The king of the forest, the earth dragon, a gorgeous and terrifying creature moved towards Adira. Its menacing lizard-like features swiped through the trees without any resistance. Like a Water Dragon gliding through the ocean, this one swam through the earth. The monster was the size of a small castle. The girl could see why the mere presence of such a monster was often considered a bad omen.
The dragon was not just normally passing by. The monster was fighting something. It trashed through the trees, burrowing its jaws into the ground. Behind its trail ruins followed. Adira never saw a battle like this one. The ground was covered in scars and trees laid waste. What should it fight to have such a terraforming consequence?
The girl looked closer at the rampaging beast. A black wolf’s pelt twisted in its mouth curving up and down. A vague silhouette flashed between the monster's teeth desperately pushing its jaws apart. To the girl’s surprise, it was a man. The creature carried him in its mouth as he refused to be crushed and swallowed. The monster dragged and pushed him around, crushing trees with the man’s body. When that did not bring any results, the dragon turned its face towards the ground burrowing a new delve using the human. He seemed not affected by the deadly attacks.
Adira was impressed by the persistence of that man. Even Stoneson could not survive an attack like this, and he was one of the most resilient fighters among royal hunters. Whoever that man was his class stats must have been enormous. The core attributes provided by the class define the ability of a fighter. Strength, Agility, Willpower, Vitality, and Intelligence each of them had their own effect. And with each level up they were increased, improving your abilities to fight and survive. To withstand the bite of that creature while being crushed through the ground was only possible with Vitality and Strength so high to rival the earth dragon's power. Such attribute distribution was common among warriors specialized in defense.
Nobody could control the stats distribution. The class defined how they are going to be distributed to assist the fighting abilities. Adira’s class was very balanced in terms of stats. She had every attribute roughly at the same level. Except for Intelligence, which defined the mana available. This was her weak point.
The earth dragon turned sharply. Its tail swung clearing the trees behind it. The monster charged into the walls of the canyon. Right below the cliff where Adira stood. She caught her breath. Soon the beast would approach the girl’s vantage point. Its intentions were clear. The dragon was trying to crush the man into the rock, hoping a harder surface would finally break his resistance. Seeing the man on his last leg desperately defying the huge monster the young huntress realized she must help.
Beast approached, giving the girl a prime opportunity to attack. Her position was perfect for an ambush, and her skills were ready to crush the earth dragon despite it being higher level than her. Adira believed in her powerful spells. The “Sky Crusher” can rip anything apart with its blazing fire. Even the thick scales of the monster would not withstand its power.
As soon as the monster got within her reach she ran to the edge. As usual, a powerful energy wrapped her with blazing flames. She activated her skill just before reaching the cliff, not giving herself a chance to doubt. “Sky Crusher” blazed around her. The plan was simple. In order to kill the beast with one shot Adira had to get under the earth dragon thrashing around. The radiant wall of fire would do the rest. It was a matter of getting from above its head to under its neck.
It was time to test her new skill the “Odium steps.” The System gave her a vague idea of what it does, but she had not had the opportunity to try it out. Even so, the girl settled on trial by fire. A new magical pattern surged through her body. The spell had formed.
Suddenly the world around Adira froze. As if time has stopped. Looking closely, the girl saw the monster was still moving. Little by little its eyelids have been closing. Its front foot rose from the ground, lifting off an inch in a minute. A small piece of dirt rolled between its claws falling so slowly that Adira believed she could run and catch it before it touched the ground. Having time to look around the young huntress picked on a small flare down her legs.
She was on fire.
The girl stared at it with a stunned expression. No, it was not simply a fire. Her heels burned with the same golden fire as the “Sky Crusher” spell. But this one spread from her heels like wings licking the surroundings behind her, hungry to get in motion. Adira raised her hand and realized how fast she was compared to the world around her. Then an agitated feeling rose in the back of her mind. As if remembering, the girl reached her mana pool only to find out that almost half of it was already spent. This skill dried most of her mana in less than a second!
Adira quickly ran towards the edge of a cliff throwing any hesitations away. She cannot afford to waste any more time. The girl had only one attack and she must slay the creature with it. Luckily, the new skill allowed her to do a lot within fractions of a second. The jump was the easy part. After all the young huntress was always reckless and thought after the action was done. This time was no different. She remembered how long and terrifying a fall could be only when the earth pulled her down and a knot in her stomach tightened from the grasp of gravity. Only then Adira realize how stupid her idea was. The young huntress had only one chance at surviving now.
