An icy wind swept through the vast snow-covered forest inside the dungeon as the ten hunters stood perfectly still.
Every pair of eyes was fixed on Logan.
The smug smile he’d worn since the expedition began had finally disappeared.
Now his expression was serious, focused, as though he’d finally remembered they were inside a dungeon instead of taking a stroll through a park.
Lydia, on the other hand, continued glaring at him with obvious disdain.
She still couldn’t forget how he’d crushed that young woman’s phone simply because she’d wanted to take a picture of the scenery.
She thought he was a complete idiot.
Logan raised a hand.
"Listen carefully. We’re going to reorganize our formation. As long as everyone does their job, this dungeon should be easy."
The group remained silent.
Before he could continue giving orders...
The ground trembled.
Snow began sliding from the branches of the surrounding trees.
Liam felt the vibration clearly through the soles of his boots.
He glanced toward his wife.
"Honey... could you hand me the case? I think the action’s about to start."
Lydia smiled.
"Of course."
Her right arm transformed once again into that familiar green gelatinous mass.
The surface of her skin opened, and a few seconds later the black gun case containing the weapons Liam had bought from Scotty’s shop emerged.
"Here you go."
"Thanks."
Liam quickly opened the case.
His eyes rested on the compact submachine gun for a moment.
It was tempting.
But he immediately shook his head.
"No... too many bullets for a group fight."
Instead, he picked up the semi-automatic pistol.
It was light, comfortable, and much safer to use when there were allies standing in front of him.
He also slipped several spare magazines into the pockets of his tactical vest.
While checking the weapon, he began taking off his shirt.
Then he removed his pants as well.
Underneath, he was already wearing the tactical gear he’d purchased from the guild’s shopping center.
Black protective armor covered his shoulders, forearms, knees, and chest.
It wasn’t heavy armor by any means, but it offered far more protection than ordinary clothes.
Lydia carefully gathered her husband’s clothes.
Then she stored the gun case inside her body once more.
Everything disappeared into her slime body thanks to her storage ability.
"All set."
She looked Liam up and down before smiling proudly.
"I have to say..."
Liam raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"Your new work outfit looks really good on you."
He chuckled.
"Really?"
"Very."
Liam scratched the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed.
Around them, several of the other hunters began looking at his protective gear.
One of the Silver-ranked boys muttered quietly,
"I think I’m the only one who showed up dressed like I’m going on a picnic..."
Another young woman nodded.
"I didn’t bring anything like that either."
That was when Logan decided to speak up.
He let out a short laugh.
"It’s fine that you’re new, buddy... but you’re not in that much danger. You didn’t need to dress like that."
Several people waited to see how Liam would react.
Instead, he simply smiled.
"Maybe."
He adjusted one of his shoulder guards.
"But I’d rather be prepared. I’m still new to this. I don’t think anything will happen... but you never know."
One of the young men spoke up.
"Honestly..."
He looked at Liam’s armor.
"I think it was a pretty good idea."
Another girl raised her hand.
"Yeah... now that I think about it, we probably should’ve brought something like that too."
"I never even thought about buying protective gear."
"Me neither."
No one laughed at Logan’s remark.
If anything, the opposite happened.
Several people seemed convinced that Liam had made a very smart decision.
Logan cleared his throat.
Things clearly hadn’t gone the way he’d expected.
Fortunately for him...
The ground shook again, this time much harder.
He stopped trying to mock anyone and raised his voice.
"Everyone, take your positions!"
The hunters reacted immediately, quickly reforming their ranks.
The front line consisted of Logan, Lydia, and three other hunters who appeared to specialize in close combat.
The second row held two young hunters who seemed to focus on mid-range attacks.
One carried a long spear.
The other wielded a pair of strange blades connected by chains.
And finally...
At the rear...
Liam.
Standing beside him were the young woman whose phone had been destroyed and a rather shy girl clutching a white staff decorated with tiny crystals.
From the way she hugged the staff, Liam immediately guessed her role.
"Are you the party’s healer?"
She nodded timidly.
"Y-Yes... It’s my first expedition..."
The other girl smiled nervously.
"Mine too... well... aside from what happened with my phone."
Liam gave them both a reassuring smile.
"Don’t worry."
The two girls looked at him.
He casually raised his pistol.
"Nothing’s going to happen to you."
They still looked nervous.
So Liam added,
"My wife and I already cleared an E-Rank dungeon all by ourselves."
Both girls’ eyes widened.
"Really?"
"Without anyone’s help."
He subtly gestured toward Lydia.
"So you can trust us."
The healer slowly let out the breath she’d been holding.
"Th-That... actually makes me feel a lot better."
The girl with the broken phone smiled too.
"Thank you."
Liam answered with a thumbs-up.
Ahead of them...
The snow began swirling into the air.
At first it looked like nothing more than a snowstorm.
But before long, they could make out dozens of small figures racing between the trees at incredible speed.
Logan raised his sword.
"They’re coming."
The creatures gradually became clearer.
Small white bodies.
Ice horns.
Large fluffy tails.
They bounded across the snow with astonishing agility.
"Horned Squirrels!"
one of the young hunters shouted.
"There are so many of them!"
Liam started counting, but more kept appearing.
Finally, he let out a whistle.
"More than twenty."
Lydia watched the creatures.
"They’re pretty cute..."
Liam smiled.
"Yeah..."
At that moment, a system message appeared.
[Lydia: Until they try to skewer us with those horns.]
Liam nearly burst out laughing and replied mentally.
’That too.’
The squirrels accelerated even more.
Their tiny blue eyes glowed with an eerie light, while their icy horns reflected the pale brilliance of the frozen landscape.
The healer swallowed nervously.
"They’re moving way too fast..."
Liam took a deep breath.
He remembered everything Evan had taught him.
Posture.
Breathing.
Don’t pull the trigger too soon.
Stay calm.
He raised his pistol.
But he didn’t fire yet.
He waited.
Logan kept his eyes fixed ahead.
"Hold formation. No one moves."
The squirrels were getting closer by the second.
Their paws kicked up enormous clouds of snow, and the thunder of their charge echoed across the forest.
One of the melee fighters tightened his grip around his weapon.
Another bent his knees, preparing to spring forward.
Lydia slowly spread the fingers of both hands.
Tiny ripples ran across the surface of her skin.
She was ready to launch rocks, or even her Laser Shot, at any moment.
Liam gently rested his finger on the trigger.
Logan drew a deep breath, his voice ringing across the frozen forest with absolute authority.
"Hold your positions!"
And in that very instant, the entire pack leaped forward in perfect unison, charging straight at the party’s front line.