Hunters retaliation

In the kingdom of Zanoria, there are many hunter's guilds. On the outskirts of the forest, sits an old, almost run down guild hall. Older hunters who wish to just enjoy the hunt for beasts gather in its halls.

The smell of booze and sweat fills the air as you open the front doors to the building. The guild inside is much smaller than other guilds throughout the kingdom, and in a back room, there's a meeting taking place to discuss the issue of their low numbers.

The man who is leading the discussion is a middle aged man named Vincent. He stands at 5'10 with broad muscular shoulders and scars running along his body. "What are we going to do about this?" One of the hunters asked.

"I know that our numbers have dwindled considerably in these last few months. Most of our men who have entered the forest have failed to come out. At first, I was convinced that one of the other guilds were attacking our guys, so we would have to seek refuge inside another guild. I know that many of the others sees us as just a bunch of old folk who doesn't have what it takes to be real hunters anymore, but after speaking with the other guilds and listening to the reports of the merchants who have made their way through the forest, I've come to the conclusion that this is not the case." Vincent said with clear frustration on his face.

The men stopped to talk about what the boss had just said. It was evident that many of them were tired of being looked down upon by the other guilds and were ready to show them that they still had what it took to be hunters.

"What do you think could be the reason for the disappearance of so many of our men, boss?" Said a guy who was sitting next to Vincent.

The men knew that it couldn't be a beast. They were known to hunt alone in the forest, not to mention, they were considerably weaker than the hunters in their guild. The weakest of them were still in the pawn-2 rank, but all of them had combat experience of some type. Many were former soldiers in the Zanorian military, while others had been hunting for most their lives.

They knew that a single beast would not be able to take out their men, and the fact that the beasts never traveled in packs also made it clear to them that it had to be because of something else.

Vincent sighed when he listened to his men speak about their disgust for the ways the other guilds looked down on them. He shared their thoughts and feelings as well. But he knew as well that it had to be the result of something much more powerful than a normal beast. "I believe that we have a magical beast that has ventured into the forest and has claimed part of it as its territory. That is the only thing that makes sense as of this moment."

The men began to whisper to each other after hearing these words from their leader. "A magical beast could be a real problem boss. It makes sense though that it would be the cause for our men's disappearance." Said the man sitting next to Vincent.

"If my theory is correct, then we need to send our best fighters into the woods together to take on this threat. Not only will it allow us to hunt freely in the woods again, but the body of a magical beast will provide us with enough credits to help us get this place back to where it was in its prime." Exclaimed Vincent.

Hunting for normal beasts was not considered a lucrative job whatsoever. The reason that many went solely for them as opposed to magical beasts was the fact that they could hunt them alone and not have to share their profits with anyone else. Of course, a percentage of the profits went straight to their own guild.

These men enjoyed being out in the wilderness with the freedom to track their prey and feel the pride of being near the top of the food chain. But when it came to magical beasts, this was not the case. Depending on the magical beast, it could destroy entire guilds with no problem.

Magical beasts were considered extremely dangerous creatures. They could take on dozens of normal beasts with next to no problems. Their bodies were much tougher, and they also had the ability to use magic as well. These creatures had their own aptitude, but if you knew the type of beast then you would know their aptitude as well. This made hunting them a little easier to strategize for.

"We need to send a few of our scouts into the forest and try to identify what type of beast we are dealing with." Vincent told the men.

A few of their hands went up after discussing it amongst themselves for a moment. They were ready to bring their guild back to where it was before in terms of manpower again, and the best way to do this, would be to remove the threat in the woods so that they could hunt once more.

"Alright, it's settled then. Leroy, I want you to lead the scouts in the woods and report back what you find." Vincent told the man sitting next to him.

"Yes sir, and if the beast appears to be too dangerous, I'll immediately call you using the communication crystal. We can go from there regarding our next steps." Leroy said with his chest puffed out.

"Let's retaliate against this son of a bitch! We will ensure that no other hunter is killed because of a mindless beast in our hunting area again!" Vincent yelled to the men.