After moving to the edge of the camp, he crawled back toward the forest and climbed up a tree again.
Red, green, or yellow dot? Where should I go first? Elijah thought as he looked at the map. Or should I stay here and try to become stronger first? He remembered the essence he got from defeating the three monsters from yesterday. I need more information. Maybe I can capture a few of their people and get some answers.
Chapter Begin
After another two hours of rest, Elijah decided to scout out the other markers on the map but just as he wanted to set off, he took one last look at the camp and noticed a small group of people moving towards the forest on his right. It was the perfect opportunity for him to see if they were hostile or not. They were only four people from what Elijah could see and he decided to take the risk.
But not without preparation. He opened his status sheet to spend his available attribute points. After giving it some thought, he decided to invest them into his physical attributes. His highest attribute was constitution and Elijah felt like it would suffice for now. I am hard enough. Intelligence, Willpower, Charisma, and Luck are out of the question. That leaves strength, endurance, dexterity, and perception. Perception is probably related to awareness. While they are all self-explanatory, I would have liked to get more information before distributing my points.
Elijah crossed his arms and began tapping his foot. I should try to invest as many points as possible into a single attribute to gain an advantage over them. I already have a 10% boost to strength, choosing it is the obvious way. He dumped twenty points into strength bringing it up to 29,7.
Just short of the 30. He thought as he put 15 points into dexterity and 5 points into perception, bringing them up to 22 and 10 respectively, and leaving out endurance. He didn’t plan to engage in prolonged fights, if any at all, anyway and his current regeneration should be enough. As he finalized his investment, Elijah’s body tensed up. A sharp pain began coursing through his veins, his muscles contracting and expanding involuntarily.
Not again! It felt as if his body was being stretched beyond its limits, the pain unbearable at first. He gritted his teeth and endured, fighting against the pain.
It was gone as fast as it came, replaced by a warm and tingling sensation that spread throughout his whole body. Elijah took in deep breaths as he felt a new sense of strength. His body felt lighter and he noticed his new strength when he pushed himself up.
As he looked around, the world felt more real. His vision expanded and Elijah could see further now. The slightest movements, the tiniest sounds, everything seemed more vivid and noticeable.
Elijah flexed his arms, feeling the newfound strength coursing through his muscles. I could get used to this feeling. He felt invincible.
Time for some answers. He began climbing down the tree and resisted the dumb temptation to simply jump off the branch. He considered moving towards the group on a higher level but decided against it. He would be too slow despite the safety it would provide him against possible ambushes.
With the minion on his back and his mace at his side, Elijah began to move in the direction of the group he had seen earlier. He intended a light jog but was surprised at the speed he was moving at. Each step carried him farther than before. Grinning, Elijah decided to test his limits.
With a burst of energy, he sprinted forward, his feet pounding against the soft earth beneath him. His strides were noticeably longer, his muscles bulging with newfound strength. He felt a rush of adrenaline as he shot past trees, jumping several feet high over fallen logs with ease.
As he continued to run deeper into the forest, he became acutely aware of his heightened senses. His perception allowed him to spot details that he would have missed before, like a tiny flower growing amidst the foliage or the rustling of leaves from a bird taking flight. His dexterity made him more nimble and agile, allowing him to twist and turn through the forest with ease.
Every few minutes Eljah stopped and listened, trying to avoid running into his targets. After several stops, he finally could hear faint voices from afar. He climbed up and moved from branch to branch, taking advantage of their proximity to each other.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
There they are. Elijah stopped as he observed the party of four men from his high vantage point. The four men he saw earlier were clad in leather armor, carrying swords, and moved through the forest in a rather loose formation. They looked like they were taking a stroll through a park rather than traveling through a forest filled with monsters.
Elijah’s breathing turned shallower while he tried to decrease the noise he made. He used his wooden abilities to climb even higher as he began following them. After a few minutes, he decided to try and talk to the group. They were armed but did not make too dangerous an impression on Elijah with their constant jokes and laughter.
