Chapter 3: The First Loss and Victory
Author's Note:
Few things I would like to say
[Night's Blade] changed to [Night's Reach]
Added [Level: 1] for Status Screen
Would like to know if you guys want me to have Luke's current Status Screen at the end of each chapter so you guys can look over if you want to confirm stuff
Would also like to know if you guys find any holes in the storyline that I might have missed so I can check
Thanks :)
~~~~~
The forest that surrounded the Town of Genesis was divided into three sections with each part being ruled by different monsters. The rulers were the Goblin Chieftain, Old Alpha Wolf and Darkbone Bear. The forest itself was quite spread out with light reaching past the thin foliage of the canopy. There were occasional clearings of grass that allowed many groups to rest from the thick undergrowth of bush and vines. A blade had been strongly recommended by the townsmen if he was going to venture into the forest because of that.
After circling around the outskirts of the forest, Luke's first prey was a boar. At least that was what it looked like to him. It's entire body seemed to be covered in thick black fur whilst long tusks extended from mouth curved upwards as it silently grazed within a small clearing. Silently he gripped [Night's Reach] and silently slipped through the undergrowth of the forest floor to stand a little under 3m from the boar. Holding his breath, Luke quietly crouched in wait for the boar to turn its back to him.
After five minutes of waiting, the boar finally began to move, lifting its head from the grass and slowly turning around. Luke leapt out from under his covering, sprinting at the boar as fast as he could. Suddenly, Luke saw the large black body of the boar swell, almost doubling in size before his body was sent flying with a strong kick.
[You have taken 160 damage]
Luke's staggered as he stood up clutching his stomach. He glared at the screen in from of his eyes as it shifted in and out of focus. His vision blurred as he saw a vague dark mass in the side of his vision turn to face at him. Without a second thought, Luke threw his body to the side in time to hear the sound of splitting wind as the massive body of the boar barreled past where he was just standing. He stumbled back to his feet and immediately went back into a ready position, knees bent and knife across his chest. The boar once again turned to face him, it's breath coming out in heavy puffs of smoke.
Once more it's body hurtled towards him, much faster than an animal of that size could move. As soon as it was close to him, Luke immediately bent his knees further, jumping to the side of the boar as he reached out one hand to tightly grab a tusk as it flew past. Using both his own and the boar's momentum, Luke swung his weight his weight onto the boar to land awkwardly onto its back. Hurriedly Luke stabbed his knife into the boar's head and hung tightly as it began to violently jump and shake.
[Poison Touch has activated]
[Blackfur Boar has been poisoned. Losing 10% of hp per second]
The boar, as if finally realising that it was close to death, bellowed loudly and immediately began to swell to an even larger size than it had grown to previously. Luke discovered, to his own despair, that the knife he had stuck into the boar's head had been forcefully pushed out of the skull. The boar gave him once last shake before he was once again sent flying through the air.
[You have taken 20 damage]
Before the boar could end his life, Luke quickly rolled into the woods and disappeared into the thick undergrowth. He silently held his breath and lay still until he heard the receding steps of the boar as it departed In the opposite direction.
"Status Screen," he muttered quietly.
[Player Name: Luke Graphite]
[Level: 1]
[Titles: None]
[Class: Rogue (Starter)]
[Current Stats:
Health: 20/200
Agility: 30
Strength: 20
Defense: 5
Intelligence: 20
Code: 1 (Gold Ticket Bonus)]
[Effects: None]
[Gen Balance: 0]
[Skills:
Poison Touch
Hidden Edge]
Luke could sigh at the sight of his low hp slowly restoring itself. It scared him how strong the first monster he had met in this dark forest had been, almost killing him instantly despite being caught off guard. Both his abilities could not end the boar before he had been continuously knocked to the ground. Glancing at the setting sun, he knew he had to make his way back to the town before the the night monsters came out. With his blood spilling out of his body and low hp, he was definitely in no shape to fight anything.
