《King of the Mountain, Again》


 Prologue of a mistake

    Monsters


    Thats what we call them, A quite broad category for all things that came out as a result of Doomsday, the time when a giant meteor hit our planet(couldn''t miss it) killing half of us, at least that''s what they tell us in our history books.


    I''m Will, self proclaimed strongest in the land, at least until the aliens attack. But that''s probably a long way off and I''m not exactly known for my patience. Thats why I could be currently seen sighing on top of a mountain, yep the tall, handsome (REALLY HANDSOME) guy(WHOSE ALAO LOADED) with the ponytail, a manly ponytail I''ll tell you, and you should listen since I happen to be VERY fashionable I guess I should also tell you the mountain I''m standing on isn''t really a mountain. For one the entire thing is made of crude iron and you usually don''t see mountains made of that at least not THIS, big another thing is that it was slowly swaying up and down almost like a heart beat, and in case you didn''t know mountains don''t really do that well... maybe a volcano would HOWEVER this my dear friends isnt a volcano but rather my first partner SIR ROCK a Monster, don''t worry your head off though most monsters aren''t this big nooo Mr rock head had to eat a looooooot to grow so big and strong(almost ate me out of home). Why am I on said notreallyamountian you ask? Its because I have to go to some Council of Planetary Defence or whatever and didn''t feel like walking. Here''s the thing thoughI don''t really feel like going to this meeting either. As much as I want to, I can''t play hooky for it either after all, I started the whole mess. Some stupid criminal I spared ended up creating a Mega crime empire thingy and was thinking of taking over the world. Can''t have that afterall if I''m not in control of the world why should they? Anyway I''ve been standing here thinking about what I should do for half an hour AND I GOT IT I''ll just start over! Now, Now, I''m not crazy for coming up with that idea since I have a Crystal that can CONTROL time well, not control but rather rewind as such I decided to simply run awa-*Ahem* go back in time to fix my problems before they even started. Having decided as such I reach into my pouch(not a man purse how dare you) and take out a glowing crystal right as I''m about I''m about to crush it the whole place starts shaking howeverThe narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    *chuckle* "im kidding, how could I forget you?" I say reaching into my pouch again grabbing a different colored crystal pressing it against rocky. In a few seconds the black stone starts glowing with the same color as the time crystal


    "Now, that''s everyone right? Alright lets-"


    "What about us Will?" Asked a voice so sweet it was sickening hearing the voice I couldn''t help but gulp


    SHIT HOW COULD I FORGET ABOUT THEM? Wiping the sweat off my brow thanking the gods for letting me dodge that bullet.


    "Haha HAHA j-just how could I forget about my favorite women in the world? I say reaching into my pouch for the THIRD time that day grabbing a handful of said rocks I threw them to the women


    "Mmhm what ever you say honey let''s get this show on the road alright?" With quick efficiency they all get the rocks ready making me look like a slow and clumsy sloth


    *sigh* maybe I was trying to run away from them? In any case I crush the rock and step into the portal in front of me.


    Time for new game plus eh? Wait I don''t get to keep any of my badass sidekicks do I? As such without asking anyone, Will stepped back in time altering everything, probably for the worse... what was it called? The Butterfly Affect? Wait no its effect Damn, I always get those two messed up.

 Chapter 1- Starter Village

    <hr>


    *breath*


    "ahhh fresh air" well, I was already on top of something higher than a skyscraper plus it''s not like the world was badly polluted after the meteor. So. Same air?


    Why was the world no longer polluted? Asked the device used to advance the plot. Great question! Its because of the presence of Crystals or rocks as the kids say. You see, these rocks are able to do amazing things such as reversing time as you already saw. other uses include but are not limited to Eco-friendly energy, Medicine, R&D,*cough* Steroids, and taming monsters BUY YOURS TODAY FOR THE LOW PRICE OF $19.99 anyway I''m going to use the last option and tame a monster, not any monster but rather ROCKY. First I should probably make sure I''m in the past. The easiest way to check..? Ah! I reach out and bring a couple strands of my hair into my face


    "Yep still long but I haven''t dyed it blue yet" you see my blue hair kinda became my trademark, something to identify me with,not that I needed it considering I was a celebrity. Yep I had a whole fan club and guest starred in tv and movies. Anything I thought would be entertaining, anyway i''ll dye my hair when I get go town but first I find Sir Rock


    As such I spend the next 5 minutes on the Forrest floor searching luckily I went back in time to just before I found him.


