19 Death Pt.1
"Damnit Eren! Watch where you're aiming it!!" I screamed, dodging the wobbly projectile that would have pierced my leg other wise.
"I'm tying!" He shamelessly said, knocking another arrow. Although his aim was forward, the arrow deviated by almost 60° once it was released!
"Huh?! Trying my fat ass you aren't! Hit the mark not me!!" I said, seating myself at his six, for it had been far too dangerous to do so anywhere else.
Once assured of my safety, I continued to read my book peacefully, as Eren kept practicing with the bow. There were an abundant number of trees in the vicinity of the Ackerman household, so at least he didn't lack material at all.
It had been a few weeks since our birthday, and this was the special surprise that Valir made for us. A short bow and a quiver each for dummy and real arrows.
Of course, it took me just a few days to properly use the bow. Well, I couldn't just switch off my passive skills now, can I? The boost that my six senses receive was enough to fully master the bow in less than 3 weeks! Aren't I great?
And then there's Eren… Even with my pointers and extensive training, his pathetic talent in archery was in full display. Why even bother doing it when you don't have to?
Anyway, I've been visiting the Ackerman household quite frequently, under the pretext of playing with the youngest, Arran Ackerman. The boy was a little over an year old with similar features to Mikasa.
These days, I've devoted my full focus to finding the shack where the kidnappers set up base and originally took Mikasa in the canon. But, it's been a month and I'm still not able to find it.
The anime made it look so easy for Eren!
Also, I've been on a lookout for any stray dogs that might have come here out of curiosity. If those wild animals came too close to the house, the last thing they'd see is an arrow through their pp…
I'm kidding! I just use them for some target practice. Just a few arrows in their cranium, and they'd fall into a long and peaceful sleep.
Of course, Grisha didn't have any special reaction at my frequent visits. Maybe he really didn't know the tragic fate of the Ackermans…
Soon enough, I was woken from my stupor by Mikasa, who ran towards me with a basket full of flowers. I continued reading the book as much as I could by the time she arrived, for I had a feeling…
"What are you reading?" She asked, acting if she didn't know.
"My Dad's medical journal. The part where you use-" I rambled on, hoping that she'd leave me alone, only to be abruptly cut off. There goes my peaceful learning time…
"Again? Just when will it end?!" She said crossing her arms. Seeing that I had no reaction, she tactfully switched her tactics.
"Please play with me, Karl! Please! Please!!" She 'requested', prodding me with her trademark puppy eyes.
Although she was asking me to 'play', I already knew…
"Play, huh? More like you enjoy while making me work!" I said, with a half stern half desperate look. At this point, I had no choice anyway.
Mikasa giggled as she pulled me by the arm, to which I had no choice but to comply. Taking her out of range from Eren's mishaps, I started working on fulfilling her demands. From flower wreaths to leafy drawings, anything her imagination could think up, I had to bring to reality.
And, as I continued to slave away, a small 'ding' rang in my head.
'Well, at least my passive proficiencies are steadily rising…' I thought, cheering myself up.
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[Extrasensory Perception* Lvl: 04]
[Type: Special Passive]
[Summary: User can heighten his senses upon imparting a certain amount of focus and also gains a sixth sense. Strengthening increases as Lvl increases.]
[Proficiency: 10%]
[*This skill has a registered Unique Ability]
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One of the three OG Special Passives that I had, which wasn't very useful… Yet. But, the Unique Ability for this skill is a literal life-saver. Let's talk about the skill first.
With enough focus, I could get a clear picture of every little bit of the world around me, loaded in my mind. Every beat of a bird's wings, every rustle of the leaves and a visual down to every one of it's pores.
Every little action within a limited area would flood into my mind, along with a tremendous amount of pain and that's where my [Mental Defense] skill would swoop in! Quite a dynamic duo, no?
Of course, with a rise in Proficiency, I would be able to control it with much more precision. Unfortunately, that was still far into the future.
Testing it out, I took a quick sweep of the surroundings, as a large amount of info flooded my brain. It was just a picturesque view of nature in full display… until, I found something wrong with it.
