《MoPako System》 Prologue - White Void Prologue ¨C White Void *BANG* A thunderous explosion tore through the walls, the walls burst asunder, as a monstrous roar obliterated the once silent peace. Everywhere was fire. Everything was too hot. Smoke had filled the surroundings; breathing became barely possible. Amidst the burning wreckage lied one child on the verge of unconsciousness, heavily bleeding, his back extremely red. A laceration on his head could be seen. He tried desperately to scream, for his parents, siblings, anyone¡ªeven as his bloody snot tears masked his face. But his throat was gone, ripped by a rock. Just as his life slowly fell to darkness, a man grabbed him and barked: "Hold on boy, you will be saved! Hey, cast greater healing sphere now!" "On it!" Immediately a healing sphere formed around the boy. His wounds started to disappear without a trace of pain, and a soothing effect appeased the boy''s disorderly emotions. The last thing he saw was a man, a rugged man with a beard and a scar. Then, he fell to darkness. "Good, at least we managed to save one last person...." The rugged man carried the boy over his shoulders, turned his head towards the distant reverberations. The silhouette of the humongous creature, a Continental-Ender class, could be distinctly made out beyond the smoke and the blinding sunset. The skies above were bloody red, signifying the destruction incarnate''s descent. "Bloody hell... that thing is impossible to subjugate. We shouldn''t have signed up for a fucking Elder Ancient." "Hey, what''s the situation over here? Oh¡ªshit, we got a boy?" Another person came by, this time with the company of dozens of others, varying races alike. "Yeah, the last survivor for this village." The rugged man shrugged. "Lucky him, we managed to pass by on the way here." "Maybe." The rugged man turned somewhere, where the remains of the boy''s parents crushed under a pillar already burnt to charcoal crisp could be seen. "Hey, where''re the others?" He asked, changing the topic. But the group went silent. "All dead huh." The rugged man''s face darkened, before he shuddered. An acute whistling sound shrilled. "QUICK GET DO¡ª!" *BANG* The white void. Everything went into the white void. Noise retreated, in fear of the blank whiteness that suddenly painted the whole world. Eternity seemed to pass before it gradually fades out of existence, like a dream just as it appeared out of nowhere. When the scene cleared down, the rugged man noticed he was still alive, he could still feel his limbs. He got up and tried to gather the situation. "Anybody out th¡ª?" When he opened his eyes at the same time as the others, what they saw shattered their hearts. Although their group survived, the same couldn''t be said of everybody else. There were supposed to be thousands of them still fending off the calamitous creature, yet for the whole 100 miles in front of them, a gigantic crater appeared. It was bottomless. Above which, a vacuum of smoke formed trying to fill up the freed-up space and before it could¡ªthey saw the creature''s menacing figure roaring to the celestial bodies above. The world shook, the earth quaked under it. Their eardrums threatened to burst, and indeed, some fainted with bleeding ears. Even their eyes bled for some strange reason. "Fuck, look away damn it. Go, go go RUN AWAY!" The rugged man instantly bolted out as did the others. A few tried to pick up their fallen comrades, however. "Leave them behind, DON''T LOOK BACK!" It was too late. Those few also fell back down, never to breathe again. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings."Curses, curses. curses! Just why did it have to show up here?!" Their group ran and ran. It was unknown for how long they did. Even after running for so long that their legs became a pulp, they could still feel the presence of that creature. It was unknown, as well, how many survived in their group. By miracle, the rugged man survived as did the boy. He laid down beside a ruined wall of a building as he checked their group. He chuckled dryly. "Three of us only left huh. Cough." The others coughed too. "How much time do we have left?" "3 hours give or take." The others spoke. Their faces looked like accepting of their fate. The rugged man pitifully looked at the boy. "And here I thought you could''ve survived. What a pity you''d have to die with us strangers...?" The boy whom he thought was on death''s door, appeared completely fine though covered in dirt, grime and blood. Looking closer, his hair had turned white. Realizing something, the rugged man laughed. "What the hell? Have you finally gone crazy fool?" Someone asked, prompting the rugged man to point at the boy. They all realized then. "Well, well I''ll be damned. The boy will survive then." "Maybe, but he won''t wake up for at least a week. Someone has to take care of him." Then silence. No one knew what they thought at that moment. "Bah, we all know we won''t survive a day longer. That monster''s radiation is a super bitch that not even our meager antibodies can hope to resist for a while. Come what may, let us defy fate until the very end. Dine with our gods for struggling like the worms we are, and perhaps expect a miracle. Don¡¯t let a little lad beat us now." They all smiled as they got up. Days of their time flitted through each their minds before it all went to smoke. Twelve hours later, they were all dead. Lying in the middle of a dirt road outside a forest. An entourage of knights meant to rescue any surviving refugees stumbled upon them. Planning to give the unfortunate enlisted hunters their proper burial grounds and pray for their souls when somebody shouted: "My lord, th-there''s a boy along with them! He''s alive! He''s alive, my lord." The commotion gathered many people along with the leader of the knights. The noble knight came up and inspected the boy, who appeared to be dead at first glance, only to be weakly breathing. "But how could a boy survive...?" The noble knight muttered. "This boy, I''ll take him in." Everybody turned towards the raspy old voice, almost grating like the sound of stone and metal. A mysterious robed figure walked towards the center where everyone parted, but their frame did not look human¡ªstrange proportions and shapes were apparent all over them. "Master Hartold, is there something about this boy?" The leader asked. "Indeed," Master Hartold put his hand on the boy''s head, a glassy shard of sorrow and pain reflected on his voice, "This boy would be my adopted son." .... Archived History: 2nd War of the Beasts Revelation. The Ancients'' First Reappearance. The Miiphul region, its surrounding 2127 square kilometers, located in the southwestern part of the Atlas Confederation Republic, Karan Continent, in the 3rd Common Wealth Era, the 22nd year of the Eagle Moon Cycle, which prospered for hundreds of years¡ªwas a major collateral damage during the 27th hunting attempt of the Calamity-rank beast, one of the Elder Ancients, Seventh Stage Monster, the White Void Hydra: Ithivora. It is estimated around two million people died. The monster is only repelled back into the dungeon by the Hunters'' valiant effort. Chapter 1 Chapter 1 ¨C Loss It was hard to take in. No, it was impossible to accept. The loss of his parents, his hometown, and thrown into a hospital camp as knights asked about you the details of the nightmare whilst the doctors attempting to convince them otherwise. It was like a dream out of a grim fairy tale. How could that be real? Also, his hair was white. His body was weak. So weak that he might as well die. During these past few hours, that scene kept occurring in his mind, a recursive nightmare. Eventually, even his spirit had to shut down to protect his consciousness. He wasn''t responding a zilch when the knights suddenly kneeled and the doctor and nurses respectfully bowed to the old mysterious robed figure who entered. And their presence was unlike any other. "Child, what is your name?" They asked. Or a he, as the voice sounded like a hoarse grating elderly male''s. Mettel looked towards him but did not say anything. He couldn''t even see the depths of his hood, shrouded in shadows. "Mettel, respected sir. The boy''s name is Mettel." One nurse replied. "Hmmm, Mettel. From the word ''mettle'', meaning dignity and honor, achievement and glory, and even excellent resolve and ability. What a good name." The figure lowered himself before the child. "What do you say you become my apprentice? Or an assistant, for starters." Yet Mettel still did not respond. His heart was missing still. The old figure noticed, but he continued anyway. "Oh silly me, I have not introduced myself yet. I am called by many names but the most I walk the lands with is Hartold. Old Man of the Spire. A monk, an ascetic. A wizard." That name... sounded vaguely familiar to the boy''s ears. But the memory was blocked. "Now I know you must be feeling... quite a shock, to say the least. To all the knights in here, I could only apologize on their behalf. But more personally, I am sorry." He bowed down to the boy. "If only I came a bit sooner. Perhaps I could have saved your town. Your parents. It was my fault that I couldn''t come in time to help repel that beast. I am responsible for your suffering." Finally, the boy had a reaction. The person responsible, at least possibly, is right before him apologizing. Mettel gazed at him deeply. But shook his head. He was smart enough to acknowledge it wasn''t this old man''s fault. Yet, his emotions didn''t care. "Why didn''t anyone come to help us?" He choked out. Slowly, as if releasing a trinkle through a broken faucet, as the salty tears fell out his eyes, the memory of this person the boy recalled: Hartold, a hero of the masses, great powerful wizard of the Aederdalus Spire. Humanity''s wise sage. "Why couldn''t you save my parents? You''re a powerful magician, aren''t you? A great monster hunter, they say. Why? Why weren''t you there!?" "...." Hartold was silent. The knights and doctors were silent as well, the shadows veiling their eyes. "I am sorry." The old man''s hoods conveyed in just a bit of light, revealing a grayed patch skin of the chin. "I¨C! I..." Mettel then broke down into a crying mess. The mourning of an innocent child was a gloom not anyone could shrug off. The death of one''s parents at such a young age, especially from such a traumatizing nightmare could potentially end a child''s future right then and there. The boy continued to shed his sorrow until his heart was empty. A relief it may be, but the scars of everything pierced ever more upon his numb insensitive state. "In time... I will give you strength. Enough to avenge your parents." Hartold spoke. A grim weight added onto his tone. "I promise you this. So that no one will ever experience like you did. No one has to suffer injustice. I swear on this on my life." Hartold then stood up. "I will come back again. In a few days'' time, become my student. Or not, if you wish. Regardless, people like me will continue to hunt those beasts down until one party is wiped out. We are monster hunters, after all." With those parting words, his footsteps reverberated across the expanse, resonating with the beating hearts of the people inside, including Mettel''s. Master Hartold went outside the hallway, his thoughts ruminating on a myriad of anchors burdening his mind. Though they grounded him, it was especially heavy today; when his footsteps stopped in the middle. A voice echoed out from his chest pocket:If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. "Hartold, where you''ve been?" Hartold pressed on the device within his pocket and spoke, "A personal matter. It''s taken care of." Thereafter, Hartold vanished, a few scatterings of blue sparks displacing where his body was. When he reappeared, he was already in a magnificent circular marble hall domed by the hide of a mammoth-class creature, a glass marble monster. A few others, each with such a presence that the world subtly acted different around them, were present. A grand templar, a legendary sorceress, a hermit renowned for his mystic Tezhe, a high chancellor of a scholar researching academy, an adeptus council master of a great kingdom, and the Hunter, the Archontus. And the last was him, a wizard. "I''m here." Hartold spoke. One of them, the hunter, pointed at the map. "We investigated more of the recent outbreak. The first reappearance of an Elder Ancient after hundreds of years became the catalyst for the numerous disruptive events happening throughout the realm. Our organization had already mustered a call to arms deployment in all the areas affected within the various countries and kingdoms, namely: the Eboncliff Bastion, Stonehearth Haven, Aethermoor, Duskwarren, Caerondale, and Frostfall Hamlet. Emberreach Keep is also likely to be invaded but it is currently occupied by¡­ Infernal Fire Bang Bang Explosive Mega. The Keep is in safe hands." Hartold nodded. "This is outrageous!" Someone slammed on the wall, but the wall only shimmered in response. "How come we didn''t even predict that damn Ithivora''s arrival? A seventh stage monster, in Kalyntus spit! Any such monster is enough to destroy a continent. The dungeon''s entrances should be strictly guarded by the Argonautica Praeda Order. What happened to their oracles? Are the Guardians of the Abyss, Ferrarius Artifex, actually doing their jobs!?" The high chancellor asked with a sonorous yet stringent voice, glaring murderously at the hunter Archontus. "That''s not even the most urgent matter: What of the other Elder Ancients? Other seventh stage monsters? Have they been sighted? The recent aether outbreak has been unprecedented for the last century, if one such being could ascend so would the other horrible atrocities down there. To boot, the number of monster outbreaks from the dungeon is overwhelming for each of our frontier territories even with the reinforcements from the Praeda. The situation is reaching critical point. Words from the diplomats and the International Press had already demanded we personally take action. While that might be recommended, our responsibilities cannot be delegated to another." "We also do not know where is Ithivora located presently. It is said the monster was repelled back to the depths, Is this true?" The sorceress expressed her doubt to the Hunter, which they affirmed. "Incredible¡­ to repel an Elder Ancient, the White Void at that, the Aegis Vanatoria lives up to their name. The legendary