Hidden behind a tree, Sam eyed what was supposed to be his prey, in addition to being his ticket out of the caveman outfit he was trapped in. The [Tranquil Rabbits] were still there, hopping around the place where he had initially woken up. Now that he was getting a closer look at the rabbits, he noticed that they were a bit bigger and seemed stronger than regular rabbits out in the real world.
While he was on his way there, Sam had been wondering about something. A friend of his, you could say his best friend from the last game, regularly went on hunts with his dad. Real life hunting, mind you. He quite often talked about it with Sam.
He figured there were two types of people when it came to that subject. Ones that can do it without batting an eye, and ones who simply didn’t have it in them. Every person belonged in either one of those categories, and the only way to truly find out which category you belonged to, he figured, was to put yourself into that situation.
Well, it was time to find out, Sam thought. He held the [Dual Butterknives] in an ice pick grip, like he thought a proper rogue should, and was ready to strike from hiding.
He waited for the rabbit to get closer and jumped towards it, striking at the rabbit with both knives from above.
Attack missed!
The rabbit easily evaded, after which Sam involuntarily kissed the ground and ate dirt.
With the rage of someone who had stepped on a thousand Lego bricks, he jumped up and ran after the rabbits, but they had him running in circles. He jumped after them and ended up stretched out in the dirt every single time. There was nothing he wouldn’t try, but it was all to no avail. These rabbits were just too damned quick for him to even think about catching them.
Out of breath and out of ideas, Sam retreated. He had to come up with something. Well, the problem was that he just wasn’t quick enough to— Wait, that’s it!
He pulled the journal out of his pouch and turned to the page that had all his character stats.
Gitaroo-Man’s [Lvl.1] Stats:
[Strength]: 1
[Vitality]: 1
[Agility]: 1
[Perception]: 1
[Wisdom]: 1
[Charisma]: 1
Available Stat Points: 6
“I really hope there’s a way to change my character’s name,” he mumbled to himself. “Ok, let’s do this. Out of all these things, agility should help me in catching them the most.”
He immediately started to jot down the changes without really thinking it through first.
Gitaroo-Man’s [Lvl.1] Stats:
[Strength]: 1
[Vitality]: 1
[Agility]: 1 to 7
[Perception]: 1
[Wisdom]: 1
[Charisma]: 1
Agility increased from 1 to 7
The moment he wrote it down, he could feel something happening to his body. It felt like it was… It was mutating!
This was just a bizarre sensation at first, but after that initial scare had passed, he noticed that the changes felt… good. Very good, in fact! He almost instantly started feeling lighter. The way you initially feel after starting a diet, before the craving for food starts to kick in. His legs were also more muscular now. He simply felt AMAZING!
With a huge grin on his face, he started running through the forest to get a feel for this “new” body. He could jump higher, was faster and more agile. Just what a stat named [Agility] would suggest. Which was exactly what he needed to catch those [Tranquil Rabbits] and finish this quest.
He returned to his hunting grounds. They won’t know what hit them, he thought.
To test the way in which the stat change affected what he was capable of, he decided to use the same approach as before. Without going for the immediate kill. This time he’d catch the little rascal first.
As soon as it came, Sam seized the moment and held the rabbit up, having caught it by its bushy tail before it even had a chance to register what was happening. Just the way he had hoped it would go.
“Got you now!” he said to the rabbit. “Any last words?”
Sam unsheathed the [Dual Butterknives].
He learned something about himself right then and there. Sam finally knew which category of person he was. Unlucky for him, he was not someone who could hunt without batting an eye. It was hard for someone like him, who grew up in the suburbs to now suddenly make the jump to stab something, anything, to death.
Disappointed by himself, he let go of the rabbit and simply didn’t know what to think or do now. If he was to survive in this world, he had to develop a killer instinct, otherwise there was no way of progressing. He knew that. But just knowing something, and actually being able to do are two vastly different things.
But just sitting here and feeling sorry for himself wasn’t going to solve his problem either. He pulled out his journal and checked the quest again:
Main Quest:
[Let’s Eat!]
Kill 5 of the following, to get the corresponding reward:
* Kill 5 [Tranquil Rabbits] get: [Light Gear], or
* Kill 5 [Blazing Snails] get: [Medium Gear], or
* Kill 5 [Bear Cubs] get: [Heavy Gear]
Maybe if I went for something that would fight back… Maybe I wouldn’t have such a problem with it then, he thought.
He pulled out the map, which showed him the general areas in which the different quest targets were located.
