As they entered the thick tree line of the heavily forested hill, the atmosphere shifted—like a switch had been thrown. The calm and peaceful air was replaced by something darker, brooding… unnatural. Most of the sunlight was blotted out by the dense, interwoven canopy above, casting everything in a shadowy twilight that felt more like night than day.

The group moved cautiously, all senses on high alert. No one spoke—except Tarni.

With an exaggerated gulp and his best impression of a certain famous talking dog, he muttered, "Ruh-roh! I'm gonna need a Scooby Snack."

Everyone, including Bell, turned to look at him. Tarni simply raised one eyebrow and gave them a mock-serious, questioning look.

Lily was the first to crack. "Jinkies!" she grinned.

Kai followed, his face lighting up. "Zoinks!"

Bell rolled her eyes but couldn't help joining in. "Jeepers," she said with dry amusement.

Zane stood silently, scratching his chin while the others looked at him expectantly. They could see the exact moment realization hit—his expression shifted into a dead-serious stare. "Let's split up, gang."

A chorus of "NO!" rang out from the rest of the group, laughter echoing through the woods.

Thanks to Tarni's perfectly timed humour, the oppressive weight of the forest's eerie atmosphere lifted slightly. Whatever strange magic clung to the shadows couldn't quite hold against a good Scooby-Doo reference and a group of mates refusing to be rattled.

It wasn't long before red dots began appearing on their maps.

Kai, walking in the middle of the group, was the first to notice. His position gave him the best chance to check the map without compromising situational awareness. "There are five, maybe six monsters up ahead," he said quietly. "Roughly a hundred metres. They're not moving—looks like they're in some kind of clearing."

The others took turns checking their maps—one at a time, just as they'd practised. Kai's thoughts drifted back to something Horace, the Guildmaster, had said at the hall:

"You have the MAP skill? That's a level 20 skill. You guys are all sorts of crazy."

Kai smiled faintly to himself. He wasn't sure if Horace meant that as a compliment or not—but either way, it felt true.

They moved carefully toward the red dots.

Zane held up a hand, signalling a stop as he crouched low beside a moss-covered log. Just beyond, six wolves prowled through the gloom. Their fur was dark and matted, limbs lean but corded with muscle. Their eyes glowed faintly red—System-tagged monsters.

But it was the biggest of them that made Zane tighten his grip on his machete. The Alpha was huge, its breath steaming in the cold air.

As she crouched next to her dad, Lily used Rapid Appraisal on the group—then nearly fell over in shock. "They're all level 9… except the big one. He's level 12," she whispered.

After a quick check to make sure everyone heard, Zane whispered, "All right—Tarni and Lily, circle left. Kai, you're centre with me. Bell, slight right flank."

Kai nodded. "I'll prep healing." He placed his hands on his chest, murmuring the invocation for Group Heal. A familiar green shimmer expanded gently over them. Then he readied Targeted Healing, staying alert.

Bell began charging her Basic Powered Shot. "Lily, be ready to snare. I'll drop the big one first."

Tarni hefted his sword and crouched low. "Let's go pet some puppies."

The Ambush

Bell lined up her shot, activating Basic Powered Shot and triggering her title:

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. "Um, remind me to never knock on your door!"

The spear gun whined with pressure and then—THWIP! The metal spear launched like it came from a castle-mounted ballista.

The noise was loud enough for the wolves to hear.

The large level 12 Alpha just managed to leap out of the way—causing the spear to fly past its head and slam into the wolf behind it. The projectile struck with a crack and an explosion of splinters and fur. The wolf turned into a fine mist of blood and gore. Splash damage scorched the side of a second.

The rest of the pack surged into motion with snarling fury.

Bell swore so badly that if Tarni had heard her, she'd never live it down.

Zane dashed forward, shield raised, activating Defensive Stance. One of the wolves lunged, claws raking his shield. The impact shuddered through his arm but barely scratched his health bar.

Tarni grinned and used the chaos to flank wide. He slammed his sword into a wolf's haunch from behind—Backstab activated. Critical hit. The wolf howled and crumpled, dazed. Tarni followed up with two quick strikes to its head.

