As I have said before, I'm dividing up chapters into smaller parts to make it easier to read. I'll add on to this post as I write and edit, but the gist of the released parts shouldn't be changed. Enjoy!!
*
The child looked up at the giant chasm that had appeared in the moonlit tree, his trusty steed by his side…
Just in case you are visualizing the wrong thing (apologies for the rather misleading writing), his steed is a squirrel and the child himself is a size of a mouse, having shrunk due to the effects of a mushroom that he had unwisely eaten due to his hunger.
And of course, behind him was a wild cat, all fangs and claws and teeth.
The child had come across the cat while playing with his animal “friends” (?). As expected of a predatory creature, it had eaten his good friend (?) the swallow in a gulp. And then as expected of a kid who’s lost his good friend (I’m sorry, make that favorite toy), the child fought back in revenge.
His newly obtained skill, Explosive Power, allows him to increase his stats tenfold. In terms of power, the skill is practically the equivalent of an advanced level skill; however it only lasts a measly 10 seconds. Moreover, in his current status, being shrunk also reduced his stats to a 10th of his original level.
The wild cat, in addition to being much larger than the child, naturally had a large amount of agility and reflexes. In terms of size, it was the equivalent of a monster hunter taking on a giant panther. Not quite a well-muscled bruiser like a tiger or a leopard or a jaguar, but a respectable predator in its own right.
Moreover, in the pitch black of the night, it was difficult to make out the wild cat due to its sleek black cloak granting it natural camouflage.
Needless to say, it was a losing battle for the child. His simple and amateurish attacks were easily avoided by the wild cat and he could not find a good situation to utilize his Explosive Power for quick spurts of burst damage. And as a result, he was slowly being driven back by the wild cat. His squirrel, while sure-footed and rather fast and agile himself, had practically nothing on the cat really.
The squirrel that he rode on was some help in the fight, however, as it helped him avoid a few strikes and slashes from the cat’s claws. And of course, at that point, he had in his mind a rather evil plan. This phrase would have fitted so well if he was a gentleman with a top hat, bushy mustache and equally bushy eyebrows, and then he must be waggling his eyebrows as he said this, but this narrator here must not be picky.
The squirrel avoided another attack from the cat, and with an astute sense of timing, the child urged the squirrel forward, activating his Explosive Buff at the same time. The squirrel leapt forward, creating forward momentum as the child swung his long sword, aiming for the cat’s left hind leg.
[You have severed the tendons of the hind leg; opponent’s movement speed has dropped.]
And there was the turn around that the child was looking for, charge having finished, moving to the side of the cat’s body. With the cat’s hind leg rendered useless, the child would be able to force the cat to play by his own rules, which was head on close combat.
But of course, when you solve one problem, another one will inevitably show itself. What level it is on depends, as a matter of fact, on providence.
The cat went absolutely insane with pain from the attack and was thrashing about in anger, slashing, swiping and swatting at the squirrel rider (let’s go with that for now), even going as far as to bare its fangs to snap at the child as the squirrel, speed advantage having been established, dodged and weaved, avoiding the attacks.
At this point, it was looking to grind down to a war of attrition. Yet, at this moment, a hole opened up in a tree nearby, and a swarm of fairy soldiers appeared, armed with short swords and spears the size of toothpicks and twigs respectively. A fairy wearing gilded armor pointed its short sword at the cat, spurring his troops on with a call to battle.
And then they proceeded to swarm the wild cat, stabbing and slashing away, chipping away the cat’s hit points with each blow. The cat fought back with much fury, but was overwhelmed by the fairies and soon collapsed under the weight of its attacks, fading away into a grey flash.
The child got off his steed and fell on his butt, exhausted by the ordeal he had just been through.
Nevertheless, despite his current condition, his mind was still thinking as he sought out a way to take advantage of this new situation. Hmph, what an uncute brat!
The fairy clad in gilded armor, who had led his troops into the fight, landed easily on the ground and walked up to the child.
“Young child, why are you in tears? This victory is cause for celebration.”
The child’s eyes looked rather moist as he attempted to put up a brave front, but failed miserably. As upsetting as this image sounds, it does seem oddly suspicious, not that the commander had realized this.
“Wing’s gone...” he said tearfully.
“Wing?” the commander looked rather confused.
“He’s a sparrow that I had met. The cat ate him.”
Even though he had known the sparrow for only a short period of time, it seemed that he had grown rather attached to the bird. It was, perhaps, understandable that the child was in a poor emotional state, seeing that a fun adventure suddenly turned into a bloody fight that had seen the death of a friend…
The fairy commander, having understood this, nodded and turned away, barking orders to his… erm… men (yeah, let’s go with that.). Having set things in order, he faced the child again.
“Regardless, you have shown immense bravery by going up against such a fierce predator on your own. While the loss of your friend is regrettable, you can perhaps be proud of yourself. If you do not mind, you are welcome to come into our city to recuperate. But first, give me your name, child.”
The child nodded and spoke confidently, favorable position achieved. It was a complete 180 degree turn from his earlier behavior. Well, if you do consider the fact that it was a game, it was pretty logical behavior.
“My name is Kino.”
And none shall stop him in his quest for adventure, it seems. Are you sure that he's definitely a child?
**
Meanwhile, back at the Sleepy Fortress…
“When I get my hands on that guy who knocked me out, he’s going to be so sorry.” the guard that was stationed there swore to himself as he stood there, eyes scanning the vicinity like a hawk. Sadly, that action only made him look like a serious puppy.
