Chapter 14 "Special Ability"

"Hunting? You wanna hunting right now?" Dimas looked at me in disbelief.

I nodded slowly. "Tomorrow night, Grussel let me back to join the hunting. After a week of not doing anything, I'm afraid if my reflex and ability reduced. Moreover, I'm not a good hunter. I need personal training. You should know that."

"But it's dangerous if you crossing Elvian territory."

"Of course not. I won't go there, just the woods around the town," I said with a big smile.

The boy sighed softly and patted my head. "Okay, but one condition. I'll come with you to make sure you are okay."

"No problem."

The sky now completely fell to the dark. The evening ray lines in the sky had vanished. Under the field of stars, we left the tower. Took a walk toward the base of Dark Night.

After about half an hour of walking, we finally arrived. I waited in front of the store next to the base while Dimas went fetch my weapon. I was still in the punishment period right now. If I went inside, Grussel would drive me out again and probably add the sentence. The old man was very discipline once a matter of time. Even though just one minute, it was considered late for him. I often got hit by him many times because my hunting time passed the deadline he gave.

Fifteen minutes passed. Dimas crept out through the back door. It would undoubtedly become a big question when he was caught carrying my short bow out of the base. I immediately put on my hunting equipment. I hung a foot-long dagger at the waist. Then the quiver and a short bow on the back.

"Let's go!" I said excitedly. We hurriedly left the place and headed out of town.

Looking at Dimas, he also had armed himself with a short sword. That thing often used to finish off our game. Besides learning about hunting, we were also taught about self-defense and how to use weapons in the Dark Night. Dimas chose sword art because in Wushu he had mastered at, have the sword course. So, he already knew the basics. Or so he thought.

While the reason I chose archery was that I was inspired by the various video games. Every time playing fantasy adventure games, I used to select an archer character. Because I thought it was very cool. The second reason was my new body. Now I am no longer a human being but Haier-Elvian. A race that had super-sharp hearing and vision. With these privileges, becoming an archer was suitable for me.

"Hey!" said Dimas.

"What?"

"We won't hunt for too long. Just find one game, then go home."

"Yes, yes," I said lazily.

Honestly, I was quite annoyed by his character. Too anxious about something. He was like a mother who worried every time her son went to play out.

After a long walk, I saw the western town gate. I greeted the guards who were standing over the gate. They already knew that we were hunters. I wondered what Grussel did. Maybe he bribed or even threatened them. These guards always welcomed us when we passed the gate. Just telling Grussel's name, they would let you pass the gate.

The town's crowd began fading little by little when I walked away from the town gate. Only the rustling sounds of insects and dried autumn leaves blown by the wind that existed right now. The trees here didn't grow too tight because some area around here has been cleared to open fields. The flickering light of fireflies led us in the dark rice field. Continuing toward the edge of the woods.

My feet stepped on solid ground when I got in the entrance of the woods. Small stones scattered about as if they wanted to harm anyone who wasn't careful.

A half-hour walking on foot, the trees became more dense and dark. Rubiel light wasn't apparent because of thick clouds. For me, this wasn't a problem. My eyes were still able to see as well as during the day. In contrast to Dimas, who was only human, he still required light to see in the darkness. That's why he was holding a small lantern in his hand.

That object could lighten a few meters around. Not very wide. But that was the most important thing for hunters like us. We couldn't let other people know where we were because the light was too bright, right? This lantern also easily to be turned off and on. So we could immediately hide our presence when Elvian approached.

I motioned a hand on Dimas to stop. My ears caught a sound. I close my eyes to concentrate in order to get a clear sound. Like projected on the screen, I could see clearly in my mind whatever was around, even with my eyes closed. Such as Dimas, who looking at me with a tense face. Falling leaves that fell on my hair. Also, the ant colony that was building a giant nest right under my feet. All could be seen from all directions very clear. I called this ability 'Super Sense.'

Then I directed my Super Sense further toward the sound source. Projection in my mind going through into the depths of the forest. Passing the towering pine trees. Behind the shrubbery near the small river gurgling softly, there was an elk eating fruits. The voice I heard coming from the crushed fruit when chewed by its teeth. It had a fat body and big horns. This seemed like a good game. Lucky.

Then I stopped my Super Sense, then turned my head to Dimas. "There is an elk five hundred meters to the north. We should get there soon before it flees."

"Then, let's go!"

In the next second, we both ran as fast as lightning through the trees and rocky road. I was in front leading the way, while Dimas was behind. I ran while reactivating my Super Sense, worried when there was danger approaching. Although the radius wasn't large, only a few meters away.

Learning from my wrongdoing of weeks ago, I was always ready and alert at all times when getting to the woods. This area was still included in human territory. Of course, no Elvian here. But the danger could come from anywhere. So I turned it on as a precaution.

I gave Dimas a signal to stop when within a hundred meters of the elk. Dimas turned off his lantern and depended on me for his vision. The elk could run away after hearing the sound of our footsteps. Of course, I didn't want to risk it. We both walked over very carefully. Slow but sure, I began to approach the target.

I cast a glance from behind a large tree root. Near shrubs in front of it, an elk was eating fruits that fell from the tree. It had huge twin horns. The elk wasn't a mystical creature, but the horns could be sold at high prices. My wallet could finally be packed again after a week reduced continuously.

