3 Hunt

Deo's POV:

After running out of the house, I did a quick check to make sure I had everything; it wouldn't be ideal to show up now and say I had forgotten something. At best, they wouldn't let me go hunting alone, and at worst... I shuddered at the thought of Astoria's smiling face.

Luckily for me, I had everything I needed for my first hunt. A bow with arrows, a stone hunting knife, and a leather bag to carry what I hunted. I have to thank Deacon for teaching me the basics of archery. But the main goal is finally to test my little army and see how they perform.

As I pondered strategies I could use for the time being, I couldn't help but look around. No matter how many times I see the center of this city called Sparta, its beauty is hard to describe in words.

Upon reaching the city gate and having the guards check everything was in order, I headed towards the forest where I had spent so much time this past year. Though not far, it's not what people would consider close either. As I headed towards the forest, I started to recall all the information I knew about the fauna I might encounter. The most dangerous would be a wolf or a bear. Though knowing that wolves rarely travel alone, if I encountered one, it wouldn't be surprising to find more around.

The positive side is that both bears and wolves tend to mark their territories, so it will be easy to evade them for now. Another thing to consider is that thanks to this past year and my practice with my powers, I've deduced that I not only have basic leveling skills but also have some control over life and death. Though for now, I can only heal superficial wounds. But something is better than nothing, and I have plenty of time to improve and strengthen my abilities.

Another curiosity I discovered by chance is that I can know the year I am in. I suppose this ability is thanks to Hades, but it's not bad at all. Thanks to that ability, I know I'm in 3500 B.C.

It's good to know that I have almost 5500 years to prepare for the beginning of the era of superheroes. But before focusing on the Avengers, I have to focus on staying alive and invincible.

And without realizing it, I had reached my destination. After making sure there was no one around, I decided to summon my army, which currently consisted of 150 rabbits and a snake that I suppose was a viper, which I found when I was finishing skinning a rabbit. I named my first rabbit Aston, and the snake Nag. I don't know if it's because they were the first of their kind that I summoned to my army, but I feel that Nag and Aston are the ones with the most potential and are capable of evolving. But that's not important right now. Without hesitation, I decided to give my first order to the army.

"Hunt and kill any small animals you see and gather them so I can collect them later. If you see any animal that poses a threat, let me know."

And without waiting another second, my shadows dispersed into small groups, and Nag and Aston went on their own. While my soldiers went on their own, I decided to go further into the interior, and as I searched for my first prey, I began to notice how some of my soldiers had finished off their first prey and were getting stronger. Although it also strengthened me, it is much less than when I am the one killing them.

After what I supposed were 20 minutes, I found an animal that wasn't on my list. A boar. So I decided to position myself in the ideal spot so that the boar couldn't smell me and detect me. Once I positioned myself where I thought was the perfect spot, I prepared the arrow and pulled the string. I held my breath so my hand wouldn't shake, and released the string. I watched as the arrow flew at great speed in the predicted arc until it pierced the boar's eye, reaching the brain. A precise shot. Hole in one.

While thinking of other phrases that would describe my shot perfectly, I heard footsteps coming from inside the forest. So, hiding behind the tree I had used as a visual barrier, I waited for the boar not to see me. And after a few seconds, I saw a wolf emerge from the bushes.

I thanked my past self for positioning myself where the wind prevents my scent from reaching where the boar and now the wolf were. The wolf began to sniff, attempting to see if anyone was nearby. Seeing that it stopped sniffing and approached the boar, it seemed it had decided that there was no one nearby. Once I saw that the wolf hadn't found me, I began to debate between the two options I had at my disposal: attack the wolf with the shadow of the boar or flee before it detects me. Turning back to the wolf and taking a good look, I saw that its size was much smaller than described by Deacon.

"So, a wolf cub."

Being a cub, the fight was easier, but the problem is that the possibility of other wolves nearby has just increased significantly. Before making any wrong moves, I decided to call back all my soldiers. Once my whole army was with me, I felt much safer. So again, I took the bow, and once I was ready, I released it. Unfortunately, the arrow didn't hit a weak point but embedded itself in the wolf's right front leg.

"Damn."

Without giving it a chance to howl, calling the others, I fired another arrow in its direction while ordering my soldiers to attack the wolf. The arrow I had quickly but inaccurately launched hit the wolf's back, injuring it further, preventing it from howling briefly. When it seemed like the wolf was about to howl again, the army of shadows had reached its destination. Although rabbits don't have much offensive power, their speed and reflexes are quite high. So when 149 rabbits, Aston, and Nag started fighting against the wolf cub, they quickly overwhelmed it. Unfortunately, this couldn't prevent the cub from letting out one last cry before falling dead to the ground.

"Fuck."

"Arise."

I summoned the boar and the cub, preparing for the worst. And after a few seconds, more than 10 adult wolves appeared. Fortunately, it didn't seem like the alpha was among them. But that also doesn't mean the next one won't be difficult.

Without giving the wolves time, I shot an arrow at the nearest wolf while my army with my two new additions attacked them. While my shadows acted as a barrier, I began shooting arrows at the wolves that were distracted by the rabbits. On the other hand, the boar with the cub was dealing with one wolf on their own. Although it seemed they were evenly matched because my shadows kept regenerating, I was starting to feel my mana running out.

"We need to finish this quickly."

And after a few minutes, there were three wolves left alive, but I had run out of mana, so my shadows couldn't continue regenerating. Looking around, I could see the exact number of available soldiers: 10 rabbits, the boar, the cub, Aston, and Nag. On the wolves' side, one was severely injured, almost unable to walk, one slightly injured, and the last one seemed only tired. I decided to send the cub with the 10 rabbits after the severely injured one, while I dealt with the slightly injured one, and the others with the intact one. And with that order, my first battle to the death began.

I saw the wolf approaching me, trying to close the distance. Clearly reading those intentions, I quickly pulled out my knife and prepared myself. My strong point in this battle is that I wasn't as physically tired as the wolf appeared to be. And thanks to what I had hunted before entering the battle with the wolves, I had strengthened myself considerably. Above all, the boar and the cub had strengthened me, as much as 50 rabbits.

Once with a plan in mind, the wolf lunged with its two front legs forward and its jaws open. And before it could reach me, I rolled to the side, quickly attacking the wolf that had just landed and was in an almost impossible position to dodge my attack. Seeing that it couldn't dodge it, it opened its jaws again, trying to bite me. I dodged its jaws by crouching, finding myself right below the wolf's head. Because without thinking, I wielded my knife and with all my strength, I inserted it upwards. I felt the resistance my knife made against the wolf's skin, but I kept pushing upwards. The wolf, feeling my knife under its head, scratched me with its claws on the chest. I bit my lower lip, holding back the scream of pain I felt, and kept pushing upwards until I felt the wolf stop struggling, and its body fell on me. I was feeling the fatigue of everything that had happened, before losing consciousness I could see how the cub had finished its opponent and on the other hand how Nag was finishing drowning the wolf while the others attacked it from different sides.

"Victory."

And with that thought, I passed out.

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"Hey, it's the author again with another chapter of this fanfic. What did you think? Let me know in the comments. And without further ado, see you in the next one. Sayōnaraaaaaaaaaaaaa"