I’m running. It’s been about 10 minutes and I’m still running. You want to know why I’m running? Because a 7-foot tall chicken is trying to eat me! ( ;´Д｀)
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Let me rewind to about 20 minutes before I started running. . .
I had just gotten to the base of the mountain after an approximated one hour descent. At the base, there was a small clearing with the about the size of a 1DK apartment. Beyond that was a dense forest that couldn’t be seen through for more than five meters. Thick vines hung from the branches, while various types of vegetation grew from the ground. Some even had bright fruits growing. There was one in particular that looked quite appetizing. A bright red fruit about the size of an apple hanging from a stalk. Not trying to take any chances, I used the [Analyze] skill to check it out.
[Doku Fruit (毒の果実)* – A viciously poisonous fruit that causes suffocation and failure of bodily functions within one hour. Soon after, flesh and bones will start to melt and decay. Tastes like strawberry]
. . . Well that was a relief. Along with that, the name was almost an oxymoron. At least whoever fell victim to this fruit would have the sweet taste of strawberry before they died. Might as well take it with me. . . Just in case. Taking some leaves and vines from the trees around, I used [Lesser Creation Magic] to create a parcel big enough to fit the fruit along with some other things that I might find along the way.
Prior to entering the forest, I decided to make a makeshift dagger with some sticks, rocks and [Lesser Creation Magic]. Quite crude to be honest, but it would at least help me defend myself in the case of an enemy attack. Although, a sword or a spear might have been better for the sake of protection, considering the fact that the forest is fairly thick, I need to be able to move without much burdening my mobility. Plus, I am not quite sure of whether I would be able to properly use any attack-based elemental spells without testing them out first.
Several minutes after entering, I stumbled upon some other fruits and nuts growing on the along the vegetation. Luckily, through the use of my trusty [Analyze], they were pretty much regular edibles. The fruits weren’t as vibrant as the [Dokuyaku Fruit] and instead, were a soft purple color. As I bit into one of them, a multitude of fruity juices burst inside my mouth. The meat, although when touching it, felt like leather, once bitten into, had the texture of a perfectly ripe apricot. As for the nuts, at first thinking that they would be like flavorless uncooked peanuts, but judgement was proven false. The nuts had a unique crunch to them, almost like that of a potato chip. Along with the combination of the perfect amount of saltiness and nuttiness, and the fact that no matter how much I ate, my mouth would not get dry, they were highly addicting. Sweet. Salty. Sour. Nutty. I ate until I was unable to scavenge for any more around me. Even after all of that, I was still not satisfied. Time to go in further.
Going in deeper, the lush forest slowly started to get denser. Eventually, I reached another clearing about 25 meters in diameter. Unlike the rest of the forest, the ground, instead of grass and various foliage, was of dirt and rubble. In the center, was something that looked like a nest made out of straw and twigs, only that it was about 20 times the size of a normal chicken’s or bird’s nest. Hearing the slight sound of chirping, I decided to get closer to it to see if it was what I believed it to be. Fresh meat.
Not to my surprise, there they were. Three baby chickens chirping inside the “safety” of their nest. Three human baby sized chicks, to be precise. Their feathers were bright yellow and their black eyes stared deep into your soul with sympathy. Furthermore, there were no signs of any parents.
“Aww, they look so cute.”
I said to myself only a split second before I viciously lunged at one of the chicks, grabbed it by the neck, then proceeded to slit its arteries with my dagger. It was a swift death. Meanwhile, the soft chirping turned into those of panicked ones. I paid no attention to them.
“いただきます”**
I began to remove the feathers and slice into the meat with my dagger. It felted as if I were cutting through butter. The meat was glistening like that of a perfect pearl. Seeing that making a fire or trying out fire magic in a forest was not an option, I decided to eat it raw. As I cut off a clean strip of meat, my mouth started to water. Taking my first bite. . .
“Urgh. . . “
God, that tasted horrible. The texture was that of nattou and the flavor, which I initially thought would be savory, turned out to taste like that of a raw onion. Now, how can such a delicious looking animal have such misleading meat? I almost threw up as I at least tried to swallow my first taste of “meat” in who knows how long.
Being entirely inedible, I tossed the remains behind me and decided to wander elsewhere for food. Who would have thought that behind me was the mother standing roughly 10 meters away. . . After seeing the corpse of her young, it let out a deafening roar that ran throughout the forest. Started, I turned around to see the 7-foot tall chicken. Instead of the bright yellow feathers that the young chicks had, it had pitch-black ones. Its crimson red beak was lined with razor-sharp teeth. The feathers on its wings seemed to be coated by a metal, sharpened to match a blade. It seemed to be angry. . .
