Colt stared at the impressive marble gates of Valheim as he passed through them. They certainly gave off the feeling of belonging to the heavens with the grooves that had been carved into them. Although, he did feel like the place was more than a little eerie. However, that was due to the lack of people.

There were no guards at the gates, and they lay wide open. There was nothing stopping anyone or anything from just wandering into the city whenever they felt like it. ‘Is the city a safe area, or can fights happen inside?’

That was Colt’s biggest question right now. It was a vital piece of information that could prove to be helpful in the future. However, he would not gain the answer to that question until more players arrived in the city and somebody decided to start something.

The area beyond the gates was full of soft rolling hills covered in a white blanket of snow with a looming mountainous landscape in the background. Colt was pleased to see giant wolves lazily lounging around in the snow. His gamer instincts kicked in as he had finally spotted some mobs to grind exp!

He began to run towards them before he suddenly slid to a stop. ‘Wait. There’s no experience bar.’ Colt had just remembered this fact as he stared at the mobs with evident confusion. ‘So what’s the point of having mobs then? Materials? Drops?’

Colt stared at the wolves warily as he tried to figure out what their purpose was. ‘I can only test the waters for now. Hopefully, I can get something good out of it.’

Colt eyed the nearest pack and found one of them lying at a reasonable distance from the rest. If he was lucky enough, it might turn out to be outside of the aggro range of the others. Colt moved around the pack to place himself closer to the isolated one. He was relieved to see that none of them appeared to react to his presence.

Colt steadily approached his target from its rear, but it soon noticed him. Its large head glanced up from between its front legs as it shifted its position to stare at him curiously. Colt froze for a moment as he realised the wolf would stand at the same height as himself once it stood up. He had been tricked into thinking that they were smaller due to the distance and their body positions.

‘Damn it. That thing is massive!’ Colt stared at the wolf as he calmed his mind. ‘I can’t sneak up on it, so I’ll just have to go for it!’

Colt sprinted forward, and the wolf growled once he came within what it considered to be its area. The wolf did not wait for him to attack. Instead, it rose from its position and leapt towards him instead!

Colt grit his teeth as the wolf flew towards him and widened his stance to absorb the blow. His shield appeared on his left arm while his hand gripped the handle of his axe when it manifested. Colt was pushed back by a few steps as the wolf collided with his shield. His mind quickly digested the system notifications that followed.

[You have been attacked by Divine Wolf Pup (Runt)]

[Divine Power Damage Check… Enemy Speed 5. Endurance of area struck 5. Divine Power is tied. -1 HP]

Colt’s eyes went wide when he realised the creature in front of him was only a pup! Not only that but it was considered the runt of the group! So how big would the adults be then? Unfortunately, the wolf had knocked him back enough to remain out of reach of a possible counter-strike.

The pair began to circle each other as they searched for an opening. Colt noticed that the other five wolves nearby seemed to watch their fight with some interest. However, they did not seem to have any intentions of interfering. ‘Is it because it’s the runt? Or because we’re out of range to trigger combat?’

Colt wanted to understand the mechanics of the game as soon as possible. However, for now, he was grateful that he could test himself in a one on one. The wolf noticed his moment of distraction and charged in once again!

However, Colt was ready for it this time and stepped outside of its attack range before slashing at the wolf’s flank as it passed by. Colt frowned as no notification popped up, and the wolf appeared unharmed.

A similar situation had happened before. That was when the player Silkyhair had shot his shield with an arrow. As he thought about that, he realised that he never received a notification if his defence outclassed his opponent’s offence. So it would make sense if it worked the other way around as well, right?

Going on that logic, he deduced that the wolf’s Endurance had to be at three at least. Since if it was two, then they would tie, and it would still take damage. That knowledge left Colt feeling rather grim. He frowned as he thought about how to go about winning the fight.

The wolf lunged again, and this time when Colt avoided it, he slammed the rim of his shield on the side of the wolf’s snout. Making it yelp painfully in the process!

[Divine Power Damage Check… Enemy Endurance 3. Your Endurance 5. Your Divine Power is superior. You have dealt -3 HP.]

Colt smiled briefly now that he had confirmed that he could injure the wolf. ‘I can’t see a health bar, but if its Endurance works the same way as a player’s, then it should have 12/15 HP left.’

‘Ok, I just need to pull that off four more times to end this. Should be easy enough.’ Colt waited for the wolf to attack again, but it seemed like it had become warier of him. Colt remained patient as they stared each other down. Eventually, the wolf could not take it anymore and pounced towards Colt once again.

Colt performed his evasive manoeuvre again only to curse mid-way through. He could have sworn the wolf was smiling at him as it landed just in front of him instead of passing him by. Colt was off-balance as he stared at a vast furry paw swiping at him!