    "Finally!" I say picking up what looked like an unassuming rock smiling I pressed the bright green crystal against him *crack* "Eh..? Why''d it break you BASTARD!"


    Oh yeah! In the beginning I thought he was just a rock right? "And so..." I say slowly winding my hand back.


    "I THREW HIM AGAINST A TREE" *WHACK* and like that my future partner almost died *almost. You see taming a Monster can have multiple methods getting the monster to like you, OR beating the shit of them and taking them by force. After all I can just give them treats later.


    Putting the rock against the rock*giggle* this time it glows brighter and brighter instead of shattering, once it''s blinding I start to feel a searing pain on my palm, the Bonding is what happens when you tame your first monster. It works like a pyramid you at the top your first Partner below you and then the rest of the monsters you capture below them.


    Thats important because when someone higher up in the pyramid dies everyone below them dies as well. Of course as a safety measure anytime you take damage you can let someone else in the pyramid take 50% of the damage. since my partner is an iron rock that will grow into a mountain I have quite strong defence, however that''s in the future and right now I can only use a sync attack-one where you merge with your monster- as Rocky has strong potential but starts out like a turtle so until he mutants its me doing all the fighting.


    What is your sync attack? Having my hand turn into iron.


    Later on when Rocky gets stronger I can do cool stuff but right now its iron arm-excuse me HAND, yep not even the full arm.


    *sigh*


    "good thing I have to go to the town today. Its Choosing day where you pick a partner to start your journey with, not everyone''s a freak who went into the Forrest defenceless to catch a wild one like me


    "Well guess I should start walking it''s a long way back after all."


    ..........


    Luckily for the creatures none of them attacked Will inadvertently saving their lifes.


    In the town square a group of kids the same age as him 16(legal adult in this world) were gathered around a women in a lab coat


    My first regret, letting such a beauty go by. With long legs and wide hips it perfectly framed her mature and sharp face, I know its overused but she looked absolutely heavenly.


    Of course I thought I also looked quite good with my newly dyed hair I got while traveling through town coupled with my natural good looks I turned quite a few heads, this was no exception as I walked over to join the group they all turned to face me.


    probably because I was late to what was considered the most important part of a person''s life ...meh it was probably my face.


    "WELL MR. WILL glad you showed up." Stated the woman Ella in a irritated tone. i couldn''t help but grin when I heard her as I was her favorite and it was just an act to make me repent. Repent I won''t. But flirt I will.


    "Dont worry Ella I wouldn''t miss you for all the world." I smiled seductivelyThe story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    "Hmph your mouth is the only good thing about you, and it''s Miss Ella to you." She pouts, slightly blushing


    How''d I ever leave her? She''s so fun to tease! Plus I only have a week till my women find me so I should live it to the fullest.


    "Now that everyone is gathered" she glares at me "we can finally get this show on the road!" Wonder who I''ll choose this time? Since I need someone else until Rocky powers up I guess I should get someone whose good at the start.


    "First up is Rachael make sure to get a good one!" Rachael? Don''t remember her so I guess she''s not important. if Rachael could hear his thoughts she''d cry as she grew up to be one of his biggest fans.


    "U-um i g-guess I''ll choose Reinhardt?"


    Come on is that a question or an answer? Plus while the giant Dino looks cool its potential is terrible making it a horrible starter. As such one by one everyone went up and choose their lifelong partner and no one was spared from Will''s internal wisecracks, don''t worry I won''t make you listen. As such there was only two people left Will an an unknown girl with bright red hair as opposed to Will''s blue.


    Who was she again? RIGHT! She was my old rival wasn''t she? shame she went to all lengths to beat me and ended up dying.


    *Chuckle* I still can''t believe how angry she used to get me, now that I think about it she was quite adorable.


    "Hmph what are you thinking about popsicle, is it about me beating you?" Well speak of the devil and he''ll appear huh? With her puffed up cheeks and upturned eyes she really was quite cute.


    *Chucklex2* "sorry to break it to you pipsqueak, but there are red popsicles too, of course everyone likes the blue ones over red."


    After being called short she was just about to blow. After all she had an inferiority complex with me always winning over her, her below average height and my being tall didn''t help either.


    "Alright you two get a room, Rin stop bothering him and get up here."


    "Bu-"


    "No buts, now don''t make me ask me twice." sulkingly walking up I couldn''t help but grin as I wondered what it would feel like to pinch her cheeks.


    "Now watch you plebians as I choose the greatest Monster!" Guess that habit of hers hasn''t changed, why would it?


