Chapter 7

♪ Someone's Waiting For You ♪

Walking all night on high alert proved to be a daunting task for Truck-kun and Masada. When the first sun started to creep over the horizon, relief washed over them much like taking a deep, restful breath after being the subject of a meeting with his new bosses at Koenig Partnership. Relief gave way to a slew of feelings such as hunger, drowsiness, and the pain from his raw, cut-up feet.

Their 7-hour trek was dotted with minor breaks to address dyer concerns that had arisen. None of their stops burdened with the weight of their previous two monster encounters, but necessary nonetheless. They took their first break after about 30 minutes of walking in the pale blue light of the first rising sun. Tru's feet sported wounds from battling with the numerous branches and roots covering the forest floor. During their reprieve, Tru cut the sleeves off his jacket and wrapped them around his feet, similar to the way the [Nimble Tabi] hugged them. Appreciation had grown in Tru's heart for the maker of such comfortable shoes. Alas, the qualitative distinction of his sleeves compared to the tabi was too vast for his poor feet to hold up throughout the night without issue.

Their morning break to watch the suns rise met the adventuring duo with a fabulous breakfast as well. Tru remembered that the [Guavo Tree] stored in the [Ring of Space] was coupled with its fruit, letting him enjoy a delicious treat. Tru made the fruit appear in his hand and bit into the hefty [Guavo Fruit], a sweet and sour taste spreading through his mouth the moment his teeth broke the skin. Savoring the flesh allowed him to appreciate the fresh juice that burst into his mouth. He had never tasted anything like it, but the texture reminded him of a kiwi that had pockets of juice like an orange back on earth. His lack of fruit experience stemmed from his origins in Pitkin Louisiana, which didn't have a market selling harder-to-find fruits.

“This has got to be the best fruit I've ever eaten...” Tru said with tears in his eyes. The contrast in feelings he experienced between the evening and now was too much for a typical tax associate. Clearing his tears gave way to a smile, which also gave the realization of the abundant circumstances a person can experience in life. “I go from terrified, to exhausted, to content, to downright happy to be alive. Life isn't always good, it isn't always bad, but it IS always interesting!” Tru expressed to a sleeping Masada. After eating a second [Guavo Fruit], Tru inspected his status.

[name: Truck Coon]

[~Status~]

[Health: 228/275]

[Mana: 269/269]

[Energy: 171/770]

[~General Stats~]

[Strength: 25 +9]

[Agility: 70 +70]

[Stamina: 50]

[Intellect: 25]

[Spirit: 40 +9]

“Hmm. It's such a bummer that I lost 100 agility when the [Hungry Baby Rabbit]s ate my shoes. Losing my [Nimble Tabi] to the baby rabbits removed the bonus to agility and that directly affected my energy,” he said to himself. [Meditate] activated while they rested, and Tru gradually dozed off against a small tree. Both Tru and Masada awoke to an extreme change in brightness as the 6th sun rose, radiating brighter than any of the suns or stars Tru had seen before. The new sun was significantly closer, making way for a drastic temperature change as well. Light blue rays beamed down as they quickly understood they would need to get shelter from its light.

“Why are there so many suns??” Tru asked, flustered about what to do or where to go when he had an idea. He recognized the importance of shelter in this ever-changing climate and said, “No better place than here and no better time than now to build a makeshift 'house'.” All the while, he raised Masada and began to fell all the trees in their immediate vicinity. His strength stat was still too low to lift the relatively small trees, but he had tools to make use of. Using the [Ring of Space], he stored each [Guavo Tree] and withdrew them in such a way that they would fall while leaning into a nearby, strangely familiar boulder named [Orichalcum]. 'Is this seriously the boulder? We totally could have continued to ride it a while longer! Whatever,' Truck thought while quickly unloading the trees. He placed each one in such a way that they leaned against the boulder, producing emergency shade. After creating the canted wall of trees, Tru and Masada took shelter in the shade underneath.

The "Burning Hour," as the inhabitants of Driscoll called it, subsided, the temperature becoming bearable again. After Tru stored all the trees and the [Orichalcum Boulder] into the ring, they continued on their way. He took out another fruit and began to eat it as they marched. Not one hour had passed when they found their first signs of sentience; a road stretched to the left and right. The road made from the moss of the [Abascan Upper Floor] confused Tru because at first, he thought it might be something like a deer trail. It became apparent that this was an artificial, or sentient made, sunken lane when he saw the edges sunken into the ground and maintained to a certain extent.