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“Oh, get over yourself, Puppy. You’re not the vindictive sort.” his buddy chided him as he yawned with an amused look on his face.
“Don’t call me Puppy!!” the guard, now known as Puppy, shouted in protest.
Anyways, Puppy Guard, as I would like to call him now (Disclaimer: That’s not his actual name), had been minding his own business when he saw a young man, carrying nothing but the clothes of his back and the obviously empty backpack that he carried.
When the man attempted to pass the gate that led to the outskirts of the city, Puppy here naturally had to do his duty, right? And so he stood there with the intent to do so. He’s only doing his job.
So how come he had gotten knocked out within a single hit? And it was an attack from a level 1 beginner too. It’s practically inconceivable.
“I guess the way I spoke with him was a bit rude… Who am I kidding? The Lord has clearly decreed this. Don't leave the city within the first four weeks of arrival. I’m only doing this for that guy’s own good.” Puppy thought indignantly, believing his actions to be in the right.
“Oi, Richard, back me up here.” he said as he turned to his partner, expecting to be supporting his actions. But he saw nothing but darkness... and a awkwardly shaped shadow in the distance.
“Ho? So this guy’s called Dick then?” said the awkward shaped shadow, as it tossed something at Puppy. It turned out to be a badly concussed Richard, the whites of his eyes showing as he lay there senseless. (Author’s note: Dick is actually a short form for Richard.)
“He was a little rude demanding that I state my identity, so I taught him some manners.” the shadow laughed as he said this phrase that should be said by a gangster in an offhand manner. The shadow moved forward, the lantern hanging by the guard post throwing light onto his features. Puppy’s eyes widened in recognition as he stared at the shadow who would dare show himself so blatantly.
“You!!”
He turned out to be the same guy who had knocked him out that particular afternoon. Who wouldn’t mistake his slim and muscular build, brown hair and hazel eyes? And that infectious grin coupled with his lax gaze? The only thing that was different about him was the large sack which he now carried on his back.
“So you learnt your lesson and want to come back in the city to stay out your four weeks properly now?” Puppy asked, hoping for a petty revenge by refusing entry, but then again remembering that he had just knocked out Richard, who was a far better fighter than Puppy can ever hope to be.
“Nay, good sir. I had a great time outdoors, and have only returned to try and sell my wares at the market.” the young man held out the sack he carried to let Puppy see.
Arms trembling, Puppy opened up the sack, which had been surprisingly heavy. In the bag was a large amount of loot, mostly from Wolves. It consisted of plenty of wolf pelts, wolf meat and wolf bones. It was as though the man had waged a war against the wolf population itself.
“Well then, what makes you think that I’ll let you in then?” Puppy asked in a sudden fit of defiance, while actually crying on the inside. Who dare that guy actually live and prosper on the very first day when so many others, including him, had so much trouble with rabbits, even after 4 weeks of preparation? Incidentally, that difficulty was the reason why Puppy had stayed on in the Sleepy Fortress as a guard.
“So you won’t let me in then?”
The man smiled at Puppy’s outburst. It would be understandable if he was to argue back angrily, but that smile was far more unnerving than a look of rage. Puppy couldn’t help but tremble for a moment, but closed his eyes, shaking off the fear as he gathered his courage. He had a few more weeks’ worth of experience as compared to that newbie, and even though he was in this unenviable position, his levels are actually rather decent.
When he opened his eyes, the young man was nowhere to be seen. Puppy’s chest swelled with pride at having seen off his adversary, and of course he couldn’t resist trash talking, the relief he felt overwhelming his rationality.
“That’s right!! You better run!! If I ever see you here again, I’ll make you regret it!!!” he shouted, drunk in his unexpected success. He stomped his feet and batted the sword that he held against his shield, making a royal fool out of himself as he danced about out of joy. He pranced and leapt, spinning in midair…
… only to freeze as he saw the young man walking off, the sack of loot slung around his back.
“Come back here, goddammit!! How can you just leave like this after you humiliated me in public?” Puppy shouted angrily, his face as red as a beetroot. Damn that bloody bastard, leaving me behind as though I was not worth his time… I’ll show him.
“Damn it… first you hit me for no good reason, then you actually managed to survive outside the city, and then you thought it would be easy to just saunter back and leave the city?! Well, let me tell you this, punk, you just messed with the wrong guard!!” Puppy shouted as he charged at the man, sword swinging in an overhead cut.
The man sighed, and casually dropped the sack that he was holding. But he did not run. Instead, he ducked under the slashing attack, Puppy’s reckless forward movement putting him at the perfect position… to get bashed. A large fist smashed into his chest, causing him to stagger backwards, the air driven from his lungs and his eyes tearing from reflex.
As Puppy blinked the tears from his eyes, both hands came crashing onto the helmet that he wore. A clang echoed dully into the distance, followed by a thud as Puppy keeled over comically, badly concussed from the impact of the attack coupled by the feedback of the attack.
The man patted dust from his clothes as he looked at the concussed Puppy with little regard, knowing that such an attack won’t actually kill. Suddenly, he seemed to have realized something, and dug in Puppy’s pocket, digging out a large bell that would have served as a much better weapon than the sword that Puppy was equipped with.
Puppy, while still dizzy, could hear a loud clanging sound as the young man rang the bell loudly and shouted in a loud and clear voice:
“It is 12’o Clock, and all is well!!”
Then, job having been completed, the young man carefully set down the bell and walked off.
Damn you, thought Puppy as he laid there, still unable to get up. We don’t do that sort of thing anymore, you idiot!!