    And just like in the past she made the same choice, a Dragon yep Dragon. The type that flys and spits fire. Of course right now it''s only a baby. If I remember, as long as she didn''t die she would have become the strongest Dragon user. The strongest user of what is considered the strongest type, Yep I would have had a run for my money if she didn''t hit the bucket.


    Of course Rocky is also a Dragon, rather a earth Dragon metal Variant. What does that mean? No wings, strong defence, and energy blasts instead of firebreath. Another difference between us is that while she only uses Dragon types, I''m a Jack of all trades. Hell I''d smash heads with a rock if that''s what it took to win.


    "Ah a Dragoon good choice now... WILL! Its your turn."


    " ''ight." I say casually walking up making sure to bump into Rin to annoy her.


    Now, which one? I can see a couple of good ones, hmmm guess I should get a speed type to compensate for Rocky, right? Guess that leaves one choice a glass tank, all attack no defence. And the only one I see up here is Grybel. A giant Bird of prey that looks like a falcon crossed with a slab of silver. Of course while Grybel has metal feathers they won''t protect against a full frontal hit and she''s (I checked that.) so light she''d be carried away from a gust of wind. But she''s fast, and strong, thats all I needed


    "Hmmm Grybel, a interesting choice, if you play your cards right she can take you you far, so take care of her alright?"said Ella good naturally


    "Dont worry I take care of my friends, I don''t mind taking care of you too."*wink*


    Who am I to pass up good advice even if I''ve already heard it? Its like those anti drug ads REMEMBER KIDS DONT DO DRUGS!


    As I was walking down Rin ran up to me with stars in her eyes. I could already hear her question as such-


    "No." Before she even asked I answered.


    *chuckle*" come on Will be a good sport and fight her... I''ll give the winner a prize."


    Eh? Did...did she? Say FREE STUFF! Fuck yeah! Lets do this. As such without a word I pointed at Rin, Grydel as if reading my mind flew into the air and dived at her


    "Hahaha! Trying a sneak attack Will? To bad it won''t work!"sneak attack? Is she blind? What about that was stealthy?


    Oh well no use worrying. As Grybel swooped in the young Drogoon looked up and opened its mouth, as if a furnace smoke came out. Fireball eh? Its a beginner attack most fire types have, without a word I stared at Grybel, what use is she if she can''t even handle this?


    As if living up to my expectations instead of dodging Grybel kept charging and at the last second curled up her wings creating a impromptu shield. Wing shield. an intermediate move that takes precise timing. As the ball of silver collided there was a giant explosion, well more like a slightly loud pop.


    "Haha! I win Will-" at this moment from the smoke emerged a shadow unslowed by the hit proceeding to slam into Dragoon knocking out Dragoon with a headbutt.


    "Wha?" In stunned silence Rin sat there blankly looking at the triumphant bird doing a victory dance.


    "Not bad Gry- no, Bell you did pretty good for your fight fight."


    "Hmph while I think you don''t deserve it for not ordering your Monster a wins a win, here." As such Ella handed me a red substance in a bottle, yep a hp potion and judging by the dull red its probably a low level one. Still a good prize for beating a newbie.


    As I walked past Rin Holding her Dragoon with tears in her eyes I couldn''t help but sigh.


    "Fiiine. Here. Take it. Yes I mean you, who else is crying. Yes you are crying. No I don''t need it Bell only got some superficial wounds that''ll heal in a hour or so."


    Walking away while smiling "did my good deed for the day huh?" I didn''t see the expression blooming in Rin''s eyes as she looked at me.


    "Onward to the crystal mines!" I shout walking away in a good mood.


    "The crystal mines?" mumbered Rin in a voice only she could hear.

 Chapter 2- Striking Gold

    In a Forest a handsome blue haired man was walking on a beaten down path humming a familiar tune, in the air circling the man was a giant silver falcon. If one was to look even closer an iron rock could be seen on the man''s shoulder.


    Guess I should start grinding for crystals afterall, the sooner I get more the sooner Rocky can evolve and then I could give him back his memories.


    The main way to get stronger in zland is killing Monsters for their cores. Those crystals hold the entirety of a Monsters power in a form that is easy for others to consume and make their own. Of course humans can also consume them however, it is far more dangerous plus you would become something that is neither monster nor human. And most importantly it''s not as efficient as it is for monsters.


    As such during the walk Will ordered Bell to go around and kill Monsters for their crystals. The way they were split was three for Rocky, two for Bell, and one for Will. During the trip the only thing that was encountered was mutated insects and the occasional animal. Before Will stoped they managed to gather thirty six, not bad for casually walking.


