Chapter 08: Into the Misty Mountains

One month later.

"Ugh!...Finally!" With strong arms, Azrakar pulled himself out of the damn hole. He blinked against the sudden brightness of the sun. His vision slowly adjusted to the light as he took in his surroundings.

He found himself in a rocky landscape surrounded by mountains from three sides, with a solitary path leading to what appears from a distance as a valley. Grunting with exertion, Azrakar rose to his feet, stretching his limbs and popping his knuckles.

For an entire month, Azrakar was training tirelessly like no tomorrow, most of that time he spent switching between the simulation room and the real world. He figured out an effective routine and a way to train.

His days began with a grueling sparring session against a wooden doll in which the doll kicked his ass a couple of times, but once he got the hang of it, the fights were manageable. After that, Azrakar would practice what he learned in the simulation room, alone in the hole.

Since the simulation happened in his mind, he needed to repeat the fight physically to help build muscle memory more quickly.

Other than that, Azrakar would spend an hour or two a day fashioning makeshift climbing tools from Bison bones, which later Azrakar used to climb the hole. It had been a relentless cycle of sweat and determination, but it had all been worth it.

"Free at last," he muttered to himself, a sense of relief washing over him. Surprisingly, Azrakar didn't hate his time in the pit; on the contrary, he loved every second of it—other than the thousands of deaths he suffered at the hands of the evil wooden doll.

He was safe there, with no monsters to attack him or Orcs to bully him at every turn, plus he was actually training and getting stronger, if not for the limited food, Azrakar wouldn't have left the pit until he was ready.

Taking a deep breath of fresh air, Azrakar accessed one of the new system functions – the inventory.

"This is a pretty amazing thing," he mused, no matter how many times he saw or used it, his surprise never faded.

Nexus explained to him how the inventory works—a separate pocket dimension where Azrakar could store things inside. Yet even with his newfound knowledge, Azrakar didn't understand it and got a headache trying to. So he just left it as it is and used it.

In the inventory window, a few things appeared to be stored. First, what was left of the Bison's meat, enough for a week, perhaps less. And some of its hide.

Second, five bone spears he managed to save since he wasted most of them while climbing the pit or breaking them when crafting. The third item was the Bison's skull and horns; the Skull was massive and unusable as a helmet.

"A pity," Azrakar rumbled, retrieving the skull nonetheless. "Wearing the bone of the prey as a trophy is the pride of the hunter"

In a faint light, the skull materialized instantly in his hands, for some reason, Azrakar enjoyed watching the summoning process. He played with it a few times back in the pit, trying to see how much he could do with it, and what he found was interesting.

Firstly he could summon any item from the inventory with just a mere thought, bypassing the need to open the window and select it. Secondly, Nexus had revealed that anything could be stored, with the exception of living creatures, of course.

Lastly, to store an item Azrakar needs to make physical contact with the object, and for any item that leaves the inventory space, Azrakar can not retrieve it back with just a mental command.

For example, if he summoned a bone spear from the inventory and threw it, Azrakar needed to walk up to the spear and touch it to store it back, he couldn't just think of storing it and it would happen.

The last item in the inventory was the briefcase, Nexus insisted on taking it, saying that the briefcase was crafted from the strongest metal on Earth, If Azrakar could manage to melt it down, it could be reforged into a powerful weapon.

"Alright time to move" The moment Azrkar thought of taking a step forward a system message appeared before his eyes.

…

[Second Quest: Complete the tutorial (2/10)

Objective: Survive for a month 

Rewards: Skill "Eye of Truth"

Physical enhancement pill + 4P in attribute]

…

"Survive for a month? That doesn't seem that ha—" Azrakar abruptly swallowed his words, a vivid memory of his first encounter with the wooden doll flashing in his mind. He'd underestimated that seemingly harmless opponent, dying a thousand deaths before finally prevailing.

No! He needs to take this quest seriously or he will truly die, this is the real world, and he doesn't have the privilege of coming back alive like in the simulation room. One life and that's it.

Immediately Azrakar summoned one of the Bison's horns, wielding it as a makeshift club, his bright yellow eyes darted left and right, scanning the unfamiliar landscape for any potential threats. The silence, once peaceful, now felt pregnant with hidden dangers.

The path leading towards the valley beckoned, but Azrakar hesitated. The system message, a stark reminder of his vulnerability, urged caution. He thought of making a camp here, but he quickly dismissed this idea. Perhaps the valley wasn't safe. He needed to prioritize his survival, to learn more about this strange place, and Azrakar suddenly remembered where he was.

"!!!" A sudden jolt of recognition surged through him.