She raised her trusted weapon above her head. The mass of spikes and scales was fast approaching. As soon as she reached the thick neck of the dragon, she drove the glaive into the scales with all the power she had accumulated from the fall. The neck of the earth dragon was as thick as its body and as sturdy as stone, but her glaive made it through.
Adira’s body jerked and pivoted in the air around her weapon. The momentum was enough to cut the scales. The glaive moved carrying the girl downwards as she slashed into the dragon. She carved a shallow cut over the dragon’s neck. Despite burying the weapon down to the shaft into the monster’s flesh the wound was still superficial. Still, it served her goal to stop the fall. The girl used her momentum to slide down to the ground, holding onto the glaive and letting the momentum of her fall carry her downwards and cut the monster.
This was a painfully long fall. The girl watched her mana drain and counted the seconds until it would run out. She must finish the attack fast. Adira hit the ground hard, but not hard enough. The girl fell on all four and quickly gathered herself up. Standing with her two feet on the ground she could start moving. All her worries vanished this instant. Despite having a fraction of her mana left she realized it was enough to run away into the forest near the other end of the canyon.
Adira sprung into motion, getting out of the way, and letting the “Sky Crusher” do the rest. The spell burst behind her. It did not work as usual when she moved a couple of steps and the fire wall emerged after her. This time she moved so fast that it fired all at once as soon as she canceled the effect of the “Odeum Steps.” Now everything caught in the scorching wall was split apart thanks to the otherworldly power of the ability. The young huntress smiled looking back as her attack outshined the darkness of the night. It would have been a perfect combination of skills if it were not costing her a daily storage of mana.
The girl reached into her satchel, pulling out the mana potion, and her hand froze. The radiant wall did not cut the monster. It blazed its flesh and burrowed into its chin, slowly making its way through the thick neck of the dragon. The monster was surely hurt, but alive. In its painful roar, it dropped the man from its jaw. The fires wore off. Her attack only damaged the monster and now it angrily turned to the new target. Adira could not help but swear.
“What level even is this thing?!” The girl gulped three mana potions as fast as she could, but the mana recovery was achingly slow. It was still enough to activate “Odium steps” for a tiny fraction of a second and dodge the next attack, but that was too close of a call. She probably will not be able to fight after that with all the mana exhaustion. The earth dragon should not have survived. Adira raised her glaive preparing for the attack. She would not go down without a fight.
A sharp clap echoed through the ravine. The monster jerked to the side. Its head flicked from a heavy blow that blasted a hole next to its eye. The dragon’s body twitched and slowly fell to the side raising a dust cloud. In one attack the king of the forest was defeated.
Adira stood dumbfounded. She looked around for the source of that powerful strike. Before that moment she thought there was nothing as strong as her “Sky Crusher”, but whatever this ability was it overpowered the high defenses of the dragon easily. The girl noticed the man she was trying to protect now standing with a bow in his hands. Astonished the huntress realized that the blasting power came not from any sort of magic, but from a bow. The eyes of the man locked on Adira as his face turned into a scowl.
“What are you doing here with your level?” He marched closer to the girl. She felt how the surroundings bowed to his aura of strength. The man was very high level. Only once did Adira meet someone as powerful as him. A Lightning Hunter visiting the king’s training grounds and giving some fencing instructions. That was the first time she felt the sense of overwhelming power from a single person. Somehow, the man in front of her was even more powerful than the Lightning Hunter. Adira struggled to find words.
“I err… Hunting.”
“Hunting what? Mushrooms? Are you insane?” The man came closer. He studied the girl.
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“Hey, I have saved you!” Adira met his eyes defiantly, not willing to submit to the overwhelming strength emanating from him. She noticed subtle hints of aging all around his face. At first glance his body carried the powerful youthfulness, and he could pass as man in his prime age. The night provided a perfect cover for that. Still, up close the hunter couldn’t hide the dignified greying in his hair and tired wrinkles around his eyes.
That was not all that met the eye. Adira pointed to the mix of dirt, grass, and blood that were his clothes. The hunter had a large gaping wound from a tooth in his shoulder. The girl could see the whiteness of bone and layers of flesh inside. Anyone else would have died from the blood loss, instead, there were no signs of bleeding, only the edges pulsed slightly with the heartbeat.