    "Stop hiding already you have the ability of a toddler when it comes to stealth." I spit irritated at having my walk interrupted.


    "How''d you-" questioned Rin.


    "Watch out!" I yell tackling her to the ground, just as we will fall (me first since I''m a Gentleman) a shadow could be seen flashing above us before hiding back in a Bush.


    "Not you idiot, I was talking about the Direwolf pack. And you were sneaking? I thought you were simply going with me."


    "I was that bad? W-wait that''s not important did you say Direwolf? Please tell me I misheard the word p-p-pack."


    "Nope I ment plural, three to be exact, and stop shivering how are you supposed to accomplish your dream of being the strongest if something this simple stops you?"


    "Y-yeah but they shred up beginners plus we''re outnumbered three to two."


    "Don''t worry about it, I could handle all of them myself plus we have Bell and Dragoon." As we were talking a wolf tried to sneak attack me as I was the one not crouched out of the pair. Just before his maw closed around my throat I sync with Rocky and shove my fist down HIS throat. Seeing the poor wolf struggling I couldn''t help but laugh.


    "Haha hurts to be punched in the throat right?" Before the creature could react I snap it''s neck ending it''s suffering.


    "One down two to go, hurry up and get in there Bell."


    Without fear she circled around the beast scratching and pecking the beast slowly wilting down its health before it died from blood loss.


    "Alright two, only one left. Go get''em tiger." I say looking at Rin as I stop distracting the last one


    "B-but I-"


    "No. You, you are my one and only rival, the only person I deem as a equal even if a childish one. So you''re not allowed to quit. You have to win even trying is good enough."


    "I- No. Your right, how can I be what I want to be if a stupid wolf makes me scared? Dragoon, DESTROY HIM."


    Ah there''s the fearless badass I know and love, thought I had the wrong person, how could someone who fought me for three days straight be scared? Turns out I just had to irritate her and I''m good at that, REALLY GOOD.


    As I was lost in my own delusions Dragoon made short work of the Direwolf shooting so many fireball it looked like a gattling gun, a gattling gun of hate and fire.


    The wolf managed to showcase it''s agility by dodging the first few however they were constantly coming faster and faster. Eventually he could no longer dodge, and when one hit a dozen more did as well quickly making it a pile of charred meat.


    "Guess there is such a thing as overkill? Oh well Rocky would eat anything ANYTHING, the bastard even chewed on my beautiful hair once, had to resist the urge to throw him away". I said rambling on making her accomplishment seen mute.


    "W-well?"


    "Well what? I don''t see any well, I could go for a drink right now though." I say pretending to look around.


    "WELL HOW''D I DO? YOU BIG IDIOT." Rin shouted


    *chuckle*" The only thing big about me is in my pants, you did good though, I''m proud." I say patting her on the head, I mean it worked on animals?If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    Rin looked at me with starry eyes before snapping out of it.


    "How dare you? I''m human not a pet!" She screamed indignantly


    "Oh? I thought you''d like it sorry about that, I won''t do it again."


    "N-no you don''t have to stop, j-just DON''T TREAT ME LIKE A KID ALRIGHT?" Rin yelled covering her face with her hands as she ran away.


    Geez you don''t have to yell, plus running like that will cause you to trip. AND you were following ME! Do you even know where to go?


    With that out of the way I can restart my walking and, since I encountered what is probably the king of these forests I no longer had to worry about nasty surprises. Even Rin could survive out here on her own, probably, push comes to shove I''d just have to insult her that always makes her get in the mood to fight. Sometimes a LITTLE to much.


    Anyway as me and my two companions went through the Forest we started raking in the Crystals( I already collected the Direwolf''s) Rocky was getting close to mutating, Bell too as she didn''t need as much to do the trick. Me, myself also got quite a few and was probably around 50% stronger.


    As we continued walking, well one walking, one flying and occasionally resting on my shoulder, and one SIMPLY USING ME FOR A FREE RIDE. As if hearing my thoughts Rocky burbed. Breath in, breath out, who didn''t throw their rock into a volcano? This guy. Calming myself before making a decision I probably wouldn''t regret. I met the end of the Forrest


    In front of Will was a giant mountain with thousands of tunnels as if a bee hive, in those entrances it could be seen just as many people.