couple. It is a shame then." The sorceress sighed as her bronze eyes dimmed. The adeptus council master spoke calmly as he looked at Hartold. "Have you¡­ uncovered their corpses? The Aegis Vanatoria?" Hartold sighed. "I did not." "Why not?" "Because their corpses did not remain. Not devoured¡ªbut simply deleted. Effect of the White Void''s breath." The hall was silent. Then, the Hunter declared: "In any case, the course of action is clearly determined. As the White Void was repelled, and due to the sacrifice of the oracles and scholars, it is determined that the aether outbreak wont be enough to allow for another Elder Ancient to ascend. Furthermore, this wave is the one of the shortest recorded, just only lasting three days. Although the number of monsters makes up for it. We, of the Argonautica Praeda Order, are doing everything we can. Rest assured; our hunters are capable still." The high councilor scoffed. "Say that to the representatives from the nations sent outside. They''ve been clamoring for a while now. Spare us your PR talk." The Hunter smiled, and turned towards the double door of the meeting hall. "Then meeting is concluded. Let''s give them the details." Each and every one followed the Hunter out, the hermit and the wizard followed behind. The hermit, also hooded with a baggy unkempt appearance and undeterminable outline, spoke with a voice neither man nor woman. "Hartold. You got a boy?" Hartold was not surprised this person asked such a question. "Yeah, I did. A mutated boy. Could have potential for a great Tezhe manifestation. Survived the White Void''s radiation." The hermit hummed. Not saying a single word after. .... A few days of nothing significance passed to Mettel. He had thought over it, a lot. News had spread outside that a stupid number of monsters were attacking everywhere. Every day, a mass migration of refugees kept coming into the settlement. The boy even had to share in a bed. And the sights he saw was disturbing. People with the same eyes he had. Compounding ever more the negativity he withheld. Until it almost busted apart at the seams. When the wizard Hartold came, his appearance a bit haggard, the boy''s body already burned with an intense blaze. "What is your decision? Know that I will not hold against you; and in fact, I wish to repay my debts to you and all the others by giving you the best I could think of, my tutelage. If you so wish to reject it, then it''s no slight. I will not lie to you that I see potential within you¡ªfor surviving the White Void''s breath. That is why my interest in you was piqued." Mettel, standing with a defiant look, clenched his teeth. "If you really can make me strong, then I accept. I will come with you." Hartold smiled under the hood, which no one saw. He reached his gloved hand. The boy held it. "Well then, you best be prepared." Mettel had great expectations of his future from those words. But he never expected¡ªthat he wouldn''t receive any direct teachings whatsoever but forced to live like a normal boy in a settlement community for the refugees. For years. New Beginning A few years had passed after the calamitous invasion of the Hydra Dragon, one of the Ancients. Many kingdoms and nations were alarmed by the news that a majority of the human population had a massive panic outbreak. There were massive waves that underwent, changing everyone¡¯s lives for better or for worse. But none of it mattered for someone who lost his parents. The village of Gathos, a small settlement town populated by a thousand people lorded over by Mayor Gathos, an assigned representative in the Republic of Lonos Tumu. Refugees who lost their homes due to the monster attacks presides peacefully in here, recovering from their wounds. Currently, delightful noises were winding around the town square as a number of lively children ran. An intricate fountain, resembling a statue of a great Monster Hunter, lay in the middle. Following them was a lady of the church, a nun who caught up to one of them, the child giggling the breath out of their nostrils within her bear-hug embrace. In the distance watched the others casually. Such was an everyday normal scene. Except for a solitary small figure who had his eyes downcast, under the shadow of a two-story house roof. As the children passed along his periphery, a child took notice of him and smugly smiled. "Oh look, its Mettel the freak!" The child pointed. "Boy with white hair, always gloomy and grumpy. What are you doing here?" Though receiving the words, the boy did not respond but merely gazed at them with a dark gaze. The children were cautious around him, as if afraid of a beast. "Why are you looking at me like that? Y-you want a ¡®iece of me? I¡¯ll, I¡¯ll show you I am not scared!¡± A boy came closer with trembling legs when a hand pulled on the child''s ear. "Kids, don''t do this. Be kind to your neighbors. Didn''t Mother Laresa teach you? Or did you want to be spanked in the butt by her again? Stop bothering Mettel.¡± The nun chided. Hearing this, all the kids paled and zipped their mouth. They went away without a word. The lady then turned towards the solitary kid. "Mettel, why are you being hostile towards them? I see the look in your eyes and I could see your anger. Are you angry at them? Did they do something wrong?¡± But Little Mettel only took off his shoe and threw it towards her, which was calmly received by a big hand and a yelp from the nun. The boy looked at the man who interfered. "Erick. Do you think I am a freak too?" Mettel asked. The tall and broad man with ebony skin, wearing a braided weaves hairstyle, Erick the street-smart everybody¡¯s uncle, raised his brows. "I ain¡¯t say no such thing kid. And I ain¡¯t thinkin¡¯ no such thing either. What got ya so jumpy now? Do ya want a cookie or sumthin¡¯?¡± "Erick, don¡¯t tease him with your usual antics. He¡¯s just a kid, alright? Jess, are you okay?" Scolded another woman¡¯s voice. With a blonde platinum reaching her shoulders, freckles on her face like polka dots under her auburn eyes. Mettel¡¯s face became gloomier. "Litney, I ain¡¯t teasing no one. Besides, the kid¡¯s eleven years old. He gon¡¯ be big in no time. No time at all for sure. Best to start early." But the woman Litney simply ignored Erick, apologized to the nun and came towards Mettel with a hand. "Come, Mettel. Why are you here in a random street? Are you looking for something, or perhaps an errand?¡± Mettel looked her in the eye and shook his head slowly. Litney remained smiling. "Okay, are you hungry? Luckily for you, I just made some bread. I''ll give you one for free, come with me." Litney took his hand and stood up, gesturing with an eye for Erick to come along with them. Before that, the nun came along with them and spoke with the two. ¡°Listen, Litney. This may also concern you too Erick, there¡¯s been a slight tiny problem, yes only really tiny.¡± Erick gave her the eye. ¡°What up, Jess? Church have somethin¡¯ goin¡¯ on their alley?¡± Jessica, the nun, nodded. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s actually related to¡­ Old man Hartold.¡± She peeked at Mettel. But nevertheless continued. ¡°He said to take care of Mettel for the time of the festival. Said he has some official matters to take care of before he went, a mysterious phenomenon he says. Might be connected to a stray monster¡¯s trail or worse, a dungeon tunnel.¡± Erick shrugged. ¡°What the deal at? Me and Litney already takin¡¯ care of him. It ain¡¯t gon¡¯ be different now.¡± ¡°Still, he asked you two to watch over him more so than usual.¡± Erick made a long face as Litney only agreed without a break in composure. Meanwhile, Mettel only looked around the town scenery. In front a certain shop, a father was feeding his daughter an apple, in a clothing shop for simple garment, a mother bought his two sons a pair of matching hats, and then another of a family house through the windows lies a scene of a disobedient teen going away amidst his parents¡¯ disapproval. Seeing the parents and kids together, even the arguments ongoing, felt like a theater play that he heard about. He remembered his own, like a broken piece of mirror. In the end, he acted indifferent. He tried to. When they arrived in front of Litney''s house, a bakery shop, Erick whistled. Jess had already gone away somewhere. "Oh man, your family''s fresh baked bread, best brand of the town over 50 years. I¡¯ll get a piece free, right?" Litney remained non-responsive to Erick. They came inside the shop and made little Mettel sit down in an unoccupied table before giving him a random piece of bread roll with a piece of chocolate inside. "Now chow down. Don''t be shy." Litney said as she smiled. But that face of hers only made Mettel look down. "I don''t want your pity. I don''t want freeovers." He pushed the plate away. Pushed the chair and stood up. "Ah." Litney raised her hand, but her mouth couldn''t move. What could she even say that won''t hurt the child''s feelings? Yet realizing that was exactly what he didn''t like, it made it all the more impossible. "Stop little dude," However, Erick stood in the doorway. He sighed looking at the twelve-year old¡¯s face. "Alright, if you don''t want a freebie, how about you help us out on the festival preparation? We do need a hand in setting up and sorting stuff. Can you do that for me? This bread would be your pay." Said Erick as he raised the plate. Mettel was silent. "Erick! What are you making him do?" He only shrugged, replying the boy wasn''t a boy but to be treated as a man if you want him to be strong. Litney dissuaded but Mettel simply nodded. "Good, come with me. Make sure earn your keep. You already know most of us Harvest Day Company anyway." Just like that, the two left the bakery leaving Litney stupefied. "But the festival¡¯s tomorrow, what other sorting is he even gonna do?" Sighed Litney. On the way there, Erick initiated a conversation with him. ¡°Heya kid. Just so you know, I¡¯d known you told me once you really thought the old man Hartold gonna teach you. But he didn¡¯t. So you now feel like the world owe ya somethin¡¯. I get it but you must understand he ain¡¯t just a plain figure. Put simply, he¡¯s like a demigod. In status, strength, knowledge etc. If he told ya you ain¡¯t ready, then you ain¡¯t ready. Impatience would do you no good¡ªtrust me I know. Damn emotion got to me and made me lost my whole in-laws family from the attack, ¡®cause I did no trainin¡¯ my composure. I may be a retired hunter, one reason why Old man Hartold hired me as your babysitter, but I was still powerless. So, relax, you doin¡¯ good. It hurts, probably forever, but you become strong enough to take it on. You strong, right?¡± Erick then plopped a hand on Mettel¡¯s shoulder, pointing a hand to the surroundings ¡°Those people out here? I known you were looking at them with full emotions, but every one of ¡®em. But let me tell ya, even the happiest man hides their sorrow. Look at that one man tending to his horses by the public stable, he lost his wife. Then at that young woman selling flowers, she lost her parents too, like you. Surely you known a few people who lost somethin¡¯?¡± Mettel kept silent but he eventually nodded. ¡°Then you ain¡¯t special kid. Those other children are scared of you because you ain¡¯t normal. So they resort to harrasin¡¯. You don¡¯t have to force anythin¡¯, but you must learn how to be flexible. Flexible mind baby, that gotta be one of the most important qualities of bein¡¯ a hunter.¡± ¡°¡­ You taught me more than my supposed teacher supposed to."Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°Hahahaha!¡± Erick slapped the boy¡¯s shoulder hard, Mettel winced. "By the by, Wanna let me and a few others crash over at your place for a night? I can''t do it with mine, the landowner will kill me." The boy looked at him quizzically and asked why. "Come on, it ain¡¯t the annual harvest festival for nothin. Everybody get their own holiday¡ªwell most of us, hospitality dudes have it real tough¡ªand what''s a festival without a night-over with the reals? (AN: short for real ones) You best expect some heavy booze, so I''ll buy some juice for you. Old Man Hartold won¡¯t be back for days anyway." Mettel pursed his lips. ¡°Okay, sure, why not?¡± Erick smiled smugly to that, cheering with a fist pump. Soon, they arrived in another location where Erick led him into an office, or a warehouse, perhaps, with all the random crates and packaged boxes around here, before giving him a paper, a clip, and a pen. "Now, all you gotta do is jus¡¯ check down the items on the list, the date delivered, how many pieces, and the condition of package whether it be good or bad. If you spot any damaged goods or spoilt edibles, leave a red circle mark on the item name. Refer to the labels attached to the crates. For the ones on the far right, yeah, the fruits, you gotta have to stick some sticker labels on ¡®em, I already made some by the table. Oh, for the ones with an ice symbol in it, you could have this charm. Crafted by our master craftsman of the town. Let¡¯s you open them safely, just hold it in your hands like so." Erick wrapped the stringed charm, shaped like a flame with a wicked face on it, on his wrist before unwrapping it. "Make you warm and resistant to cold when you touch ¡®em cold items, so use when necessary. That''s really all of it. You could have your break in an hour and a half." Mettel all took it in and asked to be clarified on some parts he couldn''t understand. After that, he was left to his own devices. The work did keep his mind busy, enough to remove the gloom from his heart somewhat. The time passed by and it was already one hour and half when break time was given to all the workers, who oddly enough seemed kind of relaxed. Mettel followed the others to the canteen and sat down in one of the benches whilst sipping some water. His ears couldn''t help but overhear. "I wonder... games probably like... Aether rush... , or... Monster Relay." "Those are... join Capture the Lost... Pyramid Crash... Tug of War, Francis would win that event." It was fragmented but he could make out enough. Sadly, most of those games would involve standing out. What would people think if someone like him joined? "White haired freak." Mettel muttered. ..... Time passed by and he was about to complete the job by dusk. Erick didn''t seem to check up on him not once, strangely enough. Just as Mettel was about to finish, due to his negligence, he bumped into a wooden cart. His elbow stung, electrified. Then