“I’ve constructed a strange apparatus,” Cranston continued as I skimmed through the pages of each book. “As per the instructions given in the book. It’s a small set of spheres. Apparently, when you decide what you want to create, the spheres will light up and inform me of such a choice.”
“Interesting,” I said. “So, I don’t have to run back and forth, telling you what to build?”
“Not if these books are to be believed,” Cranston said, smiling wide. I could see a fire in his eyes, an excitement of what was to come. “Now, come on, send old Cranston an order. I’ve already skinned and deboned the beasts. Dette handled the organs as per your instructions. We’ve plenty of material. Let’s get to making something!”
I grinned at that. “You’ve got it, Cranston! Go to that device and I’ll put in an order.”
I opened up the Smithing section of the Hunter’s Sight to find out what I could make.
Material:
-125 Kinru Bone
- 50 Kinru Hide
-7 Kinru Tooth
-1 Kinru Claw
Weapons :
Bone Bow:
Material Cost : 50 Bone
Bonus: +1 Ranged Weapons, +1 Dexterity
Infusion Slots: 1
Description: The hollow bones of the Kinru make for an exceptionally light and flexible bow, improving the speed and range of the attacks.
Tooth Arrows:
Material Cost: 10 Bone, 5 Teeth
Bonus: Arrows deal more damage to unarmored targets or weak spots.
Description: Grants 50 Tooth Arrows per order.
Armor:
Light Scale Leather Armor:
Material Cost: 25 Kinru Hide
Bonus: Resists light slashing damage such as grazes, horizontal cuts and tail whips.
Stat Penalty: 0
Infusion Slots: 2
Medium Scale Leather Armor:
Material Cost: 35 Kinru Hide
Bonus: Resists up to medium slashing damage such as clawing, vertical slashes and talon swipes.
Stat Penalty: -1 Acrobatics, -1 Dexterity
Infusion Slots: 2
Heavy Scale Leather Armor:
Material Cost: 50 Kinru Hide
Bonus: Resists heavy slashing damage, resists light piercing damage such as snapping bites, punctures or weak arrow attacks.
Stat Penalty: -2 Acrobatics, -1 Dexterity, -1 Stealth
Infusion Slots: 2
Tools:
Bone Spear Trap:
Material Cost: 10 Bone
Effect: Bone Spears do more damage than wooden spears and can be reused. Contains everything needed to build 1 Spear Trap.
This list, while small, contained the only things that I could craft due to the limited amount of materials that I had to work with. The Kinru had provided excellent yields, but their skin and bones weren’t useful for too much. At least, not compared to some of the other creatures detailed in these books. Still, any bonus was worth it.
My first order was the Bone Bow. The weapon would be a straight upgrade for my current bow, a flimsy little wooden bow that didn’t pack much of a punch. I focused on ordering the construction of the bow and, within seconds, I could see a status symbol in the right-hand corner, telling me how much time it would take. 24 hours to build the bow. That was fine; I was still bedridden for now. By the time my legs had recovered, I’d have a full kit of gear waiting for me.
The second order was just the one set of Tooth Arrows. The Kinru teeth would make razor sharp ammo. Since I could automatically recover arrows, I’d be able to use them indefinitely. 50 would be more than enough for most normal fights.
I paused and examined the three different armor types that were available. I wasn’t crazy about the armor penalties from the stronger armors, but I understood why. Heavier armor made it harder to move around. I couldn’t be leaping heroically when I was wearing thick enough armor to block the heaviest of attacks.
The decision to take the light armor was fairly easy. I had focused on mobility this far; there was no reason to change my plan on the account of the armor options in front of me. Not getting caught was preferable to simply withstanding blows. The light armor would help reduce damage from faster attacks without impeding my speed. The damage reduction might not be much, but it was still better than nothing. I selected the armor and then put a single order in for a Spear Trap as well. Come tomorrow evening, I’d be ready for another hunt.
