Valerie sailed over head as she delivered another powerful strike to the Cockatrice who wailed and screamed with furious vigour. It swept its long tail towards the huntress who caught the scaled appendage with one hand and then severed it altogether with Tiger’s Will in a single cut. The chicken headed beast yelled again and tried to peck at Valerie who nimbly dodged out of harm’s way while the monster chased after her, stabbing its spear like beak with reckless abandon. Valerie feinted right, dodged left and roll under the half reptile beast while slicing at the tendons in its three toed feet. The cockatrice stumbled then fell, its shredded and torn wings pushing at the ground to rise back up. That Valerie could not allow, stamping her boot directly upon the monsters damaged wing and tossing her knife into the other pinning both down. The huntress stood smugly behind the cockatrice as it tried to turn its head in her direction but didn’t have the flexibility. Such a pathetic and pitiful display tugged at Valerie’s heart strings and she decided to help out. She stepped onto both wings straddling the beast and delicately gripped on either side of the cockatrice’s head. Her fingers dug deep drawing blood as she pulled on the chicken’s face forcing its neck to curve backwards until it was staring upside at the huntress. She blew it a little kiss and then twisted her hands snapping the beasts head before letting go allowing it to slam back against the ground with a wet thunk. The cockatrice twitched and jerked with the last of its strength but ultimately fell still, its body ravaged, disrespected and broken. The huntress meanwhile giggled sweetly while revelling in the kill until she realized her mistake.
“…Oh Bollocks.”
She cursed climbing off the dead bird and grabbing her knife. She was supposed to kill it with Tiger’s Will only then would she absorb any power. Shrugging, she stared down at her latest foe, the high of the hunt waning faster than she liked. The strength she absorbed from an ogre was also disappearing and she quickly brought out a pocket watch she borrowed from Albert clicking a button to stop the timer.
“About twenty-eight, maybe twenty-nine seconds.”
She loudly announced to Samantha who noted the time down in sloppy handwriting. The two had been performing tests on Valerie’s class all afternoon and were slowly starting to figure out the mechanics. From their experimentation, a Trophy Hunter could store up to five monsters worth of power if they were directly killed by users weapon. Any additions after the cap were reached would do nothing to change the powers already stored and would not replace them. They could also pick and choose which stored monsters’ power to use based on a situation or what their instincts told them. It seemed to only work on physical attributes such as a monster’s strength, durability or speed and never the full package just a multiplier to the owners original prowess. At least this was all true for Valerie and she might be a special case or a poor example, they would need to find more out about the Trophy Hunter class to be certain. Then again, that would mean talking with that gnome and dealing with his petty attitude. The hard way it was then, figuring it out one monster at a time.
Valerie was already getting a feel for the power through Tiger’s Will’s hunger and cravings, the blade was insatiable but a little picky too. She wondered if with enough samples she could absorb more from a monster like an elemental ability such as a dragons fire or a ghosts intangibility. Her blade was also surprisingly good at time keeping as she could only use the power for approximately thirty seconds, give or take, but each stored power was measured independently of the others. She tried using the speed of a Jacked-up Rabbit and found if she applied the five stored powers on herself in series she could run incredibly fast for two and a half minutes. For the same type of monster, she could also burn through all five to amplify the effects and make herself even faster, stronger and so on. For different kinds she could still use them in tandem, but they wouldn’t directly influence each other. She tried to avoid using more than at most two at a time as it drained her mana and gave her a wicked headache. If she wasn’t careful, she would drain too much and end up with Mana-Sickness and if she kept going could very well kill herself, unsurprisingly she wanted to avoid this outcome. Thus, why she and Samantha were currently testing her limits in the Merryland Forest.
Convincing their guardians to let the huntress back here had been a herculean task, thankfully a timely intervention from Granny saved Valerie from being locked away or worse: put back on kitchen duty. The dwarven matriarch argued that Valerie needed to train her new-found power lest she misuse it in the heat of battle and end up some beasts dinner. Mrs Bubba wasn’t exactly all for killing monsters but couldn’t help seeing any of her grandchildren go without. Thus, the dynamic duo were allowed out on the condition they return before nightfall and limited the number of monsters they killed lest Valerie fall back into old habits. The pair accepted the condition, secretly agreeing what happened in Merryland stayed in Merryland as they faced far more than their fair share of monsters since arriving. Well Valerie did, her power making the ferocious and deadly abominations into little more than playthings as she found the limits of her class. They did need to take occasional breaks while Valerie slowly restored her mana, a process that required rest and time above any active skill. During one such rest period, after killing the Cockatrice, Valerie relaxed dipping her sore feet into the cool waters of a small pond. She felt serene and in heaven, her tired muscles aching while a pounding migraine threatened to knock her unconscious, yet the freezing pool drained all that fatigue away. She felt she could fall asleep here and awake in a thousand years.
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaagh! Oof-“
Unfortunately, her adventuring partner wouldn’t let her drop into a coma as she was busy trying to expand her own capabilities. Samantha was occupying her time in the age-old sport of tossing herself into solid objects to see what happened. She was actually throwing herself at the deep shadows cast upon the surrounding trees and outcropping of rocks. She worked on a loose theory that if the man in Albert’s book could pass through shadows then maybe her new class could let her too. As she ran full sprint into an immovable wall of rock obscured by darkness she was disheartened and disorientated when she bounced off the hard surface to land roughly against the dirt. Undeterred, she picked herself up, dusted herself off and got right back on the saddle.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
“Aaaaaaaaaagh! Owowow ah-“
The saddle being another shadow covered wall. Despite the fact Valerie was the one combatting monsters it was Samantha who was developing more bruises, her skin becoming a tapestry to her growing annoyance and lack of progress. The huntress might have suggested Samantha stop slowly bludgeoning herself to death, but a sick and twisted part of her enjoyed the spectacle. Envy and jealousy were not so easily removed and while she would regret the satisfaction she felt later, right now she was happy to encourage her friend.
