Yeah, there’s the bastard. To think he would dare show his face before me again…! But this time, I will show no mercy! My body might not be large enough to effortlessly seal its fate, but I know already that I will no doubt be able to take it down. It has neither claws nor fangs. What have I to fear?

I just need to get it at the right time. It’s clearly far faster than I am, and I can’t exactly move while in hamnskifte, so I’ll need to ambush and cripple it at about the same time.

The easiest time to do this would be while it’s occupied with something mundane, like eating, or urinating, or…

I watch the deer walk in a straight line towards some goal of some sort. Why would a deer be up at this hour? It was clearly drowsy, and it isn’t eating anything, so, in other words…

I quietly jump from one tree to another, moving silently while following the deer.

It takes a little while, but eventually, I find that the both of us stand before a relatively slim river heading towards where I remember the lake being. The deer bows down and begins drinking greedily.

This is it, then. I could really just turn away, head downstream and leave the deer behind.

But I’m starting to feel kind of hungry, so here we go.

I step out on a branch right above the dastardly creature. I spit in both my hands and rub my palms together. Let’s go.

Arms reaching out and claws and fangs bared, I drop down on the deer from above, digging my claws into its skin the moment I get hold.

“HNNHNN!!??”

The deer makes a weird, indescribable sound as I focus all of my power on getting through this damn hide. I seriously hadn’t expected it to be even thicker than that of the fox. Maybe I should have tried to get even stronger before trying to attack a creature like this? Oh well, I’ve already gotten started, so I might as well-,

The deer rises onto its hind legs and begins to try to throw me off, shaking its body to and fro. Without any real grip on its neck, I fly back and forth, gradually losing my feeble holding. But if I fall now, there’s no question that it will take off in a fit and I might never see it again. Might never get my chance to take revenge for treating me like some piece of dirt.

Enraged, I grit my teeth harder into its skin, finally feeling how the thick leather begins to rip and tear, giving way to the supple, adrenaline-filled flesh beneath. I grin to myself, but when my mouth starts filling with the deer’s blood I have to stop myself from swallowing. My mouth is salivating but if I swallow any I’ll probably go into a bloodfrenzy.

I bite harder even as the deer begins to thrash ever harder. Unlike the fox, the deer isn’t all that bodily agile. I’m basically in its blind spot, physically speaking. There is very little it can-,

A pair of antlers are shoved in my face and I jerk back, tearing off a small patch of skin. With no anchor, the thrashing of the deer makes me fly through the air, my limbs flailing futilley for some form of grip.

Just as I think this will be the end of the battle, I grab hold of something.

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I open my eyes to find the blank eyes of the deer staring straight at me.

I’m hanging onto its antlers. As far as situations go, this isn’t actually all that bad. For one, the deer’s vitals are all right in front of me.

With an agile flip, I grab hold of the antlers with my feet and tail instead, now using my arms to scratch at its face. With such a strategy, I have no trouble blinging it in both eyes.

-Racial Skill Tail has reached Lv.5-

Breighing painfully, the deer again rises to its hindlegs. Enraged, it begins to rush blindly at whatever’s in front of it.

With my back to the front, I can’t really see the way it runs straight into a tree.

Both of my legs are punctured in several places and my tail is crushed almost completely. Just as dazed as I am, the deer collapses to the ground, its head swaying. Careful not to find myself in a similar situation, I leap onto its bleeding, scratched face, hoping it might make it stop running about.

With both my legs severely bruised and punctured, I can only clamber on using my arms and teeth. To make sure it can’t throw me off again, I grab a hold of both of its ears, tugging at them to the point where they almost start tearing. Of course, I keep my mouth in use by rigorously biting into the soft cartilage of its nose. It is easily crushed in my jaws.

Blind and panicked, the deer begins to run about aimlessly, pounding its head into trees, kicking wildly behind it. Honestly, it feels like I’m a cowboy at a rodeo, trying to ride a particularly obstinate ox.

But I guess all tales must end somehow, and this one ended with the deer finally casting itself into the river, myself and all.

Everything goes dark. At this hour, being in water is like being submerged in tar. It’s just black. The only way I can possibly keep myself from panicking just like the deer is to clamber on with all my strength, pressing myself into its bleeding, skinless face. But even then, I can feel flashes of black unconsciousness strike my mind, threatening to make the blackness all I’ll ever see.

I try to shake myself free from the cold, clawing death that surrounds me, but it is no use. Just like the deer, I begin to feel the fear of death settle in, its silent roar freezing me to my bones.

At the same time, I can feel a trail of heat nearby, tickling my tongue and making me salivate.

The deer is bleeding.

A bloodfrenzy… Yes, a bloodfrenzy might just save me. It would warm me, at least. Bring me some form of heat. Even if it doesn’t, I would at least like to go out manic rather than this.

If I just let the river take me, there is no question in my mind that I will die.

I press my mouth against the bleeding wounds on the deer’s face and suck in as much of the warm, fresh, meaty, rich, thick, delicious, intoxicating blood as I can. It courses through me, flowing down my throat in a great red tidal wave, bringing me joy and strength and power.

My mind flows with red and I bite into the face of the deer with newfound vigour, feeling only more and more joyous as more and more blood seeps into me. Even as the deer fights and kicks, I feel only joy. Bone and cartilage breaks under my jaws and I feel as though I’m floating through the air, sitting aloft on a cloud of sunset red. Before me floats great plates of food and wine of reddest red. With a smile on my face, I eat and drink and drink and eat, even as the world seems to darken and I’m not sure if I can even breathe anymore. But I don’t need to breathe in order to eat. I can just eat, can’t I?

My hands break into something hard and I tear out soft squishy pieces of sponge cake, each just a little redder than the last.

In my darkening field of vision, I spot a series of messages.

310 Exp gained

Title Hunter gained

Level up!

You have reached Level 10

Racial Skill Lesser Reeneration has Reached Level 3

Level up!

You have reached Level 11

Normal Skill Sharp Teeth has Reached Level 6

Normal Skill Stab has Reached Level 6

Level up!

You have reached Level 12

And then, everything went dark.