The [Blazing Snails] were the closest to him. After that, a little ways off, was where the [Bear Cubs] were located. He decided to pay the [Blazing Snails] a visit first, and hoped they put up some form of a fight.
On his way to where the [Blazing Snails] were, he wondered about their name and how it related to them. “Tranquil rabbits” made sense. And the [Bear Cubs] were probably going to be just what the name implied. But in what way would the snails be “blazing”?
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That question was answered as soon as he stepped into the general area of where they were found. That whole area was charred black. It almost looked post-apocalyptic. The trees were burned, the ground was covered in nothing but ash, in general it looked like a wildfire had burned down that small patch of the forest.
The answer as to why that was the case was evident, as well. The snails were larger than their real-life counterparts and the mucus they were leaving behind was flaming hot. It looked like magma, and they were spreading it all over the ground.
Their shells suggested that they might not be easy to damage. If the rabbits had high [Agility], then these snails might have higher defensive stats. [Vitality], most probably. But, Sam figured, they are easy to approach at the very least. Just got to be careful around the magma.
[Dual butterknives] in hand, he tip-toed around the mucus. There was no avoiding it, though, which hurt like hell. No matter where he stepped, it felt like he was stepping on hot coals. By then, he was too far in to go back, and maybe it was the pain that was getting to his head, but he decided to sprint for the closest [Blazing Snail].
Once he reached it, he attacked in almost a blind rage.
Your attack deals 1 damage to blazing snail.
Didn’t make so much as a dent in it. Emboldened by the realization that he was dealing damage to something for the first time since he had woken up in this world, he continued whaling on it.
Your attack deals 1 damage to [Blazing Snail].
Your attack deals 2 damage to [Blazing Snail].
Your attack deals 3 damage to [Blazing Snail].
A combo! That felt great! The snail’s shell started accumulating some damage, but then he noticed something he should’ve paid attention to much earlier. Something was happening inside the snail’s shell. It was changing color with every hit from yellow, over orange, now to red. And was it… blinking rapidly?
Oh, no! Sam immediately turned and started running in the opposite direction. He barely got out of there before the thing exploded in a fiery blaze.
Even though he got out of the way in time, due to how close it was, he could still feel the heat of the fire on his skin. Which showed him that he certainly did not want to get hit by that. At least not until he had gotten his [Vitality] up.
He decided that he’d rather have it out for the [Bear Cubs] than die in a fiery blaze. On his way there he was starting to doubt whether he would ever find a way out of this, if there even was one. He was missing something which went beyond this game or any stats.
At the very least he was starting to get used to his caveman outfit. Maybe he could get used to living like this in all eternity… or until the servers shut down. What would happen then?
He decided he’d rather not think about that.
“Come on, Sam!” he mumbled to himself. “Stay focused on the task at hand. Maybe something’s going to shake out.”
He had a hard time convincing himself, though. But for someone desperate enough to be grasping at straws where there were none, one had no other choice but to do just that. Otherwise, there would be nothing left to do but to lay down and die. And he wasn’t ready to do that just yet.
The bear cave was a huge hollowed out rock in the middle of the forest, behind a small hill. The [Bear Cubs] were hanging out in front of the cave, and they were huge considering they were supposed to be cubs.
When he arrived, Sam was careful not to attract any attention, living up to the class he had picked. For the first time he felt like a true [Rogue].
Or not, because the worst-case scenario immediately came true.
Crack!
Sneak attempt failed!
Sam stepped on a small branch.
The [Bear Cubs] turned around and immediately started running towards him.
What direction were you supposed to run in case of a bear attack, again? Was it uphill or downhill? Never mind that, he thought. I’m going up a tree.
Up the closest tree he could find he went. The climbing was infinitely easier and smoother now that his [Agility] was increased. Which was great, but he was lacking in every single other aspect. Having virtually no [Perception] was what came to cost him in that attempt to sneak around his targets.
The [Bear Cubs] quickly lost interest. All except for one.
This was the moment, up on that tree, that he understood that he was just another part of this ecosystem. This wasn’t the comfort of civilization where you had everything handed to you on a platter. He was part of the natural world now, and nature can be a cruel mistress. He was part of the food chain. Eat or be eaten. It was them, or him.
He unsheathed his [Dual Butterknives] again. This time he made the decision that he would come out of this either victorious, or dead.
The [Bear Cubs] should take more damage than the [Blazing Snails], he figured, seeing as they had no armor.
This [Bear Cub] started to lose interest as well. Now was the time!