“Hmm. Let's go west,” Tru said aloud. Masada, finally being awake enough to think, responded determinedly. “Kuru ku~,” he said, agreeing with Tru. They stepped down nearly two feet onto the path. 'The moss is certainly maintained. It feels and looks like it was fluffed recently to provide a luxurious feeling to any traveler,' Tru thought while examining the path. The lack of any obstacles for his feet to overcome gave Tru a sense of comfort. As they continued to walk, he sighted a sign in the distance adjacent to a three-pronged fork in the road.

[^ Valleyport]

[← Kulkne]

[→ Jurooth]

“To Valleyport!” announced Tru, happy to see an English-sounding town name. The skill, [name: Driscoll Linguistics], provided him with an understanding of the common language on the level of a typical adult native.

As they continued walking for another day and resting sporadically throughout, Masada noticed an uncomfortable feeling as if they are being watched. When the three suns that day were nearly below the horizon, Masada decided to inform Tru, “Kururu.” Masada had begun to survey the area at the onset of his unease and noticed several monsters approaching stealthily. Acknowledging the new information, Tru looked behind, but unfortunately, he could not perceive the figures. 'Well, even if there are enemies around, there's a pretty big difference between Masada's magic-beast-senses and mine. Now, what to do?'

Ready to react with Masada over his shoulder, Tru said, “There is a possibility they'll attack us while we're sleeping if they keep following us. Okay, we'll fight them here.”

“Kuru,” Masada hummed agreeably and waited for their enemy.

“Hoowwwww~!”

A howl echoed through the mossy plains, soon joined by a chorus of wolves. “Stray dogs? No, they must be wolves, but they're smaller than I imagined.”

'bling'

[name: Wolf. The first stage of the wolf class tree. Weak alone, but considered many times stronger in packs. Not considered a monster.]

What appeared in his limited vision, were a pack of wolves no higher than Tru's thighs. The wolves had black fur with thin, white streaks and there were five of them. “Although there are more of them, it's better if we treat them like a pack of [Guavo Bear]s,” Tru warned Masada. At a glance, there was no difference in size between the [Wolf]s and a typical dog and had no special traits like the [Guavo Bear]. The primary distinction between a wolf and a dog is combat prowess.

“Grrrrrr,” the wolves growled in an attempt to suppress the pair while fanning out to encircle them. Tru clicked his tongue knowing that they aren't considered to be monsters by the world system and, for a moment, felt bad ending their lives. Monsters, Tru understood, were typically a creature that aggressively attacked anything that moved aside from its own species. A regular animal could potentially attack, but only out of a sense of self-preservation. He wondered if that's what it meant by “... Not considered a monster” and made a mental note. Raising the greatswordstaff, the tension became impossible for the beasts to endure, the first in the pack pounced at him from behind.

When both his and Masada's lives were on the line, there was no room for hesitation and Tru compartmentalized the pity he had. Before the pouncing wolf had even reached halfway to Tru, the [Wolf] in front sprinted at his legs. 'A coordinated attack,' he thought.

Tru had gained an understanding of his ability after their fight with the [Guavgrog Bear], feeling how easy it was for him to swing such a colossal weapon. He gave himself a small margin of error fighting the wolves, while synchronously sweeping Masada in a diagonal motion, starting high from the rear. The 1,200lb, [Hone] enhanced monster-blade halving the first wolf, and continued downwards, separating the second wolf from all four of its legs. Waled cries of pain came from the second wolf while the other three darted back for the shadows. They continued to flee long after even Masada couldn't sense them.

Understanding the value of life, but weighing that with the pained wolf's future, he ended its life. Adrenaline was still pumping through his veins, which affected his thought process, ending the wolf's life more out of frustration than mercy.

Even the encounter with the [Guavo Bear] hadn't been his first time killing something. Hunting was a typical rite of passage for all teenage boys growing up in the countryside. When he had turned ten, his father had taken him out hunting for deer, where he killed his first living animal with his dad's old Remington .30-06 bolt action rifle. He initially felt bad for killing it until his dad taught him about how the world is. “All things die, and humans need to kill in order to live. Even vegetarians have to kill plants in order to live,” Tru's father expounded.

Having grown into a young man, Tru had a better understanding of nature and felt no conviction for having ended the wolves' lives, but he still wished he didn't have to. Checking the notifications in his head did bring a sense of purpose to their deaths. He at least gained something from it.

'bling'

'You have defeated [Wolf] Lvl 10.'

