2 Months Later...

Tim's encounter with the mysterious figure from that night really changed his viewpoint about where he lay on the food chain. He had never been under the assumption that he was exceptionally talented or powerful at all, yet it hadn't fully registered just how low he was.

On that night, Tim may have been acting calm enough when speaking to that figure, but he couldn't have been any farther from it. Tim was terrified, but he didn't feel like his life was in all that much danger, surprisingly. Yeah, the figure could have killed him, but he felt like if it really wanted Tim dead, he would be lying on the ground in multiple pieces right now.

This made Tim wonder what exactly they wanted from him, but that was a thought for another time.

Right now, he had to get stronger, and quickly. If he somehow survived that night by bluffing, then he would have to make sure he can stand by that bluff if or when that figure decided to make an attempt on his life.

He had already been training using a simple exercise routine from his previous world, but that had been proving to be of minimal use. So instead, he decided to try to train himself to be better with weapons and the gear that he had so he could at least get a sense of real fighting.

Tim would begin to undergo weapon training from Mr. Gee, as the second he mentioned it to him, he offered. Tim, of course, accepted and for the last 2 months, he has been progressing through his training quite effectively according to Mr. Gee.

Tim didn't have lots of time to think due to Mr. Gee's grueling training, but as Tim was quite interested in the subject of sharp pointy things that make monsters bleed, it felt more like a field trip. It really helps to enjoy the things you work hard at.

After Tim had got back from his first hunt of many, he informed Mr. Gee of his success, resulting in his allowance of another ritual, which he quickly undertook. This one was much milder than the other two, with only minimally horrifying results. An ominous black smoke flowed from every one of Tim's orifices, quickly filling the ritual room with its deathly smell.

This event resulted in Tim's first active skill.

- Awakened [Death] property through the use of a ritual.

- Unlocked [Death] property skill [Whisper of Rot].

- Awakened 3 of 4 properties.

- Awaken 1 more property to progress to Copper rank.

[Whisper of Rot] (Active)

Cost: Very Light Mana

Cooldown: 30 seconds

Releases a small amount of death energy unto the target, dealing a minor amount of necrotic damage. Effective against enemies with flesh.

"May your flesh melt and skin fall."

(Bound to Vigor)

After the ritual, Tim felt his muscles become invigorated. He knew the cause was the ritual, but he felt that he deserved this strength.

Mr. Gee also offered to just up and give him his next ritual as well, but Tim refused his offer, wanting to hone his current skills and gain experience before getting another ability. He felt he didn't deserve it just yet.

During his training, Tim had learned a lot about how to handle a dagger, among other common weapons like swords and spears. He had also learned a lot about himself.

A part of Mr. Gee's training included sparring with others. Most of the time, Mr. Gee brought a seemingly random fighter from the village to combat him, sometimes a young aspiring adventurer, just fresh into his second property, other times, an experienced hunter with all of their properties awakened.

Tim found out that there were many distinct differences in fighters depending on what their occupation was. When he fought adventurers, he noticed that they fought more freely, almost not noticing the ground they stand on. Of course, a swordsman adventurer wouldn't take the same path as a ranger adventurer, with the ranger trying to make the distance, while the swordsmen tried to close the distance as quickly as possible.

When Mr. Gee brought hunters in, they seemed to be the same as adventurers at first. Only that when the fight started, they tend to be more creative, using the environment to their advantage, sometimes using nature magic to literally set the stage for themselves, while others climbed up tall trees and structures to use for their next attack. While they definitely had Tim beat in environmental awareness, they had a major weakness, and that was their movement. That isn't to say they were slow, but that they were predictable. While they used the environment to their advantage, they also used the same parts of the environment to their advantage based on their general style.

All of the bow-wielding hunters used the rocks and trees to hide behind while stringing their bow back or knocking an arrow. All but one of the dagger-wielding quick ones used the bushes or trees to obscure themselves while they waited for an opening. Surprisingly, there were no sword users among the hunters presented to Tim for some reason. Mr. Gee said it was because there isn't much you can do to use the environment when you've got a sword, which I think is just an excuse for all the hunters wanting to be unique and not use such a common weapon.

