Engrossed in his Appraisal frenzy, Kyle was brought back by a *DING* .
Looking at the notification, he found that his Appraisal skill leveled up. Giving it a closer look, he found that it was now level 1.
Appraisal (tier 0) Level 1: You can appraise the value of items and identify them in a glance through the knowledge you gathered and experience acquired.
It's tier 0? And based on what it says, it only tells me about stuff I already know? But I did not know if those are poisonous berries, so how does it make the difference between what I know and what I don't? Ahh asking questions like this won't get me anywhere for now. Maybe if I level it up, I will learn more. Another thing to add to the list of unanswered questions.
While engrossed in figuring out his newly leveled skill, he hears a cracking and chirping sound that snaps back his attention.
He lowers himself down, holding a tight grip on his spear, and gets slowly closer to the direction it's coming from. He finds a small wolf-like humanoid creature, one foot tall.
Fear swelled in the bottom of his stomach, but he also felt a huge curiosity to see how it looked. Moving to its side, he found that it looked like a red-furred wolf but standing on two legs. Knowing that he had seen it before in a game, he wanted to test his Appraisal skill and see if it would work, summoning the skill in his mind.
Kobold: A tiny, wolf-like creature with dense fur and sharp features. Often dwelling in underground tunnels or dense forests, kobolds are known for their cunning and territorial nature.
With his curiosity satisfied, he starts slowly backing out the way he came. Sadly, it is never that easy.
Being in the way of the wind, the kobold picks up on the strange scent and turns to investigate. Doing so It locked eyes with him. Both surprised, Kyle's face grew pale, but the creature started to growl while showing its teeth.
Kyle would've sworn that it was grinning at him. Letting go of what it was eating and grabbing its rusted sword, it rushes toward him and swings its sword down.
Frozen the whole time, Kyle tries to run, but his legs give up. Pushing himself with his hand, he backs up a few inches away, just enough for the sword to miss him and be lodged right in between his legs into the dirt.
Coming this close with the creature, the scene too real now, he remembers the spear he made, looking to his right. He was still holding it, while the kobold was frustrated with his miss and drawing the sword out of the dirt. He swung the spear randomly and with no precision.
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To his amazement, it connects, hitting the kobold in the neck and piercing it from the side. Surprised and in pain, it jumps back, holding its punctured neck, letting go of the sword in the process. Now with enough clarity in his head, Kyle stands back up slowly, his legs still shaking. The kobold, now wincing in pain with a neck dripping crimson blood, its eyes darting up and down from Kyle to the sword next to him.
“It's looking at the sword; it wants to get it back. I'm not going to let you do that. If you do, I don't think I can win.”
After a few seconds in that position, the kobold tried to go in to retrieve its sword, but Kyle kept trying to poke at it from a distance with his spear.
It kept trying that again and again while growling and clawing at the spear. But after 10 seconds or so, it drastically slowed down, blood still dripping, exhausted, and it fell down in a lump on the ground.
“Is it dead?...”
Kyle looked at the creature intensely for a few seconds to see if it was still breathing or moving, but it was still.
After a sigh of relief, he slumped down on the ground, his legs still shaking, feeling lightheaded and sweaty from all the adrenaline that was pumping in his body. He looked at the sword it was holding.
“How can a wolf stand on two legs and also wield a sword?...”
Grabbing the sword, he felt a rush of information flooding his brain on basic techniques of swordsmanship. He suddenly knew how to parry, how to hold a sword the right way to swing, or even how to counter.
It was fascinating as if he always knew them, but his lightheadedness worsened, and he felt a bit dizzy. Taking a breath and steadying himself with his legs not shaking anymore, he fixed his grip on the sword and threw a few swings in the air, feeling like a true swordsman.
He smiled; he felt like a little kid who found a stick in the backyard, running around and practicing in the air. After a few swings, he looked back at the lump creature; curiosity resurfaced, and he got closer to check it out more.
“You almost got me, you little bastard. If I didn't make that spear, I would have died for sure.”
He started lowering his head to get a closer look. The moment he got close enough, the body twitched and lunged claw-first in the direction of his face.
Kyle, still holding the sword instinctively, put it in the direction of the attack. As the flat of the sword collided with the kobold's hand, it sprang backward, leaving its neck vulnerable.
Kyle, seizing the opportunity, knew he could deliver a fatal blow with his newfound knowledge. With a half-spinning motion, he unleashed all his force into the strike, aiming for the kobold's exposed neck.
The blade sank a few inches deep, piercing its flesh before Kyle swiftly withdrew the sword and stepped back, assessing the outcome of his move.
The kobold's head hung at an unnatural angle, its neck partially severed, blood splattering in all directions around the creature. A strange mixture of anger, fear, and confusion contorted its face as it waved its hand in a futile attempt to comprehend what is happening,
resembling a blind person groping in the dark. With a final twitch, the kobold collapsed onto its back, its spasms gradually ceasing until it lay still, lifeless.
“What the hell, it was still alive? Are kobolds this smart to the point to fake death to make me lose my guard? Is it truly dead now? or is it playing possum again? Should I cut its head completely to make sure it's dead?” *DING*