~~~
"You really tried to fight a Blackfur Boar by yourself without knowing anything?" The men in the [Tavern] roared in laughter as they continued to tease the young man seated with them. After Luke had arrived back at the village, he headed here immediately to get some answers for his disastrous first fight.
"Did you even touch the Blackfur Boar Luke?" Another drunk man raised a cup of beer, shouting before downing the entire cup of beer.
Luke quietly listened to the men speak, occasionally catching useful tips thrown out across the round table as they spoke of their own battles. He was startled as a gruff man suddenly slipped into an empty chair beside him, his clothes were ragged
"Here kiddo, this is for you. I heard about your experience, it'll help just give it a read." The voice that came out of the man's mouth shocked Luke. Unlike his outward appearance, it was clear and soft , allowing Luke to relax despite the rowdy atmosphere of the [Tavern]. Just as Luke opened his mouth to ask the man what he meant, a screen flashed in front of his eyes.
[You have received "Encyclopaedia of Everything" from ?????]
Luke's mouth curved into an O shape, "Thank-". The man was gone. Luke shot straight up out of his chair, swinging his head in search of the unknown man. Not finding the man he hurriedly picked his way through the room, arriving at the door. He grabbed the attention of the guard that stood at the gate asking in quick breaths, "Did you see a man leave just now? He had no armor or any gear on, just normal clothes and he wasn't drunk." Like made sure to add his unknown helper's sobriety.
The guard cocked his head to one side, "Many people have gone in and out tonight, young 'un. But definitely no one. No one. Has come out without being drunk from this [Tavern] today."
With those words, Luke unhurriedly walled back to his own house. As he lay on his bed, thinking about the mysterious man, he suddenly remembered the item he had been given.
[Encyclopaedia of Everything]
Luke held the book in his hands. It had a black hardcover with no title on the front. The book was, unlike what he expected, completely new with no marks or tears. Luke casually flipped through the pages to find each page filled from top to bottom with pictures and text of various monsters, plants and even different metals for forging. Luke's eyes widened as he slowly read through some of the monster profiles.
[Trickster Vines]
[Title: None]
[Class: General]
[Description: Created mirages when prey enters a certain radius, causing temporary madness and decreased pain sensitivity. This will numb their prey to the poisonous gas they release from their flowers. Once victim is dead, they will slowly...]
[Abilities:
Deathly Grip
Berserk Gas
Poison Gas]
[Weakness: Upon sensing temporary numb senses, immediately block nose and mouth. Trickster Vines cannot spread their gas far and have a weak body during the release of gas. Find main body quickly and kill.]
He was even able to identify the boar that he had suffered from previously.
[Blackfur Boar]
[Title: None]
[Class: Soldier]
[Description: Common monster that resides in the forest surrounding Town of Genesis. Known for its violent behavior and strength that scares new hunters.]
[Abilities:
Growth
Targeted Kick
[Weakness: Attract it's attention with some rock or other waste item. This will immediately activate its two Abilities since Blackfur Boars are easily agitated with their sensitive ears and will quickly resume eating. Attack when they change back, the cool downs for their abilities are relatively high]
With this new understanding of his foe, Luke was sure that their next meeting would end much different to their previous one. Luke was also made sure to update his empty brain with information from other monsters that he was sure to meet in the nearby forest
[Iceborn Dragon]
[Title: Sovereign of Ice]
[Class: Higher God]
[Description: Born from within the depths of a frozen tundra, these dragons often live their lives in solidarity. This individuality since birth has allowed them to quickly learn to master their powers. Information incomplete due to low sample population.]
