moment the Werewolf’s massive figure obscured the moonlight, Blaze sank. He entered the Werewolf’s shadow, then instantly popped out and dashed toward the dying Silver Goat that the monster had cast aside. A single stab drained its blood, delivering a fatal blow.

[Level 36 (9) — Level 37 (11)]

[Hunter Level 3 — Level 4]

[Unlockable Skills: Jungle Mimicry F / Hunter’s Footsteps F / Tracking F]

The Silver Goat turned to dust and vanished. Biting into thin air, the Werewolf slowly turned around. Its fur gradually stood on end, and human-like Anger appeared in its eyes. It knew it had been played, fooled by a feigned, fearful retreat.

"Don’t be so angry. I don’t plan on letting you escape either," Blaze said.

He put away his Twisted Greatsword, facing the Werewolf bare-handed.

The Werewolf twitched its nose, bent its legs, and lunged forward. But it wasn’t a straight dash; it darted left and right, looking for an opening in Blaze’s Defense. Even though its physique resembled a Human, its nature to seek an advantage while avoiding harm and shunning direct confrontation had not disappeared.

"Left... no, above?"

Blaze shifted his stance and leaned forward, rolling to dodge the Werewolf’s downward claw strike. But dodging was not the main point. Blaze took advantage of the momentum to grab the Werewolf’s wrist, simultaneously using Black Shadow Stealth to dive into its shadow.

Although it was impossible to pull the Werewolf into the Shadow World, Blaze yanked the monster into a stumble, flipping it onto the ground as if performing a shoulder throw.

The hand grasping its wrist acted like iron tongs, pinning the Werewolf to the ground. Infuriated, the beast immediately snapped at the hand. As if he had anticipated this, Blaze let go and shrank into the shadow, causing the Werewolf to take a vicious bite out of its own arm.

"AWHOOO—"

Its mouth full of blood, the Werewolf roared in pain. Blaze took the opportunity to slip out of the shadow and create some distance.

[Black Shadow Stealth] seemed like a Skill meant for entering the Shadow World to ambush and lay in Stealth. However, looking at it from another angle, if one could perfectly time diving into the opponent’s shadow during a head-on battle, it could catch them completely off guard.

The Effect Blaze wanted was to maintain his Stealth state while holding the Werewolf’s wrist, using the Power of the dive to smash the creature’s wrist repeatedly against the ground. Unfortunately, it failed. But Blaze was not discouraged; he would try again when his Strength Value was higher.

The Werewolf suddenly calmed down. Bright red blood flowed from its wound, then turned into virtual cubes and dissipated. Bathed in the moonlight, the Werewolf seemed to split in two. Its back was illuminated by a soft glow, every single strand of fur radiating purity and holiness. Yet, shrouded in shadow, the beast’s head twisted into something so hideous that even a Demon would panic. Its silver-white bestial eyes were gradually covered in bloodshot veins; from a distance, they looked like two red lanterns.

It was actually a misconception that injured Wild Beasts became fiercer. A Wild Beast would always prioritize survival above all else. Most of the time, once injured, it would immediately flee. Only bloodthirsty Wild Beasts like a Titan Hybrid would prioritize combat.

But this Werewolf was different. Even when it already had its prey, it could be lured by a retreating motion. It would launch a furious attack when it realized it had been tricked and its prey snatched away. Similarly, it would fly into a frenzy of exasperation upon realizing it had become an experimental tool.

In short, it was human-like. This was the characteristic of the Beastman Species—Wild Beasts that closely resembled a Human.

Yet the movements of the Werewolf before him were much closer to that of a Wild Beast.

Blaze took the initiative to step forward, charging into the Werewolf’s attack range and throwing a punch. If it were a Human, they would have used their arms for Defense at this moment, but the Werewolf opened its jaws and bit back, leaving its two terrifying arms hanging wide open at its sides.

That terrifying bite force could undoubtedly cause Piercing damage straight through his Armor, but an attack that had long been seen through was useless, no matter how much Power it held.

Blaze stalled his punch, using a feint to make the Werewolf bite empty air, and then aimed a [Bee Sting Fist] right at its nose.

For any animal with a keen sense of smell, the nose was fundamentally a weak point, and even a Werewolf was no exception. However, something unexpected happened. As the Werewolf clutched its nose and howled as if it had suffered a fatal wound, Blaze pressed his advantage, swinging his Armored Heavy Fist like a lethal stinger.

Kidneys, liver, ribs, solar plexus—and finally, to prove that his Profession was [Fighting Master] and not [Boxer], he turned sideways and delivered a swift kick to the Werewolf’s Waist. The Werewolf possessed the traits of a wolf, which in other words meant a thick skull and iron bones, but a glass Waist. The slender Waist belonged to a deadly Hunter of the natural world, yet it was also incredibly fragile.

He thought, "It seems quite easy to deal with. I’ll give it the final blow with [Lethal Execution]."

Just as he thought this, the warning trigger of [Danger Perception] went off like a string of firecrackers, ringing endlessly in Blaze’s mind.

Blaze abruptly retreated. In the next second, Silver-white specks of light seeped out from between the Werewolf’s fur. Those specks of light fell naturally to the ground, burning scorched black craters into the earth.

[Moonlight Worm Level 1]

[Parasites that live and reproduce between the fur or carapaces of moonlit Wild Beasts. They die immediately upon leaving the host. Usually, they absorb Moonlight to compress and store energy. When they sense danger or impending death, they will release all the accumulated Moonlight at once.]

[Energy Storage A / Release A / Reproduction A]

Moonlight was not as glaring as Sunshine, but the concentration of it over time could yield temperatures high enough to melt even rock.

The Werewolf arched its back, stretching its body toward the Moonlight. The atmosphere changed. If the Wild Beast had been in control of the body before, now it was a Human controlling it.

Blaze narrowed his eyes and equipped the Twisted Greatsword in his hand.

[Dual Personality A]

[A single body housing two, or even more, personalities. By switching personalities, one can dispel control effects and negative mental states.]

The Werewolf stood up straight like a Human. Its Silver-white eyes were incomparably calm, yet they gleamed with a cruel light.

"AWHOOO—"

The Werewolf howled at the sky. The Moonlight Worms dwelling beneath its fur vibrated, emitting a buzzing sound, and the Werewolf’s body was dyed Silver-white.

Under the moon, the black Wild Beast initiated a charge toward the Silver-white Wild Beast.