"All of you, get behind me!" Lavinia ordered as soon as her night vision pierced through the shadows and locked onto the horde of feral dogs breaking past the trees that bordered their camp.
At first, Alex only heard the sound of wood snapping, but soon enough, he saw the dogs' dark outlines, backlit by the full moon's light. Seeing the countless pairs of eyes shining eerily in the darkness made his skin crawl.
Fortunately, with the stars granting them dim light, the young man was able to make out the monsters more clearly as they drew closer with every step.
The crackling campfire in the background cast long, flickering shadows across the Catkins, who were now geared up for battle.
"Serpent Lash!" Lavinia's sword whip unfurled with a hiss, striking in a weaving arc like a serpent hunting prey.
The first line of feral dogs that happened to be in the way of her strike were instantly sliced in half.
However, a single slash, no matter how strong, couldn't possibly stop the stampede's momentum. Without care, the other feral dogs ran past the carcasses of their fallen comrades, who were starting to turn into particles of light.
Alex raised his shield and brought his sword to the ready, slipping into a defensive stance.
He was a few meters away from Lavinia, who had turned into a warrior princess of death, decimating everything that came close to her deadly sword whip.
But Lavinia was just an individual. A single stone couldn't block the flow of the river.
Soon, chaos erupted in the camp as Alex and the other Catkins joined the battle.
"Ah!" one of the Catkins shouted in pain as he was bitten on the arm by one of the feral dogs that had targeted his blind spot.
Fortunately, his friend had been quick to act and killed the monster before any lasting damage was done.
But as the battle progressed, more and more Catkins were getting injured.
Some even chose to fight back-to-back, ensuring that all sides were covered.
Even Alex, who wasn't close to any Catkin present, didn't hesitate to follow suit and group up with the others.
"Protect the Young Miss!" Lioren rallied the other Catkins. Despite their injuries, they still heeded his call and moved quickly.
The Hartwell Clan was the spiritual leader of the Clawford Tribe, so if they could help it, they would not allow anyone from their family to get hurt.
Lavinia knew how much damage it would cost the tribe if she continued to hold back, so she took out an emblem from her storage ring and raised it high up in the air.
"From stone-bound hills and forest deep,
I call the beast from primal sleep.
Let fang and paw now walk the land,
Dire bear, rise at my command!"
A magic circle appeared in front of Lavinia, and soon, a Rank 3 dire bear materialized on the battlefield.
Monster Grade: Uncommon
Note: A terror of the deep wilds, the dire bear is an unstoppable force. Its very presence warps the land around it, as if the forest itself is trembling in fear. Few creatures dare to challenge it, and even fewer survive the encounter.
At the sound of a primal roar, the feral dogs were stunned for a brief moment.
The dire bear unleashed its savage fury upon those who were attacking its master. Its three-meter tall figure sent feral dogs flying with every swipe of its claws.
It mauled and bit everything in its path, making the Catkins all cheer for their Young Miss, who had summoned a creature to fight for their side.
Thanks to the powerful addition to their team, they finally got a breather from all the fighting.
But despite many of their comrades dying from a single attack of the dire bear, the crazed feral dogs didn't back down.
Lavinia had hoped the dire bear would intimidate the dog pack, yet it oddly had the opposite effect, as the monsters had become more vicious.
They even lunged at the bear with bestial savageness, as if wanting to tear its flesh apart.
Even she was taken aback by this scene. Weaker monsters were normally intimidated by monsters stronger than they were, so she had expected them to retreat.
It didn't take long before the dire bear was swarmed by the dogs. Although it was still alive, it had visibly taken serious damage from the attacks of its weaker opponents.
As the battle continued, Dim Dim once again felt danger in the air.
The Dim Sum God focused its senses in the direction from which it sensed the dangerous feeling was coming.
Soon enough, it discovered the hidden enemy lurking in the shadows, enjoying the desperation of the Catkins as they fought a battle of life and death.
Alex's body subconsciously shuddered when he heard Dim Dim's warning.
"Everyone, the Boss Monster is lurking nearby!" Alex shouted. "Be careful not to get ambushed!"
Lavinia's and Lioren's faces both turned grim after hearing the young man's warning.
They were already at their wits' end with the feral dogs. If another dangerous monster joined the battle, they would not be able to hold on!
It was then that a mighty roar reached everyone's ears as the dire bear sent all the dogs clinging to its body flying.
The dire bear's health had decreased drastically, and it had now entered its Berserk State.
In this state, it couldn't determine friend from foe. The only thing on its mind was to attack the nearest figures near it and crush them to oblivion. Even Lavinia didn't dare to stay close and hurriedly backed away.
But just as the Dire Bear steadily killed the feral dogs left and right, a dark shadow fell upon it.
Alex, Lavinia, and the other Catkins watched in horror as a giant spider sank its venomous fangs into the dire beast, who was completely caught by surprise by its sneak attack.
After delivering its venomous bite, the jumping spider leapt back, allowing everyone to get a good look at it.
Alex's face turned pale as soon as the information about the red-striped zebra jumping spider flashed in front of his eyes.
Then and there, he knew the creature was one they couldn't possibly hope to defeat, no matter what they did.
"Everyone, run to the first floor!" Alex shouted. "That's the Field Boss Monster Dim Dim was talking about!"
The moment the young man's shout reached everyone's ears, the jumping spider took off a second time.
But this time, it didn't jump toward the dying dire bear but the Catkins, who all stood rooted to the floor due to fear.