Edited by: KenChi死

This. Goddamned. Village. Is. Way. Further. Than. I. Thought.

I am in this uncomfortable state between exhaustion and being well, you know, covered in sweat, feeling warmth all over your body, having a rapid breathing, the feeling of needles in your throat, stomach and lungs… yet not being tired itself. I simply knew I could be going for about a hour or more before needing a break.

So I kept walking. The reason is simple – I really need those arrows, so I can start hunting for those inquisitors as fast as possible… why? Because I have no idea how do I active it! Do I have to simply be willing to kill them and start looking for them? Or will I need to kill at least one of them till the end of a day? It is important to know the difference, for I don’t want to have some punishment thrown onto me.

Even more as Aira was giggling every time I asked her about it… It’s probably nothing serious as I could tell by her behavior… Nah, I still don’t want to see for myself what it is. This is also why I started acting so soon.

There is but one thing that is making me feel a bit less irritated by this whole mess with hunters. The one that I interro… I mean who told me everything by himself, was almost sure that they will be at lost position, especially at the beginning. The reason is simple – they used to hunt magicians in villages and cities. The problem was not to fight a witch, but to find him or her. In cities villages and so on there was always someone who could be bribed or threaten.  They would tell them the location of witches and then hunters would wait for a good opportunity to take them by surprise. Even if it would not work they would have an advantage of numbers.

And here they are. In a forest. No one to ask. Lots of ugly monsters.

And I know they are coming for me. Even more – I can be the one to attack them before they would even notice me. Plan for now is simple. I took a Walter with me – he will be scouting Area around me as I am heading into a village now. Don’t wanna meet any dangerous animal, nor the hunters themselves on the way. In same time Sebastian is looking for the other troops. Kaito will be here with me, cuz he is so fluf… I mean a wonderful friend and great support in close-range-combats. As I will get arrows and supplies… If I would get them… I would start killing them team by team… or even one by one.

I do already know the forest a bit, they don’t. I have familiars that are showing me the safest paths, they don’t. They are used to live in a city, I’m not. They have some food supplies, as they would get short they would have to start looking for other sources of food and water.

Well, an idea to exhaust them by destroying their current food supplies and them poisoning some small water sources was tempting… but as only Greed heard about it he started throwing himself like a mad beast in cage on left and right… Reason? The quest notification said that my rewards will be based on time that I will take to finish it. As this way of dealing with them would be definitely more time-consuming, reward would have a worse quality. Aaaand he didn’t like it. “We are worthy to use the best accessories!” and some more stuff like that. Pride was also not extremely happy… saying something like “Those creatures are not powerful enough for us to use such cowardly tactics! Only claws and blades!”… or something like that… I wasn’t exactly listening to them, so I can’t be sure. Acting with your intuition is good, but I found surviving a bit more important than putting your life in danger just to get a slightly better reward… ya know, what use would I have for a weapon, if I was dead?

Oh, there is also Greg…. Crap I have Goosebumps just by thinking about him. Well, he get power by eating life force of living creatures. I was veeery pleased when I found out that all kind of plants can also be his “food” supplies. I was told it “taste awful” but also that “Your wish is my will”. I enchanted the tree that is the current host of shade with a few buffs, so it wouldn’t wither to fast. Of course the tree that is the new house for Greg and the tree I am living in are two completely different trees…  and by “occasion” they are about a kilometer apart. Only thinking that I couldn’t sleep in a haunted tree-house was bringing a nightmares on me.

Craaap! Now I am exhausted. Looks like a tempo I imposed upon myself was a bit too high. Walter was patrolling surroundings and Kaito run into the forest looking for late dinner for me. Yup, without command. Isn’t he a lovely creature?

Pov change

There was a commotion is the adventure guilds in the country. There were two reasons for that. First: It was said that agents of church have entered the country – a forest of the dread to me exact.  Why? The most believable reasons were that as the forest in almost not guarded place they can invade a country from almost every possible direction. Why the forest was not guarded? Oh, it used to be, but every time when a garrison was build on the verge, after 2 or 3 days a monsters would completely destroy it. This is why it was not guarded. Even the villages around the forest were built in the places blessed by gods or powerful magicians, in order to keep the beasts away. Well, it was sure that many of them would die before they could even reach the center of it… but it was enough for just one of them to penetrate the structure of kingdom for tragedy to break lose.