Chapter 19
“So many buckles,” I muttered as I adjusted the leather armor once again, releasing the tension in the buckles so that it wasn’t choking the air out of me. The design was strange and complex; it was nothing like any armor I had ever seen before. Even the old history books showed more conventional types of armor than this.
The brown leather covered my entire torso, with grey scales reinforcing my vital areas, giving the armor a checkered appearance. Gloves and boots were also part of the armor, giving me excellent balance as well as a much firmer grip than my bare hands. The only parts of my body that were unarmored were my legs and my head.
The design of the Light Scale Leather did not cover the legs, unlike the other two designs. This freed me up to run as quickly as I liked without anything holding me back, but at the same time, I had to worry being injured in my legs. To make up for this vulnerability, Cranston crafted a simple pair of leggings that were made with thicker cloth material, flexible but sturdy. While these pants wouldn’t be seriously resisting any kind of attacks, they did match the rest of my armor. This would camouflage my vulnerabilities (or so we hoped) to intelligent attackers. Most monsters probably wouldn’t realize the concept of armor at all and go for the torso, the biggest target on the body.
As for a helmet, I’d need metals in order to build one. Our village didn’t have the material necessary, but Dette was very quick to brag that her own village had plenty of the precious ore to craft anything I needed. My assistant had mentioned this in passing with no thought behind her words. But I pondered on that idea.
There were quite a few items and weapons that combined precious metal and monster material together. The only metal our village had access to had been salvaged by scouts who found scraps of metal here and there, taken from old structures and fallen buildings. Convincing Dette’s town to open up trade with me would ultimately open the door for me to acquire better weapons. I would need only the best of options in order to kill a Titan.
With that information in mind, I decided to take a quick trip outside, to find the secret tunnel that led to Dette’s village. The alchemical ingredients were still being extracted, but I found that as long as I was the one to start the process, anyone, Dette included, could tend to them and I’d still get the extraction yield bonus. My legs were finally better, and I was itching to test out my new gear in the heat of battle. The Bone Bow hanging on my back wanted to see some action and so did I.
Was this lust for battle normal? I wondered that as I slipped out of Hunter’s Hope in the middle of the night, making my way to the surface. Rashar had warned about those who sought out battle too eagerly. “One must walk, not run into battle,” he had explained during one of his lectures. “The Venator who walks can see everything. The one who runs can only see her grave.” Yet, even in spite of this dire warning, I found myself looking forward to the next conflict.
As I walked across the land, I felt a strange sensation come over my head, like a burning hot hand running through my hair. At once, I became fully aware of how many monsters were within the region. My Home Territory ability was now activated. I focused on that burning sensation and new words appeared in front of me, summarizing the area.
Monsters in Zinoss Jungle
Kinru: 5
Fitzon: 3
????: 1
????: 1
Mulrand: 1
“Interesting,” I muttered, looking at the two mystery numbers. One each. I had heard some kind of strange beast snuffing around the area the other day. I would need to start
tracking it soon, so I could at least figure out what it was. The other question mark creature was undoubtedly the beast lurking in the water. I had yet to find out the identity of the creature, but that was now a task for Dette.
She would sort through all of the books and take notes about different monsters, giving me highlights so that I could quickly find what I was looking for. Then I’d just have to use my Bloodpoints to transfer the knowledge that I was looking for.
I continued making my way to the secret tunnel, glancing at the amount of creatures left in the area. 8 Scavengers were left. With my upgraded weapons, I had no doubt that the Kinru would be easy pickings, but I was less confident about the Fitzons. I didn’t know anything about them yet. Serious observation would need to be undertaken before I could strike, so I could learn their patterns. Then I’d record that down in my own journal, for the future Venators who would come after me.
The secret passage was a ditch in the denser part of the jungle, where the trees blocked out a lot of light. Shadows passed over me as I walked past a large tree, looking for the ditch. I remembered that it was around here somewhere, but the exact location was lost on me.