'I'm dead... this is the Misty Mountains,"' Azrakar visibly trembled. He'd heard countless tales from the Chief and other Orcs about the treacherous nature of these mountains. None who dared to venture in ever returned.

"And here I am, stuck in the middle of it. Damn my luck," he cursed under his breath. Shaking his head, Azrakar opened one of the new things he discovered about the system.

…

Status

Name: Azrakar

Race: Orc

Class: –

Hunter Rank: F

Level: 1

Experience: 0/100

Health: 300/300

Mana:350/350

Stamina: 250/250

Strength:21

Agility:9

Endurance:15

Vitality:20

Intelligence: 25

Attribute points: 0

Skills

[Orcish Fury]

…

Unsurprisingly with his new knowledge, Azrakar understood every word in the status window.

One thing that always caught his eye every time he opened the window was the high Intelligence. The Basic General Knowledge reward boosted his intelligence by a whopping 20 points bringing him to a decent level and granting him a sharper mind and a larger mana pool.

Just from this Azrakar knew that before the Basic General Knowledge, he was… well dumb as a brick, Nexus informed him that this is the case with most Orcs, their intelligence is of a two or three years old child and he was better than most.

Azrakar knew that and he didn't feel sorry for his kin, by nature, Orcs knew one thing. There's the enemy…CHAAAAARGE! 

They don't care about tactics or strategic gains, they care only about reaching the enemy and beating him to death.

The other races exploited this and managed to overpower the Orcs time and time again in battles that required more than just brute strength.

The orcs survived only because of their strength and toughness, and Azrakar noticed that he too had a high strength and vitality.

Endurance was okay for now but the low agility was a fatal thing for Azrakar but again it's understandable since Orcs aren't known for their agility or finesse. Still, Azrakar couldn't help but feel a twinge of frustration at this glaring weakness.

In a world where agility and speed could mean the difference between life and death, his lumbering movements could prove to be a significant hindrance.

However, Azrakar refused to dwell on his shortcomings. Instead, he focused on honing his strengths and finding ways to compensate for his weaknesses. He knew he couldn't change his inherent nature as an Orc, but he could adapt and evolve to become more than just a mindless warrior.

Whoosh!

The wind howled through the jagged peaks of the Misty Mountains, carrying with it the scent of pine and damp earth. Azrakar, his yellow eyes narrowed against the biting wind, trudged down the rocky path toward the hidden valley. The weight of the bison horn, now crudely fashioned into a makeshift club, pressed heavily against his palm.

"Let's do this," he muttered with steely determination.

The moment Azrakar stepped inside the valley he felt a sudden change when an unsettling silence fell. The wind seemed to die down, and the air grew thick with anticipation. He gripped the club tighter, his senses on high alert. The towering rock formations on either side of the path cast long, menacing shadows.

"I don't like this," he muttered, his voice a low growl barely audible above the pounding of his heart. 

With careful steps, Azrakar ventured deeper. The silence pressed in on him, broken only by the rasp of his own breath. He didn't like this. Every instinct screamed at him to turn back, to retreat to the relative safety of the pit. Yet, a spark of defiance flared within him. This fear was new, born from his newfound knowledge. But so was his curiosity and the desire for strength.

Just then, a flicker of movement to his right caught his eye. In a heartbeat, Azrakar spun around, swinging his makeshift club with all his might.

The blow landed with a sickening thud that echoed through the silent valley. Azrakar's eyes widened in surprise as he saw what he'd struck. 

"A rock?" he questioned aloud, bewildered.

QUIIIEK!

Apparently not, The "rock" shrieked, letting out a siring sound echoing through the valley. Azrakar saw with open eyes as the image of the rock flickered and distorted, revealing a creature unlike anything he'd ever seen.

The creature was small, barely reaching one meter high, but its wiry frame radiated a predatory menace. Its fur, the color of sun-baked earth, served as perfect camouflage against the rocky terrain. Razor-sharp claws tipped each of its elongated fingers, glinting ominously in the dappled sunlight. But the most unsettling feature was its eyes. Burning red orbs, devoid of pupils, staring with a cold, calculating intelligence.

Azrakar quickly sprang into action, dashing to this creature and crushing its head with relentless slams from his club. He didn't stop until the creature let out a final gurgling cry before slumping to the ground, lifeless. 

Azrakar stood over it, panting heavily, his heart pounding in his chest. He looked down at the strange creature, his mind reeling with confusion and adrenaline.

[You have Killed: Brown Baboon]

[56XP]

A system message appeared before his eyes yet Azrakar didn't have time to be happy about his first real kill; he kept gazing at the valley, noticing a hundred pairs of red eyes, glowing like embers in the darkness.

"Damn…" he cursed under his breath.

QUIIIEK! QUIIIEK!

"Time to go"