Chapter 204: Shattered

[Quest: The Werewolf Hunt.Description: The Werewolf has caught your scent and it will Hunt you down. To survive, you must hunt the Werewolf instead, and in failure, you will die.

Reward for a successful Hunt: 6000 Exp.

Good luck!]

"What do we do?" Andor asked as the Werewolf stomped closer.

"We fight," Henry said with trepidation. Even without the System's Quest description, the thought of escape seemed very unlikely anyway.

"Shit," Louis said with his Staff tight in hand as he instantly began a quick chant.

The Werewolf's ears twitched at the sound and it was only for a split second but Henry caught the start of a shift into a charging stance and he already had 'Cudgel' pointed to fire shot after shot. All aimed at the enemy's head.

One shot struck the beast right in the center of its large head and while it created an inch-deep hole, the creature was definitely not dead because it burst into a charge right then. Its entire figure blurred and almost all of Henry's next shots missed.

Almost.

Henry still had enough Mana to use <Guiding shot> once and he used it on the first shot to mark the creature's head with the homing signal that guaranteed the success of the next shot despite the creature's speed.

The mana-infused bullet hit right when the Werewolf arrived in front of Henry and swung a heavy blow at him.

"Rarrrrr!!!" It yelled and, as though a second bullet to the head was akin to the prick of a needle, its action was not at all dulled.

Henry still had 'Cudgel' raised and was far too slow to move his body to react and erect a defense against the enemy's attack but, fortunately, he had just the skill to aid his ability to comprehend and react.

<Quick Thinking>

Henry felt he had activated the skill out of panic because when the five seconds he had for the spell began to tick down, there was nothing his body could do to help. The beast's large claw-tipped fingers were already about two inches away from making contact with his body.

Fortunately, there was still one act of defense he was capable of that only required an active mind. An active mind that was exempt from the normal passage of time for another two seconds.

[Activating <Hat of Shielding>]

The skill was activated but the shield could not appear in the time-stopped state and when time finally returned to normal, it only just arrived in time to ward off the Beast's clawed punch.

*Bam!*

The force of the blow sent Henry many feet away. He hit the ground and rolled for a while before managing to ground himself on his knees.

The Werewolf followed.

As Henry had managed to injure it twice, and because it had been thwarted and could not smell blood on its claws, the Werewolf's red eyes seemed only for Henry.

By the time Henry raised his head, the beast was back with another claw-tipped punch.

*Bam!*

Again, it was intercepted by the shield and because the blow had come from above, Henry was forced even harder onto his knees. The shield saved him from the damage that would have done to his bones but he groaned at the force.

And then 'Violent Retort' was in his hand and he fired it along with 'Cudgel'. The muzzles of both weapons were aimed at the Werewolf's throat.

If injuries to the head had been shrugged off, then the throat had to be at least vulnerable.

Of so Henry thought.

The reality was different. It was like he had abandoned ongoing progress on the creature's head to start all over again at the throat. His bullets and slugs only did as well as they had done to the Beast's head.

'I need something more,' Henry thought just as the Werewolf let out a roar and struck him so hard that he struck into the mountainside and cracked it.

Seeing Henry again get protected by the blue haze only frustrated the werewolf further. It stared at its claw-tipped hand almost in disbelief and with a hard shake of his head, he made to charge again but then…

*Crackle— BANG!*

… He was struck by converged lightning streaks from behind.

Due to the earlier slam of the cage door against their faces, the group of three had been separated so both Andor and Louis were a few feet away from Henry which helped them avoid the Werewolf's attention momentarily.

The creature not paying attention to Andor and Louis had allowed the Mage to complete his spell. He had even got the time to down a Mana potion to restore his lessened reserve so he could cast his best spell right from the get-go.

The lightning crackled all over the Werewolf's body. Its fur was singed and the point on its back where it had especially been struck was so charred that it revealed raw, smoking skin underneath.

The beast arched his back and his mouth opened wide to let loose a deep growl of pain but it was stuck in place for a second and Andor was already charging over to take advantage. It was as though he and Louis had coordinated because he had been ready with his attack almost as soon as Louis was done casting the spell.

Andor's Spear thrust into the Wolf's neck from the side and, as he had done to a human Fighter earlier in the night, he unleashed his Mana-surge and charged it into his Spear to discharge it from the Spearhead in a powerful blast.

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The explosion of the Mana-surge discharge moved the Werewolf's neck to the side by about an inch. Its growl was shut up though. As though the force of the blast had locked up its ability to produce sound.

While all this happened, Henry pulled a Mana potion from his Inventory and downed it.

[You have recovered 200 Mana Points]

[Mana Points: 205/380]

With one hand holding the potion bottle to his lips, Henry had 'The Hydra's Sting' in his other hand and had it pointed at the Werewolf frozen in place by the violent streaks of lightning running through its body and electrifying its insides.

'The Hydra's Sting' was loaded with 'Hydra Tongue' bullets Henry had secured from Elminster and he charged both magical attacks the weapon was capable of into a single shot which he fired just as Andor stabbed his Spear into the Werewolf's neck and discharged his Mana surge through it.

He aimed for the injury he had started at the center of the creature's head already and when the bullet hit, it hit with an immediate explosion of the acidic green gas while its acidic effects spread all over the beast's head.

This was what Henry had realized was the 'more' he needed to take the creature down.

While both 'Violent Retort' and 'Cudgel' were capable of firing more powerful shots, they did not leave behind an effect quite like 'The Hydra's Sting'.

Right now the acid from the shot was sinking deep into the Werewolf's head and eating away at its monstrous flesh like the 'living wound' that it was. A wound that can't be healed without the special solvent only Elminster possessed.

*crack—*

The sound was very minute but it heralded the breaking of the Werewolf's face and as the cracks became lined with insidious acid, they only grew wider until…

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*Bang!*

… There was an explosive shatter that forced the Werwolf's head back. Its body flopped and it fell to its knees.

Andor stabbed his Spear into the wound he had already created in the Creature's neck and discharged his Mana-surge again.

*Bang!*

Andor blinked. He was sure he had stabbed the tip of his Spear into the Werewolf's neck and yet, his Mana discharge had been released into the air. The shaft of the weapon was in the Werewolf's tight grip and it used it to pull him closer before slamming him in the chest with a clawed blow.

*BAM!!!*

*CRACK!*

It wasn't just that five large claws had dug so deep into his body but Andor also felt as though his entire chest had been caved in. He certainly felt a heavy pressure against his heart. A heavy pressure that should not have been there.

"Ack—" He let out but the sound seemed to have caught at the back of his throat and was interrupted when he had to spout blood.

He wasn't even really aware of the flight as he was sent away from the Werewolf by the power of the blow. He only remembered the contact, the pain, the blood vomiting, and then hitting the ground so hard he lost all will to get back up.

While the Werewolf hit Andor, it still had its head raised.

"Impressive…" it said slowly.

Henry's eyes widened. He wasn't sure why but he had not thought the Werewolf was capable of speech. Of course, he didn't let this discovery numb him as he was already pointing 'The Hydra's Sting for another shot.

But suddenly, the Werewolf was no longer where it had been, and almost at the same time, Henry felt his arm, the one armed with 'The Hydra's Sting', get grabbed and slammed against the mountainside.

*Bam!*

The insane pain that followed told Henry his minute was up for the activation of <Hat of Shielding>.

The pain that followed that one only served to announce to him that his arm was shattered.