Zane walked to the dead bodies and observed. "I wonder what this race's anatomy is like," he pondered. A hybrid of human and dog was genetically impossible, but in the world of magic, nothing is out of the realm of possibility. Zane did not stay too long. Instead, he dragged his large bag to a resting cave. He did not choose the one he previously discovered since it was too close to the dead creatures. With their terrifying sense of smell, they would easily discover him.
Luckily for him, there was another cave about 5 miles from his landing location; otherwise, he would have no choice but to camp in the open. After blowing the head of the bear occupying it, Zane made it his home. Since his life was in line, he lined up a few traps in front of the cave, not only as a warning at night but also as a trap for people.
The day was long, so Zane began his hunt. Since killing ten of those dog-headed creatures was not enough for a title, he'll kill more. Tracking them proved no challenge with the drones; all Zane had to do was remain at a distance and avoid alerting these creatures' sensitive smell. The drone was well-made and capable of detection while remaining beyond the limits of these creatures' sense of smell.
"Another hunting party of ten," Zane analyzed. Killing them would be easy, especially since they had just hunted a bear and some of their members had suffered some injuries. However, he decided to follow them from a distance to discover their village. Of course, Zane would not allow them to return home.
After determining their direction, he sent the drone ahead to scout and finally found his target. The next step was simple: he approached this hunting party; they detected his scent, headed toward him, and Zane — prepared with a magic shield and weapon — emptied the clip on them and eliminated everyone.
"20 dead and still no title," Zane mused to himself. Since twenty of these creatures were not enough, he'll kill until he reaches the requirement. As fate would have it, there were plenty of them nearby, so his sight shifted to the village.
"Barricaded by a wooden wall on four sides, one entry, two scout towers in the north and south, and a population of about 250," Zane observed. "Unlike the goblins, the dog-headed creatures are well-trained, armed, organized like a militia, and with their sense of smell, the possibility of infiltration is almost zero. The only good news is I haven't detected a single mage or transcendent individual."
Zane hasn't ruled out the possibility of a mage or knight existing among them, but so far, there hasn't been a sign of any of them. Regardless, it's still impossible for him to take on an entire town alone — even if he has the ammunition of a small army. So, he pondered what the best means to annihilate his opponent is.
"They are a hunter society," Zane suddenly thought. "Every day, they probably send a hunting party to acquire food for the entire village. I only need to target those parties one by one, and I can whittle their numbers down. Once all the soldiers and capable individuals are dead, it's only a matter of time before I can eliminate the rest."
The drone flew out and began a search around the village's perimeter. Two of the hunting parties are dead, and Zane assumed there should still be a few who haven't returned. Luck was on his side as he discovered two of them. Without hesitation, he took a smaller bag that was easier to carry and rushed toward the nearest one. These creatures seemed to have something against humans because they would rush toward him as soon as they caught his scent. Sadly for them, the only thing awaiting their arrival is a rain of steel.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sound quieted, and the world fell into an eerie silence. Zane calmly watched the life draining from these creatures' eyes, feeling nothing. All he thought was that forty of them were dead and still no titles. At this rate, he might have to kill more than a hundred before achieving something.
"Hmm?" Zane thought. He suddenly sensed a dangerous gaze behind him; it was so potent that he could feel that whoever it was, they wanted nothing more than to kill him. With a swift and instinctive motion, he moved the mana shield behind him, and he was immediately proven to have done the right thing as an arrow bounced off the transparent shield before falling on the ground.
As he turned around, three more arrows hit, and Zane finally saw the assailants: another hunting party of ten. A hint of anger flashed in Zane's mind. If not for the extraordinary sense due to his mental energy and his quick reaction, he would have died at the hands of these beasts. Without hesitation, he started engraving the spell model for the magic bullet in the air.
His actions seemed to have started an unexpected chain of reaction. As soon as these creatures saw the magic circle, they first stopped as if they were frozen in fear. Then one of them yelled something in an unknown language, and everybody started running. Sadly, Zane's casting had already finished, and most of them were in the 10-meter range of the spell.
The barrage of magic bullets was faster and more penetrating than actual modern guns. Furthermore, while most handguns had about 12-18 bullets in a magazine, Zane can cast 32 magic bullets before he needs to cast the spell again. The result was that eight of them died and fell on the ground, never to stand up again. Meanwhile, two of the archers — who remained in the back — only suffered severe injuries and ran away. Zane chased them down and ended their life with the second round of spells.
"Hmm? I'm already out of mana?" Zane thought. This shouldn't have been the case; he's only cast one mana shield and two magic bullets. As he was in thought, his left hand suddenly heated up, and his eyes lit up. "I've been waiting for you," Zane muttered.
An unknown power coursed through every aspect of his body; for a moment, he felt like he was in the middle of a hot bath in the middle of winter. During the process, he detected a white energy running through every aspect of his vein; this energy was different from his mana, which appeared blue in his senses. The unknown power fused with the white energy, making it even brighter and more vivid than before. Finally, everything returned to normal a few seconds later.
"What's this?" Zane thought. Before today, he could only sense the mana inside his body. But now, there was this white energy, and by tracing it, Zane could feel the state of his exoskeletons and muscular system; he even felt he might be able to sense his blood vessels if he concentrated hard enough.
"Another mystery," Zane sighed to himself. This new title did not increase his strength, but another fundamental aspect had been amplified. So, he swiftly checked the result.
[Title: Kobold Killer (White)]
[A Mage Apprentice using a gun to kill a bunch of ordinary creatures is nothing special; on the contrary, it could even be called bullying the weak. However, your ruthlessness and efficiency are appreciated. Such a mindset might get you far in life — especially given your current situation. Keep going, and you may receive a special reward.
[Effect: A marginal increase to your constitution. From now on, your healing ability has increased by 1%.]
[Next Title Improvement: 50/100]
"Ruthless, huh?" Zane muttered before sneering. The world has always been big fish eat small fish, and with the appearance of the Dimension Tower and the Demon Lord's invasion, such a cruel truth will become even more prominent. If he has to be ruthless to survive the upcoming new era, then that's how he'll be.
Blood can easily attract other animals, so Zane did not want to stay around with twenty bodies around. So, he took his bag full of ammunition and food rations, and three rabbits that one of the group had hunted for the village. Although he had brought enough food to last a week, he wouldn't waste any opportunity to acquire more food.
Using the drone, he found a quiet place more than 100 meters away to recover his mana swiftly. Less than ten minutes later, he rushed back to his cave. By now, all the hunting party should have returned to the village, so he's prepared to spend the rest of the day training and meditating. The mana in the environment is abundant, and Zane feels his meditation will be more effective than ever.
As Zane approached his cave and prepared to remember the placement of the traps, his body suddenly stopped, dropping the rabbits, bags, and handgun. It was not that he noticed someone was caught in his trap or that something had happened to his cave. No, he just couldn't move. No matter what he did, his body refused to listen.