[ Chapter V (5): "TO BE HUNTER, OR THE HUNTED" ]
[ SMALL RIDENS VIRIDIS LUPUS LVL. 3 ]
[ SMALL RIDENS VIRIDIS LUPUS LVL. 3 ]
Alastor became wary, seeing and personally witnessing the terror and damage one of these monsters can cause him. And now there's two of them, it is quite getting out of hand.
So with wary in his eyes, he tried putting on a brave front. His shield raised, sword in a stabbing position besides his side.
To avoid the previous mistake of being bitten in the foot, he lowered his stance. His lanky body looks abnormal to any spectators, if there is any, but he doesn't care...
Because what's standing in front of him are two laughing green tinted wolves, hungry and ready to pounce on him when spotted the opportunity to do so...
He doesn't want to give that opportunity to such opportunistic unholy beasts.
[ "D-damn it!" ]
[ NEW QUEST UNLOCKED! ]
[ QUEST: TO BE HUNTER, OR THE HUNTED ]
[ DESCRIPTION: THE RIDENS VIRIDIS LUPUS' ARE OPPORTUNISTIC BEASTS THAT KILLS ANYTHING WHEN GIVEN THE CHANCE, PROTECT YOURSELF BY KILLING THEM, OR BE KILLED BY THEM. PLAYER'S CHOICE ] [ 1/3 ]
[ REWARD: +50 EXPERIENCE TO PLAYER, WOLF-HUNTER TITLE ]
[ "D-do I look like I have a choice in this...!?" ]
Baffled, Alastor glanced slightly to the side, and noticed a new type of System panel, not lanky like the Player Status, or short as the rest, but is instead chunky and gives much information.
Thankfully it overlaps with the wolves, so he was able to read the texts without worrying about suddenly being bitten in the neck by those hungry green-wolves, or even dragged to the forest before then being eaten alive.
Christ knows that's the least he wants to happen at the moment.
He quickly devoured this new knowledge before it then disappeared seconds later. Being tasked to do something that you were already about to do, and then being rewarded with a title on top of that.
A badass title named Wolf-Hunter, isn't that a huge bonus?
So of course he accepted, not like there's a refuse or accept button anyways. Or a set time limit... He could theoretically do this a day, a month, or a year later... But perhaps if he doesn't do this now, then he wouldn't live past 3 minutes, so the urgency is there.
[ SNARL ]
Not being able to hold onto hunger, the Ridens Viridis Lupus-monster that is behind jumped up and scared Alastor. A fake, testing him, which worked.
This caused him to instinctively raise his shield for cover, but the monster didn't do anything more, except for laughing at him. Which was followed suit by the other wolf...
Their voices annoying Alastor who's gritting his teeth. To his horror on the other hand, the wolves seem to be telepathically linked, and circled around him— one to the left, and one to the right. Not a good thing for him.
A single scratch could kill him, but before killing him it would immobilize him. He himself seconds ago experienced how fast the poison spread, and it's not a joke... He wouldn't be able to live past a single scratch, or bite without a potion.
But how would he drink one while getting attacked? The answer, he couldn't, and wouldn't. That's dumb, he'll get mauled, cancelling out the effects of the potion wasting it in the process;
And he doesn't know how many Ridens Viridis Lupus there is in this after life, or even how many other terrifying monsters exist.
[ LAUGH ]
[ LAUGH ]
[ "I-I hate that laugh, s-stop it!" ]
Alastor split his gaze from left, then to right. His shield raised to defend himself on the left, and sword threateningly to the right. A deterrent, which doesn't seem to work, as they instead smiled from ear to ear in seeing this.
Fully having circled him, they switched places, making Alastor change who he pointed the shield and the sword into. With them circling him again... He watches in caution, as one tries to fake him, followed by other faking, then the other.
Getting closer to him as they do so, each time, enclosing him. The lone human standing in the middle of the field, the miasma working in their favor as they hunt him down...