a large crash banged which made him jump. He looked behind and saw the chest on top of the crate had toppled down¡ªits lock broken. Cold air seeped out from it. "Oh no." He tried to replace the wrapped-up bundle into the chest hurriedly but the frost-covered surface made him flinch away. His hands hurt like hell. "Oh, oh, I have to put on the wrist band." As he wrapped it around with shaking numb hands, he saw a cute-looking ice cream. Cute, because it was shaped in a fish-like design. It particularly caught his attention because it was unpacked, no plastic or whatever. At least it was frozen so it wasn''t like it was dirty. Looking a bit, he saw it came from a box of those ice creams. An impulse came to him. "Why not steal it?" But why? Because it would be tasty. It does look tasty. He shook his head but then someone opened the door fast. It was Erick. "What happenin in here, kid- Oh, it fell down. An accident?" He asked calmly. Mettel had already gazed away, afraid to meet his eyes. "Hey kiddo, sometimes accidents happen. We''re all human, and you of course couldn''t probably see a small chest on top of a large crate. Here, let me help ya." Then he suddenly raised his hand and arced it in an instant. Mettel flinched. But there was no slap. "Heh. Got you thinkin'' I''m bout to whoop you didn''t I? Relax, jus'' pranking you. You gotta remember¡ªI''m the one who asked you for this, so it would be my fault whatever mistake you did, follow me?" Erick patted his shoulders reassuringly. "... I understand." "Alright, now this chest block is heavy, give me the fire strap." Erick then methodically organized the items back in and replaced the chest back on top of the crate. He dusted his hands after taking off the strap. "Whew. That''s a portable refrigerator by the way. Really expensive stuff, as well as the things inside it. One product, the Glaciocarp ice cream, personally made by the ice sprinkles from their scales along with a Lactobovus¡¯ milk. If you ever let a a fire-based monster taste one of these bad boys, they''ll immediately be your friends for life. And I meant paralyzed for only a few minutes. Don''t give it to a water-based monster though, they¡¯ll jus gon¡¯ get stimulated. Of course, its also safe to consume for humans. Popular with capital rich kids I heard." Erick talked a lot in his exposition that Mettel thought why was he even going this far. Perhaps it was to educate him? But said value of the frozen ice cream which he pocketed made him feel scared and yet excited. Then Erick plopped out a wrapped plastic bread roll from his jacket, from earlier. "Your pay, by the way. Come here sit in the couch." The two sat in the couch, Mettel instinctively followed. When he was given the bread roll, his stomach grumbled. Erick chuckled to his embarrassment as he ate it. It was cold. "Though it''s cold, it should still be one of the best breads you ever tasted. Litney''s family are magicians, I tell you." "Ruh''y?" Mettel asked. "Err ah no, that was just a figure of speech." Then they were quiet. Through all the silence, Erick side glanced at him, with a smirk on. "Don¡¯t worry so much, kid," Erick says, patting his shoulder. "Tomorrow¡¯s the festival. Have fun. Ya ain''t have a damn need to prove yourself t'' anyone¡ªjust be a kid for a while." Mettel only nodded after a second or two. He didn''t really buy what Erick said. Be a kid? With no parents and no friends? How could he become ''just'' a kid after all he went through? Erick then continued to talk to himself all the while, ranging from the fun activities and events to what he''s planning himself. Not much of interested Mettel except for the popular legend of the shooting star where someone could make a wish to it. "Way back when¡ªcenturies ago, they say¡ªa streak of light cut through the night sky, gleamin¡¯ like a diamond in a dark bed of sparkling stars. Folks been talkin¡¯ ''bout it ever since. Some say it had all kinds of colors, like a heavenly rainbow trailin¡¯ behind it. Others? They figure it was just bright white¡ªlike a spark shot outta one of the Great Human¡¯s Tezhe. And then there¡¯s the version folks use to scare their kids¡ªa big ol¡¯ fire-breathin¡¯ dragon, shootin¡¯ across the sky faster than you¡¯d believe." Erick let out a chuckle. "But the story most folks go with around Lapas Dejuren continent¡ªthat it was the descent of the celestial huntress herself. The one who blesses monster hunters, harvests, and the essence of the Hunt. A star-made goddess, they say¡ªcarryin¡¯ a bow forged straight from the cosmos. Every arrow she let fly? That was a shootin¡¯ star, lightin¡¯ up the night and takin¡¯ down the baddest monsters that ever dared to roam. And it all started when that very star wiped out a fearsome beast¡ªa Borelynx Raja." "A- a Borelynx Raja?" Mettel knew of that monster. It was a mixture of bear, leopard, and boars into one creature. Its height reaching over 30 meters and 17 meters wide. Limbs as thick as a huge tree. Such a fearsome beast could eviscerate a fortress town. Erick continued. "See, folks always believed that every time one of them flyin¡¯ stars showed up, a monster got took down. Later on, it turned into a whole celebration¡ªan¡¯ that¡¯s how we got this festival comin¡¯ up. They say that same star¡¯s supposed to show up again, bringin¡¯ the blessin¡¯ of the Celestial Huntress. But don¡¯t hold your breath, kid¡ªit don¡¯t always show." "Do you believe in that legend, Mr. Erick?" Erick shook his head. "I ain''t. But why not, though? I just don¡¯t do it myself, you feel me? Sometimes you hear ''bout it in other hunters¡¯ stories."" "I think, I heard something about that from Mr. Hartold, actually." Erick raised his brows. "That the legend of flying star had some merit to it. He did say something about a goddess-like being, a human, who had contented against one of the Ancients. But also, it was such a long time ago that the records might not be accurate. The aftermath of their great battle resulted in the formation of the Thousand Mile Valley." "Oh yeah, what else did the old pops say?" Mettel scrunched up his lips, narrowing his eyes. "That err, that people need something to believe in to get through hard times? I am not sure if I trust that though..." "That old man''s somethin'' else. Anyway, kid," Erick stood up and helped the boy get up, "It''s . Let me come with you." But the boy shook his head. "It''s not that dark nor that far. I won''t get lost." "You a big boy then, I like it. Go to sleep early, a''ight?" Mettel nodded. And the boy went home with a ponderous expression. Scenes of earlier kept popping in his mind, the sunset ruby-hued town made him feel something. So what if there''s a festival tomorrow? Why does he need to participate in this stupid event? Questions, questions spun round his mind. But then, he noticed something, his left thigh felt absolutely cold. In fact, his left pocket was frozen. ¡°Oh sh¡ª¡± The boy hurriedly ran back home. The moment he did, he placed the strangely enough still-frozen ice cream onto the table. Mettel was seriously regretting this. ¡°Perhaps I should just give it back¡­¡± But upon remembering it was very delicious he had to reconsider. The ice cream pack had like 50 pieces on it anyway. Surely one couldn¡¯t hurt? This must be expensive too; he could sell it if he ever needed pocket change. ¡°I¡¯ll keep it for a special occasion.¡± Mettel stashed it away in the refrigerator¡ªthe greatest invention of the century as people praised it for. Some scientist with an ice-related Tezhe managed to create this after all. Jolting out of his thoughts, he saw the same note from his master still placed on the same spot by the side. Master Hartold hadn''t taught him anything yet. The reasoning; because he wasn''t ready. What a load of dung, Mettel thought. Why does he need this profoundly confusing state of spiral alignment, saying like "¡ªyou''ll know when you get there, that¡¯s when you will have your Tezhe". Or when he becomes the age of 14 if the former doesn''t work, only then could he learn the old man''s arts. His anger rose, and remembering that giant figure, that white monstrosity brought the burbling red to a new height. "Someday, someday, I won''t be powerless to face you." Mettel shook his head and decided to have his dinner: a normal bread, sausage, a strip of pork meat, and water. ¡®Tomorrow would be hard.¡¯ He thought. But what did the festival have to with him? He didn''t want any part of that anyway. Having nothing else to do, he went to bed very early. only falling asleep after a long-time past midnight. After a new day arrived, it was the day of the festival. Mettel did not get enough sleep¡ªthough he would greatly need it for the next coming of days. Important days. Robert Aphens Awakens It was cold. Very very damn cold, every inch of it. I feel like I am going to freeze to death. I can''t see anything too. I swore I was just dozing off¡ªdid I get kidnapped again and placed in a freezer? I wouldn''t put it past my pursuers, but why can''t I feel anything else? Then, as I struggled to ponder over my problematic situation, a singular sensation came over me. It was warm, sweet, light, pleasant. Wrapping around my fragile trembling being. A voice, as if heralding from the heavens itself, called out to me. "Robert Aphens. You have been given the privilege of reincarnating into a new world. Though, you had lived with many tragedies and pain, I hope that you might be able to live a good life in the next world I will be sending you to." Huh. Huh? Wuwazzat? The soothing feeling was too much for me that I couldn''t focus. But something about a new world? Wait, is this heaven then, and here I stand before the great arbitrary judge of the myriad lives? Then, a silhouette appeared in front of me. Woah, I gained sight. And what I saw was nothing short of awe-inspiring. The very cosmos itself laid out before me, like a blanket of infinite gems-studded tapestry covering the all horizons. Nebulas, galaxies, planets, a hundred thousand colors amidst the blackness of space. Each and every one singular point connected to another through sophisticated flares of light, a branching divergence the only apt description, as if the branches of a world tree spreading the channels of the universe. Is this actually the Universe, then? It was so mind-blowing that it took me a full five seconds before I became aware of the figure in front of me. Clothed in white, a suffused radiant glow framing them as tendrils extended out as if seeking something. A blinding halo above their head, held a wooden staff, a sizable amount of beard below their chin. Their face, shrouded in luminescent light, recalled a memory. Is he that famous prophet from one of the world-renowned religions? But then I saw the radiant light shrouding his face go away. The figure was not the prophet, I say. I repeat, it was not the prophet. That face was absolutely gorgeous, I have trouble knowing if its male or female but¡ª "I shall bestow upon you a gift to accommodate your new life. This tool would be called the MoPako System. May it serve you well in the dangerous magical world teeming with beasts. Farewell, Robert Aphens. Perhaps you will be fated to meet me again one day. Live well." And then I got sucked into a non-existent vacuum. Wai-WAITTTT I DON''T UNDERSTAND!! WHEEEEAAAA!! ..... When I got to, I felt a dizzying weakness in my veins. I tried to move but I can''t. More accurately¡ªI am trapped somewhere dark. I thought about that figure''s words and I just can''t wrap my head around it. All of a sudden, I am reincarnated now? As a human baby? Why do I still have memories then? MoPako System? Wait, I actually died? With all these distracting thoughts and wild emotions, my body instinctively wiggled out of whatever the heck I am trapped into and broke out of the protective membrane. Bazzah! I am out. My eyes became clear and I saw: *Screeecch!* *Kapow!* The first sight I was greeted at was green. Moving flailing green with a dozen limbs. Ah, so many violets, blue and green¡ªthousands of shades in two sides each. Oh, the light, the light is overwhelming! They''re like reflective currents, cocoon of currents spreading all out in varying intensities. What in the¡­? *Munch* *Squelch* It took a while but my mind adjusted to my ''new'' eyes a little bit and recognized a humongous armored centipede, almost half of my entire eye set, crushing a dozen also gigantic bees and eating them within its slithering embrace. Around the centipede are crushed honeycombs and more half devoured honeybees. Then I realized. This is an ambush on a honeybee nest and I am a honeybee. Wait. Wait. I thought I was being born a human infant? Without memories, perhaps? Why am I here? But the grim reality in front of me did not change even for half a minute. Soon, that centipede is going to realize my presence and eat me as well. However, it was too busy fending off the surviving army of honeybees stinging it. One fellow particularly appeared to be glaring at me to attack it. Sorry chump, I think we have no chance. If an army of honeybees can''t take that thing out then what chances I have, who''s a bumbling newborn who can''t even control its body instinctively? Impossible. I will certainly die. Alright, before panic could lead me to ruin, I have to compose myself. Right, this isn''t anything new. I''ll think about other things later. With burning dire efforts, I desperately tried learning to move my wings. Alas, it only twitched in spasms. Shortly, controlling my six legs are no problem. Okay back muscles are the key here, or thorax muscles, more accurately. For the time being I crawled sneakily away from the centipede and the few remaining honeybees and hid behind a rock. Move, move, move damn it! "KRAAAH!" The rock I hid behind crashed into little shrapnel, hitting my body in several spots. One of it got into my eye¡ªwhich hurts like stepping on a Lego as a baby. In other words, I have a fractured skul¡ªnot, my head and eyes are actually kinda tough. Still though, the raging centipede already wiped out the others. It locked its red menacing eyes on me and¡­ SHITTT! I ran like the fat ass bastard that I am with my comical six legs. I maneuvered through the trees and jumped over bushes but the centipede was rapidly outgaining me. That centipede really is pining for this booty. I would definitely die in less than five seconds if this keeps up. If I die again, would I be able to complain to that mysterious prophet? Damn it, this kinda unfair ain''t it? Then, something magical happened¡ªmy wings started to move up and down. Gosh darn it, make it faster like the wheels of a hyper cog! There you go, good job me. Steady, steady, this feels like an old-model airplane gaining its momentum not gonna lie. Time it right, and oomph! I pushed my legs with all the force, lo and behold, I took flight off the ground like the shooting of a catapult. Flight is back online!!!! Hah you can eat my butt, centipede, which admittedly you almost took a huge chunk out half a second ago. I was almost celebrating in tears when I crashed into the tree''s bark. "SKREEECH!" Oh centipede, you still got half a dozen corpses of my kind back there, why do you hunger for mine? Is my big yellow booty butt that appealing? Eat it, sucker! Fortunately, I didn''t drop all the way to the ground and set off flying. Soon, I left the centipede far behind. I was super-fast more than I expected. Or was that centipede just slow? Now that I think about it, it did look injured in multiple places. Must be the work of my kind. Eventually, once I got far enough, I decided to perch on the top branch of a tree relatively taller than the others, honestly, I don''t know how big I am or this tree was. But the fact that my size resembles an eagle''s or more relative to this tree, it should be significant.