"INCOMING!" Lily shouted as the Alpha burst from the underbrush in a blur of speed.

She raised her hands and invoked Group Snare. A ripple of water magic pulsed out, snaring three of the wolves mid-charge. They were dragged to a halt, snarling and straining.

Lily was pleasantly surprised. Her class must be improving the spell.

"Fuck yeah."

Having dropped her speargun as planned, Bell switched to her bow. Piercing Shot activated. She fired—an arrow screamed through the air and punched clean through the neck of a wolf, embedding itself in a tree. The wolf collapsed without a sound.

"Kai!" Zane called—just as the Alpha slammed into him, its paw smashing his side and sending him sprawling.

"On it!" Kai sprinted forward, diving beside him. Targeted Healing flashed, and Zane's pain faded almost instantly.

"Thanks, mate."

Tarni ducked as a wolf leapt at him—only to get intercepted mid-air by Lily, her blade glowing with rippling water energy. Her Raindancer class skill ignited on contact. The wolf hit the ground, steam rising from its fur.

That gave Tarni time to impale the second wolf charging at him. Instant kill.

"That's four down!" Lily called.

The Alpha leapt again—this time toward Bell.

She didn't flinch. Bell activated Basic Powered Shot and held until the last second. The wolf was barely ten metres away.

THWIP!

The arrow hit square in the chest and exploded. The Alpha was knocked backwards, crashing into a tree with a deep grunt.

"Dad, move!" Lily called.

Zane charged the Alpha while it was stunned. Machete raised, he slashed deep across its throat. The beast roared, snapping wildly—barely missing his arm.

Tarni jumped in from the side—Backstab!—cracking its leg and sending it reeling.

"Kai! Final push!" Zane barked.

"Group Heal!" Kai cast wide. Everyone's health ticked up.

The Alpha lunged one last time.

Zane planted his shield and held firm. The beast overextended—Bell fired point-blank under its jaw.

THWUMP!

The impact lifted the Alpha off the ground. It hit the dirt hard and didn't move.

Aftermath

For a long moment, they stood in silence, hearts pounding. Blood matted the moss, and steam rose from the wolves' bodies.

Then came the System chime.

Quest Complete: Wolves on the Ridge +450 XP Rare Drop: Alpha Wolf Armguard (Unidentified)

"Wait, we get told when there's an item drop now?" Kai asked, surprised.

Zane knelt beside the Alpha and picked up a chunk of blackened metal with fur-lined leather. The armguard shimmered faintly. He activated Item Appraisal.

Alpha Wolf Armguard (Rare) +2 Strength, +1 Dexterity Grants Passive Skill: Wolf's Reflex (Small chance to dodge incoming melee attacks) Requires Level 9

Zane let out a low whistle. "Not bad. Shame we can't use it yet."

"Soon," Kai said with a smirk.

But then—something strange happened.

There was a stutter in the world. Just for a heartbeat.

Zane's display flickered—and the item description changed.

Alpha Wolf Armguard (Unique) +5 Constitution Grants Passive Skill: Wolf's Reflex (Small chance to dodge incoming melee attacks) Requires Level 8 (now that's Bettera)

Zane froze, rereading it twice more. Then waited—to see if it would change again. It didn't.

The others noticed his expression and were already looking around for another threat.

Before panic could set in, Zane explained what had just happened—and the fact that the message was a different colour and now included the word "Bettera."

They all started talking at once:

"Our System changed it?"

"If it did, then it's definitely trying to help."

"This is perfect for Kai."

"Yeah—with 5 more Con, I can use my class skill. And the dodge is a bonus."

There was mutual agreement: the armguard was meant for Kai.

He slipped it on. His Constitution jumped to 21—now the highest of the group, aside from Zane.

Tarni dropped onto a mossy log with a groan. "Man, those things hit like a dropped fridge."

Bell was already reloading calmly. "You did jump on one's back like an idiot."

"Tactical idiot," he corrected.

Lily chuckled. "Well, tactical or not—it worked."

Zane stood, slinging his shield back into place. "We have to head back. We're not done yet."

No one argued. Bruised but intact, they started the trip back to town—beneath the quiet, watchful canopy.

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