“I’ve seen how you fight. This thing almost killed you!”
“I can kill every creature in this forest.” The man replied with careless arrogance.
“Then why didn’t you?”
“Not your damn business!” The hunter stomped closer to Adira meeting her face to face. Somehow the anger wiped from his face as he stood in front of the girl. The man sighed. “I must have forgotten my manners. Thank you for intervening on my behalf. That was an impressive attack for a level 25-” The man stared at her, his eyes running left and right as if reading and then double-checking the information again. “Godslayer. Are you a blessed champion of the Goddess?”
The girl shifted from the unusual question. Blessings created champions with unusual classes and carried the will of their Gods. The possibility of her being blessed had been studied in the capital, but the experts in religion did not find a God that could bestow such a class.
“If anything, I am cursed with it.”
“The Godslayer.” The old hunter tried the sound of it on his tongue. “If Gods give blessings, then a Godslayer could be the curse.” He agreed after some thought.
“I am one of a kind.” Adira turned away in frustration. Somehow the huntress hated to be right about it. She felt the eyes of the hunter studying her. Her armor and weapons were top class. The set was not luxurious, if anything her armor was very basic. Still, the sets and sigils must suggest the origin of it. The hunter smiled concluding his exploration.
“What’s your name?”
“Adira.”
“Galen. I am an archer. Shadow archer with my second advancement to be precise.”
The girl caught her breath. That explained why she felt so overwhelmed by his power. Rarely do people reach their second advancement. It means the man was over level 75. In the back of her mind, Adira felt she had heard of a shadow archer before but could not recall where. Still, it made sense to know about him. Only a few people in Verdania reached level 75, so they were all publicly known. Curiosity poked its claw at the girl’s mind, and she eagerly followed the impulse.
“What level are you?”
“99th.” Galen did not make a big deal out of it, but to Adira, it sounded like a fairy tale. Level 99 was the maximum possible level humans could achieve. The existence of people with second advancement was a rare occurrence. It made less and less sense to level up past that. Level 75 provided you with the ability to advance or take a third spell for your class. Afterward, it was just a slight growth in the attributes. Because of that, people who tried to reach level 85 could be counted on one hand.
Monsters were able to achieve level 100 and unlock a special ability that made them much stronger than their kin. Why it was not true for humans was a mystery nobody solved.
Galen must be famous somewhere. If he was from Verdania Adira surely would hear about him. That means the man in front of her came from the Empire. The girl studied him quizzically. He ignored her puzzled look and instead tried to fix the mess his clothes were.
“Everything can kill you here. Do you know the level of this area?” That was a stupid question. Adira studied at this place. She was slightly offended that the old hunter assumed she was ignorant. Her voice betrayed her feelings.
“70 to 100.”
“If you know, then what are you doing here?”
“I am a Godslayer. I can fight monsters of any level.”
“That is ridiculous! It is impossible to damage a monster 30 levels above you!”
“But I did.” Adira pointed to the large beast lying next to them. Half of its neck scorched, and the burn went inside in a deep cut. The sudden accusation made the cold stone of anger heat slightly in her chest. The proof lay just there. Galen also noticed that.
“Let it be your way. But I don’t believe you are here just for hunting. With your abilities, you can destroy monster areas of your level.” Before Adira could argue he lifted his finger shutting her down and continued. “And you will not be afraid to do that all by yourself. You will level faster and gain more experience. So, I ask again. Why are you here?”
The girl fumbled in confusion. She felt that it was awkward to explain why she was there. It was an embarrassing story of her failures and overreactions. Still, she decided to open up. Adira left out a couple of details but mostly told everything about her last mission and the discord that led her into this forest. Finally, the huntress admitted she was looking for a monster settled here.
“So yes. I was acting irrationally, and I am here for an absolutely stupid reason.” The man suddenly burst laughing. He wiped out tears trying to articulate a sentence through his laughter.
“My story compared to yours is even more dumb. You have no idea! Believe it or not, I was a chewing toy for the earth dragon because I wanted to kill it with my bare hands!” Galen had a breather and finally collected himself. “So, what is this famous monster you hunt here?”
“The Master of Ambush, a level 100 arachne.” The man’s face suddenly grew serious. He evidently knew about the famous arachne who rampaged through Verdania. It destroyed villages and slaughtered parties that were hunting it. The monster had built three nests over the years all of which were destroyed. Still, the arachne escaped every time.