The other reason was gossip of new monster. Also in the forest. Those were a gossips spread by villagers and adventuring merchants.  And because of it, the information was not as precise as everyone wished for them to be. But they have the same origins and start. It is a story when a village near the forest was attacked by a monster. Also every story tells it was a Behemoth. And it was protected by another monster that was disgusting itself as a human. And now everything went wild. As many story as many events. One says it was a creature that one of the parents was a human, and the other phoenix or dragon, for it was breathing a fire that was making rocks melt. Other says that it was a beast so ugly and terrifying that everyone who would look upon it would lose his/her mind. Another story – that it was a werewolf, but completely sane… everyone would yell then that he is a lycan… but no. A werewolf. Completely sane werewolf… no idea how it is possible, so it is probably one of fairy tales.

It tore the behemoth apart… talked with villagers and then ran into the forest. As it was still pretending to be a human it was practicing magic as a student of a local witch. He made lots of medicines and cured a few of inhabitants.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

He protected a village and as his nature was shown he ran back to the shadows. Many were wondering what it truly was. Few wanted to make a hero out of it. Protector that steped out of the forest to help the average humans. It was told that if you would be lost in the forest, he would help you came back.

There were also those who saw him as threat. The monster that wants to understand its possible food source, and the fact it’s completely sane and able to use magic was making him just a bigger danger then an agent of the church.

Many were hoping that both of those “problems” would solve themselves by simply killing each other.

Yet job request to investigate if this creature is hostile or not, and then possibly kill it were placed in almost every guild in the country.

The stare of adventurer considered as powerful was stuck in this particular request. He/she was almost completely covered in a black coat. Only toxic-green colored eyes and pointy ears were protruded out of the adventure’s robe. He/she took a quest request from the board and hid it in his/her pocket. Then he/she immediately left the administrative part of the guild and headed to the inn part, where his/her comrades where sitting while drinking a bear after a task that took them a month to finish.

His/her comrades were a cat-girl that took a role of scout, a man completely covered in green scales – the lizard man, archer and assassin. He was also responsible for poison making. No, he was not an alchemist – he simply could produce a neurotoxin by himself. Then there was a lion-man. Those were normally hunters. Normally. This one was always despising his kin for not standing tall. He was heavy armored wielding a two-edged axe.  The last one was a harpy. She was also wearing a black coat, for her race was considered as highly violent. She wouldn’t gain more fame, as she wouldn’t tell that she was a mage a blood mage.

The owner of black cape took of hers hood showing the tanned like deep brown skin and almost completely white hairs. The dark elf said in low voice.

* “Prepare as fast as you can. Finish all your business. We are leaving tomorrow.”

Her words were not met with applause

* “Aren’t you using your position as team leader to much? We have barely finish one quest. We deserve a few days break…”

* “The monster was noticed in the Forest of Dread… A shape-shifter, fully aware and sane monster.”

* “Nee-chan still hopes to meet him? When will you understand that that creature is almost a legend... I was also wondering, why are you obsessed with it so much? You are not even a beast-kin…” The harpy said in a sweet voice. “But, she took a good care of us, didn’t she? I mean, we were all criminals that were supposed to hang on the tree… So leave her be Raggo. If Nee-chan says we are going on yet another adventure tomorrow, then we do. It is fun this way, even if we would find nothing…”

The Lion-man named Raggo growled in low voice. It was true that he owed that woman a lot, yet he came from a patriarch clan. Even as a woman back in his village she could say a word or two, if they would be beat in the fight they would have no right to oppose in anything. And here is this woman. Weak. Wielder of daggers and short swords. If he would challenge her he would clearly win. Yet he had to obey. It drove him mad. He oppose her every time he could, even if it’s pointless… just for sick pride… He will help her… for now. Till he finds the time when his debt was paid. Then he will leave her… or kill her… or take her with him and force her into marriage. In the end she is a warrior… Everyone in the village would envy him… just a little bit more, and his pride to shine all around.

