“Snowball, it's time for you to use your skills. We need to find one of those birds,” Kit said, urging the small dog to put his talents to work. Snowball let out a happy bark before dashing off towards the thick foliage where the bird had disappeared. Kit and Mars quickly followed.
"He really helps us out a lot. If I hadn't found him in Sweet Meadow, I don't think I would have been able to create any of my delicious recipes," remarked Kit with admiration.
"It's incredible how smart he is. Sometimes I wish he could talk to us," Kit added wistfully.
"Trust me, if Snowball could talk, you'd never get a moment's peace. He'd be constantly asking for food and attention," joked Mars, causing both Kit and Snowball to chuckle.
Kit laughed, agreeing with Mars' assumption. They finally caught up with Snowball, who was busy sniffing the ground and wagging his tail in excitement. He let out a yip before darting off into the forest.
As they followed Snowball, Kit felt more tears forming in his already ripped pants. He realised he might have to throw them away after their journey through the pocket realm, but he was grateful for packing some spare clothes.
When Snowball slowed down, Kit took a moment to take in their surroundings. In front of them was a large lake, illuminated by the full moon's light. The water appeared deep blue and crystal clear at the same time.
As they approached the water, Kit could see small silver fish swimming below the surface. The birds they were searching for were also present, swimming together in a graceful formation on top of the water.
Despite their loud entrance through the underbrush, the birds didn't fly away. They continued to swim peacefully, occasionally diving down to catch a fish. Thanks to the moonlight, Kit had no trouble spotting them on the water's surface.
"These birds mustn’t be accustomed to humans. They're not even bothered by our presence," Kit observed in amazement.
"I don't think it's that. I just used the 'identify' on them," Mars explained, a familiar gleam returning to his eyes.
Kit could already tell that these birds were of a high level, based on Mars' expression. "Mars, we can't attack them. We need to capture one, remember?" Kit reminded his friend with exasperation at his tendency towards violence.
"We can capture one and take out the rest. They're at level 80, Kit. Just imagine the experience points we could earn," Mars exclaimed eagerly.
Kit shook his head, hesitant to put himself in danger. He was on the brink of discovering a new recipe and didn't want to risk losing it.
"The meat would be perfect for cooking," Mars teased, knowing Kit's weakness.
It was as if Mars could read his mind, luring him with the promise of something he couldn't resist.
Kit glanced at Mars with a doubtful expression. He had a knack for persuading Kit to join in on his wild ideas.
"How can we defeat them without getting killed? I'm only at level 12," Kit reluctantly admitted.
"Hmm, let me see your stats and then we'll figure out if it's doable," Mars said. Kit reluctantly obliged and showed him his character's statistics.
Kit
Level: 12
Class: Swordsman
Sub class: Chef (Gold) Lvl 6 Tier: Novice Chef
Money: 42 silver 321 bronze crowns
Restaurant capital: 50 silver 71 bronze crowns
Free points: 24
Culinary points: 142
Health: 390/390
Stamina 24/24
Magica: 65/65
Experience: 14,000/17,000
Attack + 63 (30)
Speed + 72 (105)
Intelligence + 80
Agility + 137 (5)
Defence +22 (10)
Weapon: Beginner Sword
Armour: Basic wrist guard, Swift Feet boots
Clothing: White apron
“Your speed and agility should suffice for my plans. How is your aim?” Mars arched an eyebrow in question.
"What do you mean, Mars? What am I aiming for?" Kit's confusion was palpable.
Mars retrieved a bow and quiver and handed them to Kit. Realisation dawned on Kit as he stared at the unfamiliar weapons; he had never used them before.
"Um, Mars, I'm not sure how to use these." said Kit.
Mars seemed surprised when Kit admitted to never having tried archery before. It was as if it were something unusual or strange. But Kit couldn't always understand Mars, given their vastly different upbringings. "I have absolutely no idea how to even hold a bow," Kit replied honestly.
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"Then we'll have to add that to your list of things to learn. We really need to get back into our routine, by the way. You've been slacking since we arrived in town." Mars shot Kit a pointed look, making it clear that he wasn't pleased with Kit's recent lack of effort.
Kit's expression twisted into a grimace. The amount of knowledge he would have to absorb was going to exhaust him. But, Kit nodded his head in determination. He wouldn't let fatigue stop him from continuing the lessons. He had to keep up with Mars.
Handing back the equipment to its owner, Kit proposed their first move. "Let's catch a bird first, then we can figure out how to kill the rest."
Mars scanned the flock of birds on the water, pausing when he spotted one heading towards the shore. He grabbed a large cloth and some rope, handing the latter to Kit. "I'll catch it, you tie its feet and beak," Mars instructed calmly.
As Mars stealthily approached the unsuspecting bird, Kit stayed further behind. He hadn't yet mastered the art of walking soundlessly through a forest. Observing Mars' movements closely, Kit tried to mimic how he placed his feet on the ground in hopes of learning how to move silently as well.
Kit was stumped. He would have to ask Mars to add this to his ever-growing list of things he needed to learn. Before the bird could even notice their presence, Mars took action and threw a cloth over it. He managed to catch the bird before it could fly away.
Kit quickly tied its feet together and then secured its beak with a rope to keep it from making noise. Then Mars stuffed it in a sack.
Kit took the sack and tied it to his belt. Mars turned his attention back to the water where they had just caught a bird. "I'll shoot them with arrows and disable them first," he declared. "Then we can bring them to land."
Mars unholstered his bow and arrows, astonishing Kit with his lightning-fast speed. The arrows flew through the air with impeccable accuracy, piercing the birds in the water and turning it red.
