(Your team has slain the Earth Drake.)


    (All of your team acquires passive skill Drake’s Legacy of Resilience. By harnessing the enduring essence of the Earth Drake, your body and spirit have been imbued with its legendary resilience. )


    (All stats increases by 5.)


    (All healing you receive from every source, including natural healing increases by 15%, scaling with the drake’s slain power. You have slain a level 2 drake.)


    (Your resistance against all elements and physical attacks increases by 15 percent.)


    The triumphant roar of the Earth Drake''s defeat echoed through the cavern as its colossal body dissolved into golden light. The radiance flowed into me and my allies, its energy saturating our very beings. A surge of vitality coursed through me as if Drake’s indomitable spirit had become my own.


    The second drake was definitely stronger than the first one but maybe because it was an earth drake, it wasn’t as aggressive as the first one.


    I glanced at the map in my mind’s eye, the layout of the jungle and lanes vivid in my head. The second towers were still standing, even the bottom one we neglected.


    “Alright. Thalia, I need you to help Artemeni to push the top lane. Aurora, you go with Blanche. Push it past the first enemy towers and move towards the Gorchump Mother. This time, we will be one to get that buff.”


    “What about you?” Thalia asked, her eyes filled with concern.


    “I’ll hold the bottom. Don’t worry, I will not stray too far away from the tower.”


    Thalia nodded reluctantly, though the concern in her gaze lingered. Aurora adjusted her glasses, her face showing a rare flicker of excitement at the mention of the Gorchump Mother.


    “We’ll handle it,” Aurora said with her usual confidence.


    As my team began moving toward their assignments, I turned my focus to the bottom lane. The path was eerily quiet, the jungle around me buzzing faintly with distant mana.


    “Looks like it is just us and the minions, G?kb?rü.”


    “Bark!”


    Our second tower was severely battered by countless minion waves it endured but it was still standing. I drew my bow, shooting the enemy wave while avoiding hitting the power-armored minions. Since we also lost 3 towers we also had power armored ones and I left them to duke it out with each other.


    Of course, I knew that being alone as a Ranger in this late was just inviting being ganked. However, I had confidence in my ability to retreat. Not only I could borrow Ice Wolf’s Breath to block them and Shadow Walk out of here, but the first drake we killed gave me movement speed when I hit a critical hit. Also if they focused their numbers on me, we were guaranteed to take the Gorchump Mother.


    The bottom lane stretched ahead, a lonely corridor of opportunity and risk. My second tower still stood, battered but defiant, its arcane glow flickering with resilience. Around me, the air felt heavy, as if the jungle itself was holding its breath. It was just G?kb?rü, me, and the muted clamor of minion waves clashing in the distance.


    "Steady now," I murmured to myself, notching another arrow. I aimed for the weaker enemy minions, picking them off with quick, precise shots while letting our power-armored ones hold the line.


    "Anything unusual, G?kb?rü?" I asked, keeping my tone casual.


    The pup sniffed the air, his sapphire eyes narrowing. His ears twitched, and he let out a low growl—not hostile, but cautious.


    "Got it. Eyes sharp."


    I slowly pushed the lane, gathering experience. My stats passed 45 line around the time I pushed the lane past the enemy''s first tower. Being alone in this lanet his far was like dangling bait before a predator. My remaining tower was so far away now. It could…


    A cluster of leaves shifted unnaturally to my left.


    “G?kb?rü, position,” I commanded softly. The pup darted to my side, his presence a reassuring blur of white.


    A glint of steel caught my eye, and a figure emerged—a tank, clad in dark, rune-carved armor that pulsed with ominous energy. Behind him, a rogue shimmered into view, twin daggers glowing faintly with poison. I turned around, seeing a mage exit out of the jungle behind me.


    “Alright.”


    They were Level 4s. The amount of mana they had was impressive. At this level, they were a considerable threat even if I was at my full strength. G?kb?rü growled towards them.