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Okay then, scout the surroundings first. This forest area is guaranteed dangerous, information is imperative for survival. I took a look and went gob smacked. The world was¡­ huge. Filled with all kinds of flying monsters blotting out the blue, violet wide sky and the tops of humongous monstrosities jutting out of the forests. A bulbous bag of flesh, a moving craggy mountain top, another even appeared like towering cicada wings, then the broad torso of titan. A majority of the monsters crawling through the forest and engaging war. Yet all seemed insignificant compared to the imposing azure mountains in the horizons. A whole mountain range of ''em. The zeniths obscured by the clouds - nature''s attempt to overreach the stars beyond, that''s the only way to describe them. Now I don''t know what they''re made of but this is no time to be wowin'' since a flying pterosaurs-like monster is coming this way. Ah seriously man? ... After flying and rolling and sprinting and flying around, I just can''t help but want to hide in a hole and hopefully get out of this place by melting through the earth. To be honest, this is even worse than being chased by a bloodthirsty gang because you stole something of their property. Well, only slightly worse but come on. I expected something better. Because this place is absolutely bonkers. A giant moth, a giant stick insect, a flying winged wolf, another flying winged deer with drill antlers, a muscle-packed gorilla that even King Kong would get jealous of, a bear clothed with thorns, an ox-boar hybrid, a leopard with tiger stripes, a snake, a termite colony warring on moving trees etc. etc. Heck I even saw a tree dryad, but instead of a sexy hot lady luring you in, there''s only a dryad that''s taken the form of a big apple. What''s up with that? But worse of it all are the flower monsters. Oh my god. Why is this land cursed with such abominations of a creation? One glance, and instead of where the pistil and stamen business are, there''s an entire viscera of organs inside, pulsing with unholy green ichor. Granted, there are safe flowers here and there¡ªbut none that are big enough to hide in. My only way to survive was to hide in an unoccupied mountain cave. This is a massive risk but its all I have at this point¡ªeverywhere else is a big no no. And I did got lucky, managing to get inside a coastal grotto. It''s a shallow one so I believe there''s no other monster lurking deeper inside. Phew! My body is not in good shape, I tell ya. Numerous scratches here and there, thankfully my body''s kind of resilient without incurring a bleeding injury. I came close to death numerous times though. I was slumped down to the cold wet ground floor, resting for all I was worth when I appraised my present situation. Seriously these new eyes of mine still disorients me a whole lot. The colors of green blue and ultraviolet are all I can see, the compound eyes are way too different from a human''s, not to mention, it''s so blurry past beyond 10 meters. At least I could move with this new body somewhat, along with the helpful motion detection of my ocelli. Honestly, it''s a miracle I got to survive. Ah but man. From a honeybee caretaker to a bee himself, what an ironic twist of fate. I have no small number of grievances to that mysterious prophet figure but I have no choice but to accept what I am now. Can''t help it, can we? Now, what''s this MoPako System prompt box in my eyes? From that figure''s words, this should be like a game-like feature, right? Maybe to facilitate my level ups, status, skill etc.? Okay, expand system! Didn''t work. Is it a physical touch thing? Gingerly, I placed one leg on the prompt box and it quickly expanded. From its contents reads: [ MoPako System ¨C Monster and Companion; destined ones to change the world''s fate. { Skill Tree Chart} { Evolution Path} {Store} { Title Traits} {???} { ???} {???} {???} Name: Robert Aphens Race: Mel Apis Infans (Worker Honeybee Infant) Level: 1 (Evo 1) Strength: 10 Agility: 9 Constitution: 6 Intelligence: 14 HP: 16/24 Skills: Core Abilities: General: Bee Sting lvl 1, Bee Bite lvl 1 Auxiliary Abilities: N/A Titles: N/A Skill points: 0 Stat Points: 0 Click here for more details ] Huh uh. Hmmmm. Destined ones to change the world, eh? Okay, gehehehe. HAHAHAHA. So, I am a typical isekai protagonist then? Golly gosh, guess I could forgive you, mysterious prophet. Not sure about the companion part, I could assume there are others like me, then? But my status sheet is rather pathetic huh? Surely, there''s some special ability to be unlocked that would make me overpowered. Let''s take a look around the store first. It should be there where my overpowered-ness lies! [ Tier 1 Store Feats: 1 (!) Achievements: 0 Total Points: 50
  1. Minor healing: 5 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  2. Minor mana restoration: 6 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  3. Minor stamina refill: 4 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  4. +3 stat points: 10 pts
  5. +3 skill points: 15 pts
  6. Tier 1 Navigation Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts
  7. Tier 1 Tracking Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts (Requires Navigation Ability)
  8. Tier 2 Navigation Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 25 pts
  9. Stealth lvl 1 Core Ability (Primitive): 8 pts
  10. Stealth lvl 5 Core Ability (Primitive): 16 pts
  11. Vision Focus lvl 1 Core Ability (Primitive): 15 pts
  12. Upgrade Tier 1 Store to Tier 2 Store: 35 pts
  13. Unlock Evolutionary Path Evo 2 Requirements: 50 pts
Click here for more details Details: Points could be attained through Feats and Achievements to buy from the store. Additionally, one could exchange ability and skill points for store points. Feats ¨C Significant actions done under special circumstances. Gives 5 up to 100 points, depending on the difficulty and level of store. 1. Tier 1 Store ¨C 50% reduction of points 2. Tier 2 Store ¨C 35% reduction of points 3. Tier 3 Store ¨C 25% reduction of points 4. Tier 4 Store ¨C 15% reduction of points 5. Tier 5 Store ¨C No reduction 6. Tier 6 Store ¨C 20% bonus points Achievements ¨C Monumental actions and outstanding contributions worthy of being passed down in history. All Achievements comes with a new unique title. Gives 350 up to 500 points, depending on the difficulty and the resulting effect on the world. This is not affected by the level of the store. Buying a higher tiered auxiliary ability would remove the lower tiered auxiliary ability out of the store. If you already have a lower tiered auxiliary ability, the next upgrade of the auxiliary ability cost would be lowered to half. If the auxiliary ability the user owns is higher than the store¡¯s, the store would automatically delete it. Buying all the abilities in the store would rotate the next cycle of auxiliary abilities randomly. Upgrading the store would not remove the items not purchased from the previous level. Feat gained! Survived Tremendous Low Odds! +90 store points! Tier 1 Store Point Reduction 50%, gained +45 store points! ] Robert Aphens (1) Unbelievable. Are you kidding me? 50% reduction of points? This is daylight robbery! Call the manager, I wish to speak with him, right this instant! More importantly, where the heck is my overpowered ability? All I see are support skills damn it. So what, I am actually a true-n-proven weakling here and that would stay for a long long time? I oughta¡­! Hell difficulty right off the bat for a newbie, seriously? I have to do something, and quick. My mind spun rapidly for solutions, survival tactics, and contingencies I could set up. First off, I am a honeybee without his comrades. Typically, an insect colony type monster are the weakest individually. That means: hiding in the shadows and ambushing. For now, this place seemed safe, so this would be my base. I have to map out my surroundings and know about my enemies as much as possible. Then I hafta plan when, where, and how to strike. But before I could even think of battle¡ªI have to get used to my body first, as effective as I could train it before I go weak and hungry. Wait a second, don''t honeybees eat nectar to survive? No, that was true of ordinary ones, but I am a monstrous honeybee. I could probably eat normal and magical, if it exists, flower nectars, but most likely I have to eat meat to satiate myself. Water too. To test it out, I brought out my proboscis tongue. Even going so far as taste-testing the sea waters flowing inside the grotto. Water seems clear, of course it tasted awful salty. But what do ya know? Honeybees can actually safely drink seawater, though they still prefer clean water. How about my mandibles? *Clack clack* Niceee. I could use it to bite. While I may never know my full anatomy, I have to let my instincts guide me here. With the plan settled, it¡¯s shopping time. ¡®When he brought out the shop, he shopped all over the system¡¯, indeed! With a measly 45 points, I have to really be careful of what I should be buying. First off, this damn vision problem. I splurged 15 points down the drained for the Vision Focus lvl 1 Core Ability. And¡­ nothing changed. What the? Just when I was starting to get anxious, a system info popped out: * Vision Focus lvl 1 Core Ability is an active ability used to focus on a particular point or region with your eyes. To activate, you can either say Vision Enhance or mentally command it.* Oh okay¡­ I guess it¡¯s better than nothing. Attempting to activate took me several tries before I got my mind intensely lasered on that one skill and thought its name out loud. Suddenly, one far away pebble I''ve been eying got tunneled into my vision. As if the other images became blurry through a camera lens. I turned it off and was satisfied. Although I have 360 degrees vision, it''s really useless beyond ten meters. One of the silver linings however are my ocelli. Motion-detecting eyes using the sun and its light. Although it really feels feverish jumpy to be literally attuned to ultraviolet waves. It feels like being Neo from M*trix, able to see the lines of codes making up of the simulation, I guess. Next up, I bought navigation auxiliary ability tier 1. All of them are obviously good for a weakling like me but navigation is the most important. Except its preeettyy difficult to use. I thought the Navigation would make a mini map show up in my perception, but it''s more like a mental mind map. If it stopped there, it would''ve been fine but it''s adjusted to my new perception too. Which means¡ªit''s not a normal mini map, it''s a bee mini map of the places I travelled! Aghawababushfeh! I turned it off instantly. Tracking is useless too, in that regard. Good thing I held off buying that and the Tier 2 Navigation. Next up I have to decide between Stealth Lvl 1, +3 stat points, +2 skill points. The skill points are too expensive, they may not give me the immediate boost I need. Stealth is of course great, but how would I be able to kill others if I am so god awful weak? I just gotta wing it, rogue-like style. +3 points it is. A total of 41 points¡ªleaving me with 4¡­? Motherfu¡ª This feat was at the risk of my own life. One mistake and I coulda gone straight back to the prophet dude. Yet, only 45 points¡ª45 points!? It¡¯s not just about me being a cheapskate, this store is literally a lifeline for me. This Evo 2 requirements item, to boot, no idea on what that is but if it¡¯s like a class progression system and I have to have learned specific skills, killed a certain boss/es, or require specific items before I could evolve, then sh*t. If that¡¯s the case, I have to upgrade the store as soon as possible before I could purchase anything else. Composing myself, I set off to getting used to my body. Flying, stinging, biting, sprinting, rolling, sidestepping with my legs. I must look like an idiot dancer to any outsiders. Just like that, one or two days had passed by before I believed I was ready, plus my strength was starting to wane. Now is the best time to scout and hunt. Square the F up monsters, I amma sting you to death! .... Through the tall thickets of the forest beside the coastal shore, a solitary small plated worm-like creature, separated from its colony, was burying through the ground, appearing to dig its Pointd prey of a decaying meaty chunk into its nest. Small was relative, as it measured 10 meters long and 3 meters wide. It paused its movements, raising its head into the air, turnings its head to and fro like a bird of prey. After short seconds, it resumed its work. Up high in one of the branches of a tree, a silent honeybee was stalking the worm, readying to launch itself at the closest vantage point. Its stinger pointed readily down. When the worm lowered its guard down just as it was about to bury itself in the soil, the honeybee shot off. KILL! Make it there, damn it!! Inches away from piercing the wretched worm, as the stupid prophet above would have it, the worm reacted with a lightning-fast movement, dodging the stinger whereby it pierced the soil. The worm shrieked its jagged maw out, releasing a debilitating soundwave. Gragh! That hurts my antennae so friggin much! My ambush failed, shit. Steering clear of the rampaging worm, I tried to fly away to regroup but I quickly got grazed by a flick of its plated body. That hurt like hell, my exoskeleton rattled with small cracks on the abdomen. Sent flying away, I used the distance to my advantage and hovered over the worm. Alright, what''re your patterns? Left? I go right. A flick of its tail, I go upwards. Going head on? I STING! With a deft twist of my bee body, I stabbed the worm head on the side, right on one gap of its plates and injected my venom. Quickly taking it out, I flew away to avoid being brought down along with it. The worm crashed to the ground twitching and a swollen area on its head. But it wasn''t dead. How many injections do you need? I''ll give you a buffet of bee stings! Fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee! I attempted my strategy once again but the worm learned its lesson. Counter-stabbing it blindly didn''t work, my bee stinger kept sliding off of its plates. I have to strike precisely in the gaps. Then just as I thought I dodged one attack; a surprise flick of the worm sent its tail out¡ªthwacking me by the thorax. My wings barely hang on but there were multiple cracks on my chitin by that one attack. By this point, I was bleeding profusely. Shit, shit. It hurts so much. Did I just rupture my organs? I am not stranger to pain but this is way too different from just receiving pain.