Day 19

To my surprise, Veronica didn't run away at her first opportunity. She didn't have ropes tied to her orange chicken feet or any restraints. She slept next to me instead of roosting somewhere high when the wolves started howling. Her body fluffed up next to me on my pallet, and I expected at any time to be in danger. Instead of sleeping, I kept one eye open in a half-meditative state.

It wasn't uncommon for new monsters to kill their tamers depending on their level and the tamer's skill levels. The 30s was considered a safe number for rank 1 monsters. I was dealing with a rank 2 with Bond at lvl15 after increasing her reputation to 20. While it wasn't the same as a tamer skill, it had to be similar.

Bond was such a vague skill it might as well be a relationship or friendship. I didn't know Veronica wouldn't betray me. I attacked her and then fed her in her time of need after shattering her entire world. Whether she believed me or not didn't seem to matter. Our reputation status was friendly.

She woke up just before dawn and began moving through stretches, flaring her tail feathers before looking back at me. It was weird.

"I need a nest if you want me to lay my eggs." I blinked at the chicken monster that spoke like a human, stood at my height, and had a very flexible worldview. "Quickly, unless you want me to crack the shell on the ground."

I would need to buy her calcium supplements. She wasn't a replacement for Gwen, but Veronica was a good girl. There were some old blankets in my pack, and calcium supplements for medium-sized bird monsters were only 15W for three months. I found enough wood to hammer a box together in record time and piled the blankets in a spiral, almost like a nest.

+1 Reputation with Veronica

"I would feel better if you ate the egg yourself," Veronica said.

She climbed onto the makeshift nest and began roosting. Her legs flexed, showing off the strength of a rank 2 monster built to kick enemies to death. Her arms looked no different than that of a normal woman, but her this and gluts were incredibly built. Compared to my lean build, it was quite impressive. If I wanted muscle like that, then I would have to earn it with lots of good food and plenty of exercise.

Ping!

Notice of Inspection

Dr. Paulina Prince Class: Monster Tamer

Research Center of Rasputin

89 Pharma Dr.

Mar, N Weston 87925

Dear Atom Walker Class: Farmer

Lot 3022, Walker Farm

Rasputin Territory, N Weston 89925

Spring 40, 11M 495

Dear Mr. Walker,

I am the researcher in charge of investigating changes in dungeon activity in the Rasputin Territory, and it has come to my attention that despite numerous warnings, you have made your homestead in the badlands of Rasputin. Mt. Red is home to a powerful monster of immense psychic power and has, as of late, become ill. We believe it has reached the natural end of its lifespan and is being challenged by powerful monsters for the territory. I'm certain you have noticed the dungeon on your property, and I am happy to tell you we are willing to purchase it and your property. A team has been assembled by my colleague Tony Graves, the young man you met and gifted a White Fawn to for its safety. They will come soon to offer a generous payment for the land you own and to ensure your safe retreat from the property.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Dungeons newly born are rare finds even in Rasputin. We are thankful for the assistance you have given so far in preparing the site. If, for any reason, you need a recommendation, I would be happy if you listed my name. We thank you for your cooperation. The team will arrive two days after this letter, and it would be best if you were ready to leave by that time.

Kind Regards

Dr. Paulina Prince

Two days after the letter, maybe I should expect them earlier. I stared out at my gate and imagined something bigger. There were larger trees in the forest around my land. Some of them were monsters of the second rank, and their bodies were stronger than some steel. Killing them and turning them into fencing, or at least my gate, would be helpful. Sometimes, they survive the transition and become ranked monsters in the form of objects.

"While you work on that egg, I have some business in the forest. Make yourself at home and don't do anything I wouldn't."

"Could you go into the dungeon later and get my friends?" Veronica asked.

I slid my hands behind my neck and let the sun bear down on me. Soon Gwen would be back, and my enemies would be very dead. I was in the best kind of mood.

"Sure, if they spoil me at night like you did."

"We were just sharing body heat to stay warm. No offense, but you don't have any feathers."

"None taken. I prefer my women to have horns."

"You are a male of rare tastes," Veronica said.