“Come on Samantha! You almost had it that time!”
The battered girl looked up at Valerie from where she was hunched over and breathing heavily.
“You really think so?”
“Totally, go for it!”
Valerie lied trying desperately to hide her grin. Emboldened, Samantha stood up, dug her heels into the ground and charged forth.
“This one’s for the all the marb-OOF!”
She was cut off when her meek body struck the wall yet again with little to show for it. Valerie cheered and applauded her friends latest attempt claiming she almost saw her go through that time. It was petty and childish, but Valerie was always the one on the front line taking all the hits, it was only fair to share the pain every now and then. Following several more failed attempts Samantha opted to shelve her training for the moment and take a dip in the cool pond.
“Fifty-seven!”
Which really meant she completely submerged herself in the shallow waters and practiced holding her breath yet again. She was getting quite good at it, Valerie mused, up to nearly a minute and getting better all the time. Why exactly she did this the huntress wasn’t sure.
“Hey Samantha, why do you do that?”
Samantha twisted in the waters until she was facing her friend, a completely calm toad resting atop her head.
“Do what?”
She croaked out.
“The breathing thing, why are you practicing that?”
Samantha scratched the top of the toads head in thought wondering how best to word it.
“Because I need to? How else am I going to see the bottom of the ocean?”
What an absolutely Samantha-esque reply, thought Valerie. She supposed that visiting every corner of the world from the highest mountain to the deepest sea trench was also part of Samantha’s bucket list.
“You do know they sell enchanted broaches that can help you breath under water right?”
A highly expensive broach that is, the price of one alone would cost most nobles an entire branch to their household. Samantha blinked somehow in tandem with the toad though neither could directly see the other.
“You really trust those capitalist made trinkets designed to fill the purses of the money grubbing bourgeoisie?”
The completely out of left field communist statement told Valerie Roy the lizard man was in town and Samantha was being influenced yet again. His and Joanne’s business venture was proving very lucrative for the beast woman while the reptile man begrudgingly accepted his substantial cut. Valerie had heard talks that Joanne already recovered from the training hall incident and was thinking about opening a second restaurant soon, no doubt she would call it ‘Meat, Meat, More Meat and Meat Again’. One had to wonder what kind of capital it would take to get in on a venture like that. More than either of the adventurers had to offer that was for sure. Their legitimate work accrued a decent, barely liveable, sum which was quickly eaten up by daily expenses. A financial planner would have suggested the girls cut back on eating out every night and constantly having their clothes professionally washed, to which the pair would ignore the helpful advice and most likely leave a bad review of the professional. The not so legitimate gains the two had safely tucked away were still abundant but noticeably shrinking as the days went by. Forbidden from taking on too many contracts, their options were limited and they may require the assistance of the slick and greasy kingpin if they were to stay afloat in living in luxury. They would rather avoid that however considering how terribly their last job went not to mention the ease with which Fandrial found them out. If someone with a real grudge and lacking in morals had the same connections the two would be done for. Neither was cocky enough to think they would get away with it twice not to mention there was the very real possibility of their friends and family being targeted.
“Hmmm family.”
There it was again, Valerie thought. Family came back to the fore front of her mind, but it didn’t hurt as much this time. She and Samantha both were surrounded by people who cared about them, took an avid interest in them and tried to help them. She wasn’t sure if it was the same but, in a sense, she could say each had their role in their everyday lives. Joanne cooked them meals, taught them how to prepare said meals and passed along life lessons as well as an abundance of fashion tips. If that didn’t qualify her as a de facto mother Valerie wasn’t sure what did. Albert and Mrs Bubba were like a pair of grandparents, an idea that would annoy the two of them to no end. They doted, they spoiled, they offered wisdom and insight shaping the girls developing minds to consider things big and small. There were others that fit into loose categories too, Margaretta was like a rude neighbour, combative most days but always watching to make sure everyone on her street was doing okay. Darrian was a sleazy cousin that people tolerated at the best of times but could rely on during the worst. Roy, from the little interactions they shared was like a fun wacky uncle who kids loved to annoy. All that Valerie was missing was her real uncle, who was like her own father given all he did for her. She hoped James was okay and that she got the chance to meet him again and apologise for running away. It had been the best decision for her, she would never regret that, but she still left without a goodbye. When that day came and she found him again she would finally be able to say she was exactly where she wanted to be, surrounded by family and doing what she loved. Valerie stared up at the sky and found all the aches in her body and especially around her heart felt so distant, so small and insignificant. With a weight of her soul she stood up, her feet still submerged in the pond and addressed Samantha.
“That’s enough waiting around Samantha, lets g-OOOH!”
She tried to announce but tripped on something in the water and fell face first coming back up muddy and spluttering. Samantha, who had become a living statue covered in toads, stared at her friend, the many amphibians also turning their gaze to the fallen warrior. She burst out laughing, a raucous sound that was accompanied by many croaks imitating the noise. Valerie stewed in the waters and let the embarrassment roll over her. She knew this was karma for urging her friend to charge headfirst into the rock wall again and again. It was alright, she decided, a just reward for her selfish attitude. She would still get revenge ofcourse and it would be oh so sweet.