It stepped out fully into view, its body larger than any normal ape, muscles thick and defined, horns curving forward from its head while its red eyes locked onto me instantly. There was no hesitation in it, no pause to assess.

It growled.

Then lunged. The ground shook slightly under its weight as it rushed forward, arms spreading wide to grab hold of me, aiming to crush me.

I watched the movement. Then stepped aside at the last moment, letting its momentum carry it past the centerline while I turned with it, my sword already in motion. The blade cut cleanly toward its neck, but the moment it connected, I felt the resistance, thick muscle, tougher than the earlier monsters.

I didn’t pull back.

Instead, I stepped forward into the strike, tightening my grip and driving more force through the blade, pushing through the resistance rather than trying to cut around it.

The edge gave way. The motion carried through.

In one continuous arc, the blade sliced completely through its neck.

Its body staggered forward once before collapsing, the head separating cleanly and rolling across the ground before coming to a stop.

I exhaled slowly and looked at my hand. The sword had split. Two uneven fragments remained in my grip, the weakened blade finally giving out after the repeated strain, the edge no longer able to hold under the force I had just put through it.

Then I heard the sound of movement ahead.

I lifted my gaze.

Three more great apes stood at a distance, just beyond the fallen body, their eyes fixed on it, then slowly shifting toward me. Their posture changed almost instantly, tension building in their frames as they processed what had just happened.

The forest grew quiet again.

I dropped the broken sword and gripped the axe tightly.

[Monster Great Ape Level 10]

[Monster Great Ape Level 11]

[Monster Great Ape Level 11]

All three of them stiffened at the same time, their focus locking onto me as the body of the fallen ape lay between us, and for a brief moment none of us moved, the tension building in the space like something waiting to snap.

Then, almost in unison, their arms rose, their massive frames straightening as they beat their chests in heavy, echoing thuds that rolled through the forest, the sound raw and aggressive, before all three of them lunged forward together.

I didn’t wait.

I stepped in and ran toward them as well, closing the distance head-on instead of backing away, my grip tightening around the axe as I took two steps, then a third and activated the new skill.

"[Impact Burst]."

The moment I triggered it, my legs tensed sharply, the muscles along my thighs tightening as if coiling inward, and I felt that same uncontrolled surge gather and rush downward, not spreading this time but focusing into a single line. It moved fast, snapping through my legs and my feet—

And then—

A boom.

My body shot forward.

The distance between us vanished instantly as I slammed shoulder-first into the ape in the center, the impact driving into its chest with full force, lifting both of us off the ground as we crashed forward together. The momentum didn’t stop there. We tore through one tree, then another, wood splintering around us before finally coming to a halt as its body collapsed beneath me.

I moved immediately.

Rolling off, I pushed myself up and lunged forward, grabbing the axe where I had nearly lost it, gripping it with both hands as I stepped in without hesitation and brought it across in a clean, full swing.

The blade cut through its neck in one motion. The head rolled downward with a shower of blood.

The other two saw it. And something shifted in them. Their expressions twisted, aggression turning sharper as they roared and charged at me without pause, closing the distance faster this time.

The first reached me in seconds, its fists already moving.

I slipped past the first strike, but the second came faster, catching me across the chest with a heavy blow that sent my body flying backward. I crashed into a tree, the impact shaking through my frame before I pushed off it, forcing myself upright just as it came again, another punch aimed straight at me.

I brought the axe up this time. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

The blade met its fist, cutting across it as it made contact, splitting skin and drawing a sharp reaction as it pulled back with a low, pained sound. It stepped back for just a moment long enough for the second one to close in.

This one held a thick, broken branch, gripping it like a club as it swung it straight toward my head.

I dropped low instantly, the branch smashing into the tree behind me with enough force to crack the bark, and before it could recover, I rolled forward, coming up inside its range as I swung the axe low, the blade cutting into its knee.

It staggered. I pushed back to create space but not far enough.

The other one was already there. It crashed into me shoulder-first, the impact hitting hard and driving me backward into another tree, my head striking first this time as a sharp jolt ran through me, disorienting everything for a split second.

My vision blurred. A notification flashed.

[Warning: Health below 50%]

I forced myself up anyway, pushing off the trunk and stepping back quickly, widening the distance between us before they could close in again.

Both of them now held branches and rushed forward together.

The strikes came in sequence, heavy swings aimed to overwhelm rather than precise hits. I shifted between them, dodging the first, then the second, the wood cutting through the air where I had just been, but instead of staying in place, I turned and ran, breaking away from the immediate pressure.

I barely took a few steps before one of them reacted. The branch left its hand.

It flew straight into my back. The impact drove me forward again, forcing me into a roll across the ground before I came back up to my feet in one motion, turning as I steadied myself.

Another notification appeared.

[Overdrive Charge: 50%]

I looked at them, both of them were already moving again. I thought about it and did not activate overdrive mode.

Instead, I turned again and ran deeper toward the thicker cluster of trees ahead, shifting my path deliberately as I moved, making sure they followed, pulling them away from the open ground and into a tighter space where their size would work against them.

I decided that I would control the fight.