“Where’s the Cartography skill when you need it?” I mumbled, looking for the large split in the ground that was wide enough to flood during the rainy season. As I walked, my ears began to twitch ever so slightly, picking up the sounds of snuffing and huffing in the distance. The mystery monster! It was to the north of me.
Not wanting to lose the opportunity to identify this beast, I was quick to slip forward, keeping my steps light so that it could not hear me. I moved through the dark jungle, hiding in some bushes as I heard the sound of ground shifting and sand pouring on the other side of the tree line.
Sticking my head through the dense trees, I could spot the trench that I had been looking for. Standing atop the hole was a creature unlike anything I had ever seen before. Its body was black and rubbery, lanky and upright, as if it were a tree of some sort. Its legs were long and crablike, able to move the creature in any direction at a moment’s notice. Its head, solid black as well, had bright yellow eyes and a long snout that was sniffing loudly. There was no mouth on its face, however, but rather the jaws were located on the center of its trunk, opening every so often to cough out loose dirt that it had inhaled.
The thick trunked monster had what looked to be two long hooks for hands, made of bone or perhaps cartilage. It was using these hooks to dig through the dirt, as if looking for something. The beast was eagerly sniffing the ground while digging, confident that it was on the scent of a prey.
A feeling of uneasiness welled up in my stomach as I stared at the monster. The Kinru and Fitzon, as fierce as they were, looked somewhat natural. But this beast in front of me was not an animal of any kind. Chills went down my spine the longer I looked at it and, on some instinctual level, I felt a desire to run away. Was this fear supernatural? Or was I actually afraid?
I shook my head and tried to gain a hold of my senses. I had nothing to fear. This monster had no chance of climbing a tree with such a large body and such thin arms. I could take it down from on high if it saw me. But, for now, I would simply hide and observe its activities.
The trunk beast continued to dig through the dirt of the ditch, working with great determination to find something to eat. A lot of dirt was already displaced, showing that the creature had been here for quite some time. I wondered if the other village was directly beneath this passage, or if they used a tunnel network like Hunter’s Hope did. Either way, this creature would eventually make its way down there if it kept this up.
Should I intervene? That was the big question. I knew nothing about this monster and, from the looks of its physiology, it might be way harder to kill than a Kinru. At the same time, if I killed this beast right on the front door of this village, they might be willing to cooperate with me, knowing that I truly meant them no harm.
I decided to do a test run on this trunk beast. Since the monster was too occupied with the scent to focus on anything else, I began to make a small clearing in the bushes, so that I could lure the monster in this direction. A spear trap would greet the beast as it chased me into an area with a big tree that I could climb to maintain my distance. I dug out a few pit traps in the center, as an escape plan in case I needed to bail. If the monster proved too powerful, I’d flee in that direction and hope the pit would keep it busy while I took off.
Once the work was done, I returned to the ditch to see the monster still digging with its long hooks. The hooks worked liked cupped hands, sifting the dirt to the side, with expert precision. The ends of those hooks were razor sharp and I wondered if those were used for slashing or simply impaling a target and dragging them to its mouth.
This was it. Time to test the waters. If I was injured at all, I’d run away. I was more interested in learning about this creature’s abilities than simply killing it. Of course, if it was too weak, I’d be fine with putting an end to this fight right now. But something in my gut told me that this monster wasn’t like the others I had faced so far.
I raised my new bow and took a deep breath. The bone was flexible and smooth; it felt good to hold. Energy surged through me as the bow granted me its bonuses. As long as the weapon was in my hands, I’d move faster and hit more accurately.
“Here we go,” I whispered, firing the shot at the center of the creature’s torso. The arrow sailed through the air and crashed into the monster’s body with a loud thunk . But the beast did not react to the injury at all. It merely ceased its digging and leaned up.
