20 The cursed hunter
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Before this chapter starts I want to say that I hope you all won't get mad at the different languages. I found this so funny and just had to write it like that.
Everything that is said actually means something. But you'll understand what is going on even wouthout those few sentences.
I hope that those who understand German, Italian or Rumantsch can translate what it means.
***Oh and his name was actually carefully chosen, tell me whether you understood why.***
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Hunters. Individuals who possess special powers and abilities to hunt and combat various creatures, including monsters and dungeons. In a world where gates to dungeons open, unleashing dangerous creatures upon the Earth, only hunters have the power to enter these dungeons, eliminate the threats within, and protect humanity from these monsters.
Hunters are ranked by an international system, going from E up to S, to show how strong they are, with E being the weakest and S being the strongest, and can possess a wide range of abilities.
There are also two general categories of hunters, combat and non-combat, and six different specific types of hunters: Fighters, Mages, Assassins, Tankers, Rangers, and Healers.
It is important to note that a human with the ability to use magic to various degrees is not automatically a hunter. Humans only become hunters when they obtain hunting licenses and participate in dungeon raids.
All over the world gates started to appear out of nowhere and from those gates came monsters. These monsters were able to use magic and kill many humans before they were put down.
In response to the emergence of these gates, certain individuals known as "hunters" started to develop unique powers and abilities to combat the monsters and creatures that came out of the dungeons.
This event would later be named "The Awakening".
Being a hunter became a lucrative business as long as you were not in the weakest class, the E-class. But even then, it was able to survive should you put the work into it.
Many hunters had special titles and among all hunters, five hunters surpassed them all. These five were so strong that they would get a special title, the National Level Hunters.
They got that title after surviving and killing the dragon Kamish. The boss monster that came out of the very first Red Gate in America.
There were however not only unbelievably powerful hunters, but there were also very very weak ones. And among the weak ones, there was Hein, also known as Freund Hein.
This hunter originated from Germany but had to leave due to the hate he got. Apart from 'Freund Hein' he also held the title of 'the cursed hunter'. He seemed to be cursed as no matter what gate he entered, somehow an accident would happen and he would almost die or get seriously injured.
He currently lives in the neighboring country of Switzerland that was known to be a polite country. It was said that they were unfriendly but in truth, they were just very polite and that could often come across as unfriendly.
Hein's curse seemed to have followed him to Switzerland though as he still got injuries no matter how weak and easy the dungeon was.
Today was another such day that Hein applied for a dungeon. Life in Switzerland was expensive but it was that way for a reason. Never mind that though, he had to earn money to survive.
He walked into the Guild Hall of his guild. They were called 'D'Feinschmöcker'. A particularly easygoing guild that looked out for each other and were probably spending time with each other apart from when they were hunting together.
Hein was called 'dä Unglücksraab' and he was fine with that. At least he was not looked at as cursed and only weak and unlucky. That's what that nickname meant. The unlucky raven.
Hein entered the building to see whether there was a chance for him to make some money. The lady behind the counter greeted him.
"Ah, Hein. Schön bisch da. Ha scho g'meint chunsch nümm. Widär öppis chlises?"
(Translation: "Ah, Hein. Good that you're here. I almost thought you'd not come anymore. Something small/easy again?" )
"Ja gerne. Leider ist die Miete auch diesen Monat nicht weniger geworden. Man muss sich anpassen. Also, gerne etwas leichtes auch dieses Mal wider."
(Translation: "Yes, please. Sadly the rent didn't get any less this month. You have to adapt. And yes please something small/easy again." (German) )
"Sicher doch. Hmm, ich muäs luäge. Es hät tatsächlich öppis. An Rang-E job. Das isch doch öppis für dich odr?"
(Translation: "Of course. Hmm, I have to take a look. There is indeed something. A rank-E job. That would be something for you, no?" (Swiss German) )
"Aber sicher. Wenn du meinst, dass die mich nehmen würden?"
(Translation: "Of course. If you think they'll take me?" (German) )
"Klaro. Das isch sicher keis Problemli. Ich mach ä termin ab und meld mi denn bi diär. Guet?"
(Translation: "Sure. That's no problem. I'll schedule a date and get back to you, ok?" (Swiss German) )
"Sehr gut. Vielen Dank Heidi."
(Translation: "Very good. Thank you very much, Heidi." (German) )
.
Hein got the message from Heidi that confirmed his participation in the raid the following week, on Monday. Sunday there were only raids that needed to be cleared in an emergency. Otherwise, Sunday was an important day and there were no raids.
Hein prepared for the raid. Although there was not much he could prepare. He had long stopped buying any gear for himself. The lower-ranked items were already expensive for him and even when he entered the weakest dungeons, which were E-ranked, the equipment would break before the dungeon was cleared.
Now Hein would not take any weapon or shield into the dungeons to save money. He did not have a good feeling today. He felt like something bad was going to happen.
Over the five years he had been a hunter and fought to survive and earn a living, he had come close to death many times. That was also where his nickname came from.
Freund Hein, ist da.
