"Huuuuu...." Nathan ducked into an alleyway opposite to the target building. The damp, cold floor and the close pressing walls looked claustrophobic and he could see two cats playing around at the end of the alley.
Turning back, he peered around the corner and saw the dwarf creatures still laughing obnoxiously, though he could no longer hear their voices.
The road was 10 meters across, with a one meter sidewalk on either side.
"Alright. Let's do this." Nodding to himself, he grabbed into the air and a bow appeared in his arm.
With another grab, a Quiver with many arrows appeared.
He slung the Quiver onto his back and held the bow outwards in a shooting position. Then, he pulled out two arrows from his Quiver and only nocked one into the string.
He could spot about 5 of those goblins on the rooftop. Two of them were perfectly lined up. His plan was to shoot two arrows, one to catch the two and the other for one more goblin which would, hopefully, freeze in surprise at the sudden attack.
Let's just hope this one arrow can kill both of them. Nathan steeled himself and took a deep, Ling breath.
The arrow was enchanted and so, it would hurt magical creatures. Featured along the 100 pound bow, he held high hopes for it.
Sucking in a deep breath, his enhanced eyesight locked onto the creatures and pulled back the draw string.
Instantly, an almost instinctual sensation began to form in his heart. His hands tingled and his chest suddenly tightened.
His arms shifted to correct the trajectory and the string reached his chest.
The bow was all the way drawn back.
That small moment in which he held the string, ready to fire, seemed like it could stretch on forever. His senses felt like they were on overdrive. Everything looked too real, too distinct and clear.
He heard the faint wind howling in his ears, the hissing of the cats behind him, the insects that crawled around the garbage further into the alley and the snickering laughs of the goblins.
And then, his hand let go.
Fwiii!
The tell tale sound of an arrow whistling through the air sounded and the thing flew straight towards the target! Nathan's eyes widened.
In the split second after he fired the arrow, he realized that his aim had been just a little off. It would get the job done, but it would miss the second goblin's head and might not finish him off.
He didn't bother seeing how the arrow landed. He nocked the second arrow, and prepared to draw the string back.
"Ack!"
"Demigod! There's a hero nearby!"
He heard the yells of the goblins and the pounding heart in his chest.
By the time he drew back the bow, the goblins were all looking at him.
His eyes narrowed.
Fvii!
The arrow flew again.
The targeted goblin flipped into the air before the arrow was launched, diving headfirst towards the concrete road and the others followed!
Gritting his teeth, Nathan desummoned the bow and Quiver and prepared for the encounter.
But just as he grabbed into the air and began to summon the Ceslestial Bronze blade, the goblins landed on the ground and bolted!
Nathan paused. Surprised.
They fucking ran away! He cheered in his mind. This felt like a real hunt. A surprise attack with an arrow on a defenseless little animal...
Alright, when put like that, it sounds a bit heartless.
He looked up at the roof. The two goblins he had managed to hit were slowly turning to dust.
He resummoned his Quiver and hoisted it along his back, just to summon back the arrow to it.
[You have completed your first hunt!]
[Congratulations hunter! You have begun your journey on the Hunter's path! Each hunt shall be generously rewarded!]
[You have gained 0.4 Customization points!]
Just as the goblins finished disintegrating, he felt something.
His perk [Monster Lore] had activated.
He knew what those were now.
Kobaloi.
He waited for the follow up information, but it didn't arrive.
"Hmm.. The perk explanation does say 'remember'. Does that mean it won't just give me information? Only make me remember it if I've read it first?" He mused openly.
"But I don't remember knowing anything by the name of Kobalos... maybe the skill gives me the names of the monster I kill and other information is only remembered if I've read it? Food for thought." Nathan felt some more experimentation was needed with this perk. As for upgrading it, that would come later.
For now... he was come concerned about the spoils of war.
Customization Points.
"I killed two and gained 0.4? The Kobalos weren't very strong so I guess that's... fair?" He sighed as he walked out of the alley. Now, he was beginning to feel that his path to power wasn't going to be very easy.
This means I've gotta challenge myself with stronger monsters. A single point is difficult to gather from killing weak monsters. If I killa really strong one like a Cyclopes or a Nemean Lion, I might even get Dozens.
Nathan looked around the street and felt his senses getting duller with the passing moment.
It was clear - there were no other monsters around.
Regardless that this was supposed to be a test run, Nathan felt a bit dissatisfied. He had managed to test out his Archery, which wasn't very good but it got the job done. However, he had completely failed to test his swordplay.
Part of him was relieved that he didn't have to fight against three Kobaloi, but another part wanted more points.
As he began to walk back home, the dilemma ate away at him.