“Oh, you’re here!” the creature said, its mouth speaking my own language perfectly. It gestured for me to come closer. “Come quickly, there isn’t much time.”
“You can talk?” I replied, jumping back at its words. I had not been expecting speech to come out of its mouth.
“You have to help,” it said. “I need help.” It turned back and began digging once again.
Foolishly I took a step forward before catching myself. No, this was some kind of trap. “Who are you?” I said, nocking another arrow on my bow. The first shot had no effect and made a loud thunk when it struck the torso. This meant that that creature’s body was too sturdy. The legs might be a better weak point. Or maybe the snout.
“I need help,” the beast repeated, looking back at me. It blinked a few times and then motioned for me to come again. “Please, I’m alone. Come help me.”
The words were short and terse, as if the phrases were entirely disconnected. Its voice was so pleading and sad that I felt a little bad for shooting it. Even though I knew something was wrong, I found myself taking a half-step forward.
“Stop,” I grunted, snapping myself out of a small daze that had come over me. I backed up again and looked away. The feelings of guilt vanished instantly as I broke eye contact.
“I’m alone and sick, my leg was broken,” the beast called as I took a deep breath and readied another shot. This monster had some kind of power to entrance its victims, calling for help in a human voice. The longer I looked at it, the more I felt compelled to believe its words. What an interesting power.
I glanced back at the creature, half-squinting to avoid directly looking at it, and took another shot. The arrow missed, flying into the dirt past the beast. It paid no mind and began to dig once more. Glancing and shooting wasn’t going to work. I backed up a good ten feet from where I was standing and looked at the monster, and a compulsion to walk forward came over me again. This feeling had replaced the fear I had felt towards the lure beast earlier.
I tried to simply ignore the urges, but as I focused on drawing my bow back, I found myself walking forward, past the spear trap I had set. The longer I was in this creature’s presence, the closer I needed to walk to it.
“Get a hold of yourself,” I muttered as I forced my head to look away from the monster. This wasn’t going to work. I couldn’t try and fight it if it were compelling me to get closer. I’d have to improvise a way to ge
t this beast to come chasing after me.
I closed my eyes and raised my bow, focusing on my hearing above all else. I could hear the movement of the hooks quite easily, moving dirt and mud aside in a smooth, singular action. I aimed the bow and released an arrow, listening to hear where it landed. There was another thunk and I quickly glanced to find it had it the trunk. I just needed to aim higher, but not too high. A damaged nose might be the ticket to provoking the beast’s ire.
I fired two more times, missing both shots. Firing blind wasn’t easy, but I kept at it (although I had switched to my regular, non-tooth arrows.) After the fourth shot, I finally heard a shriek from the monster. I opened one eye to see that I had struck it, not on the nose but in one of its arms.
The demeanor of the creature changed entirely after my arrow lodged itself into its hook limb. Bright green blood began leaking from the beast and it let out a terrifying roar from its mouth. The sound was enough to convince me to start running, and run I did.
I turned and darted past the spear trap making my way to the big tree that had been waiting for me. The lure beast shrieked and skittered after me, its long crab legs easily navigating the uneven ditch. I quickly dashed up a few limbs, 20 feet above the ground, and readied my tooth arrows. Hopefully the lure effect was no longer active since it was in fight mode.
The lure beast emerged through the clearing I had made, and I watched as the three spears in the ground fired forward, stabbing the beast right in the trunk. All three spears had lodged themselves into the tree-like torso of the creature, but they had no effect on it. It moved forward, breaking the trap as if they were nothing more than toothpicks in the way.
I grimaced at that and snapped off a shot, hoping to land a hit on its nose, an area I was still trying to target. The limbs were glowing faintly, revealing that they were weak points, but the faintness of the glow meant that they weren’t the best place to hit in the body. I’d need to uncover vitals if I were to take it down.
Monster Hunting 101: A LitRPG Fantasy Adventure (Titan Termination) Page 12
