"Gasp... Gasp..."
Kaelen's arms swayed limply by his sides, his upper body, which was now without its garment, streaked by dried blood and the pieces of flesh that clung to it.
His ears, which had been exposed to loudness of battle — dying screams and explosions —yearned for quietness now that the battle had concluded.
But all he heard was the incessant buzzing of flies and cawing of the vultures that circled above them, eager to engorge themselves.
[...How long did it take?]
He slowly raised his eyes to the sky, where he found the sun firmly at its center, and its rays reflected on his face which was bathed in blood —like a warrior's facepaint.
Kaelen lowered his chin and looked to the members of his Decadon.
They were exhausted and laid on their backs, most of them beaten and battered, their bodies riddled with cuts and bruises, but none of them had sustained life-threatening injury.
[To think we didn't suffer any casualties...]
He smiled warmly, especially seeing that most of them had leveled up during the battle.
[Argh...]
Feeling a migraine settle on his cranium, he quickly shut his eye and saw their details no more.
[Are there drawbacks to using this eye? There weren't any specified on the skill description though...]
He wondered, his muscles aching and screaming at him for respite.
"Huff... Captain. "
Specimen 2555 was collapsed on his knees, balancing his frame on the hilt of his rapier.
"... You have led us to victory once more, I am truly thankful for your presence."
He said, offering his most sincere gratitude, he knew that without Kaelen, they would have all been slaughtered during that hunt.
"You're welcome. Thanks to you too."
An unfamiliar feeling tugged at his heart, when last was he appreciated for his hardwork and effort?
He couldn't recall a specific time, and therefore, it was not a stretch to establish that this was the first time in his entire existence.
Upon Kaelen receiving his gratitude, Specimen 2555 didn't resist his fatigue for much longer and collapsed on his face.
"Kaelen..."
Another one of his subordinates called out to him, and turning his gaze there, he saw a girl who looked to have had her entire frame bathed in blood, standing atop a pile corpses.
[What a frightening sight...]
"Yes, Veylith?"
He cleared his throat, the burning sensation brought on by hours of war cries still lingering.
"Where to... Next?"
She spoke in a tone that suggested that she was extremely pleased, her crimson eyes perfectly camouflaged by the blood drenching her entire being.
[Seriously? You still want to fight?]
"Let's rest for now Veylith, we'll discuss the next step later."
"..."
She looked a tad disappointed, but Kaelen's judgement took precedence over her personal desires, so, she steadily climbed down the pile and went to her Captain's side.
[Now then, let's see the spoils of this hunt...]
[Status Window!]
Ding!
───────────────────────────
Status Window.
Ding!
> You have slain [25] Goblins — +125 Exp!
> You have slain [75] Kobolds — +375 Exp!
> You have slain [80] Goblins — +440 Exp!
> You have slain [20] Kobolds — +70 Exp!
Ding!
> Congratulations, you have slain [>100] Goblins!
- You have earned the title: Goblins Slayer.
- Title Effect:
1. All Goblins with a level not greater than yours by [5] will instinctively fear you as their natural predator.
2. All Exp gained from hunting Goblins will be multiplied by [×2] for a time.
Ding!
> Congratulations, you have slain [>100] Kobolds!
- You have earned the title: Kobold Slayer.
- Title Effect:
1. All Kobolds with a level not greater than yours by [5] will instinctively fear you as their natural predator.
2. All Exp gained from hunting Kobolds will be multiplied by [×2] for a time.
Ding!
> Recalculating Exp...
- You have obtained 1130 Exp!
- You have obtained 890 Exp!
Ding!
> Congratulations, your proficiency for the class ¤ Magic Spearman¤ has greatly increased due to your continuous efforts in slaying hundreds of enemies with Mana and the spear!
- Class ¤Magic Spearman¤ has reached level 3!
- You have gained 500 Exp!
Ding!
> You have leveled up!
- You are now level 6!
- All core stats increased by 10!
- You now have access to more Mana!
- Pocket Storage Capacity has increased by 10kg!
-You have obtained 10 Attribute Points!
───────────────────────────
[Good, I received titles... I was actually counting on it.]
He smiled and scrolled down.
[Level 3 huh, I need to train harder... Things will start to go wrong if the gap between my actual level and my class level widens.]
He sucked his teeth and scrolled to the very bottom of the interface.
[Sigh... Just 10?]
[I had hoped to get more since I used about 21 of them to recover my MP during the hunt...]
"Tsk..."
[Seriously, what a waste...]
[...]
[But, I would've died if I hadn't, so I guess it's not that much of a waste.]
He smiled bitterly as he sat down on the blood-soaked terrain, Veylith and the others were already snoring at that point.
