OVERLORD- CH-66. Hellhound

She remembered what the other person had said to her in the carriage at that time.

What did he mean? Was it a test, or had he already figured it out? How did he find out?

If she had only discovered that they were elves, the girl might not have been so shaken.

"What should I do? Tigne, what should I do?" Holding the parchment in her hand, the girl subconsciously murmured her lover's name.

At that moment, the night outside the window suddenly lit up, and the firelight fell across her face, interrupting Jasmine's thoughts.

"Fire?" She glanced across the street, where the situation became clear through the window. The wooden building was suddenly engulfed in flames.

That location... is it a hotel?

The visual ability of elves far exceeds that of ordinary humans, and that place wasn't too far from here.

Although the fire had broken out at night, many people had gathered around—except for some who had come to watch the spectacle, most of them seemed to have escaped from the inn, which likely housed many low-level adventurers.

It was probably a blessing in disguise that people managed to escape, but Jasmine still felt a slight unease.

Was it really just a fire?

As she thought about this, Jasmine gradually began to notice the source of the strange feeling—there was a huge black shadow moving in the flames.

The adventurers who had escaped the inn were also staring at the fire, and at that moment, something leaped out of it.

"Hellhound!" Jasmine exclaimed as she saw the creature's true form illuminated by the firelight.

The Hellhound, based on adventurer standards, was considered a difficulty of 15 and was a monster that could be fought by iron-level adventurers.

This monster wasn't particularly strong. Aside from some adventurers who were injured in the initial surprise attack, they should still be able to handle the Hellhound.

The key, however, was that the number of adventurers needed to be greater than the number of Hellhounds.

The first Hellhound that leapt out was killed by an adventurer with the fastest reflexes, who quickly drew his weapon. However, more Hellhounds continued to emerge from the fire, and their numbers and speed quickly overwhelmed the adventurers.

If this continued, the number of Hellhounds would soon outnumber the adventurers, and some of them, in their panic, hadn't even grabbed their weapons.

There was no time to hesitate. Jasmine threw on her coat and hood, grabbed the staff beside her, slung a bag full of medicine bottles over her shoulder, and rushed out of the room. Just as she was about to knock on her teammates' doors, she saw them already emerging, fully equipped.

"Let's go," Monica said sternly after surveying her teammates.

The adventurers were startled by the sudden appearance of the Hellhound, especially the man closest to the inn, who had been scratched across the chest.

Luckily, a man reacted quickly, instinctively retreating and kicking the Hellhound in the abdomen, pushing it away. In the end, he only sustained minor injuries. If the Hellhound had bitten his neck, he would likely have died on the spot.

"How could there be a Hellhound?" His companion, standing nearby, shouted in astonishment, immediately drawing everyone's attention. The Hellhound that had been kicked to the ground quickly recovered, baring its sharp fangs at the adventurer.

The fallen adventurer stood up, dusting himself off. His gray-green clothing had been stained with blood, but the bleeding wasn't too severe, so there was no immediate danger.

"It's just a Hellhound. Don't panic!" Shouted another man, who had also escaped the inn with his own package and weapons.

With a spear in hand, he lunged at the Hellhound. Just to be safe, the man used martial arts.

Under the effect of [Water Acceleration], the tip of the spear shot toward the Hellhound's head at an incredible speed.

The Hellhound leapt into the air, but the man just smiled coldly, raising his spear and stabbing it directly into the Hellhound's abdomen.

With a swift thrust and pull, the monster's insides were torn apart.

"It's just a Hellhound." The man muttered as he looked at the golden nameplate hanging around his neck. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Although they knew it was a weak monster, there was still a lingering sense of tension when it appeared in their midst.

"It's strange, though. Why is there a Hellhound here?" The man's voice trailed off.

Three more Hellhounds emerged from the flames and charged toward them.

"Grab your weapons! Form a defense line!" Shouted the gold-level adventurer. He could still handle the three Hellhounds by himself, but he was beginning to feel the pressure.

Adventurers rely on their weapons to survive, so despite the fire, most of them had kept their gear. With the gold-level adventurer's orders, the others quickly picked up their weapons and rushed to engage.

There were more than twenty adventurers present. Aside from one gold-level and several silver-level adventurers, the rest were bronze and iron-level. Still, even the lower-ranked adventurers could at least ensure they wouldn't be easily killed by the Hellhounds.

It was just a Hellhound, they all thought, but as the flames flickered violently, their anxiety grew.

More and more Hellhounds continued to emerge from the fire, gradually overwhelming the adventurers with their numbers.

Though small, the Hellhounds were incredibly agile and their bite force was devastating. They aimed for the adventurers' knees and ankles, and without protective gear, a bite could easily cripple a person.

"Fall back! Fall back!" The gold-level adventurer shouted, as the group engaged with the demon dogs. The gold and silver-level adventurers managed to kill several Hellhounds, but there were no casualties among the adventurers... for now.

Despite this, the situation was becoming dire as the number of Hellhounds continued to increase.

[Magic Arrows], [Open Wounds], [Shock Waves]—several mages joined the battle. Their damage output was typically greater than that of warriors of the same level, and they were able to knock a Hellhound to the ground with a single spell.

However, the number of mages was limited, and many of the adventurers were warriors with little magical support. The few mages available couldn't do much to stem the tide.

"Oh no!" One mage cried out, launching a [Magic Arrow]. It was only a first-level spell, and while it didn't cause fatal damage, it did momentarily incapacitate the Hellhound, allowing the warriors to finish it off.

The first-level spell was not very draining, but the mage's low magical reserves caused his casting speed to slow. Without consistent magic output, the pressure on the warriors only intensified.

If this continued, casualties were inevitable. Worse, this was happening within the city. If the Hellhounds escaped, the consequences could be disastrous.

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Thank you all for supporting me.