He passed by some more monsters. Each gave him the impression that they were very dangerous.
Weak monsters like Kobaloi might be rare...
He was human. He wasn't a demigod with increased physical abilities who had been trained at a camp. He had only skill and normal human strength to work with here.
For now at least.
And so, it wasn't a surprise to him that most monsters he came across gave him a plain feeling of danger.
Though he felt that he could dispatch them quickly with his Celestial Bronze sword, he felt reluctant to take the risk.
Eventually, his meandering led him to a familiar giant.
It still stood at the side of the road, drool dipping from it's mouth and down it's chin. It was dressed in rags and it's face looked... wrong.
It didn't quite look human.
Looking at him made Nathan remember the Uncanny Valley.
I wonder what type of monster this one is... Absently, he opened his status and then took a look at the Celestial Bronze sword in his inventory.
Just one strike will do, no? He narrowed his eyes.
Celestial Bronze was strong enough to one-shot most monsters in the Percy Jackson series. Heck, it had destroyed a Fury from the Underworls with a minor scratch!
He didn't think for a moment that a random monster could survive a hit.
Nathan stayed perched some distance away from the giant for some time.
There were many people around.
Only some homeless vagrants and the occassional late night drunkard. Nathan weighed his choices for a bit.
He didn't have to attack the lanky man. He could just head back.
But those points were looking awfully good right about now.
And so, even though he felt a sense of danger from the lanky man, he moved ahead.
It probably won't do me well to invest 0.4 points into any stat. If I manage to get some more, I might be able to get some large improvements into my stats. With that thought, he moved.
The Mist moved to cover him from head to toe. With his senses and body on high alert, Nathan ducked low and dashed at the monster!
Whooosh!
His eyes took in the stationary monster, sensing no real reaction. The strength in his legs seemed almost endless. Adrenaline coursed through his veins and just when he was within 5 meters from the monster, he grabbed at the air.
Swish!
As Nathan's hand gripped cold metal and the dim golden glow fell atop the pavement, he saw the man finally react.
The moment the light began to suffuse of the faint golden metal, the man whipped his head around so fast that it looked as if his neck had snapped!
With a manic look in it's eyes, it gazed at the sword and the one holding it!
"Demigod!?" A guttural roar tore through his throat and he jumped back, dodging the stab Nathan had attempted!
"No..." The man continued. "Human! With that cursed metal!"
His crazed eyes and yellow pointy teeth aside, the way his posture seemed to shift looked so far removed from any semblance of humanity that Nathan felt the hackles on his back stand on edge.
Nathan didn't let up on the assault. A tingling sensation seemed to extend from the sword and in his fingers. His body moved in tandem with his swings, feet moving constantly to match the opponent's dodges.
They dashed through the road and into trees on the side. Each slash tore through the air, promising cruel pain to anyone hit by it. The Monster eyed him warily and dodged another strike by a hair's breath.
Nathan felt himself growing impatient by the monster's dodges but pushed it down. Sowrdplay was a game of patience. Losing his cool meant making mistakes.
Finally, as the man ducked under another slash, he punched out with his fist towards Nathan's undefended side!
Gritting his teeth, Nathan tilted his sword at the last moment. Knowing he could not avoid the punch and being in an awkward position to make a full swing to poke, he opted for the next best thing. Getting a slight cut towards the man's arm!
Bam!
Puh!
The blow landed on Nathan's side, instantly sending a jolt of pain through his body. His lean figure was thrown back without any resistance, landing cleanly on the solid pavement.
His head felt like it had been hit by a paino. He would know.
The world seemed to spin around for a moment and pain coursed through his entire body.
But clarity returned to his mind at the next moment. He rolled around, ready to continue to the fight.
And yet, nothing happened.
Where the monster should have been, there was nothing.
Instantly, a notification sounded in his ears.
[You have gained 0.5 Customization Points!]
His perk worked it's charm and the name of the monster he had slain sounded in his mind.
Laestrygonian Giant.
He had read about those. He hadn't spent his time lazing around. While information wasn't as easy to get as the internet age, the famous Greek stories were still widely regarded in many libraries.
Laestrygonian giants. They were in the Odyssey. All the relevant information he had read came flooding into his brain.
They were a race of monstrous, cannibalistic giants who attacked Odysseus and his crew, destroying 11 of his 12 ships by throwing rocks from cliffs and consumed most of his men.
"Hoooo~" breathing a sigh of relief, Nathan slumped onto the ground, clutching his side in pain.
"Ouch..."
A gremlin and a cannibal huh... I guess that's a good way to end the day's hunt.
...
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A/N: Add to your library :)
Also, comment your thoughts so far.