'bling'

'You have defeated [Wolf] Lvl 7.'

'bling'

'Beast-Master Synergist has increased to level 3.'

'5 General Stat points have been awarded.'

'bling'

'Summoned Saboteur has increased to level 3.'

'No General Stat points have been awarded.'

Tru had ten General Stat points to spend but still was not quite sure the route he wanted to go. The path of the mage or the way of the rogue. As a battle mage, magic warrior, or whatever it's called in this world, he knew that his magic power and [~Skills~] would take precedence for his combat ability. As a more physical fighter, his ability to use a sword would be the most important. Since Masada was weightless to Truck, agility would be more important than strength, thus the rogue option. For the time being, since he did not have enough information to go off of to make a sound decision, he put all his points equally into each stat.

[~Status~]

[Health: 275/286]

[Mana: 269/280]

[Energy: 764/792]

[~General Stats~]

[Strength: 27 +9]

[Agility: 72 +72]

[Stamina: 52]

[Intellect: 27]

[Spirit: 42 +9]

The night fell like a thief, stealing away the light of day. Peace had fled as their brief melee ensued, returning only under the welcoming reign of the victor, as it may or may not with all conflicts. The wind blew through the swaying moss, easily mistaken for a green stream flowing in Tru and Masada's direction. Near their minor battlefield sat a large rock. They moseyed over to it, Tru dragging his heals while lofting Masada over his shoulder, after storing the remains of the wolves in the [Ring of Space]. 'Huh. We must not be the only ones the [Orichalcum Golum] launched out of its crib...' Tru mused. Bereft of energy, Tru decided to rest against the [Orichalcum] boulder and soon fell into a deep sleep. Masada had only recently awoken and was fully alert. Sheathed into the ground, he kept watch while his master rested.

________________________

A girl ran through the forest with little consideration for her footing as the curtain of night fell. The moss and growing density of trees were stained a dark shade of solid blackness as the landscape became deprived of light. Clouds had covered the few moons that could be seen on this night. Indications that the kobolds pursuing her were shortening the distance may not have been perceivable by a typical human girl. Twigs and leaves knotted in the waist-long, golden hair imbued with a hint of emerald green. Gazing at her moist, blue eyes, one could see the fear of a 17-year-old schoolgirl. Though she was 43, elves age much slower than humans, and she had the appearance of a 17-year-old. Her cheeks still flowing from the yet to dry trails of tears, though her breathing was rough from the continued sprint. The number of wounds on her hands and feet from the trees and bushes protruding through the [Abascan Upper Floor] only increased as she tried to avoid getting tangled in the diminishing forest. She pressed on despite the growing pain.

She looked around in a panic, but even though the pursuing group of kobolds could be heard, they eluded her eyes. The Girl was a member of the Dark Elf tribe, whose people carry eyes blessed long ago by the [Abascan College] with night vision. Nevertheless, she didn't know the layout of the forest, making it impossible to tell where she was going. The senses of the elves were superior to humans in every way, but she was still a child in her people's eyes and had only just begun the necessary training to understand her capabilities. Her inexperience betrayed her in a situation as foreign to her as the one she found herself in and couldn't think calmly. The girl was desperate to escape, but her pursuers were constantly tightening their encirclement around her.

'SSHEWW,' she heard, a whistling sound growing when suddenly, an arrow pierced the girl's upper thigh. She lost her footing and collapsed on the spot as her right leg crumpled beneath her. Sharp pain rose the moment her eyes focused on the bleeding hole torn in her leg.

“AAAHHH!!” She held her leg in excruciating pain with tears splashing to the ground as she thrashed about on the soft squishy moss. The surrounding bushes parted, revealing several kobolds to her night vision. All male and equipped with light armor such as cloth and leather. Thick long-sleeve tunics were the most popular choice among the group holding a diverse assortment of weapons. Some carried a spear with short swords at their waist while others carried bows with a quiver of arrows attached at the hip by a unique belt. Without exception, each bore a vulgar grin on their long scaly face, but surrounded the girl without any negligence, indicating experience in the barbaric apprehension of people.

“*hisss* Hurry up and bind her!” One of them gave out the orders, wary of the potential danger inherent in capturing the forest dwellers. He continued saying, “Gag her too! We can't let the elves find us.”

Spears aimed straight for her throat, two of the kobolds took out a collar fused with a chain teeming with sinister greenish-blue magic. The subordinates moved cautiously when she started to scream at the top of her lungs. Alarmed by the loud shriek, they quickly forced it around her neck.