I froze, barely able to breathe. Thank god, the horned monkeys were here. I looked to my right, the opposite direction the creature was moving. If I was going for a sneak attack with a sword, I need to get closer to the monster. But with a bow, I needed a little space and direct line of sight.

A little ways from me was a gaping hole in the wall, where one of the many metal panels had fallen off. I crept over and carefully ducked through, on high alert for any monsters. The weeds were just as tall inside, turning the original cement floor into dust. Old mining gear was piled together, like a messy child’s playroom. Several mining carts were knocked on their sides.

The sound of claws skittering on wood drew my attention to the side and I instantly ducked low. A horned monkey stood on a ledge against the back wall, thirty feet away. The monster was over two feet tall and twice as long with the tail. Its creamy-gray fur blended in with the tarnished metal walls. If it wasn’t for the sound, I might not have noticed it so fast – well, that and the bright golden horn on its head winking in a sunbeam. The horn was slender and seven inches long. Dangerous enough to kill an unsuspecting person. Above the monster’s head was a teal title bar that read: Horned Monkey Lv 2.

Lv 2? Meaning, ‘Level 2?’ It was a relief to find something that was comparable to my own rock bottom level.

The monster didn’t notice I was there. Its reddish brown eyes stared intently up the slope of the ruins, to the top of the building.

Taking advantage of the situation, I nocked an arrow from my Items Bag and drew it back. The sun glinted on the sharp point.

Suddenly, the horned monkey tensed.

Shit, it was going to jump. When was the next time I would get such a good shot? I loosed the arrow. It shot with a blur at the monster, straight and true, right through the monster’s throat. The horned monkey stiffened, then collapsed to the ground with a ruffled thud.

Ding! [+3 EXP]

Ding! [Daily Task: Kill two Monsters. (1/2)]

I jumped when the System screens popped up in front of me. What the hell? Was it going to do that every time I killed something? I frowned at the words, mulling over them. Well, knowing when I got EXP was better than always wondering. I was dying to know how much closer I was to level 2, but right now wasn’t the time. There were more monsters around. I needed to get my kill and find another horned monkey. From the sound of things – AKA, no sound – the other monsters hadn’t noticed I was here yet. Good.

Still wary of another monster popping out, I crept over to the carcass and reached out. I’ll just stick the whole monster in my Items Bag and deal with it when I get back to Mist Haven. As soon as my finger touched the creamy-gray fur, a System notification popped up.

Ding! [Would you like the System to harvest the carcass for the optimal drop items? Y/N?]

I blinked at the question, completely taken aback. Harvest for optimal drop items? So, like the System will take it apart for me? Although I was good at dissecting monsters, I didn’t really like doing it.

I selected ‘yes.’

The dead horned monkey suddenly evaporated in a flurry of white lights.

I stepped back in surprise and watched the lights float into the air and quickly fade away. Even the blood on the ground disappeared in the glowing snow. What was left was two small glowing lights, barely the size of a golf ball. Above it was a teal label that read: Drop Item.

Ding! [Touch the drop item orbs.]

Frowning, I reached out. My finger didn’t touch any resistance from the drop item orb. It was simply a glowing ball, with nothing inside. As soon as my finger passed into the light, another System screen popped up.

Ding! [You have obtained a Horned Monkey pelt and horn. The arrow was returned to the Items Bag.]

My brows rose high on my forehead. Those two parts were the only things that had monetary value on a horned monkey. What happened to the rest of the monster? And what was the quality of the items it left? If the System butchered the job, it would be better to do it myself. But if it did a good job, then my life just got a lot easier…

I was dying to take out the items and check them out, but I was in the middle of a job. I’d dilly-dallied enough.

As cool as it was to get my first EXP, I didn’t feel that accomplished. Bagging that monster just felt way too easy. Then again, it wouldn’t have been that easy if the horned monkey hadn’t been so distracted. It didn’t look in my direction – or any other direction except up the hill – once. What was it looking at?

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Frowning, I looked in that direction. The inside of the ruins spread out before me, a mix of weeds and rusted steel. A broken conveyor belt ran the entire length of the building like dried snake skin. Everything was completely still. There were other horned monkeys here, right?

Suddenly, something shifted halfway up the hill.