What could I say other than I liked what I liked. Before, thoughts of women I might be with had left me with a shadowy silhouette. Without fail, when I tried to fill in their faces, they all looked like the tomboy of an Oni who followed me around my whole childhood.

I hadn't seen Mai since that video. Knowing she was probably stronger than me by miles, I almost didn't want to see her. She was an Oni and the daughter of one of my father's strongest monsters. We grew up together as childhood friends, and my brother's wife took my class. My life was changed, and I was left unaware until the day I gained a class. Mai was a lovely Oni girl with white hair, a single black horn, red skin, and amber eyes. I could easily picture her face it still haunted my dreams. Her slanted eyes were something only seen on women from Easton.

Mai -60/100 Hated.

It wasn't easy to look at, but skills didn't lie. For a tamer skill to change a monster's entire outlook, it had to have something to do with long-term and short-term memory. How else was I despised so much for things I couldn't control?

Mai was in tears when she found out but hadn't seen me off.

I shook the darkness off because I needed to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Nothing would change if Tony's Ogre crushed me in two days.

Leaving the edge of my territory felt wrong. The forest overhead was filled with massive bugs in all shapes and sizes. Massive moving silk cocoons filled dark spider webs above with human-faced driders watching me and occasionally giggling as they fed on their prey. I moved like a shadow in the forest, but even a shadow had to fear high rank 2 monsters.

What I was about to do would damage the ecosystem of the forest. The great trees held many powerful monsters, but the rank 2s were plentiful. Deeper in, I would have to worry about rank 3 and higher monsters the further I ventured into the woods. On the edge of the great forest of Rasputin, where the mana was barren, I had little to fear. I found one of the rank 2 trees easy enough.

A tower of black bark and blue leaves would be no match for my chainsword. Trees were especially easy prey because they couldn't move unless they followed very specific paths through the ranks. My blade moved fast, grinding through the tree as I circled around. Pieces of bark shattered instead of breaking more obsidian than wood. By my 3rd circle, the tree cracked and began falling.

The wind blew, pushing against the leaves in a great gust as I concentrated on giving more wind than fell to the skill. A small cyclone appeared around me as I adjusted it so I could breathe while the leaves nearly levitated the tree for me.

Willpower wasn't easy to measure when it came to skills, but mine had grown much stronger lately. Concentrating on using my skills, I slowly moved the massive rank 2 trees out of the forest, avoiding drider webs as best as possible.

Controlling the wind was easier when it moved in a pattern than a breeze. A constant use of my power was so much more difficult. If I made an updraft, I would pass out long before I reached home, and a cyclone could act as both offense and defense.

There were many opportunities for everything to go wrong. Breathing was actually the hardest part. When I first made the cyclone, it wanted to steal the air from my lungs and kill me on the spot. I had to quickly manipulate air back into my lungs, which added to the strain, but it was manageable. Moving with tons of wood was easier when my cyclone used to leave to deal with most of the heavy lifting. A few came off at first, but after adjusting, I got the hang of it. When I lost concentration or pushed the cyclone out of the sweet spot, more weight from the tree fell on me to hold, and the monster tree nearly crushed me. Sap fell out from the bottom of the tree, sizzling when it touched the ground. This clearly wasn't a giving tree.

Driders watched me as I struggled to keep my wind in check to not antagonize them. My head throbbed, and I could feel blood fall down my chin and drip on my work shirt. When I broke free from the forest and made a b-line for my fence, my hands were burning, and my regeneration barely kept up with it.

I let my control slip as I approached the gate and let the tree fall as I ended my cyclone. The relief hit me like a 9lbs hammer, and I sprawled on the ground. A smile spread across my face at the sheer gains.

Ping!

+1 Focus

+1 Wisdom

Fell Wind lvl39

Fell Whirlwind (UC) lvl25

Fell Mastery (R) lvl11

Skill Points: 22

Something like wind mastery would be great, but who knew if it was even in the dungeon. Having a mastery skill increased the leveling speed of all the skills with Fell in their name. Having it and Adapt almost felt like cheating.

I drew up the plans for a new gate and then began the long process of processing the tree for parts to fix my gate and replace posts around my property. With a little luck, there was a chance the entire fence would become a monster. That meant levels, rank-up, and so much more. For once, the future felt bright.