“Would you believe me if I said I hunted it before?” His eyes alone were enough to understand what he was thinking. The dismissing gaze unmistakably told Adira that she was gravely overestimating her abilities. Galen’s speech become dressed in a more teaching tone. “This one is cunning. Intelligent monsters are the worst to fight. Even if you are stronger than them, they had survived through worse.”
“I am not so weak. I can cut her before she even blink with my new skill.”
“Look, kid, this is a monster who overpowered armies to gain its level. She lived for hundred years of manhunt. It fought more days than you were alive against hunters selected to counter her abilities. A brat like you walking in its lair wouldn’t even account for a snack.”
“I’d rather try and die, than run away.”
“All in due time. I am not telling you not to kill it. Let’s get you to a higher level first. You will have more chances that way. Right now, you are sleepy and hungry. Let’s go back and we will train the next day.” Adira opened her mouth to disagree, but Galen’s words caught up to her in time before she spoke.
“Train?” The girl corked her head to a sudden proposition.
“Yes. I will make you strong enough. Then we can hunt that beast.”
“You want to help me? Why?” The whole idea came out of the blue. Adira was not sure how she should treat this proposition. Of course, it was a fortunate idea. The one she would not even dream for. But how easily it came out made her cautious. This is a too-good-to-be-true opportunity that will certainly change her life. Maybe not in the direction the girl wanted to go.
“I suggest we move first. I will explain everything later.” The hunter picked up his stuff and ushered the girl to follow him. “There is a place not far from the forest I bought from an old hunter. It’s nothing special, but it is a decent place to stay.”
“Am I supposed to go live at your place and train with you?” Adira raised her brow. The proposition sounded more and more forced on her. Still her gut feeling was not against it. Galen chuckled.
“Well, I understand your suspicion, but trust me, I am so much stronger than you, and we are in the middle of the forest. Nobody can even hear us. If I wished, you any malice I would have acted already. Instead, I propose to power level you.” He looked at her for a moment, and then delivered one last argument to tip the scales. “I guess after your story you have nowhere to go anyway.” That was enough to convince the girl.
They walked for a while now. Adira found less and less reasons to not trust the man. It was not uncommon for a high-level hunter to help others gain level. Usually by letting the low leveled people deal the finishing blow. It usually was an expensive service only the rich could afford. Still, Galen looked like a man who did not care about money. His ideals seemed noble, and he carried the poise of a gentleman. Despite the peculiar circumstances, he seemed trustworthy. Definitely more than Adira’s previous team.
Being less alert after the fight ended brought back memories and regrets. The girl suddenly realized she probably won’t go back to the court any time soon. Her weapon and some supplies were all she had. She was no more a Verdanian royal hunter. Looking at her now, people probably would not believe she lived in the king’s castle in the capital. Adira was completely abandoned, and it dawned on her. Right now, all she could do is to follow that man.
Thoughts about Verdania and the old hunter clicked together suddenly. The cogs in the machine of memory fitted in the grooves and began spinning unwinding a thread of events the young huntress dismissed as the time went by.
“I know you, Galen the Shadow Archer. You are the hero of liberty war with the Western Empire.” Adira looked at the man closely. “Because you overpowered their strongest knights, the Empire was forced to grant Verdania its independence.” Her voice grew more and more inspired. Rumors and news from the past ten years flooded in and the girl could not stop herself from talking. “You had suppressed many rebellions before they started. However, you are not a public figure anymore because-”
“Because I betrayed the King and allowed a slaughter, right?” He took the words out of her mouth, painting a more gruesome picture than Adira had intended. Talking about the Hero of Liberty war was as good as forbidden in Verdania’s court. Nobody wanted to talk about him. That is why Adira could not remember such an exceptionally high-level figure. Because Galen was a traitor.
“Why did you do it?” The girl stared at his back. The old hunter turned to meet her gaze with a threatening scowl giving away his suppressed rage.
“Do it? They betrayed me. Betrayed and blamed me for it. They all are traitorous scumbags and that’s all you need to know.”
Adira sunk her head down. Galen resumed his walk. After a second of thought the girl followed. Despite questions piling up in her head, she understood now was not the time for them. The hunter sounded genuine, and Adira decided to give him a chance despite his history with Verdania. She promised to figure out his part of the story before she could blame him. After that frantic exchange, they walked all the way to the house in silence.