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. This worm is the only possible prey I found in the surroundings, any more days of scouting I would simply grow weaker and risk being discovered¡ªand its game over for me. I can''t dig a pit like an ant, I can''t weave a web trap like a spider, I can''t camouflage myself like an insect. My flight is the only thing I have. It''s do or die, damn it! I landed on the ground with my six legs, poised and crouched. The worm peers at my general direction, its beastly intelligence analyzing the state of the battle. It had no eyes nor ears, its receptors only detecting vibration and light. I intentionally made a slight movement. Come to me, worm! It instantly flashes out to me, opening its maw wide. Steady. Steady, at the last second. DODGE AND STING! Sparks flew in the air from the intense collision, a ringing numb sensation spread through my abdomen, then an acute pain. My stinger pierced through the plate, but the momentum of the worm ripped the stinger right off. You know, when I said flight is the only thing I have? That was a lie. System, buy minor health. I ain¡¯t training for nothing, after all¡ªI gained two new feats whilst bettering myself! *Confirm purchase?* Confirm. Then a shimmer of green bright light came over me, my stinger magically growing back from its broken bleeding edge, as well as the numerous wounds over my body. The worm, with a stinger stuck on its head, spun around intending to crush my body. But I was faster, I was more cunning and therefore, more dangerous. I precisely stroke into the same exact spot I pierced through, now swollen¡ªinjecting the venom. Dodge again. Repeat. Of course, I wasn''t leaving unscathed, its plated body segments kept battering my body. But even as a world of pain burned me, I kept piercing and piercing, stabbing the same wound over and over again. Even as the worm bit off a part of my wings, a section of my compound eyes barely inches from the brain, and crushed my abdomen and my thorax, I kept pressing on. Injecting all the venom in my body. Die, die, DIE!!! And eventually, just as I was about to give out and purchase another minor healing from the mind-numbing fear, a notification sound rang out: *You killed a Lumbrica Burrowling Evo 1 Level 4.* *+2 Level up. +6 Stat Points and +2 Skill Points* *Feat gained! First kill in a life and death battle! +75 store points. Tier 1 Store Point Reduction 50%, gained +38 store points! * Then, the worm stopped moving. It ceased to be. Within its crushing embrace, its maw spilling out its greenish yellow blood on the ground, I lay motionless. Ha ha ha. I won. I won! Ahk. I think, I might actually bleed to death, if it weren''t for the timely level up that significantly healed me. Its efficacy was on the level of a minor healing, so although my wounds remain, it wasn''t fatal anymore. Still though¡­ my first life and death battle. I... this is how my life is going to be from now on, isn''t it? From an unforgiving life to an even more ruthless grim life. What a joke of a reincarnation. Well, I have no choice anyway. I did try calling out to the prophet-like figure during my training, calling the system out in very creative ways¡ªno response. To my despair, this is my new reality, I suppose. Anyway, I have to move quickly. Pretty sure all this ruckus and blood would attract monsters very soon. I got to take what I can, cuz there''s no way I could carry this guy to my hide out. Besides, its scent will lead other monsters. With that in mind, I used my mandibles to take a bite in an unprotected area. *Squelch* Eeeww. F*cking¡ªThis tastes like¡­ oddly okay? Huh? Then a feat notification popped up. *Feat gained! Ate monster meat for the first time! + 45 store points. Tier 1 Store Point Reduction 50%, + 23!* But I had no time to ponder over it as roars and howling were already converging here. I swallowed as much as I can and bolted out of there like a thief finishing his handiwork in someone''s grandparents'' house. ...¡­. You might wonder why I said I should take what I can when I only ate all I could? Well, you see, bees have this other stomach where they safely deposit their foraged nectars. I don''t know how it worked, but with a thought in mind, I managed to direct a lot of the chunk of meat into my storage stomach and ate some of it for my digestion. What does it feel like having two stomachs in one body, you further ask? Interesting question, I could only answer in a way a former man like myself could¡ªlike having two different ball sizes. Yep. And you could distinctly make out the difference in shape and size. But inside. Peh! Enough of that, I want to talk about the taste first. What I expected was a shitty taste of a slimy meat and gore, I found that it tastes like¡­ seafood. Shrimp specifically, with an earthy tangy taste infused to it. Its texture was like a jelly''s, juicy and chewy. Even without having to cook, it''s actually pretty edible. Not sure if that''s a perk of my being a monster. Next up is the fun part. My gains in the battle. I leveled up twice. Twice! 6 stat points and 2 skill points was really damn good. Even more store points as well¡ªyet still far away from that damn store upgrade BS. Moving on, with the insight I received from my latest battle, bee sting was my most reliable means of attack. I placed 2 skill points into my Bee Sting. The bite would have to wait. Before I decide where to put my juicy six stat points, I took a look into the guide as there''s this suspicion I have. [ System Guide Skill Tree Chart ¨C A tree chart of your skill progression, with two distinct tabs namely: Core Abilities (Racial Abilities) and Auxiliary Abilities (Supporting Abilities). Core Abilities have many branching skills categorized into skill paths revolving around your preferred style of combat. Conversely, Auxiliary Abilities are versatile abilities for supporting combat and/or life in general. Both have a separate hierarchy of tiers. Depending on your build, you can choose to focus on one specific skill path, or any combination of skill paths. Standard builds to build around your skill paths: Phys Offense Build Phys Defense Build Mobility Build Stealth Build Utility Build Aether Build (Locked) ¡­.. ¡­ ] Huh uh. Aether? Clicking it isn''t giving me any information. I guess it''s like magic? Okay, the guide is way too long, it''s a friggin wall of text! Good thing there''s a search function, so I found the information I was looking for. [ ¡­. Stats Details: Strength: Refers to the amount of power able to be exerted by an individual. Agility: Refers to the flexibility, speed able to be exerted, and deftness of using one''s body. Constitution: Refers to both the external, internal durability, toughness, resilience and endurance of an individual. Intelligence: Refers to how much, how fast and precise can the individual process information, and how long they retain such information. Intelligence 10 and onwards imply intelligent consciousness, which adds the intelligence factor of how creative and expansive the individual''s mind could be. Could only be improved by manual training, skills, evolution, titles, ???, and ???. Info: The first three stats form the foundation of one''s physical body. More stats will affect the body structure to improve the related stat. You cannot subtract stats. You cannot add points to intelligence. Lastly, the change only applies slowly with sleep. More than 5 points increase would take more than 8 hours of sleep for it to apply fully. ..... ] Skimming the text, I knew I was right. If there''s an imbalance between the three stats, pretty sure they''ll break their body. Ain''t that how people get their injury from working out? Too much straining of one group muscle will cause it to fracture bones, tear muscles ligaments. I have to maintain an optimal balance. With that information, I simply decided to add one to agility, five to constitution¡ªmaking my foundation stats 10, 10, 11. Alright, since this would only apply in my sleep, let''s move on. Next, give me the progression in both auxiliary and core abilities. [ Core Abilities Primitive Rank ¨C Raw and natural talents. The basic abilities of the user''s race, or mutation. Unrefined techniques emerging from one¡¯s inherent traits. (e.g., Bite, Slice, Slash, Pierce, Parry, Sprint etc.) Mastered Rank - Refinement and Foundation. Techniques evolved through rigorous training and experience, showcasing expert control and a solid foundation. (e.g., Perfect Assault, Graceful Dance, Fortress Body, Nascent Battle Art, Unrefined Elemental Control) Exalted Rank - Culmination and Ascendancy. Abilities pushed beyond normal limits, accessing one¡¯s deepest potential and utilizing rare traits to its fullest¡ªoften linked to unique bloodlines or talents. (e.g., Battle Art Culmination, Peak Mana-Elemental Manipulation, Unique Bloodline Abilities) ??? (Requires Evo 6, Level 200, Tier 6 Store unlocked) Auxiliary Abilities Survival Phase ¨C Basic support skills that enhance personal abilities and general utility skills for survival. (e.g. Basic Navigation, Tracking, Resource Identification, Trap Laying) Crafting Phase ¨C All related support and utility skills to bolster one or multiple crafting professions. Requires foundational skills from Survival Phase. (e.g., Potioneering, Blacksmithing, Woodworks, Tailoring) Aether Imbuement/Bestowal Phase ¨C Temporary buffs, boosts, and enhancement aether spell formulas to apply unto a living being or a non-living thing via chanting or sketching. The formulas are derivatives of aether runes. (e.g., Minor Agility Bestowal, Minor Luck Bestowal, Minor Vitality Bestowal, Minor Precision Bestowal) (Progression: Minor, Intermediate, Major, Advanced, Peak) ??? (Requires Evo 6, Level 200, Tier 6 Store unlocked) ] Robert Aphens (2) It took me a moment or two of understanding the explanation provided, but after taking a look at the store and the skill path tree, it became clear. Core Abilities undergoes qualitative change as the higher phase one goes, combining multiple lower tier skills to form a higher-tiered one. What would the final level look like then, as Exalted already have the peak of mastery? Maybe that¡¯s why it¡¯s locked. ¡®Cuz it would be beyond anyone¡¯s wildest imagination. As for Auxiliary abilities, it¡¯s similar in the same way except there¡¯s really no relation between Crafting Phase and Aether Bestowment Phase¡ªwhich I guess works like a buffing spell? Man, this is kind of complicated. All in all, it¡¯s an evolution of the abilities themselves. Utter brain-gasm. I moved onto the skill tree chart, which looked like a constellation system of some famillliiiarr thing (a honeybee), I noticed four abilities branching out from my initial two general abilities: Forceful Sting, Barrage Sting, Mandible Thrust, Mandible Slice. But they were blacked out. When I clicked on the blacked-out icons, it stated that you need initial practical experience to be able to learn it. Additionally, the system said I could manually learn the skills myself by training. Neat. Although they were locked, I did acquire the Evasion primitive core ability by myself. Heh, I have a natural knack for avoiding stuff, even responsibilities! Taking a moment to glance at the future abilities and considering which build I should take, I closed it and checked my status sheet: [ MoPako System ¨C Monster and Companion; destined ones to change the world¡¯s fate. {Skill Tree Chart} {Evolution Path} {Store} {Title Traits} {???} {???} { ???} {???