Xerox Zee : An Extra into a Novel

On the second day, I hunted in the same spot for a while, but the number of monsters started to decrease. 

I earned about 20 points that day.

It was a decent pace if I wanted to aim for the Top 20, but it wasn't enough to break into the Top 10.

In the novel, Aerox earns 163 points, Trival gets 155, and Lily and Silvana tie at 140, putting them in first, second, and third place.

To make it into the Top 10, I decided to go after one of the Rank-3 boss monsters. 

A score of 120 points would be enough to secure a spot.

I already had an idea of where the boss monsters could be, so finding one wouldn't be a problem. 

The real challenge was defeating it. 

Fighting a Rank-3 boss monster alone is no joke. 

Even a team of ten students could get wiped out if they weren't careful.

In the novel, Aerox and Trival struggle a lot against the bosses. 

Lily and Silvana only manage it because they team up.

I decided to target Zakarlong, the Rank-3 boss in the lava area. 

It's a fire-type monster, and its weakness is ice and water. 

Since I have the strongest Ice Skill in the world, I should be able to take it down.

In the story, most students save the boss monster for their last hunt.

Fighting it early can leave them injured or too exhausted to hunt more monsters. 

It's better to go after it when the exam is almost over. 

That way, even if they get hurt, they already have points from earlier hunts.

I decided to follow the same strategy. 

I'd fight the Zakarlong on the last day. 

If I couldn't beat it, I'd run and hide until the exam ended. 

At least I'd have the points I earned so far.

The dungeon has five areas—rocky mountains, snowy mountains, lava mountains, a forest, and a desert.

On the third day, I started making my way toward Zakarlong's location.

CLANK! CLANK!

As I made my way through the mountain areas, I heard the sound of swords clashing. 

Curious, I moved closer to take a look.

"How dare you steal our food, you b*stard?" 

one of them shouted.

"Your food? When did I ever take it?" 

the other snapped back.

CLANK! CLANK!

"The Red Bull was injured by our team, and you took it when it ran off!"

CLANK! CLANK!

"Haha, you couldn't handle the monster yourself, and now you're blaming us for taking it," 

the other mocked.

They were fighting over some monster meat. 

I didn't care about their argument, so I ignored them and kept walking.

On the way, I saw another two teams fighting over something. 

Most of the students had teamed up with people they knew. 

Being in a group increased their chances of survival. 

Only a few people were alone, either because they had no friends, like me, or because they were strong enough to handle themselves, like Aerox.

It took me about three hours to reach the lava area. 

During my journey, I ran into two Lava Golems and one Basilisk.

The Lava Golem is a huge creature that can take a lot of damage. 

It spits lava from its mouth and can create rock walls. 

It can even melt anything it touches.

Fighting it bare-handed was out of the question. 

Just touching the thing would burn your body.

Fortunately, Cryomancy made it easier for me to handle. 

If I were the same rank as the Golem, I could have defeated it without much trouble.

The fight took a while because I had to chip away at its health with my Ice Skill. 

The Lava Golem wasn't very fast, moving at the speed of a Rank-2 monster, so dodging its attacks was manageable. 

The only real danger was the fireballs it spewed. 

Without the Ice Wall skill, it would have been hard to deal with those.

After another hour of searching, I found the entrance to Zakarlong's cave. 

The Zakarlong lived deep inside the cave.

I decided I'd fight the boss monster on the last day of the exam. 

For now, I focused on finding a place to sleep and hunting monsters to earn more points over the next two days.

Two days passed, and I managed to collect about 50 points. 

It was enough to put me in the Top 50.

Today was the final day of the exam. 

I prepared myself to face the Rank-3 boss monster, Zakarlong. 

I walked up to the cave entrance.

"Here we go," 

I muttered.

I entered the cave slowly, keeping my senses sharp and watching my surroundings.

Suddenly, a loud scream echoed through the cave.

"Kuaaakkkk!"

I saw two people running out of the cave, their faces pale with fear. 

They were so panicked that they didn't even notice me as they fled.

I glanced at them briefly, but I didn't recognize them.

I continued deeper into the cave, ready for whatever lay ahead.

"Cowards!" 

Masha shouted, watching two of her teammates flee in fear from the Zakarlong.

She had been hunting alone when four students approached her. 

Initially, she wasn't interested in teaming up, especially since Jareth was with them.

Jareth, like William, was arrogant. 

His high rank was likely due to the elixirs his wealthy parents provided rather than any real skill. 

His Skill involved Water Magic, but he always stayed at the back, avoiding direct combat.

Still, Masha decided to join them. 

As classmates, their combined strength gave her a better chance to defeat the Rank-3 boss monster.

The group came well-prepared for the battle. 

It was tough, but manageable—until Jareth and Bonnie abandoned them.

Bonnie was the support mage, responsible for healing, while Jareth's water magic was supposed to help with both offense and defense. 

But when the Zakarlong broke through their defenses and attacked, it overwhelmed the two mages.

The Zakarlong roared—a thunderous sound that shook the cave and struck fear into their hearts.

"GOOOOOOO!"

The Zakarlong's tail lashed toward the two fallen mages. 

Just in time, Masha jumped in to block the blow with her sword.

Spurt!

She managed to stop the attack, but the impact left her coughing up blood. 

Meanwhile, Jareth and Bonnie, terrified by the roar, fled without a second thought.

The two were pampered nobles who had never faced real danger. 

Seeing the Zakarlong so close, they panicked, imagining their deaths. 

Their fear drove them to run, leaving the rest behind.

"Dodge!" 

Jade shouted, warning Masha and Jenna as the Zakarlong prepared to unleash its fire breath.

The attack engulfed the area, melting even the rocks it touched. 

Masha and Jenna narrowly dodged, but the Zakarlong wasn't finished.

It spewed a torrent of lava that spread across the cave, sealing the exit.

Masha, Jade, and Jenna were all attackers—Masha with her sword, Jade with her bow and arrow, and Jenna with her spear. 

None of them had the ability to counter Zakarlong's lava.

If Jareth had stayed, his water magic might have helped. 

But without him, they had no choice but to keep dodging.

The Zakarlong turned its attention to Masha, who was slowed by her injuries.

It rushed toward her, swinging its massive tail down and then across.

Masha focused entirely on evading its strikes. 

Jade fired arrows to distract the Zakarlong, but it ignored them.

The Zakarlong unleashed its fire breath, forcing Masha to leap back. 

Lava surged around her, trapping her in place.

Now, with the Zakarlong in front of her, it opened its mouth wide, ready to unleash another fiery attack.

Is this the end? 

Masha thought. 

I thought I'd improved since the MistShade incident. 

I'm Rank 2 now. 

My skills have grown stronger. 

But I'm still too weak. 

I don't want to die here.

Fear gripped her as she watched the Zakarlong prepare to fire. 

Though she knew death in this exam wasn't real, facing it so closely terrified her.

"Masha!" 

Jade and Jenna shouted from a distance, unable to reach her because of the surrounding lava.

CRRRRR!