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
Without a warning, the giant chicken opened its beak, which then started to form what looked like a spiraling fireball. I could feel the intense heat building up even from where I was standing. As soon as it was about the size of a basketball, the fireball sped towards me. I desperately dodged and luckily, I made it out with only a few singes. I can’t say the same for the other two baby chicks behind me in the nest. Seeing two more of its offspring die, it became even more enraged. I mean, really? You had it coming when you aimed it at me, who was standing right in front of your nest. Not really the smartest monster in the forest, are you?
The chicken once again formed a ball of fire in its beak, but this time, instead of firing it as a singular fireball, released it in succession like that of a shotgun. Once again, I dodged to the side, although this time, I wasn’t so lucky. A bolt of fire passed straight through my right arm, leaving a gaping hole without out entirely blowing it off.
[HP -20]
Due to the intense heat, there was no blood since it was instantly cauterized, but nevertheless, it hurt like hell. Along with that, my [HP] was currently in the red. While my arm felt as though it could fall off at any moment, I turned around and hastily escaped into the forest. But it did not end there.
Relentlessly following tailing me from behind, it was. I was unable to have a single second of clear thinking whilst running. The giant chicken was surprisingly able to move through the forest with ease, mainly due to its bladed wings that cut through the trees and vegetation in its path, while I was having trouble trying to find steady ground for my next step. I continued to run and run.
And that was how I got into this situation. . .
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I felt the sweat dripping from my forehead. . . Well actually, from my whole body. My limbs were aching and the pain from my half-blown off right arm wasn’t going to be going away any time soon. Not far behind me was that damn chicken, still following me.
“Stop following me already! It’s not my fault that you stupidly killed your own kids!”
My provocations only made it angrier. I should not have said that. . .
My legs were giving out. It was only a matter of time before I would fall and be unable to move them for a while. During that time, I would ultimately be decimated by the chicken. I am also positive that I do not have enough proficiency with the dagger to be able to fight back with it. The usage of the poison fruit seemed like a good idea, but with my dominant arm in the state that it was currently in, that was not an option. There was only one option left: Magic.
In terms of destructive power, fire magic outranked the other magics that I currently know, but was uncertain of how much damage it would do to the giant chicken. Also, seeing that I was in a forest, I would like to avoid the probability of starting a forest fire, but given the situation, I would have a better chance dealing with that than a 7-foot chicken.
I turned around and stood my ground firmly. Holding my left hand open and aiming it toward the beast that was rushing towards me, I prepared to use my fire magic. Wait. . . How do I used spells? While I was baffled at my own stupidity, the chicken kept heading straight for me. Within the nick of time, I was able to dodge its attack, though barely. Luckily I did not take any damage. Suddenly, the thought popped into my mind: incantations.
From my clouded memories, mages, unless extremely skilled, needed incantations in order to invoke spells. Each spell would have a different incantation, with longer ones usually being more powerful. Unsure of what kind of incantation I would have to use in order to activate a fire spell, I tried what first came to my mind while running.
“火玉！” (Fireball!)
From the palm of my left hand, a ball of fire began to form. Similar to that of the chicken’s fire attack, the fire orb was spiraling and radiated with heat energy, although, despite how hot it was, I was left unaffected. Aiming directly at the beast’s head, I took the shot. The spiral was released at roughly 90 kph (about 55 mph) and maintained that speed as it flew and exploded directed on its head. The result: A headless chicken.
. . . After all of the trouble that I went through, all I needed to was fire a single fireball to solve my problems? And just for the cost of 5 [MP]? This is cruel. Relieved of one of my problems, I left out a sigh and sat, leaning against one of the trees near me. But then, another problem, better recognized as a familiar growl, re-emerged. The headless body of the giant chicken was the only remotely close food source around me. I decided to put away my prejudices and eat the “chicken” meat. But not before analyzing my (dead) pursuer.
[Cockatrice – A rare monster type. Usually found deep within the [Forest of Eden]. Young Cockatrice will have yellow feathers which will turn to black as it matures and is saturated with magic. The feathers of females are coated by a metal, similar to that of [Terium], one of the hardest materials in the [Forest of Eden]. Has a tendency to breathe fire when threatened or enraged. Aim for the head.]
So I was right to aim for the head. Before I begin my reluctant feast, two things took precedence. First was my right arm. Using [Lesser Healing Magic]'s [Heal], I was able to restore my arm to before it was almost severed, although I am unable to move it around with much accuracy at the moment. Second was a new magic form. It would be somewhat of a pain to dissect and remove the desired parts of the [Cockatrice] by hand and dagger, so a magic form that would assist with that would be help. Using [Innate Magic Manipulation], I successfully created a new magic.
[Learned Extraction Magic]
With this, I can extract the necessary parts, using magic, without effort. And so I sought to begin my salvaging, until I heard a rustling from behind me. The rustling sound grew closer and closer. Now, able to use magic, to a certain degree, I am prepared for what might come out. Without warning, it jumped out and lunged towards me.