} Name: Robert Aphens Race: Mel Apis Infans (Honeybee Worker Infant) Level: 3 (Evo 1) Strength: 10 Agility: 10 Constitution: 11 Intelligence: 14 HP: 20/44 Skills: Core Abilities: General: Bee Sting lvl 3, Bee Bite lvl 1, Evasion lvl 1 Auxiliary Abilities: Tier 1 Navigation Auxiliary Ability Titles: N/A Skill points: 0 Stat Points: 0 Do you wish to confirm the changes? ] Hmmm I have injuries, but as a magical monster, I probably have the ability to heal just by digesting. This is but mere speculation though, if I don¡¯t heal during my sleep, I have no choice but to go for another level up. And hit that change, Mister or Miss MoPako System! When I affirmed, I felt a slight tingle over my entirety. That was weirdly therapeutic? When all was said and done, the only thing left to do¡­ is make up my bed. Make sure the entrance is well hidden and go to sleep. So, I went on to work, gathering any clumps of thickets and vines along with these willow tree branches outside the grotto, making sure to be stealthy. All the plant life surrounding the shore had this characteristic striped vibrant pastel purple spiraling their frames. It was quite frankly, aesthetic. My stealth powers from hours of playing RimSky, Gear Metal, and Creed Assassins came into play at this juncture, my buzzing wings moving the minimum degree to fly me. Zipping to and fro hiding spots of rocks, bark and bushes. Not one monster caught onto my presence. After the designing work, the entrance appeared glamorously fabulous, I must say. *Feat gained! Simple Joys under Pressure. +10 store points! Tier 1 Store Point Reduction 50%, gained +5 store points! Well would you look at that? I entered inside with a jump, piled the stack of these fluffy looking leaves like oregano leaves the size of a palm tree leaf. I laid down. It wasn¡¯t easy to sleep. But how can I without an eyelid? Right, the honeybees just stay still, relaxing until a state of quiescence. I worried if this was going to work, but eventually¡ªthe fatigue slowly closed off my mind. I let everything wash over me. Then, the emotions swept down. All that I experienced shattered my restraint. How does a miserable honeybee look like? I wish I never knew. ¡­¡­¡­ ¡­.. Bazzah! I am up. Yep, that¡¯s going to be my morning call. Gotta pump my energy. And already I could feel the physical changes in my body from the system changes. Tougher. Slightly faster. Stretching my limbs and antennae feels great. Wow, this is amazing, I could get used to this. I took a look at my hp and saw that, precisely, I recovered 10 hp! Nice. I had a few test runs on my durability; banging my head against the wall. It hurts less, alright. I think? Alright, time to put my plan into motion. I wasn¡¯t sure about my goal other than survival was, but to find where my colony and reunite would take priority. Many bees are more than a single bee. Strength in numbers. On that account¡ªdo I know how to use my pheromones? The answer is: I don¡¯t know. I could feel something else being released when I was injecting my venom into the worm. Pretty sure those were my alarm pheromones. No way of proving it, though. Other than that, pure ignorance. Surely, I could discern a bee pheromone if I come across it? I gotta be careful though, if it¡¯s a stranger honeybee colony, I might just be ripped to shreds. Ah damn, I don¡¯t remember the scent of my comrades. In that dilemma, the course of action came to me: investigate where I was born. That centipede wouldn¡¯t have remained there all this while and I still recall the way.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. I set out abuzz with purpose, sneaky-sneaking making my way through. ¡­¡­ ¡­ Without any hitches, I arrived at the place. It only took half an hour to get here. If I accounted my first run-away, only estimated around 12 minutes of all-out buzzing, then my survival was truly tremendously lucky. How¡¯d that even happen? I scouted the whole area out. The muddy soil was utterly ravaged. A whole section of the forest became a broken clearing, where bits and pieces of honeycomb lie like toys. The ground had a gaping hole, as if leading to the unknown depths. A high-pitch was blowing through the tunnel, cold wind venting out. Not one remains of my comrades left behind. Not even our home. Remembering the scene of their last-stand added a weight I never was aware. Yet even now, it was being scavenged by scavenger monsters. Crows, Hyenas, the same Lubrica Burrowlings. Only a few of them. Desecration flit through my mind. It was weird. I never spent time nor exchanged affection with my fellow honeybees. Do I actually feel camaraderie? A sense of kinship? Perhaps. Loneliness is a poisonous mistress, after all. Where else to get strength but my supposed friends? But I did manage to find my goal, even as I hid in a high tree branch. It was faint, very, very faint. A pheromone trail, its direction pointing to the azure mountain range far away. Although I could see its peaks, it merely resembles a pebble in my position. How far away is it? I clench my mandibles hard. Someday. I turned away, returning the way back. I have to get stronger first. Strong enough to survive on my own in this jungle forest of macabre. And so, days of slaughter had passed. The honeybee fully leaned into his monstrous instincts. Struggling to scout, learning an enemy¡¯s habits and habitat, planning the perfect moment to strike. Only one time my ambush succeeded in one strike, and it was a wounded monster. The others, I had to fight mandible and sting. Blood. Guts. Pain. Hunger. A cycle of it all around. At some point, I started thinking if I was truly a honeybee myself, and the memories of the human Robert Aphens was simply implanted into me as a cruel joke. This is a cruel joke. I could only laugh to survive. Stay still and bazzah! Go out and observe, at some point¡ªI acquired the auxiliary ability Living Observation, naturally. Helps me analyze monsters better. Man, I wish I had someone to talk to. I killed another three monster worms, two monster moths, a monster cricket, a wounded wolf, a monster crow, and a monster rat. All of them Evo 1, most are higher-leveled than I. However, I failed one time. It cost me agony. I had to run away with almost half of my body melted into a puddle. Ah, it hurts. It was against a harmless-looking poisonous frog. Simply assuming its modes of attacks were its spit and tongue, I didn¡¯t expect that it could expel a poisonous fume out of its porous body from an instantaneous kick. Although I dodged the kick, I couldn¡¯t escape from its fume discharge. So thick and sticky was it that it attached right away to my exoskeleton. I only managed to scrape by through with a mere 5 hp remaining even by exhausting one minor healing and one stamina refill. I didn¡¯t want to waste the last minor healing, so I endured it. It took a whole week before I could completely digest all my stocked-up food, with only a bit more than half of my total hp restored. In this time, I gained 12 levels, making me a level 15 Mel Apis Infans. [ MoPako System ¨C Monster and Companion; destined ones to change the world¡¯s fate. {Skill Tree Chart} {Evolution Path} {Store} {Title Traits} {???} {???} { ???} {???} Name: Robert Aphens Race: Mel Apis Infans (Honeybee Worker Infant) Level: 15 (Evo 1) Strength: 22 Agility: 22 Constitution: 23 Intelligence: 17 HP: 50/92 Skills: Core Abilities: General: Bee Sting lvl 7, Bee Bite lvl 6, Vision Focus lvl 4, Evasion lvl 5, Stealth lvl 3, Flight lvl 4. Mandible Constellation: Mandible Slice lvl 3, Mandible Thrust lvl 2 Abdomen Constellation: Venom Tip lvl 5 Forceful Sting lvl 4, Barrage Sting lvl 3, Wing Constellation: Buzz Evasion lvl 1, Aerial Strike lvl 2, Auxiliary Abilities: Tier 1 Navigation Auxiliary Ability, Tier 1 Living Observation Titles: N/A Skill points: 0 Ability Points: 0 Do you wish to confirm the changes? ] [ Tier 1 Store Feats: 8 (!) Achievements: 0 Total Points: 229
  1. Minor healing: 5 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only one time)
  2. Minor mana restoration: 6 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  3. Minor stamina refill: 4 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only two times)
  4. Tier 1 Tracking Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts (Requires Navigation Ability)
  5. Tier 2 Navigation Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 25 pts
  6. Upgrade Tier 1 Store to Tier 2 Store: 35 pts
  7. Unlock Evolutionary Path Evo 2 Requirements: 50 pts
Feat gained! Endured Torture. +85 store points. Tier 1 Store Point Reduction 50%, gained +43 store points! Feat gained! At Death¡¯s Door. +95 store points. Tier 1 Store Point Reduction 50%, gained +53 store points! ] * Confirm purchase of Tier 2 Navigation Auxiliary Ability (Survival), Tier 1 Tracking Auxiliary Ability (Survival)? * *Do you wish to upgrade Tier 1 Store to Tier 2 Store? Costs 35 points.* Yes and yes to all. Still, looking at my ever-increasing wall-of-text of a status sheet I now have, I really¡­ got through so much, huh? How long have I been here? Weeks? Pushing myself to the brink, honing my skills as much as possible, scouting and killing. Consecutively. Well, I had to go that far. Otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t have survived till now. Ah here comes the tingle. Whooo. *Grumble* Yep, I know. My body needs sustenance. Have to go out soon. Should be fairly strong against the normal mobs ¡®round here. Even if I make a mistake, it shouldn¡¯t be fatal. Yet, before that, I gotta check out the new store. [ Tier 2 Store Feats: 9 (!) Achievements: 0 Total Points: 154
  1. Minor Healing: 5 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only one time)
  2. Intermediate Healing: 15 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  3. Minor Mana Restoration: 6 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  4. Intermediate Mana Restoration: 18 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  5. Minor Stamina Refill: 4 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only two times)
  6. Intermediate Stamina Refill: 12 pts (non-consumable, repeatable only three times)
  7. +3 stat points: 20 pts
  8. +3 skill points: 60 pts
  9. Tier 1 Trap Laying Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts
  10. Tier 1 Shelter Building Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts
  11. Tier 1 Resource Identification Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts
  12. Tier 1 Non-verbal Language Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts
  13. Tier 1 Tracking Auxiliary Ability (Survival): 10 pts
  14. Upgrade Tier 2 Store to Tier 3 Store: 75 pts
  15. Unlock Evolutionary Path Evo 2 Requirements: 50 pts
] This is unreal. 20 points for +3 stat points? 60 points? What has the world come into¡­ but, I could literally buy all of them and still have plenty left¡ªI am literally rich! I am a self-made wealthy noble, damn it! The question is, do I greed now? Of course, with 154 remaining I could just simply upgrade the store now, maybe even twice. All my other feats so far are things I did while surviving like setting up base, training for the first time, ate monster meat. Going forward, I need to get more value out of my feats, and god allow it, achievements, for the long term. I am pretty comfy right now so let¡¯s do it. *Do you wish to upgrade Tier 2 Store to Tier 3 Store? Costs 75 points?* But just as I was about to say yes, another holographic system prompt popped in my face. *Another user of the MoPako System is nearby.* Huh? Festival Day The day of the festival had come and the boy already felt tired. Of course, who wouldn¡¯t be looking forward to this annual important holiday? He was the same, too. Yet, every year he¡¯d get his expectations up and every year it was dashed. After all, the boy only spent the three-day festival without doing anything. Watching became a chore. As everyone¡¯s spirits soared as the delicate lanterns garlanded with a flower bloom hanging by every household¡¯s and stores¡¯ main doors, Mettel, with his eyebags, was alone. Erick did say he should just loosen up and become a kid¡ªjoin a game or two. But how was he supposed to do that? Firstly, the games of the first day were mostly for older people and not for 11 years olds like him: Capture the Lost Flag, Hill Defense, Tug of War, and the Mystical Relic Hunt. All games requiring a team. He wasn¡¯t good at talking to people¡­ Though he said all that, there are mini games for the children and elderly as well. A party dance off, a normal version of the relic hunt using ordinary items, an eating contest, the who-can-hold-their-voice-the-longest game, and indoor board games. Mettel simply wasn¡¯t interested in any of them. There was one last event, however, that was yet to begin: LandScape Rush. Clearly, hundreds of people alone were clamoring about to get to outside town to witness the start of the race. ¡®Erick was participating in that event, didn¡¯t he?¡¯ Mettel thought. Should he go watch too? But it would be too crowded on the spectator path. He hesitated, struggling on over what to do, seeing as his caretakers weren¡¯t here to take him away somewhere else¡ªLitney busy helping her store¡ªhe simply sat on the fountain by the square, merely observing the passer-goers. That was when he got disturbed. A boy with yellow-ish black hair and rich brown skin with an expensive vibrant tunic, common pants and leather shoes was running by in a hurry. He was about to pass by when he saw Mettel. ¡®Uh oh, this is trouble.¡¯ The boy came up to him, puffing and sweating. ¡°Hey Mettel, why aren¡¯t you joining the festival?¡± No hesitation in his voice, no malice¡ªsimply a curious look on his face. Mettel had a hard time answering him, partly because he¡¯s lazy. Mostly he didn¡¯t know how to deal with a friendly boy of his age. ¡°Because he doesn¡¯t want to, Cevian.¡± Someone spoke from behind. a black-haired boy with a glum color in his face. His eyes were a black lake¡¯s. Raynel, an orphan like him. Cevian looked back at him. ¡°Huh uh. That¡¯s a lie, isn¡¯t it? No one would miss watching LandScape Rush¡ªit¡¯s the most popular exciting sport of the continent! Two teams of people with their tamed beasts¡¯ companions, racing against each other with unique sorts of Tezhe and 2nd stage monster abilities, what more one could ask for? Especially in a frontier town with so many veteran hunters?¡± ¡°For starters, you could stop spitting on my face. Secondly, it¡¯s not the most popular sport nor is it the most exciting. Imagine masses of sweaty shouting people pushing each other to watch, blocking the short and unlucky people¡¯s view most of the time. Thirdly, Midling Catch Arena is better¡ªin all objective accounts.¡± ¡°Says who!? I agree that Midling Catch is great, but it doesn¡¯t compare to¡ª¡± Just then a loud announcement boomed out from the western side of the town. It was the start of the race. Cevian went wide-eyed. ¡°Oh come on! We¡¯re late, come on Raynel and you too Mettel!¡± ¡°H-huh? Why me?¡± Mettel asked, which Cevian ignored. Or he may not have heard at all. This is exactly why he didn¡¯t want to deal with Cevian¡ªthough he¡¯s the most popular kid, Mettel¡¯s energy was constantly being drained around him. Raynel gazed sympathetically at him. It was only one year ago that he met Cevian, and a few months later Raynel. Perhaps that¡¯s why they weren¡¯t particularly unfriendly towards him. If they had been around in his first year at this town¡­ The church bell echoed, as if resonating with his protesting thoughts. It was a bright afternoon right before the sun set, and the boy with white hair didn¡¯t realize he was secretly enjoying being dragged around. For all his misgivings with the festival, perhaps he may finally make friends. ¡­¡­ Inside the church, where a few people were praying by the pews, a nun with a pale face and thin lips was amidst them. Praying as well. An ambiance of unapproachable solemnity surrounded her pristine dark habit. At the front of the hall stood a magnificent robed statue holding a staff, a sacred air emanating from it. Though the statue¡¯s face could not be seen, its making was of the highest work. It is undetermined whether the statue was a male or female. The nun continued her prayer until she felt a tap on the shoulder. ¡°Sister Jess, I apologize for the interruption.