Althea looked at the monster in the eye, staring it down.
Don't look at it being a level lower than her, monsters' physique was something fragile humans could not compare with.
Not to mention, for physiques, level 5 was a threshold for monsters.
Unlike before where every level up would have a bit of an increase in stats, every five levels would have a somewhat higher increase. Since this applied more to monsters, it spelled more trouble for them.
Without warning, the creature lunged forward at incredible speed, its claw clashing through the air. She shifted her weight and avoided it and the creature emitted a low growl, dissatisfied with its miss.
She took out a normal Level E bow and arrow, ready to strike. She did not want to be dependent on overpowered weapons to fight, especially since she couldn't maximize it with her low level.
Personal skill was still the best bet.
Not to mention, even if she wanted to use her overpowered weapons, she wouldn't be able to, This was because there was also a limitation of allowed weapons inside. For level 1 Training Halls, up to D-class weapons were permitted.
She immediately activated her skills to increase her chances.
[Perfect aim! -10 Mana!]
[Quick Shot! -5 Mana]
The monster quickly turned and lunged towards her, showing great flexibility.
She deftly maneuvered behind the creature, sending a flurry of quick strikes at its weak spots. She jumped back as it lunged forward, kiting it, and she used her skills many times to cause heavy damage.
She couldn't help but recall her first days with her gun. A level E bow and arrow was on par with it in terms of damage, and she could only marvel at the magic of this world.
At the same time, she wondered, if their Weapons Makers could somehow produce guns… how powerful would they be?
Anyway, she wasn't able to dwell on this as the monster roared from the bottom of its stomach, and she felt a little vibration in the room.
Enraged, the monster thrashed around, very quick and very strong.
Althea barely avoided its strong jaws, but she didn't avoid its paws and she was thrown meters away.
The giant rat jumped to maul her, and she rolled over to avoid it. She did manage to, thankfully, avoid a bulk of its attack, but its tail suddenly turned and struck her, causing her to lose her balance just as she regained it.
The monster naturally went to take advantage of her imbalance but she was quick to get in an attacking position even while lying down.
Down on the ground, she quickly shot several arrows in a row, hitting its mouth and even its uvula.
Rooarrrr!!!
Its body shook in pain, trying to take out the few arrows that got stuck in its mouth.
Taking advantage of its distraction, Althea quickly jumped on her feet, avoiding its heavy paws wildly flailing about, and began continuously shooting again.
She jumped sideways to avoid the monster's massive teeth, somersaulting to regain her balance and using her legs to zoom back to the monster.
At this time, she took out her improved katana—courtesy of Eugene and Brenda, now capable of damaging a level 5—for a change of pace, mostly for her own more balanced training.
The two fought for several rounds, most of which were close calls.
There was one time that she almost got 'bitten' but she used her legs to hit the side of its face, redirecting its bite.
Such a strong and fast opponent was intrinsically superior in close combat. She naturally sustained some damage. She looked at her stats and saw that her life and spirit were reduced by a third.
"Tsk." Sure enough, the level wasn't everything
In the training hall, one's life and spirit were duplicated, even if you lost either, you would not die.
However, she heard in the end the real body will still lose spirit, and depending on the damage, the remaining points may just be enough to keep one's life.
Soon, her ten minutes were up and she had to reactivate her skills.
[Perfect aim! -10 Mana]
In a blur of motion, the monster darted toward her, its claws and fangs poised to strike once more. Her lithe movements eventually adjusted, breaking its former stiffness and matching with the creature's speed.
With calculated precision, she slashed her katana, narrowly missing its agile form.
Quickly, she transitioned and placed the katana back in her space. She swiftly strung her bow, eyes fixed on her fast-moving target. With as much focus as she could muster, she quickly released the arrow. Then again, and again.
She hit its weaknesses like the eyes and the neck, giving it some damage. She eventually found the pattern of its movements, but unfortunately, her reaction time wasn't fast enough yet, causing her to receive a bit of damage.
But, in time, her expertise and timing neared perfection, and she started causing more and more damage as time went on.
Splack!
The monster roared in pain after an arrow buried in his eyes, right at its iris.
It was at this moment she suddenly heard a familiar ding in her head.
[Congratulations! Perfect Aim skill (Lv1) has leveled up.] Her eyebrows rose. Some skills were upgradeable the more they were used. It seemed like this skill was one.
[Perfect Aim (D) Level 2: 100% hit rate for targets less than 20 meters, lasts 15 minutes. Consumption: 10 mana]
In this short time of daze, the monster had finally recovered from its agitation, and their eyes met. Immediately, the damned thing lunged back in her direction.
The two of them continued their previous fights, though Althea was notably no longer being pushed around.
It still wasn't easy though, as she wasn't able to avoid its tail grabbing her legs, and pulling her down to her back.
Bang!!
She took out her katana, swiping the tail continuously as she used the blade to block his teeth.
Eventually, she had to use her own legs to push down its glomping as she stabbed its tail.
With a roar, it finally let go and her feet barely avoided being 'mauled'.
She quickly recovered and shot several more arrows using her upgraded skill. She unleashed a barrage of attacks on the monster, each shot connecting with its mark.
The creature finally stumbled and, using her katana, she finally drained its health bit by bit. She soon ended its life with several slashes.
At less than thirty percent of life left, she watched it finally fall down.
She watched its image disappear, much like the ashes of the buildings in Royal Territory before.
When everything was gone, her legs gave way and she also found herself on the ground, gasping. Medicine and other healing agents were not allowed to be used in the training hall, aiming to push the individual to the limit.
Oh, she was being pushed alright.
[You still have 00:24:14 left, would you like to continue?]
She stared at her little digital life left and narrowed her eyes. After a short breather, she raised her graceful finger.
[Yes]
Yes, of course. This wasn't enough. This was something she realized with sharp enlightenment after this fight.
She was still too weak.