Alastor who's annoyed knows he can't go on like this. Or he'll get attacked at the same time, seeing the opportunity of the wolf on the right faking him. He grabbed it; [ "Shut up...!" ]
Then thrusting his sword downwards in a stab motion, his shield now focused on this one; not bothering with the other at the moment. That's for later, this one is for now.
He noticed the thing's smile faltering, laugh turn to whimper, with eyes panicking. Channeling all his anger to his right hand, he did his best to pierce the monster's upper maw through a stab from the top...
And surprisingly, he felt that it was much easier than before. May this be because he upgraded his Strength by a Point earlier, or because he has bloodlust, or because he killed one earlier and found a way to easily kill the thing... He doesn't know exactly.
But he didn't bother with it anymore, as he focuses his remaining strength on piercing the monster's skin... This action felt like stabbing a pen through something hard, let's say wood, it's not impossible just difficult.
He never left the whimpering monster alone, or let him back away, or attack him. Even when it tried scratching his hand away, the backside of his hand and arms bleeding because of this, claw marks which left him bloodied...
But surprisingly, unlike before, he didn't feel that much pain. Just pain from being scratched, which still hurts, but not so much... Perhaps the work of Poison Resistance Trait he acquired, so the poison is really the one that's the problem, not the scratch, not the mauling.
Though Alastor doesn't know how far this Poison Resistance of his is, it does say weak poison... Maybe it considers scratches as weak, and mauling as strong... How does that even work?
He doesn't know. Nonetheless he continued on, pulling out his sword before stabbing it again on the monster, drawing out green blood as he does. His and the monster's blood collided in some parts, which he ignored.
Not stopping one bit to let the monster rest, run away, or counter attack him... As he grasps the chance. He needs to grow stronger, if not, then killed in this new foreign universe, on some unknown land, like a pig...
No one wants that, Alastor doesn't want that especially. With him having experienced that death the first time, back in his original world... It didn't feel great.
Alastor just wants to die of old age, women around him, rich in the billions, spoiled, with his mother in heaven proud, and father in hell disappointed... Not this!
Not on some backwater planet at least. Or the previous death which he loathes. Especially not when some deity gave him the chance for a second try, with a System to boot...
He'll have to at least die after having experienced all the riches this new universe gives him... And not die in the tutorial phase, that'll be a great shame.
[ "Just d-die already!" ]
He grit his teeth and notices that the wolf's eyes are dimming more, which is a great sign. His hands are already slacking and is in pain, he doesn't know how much longer he can hold the shield or his sword.
Thankfully the confirmation appeared there, in front of his eyes which is the System's notification; [ SMALL RIDENS VIRIDIS LUPUS LVL. 3 KILLED BY PLAYER! ]
[ +23 EXPERIENCE TO PLAYER! ]
[ "Finally!" ]
He smiled in seeing this, retracting his sword as he then focuses on the other wolf... Which have already pounced on him before he could even look back; [ "D-damn it!" ]
Causing him to fall face first on the ground, his shield dropping nearby with his face being smeared by both dirt and some blood. With him hapless, his back opened to all attacks given to him by the said opportunistic green-wolf.
He could hear laughing, morbid laugh, which could only mean one thing. [ "This damn thing thinks he won...!" ] He screamed those words inside his head, do feeling the pain of the bites, of the claws, and of the poison seeping into each corner of his body...
If that wasn't enough, he could see his hand's veins pulsing the more and more time passes. So in a last desperate attempt he turned around, the backside of his clothes tattered by the onslaught of attacks.
His open wounds colliding with the grass below, which eerks his wounds more. Causing him to gnash his teeth the more, with him face-to-face with the monster. He could feel saliva dripping to his chest, passing the cloth of his t-shirt.
With the monster pinning him on the ground, about to bite his head... Seeing this opportunity, Alastor tightened his grip on his sword... Before finally.
[ SMALL RIDENS VIRIDIS LUPUS LVL. 3 KILLED BY PLAYER! ]
[ +22 EXPERIENCE TO PLAYER! ]
[ ——— ] [ ——— ] [ ——— ] [ ——— ]
[ 04/30/2025 ]
[ 05/01/2025 ]