¡± A young man with a simple cotton tunic spoke to her, calmly, even under the stoic gaze of the nun. ¡°It¡¯s alright, I was just about to finish. What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Miss Litney. She asks you to take of Mettel for the time being. She¡¯s worried about Mettel being lost in the town. I would have done it myself but you¡¯re the closest in age and relation with the boy amongst the church people, including me.¡± ¡°Litney too busy helping out in her bakery shop, I suppose?¡± Jess asked. The young man shook his head. ¡°Nah, she¡¯s patrolling the town perimeters. It¡¯s the LandScape Rush event today.¡± ¡°Ahh, that was today? I thought it was tomorrow.¡± ¡°It got replaced, since tomorrow, Mayor Gathos is returning to town. Planning to celebrate with the townspeople for the birth of his youngest daughter¡ªhe¡¯ll be hosting a charity fair for the orphans of the invasion. A fun performance would be held or like so and such something.¡± Said the young man with a weird look. Jess nodded to herself. ¡°Alright then. The only thing I had to do was cleaning the confession cells anyway. I¡¯ll do it.¡± The man smiled sheepishly with a thanks and was about to go away when Jess continued, ¡°By the by Quin, you say you can¡¯t be friends with the boy, always using that excuse to Master Hartold, but I reckon you will be great friends with him. You two are alike in so many ways.¡± Quin scratched his head. ¡°Then even more the reason we can¡¯t be close. At that age, I hated people, generally. My younger brother, Raynel, would have better chances to being friends. Though he¡¯s an unfriendly-looking kid, he¡¯s kinder than most.¡± ¡°You¡¯re proud of your younger brother I see. Ah, you said something about a performance, what was that about?¡± Quin crossed his arms. ¡°Second-hand information from my friend. Apparently, it¡¯s a travelling group of performers, an illustrious well-known at that, who¡¯s going to be performing here. One of their leading performers is a hunter.¡± ¡°I see, what¡¯s the name of this group?¡± ¡°Wanderer¡¯s Troupe.¡± Jess gazed narrowly in thought. She can¡¯t recall any names like that. ¡°I am not surprised you haven¡¯t heard of them when you¡¯ve been stuck cooped up here in the church.¡± ¡°Ahem. Excuse me, I have to go look for the boy with white hair. I must see you later.¡± Then she went away, leaving Quin behind.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°Man, she still is scary to be around with.¡± Muttered Quin. ¡­¡­. ¡°Hurry hurry you slowpokes, the first complete lap is around the corner!¡± Cevian shouted as he went on ahead of the three. The hill around the area was large enough to accommodate hundreds of people, with makeshift spectator seats settled and some with picnics. Though those with the picnics were on higher vantage points. Those below, like the one Mettel and the others were, had a steel boundary separating the race track valley below. The sun was glaring up in the sky, the wind blowing from the eastern high mountains to the western plateaus. The town of Gathos was several minutes by main road away. With the three children having actively ran, they were all puffing large gulps of breath. At that moment, a group of dots appeared in the distance with a dust and smoke plumes emerging behind them. Small at first, gradually becoming larger until the leading racer¡ªno, two leading racers could be seen. The people cheered loudly as they pumped their fists into the air. The announcer with his amplifier mic screamed. ¡°Woahh! It¡¯s Erick and Tryndale neck and neck in the lead! With Velocidon Almahline and Auronis Pa¨ªsrend, respectively and relatively unscathed! They¡¯re going at it super hard, neither giving more than half a step lead. And with the first lap just around the corner, the two contenders are spurring to get their first advantage rune. Behind them are their teams still wrestling against the other. Yet!¡± Just as the announcer said that, a group of people on two sides of the valley pulled down on a lever, revealing pits and potholes that were covered by a camouflaged layer. That wasn¡¯t all, they let down several large boulders down the slope. For the air, a spell brought forth wind arrows in the air and was sent hurling through the skies. Hundreds of them. Along with the small thunder currents lashing out from flying nimbus clouds, and heavy, large snow hail pelting around carried by continuous breezes¡ªthe sky was perhaps arguably more dangerous than the land. ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t that dangerous?¡± One spectator asked. ¡°No worries, all the racers are experienced hunters. Their bodies tough enough to handle them even if they make a mistake.¡± Another replied. ¡°Let¡¯s see how will they fare against this obstruction!¡± The announcer continued. Cevian yelled in excitement to add onto the chorus of several yells and stomps. Other kids had already approached them, Cevian to be exact, to cheer alongside. ¡°Curses, I know this was a bad idea. This event is too, oof ¨C can¡¯t see anything at all! And this is way too dangerous, what if we get hit by a stray projectile?¡± Mettel felt the same way as Raynel. Yet, the two got helplessly dragged by Cevian¡¯s hands forward, just in time as the two leading racers successfully passed the first lap. The ground shook, dust ¡®n bits and pieces of everything flew away from their beasts¡¯ rapid marching. ¡°Don¡¯t worry!¡± Cevian shouted. ¡°We¡¯re protected by a protection spell rune, look, see there? It¡¯s invisible but its blocking anything larger than a pebble out.¡± Mettel looked and saw that was the case. Though he¡¯s been here for a few years, it was clear he never watched a LandScape Rush before. How much aether mana and how complex does it have to be to cover such a large area with such precision? He thought. ¡°The pressure is on! The rivalry between these two is so thick you can literally taste it in the air, can you taste it? Sniff Sniff. It has the flavor of fire and dust, cough!¡± ¡°Stop being weird in the head, do your job properly as an announcer come on.¡± ¡°But I am doing my job, look, Tryndale is about to get the first rune and¡ªhe got it! Let¡¯s see what kind of effect he¡¯s going to get¡ªwait? Who is right on their tails? They¡¯re being super quick even with a Cervalis Muruwind.¡± ¡°A dark horse contender? She¡¯s the youngest racer of the group, wait let me check the list. ¡°She¡¯s rapidly gaining on Erick and Tryndale, just who is she?¡± Moments earlier¡­. ¡°Hahahaha! You eatin¡¯ the dust today, Tryndale!¡± Erick propelled his Velocidon forward with a shout and a kick, the quadrupedal beast lunging at its top speed. Tryndale, silent and calm, never lost sight of the hidden traps going forward. Just then, the race organizers released all the obstructions prepared for the first lap. Erick dodged deftly through the potholes and the boulders, the Velocidon crushing small boulders underfoot, never stopping. Tryndale, for his part, stayed on course. Instead, his Auronis launched a gust of strong wind that repelled the projectiles. The two appeared exactly even but Tryndale was slightly ahead. When they crossed the first lap, the two of them sensed someone from behind coming up. ¡°Erick, just who is that girl?¡± Tryndale asked even as he instantly dispatch the random blindflash rune on the direction of Erick. Erick simply deflected it with a flick of a whip, answering: ¡°Dunno, I only know her name and that she only 15. Crazy talented, I know, might hafta get serious if we wanna keep our undefeated champions status, hah!¡± Erick dodged a sudden pit that collapsed from the race track. ¡°Interesting. To think she acquired the trust of a beast that young¡­¡± The two continued on ahead with a sudden burst of speed, furthering the gap between them and the girl. And the girl¡­ ¡°Argh, these two old geezers still have some juice? What is their beast made up of, anyway? Aren¡¯t they just 2nd Stage Monsters too?¡± The girl with the rust-colored pixie undercut with a pair of long bangs on either side, patted her beast companion. ¡°Cer, think you can keep up for the next two laps?¡± The silver-skinned deer with wings and a tail snorted with a head flick, crushing a stray snow pellet. The girl could hear the mass of people¡¯s shouts and the enthusiastic shouting of the announcers cheering. No one was paying attention to her at first, which was good, but now, they¡¯re directed at her. ¡°Arwen! Arwen! Arwen!¡± ¡°Hagh! People are going to be asking for my autographs after this¡­!¡± Arwen had her conflicting thoughts about this. Nevertheless, the cheering burned a brighter fire in her chest. Her movements became sharper and heavier as she blocked any projectiles coming her way. Her balance was impeccable even as she stood on top of Cer. Yet, try as she might, Arwen never surpassed the two geezers in front of her for the next two laps. Although it was a team battle of six people, she seriously chased for the first position. That frustrated her quite enough to blow a fuse. Arwen gulped massive air into her lungs as she laid, when Erick, the second-place contender, came up to her with a bottle of water.¡± ¡°Heya girl. You crazy good. Good fight, good fight. Seriously, where¡¯d you learn all that moves? You were slick as a fish in water!¡± Arwen accepted the bottle of water, grumpily, and finished it within two seconds. ¡°Self-taught. Ain¡¯t telling ya where¡¯d I get my Cer, though.¡± ¡°Of course, no one is idiotic enough to share every secret unlike buffoon here.¡± Tryndale, with his cool hunter armor¡ªa set of cuirasses, greaves, vambraces, with a leather vest underneath¡ªthat somehow remained dashing, came over with a towel by his hand. ¡°Hey, it¡¯s called bein¡¯ charismatic. If ya share your secret, no matter how small, others would be inclined to share theirs too.¡± Tryndale offered an extra towel to Arwen, which puzzled her enough. ¡°I can see you¡¯re from the outskirts, with the way you dress. What¡¯s your name? My name is Tryndale Velstone.¡± ¡°¡­ Arwen. Just Arwen.¡± She took the towel and wiped off the sweat. With the way she looked? What does that mean? Sure, she could be a lil bit rough around the edges with her rough skin, her clothes being a ragged regular hunter¡¯s leather attire, but she shouldn¡¯t look that shabby. Her hairstyle is super cool, to boot. ¡°Your friend,¡± Tryndale gestured to the resting giant deer, ¡°She¡¯s a good Cervalis.¡± Hearing that, Arwen beamed. ¡°Yeah, definitely. She¡¯s the coolest Monster ever. I wouldn¡¯t trade her for another, but how¡¯d you know she¡¯s a she?¡± ¡°Experience.¡± Tryndale succinctly replied. The racing event concluded officially as the two teams completed the race. The announcers hastily attempted to corner Tryndale for an interview, but he¡¯d already disappeared. Instead, they settled for Erick with his off-the-bat non-stop yapping. To his credit, it made everyone entertained with his quips. Eventually, the event host presented the championship prize¡ªwhich was a ticket of 10 silver coins and a trinket artifact. A small pocket watch imbued with the spell formula of something called Time-Dilation. Arwen gazed at the stage and left off a tired sigh. ¡°What makes you sigh so? Third place, though I don¡¯t see it as such and better yet view it as a group effort, is praiseworthy enough to be complimented nothing short of excellence.¡± Tryndale spoke to her from behind, which spooked her. ¡°Ah, aren¡¯t you supposed to be up there?¡± Tryndale shook his head, then he continued. "I have an offer for you. Would you like to take up on a scouting mission? Preferably, I would hire you as a trainee hunter, but that goes through several tedious channels and procedures at the moment which are unnecessary. Initial reward of 50 bronze, the complete reward nets 150. Equivalent to a total of 20 silver, if you so prefer. What do you say?" Arwen''s eyes blinked for three times, closing her mouth and opening it. ¡°For how long? And where?¡± ¡°Dajien Highlands. Western perimeter of around 200 meters around the canyons. Travel takes one day on foot and few hours with a Monster companion. 2 days of scouting. You start tomorrow.¡± ¡°Deal.¡± Arwen immediately accepted and shook his hands with a gleam on her eye. The two went further away to a comfortable place to iron the details. On the far sides of the crowd below the hill and just next to forests, stood a person cloaked with a muddy undertone and a barely visible insignia by the chest. There were several others around him yet they don¡¯t pay him any attention. ¡°She seems promising. Never thought I''d find a promising Monster Raider here.¡± Then another person spoke from beside them, without warning. ¡°Yep, but it looks like Tryndale already hired the girl. Always so fast and direct, like a true lightning user. He¡¯s actually worse back in our hunting days, never thinking about others, could you believe it?¡± A girl clothed in ranger attire sat hunchback by the tree branch, a twin dagger right by her hips and a rifle on her back. She was looking over with a hand over her eyes. The cloaked figure turned towards her, and vanished on the spot the next moment. A slight curve wryly appeared on Litney¡¯s lips. ¡°And you¡¯re also too serious about skulkin¡¯ around. You¡¯re already discovered anyway.¡± She whistled a tune as she returned deeper into the mountain forest. Chapter 7 – Lycren’s Arrow Mettel meanwhile, was sitting by a circular wide table stuffed to the brim with Cavien¡¯s family¡¯s cultural dishes. When he tasted it, the lamb curry almost burst its juices in his mouth. ¡®Juicy, so spicy. No, it¡¯s explosive!¡¯ This was arguably the tastiest dish the boy ever had. ¡°So, what¡¯d you think of the race? As for me, the race made my chest pumping! So many twists, surprise attacks and turns¡ªmost of all, that girl Arwen!¡± Cavien shouted out loud, forking a particularly tender vegetable piece. Raynel bumped his shoulder into the former. ¡°What, Raynel?¡± Raynel gave Cavien the rise of eyebrows and a mischievous smirk on. ¡°You like that girl, don¡¯t ya? I can see your eyes shining when looking at her.