He hurried ahead in the direction the party was heading while his eyes scanned his surroundings for a perfect spot to confront them. His heart raced with anticipation, knowing that the four men he was about to talk to could be dangerous.
After settling on a random branch that stretched out over the path the men were traveling Elijah took his minion off his back and ordered it to increase its size before it absorbed wood from the branch they were standing on and grew up to his shoulders, resembling a smaller human in size.
Elijah told it to stay hidden while he made his way down. He placed himself clearly visible in the middle of the path and waited with the mace in his hand. The weapon guaranteed that he didn't give a peaceful impression at first glance, but he wouldn't want to miss it in case of an attack.
A few moments later, Elijah could already hear their voices. He steeled himself for what was to come.
"And then I told him to fuck off!" A short man with a thick beard said as he accompanied his sentence with fitting gestures. They all laughed as Elijah tightened his grip around his mace.
"I hate it when he does that. I'm just glad that the three weeks are coming to an end. We've been on this godforsaken island for too long. Trees everywhere and no good women in sight." Another one added. He was leading the way.
"Tell me about it. There are rumors that one of the guys wanted to do it with one of those horned beasts."
"Pretty horny, I would-"
"My name is Elijah, could you answer a few questions for me?" Elijah called out with raised hands.
They all stopped and looked at him. “What the hell is that?” One of them muttered while looking at Elijah’s strange skin.
“This?” Elijah took his hands down before he pinched his skin. “It’s because of my trait.”
“Keep your hands up.” The leader shouted before he turned to his friends. “He’s not one of our people.” One of them shook his head before an ugly grin spread across his face. "So we can do whatever we want with him."
"Are you guys part of a gang?" Elijah asked with a glance at the red vests they all wore.
"Dude, can't you put it another way?” The short, bearded man said to his friend while ignoring Elijah's question. "We should kill him. That's what we are paid for, after all." He raised his sword before one of them flashed forward.
Elijah managed to narrowly evade the man’s sword by taking a step back while he mentally ordered his minion to attack. It landed heavily on one of them and knocked him down while Elijah used the opportunity to smash his mace into the head of the enemy in front of him.
Two enemies left. The leader looked clearly pissed and lunged forward to kill Elijah while the minion threw himself at the other remaining enemy. Elijah saw the man impaling the minion’s eye with his sword as he continued to defend against the leader. While the attack would have killed a human, the minion only toppled over and dragged the man down with it, beginning a grappling contest.
Elijah regretted paying attention to the minion’s fight for even a second when their leader managed to deliver a blow to his face. While he was surprised by the comparatively low amount of damage he took, his enemy was puzzled by the lack of reaction. Elijah used that to his advantage and his leg landed on the man’s ribs.
Before he could throw another punch, the man burst forward with incredible speed. His movements blurred for a moment before Elijah found himself flying through the air, feeling pain in his stomach area. The ensuing collision with a tree knocked all the air out of his lungs and he found himself pressed against the trunk as the man pushed his elbow into his throat.
“Who the fuck are you, kid? From Lepus?” He spat at Elijah as he pushed harder. “Or Serpent’s Embrace?”
“Fuck.. you.” Elijah gasped for air and insulted the man as he struggled to free himself. The man was too strong.
“You too.” The man reached to his side, taking a small dagger in his hand. “I’ll be sure to piss on your corpse in front of your main building, damn rabbit.” Before the man could ram his dagger into Elijah’s heart, Elijah tried one last desperate counterattack. He put his hand onto the man’s chest and pushed all his mana into his arm, trying to turn it into a wooden spike.
His arm grew explosively, burrowing into the man’s body as it became a deadly spike. The man was lifted several feet above the ground as Elijah’s arm impaled the man and continued to grow.
The dull sound of the minion's strikes against the long-unconscious enemy was everything Elijah heard as his eyes widened in shock.
Warm blood flew down his arm as the man gasped for air. He struggled to stay alive for a few more seconds before he succumbed to his wounds, leaving Elijah staring in shock at his arm burrowed inside the enemy.
A third stream of essence flowed into him as Elijah gagged and his arm shrank back to its normal size, covered in blood and guts.
He had won.