After the first month of training, Mr. Gee introduced Tim to a new sparring partner. Mr. Gee said he was a guard for the village, and didn't have any properties unlocked. When Tim asked why, the man just said he was confident in his strength without any properties.

Tim doubted the man, but when the fight started, he was overwhelmed by the man's strength. He was just a little slower than Tim, but when he eventually had to get close, he was grabbed by the man and taken to the ground in a motion similar to the police back in his old world. This man was definitely used to taking enemies down without hurting them, which Tim found himself to be quite bad at.

Out of the many fighters he had fought, many had either come out with bruises, scrapes, or both. Most of the casualties were adventurers, being generally less careful about their own safety. What Tim noticed, however, was that out of all the fights, Tim wasn't left with any more than a few scratches. Maybe Mr. Gee told them to go easy on him. He would have to talk to that old man about that.

As Tim both trained his physical abilities, he also asked questions to further improve his knowledge, which would be equally, if not, more important than his fitness.

So, asking good old Mr. Gee, Tim found out lots about magic, the other races, and the world in general.

The continent they were on was called Humona, and they were in the western part of the continent, surrounded by humans, and coincidentally, in the most racist part, where dark elves aren't majorly accepted.

Apparently, there are numerous races, but the ones with major political and global power or influence are the Humans, Dark Elves, Gnomish, Bestia, Pilvis, and lastly, the Omen.

From the looks standpoint, it seems humans are the same as back on Tim's old world, besides maybe being a bit more on the European side from all the talk of blond and red hair.

Dark Elves were, from what he could see in front of him, blue-greyish humanoids with pointy ears and silver hair. Another little tidbit was that a dark elf's eyes changed color throughout their lives depending on how "ripe" or "mature" their magic is. The maturity of said magic goes as follows in order from least to greatest: black, crimson, neon green/cloudy blue depending on whether they are a man or a woman. To put this into perspective a little, Tim's adventuring group contained three with black eyes and one with red, the red being Hera. Looking in front of him, he noticed that Mr. Gee's eyes were white, making it look as if he was blind, but he would ask that question later.

Now, the Gnomish are a unique case. They are apparently a mix of dwarven and goblin DNA, causing them to be categorized as more monster than sapient, with the only reason they are even considered sapient being due to their incredible intelligence if evolved enough, which brings us to the next point, evolution. Gnomish start out as little creatures called gremlins, and once evolved, will become gnomes, gaining vast amounts of intellect and retaining their monster dexterity, at the cost of evolution.

On a much simpler note, the Bestia are basically just animal people, with stories of their origins ranging from simple beastiality, to incredible tales of the gods mixing and matching different species until they got the lovely cast we have today. What makes the Bestia unique is that it is an entire race with a vast amount of sub-species. Bestia, as a term roughly translates to "beast" and was originally used as a word meant to put down the species, but today is used to describe human and animal halfbreeds. Some species include, but are not limited to: Lizardmen, Felfolk, Canis, and Harpies, which aren't necessarily a mix between bird and human, but due to their intelligence and appearance, are considered a sapient race of Bestia.

The Pilvis are a race that Tim had never heard of in any fantasy novel or mythology, being as he could only describe as cloud people. Their skin is a light blue and they have cloud-like fur covering their most vulnerable areas, acting as a natural defense. Not much is known of their origins besides their stories of having been created from the very sky itself by their god in the hopes of their power being recognized. The Pilvis are currently the highest reigning race at the moment with the most political and military power in the world known to the public, basically raising Humanity's power rankings up to second place with the mere mention of the friendship between both races leaders. The Pilvis have very misleading appearances with the women being slender and quaint, with the men having broad shoulders, wide chests, and bulging muscles being shared by both. The thing is, the men are generally more attuned to magic while the women pick up the role of warrior. It also seems that their society revolved around strong female leaders and wise male advisors. Good for them.