I nodded my head toward Dimas, who hiding in a tree next to me. He knew what I meant. It was a simple plan. I shot its legs with my bow, and he'd finished it. This was the standard strategy when I was hunting with him.

With a focused sight over there, I took an arrow and put it on my short bow. I took a stand idle and drew my bow up to the maximum. The weapon I used was a short bow that had no long-range shooting. But this was enough to paralyze the game in front of me.

I took a deep breath. Sharpening my glance at it. In the next breath, I took off the arrow.

The elk was screaming when my arrow pierced right on its feet. Without thinking anymore, Dimas jumped forward immediately. A short sword penetrated right into the elk's heart.

"Nice, Dimas!"

I ran up to him. Witnessing the elk struggling at its deathbed. Its eyes were still staring at me intensely. Perhaps it wanted to tell me, 'What wrongdoing have I done to you?'.

I experienced this many times, but it still made me feel uneasy every time I was staring at the game. Dimas had already started cutting its horn with his sword, didn't care even if the animal was still not completely dead.

I released the last arrows right in the middle of its head to free it from suffering. Little by little, the life color faded from its eyes. Until a few seconds later, it was really dead. Then I crouched down next to the elk. Closing its eyes that wide opened, and stroked its fur. It was a particular ritual of mine at any game I killed. The animals died because of my selfishness. So I thought, at least I could give them last respects.

"Could you stop praying for the animal? I need help here!" shouted Dimas. The boy somehow had managed to cut one huge horn. Splitting into small pieces, then put it in his leather bag.

"I don't pray for it but gave it my last respect."

"It's the same, stupid! Come on, help me skinning it too!"

If I were buying time again, he would have continued to yell. So I inevitably joined him. Dividing the huge horn, which he cut into small pieces. We both also skinned it. Because the elk skin could be made to accessories and clothing raw materials. Indeed some breeders breed the elk in the town. But of course, the quality was much different from the thick skin of wild elk.

When we busied of skinning elk, my ears suddenly caught a terrible noise.

"What?" asked Dimas while seeing me stand alert.

I activated Super Sense and tried to see the sight projection around. While it was expanded to the maximum radius that reached several hundred meters, I still didn't see anything. Only trees and shrubs were there. However, the noise was quite clear, and the ground shake felt strong. It seemed that it wasn't the horde of some animals but a bunch of men.

"There seems to be a group of people in this way. Quite a lot," I said.

"Let's hide!"

"But where? Around us, there are only big trees."

Dimas paused a while. "That's a great place!"

That was how it ended, I and Dimas hiding above a tree. In these woods, the trees grew tall and high. The distance between the ground surface and me was about ten meters. We were safe for a while, maybe.

The rumble was heard clearly even though I wasn't using my Super Sense. Dimas, who was just a mere human, could hear the noise too. His face tightened as he watched the direction of the sound source.

A moment later, the bunch of horse-drawn carriages showed while speeding up. They looked like a line of ants, followed up to the back in one line. The tree where we were both hiding vibrated when they were passing by. Than horse-drawn carriage, it could be more appropriate to call it a cargo. A special carriage was built for transporting traders' merchandise.

"It looks like they are a group of merchants," Dimas said quietly.

"Wait a minute, the merchants usually going for the expedition at day, right?"

As far as I knew, the town merchants started an expedition when the sun began to rise. They expected the blessings of the Sun God while traveling.

"It means they are not from this country. Let's look at their clothes which are covered with thick animal skins. I'm sure they are coming from North Sigrotia Iuna. The country is famous for the extreme winter," said Dimas.

"I have never seen them before."

"Of course. Because they come to this country by infiltrating. Definitely to avoid customs of this country."

"How dare they sneak in with this amount!"

"Maybe they already knew weak points of patrol knight's surveillance in Lurivia Kingdom. So they are confident with this crazy action."

After a short while, they are gone. Dimas and I decided to climb down a tree and immediately returned to the city. The night was too late. Maybe this time, I just avoided one problem. But who knew I'd met a big problem when lingering in this forest anymore.

Though not a single minute since I said that, the problem came back.  When leaping down the branches below me, suddenly, my feet slipped because I got the wrong foothold. The branch that I set foot was too fragile. Unavoidably, it was immediately broken, and dropped my body fell from a height.

"ANGGIII ... !!" shouted Dimas loudly

While thinking about how my body would crumble when I hit the ground, a miracle happened. An open-top cargo passed precisely beneath me. Getting rid of possibilities that would make me broken bones, bruises, or worse, killed.

*BRUAK!

My back hit a wooden box so hard to make it break apart. Fruits that were in it got spilled, mostly destroyed by me. Leave stains all over my clothes. My head hit some objects I didn't know. It made me feel excruciating pain like death.

Consciousness was slowly fading but surely. The entire energy left this body. Languish in the darkness. The last thing I saw was Dimas, who ran after me, trying to get the cargo.

I smiled wryly, you idiot! The ordinary man like you couldn't compare to this cargo speed.

Geez, Dimas ... he always worried excessively.

He really ... really my ... true friend. But he-

... -ry stupid...