Snowball, not wanting to be left out, leaped into the water and began dragging the wounded birds back to shore. Kit placed cloth in his ears to block out the loud screeching noises of the injured birds, a lesson he had learned from previous encounters with fairy birds. He joined Snowball at the water's edge to assist with retrieving the birds.
Brandishing his sword, Kit aimed for what he believed to be the bird's weak point - its neck. However, despite putting all his strength into the strike, he was only able to make a shallow cut on the thick and resilient skin of the duck. It took multiple strikes in the same spot to make any progress against its tough armour-like skin.
- 2000 damage critical strike
- 2000 damage critical strike
Kit was relieved that he had correctly identified the bird's weak spot: its neck. He kept directing his strikes to the same vulnerable area.
Eventually, blood began to pool on the ground underneath the dying creature. It was a struggle, but Kit was finally able to remove the head from the body, ultimately killing the bird. It took more effort than he had anticipated.
Without Mars' precise arrow piercing through its body and rendering its wings useless, Kit doubted he would have been successful in taking down the bird.
Ding!
[Large blue headed duck Killed]
5000 experience, 500 bronze crowns.
7 x Large blue duck meat.
Ding!
[Congratulations, you are now Level 13]
Fuzzy, pink peaches! The bird provided seven pieces of meat and a wealth of experience. Kit couldn't help but feel the same exhilaration as Mars when it came to hunting the birds.
He glanced at the name of the latest catch and was taken aback; they looked more like geese than ducks. If this is a duck, he couldn't imagine how big a goose would be.
Shaking his head, he refocused on the lake where Snowball had already brought him another bird to kill. Kit pushed aside thoughts about the odd name and reached into the water for the next catch. "Mars, these birds are amazing. I just levelled up again."
Kit turned to Mars, watching his lips move but unable to hear what he was saying. Suddenly, Kit remembered he had stuffed his ears with cloth to drown out the screeching from the birds.
He gestured to his ears and laughed as Mars saw the makeshift earplugs. After they finished off the birds, they left a messy scene on the bank of the lake with blood seeping into the ground and water.
Before leaving for their next destination, Kit dipped his boots into the lake to clean off the blood stains.
As they made their way back to the white bear, Kit was practically bouncing with excitement. Thanks to the birds, he had levelled up in swordsmanship and was now a level 16 swordsman.
He couldn't believe how much progress he had made in just one day. Not only did killing the birds give him a chance to find a new recipe, but it also greatly improved his swordsmanship.
Kit could feel that he had better control over his sword now, especially after practicing striking at the same spot with each swing. He could sense the difference in his movements compared to when he first started training.
With a little more improvement, he thought he might even unlock a new skill. It was shaping up to be a great day for improving his skills.
Pure luck led Kit to the discovery of the magic moon juice. He knew it would be beneficial to increase his standing with NPCs in order to gain access to valuable information like this in the future.
As they made their way back to the black flower field, they encountered no more monsters. Kit pulled out the bird from his bag and handed it to Mars. "Can you hold onto this while I get the flower?" Mars held the bird tightly under his arm.
Kit reached into his pouch and retrieved the flower. With Mars securely holding onto the bird, Kit shook the flower over its back, causing golden dust to fall onto its feathers. In the moonlight, the dust made the feathers shimmer and sparkle.
Once Kit had shaken all the dust off the flower, Mars carried the bird to the edge of the field. He untied its legs and beak before setting it free. Kit held his breath, unsure of what would happen next.
The bird began to shake and move its head from side to side. Kit feared it might try to escape, but then it suddenly went still. Its gaze was fixed on the black flowers, and it darted towards them.
Kit glanced around for the white bear and saw that it was asleep in the middle of the flowers.
As the bird got closer to the black flowers, the white bear lifted its head, causing Kit's heart to race. He prayed that nothing would go wrong at this crucial moment.
The bird reached the nearest black flower and opened its beak just as the white bear teleported beside it.
Kit blinked at the exact moment when the bear appeared, and when he opened his eyes again, the bird was nowhere to be seen. "Damn it! I must have blinked. Did the white bear eat it?"
Mars let out a small chuckle, “Yes, Kit, the bear ate it. Now we just have to wait for it to take effect.”
Kit and Mars sat in silence, watching the massive bear in the middle of the field. After five minutes, it closed its eyes and rested its head on its paws. Kit whispered, “Do you think it’s asleep or pretending?”
In response, Mars threw a rock into the field. When the bear didn’t react, Mars stood up. “Let’s go! We don’t know how long it will be out for,” he said urgently.
They sprinted towards the field, frantically collecting as many flowers as they could. Kit was breathing heavily from the effort, worried that the bear would wake up and attack him at any moment.
Thoughts of being devoured whole and digested alive by the bear raced through Kit’s mind, pushing him to move faster. He kept one eye on the sleeping beast and the other on his task. As he got closer, he marvelled at its enormous size - easily five times bigger than a normal bear. Up close, he could see every detail of its white fur.
Upon closer observation, Kit noticed that the bear's supposed fur was actually a coating of fine white crystals. Looking at the ground, he saw that the same crystals were scattered across the flower field.
Curiosity getting the better of him, Kit picked one up and pricked his finger with its sharp edge. A drop of blood formed from the small wound, but what intrigued him more was the soft golden glow emanating from within the crystal. Without hesitation, Kit used identify.
[Unable to identify]
Kit was astounded that he couldn't even identify such a small piece of crystal. He made the decision to gather not only the flowers but also the crystal shards.
As he worked Kit remembered that it would be safer to leave before the white bear stirred. When Kit had already amassed a significant collection of the black flowers and crystal shards, he felt it would be time to leave.