That's what the people would say when he appeared at the gates. And Freund was not to be mistaken with a friend in this case.
Anyway, what he meant was that over the five years of being a hunter and surviving, he had come to understand death quite a bit. He was closer to death every time he entered a dungeon than anyone ever. That had the effect that he would develop a sense of death.
Whenever the feeling overcame him, he knew ... death was close and someone or something would die in the near future. But he had never gotten such a strong feeling as the one he had right now.
It was like the cold shiver that ran down your spine when you came face to face with a monster that you had no hope of defeating. Every fibre in his body screamed at him to not go to that raid today and yet ... he had no choice.
Heidi had already booked it for him. His reputation was already modest at best. If he called them and told them that he couldn't come he would lose any hope of finding another team that would allow him to participate.
No, he had to go. It was important. He would just be extra careful today. No matter what, no one could die because of him. He didn't want to be an outcast again and be forced to move to another country.
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Hein arrived at the site where the gate was and the other participants waited to enter the dungeon. Hein always made sure to be on time, but not be too early. Otherwise, he would have to listen to the talk of the other hunters that spoke about him.
"Ok. S'i aui da. I glouba mir chöi ahfanga."
(Translation: "Ok. Everyone's here. I think we can start" (swiss german, but a different one than the one of Heidi) )
"Super. Jau na poss strusch spetgar. Dapi emnas sun jau ussa stà cun mia dunna en vacanzas ed ussa cumenz jau puspè cun in simpel.
Jau na sai dentant betg tge ch'il "vab da las disgrazias" vul far qua."
(Translation: "Great. I can't wait. I've been on vacation with my wife for weeks now, and now I'm starting again with a simple one. But I don't know what the "Raven of misfortune" is doing here. (Romantsch, another language that is spoken in Switzerland) )
"N'al numna betg uschia. Ti sas ch'el ta po tadlar. Quai n'è betg bel, Fredi."
(Translation: "Don't call him that. You know he can hear you. That's not nice, Fredi." (Romantsch) )
"Haha, guät. Jo wänn üsi fründä us Tschlin au parat si, dänn si mer da doch aui."
(Translation: "Haha, good. If our friends from Tschiln (place in Switzerland) are also ready, then we're good to go." (Swiss German) )
"Come stai oggi, Hein? Ti senti bene?"
(Translation: "How are you, Hein. Do you feel alright?" (Italian) )
"Vielen Dank, Franco. Es geht mir gut."
(Translation: "Thank you, Franco. I'm alright." (german) )
"Te lo chiedo solo perché sono un po' preoccupato per te. Sei molto pallida."
(Translation: "I'm only asking because I'm a little worried about you. You're very pale." (Italian) )
"Ich fühle mich heute nicht besonders. Ich habe wohl etwas schlechtes gegessen. Aber mach dir keine Sorgen, ich werde euch nicht zur Last fallen."
(Translation: "I don't feel that well today. I must have eaten something bad. But don't worry about me, I won't be a burden to you." (German) )
"È una stupidaggine, Hein. Non sei un peso per noi. Se non ti senti bene, allora dovresti prenderlo sul serio."
(Translation: "That's stupid, Hein. You're not a burden to us. If you're not feeling well, then you should take it seriously." (Italian) )
"Ich danke dir, Franco. Aber ich möchte gerne helfen heute. Keinen Grund die anderen zu belästigen."
(Translation: "Thank you, Franco, but I'd like to help you out today, so there's no need to bother anyone else." (German) )
"Ok, ma se le cose peggiorano, interrompiamo, va bene?"
(Translation: "Okay, but if things get worse, we'll stop, okay?" (Italian) )
"Alles klar."
(Translation: "All right." (German) )
.
The raid seemed to be another normal dungeon. Surprisingly Hein had not suffered any major injury. After getting healed by their healer, he was fine. This had never happened. His luck was never that good. Something really bad had to come still.
After they had killed the final boss and theoretically cleared the dungeon, someone found something that Hein would never forget.
"Ei! Da hätts no öppis. G'seht us wie n'ä doppeltä Kerker."
(Translation: "Hey! There is something more. Looks like a double dungeon." (Swiss German) )
doppeltä Kerker ... double dungeon ... oh how Hein hated those words coming out of the man's mouth. He just wanted to leave now and get out of here.
There was nothing but death awaiting them beyond those doors at the end of the corridor, he could feel it. Hein, almost couldn't breathe. The danger coming from there was crushing.
"Ich denke wir sollten wieder zurück gehen und den doppelten Kerker melden. Vielleicht bekommen wir Hilfe. Schliesslich wissen wir nicht was sich hinter diesen beiden Toren befindet."
(Translation: "I think we should go back and report the double dungeon. Maybe we can get some help. After all, we don't know what's behind these two gates." (German) )
Hein's opinion mattered little. Just because the weakest hunter wanted to go back, didn't mean the others did too. So they decided to enter and see what was beyond those doors.
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I hope that those who understand what the respective sentences mean can comment on it. I'll do it myself if no one else will of course.
Once again, please don't get mad I did it this way.
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I hope this is better now.