[Abilities:
Frozen Wasteland
Ice Command]
[Weakness: No known weaknesses]
[This information was observed during the battle of two Iceborn Dragons]
That night, Luke stayed wide awake his attention fixated on each word within the Encyclopaedia. He slowly committed each word to memory as well as the drawings of each animal. He could clearly see the effort that had gone into the careful research of each subject. Considering how new this world was, the amount of information in the book was astonishing. When Luke finally closed the book, he saw the sun begin to rise outside, spilling its first rays of light through his window. Luke pushes the book back into his inventory slowly, before noticing a window that was resting on the front of the book.[Quest of the Mad Scholar]
[Time limit: None]
[Grade: Unique]
[Description: Slay creatures that are not in the Encyclopaedia, collect plants that are not in the Encyclopaedia, mine ores that are not in the Encyclopaedia. Upon slaying, collecting or mining, information in Encyclopaedia will automatically update]
[Would you like to accept this quest?]
As Luke read the description, he was thoroughly confused. One reassuring fact was that this book was not yet guaranteed proof that there were humans at this level in the world. Luke would have been scared if there were in fact humans of this caliber already existing in. What confused him, was what had he triggered for him to be given this particular quest? With how good it was and it's [Unique] Grade, this was definitely a quest that not any ordinary NPC could hand out. Seeing no downsides to this quest, he readily accepted before turning over to rest for the day. His head was aching after absorbing all the information within the book.
The next day, Luke confidently strived back into the forest, [Night's Reach] in hand and once more searched for a monster to hunt. This time, he had discovered a [Starstrike Wolf]. It's appearance was similar to a normal wolf except for the star shaped white fur marking that adorned its head whilst the rest of its body was a light grey color. Recalling the information within the Encyclopaedia, Luke rushed directly at the wolf's side swinging his blade to make a quick slash at a leg joint.
[Poison Touch has activated]
[Starstrike Wolf has been poisoned. Losing 10% of hp per second]
As he saw light began to build up infront of the star on its head, Luke quickly leapt behind the wolf to dodge a hot ray of light that seared the ground which he had just stood on. Cold sweat drenched his back as he realised how much damage this wolf could do if that beam of light attacked him. He pulled his body back once more to avoid a sharp swipe from the wolf as it growled towards him. Not wanting to miss his current advantage, Luke dived back towards the wolf knife poised for another slash.
Sending the danger from Luke's blade after the first hit, the wolf deftly leaped backwards, swinging its tail into his face to cover his view. In panic, Luke quickly retreated back to not give the wolf any opportunity to attack him. He knew that with his limited experience and clumsy movements he was not going to have an easy time fighting these monsters. Luke stood his ground, eyeing the wolf carefully to not allow any vulnerability to show.
Suddenly he saw light once again begin to gather on the wolf's head as it pointed towards Luke. Luke cursed his carelessness as he quickly leaped to the side. How could he forget the one ability that the [Starstrike Wolf] was known for. Before he could catch his breath, he saw the wolf leap at him, jaws wide open to bite his head off.
"Don't you even think about it!"
With a roar, Luke twisted his body to the side and slammed his knife into the wolf's exposed underside. A soft whimper leaked front the wolf's throat before it slowly toppled to the side, [Night's Reach] embedded in its stomach.
Luke fell onto his rear, panting at the first battle he had.
[You have slain a Starstrike Wolf]
[You have gained a level]
Luke's attention however was on the wolf's body. He watched as it slowly broke down into soft golden particles that drifted off into the wind. It was an almost peaceful experience despite the intense battle that had just occurred. Luke hurriedly accesses his status screen to see what had changed.
[Player Name: Luke Graphite]
[Level: 2]
[Titles: None]
[Class: Rogue (Starter)]
[Current Stats:
Health: 210
Agility: 31
Strength: 21
Defense: 6
Intelligence: 21
Code: 1 (Gold Ticket Bonus)]
[Available Points: 5]
[Effects: None]
[Gen Balance: 0]
[Skills:
Poison Touch
Hidden Edge]
Luke grinned at the new status screen. This, however, soon became soft chuckling before Luke was rolling on the ground laughing at the joy of battle he had never before experienced.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone