12 Experienced hunter

Ever since discovering the cubs in the cave, Elias's attitude towards life in the jungle changed drastically. No longer did he celebrate his kill or boast about it.

His expression was disciplined and detached, hunting was no longer about the thrill and adventure; it was a forced necessity.

He would only take his share of the corpses, leaving the rest in place, for nature to claim. Elias would hang remains on the trees for any predator to nab as a way of paying respect to the jungle and its inhabitants.

The hunter would spare the young, allowing nature to keep its balance and regenerate its animal resources. However, in reality it was more out of pity. He would pity the small beasts in this ferocious jungle, often, they would be in their lonesome trying to survive.

Some days, Elias would fight within himself. The lives reaped by his hands would weigh heavy on his conscience. Even though his hands were stained not with human blood, but that of beast; he found them of higher value.

Elias lived his new life away from any unfamiliar human interaction. Aside from his parents, Sophia and some odd servants cleaning the house every now and then, Elias spent most of his days away from other humans. Civilization no longer appealed to his fancy, especially after his first hunt.

Ever since he began exploring the woods near their house with his father, Elias became enamored with wild life. Should their situation have been different, Elias would have reveled to be in such environment. It was an ideal life! Especially after witnessing the disgusting human nature at play time and time again in his past life. He drowned a plethora of hate for humanity, unwilling to act on them, but his death was the last straw. Now, The only thing keeping him tethered to humanity, were Sophia and his parents.

Elias vowed in his heart to be an unreachable summit, planting fear into the malicious hearts of man.

No longer would he fall to the hands of another.

No longer would he suffer for his weakness.

It is no sin to be born weak, but to stay as such.

Now, in a world where mortals can reach the strength of gods, Elias was dead set on reaching those high peaks.

Discovering his affinity was the first step, and what a discovery it was. Elias, armed with a vast imagination and knowledge, would be able to decipher the Terra affinity and use it to its full potential.

Even now, barely a few months after using magic, Elias was able to put his past knowledge to use, and milk more abilities out of his magic affinity.

###

Once again, I have found myself in the same position as the last few months. Crouched in bush, targeting another prey for my weekly hunt. However, different from the months before, I am on the cusp of C rank territory. In this area, I have already encountered a good number of C rank opponents, adding them to the list of beasts I felled.

The boar in front of me is the same kind of boar I faced when I first entered the jungle. However, this boar has the earth element, meaning not only is its hide tougher but it uses earth elemental spells.

The Erymanthian boar sniffed the rotten fruits on the jungle floor and bit into them, falling for the bait.

'That's it, eat the fruits.'

I took shallow breaths and entered the state of concentration I learned from mimicking my father. It was a breathing technique, coupled with Aeter control to shift all my power to my upper body, and a minimal amount to my legs and abdomen to maintain stability.

While this was very dangerous in an ongoing battle, in this particular situation, it was the most optimal choice.

###

Had there have been seasoned hunters looking at Elias, they would have been astonished at the level of proficiency in hunting he achieved.

Elias instinctively masked his presence and blended in with nature. Not a muscle twitched, even when a fly crawled all over his face and climbed up to his eye lid.

A few moments later Elias let the arrow fly as it whistled through the air. The arrow flew as a mystical golden river trailed behind it. The golden projectile plunged into the beast's jugular, taking it by surprise.

The boar squealed, as the arrow went through his neck cleanly. The glow around the bow, arrow and Elias's hands died down as the boar, chocked on its blood.

To ease the pain, Elias swiftly took out the hatchet and severed all the remaining blood vessels in its neck, ending its life. The hunt ended shortly, before the boar even got to use any spells.

"I have no other choice, forgive me"

Elias stood up and looked at the boar beneath his feet. He reflected on his kill, and pondered on the words his father said to him weeks ago. He did not rush to claim his kill, but observed the surroundings wearily. He swung the bow on his back, and took out a new staff from his ring.

Elias eyed his surroundings carefully as one hand gripped the staff with strength, and the other hovered over the hatchet.

"Come out! I know you're there"

-Rustle

A noise sounded not far from where the boy stood.

Out of the shade of a tree came a wolf, grey of fur. The wolf bared its fangs as saliva glistened on its teeth and dribbled to the floor. Its steps were confident and steady, the beast's figure was oozing with killing intent.

It got low on the ground and lunged suddenly, opening its maw to tear Elias apart.

Elias spun around and slashed his hatchet across the wolf's mouth, splitting its jaw in half. Low whimpers of pain sounded before the hatchet swung down on its temple, crushing its head.

Wolves are strong beasts, proving a challenge to defeat. Lone wolves are usually picked off easily, yet a pack is harder to kill.

Elias prayed silently, hoping the wolf was a lone one, but the odds were against him.

Out of the tree line three other wolves approached with a black one leading the assault. Elias placed his hatchet back on his side, and used the staff in his hands to create some space between them.

###

The wolves surrounded me in a triangular position with the grey wolves flanking me and the black one meeting me head one. These lupine beasts, are C ranked and are simply called Aeter wolves. Their strengths lie in numbers, and they typically hunt in groups of four. This one must have been the weakest link, fodder used for distraction.

The wolves on my flanks growled and clawed at the air suddenly. I was taken aback by their behavior before my instincts warned me of imminent danger.

I rolled backwards and launched myself even further using my staff to push me off the ground. I broke out in a cold sweat as the spot I was just standing on was marked by claws tearing away at the earth.

'I couldn't see the attack at all!'

Before I could regain my composure, I noticed the black wolf suddenly disappear, only to appear right behind me. I turned back with inhuman flexibility and blocked his claws from tearing my flesh.

What my father had me focus on in training was strength and dexterity. I was as nimble as a monkey, and I could dish out strikes a normal adult would not be able to. Thanking my father silently for his guidance, I got into stance and observed the wolves.

The wolves had me at a disadvantage, but that was about to change.

'The black wolf came out of my shadow, it must have some shadow movement, while the grey ones must be using the wind element to dish out magical attacks.'

The bestiary my father gave me has been a key element in my survival these past months, and it saved me once again.

I looked at the sun and saw that it was behind me now, casting my shadow forward. I thrust my staff blocking the wolf on my right from slashing his claws, while conjuring an earth wall diagonally blocking the expected strike from my left.

As I sensed an attack coming from my shadow, I sneered and changed the flat surface into sharp spikes. A low whimper sounded as the black wolf got impaled.

The grey wolf I struck first regained its bearing and lunged at me, but an upward strike towards its lower jaw shattered its skull. The last wolf snarled in resistance before it turned tail and tried to run away. I took out my bow and swiftly shot my arrow through its leg tripping it. I approached the wolf slowly and took out my hatchet, with one swift swipe to the neck, the wolf lost its life.

"These C ranks are no joke, if it weren't for that feeling I got, those wolves would have torn me to bits."

The battle was short, but perilous. The wind element attacks were invisible, and the shadow movement from the black wolf was dangerous.

I skinned the black wolf and harvested some meat from the boar leaving the rest. I stored everything in the ring, and headed back to the burrow.

'That was too close. I can't keep relying on dumb luck to avoid losing my life! I bet if I train to sense Aeter I could see it fueling the attacks.'

I trudged the wild reflecting upon the battle as it started to get dark, the hooting of owls echoed in the jungle and the glowing eyes of the night predators lit up the wilderness.

In the darkness of the jungle, A barn owl was perched upon a tree taking care of little white eggs. The barn owl had a white and brown body, just like any of its species back on earth. However, Situated atop its heart shaped face were a pair of small and fragile looking antlers reminding me that I was in another world. They were not large and bulky like that of Otso, looking like that of a moose. They resembled a deer's, but of miniature size.

The mother owl hen sat on her small eggs, protecting them from the biting cold. She sat on all but one, a smaller egg with dark pigmentation.

Suddenly the owl picked up the egg with its sharp talons and tossed it straight out its nest. It tumbled in the air spinning wildly falling with little grace, barely missing the branches of the tree that seemed to come to life trying to clutch at the small soul vessel.

I rushed forward, extending my two hands catching the egg gingerly, shielding it from the ruthlessness of the elements.

Looking back and forth between my hand and the nest, it took me a couple seconds to process what happened.

'…How cruel'

I did not try to put the egg back for I knew that the owl hen mother rejected the egg because it was different, and thought it was not hers.

I took a cloth from my ring and wrapped it around my neck and under my arm. I then placed the small egg there snugly and made my way toward my burrow with haste.

Setting the egg down on an animal pelt near the fire, I wrapped it gently.

I took a seat close by and started making more arrows as I slipped into a meditative trance.

Over the months of practice, I learned to meditate without delving into the inner world, only to circulate Aeter, boosting its regeneration and my recovery.

An hour into my meditation, I was woken up by a visitor.

My father's hulking figure entered the burrow and laid down on some animal fur.

"Cute egg you got there, dinner?"

The giant man picked up the fragile egg with his thick fingers and held it curiously.

I grabbed my father's hand firmly, stopping him from damaging the egg.

"Careful! Don't break it, it's not food."

Isaac eyed his son, giving him a confused look

"Why do you have an egg then Elias?"

"W-Well its mother tried to throw it away! S-so I saved it… and I took it with me."

He sat up right, his towering figure casting a shadow over my body. The light from the fire flickered as winds danced furiously in the cave.

"Elias, once that animal hatches you have a duty to provide and care for it. Do you have the necessary commitment to do so? Or are you going to discard an innocent soul on a whim?"

I looked at my father seriously and then shifted my sight back at the egg laying quietly beside the fire. His fierce glare was frightening, but i did not hesitate to answer.

"I will take care of it until it matures then I will give it freedom."

I tried to be as firm as possible, I would not step down, my mind was already made.

To my relief, he the situation did not escalate, he lay back on the animal pelt beneath him and snacked on some dried meat.

'Good on you Elias, good on you.'

My father's demeanor turned back into a cheerful and playful one, grinning at me in satisfaction

"By the way we are leaving the jungle in two months' time, I found us a place to lay low."

Stunned by his words I stared at his back listlessly for a moment before bombarding him with questions.

"Really?! That's great! Are we going to see mom? Is Sophia going to be there as well?"

I could not hold back my excitement, will I finally see them again?!

"Are you that eager to get out of the jungle?"

"No, on the contrary the jungle feels comfortable, i-it's just that I miss them. I want to see them again, make sure they are alright."

Father sighed heavily, a downcast expression appeared on his visage.

"No, they won't be there. We can't see them yet, they still have unfinished business back in the empire. But don't worry boy, with your mother and Sophia joining the efforts to quell the rebellion, it will be over before you know it."

Disappointed, I went back and sat down by the fire, listening to it crackle soothingly while I studied a new magic tome on runes. Father brought back a limited number of books, few of which are on the subject of magic. Only two to be exact, "introduction to Magic Theory" and "The Runic language"

After finishing the first book, I took up learning runes. And what a fascinating subject those runes are. They are a magical language, allowing one to harness elements out of you affinity through runic connections with their respective origin pantheons.

Opening the leather cover of the book, I traced my hand over the rough pages, falling into a trance exploring the runes and their uses as night settled in and announced the end of another day.