The dagger was put at his knee under a table. He felt a cold steel on his skin in place where armor has a slit. He shifted his gaze on to the lizard-men who was only shaking his head slowly. They knew each other for a long time and can easily tell what other is thinking. This reptile bastard had protecting his ass way more times than he could count… he will give up on the idea to force her into a marriage… for now…

Pov change / next day.

I stayed in the village for night. The shaman was actually glad to see me again. Looks like the new techniques of hunting I showed them wes more then successful. I was given a full quiver of arrows right away, almost without asking.

Oh, no, don’t get me wrong. It wasn’t completely free of charge service. As we were talking and shaman finds out I am able to make some potions, he force me into divagations about herbs usage and stuff. Also I was carefully intero… politely asked about all ways of hunting.

Well, I am not a true hunter so instead I told them how to protected each other better. Like instead of wearing some rusty armors, that because of age were giving almost no protection and making too much noise, I suggested coloring leather cloths to make it looks like surroundings… something about making fence bigger (here I completely change the way they build it so far. They used to impale the branches and sticks to the ground and then tie them to those already standing. Instead of this now they will dig a hole, make parts of it on the ground then put it in the hole and burry it. It will be more stable and durable this way) and  making only 2 or 3 entrances guarded by watch-towers…. They have no clue what watch towers are… Well, it was still a bit too much for them to make usage out of  right away, so I told them that I would be back in the couple of day I will show them more…

I was not only given the arrows, but also more than dozen arrowheads. This way if arrows would be damaged, I could make a few by myself. Yes, I know that quality of those would be poor, but it’s still better to have bad arrows, then to have none at all.

Now I was sitting by a fireplace, preparing for departure. In my head the theme song of “Rocky” was playing. I was putting some dark powdered tree bark mixed with clay on my face and body and hairs. Not comfortable feeling. I hate being dirt, but as my hairs are not perfect material for camouflage I had no other way.

Sebastian flew back about 30 minutes ago. He had found 3 teams… one was pretty close, but other two… more than a day time of travel apart… how did he find them? Don’t ask me. No idea.

Craaap. This feeling of excitement filled me. Even if I know I still have a few hours till it gets dark and have a lot of time to spend… I know I will be calm once again when I’m close to my target, but for now… crap. Crap, crap, crap…

Is there anything that could keep me busy? I have 2 new cores for now and the one holding deer was empowered. I could hunt some monster, get few new traits that would help me… that was a good side of this idea. The bad one was that I couldn’t find something that would keep me busy for too long and it would get too dark even for me.

As I am using wolf’s eyes I can see a bit better. Also effect of Night vision of Predatory would help me… But as the level it’s still to low. My sight after dark was not amazing. I would lose too much time to get there without making them aware of my presence… ught. No. too risky. If I would be late the Aira would play some prank on me. For today let’s be fully prepare for those humans. Lions hunt the rabbits with all their might… or something like that.

.              .              .              .              .

It was already dark and I was lying in dirt several dozens meters from hunters camp. And It was already pain in the ass. Those were completely different class enemy then those I fought earlier. I was too far to appraise them, but their experience in camping was definitely higher level. Two of them were watching surrounding while two other were resting.

There was one fireplace in the middle of camp that was a source of heat for them, and in 20-30 meters from the camps itself a few other were sat around. Those were scaring animals away and granting a vision. Between those fireplaces was a camp itself hidden in the dark. I could barely saw the watchmen, I found him out after more than hour of waiting as he moved.

Sneaking to them was impossible… looks like it will be extremely hard to kill all of them in one go… Maybe one by one? Night after night? Or while they would be traveling? I would still have to consider this. Yet one of them is going down tonight…

Now... I stood up, and aimed. I was covered in darkness itself and was standing in place that was supposed to be in the blind spot of the guards.

The viewfinder started pulsating around the shape of human in the dark.

I calmed my breath and released an arrow.

What is a good story without a cliff?

Actually my parents are nagging about cleaning a house. Ya know, clean your windows for Jesus and stuff.

Plus I wanted to renew question I asked in last chapter – the one about skill you would

What is a good story without a cliff?

Actually my parents are nagging about cleaning a house. Ya know, clean your windows for Jesus and stuff.