Last, but not least were the Omen. If you couldn't tell from the name alone, the Omen are a widely renowned people, being infamous for their powerful magic and physically strong bodies. What makes them so special, you ask? Well, they're the only sapient race of undead known to the world. As they are a very secretive people, not much is known of them. There are theories as to their origins, but even that much is just speculation. The closest anyone has to information about them is their affinity for passive abilities. This discovery leads many to believe that the Omen are a weak people, but they couldn't be any more wrong. They may start out weaker than an ordinary sapient, as they only have access to weak passive abilities, but as time passes, and their abilities become stronger and more numerous, it results in absolutely monstrous potential, especially as their passive abilities are enhanced with each rank, which is something Tim just recently learned.

With having spent a whole hour answering questions, Mr. Gee grew impatient. Much to his relief, however, Tim had finally been done. Mr. Gee wasted no time and quickly left the room before explaining that he had to be somewhere.

Tim, now alone in his room at the inn, began thinking of what to do next. He wanted to hone his skills against others at his skill level right now, but Mr. Gee had already left, so he wouldn't be able to ask him to bring a sparring partner. He could always ask one of his hunting buddies for some help sparring, but he felt like he already outclassed them by a small bit, at least when it came to skill.

Tim had gone on more than 10 hunts in the last two months, earning himself a good sum of vel, this world's currency. After hearing the word in the Fighters Building after his first hunt, he had asked Mr. Gee about it, surprising him yet again with how little he knew. Mr. Gee almost didn't believe him when he asked the first time, as a noble would surely know that much, at least.

Of course, after consistent pestering, Mr. Gee eventually explained it to him.

An iron coin is 1 vel. Copper is 10 vel, silver is 100, and gold is 1000. To give an example of how much each is worth, Mr. Gee gave him examples.

You can buy a meal for a large family with around 5 vel. You can buy a weapon made of a common metal with 30 or more depending on the quality and artisan that made it. 100 vel is enough to both pay for rent and food in a month, and 1000 vel is enough to buy a small home. If you wanted to buy an enchanted weapon, it would be more complicated. You have to take into account the enchantments, the quality of the metal used, the artisan, where you are, and what type of tool it is. An enchanted weapon's price tag can range from 1000 to even above 100,000.

With what he has received from his share, so far, he could afford a whole set of leather armor and a simple iron sword. He didn't end up purchasing the armor and sword, though just knowing he could afford it just goes to show how well off adventurers are. This was especially impressive considering how Tim was now paying for his room at the inn himself. Ever since he came back from his first hunt, he was told that he was to pay for it himself, since he's had the chance to leave unharmed.

Not that it matters, but Tim still hasn't found out what to call the innkeeper. Everybody else in the inn just calls him "The Keep." He's beginning to feel like nobody else knows either.

Tim began to wonder just how much more he would make if he didn't have to share the earnings. He could probably afford another enchanted weapon by now, but the risk would barely be worth it. Speaking of which, Mr. Gee seemed to be quite wealthy considering how nonchalantly he bought Tim his enchanted dagger. Of course, this comes as no surprise since Mr. Gee was the village's only priest, and priests tend to get paid a lot in this world, due to their skills in ritual performing.

Looking through the various stalls in the village, Tim searched for something he could use against monsters, the thought of going on a hunt by himself still lingering in his mind.

Eventually, he came across a stall featuring clear jars with unknown substances of varying color. Curious, he asked the man behind the stall what they were used for. The man said that some contained various materials used for rituals and others contained poisons or elixirs. This took Tim's interest, causing him to purchase two jars of poison, one a deep green and the other a cloudy white. This was so he could dip his dagger in the poison to increase his deadliness versus monsters with a low resistance to poison. He also purchased one jar of an elixir the man described as a cure-all so if he accidentally inflicted the poison on himself, he could quickly relieve himself of it. He doubted it could actually be a cure-all, but he didn't think the man was lying either, so he bought it. The so-called cure-all elixir was a golden yellow that bubbled in the sunlight.

Happy with his purchase, Tim put the jars inside his bag for safekeeping, wary that he might spill their contents on the coarse dirt ground.

"Now what to do next..." Tim muttered.

He then gazed down in his hands at the lone copper coin resting there.

"Those jars of elixir were expensive..." he cried.

He only had enough money for another night at the inn. He would have to go on a hunt if he wanted to continue living there. Of course, he didn't want to save up for another two months in order to go on another shopping trip like this, so he only had one choice.

It's time for a solo hunt.