In the blink of an eye, Sam dropped down the tree branch and struck the [Bear Cub] in the neck.
Critical Strike! Your attack deals 6 damage to [Bear Cub].
[Bear cub] is critically wounded.
Not down yet, Sam thought. Or rather, he felt it, instinctively. He continued to attack the weak spot he created when he managed to wound it.
Critical Strike! Your attack deals 6 damage to [Bear Cub].
Critical Strike! Your attack deals 8 damage to [Bear Cub].
You defeated [Bear Cub]! You have gained experience!
“Holy crap… I did it!” Sam exclaimed.
He was ecstatic. Finally, he was able to defeat something. There was hope! He wouldn’t have to stay here forever. He wasn’t going to die here.
What Sam failed to notice (due to the elevated state he was in) was that he had a much bigger problem, quite literally. The other [Bear Cubs] disappeared into the bear cave. Now, there was something else standing behind him and towering over him, breathing down his neck. The hot breath he felt in combination with a low and aggressive growl, sent a shiver down his spine even before he turned around.
He slowly turned his head around. Staring back at him was a huge 10-foot black bear, with scars all over its body, roaring in his face.
[Momma Bear] suddenly appears.
Out of sheer reflex he threw the one of the butterknives at [Momma Bear] and hit her in the eye.
Critical Strike! Your attack deals 1 damage to [Momma Bear].
[Momma Bear] is blinded.
It didn’t look like it did much, though, except for blinding her in one eye, but enraging her even more. [Momma Bear]’s roar intensified. Sam picked up his weapon, as she raised her claws and attacked Sam.
You take partial hit. 10 damage taken.
Sam went full reptile brain. He was reduced to the most basic of human instincts: survival. He ran for his life.
Being blinded in one eye, the bear took a while to shake it, but soon took off chasing after Sam.
Sam ran in a zig zag pattern between the trees. Instinctively he ran back the way he came from. There were the [Blazing Snails] again. He took a quick look behind him. [Momma Bear] was hot on his trail, getting closer and closer.
He didn’t care anymore and went straight over the charred ground of the snail pit. Ran over the magma, the hot ground, nothing else mattered but to keep going. The adrenaline and sheer survival instinct helped in ignoring the pain.
Suddenly, he hard several huge explosions behind him, followed by a whimper and a heavy thud. Sam turned around.
You defeated [Momma Bear]! You have gained experience!
Level up! You went from [Lvl. 1] to [Lvl. 2].
Level up! You went from [Lvl. 2] to [Lvl. 3].
It took a while for Sam to realize what had happened.
While chasing after Sam, [Momma Bear] stepped on the [Blazing Snails], which triggered their ability to explode. With the damage from the explosions, plus the burn effect it afflicted the bear with, it killed it.
Sam’s pouch lit up twice. A look inside revealed that his journal was glowing. Opening the journal informed him of the good news. He now had a couple of choices to make.
Gitaroo-Man’s [Lvl.3] Stats:
[Strength]: 1
[Vitality]: 1
[Agility]: 7
[Perception]: 1
[Wisdom]: 1
[Charisma]: 1
Available Stat Points: 12
But there was more.
You have gained a new [Class Ability]: [Rogue Squat] Striking from a crouched position guarantees a critical strike.
And
You have gained a new [Skill]: [Knife Chuck] Throw your weapon to deal damage.
Sweet deal! Seems kinda overpowered, to be honest, Sam thought. Not that he was complaining.
After some deliberation, and some good retrospective thinking, he decided to immediately use the stat points he had gained.
Gitaroo-Man’s [Lvl.3] Stats:
[Strength]: 1 to 4
[Vitality]: 1 to 5
[Agility]: 7
[Perception]: 1 to 6
[Wisdom]: 1
[Charisma]: 1
Strength increased from 1 to 4
Vitality increased from 1 to 5
Perception increased from 1 to 6
A sharp pain in his chest reminded him of the hit he took from the [Momma Bear]. He now had five claw marks that went right across his chest. That’s when he remembered the Lizardman and the [Health Potions] he had gotten from him.
He pulled one out of his pouch. They shone in a weird red color. Not that it was surprising. It’s pretty standard across all games like this. It was just that seeing it like this added a level of realism that was as fascinating, as it was frightening.
You drink [Health Potion].
The wound healed, but the scars remained.
Which reminded Sam of another thing. He still had a quest to finish and defeating a creature way above his level gave him the confidence to do what needed to be done, no matter if it was accidental or not.
Let’s wrap this up and see what that village is all about.