¡± ¡°W-what no! I don¡¯t like that girl; she looks scary. No, I just, I just thought it would be nice if I could be as good as her someday and talk to Tryndale in person.¡± ¡°Ah jealousy. From an aspiring monster raider.¡± Raynel sipped calmly. Cavien¡¯s cheeks flushed, from embarrassment or frustration, perhaps both. Mettel grasped his fork while he watched the banter. Awkward didn¡¯t put it, he felt out of place as a whole. Just what was he even doing here¡ªin Cavien¡¯s family home which looked like an exotic world of a mansion? Mettel gazed at the walls, the paintings hung, the little trinkets, the pelts of animal fur and then the other kids around the table. They were too busy eating their fill. ¡°Hahaha, Cavien, I would not stop you if you wanted to be a raider but you going to need either talent or lots of connections¡ªwhich you and I don¡¯t have¡ªto get a monster companion. I bet that Arwen girl had a master help her tame that Cervalis.¡± A heavy booming voice filled the dining hall from Cavien¡¯s father. A big bellied brown skinned man, with the same luxurious clothing that Cavien wore, except he had an additional animal hide wrapped around his waist. If out of place was the end of it, that would also be okay¡ªit¡¯s free food for a slight uncomfortable seat. But the other kids kept glancing at him, whispering, the look in their eyes like he was a flying roach. It¡¯s¡­ really disorienting. Cavien did not notice, but Raynel did. The blank look of the boy¡¯s face become even more devoid of light. Mettel searched for a way out of this not-so-pleasant experience and just as he let up from his seat, willing to excuse himself in the bathroom but actually getting out when a familiar person appeared by the entrance. ¡°Ah there you are Mettel. I was just looking for you. Having a late afternoon lunch with friends, I see.¡± ¡°Sister Jess! Everybody¡¯s friendly neighborhood nun, how wonderful to see you here. Welcome, welcome. Take a seat, I never expected you to visit my abode so I¡¯m really surprised. Did Vatiri let you in?¡± ¡°Yes, Mr. Sahid, he respectfully let me in after I expressed my purpose of looking for Mettel. But seeing as he¡¯s settled here, I see no problems in just leaving him be.¡± Sahid powerfully laughed. ¡°Yes yes. Let him be new friends with my shining sun Cavien here. All is good, all is good. Why don¡¯t you partake in having some food, as well? Though, I am not sure if any here you¡¯re allowed to eat.¡± Jess shook her head in politeness, stating that she¡¯s full already. Unexpectedly, Mettel called out, his chair scraping against the floor. ¡°Wait, take me with you!¡± Jess momentarily appeared surprised. But she agreed anyway. ¡°Sure, come with me now. You¡¯ve eaten your fill?¡± Mettel nodded, and while showing his gratitude to Cavien¡¯s father with a hasty bow, he went out before Cavien could voice a protest. ¡°Ah. Wait¡­ Pa, why did you let him leave? We haven¡¯t talked much at all.¡± ¡°Oh, then you talk to him another day. What¡¯s the big deal? Though, if you want to make friends with him, do it soon.¡± The father then went on to making jokes for the other kids, such as how the goat kicked him in the bum one day while herding sheep or how working in the repairs of a ship, he and his crewmates angered the repair leader by playing a board game without permission which made the leader slap him in the head and falling to the water. Such and such stories. Cavien quizzically looked at his father¡¯s comment and promptly forgot about it as he listened to the same stories he already heard; Raynel understood though. ¡®Is what he did really that serious? Hmmm couldn¡¯t tell, couldn¡¯t care. It¡¯s not my business. Better think more about the project I have¡­¡¯ Raynel chewed on his steak curry. Meanwhile, outside, Mettel also felt oddly awkward around Sister Jess. He did throw a shoe at her yesterday. What was he supposed to even talk with the pale and thin-lipped nun about? Sister Jess spoke suddenly which threw him out of the loop. ¡°I must mention that Master Hartold is soon to return, perhaps around evening by dinner.¡± ¡°Huh? He¡¯s about to return?¡± Jess softly nodded. ¡°Before then, where would you like to go? Have you joined any games yet?¡± ¡°I¡ªI didn¡¯t.¡± Mettel was too nervous to ask why Sister Jess continued to treat him any different, but he backed off, so he changed the topic, ¡°I¡¯d stay in the church instead. Listen to the church organ and read some passages, maybe. To pass the time.¡± Jess glanced at him. ¡°Are you sure? Most kids find the music boring and the scripture passages dull that they often feel asleep when I read them some verses. We do have some entertainment, like the card game created by Sonia¡¯s, for our orphanage activities. But they¡¯re not fun to play with just two people.¡± The two arrived at the church¡¯s door by then. When Mettel saw the holy statue in front of the prayer hall, he asked: ¡°How about Mother Laresa? How is she?¡± ¡°Oh¡­ she¡¯s still bedridden. Not long to live, however.¡± Jess said matter-of-factly. Mettel was taken aback. He apologized. The nun then sat by one of the empty pews, the church hall itself was already scarce of visitors who went to pray. ¡°You know, you¡¯re mature for your age Mettel. For the last three years you¡¯ve been here, you¡¯re no longer as angry as you were. And yet, you clearly felt out-of-place even back there. Or perhaps you remain that way of choice, hmm?¡± Mettel also sat by down beside her. Where was this going to? He hemmed and hawed before he answered:If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°I, I don¡¯t, no, why should I even answer you?¡± ¡°Ah you don¡¯t have to, so spare me the shoe please. I was just curious is all.¡± Jess answered without ripple. Silent. Before long Mettel remembered Erick¡¯s words and all the things he¡¯d done. Why was he so aggressive anyway? To this person? ¡®Ah. She reminds me of my mother.¡¯ That thought passed through his mind when Jess opened her mouth. ¡°Alright, to pass the time, how about a story of the god in front of us? Are you interested? I¡¯ll continue anyway even if you¡¯re not. Ahem.¡± ¡°Long ago, around the time the Great Dungeon Chasm was discovered, an unknown explorer found a strange gem-like stone found in one of its depths. The gem held extraordinary powers and transcendent luck, as the records say, and when the explorer held it for long enough¡ªthey heard a voice. It is unknown or lost in the records what has been said but there¡¯s one word that stuck; ¡®System¡¯. After that, the explorer experienced the loss of their country due to a calamitous event; the first Monster Outbreak. Driven to grief, they smashed the gemstone in an altar and transcended their mortal shell¡ªbecoming the god we see now. The Deity of Great Sorrow, Serath. That is not the sole reason they were named that way however, for Serath was believed to be related to the Celestial Huntress, the very same legend we are now celebrating this harvest festival. I believe her name was¡­¡± ¡°Lycren. Lycren¡¯s Arrow.¡± A weak voice called out from one of the alcoves, footsteps rung out and revealed an emaciated figure of an elderly woman, cloaked in all black. Cassocks, a soft-rounded cap, and a mantle. Her eyes were all white. ¡°Mother Laresa! What are you doing here?¡± In quick movements, Jess stood up from her seat to support Mother Laresa, which she pays no heed to, looking at the boy with white hair instead. ¡°Mettel, Hartold¡¯s adoptive son. This is the first time we met I believe.¡± A kind smile crept on the elderly¡¯s face, leaving Mettel greatly flustered. ¡°Ah uhm, huh?¡± Adoptive son? What is she talking about? She was sat down by Jess, who took the length to persuade her to return. ¡°Jess, my sweet daughter. I may have to bring you the trouble of bringing your brothers and sisters in my cell. I have something to tell them. I sense my time growing near¡ªI fear this is the last time I will be able to walk. However, I have a message to send to Hartold before I finally go bedridden for good.¡± Jess grew silent. ¡°¡­. I understand.¡± She stood and bowed to her waist, going away at once. It was unknown what she thought with her stone-like face. ¡°Now then, how are you, Mettel boy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m good¡­ what message do you have for my master?¡± Mettel came up to the elderly woman, taking her hand as she sat by his side, sighing with relief. ¡°It¡¯s nothing serious, I just want to impart a message to your old man Hartold. I am not sure if I¡¯ll have the time later to talk to him. Still, yes, I¡¯ll tell the message after the story. That reminds me, you two there, you hiding boy come here and sit by us.¡± A startled yelp came out of nowhere. ¡®Huh?¡¯ Furious whispers then could be heard behind the pillar where Raynel and Cavien came out from. Raynel was particularly embarrassed whereas the other was only smiling sheepishly. Mother Laresa chuckled as she pointed the seat beside Mettel, who was looking at them with a massive question mark on his face. ¡°Why are you two here?¡± He asked. ¡°Well, you know, I kinda got bored staying in my house. The others left very soon so Raynel suggested we go follow you and I thought it was a fun idea. Here we are.¡± ¡°Hey don¡¯t put the blame on me, you were the one who asked for my input.¡± Cavien shrugged his shoulders, as if saying ¡®who asked?¡¯ Raynel¡¯s gaze darkened. ¡°Now, now, boys. Don¡¯t argue. At least, don¡¯t argue in front of my old bones. Do it somewhere in a safe place. Hahaha.¡± The three were dumbfounded at her remarks¡ªshouldn¡¯t she admonish them or something? Why encourage it? Finally, the two boys sat down after the fanfare. ¡°Now, listen.¡± Mother Laresa continued the story from before, amidst the boy¡¯s confusion. ¡°Lycren, that¡¯s the name of the Celestial Huntress. A person of great importance to Serath, though the scholars weren¡¯t able to finalize on their relationship. Lovers, siblings, friends, family member¡ªthey kept on arguing on the subject. What was proven from the ancient records is that Lycren was a powerful talented human, even without any Tezhe she could slay monsters with her own hands. Serath, however was unknown so there is not much about them aside from being the earliest record of them as an explorer. At the day of the calamity, Lycren and other brave heroes fought off the monster invasion¡ªthe first of many as you might know them as Aether outbreak. Where the world¡¯s mana anther reaches a critical point that makes the Monsters go into a frenzy. Without any Tezhe at the time, humanity and other races were hard pressed to deal with them. Although it helped that the monsters were weaker as well, for there were only 5th stage monsters as the apex predators. At the moment of deepest hopelessness, Lycren¡¯s Arrow, a sparkling radiant star flew across the night sky, illuminating the fires and black smoke ravaging their land¡ªand vanquishing a being equivalent to an 5th stage Monster. At the cost of her own life. Yet even that was not enough to stop the invasion. Eventually the country fell and everybody Serath loved perished. That was how they became the Deity of Great Sorrow. The rest is history as you know, Serath was the one of the first gods to create their own Tezhe, related to the rainy weather and storms, using it to usher a new growth of life. All Tezhe pathways that relate to weather or storms are to come from him, as the scriptures say. Kind of ironic, isn¡¯t it? Sorrow and pain bringing forth life.¡± Mother Laresa coughed occasionally during her speech, stopping one or two times to catch her breath. Her voice gradually became weaker at the end until it became almost whisper. ¡°Woah, so that¡¯s why a lot of the passages in the scripture related to sorrow, pain, anger, and hatred. Instead of avoidance, embrace it for change.¡± Cavien opined. Raynel, who was silent all the while, asked: ¡°There¡¯s something off. The legend stated that the Celestial Huntress, Lycren, shot her arrow, killing the monster, and brought victory upon all, hence why people come to remember her legend as a wish-granting event. How come in that story, Lycren presumably failed?¡± Mother Laresa¡¯s eyes gleamed at his response. ¡°That¡¯s a good question. Even I don¡¯t know the answer to this. Perhaps you may ask Hartold about this. He knows more about the legend and the Deity of Great Sorrow more than I. As for the message,¡± She turned to Mettel, who was still digesting the story, ¡°The matter you asked me to: it¡¯s close. Extremely close. You must *cough* hurry and find *cough* them¡­¡± ¡°Mother Laresa!¡± A nun of the church hurriedly came by from within the halls, rushing over in hearing the elderly woman¡¯s increasingly harsh condition. She supported Mother Laresa, excusing themselves to the three boys. They disappeared under their concerned looks. ¡°What just happened? Will Mother Laresa be okay?¡± Cavien asked. ¡°Beats me. That story of the legend is really curious. I¡¯d better go to the library to know more about this. After I came here for my purpose.¡± Raynel turned to Mettel and cleared his throat, ¡°Mettel, I want to ask, did your Master leave you any materials to study? Any study books about monsters and such?¡± ¡°Yeah. Yeah, I do, but why?¡± ¡°Can I take a look at it? Better yet, can I borrow it?¡± Mettel¡¯s eyes were laden with doubt. ¡°¡­. Sure, why not? More importantly, why are you two even here? I recall you were just having an early dinner back in the house.¡± ¡°Oh, right, I was indeed just enjoying my time when Raynel snuck in the middle of the party. I tagged along, the others too but their parents came to fetch them, so here we are. But this works, since we¡¯re going to Mettel¡¯s house, why don¡¯t we go to the place I always talked to you about, Raynel? Since it¡¯s close by Mettel¡¯s part of the neighborhood.¡± Raynel rolled his eyes at that reasoning. ¡°Yeah yeah alright. What¡¯s it to you anyway? It¡¯s just some shady scheme¡ªI mean, a magical artifact that¡¯s been hidden and has special properties could be found there? Better say it¡¯s a special rock that makes you feel special something. Lubba dubba woo.¡± ¡°Hey, I don¡¯t believe it either, but there¡¯s bound to be some interesting stuff. Like a rock that levitates or something. I gotta get one for myself after Orion showed off his powered ore.¡± ¡°Uhmm, why am I needed for this adventure, exactly? And why now in the festival we¡¯re having?¡± Mettel asked with suspicion. He was NOT going to get forced somewhere again, even if he did see an exciting scene of LandScape Rush.