Rob hid between two closely grouped pine trees. There wasn't a lot of undergrowth or cover beyond the occasional fallen log or tree in this part of the forest. They set up a position on the edge of a clearing next to a small pond and had been waiting for animals. Sam was further into the trees due to his natural lack of stealth and any weapons suitable for hunting. Their patience had paid off since Robert was now tracking a small group of deer approaching the pond.

Rob whispered to Juno, who was crouched next to him, "I need to get a little closer if I'm going to be able to hit one of them."

She gave him a nod, and he moved forward, slowly crouching and staying as quiet as possible. He had the Sneak Skill but had not been able to level at all. Hopefully, he would be able to stay quiet enough. He approached the small herd that was now drinking at the pond's edge without giving himself away. He readied his bow. Remembering his Rapid Fire Skill, Rob pulled three arrows from his quiver and set up.

Juno was just behind him focused on the deer, but staying completely still and quiet. Rob sighted down the arrow he drew and steadied his breathing. The closest group was a male with a rack of antlers, and two small does. Robert focused on the male and readied his shot aiming for the spot below the front shoulder blades. As soon as he was ready, he exhaled and released the first arrow and then rapidly shot the other two at one of the does. His first shot was on target, and at least one of the other shots hit a doe.

Even though he hit them, the entire herd fled from him, and Juno leaping away from the pond and back towards the forest. The male Rob had targeted sprinted with the rest, but soon slowed as the chased. It staggered around for a moment and dropped. He came upon the fallen deer and made sure to keep his distance.

"Juno, stay with this one, but don't approach it until I get back," Rob said, wanting to be cautious.

After his first hunting experience in the game, Rob had done a little reading online. He found information on hunting deer in the real world. He knew from that research that a downed deer could still kick out of flail, causing harm. He wasn't sure how realistic the game's hunting system was, but he didn't want to take any chances. The animal's health gauge was nearing zero, but that didn't mean it wouldn't flail and hurt Juno.

He continued into the trees and spotted a few drops of blood where the deer had passed. He continued to track the group spotting signs of passing and blood along the way for a while. Rob wasn't sure how long, but he eventually came across the doe he'd hit ambling away from him. It looked like it was struggling, and he wanted to put it out of its misery. Deep down, he knew it was just a part of the program, but it still grated on his conscience.

He readied another shot and let it loose, hitting the doe in a spot that brought it down. He took his time after the approach and was able to get two pieces of meat, half a hide of deerskin, and one bone from it. From his calculations, he'd need to kill three more animals to complete the quest.

When he returned to Juno, she'd already looted the fallen deer. "I waited until there was a prompt to loot it. We got three pieces of meat, one deer hide, one bone, and antler. We'll have to see what we can trade these for when we get back to town."

"I got two pieces of meat and some other stuff from the other deer. Looks like we'll have to hunt two or three more animals to finish the quest. Let's head back to Sam and maybe go off and hunt some Goblins. He's got to be a little bored waiting for us."

"Sounds like a plan. Hunting really isn't his speed."

As they got closer to where they had left Sam, they heard yelling and a loud squealing noise coming from the trees, so they doubled their speed and found Sam facing three large pig looking creatures.

Juno pulled out her quarterstaff and said, "I think those or the boar we are supposed to hunt."

Rob watched as one of the boars leaped towards Sam, trying to skewer him with its massive tusks. Sam pivoted at the last moment and struck the animal on the back of the neck, slamming it into the ground, but not killing it. Apparently, their heads and necks were just too strong. Rob was caught up in the fight so much that he almost missed one of the other boars circling his friend, readying an attack.

Almost without thinking, Rob rushed forward drawing another arrow and firing at the boar. Unfortunately, the arrow hit right between the eyes and bounced off. Leaving only a small cut and barely a dent in its health. He continued to run at the boar, but his attack hadn't seemed to draw its agro, and it looked like it was getting ready to charge at Sam's back. Rob dropped his bow and pulled one of his swords while accelerating to a full run.

There was still the boar Sam was fighting between him and the one coming at Sam's back, so Rob decided to attack that one first and warn his friend. "Sam, there's one at your back. I'll get this one." He finished by lunging at the boar and piercing it with a thrust to the ribs, which caused it to squeal and stumble.

