The Frugal Mage Chapter 35

Even from their spot, Rayven could see the scars of past hunts across their bodies. They must’ve been attacked by other hunters or adventurers before and managed to survive... Dennis swallowed audibly. "Aren’t they a bit too huge compared to us?" "Bigger than the ones back home," Luke nodded as he was already nocking an arrow. As a hunter in his village, he was quite familiar with the Feral Boars. Rayven’s also felt a bit nervous since the Feral Boars didn’t seem to have any soft spots they could easily target... Still, they had to win this if he wanted to get a chance to be involved in the dungeon exploration to earn money... ’Nine of them at once will tear us apart if we’re reckless. We need to thin their numbers.’ He glanced at his companions. "I can distract the ones closest to us. Luke, pick off one from range to draw them away. Dennis, Tristan—be ready to strike the ones that charge. Don’t let them circle around us." This plan wasn’t too impressive. It was a very basic one that anyone would know with a bit of common sense. However, they had no other choice... Still, his words gave hope to others. Tristan even felt a bit surprised at Rayven’s calm tone. "You sound like you’ve done this before." Rayven almost smiled. "Not exactly. But I know a few tricks." Luke also liked Rayven’s idea since he only knew how to hunt alone. With Rayven’s lead, he felt that it was a good start. ’I guess this is the Probationary Quest, is all about... We need to learn how to adapt and work together with other adventurers...’ Dennis thought. Although Efren probably didn’t think too much of this quest, aside from feeding the explorers of the dungeon with their meat, it didn’t matter at this point. Efren leaned casually against a tree while holding a few pebbles and listening to their plan. He couldn’t help but watch this with interest. As a Gold-Ranked Adventurer, these Feral Boars weren’t even that strong for him. However, they could be a bit dangerous to these newbies if they weren’t careful... With the pebbles in his hands, he should be able to assist them if it gets dangerous. The moment Luke loosed his first arrow, the Feral Boars immediately felt the danger... The arrow whistled through the air and buried itself in the flank of one Feral Boar. Thankfully, his arrow had a decent penetrative power... Then, the beast let out a squeal. It was not enough to kill it but it was surely drawn their attention. Its companions immediately moved with their tusks pointing at them... "Here they come!" Tristan shouted as he gripped his sword tightly. The first two boars pounced forward. There was no way they’d want to fight these boars head on! Their momentum would surely crush their bodies! "Mana Flick!" Rayven is pointing at one of the boards, releasing a concentrated burst of force. [ 1 Gold Coin deducted. Current Balance: 136 ] The pebble-sized projectile slammed into the eye of the leading boar. ’Ohh... That’s pretty accurate!’ Rayven’s eyes lit up. The beast cried as blood streamed down its face, but its charge didn’t stop—it only grew more enraged. "Now!" Rayven shouted. Tristan braced, catching the charge with his blade and twisting his whole body to redirect the momentum. It was a difficult task, but he still had a decent mastery of the Northern Badger’s Sword Style. At the same moment, Dennis darted past him, his two short blades moved... He slashed across the beast’s ribs quickly... It was fast and shallow, but his blades were sharp. He even drew some blood out of it. The injured boar thrashed violently. However, the other Feral Boars were already at them... They had to dodge as they were out of position... Tristan grunted as he barely rolled aside... Dennis skipped back lightly, avoiding another Feral Boar by a hair’s breadth. "Fall back!" Rayven ordered as he targeted the injured one. [ 1 Gold Coin deducted... Just like that, it blasted into the boar’s other eye. This time, the creature staggered in complete confusion. Luke’s second arrow punched deep into its throat, finally dropping it with a gurgling squeal. "One down!" Dennis yelled as he felt that it was a good start. "Don’t get cocky—eight left!" Rayven reminded... Three more boars charged in unison as they targeted the nearest Dennis... "Spread!" Rayven commanded. He wasn’t planning to hold back! He fired three quick bursts of Mana Flicks! [ 1 Gold Coin deducted... [ 1 Gold Coin deducted... [ 1 Gold Coin deducted... Each spell struck a different beast. The jolts slowed them just enough. Tristan didn’t waste this opportunity as he drove his longsword in a heavy rising cut that split hide and muscle along a foreleg of one of the Feral Beasts. Dennis slipped in from the side as he opened some shallow cuts across another boar’s flank. All this time, Luke also loosed arrows in quick succession, peppering the third beast’s shoulder, but they had terrifying vitality as they kept charging forward. "Too close!" Luke hissed as he almost got hit... "Back!" Rayven fired his sixth Mana Flick! Rayven targeted straight at the arrow already lodged in the boar. He wasn’t sure if it would work... Thankfully, the magical burst drove it deeper into the lung tissue. The beast staggered mid-charge with a cry and collapsed. Follow current novels on NovєlFіre.net ’That actually works?! Good!’ "Nice one! You’re the best mage I’ve seen!" Luke shouted as he regained his composure and planted another arrow into a different boar’s neck. As the battle continued, a blinded boar thrashed dangerously, nearly trampling Tristan. But Dennis darted in, slashing across its hind leg tendons with both blades... Soon, it stumbled, just enough for Tristan to bring his longsword down in a decisive stab to its throat. "Three down!" Dennis shouted... As the battle continued, they were getting more and more familiar with the movements of the Feral Boars! "They only know how to charge in a straight line! We can do this!"