Closing my eyes, I concentrated on my hearing, slowly filtering out the information in my head. Soon enough, I could hear an incoherent mumbling, which seemed completely unfamiliar.
'Another stray dog-no, a big one…' I thought, clicking my tongue. Promising Mikasa to be back in a few, I went up to Eren, who was diligently practicing the bow.
"Eren, give me the bow." I asked, holding my hand out. He seemed reluctant, until the fatigue he had accumulated forced him to rest.
Knocking a dummy arrow for the first few attempts, I aimed around a bit, using a distant tree as a target. Noticing that the mumbling hadn't stopped, I knocked up a real arrow, aiming it far away from the source.
'Now, to hunt a stray dog.' I thought as I closed my eyes, devoting the entirety of my focus to my ears, simultaneously activating the Unique Ability.
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[Unique Ability ;]
[Higher Mind: Gain full control of your body for 0.5 seconds.]
[Cost: 40 Stamina]
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With a quick turn, I released the arrow, watching it as it made it's way through the bushes. The very next instant, a pained howl reverberated through the forest.
"What was t- Big bro?!!" Eren asked as he looked around, just as he noticed my collapsed figure. As he helped me up, I tried to soothe the pulsating migraine that was ravaging my mind.
'What…. In…. f*ck's…. name….!!!' I choked at the involuntary thought. Taking deep breaths, I used every single method to stop myself from fainting!
'How… can… I… even… use… this…?!!!!' I mind-screamed, once I recovered enough to think properly. It might have only been 0.5 seconds long, but it felt like an eternity to me!
To be aware of every single cell and actively exercise control over it was like running a thousand screwdrivers through my head!! The strain was so huge that even my [Mental Defense] couldn't keep up!!!
'I would… have… died of… a stroke… if… it had… been… 1 second…' Visibly shuddering at the thought, I tried my best to regain any semblance of sanity that I still had left...
As my blurry eyes regained their focus and the ringing in the head lessened, I tried standing up slowly. After a few minutes, I began feeling better enough to walk without being assaulted by images of every part of my body…
"What's wrong? Are you okay?" Eren asked with a worried look, something that was rarely seen on his face. It was so rare, in fact, that it made it feel like a hallucination!
"I'm fine… now… Let's go…" I muttered as I slapped my cheeks, using the remainder of my mental energy to force myself to walk.
[Host is experiencing high levels of blood pressure and mental fatigue. Host advised to rest and heal himself to avoid further damage.]
'Thanks Isa… But, not yet...' I thought, as I made my way to the source of the scream with Eren in tow. Moving through the bushes as we searched, we found our arrow soon enough.
Only it was broken and had a blood drenched tip.
"Was it an animal?" He asked, looking at the blood trail on the ground. Following it around, he behaved like some sort of detective, giving me the privacy I needed.
"Must've been… a stray dog..." I mumbled as I shrugged, yet, I couldn't be happier. With Eren far in sight, I quietly approached the arrow tip.
It seems I'm quite lucky! I thought looking at blood on the arrow. It might not seem like much, but I had received quite a bit of profits.
Picking up the broken arrow, I covertly summoned a spare [Blood Pill], using it to absorb the little blood on it. Popping it in my mouth, I let it dissolve as Isa began analyzing it.
[Blood Pill administered... Compatibility 13%... No additional Gene Fluids in use… Commencing blood absorption... Transfusion successful.]
[Host has regained 3.9% of the total blood absorbed by the Blood Pill.]
[Skill usage conditions for 'Inspect' have been unlocked. Would Host prefer to activate said skill?]
'I've got you now… Bitches!!' I thought, with an almost demonic grin. I was certain that if I followed this trail, I would finally find those bastards' den. Unfortunately, I was in no shape to do so right now…
Even so, I cackled to my heart's content, instantly shifting to a poker face as Eren returned. After Eren was unable to discover anything significant, we left the area.
We continued on with our day, having the time of our lives. Of course, I just couldn't help but grin the entire day. Not just because I enjoyed myself, but also because I was so damn excited!
Finally! Time for my First Blood!!