The boar he'd just stabbed was near dead, but still on its feet. He followed up the attack with a kick to the ribs, assisting him on removing his blade, and then another overhead strike to the neck where Sam had hit it the first time. His aim was a little off, but it was enough to finish the animal.

Rob slid to a halt and looked around to see the other two boar facing his friends. Juno had squared off with the smallest of the three and was doing an excellent job keeping it at a distance with her staff. It would lunge forward, and she'd jump back slightly and strike it on the head. It wasn't doing a lot of damage, but it kept her safe as long as it didn't change its pattern.

Sam was fighting with the other, larger, boar. He'd lunge in with a vertical strike that either missed or glanced off the tusks, and the boar would counter by trying to gore Sam. Rob walked over to where he dropped his bow and started alternating shots at the two boars. After the first shot to each, they were now changing their focus to him, which wasn't exactly the best outcome for Rob, but it left them open for more damaging blows from Sam and Juno. After another minute of pulling agro by shooting the boar and then Juno and Sam pulling agro back with a massive strike, the two remaining boar collapsed. They were able to loot them.

Rob announced, "This is great! We have enough to turn in the hunting quest plus a bunch of other random drops that I'm sure we can do something with. What do you want to do now?"

They gathered in a small circle and pulled up a map as Sam said, "I would like to keep out here. That little fight actually gave me some decent experience, and I leveled my Ax Skill and my Dodge Skill."

Juno added, "I have a few notifications that I haven't checked, but I probably leveled a few skills as well. How about we split the loot evenly and then continue on for a bit?"

Rob agreed and then pulled up his display, opening his notifications. There were several of them that almost filled his field of view.

Congratulations, you've improved a skill!

Skill Learned: Short Sword Proficiency (One-Handed)

Level: 10 Beginner

You're well on your way to being more of a danger to others than yourself.

Congratulations, you've improved a skill!

Skill Learned: Battle Tactics

Level: 4 Beginner

I guess it's better than just jumping in without thinking. Not much better, though.

Congratulations, you've improved a skill!

Skill Learned: Sneak

Level: 3 Beginner

Now creatures with poor hearing and vision might not see you. Okay, they probably will.

Congratulations, you've improved a skill!

Skill Learned: Archery

Level: 5 Beginner

With practice, you will one day not completely suck at this.

Congratulations, you've improved a skill!

Skill Learned: Rapid Fire

Level: 2 Beginner

Woot! Two of those shots actually hit something!

Congratulations, you've improved a skill!

Skill Learned: Tracking

Level: 1 Beginner

Now you will be able to spot subtle signs of massive lumbering beasts through a thick forest.

You have gained 100 XP for killing a Wild Deer (Stag).

You have gained 75 XP for killing a Wild Deer (Doe).

You have gained 50 XP for killing a Wild Boar.

You have gained 50 XP for killing a Wild Boar.

You have gained 50 XP for killing a Wild Boar.

Rob went over the notifications and was a little overwhelmed by it. He didn't really care about the details, but he'd gained three hundred and twenty-five experience from the hunting trip so far and acquired several skill levels. He was curious about one thing, though.

"Juno, did you get experience for killing the deer?"

She swiped with her finger in the air and said, "Yes, I got fifty for the male and twenty-five for the female."

"Interesting. I got more for those kills. I think experience is granted automatically for party members and then distributed by action. I was the one who fired the shots, and I got the majority of the points."

She looked closer at her. Display and asked, "Sam, what did you get for killing the boar?"

"I got seventy-five for the first one and then fifty for the other one I fought. I got twenty-five for the one you were fighting, I think."

She nodded and said, "I got fifty, twenty-five, and twenty-five. It looks like you get a small portion for just being in the party. Did you get anything for the deer?"

Sam replied, "No, that's lame. I didn't get points for any deer."

Robert looked at his points and said, "I think it gives you points if you are involved in the fight, even if you don't cause damage. Since Sam wasn't with us when we were hunting, he didn't get anything. I got fifty points from each boar because I hit all of them. Does that make sense?"

They both nodded, and Juno said, "So when we fight, we need to make sure we all get at least one hit in on something if we want a more equal split on the experience. That's probably not possible in some fights, but it should be when hunting."

They agreed to alter their tactics when hunting so everyone could get as much of an equal split in the experience as possible. Having met the hunting quest requirements, they decided to move further into the forest and see if they could scout the Goblin area and gain some more experience.