Adira was thrown into the sky. Vexandyr, a monster in the form of a huge tree, crashed the girl with its branches and sent her flying. Galen jumped from one of the surrounding trees and caught her, saving the huntress from the all-punishing gravity. He landed smoothly carrying the girl under one of his arms. With the other arm, he blocked the strike that was aimed at catching them as soon as they landed.
“Again!” He pushed Adira towards the monster. The girl stumbled, barely finding her footing. She barely managed to correct her awkward steps into a run. Being forbidden to use any of her class skills the huntress was stuck to scratch the monster’s trunk with her glaive. As it turned out, her innate ability allowed her to damage the opponents higher than her in levels, but not relying on her most powerful attacks put her at a frustrating disadvantage. Not to mention level 60 monster is not something she can fight even when using her abilities.
The girl faced the monster again, paying more attention to dodge the strikes. The last attack almost knocked her out. Only a sense of falling kept her awake. One strike was enough to understand she did not want to be hit again. Her side pulsed with pain through her body. She must have had some ribs broken. Something that would be quickly fixed after the fight.
She swung again. The glaive scratched through the bark barely going inside. The key to defeating the monster was to damage the soft part inside the tree trunk. It was not something easy. Adira barely avoided a root strike that followed, taking advantage of her attack.
In an unhinged spark of anger, the huntress drove her glaive inside with a shout. It pierced the monster's body. As soon as the girl realized she could not pull the weapon back she understood it was a mistake. Vexandyr rotated in place. Adira let go of the weapon before it carried her away with it. Still, she was caught in the whirling attack and got hit in the head with one of the branches.
“Alright, stay still!” Galen calmly interfered. The man recognized Adira lost all means of fighting the monster. The arrows whooshed next to Adira. With two precise shots, he had split the trunk of the monster vertically. The pieces fell slowly revealing a black oozing substance that was the core of the monster. It slowly spread out barely holding its slimy shape. The real Vexandyr started to crawl away at a snail's pace. Galen lowered his bow with satisfaction.
“Now finish it.” But Adira did not need that pointer. She had already pulled her weapon out of the dead carcass and chased the monster. Her quick steps betrayed her rage. The girl grew more and more frustrated. Rushing forward she stabbed the creature a couple of times, causing it to jerk in pain and change the direction of its movements. It was still alive.
“Calm down and strike the vitals.” Galen calmly pointed. The young huntress turned to face him.
“Shut up! I could have beaten it!”
“You didn’t. You almost died.”
“Because you told me not to use my abilities!” She stabbed the creature again, as it tried to crawl away, inflicting more pain but keeping it alive.
“Because you would need to learn how to fight without them.” Adira scowled. She had been training her whole life. The girl knew how to dodge and attack, and understood the strategies of a skirmish. She was not a novice.
“I know how to-”
“No, you don’t! You are below half of your health, and that’s from one monster!”
“Ugh.” Adira groaned in frustration. She struck the vital spot and finished Vexandyr. The girl hung on the shaft of the glaive pressing her forehead to it and calming down. It was pointless to explain that the battle was rigged from the start. She cannot win against a monster that is 40 levels above her without her abilities. She hated that he put her in this situation without giving her the chance to win.
Yet deep inside Adira understood Galen meant well. The anger was mostly aimed at herself for being weak despite training so much. She was expected to be better, but it was proven countless times that she was not.
That frustrated her. She was the reason she got kicked out of her party. This exact incompetence is what annoyed her teammates. Adira hated that they were right about her. Now her new ally was observing the same thing they did. She needed to be stronger than this.
“You also need to think straight when you fight. Your emotions take too much of your focus.”
“I know. Let’s go.” Adira mumbled plucking her glaive out of the ground. “Give me a potion, I think I broke my ribs.”
They spent their days hunting and leveling up. That was their third hunt now. Well, for Galen this was hunts because he did all the work. Adira mostly tagged along waiting for monsters to be defeated or severely injured before she was allowed to join. Many times, the only thing she did was finish off the wounded monster.