[Ah... I'm also getting sleepy.]
He struggled with keeping his eyes open, but he dared not resist it, and his body would not allow it.
They were all so tired that they didn't even bother to go find shade from the sun.
[I hope the vultures don't mistake us for corpses and eat us?]
He worried, but he was honestly too tired to care and with that, he fell into a deep slumber.
///
"Oink... Must you insist that we sit outside the village? I have a perfectly functional castle if you want shade."
Grumbled Honyopi, seated on a comfortable chair and shade which Charymos supplied from his pocket space.
[If I had stayed in that cesspool from even a second longer, I would have lost it and killed every pig along with its piglet!]
[Also, you call that pathetic excuse of a tent a castle?]
Seated across from the High Orc on a similar chair and under the same shade, Charymos narrowed his eyes and swirled his tongue around the straw of a refreshingly cool-looking drink.
"Oh relax Honyopi~ must you always fester in the muds of your village?"
"Get some fresh air every once in a while~!"
Charymos spoke cheerfully and sucked the drink empty.
"Oink... What's wrong with mud?"
Honyopi tilted his large snout.
[Urgh... This pig.]
"Sigh... Nevermi —"
Uwooong!!
[!!],[!!]
Suddenly! A bright, yet tiny light shone above them, as though a miniature star had been birthed.
[Is that...]
As the luminescence lost intensity, Honyopi and Charymos stood to their feet in attention.
"Greetings, Governor of the First Floor."
A squeaky, almost cute voice resounded from the fading light, revealing a creature no taller than Honyopi's tusk.
The creature in question had long black hair, eyes with no pupils and a pair of dark, transparent wings keeping her suspended.
At first glance she looked to be a Fairy, however, she had long lost that privilege along with her fall, and she was now amongst the race known as the Dark Fae.
"I bring you the words of our Ruler."
She said, and unfurled the scroll in her grasp.
The Dark Fae began to read:
"Swine which I have entrusted with the First Floor of mine Domain, there are pests at your doorstep and they number seven."
[!!],[!!]
"If they are not worthy to reach me, dispose of them, so that the quiet I love returns to me."
She relayed, and before they could even asked her questions, she vanished just as she'd appeared.
[Only seven? Have the Humans gone mad?]
[Or has too much time passed since their last visit that they forgot what kind of a place this is?]
Charymos's tentacles became extremely rigid.
"Oink!! Just seven?! They dare desecrate our Ruler's land with that mere number? Seven?!!!"
Honyopi squealed and stood from his chair.
"Don't do anything Charymos, this is my responsibility as Governor, Oink."
Seeing that Charymos too was about to stand, Honyopi quickly stopped him and prepared to intercept the threat.
But...
"Oink! Oink!"
An Orc came running and buried its snout on the earth at Honyopi's feet.
"What's the matter?"
Honyopi's mood worsened.
"Oink! Foraging group has disappeared Boss! We not know where they are!"
"..."
Honyopi calmly stepped around his subordinate and began stomping away, his pinkish skin turning to a shade of red.
"Oh my~ he's quite upset, why don't you run along to him?"
Charymos waved his hand, sending the bowing Orc away.
"..."
"Come here..."
He ordered, and...
Fwip!
... The bipedal Roach appeared, bowing at his side.
"Yes, my Lord?"
"Secure my assets..."
"... You may abandon the others to die if need be, just bring me back my Named ones."
Charymos's expression was extremely stern as he gave that order.
"Consider it done, my Lord."
Fwip!
[Ah... It would seem that this season's hunt has come to an abrupt end.]
Charymos rested the back of his slimy head on his chair and sighed heavily.
───────────────────────────
Status Window.
Name: Kaelen.
Race: Homunculus.
Level: 6 (Exp: 258/3600)*
Class: Magic Spearman- Lv.3*
──────────────────
Core Stats.
STR: 64* INT: 69* LCK: 0
AGI: 66* MP: 70* VIT: 65*
%##%: ???
───────────────
Derived Stats.
HP [VIT + Gear Value+⁰]: 65*
STA [VIT + AGI(30%)]: 84.8*
ATK [STR + Weapon Value+⁴]: 68*
EVA [AGI + LCK(50%)]: 66*
CRIT [(LCK(20%) + ATK)/100]: 0.68*
─────────────────
Skills.
ManaSensitivity: S- Rank
Low-levelRegeneration: C- Rank
Creator'sEye: S- Rank.
#>@$: SS+ Rank (Sealed)*
Monarch's Aegis: A Rank.
────────────────
Attribute Points: 18
Alignment:Chaotic Neutral.
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