    “Not now, boy. We are retreating.”


    The rogue, who I guessed was the ganker started to run towards me with a low stance, reminiscent of a large cat instead of a human. The rogue''s movements were sharp, fluid, and predatory, each step bringing him closer with alarming speed. The tank raised his shield, pushing my minions to the side, and running behind the ganker. I didn’t look back but I could sense mage focusing his mana for some kind of spell from behind my back.


    I synchronized with G?kb?rü, drawing on his Ice Wolf’s Breath. Frost spilled across the ground in front of us, forming a slick, treacherous surface. The rogue''s charge turned clumsy as he skidded and stumbled, his momentum working against him. The tank wasn’t much better off, his heavy armor dragging him down as he struggled for traction.


    I pivoted sharply, nocking an arrow mid-spin and releasing it at the mage. The arrow wasn’t aimed to kill—it was a feint, a warning shot. He flinched, disrupting his spellcasting as he twisted to avoid the projectile.


    Using that opportunity, I melted into the shadows, reappearing just beyond the line of trees to the north. I was no longer sandwiched between them, though with their capabilities I wasn’t out of their reach. With a burst of mana, I jumped on top of a tree. I activated Armor Collapsing Claw, channeling energy into my bow. My next arrow hummed with destructive force, designed to ignore defense. I fired it towards the mage, who should be the squishiest among them.


    The arrow streaked through the air like a comet, its tip glowing with the volatile energy of Armor Collapsing Claw. The mage, still recovering from the disrupted spellcasting, barely had time to react. He raised a hasty mana barrier, but the arrow ripped through it like paper, slamming into his shoulder. A cry of pain escaped him as he staggered back, the force sending him sprawling.


    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.I clicked my tongue. He wasn’t dead.


    “This is not optimal. We are getting out here.”


    Even the mage had gotten tanky enough to survive my arrows. If I had taken him down, I could have tried to fight 2 vs 1 but 3 was too much even for me.


    The rogue had recovered from the icy stumble, his predatory grace returning as he darted toward my position.


    “Shit. Maybe I shouldn’t have shot that. I gave away my position.”


    I took a deep breath, vanishing into shadows. If I retracted all of my mana I could avoid them using Shadow Melt.


    “Stay close, G?kb?rü,” I whispered. The pup silently pressed against my leg, his breathing calm, his instincts as sharp as my own.


    The rogue''s movements slowed as he crouched low, scanning the trees. His daggers twitched, ready to pounce the moment I betrayed my position. The tank stomped forward, just behind him. They ignored the minion wave completely. The mage followed them but his left arm was useless thanks to my arrow sticking out of his shoulder. Each one of them looked for me but my eyes were locked on the ganker. Unlike the other two, he wasn’t looking around blindly. At first, his gaze was on the tree I was on when I shot the arrow but now he was for what escape route I could have taken.


    Could he actually detect me through Shadow Melt when I was standing still?


    Thankfully, that didn’t seem to be the case. But it was too early for me to relax.


    The mage muttered an incantation, his mana coalescing into a swirling orb of fire. It hovered above his outstretched palm, casting flickering shadows across the jungle floor. I felt the temperature rise as he unleashed it into the surrounding foliage.


    Ah, fuck.


    Are they going to destroy the surrounding area to flush me out? Why? For all they know, I fucked off to my own tower. The mage’s fireball roared to life, crashing into the dense foliage and setting it ablaze. Heat radiated through the air, forcing me to retreat further into the shadows with G?kb?rü at my side. Flames devoured the greenery, making crackling noises.


    “Do you think we can use Shadow Walk before being detected?”


    Technically I could get away with it. However, with my lowered stats and skill level the distance I could travel wouldn’t put that much distance between us.


    “We’ll wait a little longer, boy,” I whispered. If I used Shadow Walk now and the rogue caught even a flicker of movement, they could corner me again. The trick was to let them believe their fire strategy had worked—to make them think I’d bolted in panic.


    The flames spread, illuminating the rogue’s face as he sniffed the air. His sharp eyes scanned the burning foliage, still looking for any sign of me. The mage, his face pale from pain and exertion, hurled another fireball to the opposite side of where I hid, widening their search radius.


    “Good. Keep wasting your mana,” I muttered under my breath.


    I activated Shadow Walk the moment their attention shifted to the freshly ignited area. My mana flowed smoothly, blending me seamlessly into the dimming jungle shadows. I moved silently, circling wide around them with G?kb?rü at my side. The rogue’s ears perked, and he snapped his head in my direction, but his gaze turned to me as I Shadow Walked out of there.


    I started to run.


    That fucker ganker. He sensed where I was at the last second. But it was okay. The tank and mage couldn’t keep up with him so I could take him one on one. As I bolted through the jungle, G?kb?rü kept pace beside me, his small form weaving effortlessly through the underbrush. The rogue was hot on my heels, his movements unnervingly precise, like a predator tracking its prey. His twin daggers gleamed with a faint green hue, no doubt coated with some nasty poison.


    "Alright, if it''s a duel you want, it''s a duel you''ll get," I muttered.


    I glanced at G?kb?rü. "Distract him for me. But stay agile—don''t let him land a solid hit."


    The pup barked once in affirmation, his sapphire eyes glowing faintly as he darted ahead, weaving through the shadows. I veered slightly to the right, breaking the rogue''s line of sight. The sound of his footsteps hesitated for a split second as he decided whom to chase.


    That hesitation was all I needed.


    I skidded to a stop and notched another arrow, channeling mana into it until it thrummed with energy. The arrow shimmered with raw power, the mana coalescing into an audible hum.


    The rogue burst through the underbrush, his eyes locking onto me immediately. Too late.


    I released the arrow.


    It shot forward with a deafening roar, like a thunderclap in the jungle''s oppressive quiet. The rogue tried to dodge, his catlike reflexes kicking in, but the enhanced projectile was too fast. It struck his torso dead center, sending him skidding backward with a grunt of pain. His armor, reinforced by some enchantment, cracked under the impact, though it didn’t break entirely.


    "Not bad," I muttered, already nocking another arrow.


    The rogue staggered but didn’t go down. Instead, he lunged forward, faster than before, his daggers a blur of motion. Poison dripped from the blades, sizzling as it hit the jungle floor.


    I sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the first swipe, but his follow-up was relentless. His left dagger grazed my arm, a shallow cut that burned instantly as the poison seeped into my skin.


    G?kb?rü chose that moment to strike.


    The pup launched himself from the shadows, his Ice Wolf’s Breath coating his small frame in a frosty sheen. He sank his teeth into the rogue''s leg, frost spreading rapidly across the armor. The rogue cursed, swinging a dagger downward to dislodge G?kb?rü, but the pup was too quick, darting away before the blow landed.


    I activated Mana Erupt, letting the raw energy coursing through me. This time, I wasn’t using my bow, however. The restriction said my melee attacks wouldn’t be effective. It didn’t mention any kind of weapon restriction. That’s why I manifested a giant hammer and spun around to launch it.


    The rogue''s eyes widened at the sight of the massive hammer appearing in my grasp, its surface shimmering with condensed mana. His predatory grace faltered, a flicker of panic flashing across his face as he realized the sheer force behind my next move.


    The rogue crossed his daggers in a desperate attempt to block the blow.


    It wasn’t enough.


    (You defeated Level 4 Ganker. Level 5 Ganker will spawn in 2 minutes.)


    (Your team has slain the Gopchump Mother.)


    (All ally minions gain increased attack and attack speed for 15 minutes.)


    (All ally minions gain 25 percent life steal for 10 minutes.)


    Just as I defeated the ganker, more notifications appeared in my vision.