System Made Me a Tank [LitRPG-Evolution]

After Boran sent his horned skeleton back to his ring, he took a deep breath. As he sat in his chair, three soft knocks came from the door.

"Come in," said Boran, turning toward the door.

The door slowly opened and Noemi entered.

"Hello Boran," she said with a slight smile.

"Did something happen?"

Noemi took a few steps into the room and stopped. "I told our new members about what you said to me regarding the Alpha Wolf," she said. "I offered to help, but they said 'no need' and thanked me."

"I see, I hope they turn out to be good people and stay with us," said Boran as he opened his hood. "I was looking at my inventory, and I remembered we have a wyvern equipment to choose from. There wasn't anything I could use in the options—just a sword, dagger, bow, and gauntlet. I took the gauntlet thinking I might be able to use it, but I got a notification saying 'This item is not suitable for your class.' So I used this tablet to put it in the guild storage, along with the halberd from the previous boss."

"I see. Let me take a look too," said Noemi and examined the items she could choose. "I have the same things. I'll take the dagger and put it in storage as well. How do we do this as guild members?"

"I did it from the tablet, but you can select the item in your inventory and use the 'Send to Guild Storage' option."

After Noemi sent the item to storage, Boran received a notification. "So items coming to the storage don't go in without my approval," said Boran. "That makes sense actually, this way people won't send unnecessary items. After all, we only have a 50-slot storage space for now."

"Then we need to earn more gold. Should we go get the other quest for Wyvern Valley?"

"Sure," said Boran, and they left the Guild Headquarters. They found themselves in the center of the Hub and went directly to the Infinite Tavern.

After going to the Quest Board, they examined the new quest they could take.

[Quest: Thronebreaker]

Quest: Advanced Wyvern Hunt

[Defeat 20 Blind Shadowwings]

[Defeat 10 Winged Visitors]

[Defeat 1 Ice-Tailed Wyvern]

[Defeat The Steel-Horned Queen Wyvern]

Reward: 15,000 XP, 1500 gold

"This quest looks much harder than the previous ones," said Boran, pointing at the quest details with his finger. "Especially the Steel-Horned Queen Wyvern part... This won't be an easy boss fight."

Noemi frowned. "How difficult could it be... I'd like to say, but none of the bosses we've faced so far have been easy, we need to be very prepared."

"We can't just rush in headfirst," said Boran with a determined voice. "First we need to explore the area. Where is the Queen's nest, what kind of environment does she live in, what are her weak points... We need to learn all of these. We more or less know what she can do from the creature details."

"This majestic creature, the undisputed ruler of Wyvern Valley, commands respect with both devastating physical combat skills and mastery of powerful elemental magic. While its steel horns can pierce through even the strongest defenses, its dominion over multiple elements allows it to use fire, ice, and lightning attacks in combination. As the apex predator of the valley, it maintains tight control over its territory through crushing power and tactical intelligence," Noemi summarized.

"Absolutely. I can handle its physical power, but against elemental damage I can only resist fire a little. I hope I get an ability related to this when I level up..."

When Boran and Noemi stepped through the natural pass between mountains into Wyvern Valley, the fresh, cool air from the valley hit their faces. The wind carried the scents of flowers and wild herbs from the mountain peaks, letting them feel the freshness of the surrounding greenery. Sunlight filtering through the clouds appeared to scatter golden glimmers across various corners of the valley.

"This place looks enchanting but so wild... Why do I like it so much," said Noemi.

"Not really my kind of place. But I can understand why you like it. Anyway, let's go and handle these quests. Let's start with the Blind Shadowwings," said Boran and touched his ring to summon Boney.

Noemi came to Boran's side, looked at Boney Stark and suddenly held her breath. Her eyes widened in surprise, as if she was seeing a completely different creature.

"Wait a minute," she said slowly, pointing at Boney with her finger. "This... isn't this your skeleton? What happened to it? It looks completely different."

Noemi hesitantly took a few more steps closer and carefully examined Boney's new form. The horns, new skeletal structure, even its posture was different.

"The horns..." Noemi extended her hand, then paused. "May I touch them?"

When Boney nodded in approval, Noemi cautiously touched one of Boney's horns. Her fingertips roamed over the hard, cold surface of the horn.

"Amazing," she whispered. "How did this happen?"

"It evolved."

Noemi turned to Boney with eyes gleaming with curiosity. "I'm sorry, I got too excited. But I've never seen anything like this before."

"I guess this is just one of many evolutions it will undergo. We'll be surprised by many more things," said Boran, then paused. "Do you remember the description of Blind Shadowwings?"

Noemi thought for a moment, then summarized the information:

"Blind Shadowwings are a unique species of wyvern that evolved to live in darkness. They have bat-like wings and are completely eyeless. To compensate for their blindness, they've developed extraordinarily sharp hearing abilities, using echolocation to hunt and navigate. They're extremely sensitive to sound vibrations in their environment. Potential items they drop include Wing Membrane, Pale Wyvern Scale, and Shadow Feather."

"That's right," said Boran. "Their sound sensitivity is their greatest advantage, but it might also be their biggest weakness. If we make loud noises, it might disturb them and perhaps give us an advantage in battle... but I'm curious about something. How can you remember all of this?"

"A wizard's trait. I don't easily forget things I've read. Maybe it's a characteristic from years of reading books."

"That's so cool."

"You're exaggerating."

Boran and Noemi began to advance into the deeper parts of the valley. The magnificent natural beauty around them made them momentarily forget the dangerous quest they were on.

"Blind Shadowwings live in caves or dark areas," said Noemi, examining the surroundings. "I think so, anyway. I think we should head to the less sunny parts of the valley."

Boran nodded. "You're right. Instead of climbing to high places, let's explore the shady areas of the valley. Let's scout around a bit..."

Boran looked at the valley, trying to determine their direction. "Over there, in the eastern part of the valley, there appears to be a deep crevice. That could be a good starting point."

"Let's go then," said Noemi, giving Boney Stark a quick glance. The skeleton nodded its head slightly.

As the trio advanced toward the eastern part of the valley, the landscape around them gradually began to change. The bright and vibrant greenery gave way to darker, denser trees. Sunlight barely filtered through the thick leaves, creating patterns of dim light that shimmered on the ground.

"Do you feel the air here?" Noemi asked in a low voice. "It's cooler and more humid. The mist is also starting to increase."

Boran was moving carefully, looking around. "Yes, we're probably on the right track. These conditions are ideal for creatures without eyes. Boney, go ahead and let us know if there's any movement."

Boney Stark, slightly nodding his horned head, began to move a few meters ahead of them. The skeleton's bone structure was visible with a slight glow even in low light conditions.

For about an hour, they investigated this part of the valley, but couldn't find any trace of Blind Shadowwings. Noemi occasionally stopped to examine the plants and rocks, looking for clues.

"Strange," she finally said. "We haven't found any traces yet. I haven't seen any of the signs mentioned in the creature encyclopedia—no feathers, scales, or claw marks." Boran thoughtfully scratched his chin. "Maybe they're not here. Or maybe we're not going deep enough."

Just then, Boney Stark suddenly stopped and turned his head slightly in one direction.

"I think Boney heard something," Boran said in a low voice. "Which way?"

Boney pointed at the rock formation rising to their right. Looking closer, they noticed a narrow passage hidden among the rocks.

"An entrance," Noemi whispered excitedly. "Maybe it leads to a cave."

They approached the passage with cautious steps. The opening was only wide enough for an adult to pass through sideways. A cool, damp air current was coming from inside.

"I'll go first," said Boran, keeping his shield ready. "Noemi, stay behind me. Boney, you watch our backs."