Since the old hunter was max level, she gained the whole experience from high level monsters as if she killed them herself. The common knowledge among the hunters was that the road from level 25 to 30 is as long as from 1 to 25. Adira anxiously expected it to be a long walk. She has spent her past twenty-two years getting to level 25. However, she got to level 34 in just a week. The girl was grateful for Galen’s patronage, but her temper still spoiled their relationship. She constantly reminded herself that she was growing stronger than ever only thanks to him.
Besides fighting monsters, the majority of their time they spent talking. Adira learned more about the hero and his abilities. In return, the girl explained how her class worked, at least what she knew about it. Galen could not hide his interest. He never saw abilities like Adira’s. Only some inferior lightning charge attacks which were no match for the girl’s “Odium Steps” speed. Whatever is her class, it was beyond rare.
Galen had a straightforward class that can be found among most hunters. Even though he mastered it to such heights that Adira struggled to contain her amazement. He had three common skills every archer possessed. The fighting classes rarely had active skills. The abilities were meant to assist with weapon mastery. Fighting prowess depended entirely on how the hunters were using their weapons.
Combined with his impressive use of the bow Galen also diverged his class on level 75 to shadow magic. It was a common practice for those who reached level 75. Diverging to a different class allowed to get 2 more skills from level 1 and 25 of that class. The number of skills decided the fighting power. Getting one skill of level 75 was usually worse, with exceptions for some classes. If not diverging from archery Galen would have had the “Power Arrows” skill, that can be easily replaced with a master craft bow. Shadow magic simply allowed the hunter to be more flexible in his attacks and movements. He had the ability to raise shadows like walls, or instead make pits inside the ground that were not there, letting his opponents fall into the shadow. Both abilities could serve him as weapons.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Of course, as any level 50 archer, he had a “Hunter’s Sense.” The one he used on everyone to learn their class, level, and health. This is how he knew Adira’s level and class before. The usefulness of this skill cannot be overestimated. He knew how much health Adira had when they trained, and he knew which monsters she could take on without dying.
Not everything was to Adira’s liking with the man. Getting to know the great hero had its drawbacks. Not because he was lecturing her constantly and pointing out her mistakes. The things that irritated Adira the most were Galen’s stories about his life in the kingdom. Sometimes about his youth and how he trained, but mostly about how rotten and wrong the kingdom was on the inside. Being claimed as a traitor inside his home after everything he had done for the kingdom made the man an embodiment of spite. The girl could not take that. She struggled to believe all he said despite knowing he was there for a much longer time than she was. Every good memory Adira cherished was tied to the king’s influence. Every time the huntress tried to share a happy memory, she heard the same malevolus song.
“Verdania is a home of liars and power-hungry traitors. They were using you.” They were usually going back and forth around the same argument, but this time Galen was somehow more irritated than usual.
“They are not all bad. I learned a lot there.” Despite feeling tired after the fight and the hunter’s constant complaints Adira had to stand up to the accusations. It was her happiest time. How could this man try to poison it?
“Spare me the lecture. I know the king helped you a lot and let you train with royal hunters. How very noble. Have you ever thought about why?”
“I don’t need to know why. I am strong thanks to them.” If anybody else met the eyes of the powerful hero, they would cover, but not Adira. As usual, her response to provocation was anger, regardless of who was in front of her. Galen also did not hold back today.
“Because they needed a strong and obedient tool. You have a unique class. If you are powerful enough you are a great asset for the king. To make sure his enemies think twice to cross him.”
“Or the king cannot let my talent go to waste.”
“Trust me, I know how he thinks. That snake of a king would buy your loyalty and use you to hunt his opponents instead of helping the people.”
“King Cedric does everything for the people.”
“He does everything to stay in power. He never cared about people.”
“He is the best king we had after the fall of the Solendir Empire. He protected us from Westerners.”
“At the cost of families like yours. The free hunters are forced to clean monsters for barely any money all around Verdania. Where were the royal hunters at that time? And where was the protection of your noble king when the arachne attacked your village?”
“Don’t bring my village into this.” Adira stood close to Galen, meeting him face to face. One thing was to insult her time being in the kingdom, but to use her family to shame her was over the board. The girl did not even realize she was gripping her weapon.
The old hunter ignored her rage. Instead, he pressed forward getting more and more heated.