    "The Crystal Mines." A hot spot for every type of person, well at least until it runs out however, if I remember correctly it still has a weeks worth of juice left. And that''s a lot for this barren place, yep I started out in one of the poorest areas. In actuality this place was one of the most protected against the meteor, while good then, In the long run it meant we had less Crystals and Weaker Monsters hampering economic growth. But you don''t want to listen to another history lesson right? As I seem to be doing that quite often now.


    "Guess I should go get some supplies?" Still gotta find Rin too.


    "Hey girly" speak of the devil "what are you doing by yourself? Come with us and we''ll show you a good time" spoke a ugly Mohawked man who looked suspiciously like a hoodlum to Rin.


    "Sorry fellas but she''s already taken." I say sliding in putting my arm around her. Rin, not expecting my sudden intrusion, blushed looking down lending credibility to my statement.


    "Piss off pretty boy we saw her first. Dont make us mess up that face o'' yours."


    "Saw her first? *Chuckle* I DID her first."


    "Wai-" before she could say anything I leaned in and kissed her. Slowly licking her lips I made sure to savor it, not relenting until she started gasping for breath. Seeing her eyes clouded from air loss and confusion I couldn''t help but be smitten.


    During this time Mohawk and crew had their mouths open wide, who the hell was this guy? He just walked over and stole the girl from us?


    "HEY FUCKFA-" before he could finish he had his crotch smashed by Rin''s foot. coldly looking at the rest of them she slowly muttered.


    "GO.THE.FUCK.AWAY."


    Looking at her eyes which were colder then the Arctic caused them to shiver in fear before breaking into a wild run.


    In a full 180 she turned towords me with a sweat smile.


    "Come on silly. Thats quite an extreme way to make them stop bothering me."


    "What are you talking about? You could kick my ass much less theirs, I just felt like kissing you." I said giving my signature smile that stole quite a bit of hearts during my celebrity days.


    Rin stood in stunned silence as she comprehended what I said. Causing me to walk right pass her into the general store.


    Now that I''m here I should buy some snacks, chips, cookies, candy, basically anything with calories. After ten minutes I got both my snacks and what I came for. I got some camping supplies, a solar charger, and some odds and ends.Rin also went in and got some supplies, of course she got a whole lot more as she likes to be prepared while I''m more of a take it as it comes guy.


    "Supplies Check, now to mine some gold!" I shout with enthusiasm as I lead Rin to one of the more deserted caverns. If I remember rightly this is where some no name miner got rich, it was on the news an everything, of course he also got mugged afterwords but that''s what he gets for announcing it to the world.


    "Now let''s get to it!"


    "But we don''t have any tools for it?" Questioned Rin confused


    "What!, do you think we''re BARBARIANS? We got Rocky for this, now be amazed!" I say bubbling with enthusiasm and under her shocked gaze she watched as I threw Sir rock at the wall. Even more surprising was instead of bouncing off he started to dig in. Before she could even blink Rocky started mining of the entire wall. In short order we we''re already several meters more in and didn''t even have to lift our hands.


    After half a hour there was already a pile half a person tall(me tall not her tall) at our feet, with no intention to stop anytime soon. After a few hours we were surrounded in them and finally ran out of new stuff to dig.


    "HAHAHA! RICH, RICH! Eat your heart out guys!" I say smiling to our Monsters. Without hesitating both Bell and Rocky dig in, Dragoon however hesitates.


    "I can''t accept thi-" before Rin can continue resisting I close in again and shut her up, after a while she stops trying to speak and I move back abit.


    "F-fine i''ll take it! Just stop doing that, I''m going to have a heart attack!"


    *chuckle* I always win. Quickly our Partners eat as many crystals as they can fit in their mouths. After a huge amount they seem to be satisfied.


    After they sat down something weird happened, a cocoon of the same mineral they ate started surrounding them and once they were completely covered it started changing their shapes.


    Bell Got bigger with a wider wing span and large horns that faced forward. Even Her appearance changed as it became a much duller shade of silver with a far more noble visage.


    Dragoon also got bigger with wings that could now support flight. Its scales grew thicker with heightened fangs and claws it looked a lot less cute and more deadly.


    Rocky though, had much more earth shattering changes, he was now half a person tall on all fours and a entire person long. He no longer looked just like a rock but rather a metal Reptile with a Dragon shaped head, growing all over him was also mineral deposits creating the look of a mountain that sprouted legs.


    Smiling I went up to him and pressed a certain crystal against him causing it to quickly shatter.


    "Welcome back buddy I missed you." yep that''s right Cre(the mountain)is back.