I ducked behind an overturned rail cart and peaked out. I could just barely make out the silhouette of a monster by a large piece of crumbling cement. If it wasn’t the sunlight glinting off the golden horn as the monster moved, I might have missed it entirely. Damn, these monsters weren’t supposed to be this stealthy. I thought they were loud and belligerent. Now that I focused on it, a title bar flashed over its head: Horned Monkey Lv 3.

The horned monkey didn’t seem to see me. It shifted around in front of the cement, neck craning as if searching for something. It bunched its muscles and leapt to the other side of the ruins, clearing the thirty-foot span in a single move. It landed in a corner between where the broken conveyor belt was bunched against a pile of debris. Even though the horned monkey was easier to see because it didn’t blend in so much with the background, it was now at a trickier angle to shoot.

But … I should be able to make that shot. I’d done harder ones while training. Right now, the odds of the horned monkey seeing me while I try to get closer was too high. Although there was a lot of debris around me, there was nothing big enough to hide close by. It was better to stay here. It couldn’t be too much harder than the first horned monkey.

I nocked another arrow and aimed. The conveyor belt was between me and the monster, making the already tricky sloped shot harder. Because the horned monkey kept shifting, broken flaps on the belt kept blocking the shot.

I patiently waited for the right time. The force of the bow string pulled at my muscles, encouraging me to let go, but I refused to let my posture slide.

The horned monkey shifted again, slowly emerging from behind the obstruction.

Slowly, I thought, another inch. Just one more inch…

The horned monkey’s chest was in perfect alignment.

I loosed the arrow. Immediately my stomach clenched with dread. The angle was off. The arrow clipped against the conveyor belt and veered off course. It embedded into the fleshy part of the horned monkey’s shoulder, instead of the heart like I intended.

The monster screeched, the painfully loud sound echoing in the silent ruins, and flailed back. Huffing and puffing, it grabbed the arrow and tugged. It dropped the arrow into the weeds as its enraged gaze zeroed on the direction the arrow came from. Me.

Damn, these things were more intelligent than I thought.

I nocked another arrow and aimed … just at the horned monkey launched itself at me. I gasped and shot. The arrow went wide, right over the monster’s head as it landed feet from me.

The monster lunged, sharp teeth bared and horn gleaming.

Instinct took over. I swung the bow and hit the monster on the side of the head. It staggered to the side. Immediately, another arrow appeared in my hand and I drew it back. The horned monkey jumped aside just as I released the arrow. I missed and the arrow hit the metal wall behind where the monster used to be with a loud thunk.

The monster landed behind me and lunged up, its sharp horn aiming at my back. I twisted out of the way. As I did, my bow disappeared and my Miao Dao sword appeared in my hand. Simultaneously, the sharp horn grazed my side as the monster went past, slipping right between the leather plated. Pain exploded from my left side as the horn left a cut all the way across the side of my waist. In the upper corner of my vision, my HP bar lowered three points.

I hissed in pain and stabbed down where the horned monkey landed. My sword sliced right through the monster’s upper torso and sank into the ground. The horned monkey writhed loudly on the ground, struggling against the sword that pinned it in place. I jumped back, summoned my bow and shot an arrow right through the monster’s temple.

Finally, the ruins quieted down. Well, until the System woke up.

Ding! [+4 EXP]

Ding! [Daily Task: Kill Two Monsters Complete.]

Hissing with pain, I pressed my hand to my stinging side and watched as the System boxes changed in quick succession.

Ding! [You have Leveled Up!]

My eyes widened. “I leveled up?” What exactly did that entail? Did my stats go up? What about my HP? I went to open my stats menu when another System message popped up.

Ding! [Gained Ability: Bubble.]

I gaped at the message. I gained … an ability? What was Bubble? Not going to lie, it kinda sounds weak. Wait, Bubble also sounded like a magic ability. Not like Sprint, which was obviously a melee ability. So, why did I get Bubble?

I opened my menu screen then noticed that the Ability button was marked with an exclamation symbol, indicating something was new about it. Excitement surged in my stomach as I went to open that menu.

Something clattered to my right, from atop the hill.

I froze. Oh, my god. I was so excited about leveling up, I never checked to make sure I was alone.

Ria Moore

E Rank

Level 2

EXP to Next LV 8

HP 19/22

MP 30/30

Strength 9 (+2)

Magic 13

Constitution 9 (+2)

Agility 13

Perception 11

Intelligence 12

*****