“That monster was monitored the whole way through Verdania. The nobles knew it would hit your village. Even I knew. But I couldn’t act because they turned a blind eye!” He began to shout at the end.
Adira backed away not knowing how to react. It was the first time the man raised his voice. In his stream of words felt Galen said something important and she had to listen.
“That is not a one-time occurrence. Orphans like you are all around the kingdom. Have you ever asked him why it was forbidden to hunt that creature when it just came into the kingdom? I wanted to kill it, and instead was sent to stop a rebellion in the north!”
“That is not true.” Adira wanted to object but her response turned out to be meek. She was not sure herself. Why didn't she ask? She was right there. But the girl never thought King Cedric had anything to do with it.
“This is exactly why he patronized you. Blind followers are the best. You don’t even realize he would use you until it is convenient and then he would throw you away. That’s how it works.”
“You know nothing of how it works! You have not been in court for the past 10 years!” The young huntress lashed out. Her temper reached its limit. She was there and he was not. Even if he was partially right the situation in the kingdom changed over the decade.
“I know because they did the same thing to me!” Galen shouted and turned away. Calming himself down he continued with his back to Adira. “I was their tool. When I was a good and obedient soldier, I’ve been getting everything I wanted. But they only needed my power. I had to kill those who went against the king. That arachne was the tipping point. I said multiple times I could kill it, but they always had something else for me to do.”
The man shook his head and was quiet for a while. Adira was also silent, suddenly feeling sorry for the old hero. He finally opened up about the most important part of why he was exiled.
“I was ordered to kill some family on the border with the empire when the arachne was gaining its power. But they made me do what they wanted. I was not in time to stop the arachne when I returned from my mission. She moved to another village. And some of the local rulers had the audacity to blame me for it! The next time I was tasked to do their dirty jobs I declined and went for arachne. One thing that Cedric and his counselors cannot accept is my disagreement. The tools have no right to say no.” The man stopped his words suddenly. His face contorted with a frown, but he quickly hid it.
“I failed to kill it. The monster was too cunning and escaped. Following it alone was too dangerous. I returned empty-handed. Everyone was convinced I disobeyed the orders for my own gain. They claimed me to be a traitor, and the only leverage they had on me was my family. The Lightning hunters captured me so I cannot run. The royal hunters executed my family. I escaped but was forced to leave the Kingdom.”
“I am sorry.” Adira felt the pain in his voice and understood his hatred. Of course, he would hate the kingdom. At the same time, she was conflicted about his words. Where was she supposed to be? She devoted herself to Verdania and owed a lot to the king. Luckily, instead of forcing this argument, Galen changed the topic.
“We won’t make it back to the house. Let’s camp out here and continue the hunt tomorrow.” Adira had a lot to think about, so she agreed.
In a few moments, a campfire was lit, and the two hunters relaxed around the fire, preparing their evening rations. The girl glanced at the old hunter. The conversation left him distraught. He stared at the fire, twisting a thin stick in his hands. Occasionally he tore a piece of it and threw it in the fire, watching the flames eat it. The day was intense for both of them.
“You knew I am Verdanian, and from the capital as well. No way you did not know that when we met.” Adira spoke up. “Why did you decide to help me? Is it because of my class?”
Galen was silent for a long while, chewing at the question before answering.
“It was your story that got me. Powerful to hurt the earth dragon, abandoned by the kingdom, and lost in the forest for the same reasons as me. I was looking for salvation in that forest, or a way to die with my pride intact. You’ve become my salvation.”
The girl looked at him at a loss for words, unsure how she should react to such a claim. Seeing her confusion, the man chuckled.
“Don’t take it the wrong way. I just didn’t want a kid like you to die for nothing. You needed someone to put your brain straight. With your attitude, you would’ve died there in a day.”
She knew Galen was right, but still, Adira frowned at his words.
“I am not a kid.”
“For me you are. You have the potential to become the strongest warrior in the world if you learn to contain your temper and channel your strength.” The old hunter stood up looking at the sky painted with the stars. “All eyes of the Gods are looking at you. Call it providence or an old man's gut feeling, but you were given that class for a reason.”
Galen smiled shortly and continued with a relaxed voice.
“Enough serious talks for the day. Better get some sleep. We have a hunt tomorrow.”