Chapter 238 - Hunter Biome (Patreon)

"Ok... I think this is right."

"All done, kid?" Peaches asked.

"Yeah. I triple-checked. Everything seems to be correct," Hera replied.

"So, why are you not confirming your answers?"

"You are not going to kick me out of here just to avoid paying your bet, are you?"

"Of course not! What do you take me for? A deal is a deal. Besides, I can't kick anyone out. Only the system can," Peaches scoffed.

"Oh, I thought you controlled this."

"I don't control anything. Well… maybe the monitors, but it's more of an on, off, and rewind thing."

"So you are not all that powerful?"

Peaches squinted at Hera, "Wanna try me, kid? I have more than a few thousand years under my belt."

"I'm just joking. There is no need to be that serious," Hera chuckled.

She turned back to the plaque and confirmed her answers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mountain Biome – Final Task Completed

The information you provided about the Taraluk was correct.

The mountain biome was completed.

If you complete the current role test, the Taraluk will already be part of your [Hunter's Catalogue]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"All done. Now pay up, what are the scouts?" Hera announced proudly as she came back to the reception.

"Well done, but you still haven't won the bet."

"Why?"

Peaches smirked, "Because of this."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Quest Updated:
Explorer's Quest - Hunter Skill

You have acquired abilities that mirror that of a Hunter. You may attempt the Hunter role test to unlock Hunter related skills.

Learn the habit, personalities, and weaknesses of the monsters in the enclosures. While you watch them, questions and tasks will show up periodically. If you fail one, you will be sent back to the reception of the room.

Hidden Goal:
Understand the role of a hunter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"This feels like cheating," Hera said.

"Not my fault. You are the one who triggered it. I just… held it back for a moment."

"You waited to rub that in my face?"

"Not really, I just wanted to show it with a flair," Peaches smiled.

Hera chuckled, "Fair enough. So do I get a task or something?"

"Look at the hallway. There is a black door on the other side. Go through there. You have a different type of test to complete."

"What kind of test?"

"Like the assassin one, it's more of an origin story," Peaches explained.

Hera looked up towards the clock. She still had a little over seven hours. It should be enough time to win the bet, but she had to move fast. After thanking Peaches, she rushed to the black door. Inside it, there was a vast desert made completely out of sand dunes that stretched all the way to the horizon, much like the one in the first biome. However, this time a small caravan with a few people frozen in place was behind the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hunter Biome – 1st task

You have the opportunity to discover more about the hunter role.

Use your knowledge to identify who was the first to hunt the Three Needle Scorpion.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"How the hell am I supposed to find that out?"

Hera walked over to the caravan. She had no idea how to identify who among them would hunt the scorpion. Her first thought was that the person should be desperate to do something like that. Then again, these people seemed to be native to the desert. They wore long clothes and had camels to pull some small skiffs filled with boxes and packages. Hera didn't know enough about their culture to know if scorpions could be considered delicacies or not.

Then again, could a first hunt be related to it being a delicacy? Maybe despite any cultural differences, the reason someone would eat a monster for the first time was always the same. Looking at the people, most were similarly dressed. Long cloaks made with light and breathable clothes covered most of their bodies, leaving only their faces exposed. They all seemed healthy and more or less happy. Some had tired expressions, but it was expected if they were traveling for a long time. Only one person had a distinct set of clothes. It was a smaller kid who had a long torn-up cloak covered in several red stains. Unlike everyone else, the kid didn't have any shoes and maybe not even pants. They used the cloak to cover up their body, but their bony arms were still exposed and burned by the sun. To make things worse, their skin was pulled back on their face, and their lips were cracked. Showing clear signs of starvation and dehydration.

Looking at the rest of the group, Hera realized that only one person seemed to be in a situation desperate enough to risk being poisoned by a scorpion. She approached the kid and said.

"You are the hunter. Now, how can I give my answer?"

The kid was covered in a yellow glow, and a notification appeared in front of Hera.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you wish to confirm your answer?
[Yes] [No]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, ok then," Hera said as she pressed the yes button.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You have completed the Hunter Biome – 1st task

Your answer is correct. The child is the first person to ever hunt a Three Needle Scorpion.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As soon as the notification went away, the people in the caravan started moving. Hera didn't notice it until one man walked through her. They weren't physical beings but holograms, and they were moving fast. It was just like watching a sped-up video. Hera didn't even have to move. The entire scenario shifted to keep the caravan in her sights. The people were walking for a long time, and the kid lagged behind. The man pulled a whip from his waist and whipped the kid a few times. The child fell to the ground as they was being punished, blood streaming out of their wounds.

Hera stared at the scene in horror. How could someone do such a thing to a kid? After a few more whippings, another person stopped the man and pulled him to the side. A brief discussion took place before the caravan kept going, leaving the kid behind. The shadows shifted, showing that time was moving even faster. A couple of hours seemed to pass for the holograms, with the kid still motionless on the ground. A three needle scorpion appeared from the side and got closer to the child's face. The child grabbed the monster and bit its tail off in a burst of strength, spitting it to the side. Following that up, the kid ripped its pincers apart and ate the rest of the creature, then they fell back to the ground.

The time sped up even more, and when the sun was setting, the child started moving again. They looked around and started walking south, diverging from the path the caravan had taken. Time kept going at an accelerated pace as they kept moving, tripping in the sand and struggling to get up.

"The life of a slave is filled with hardship. We all reach a point where even getting lost in the desert seems like a better option," a childish voice appeared beside Hera.

She looked to the side and saw the same kid that was walking in the sand. However, the tattered cloak seemed cleaned, and the child was no longer malnourished. There was some meat on their bones, and their face was no longer sunken and pale.

"I'm sorry for what you had to go through. It doesn't matter what or who you are. No one deserves to be treated like that," Hera replied.

"It matters not. What matters is what happened and the wounds that pushed me to escape. Despite not being successful and having encountered death in this desert, I have no regrets."

Hera just stared at them in silence. There was nothing she could say. She couldn't fathom the idea of suffering so much that starving in the desert seemed like a better option.

"Now, one last question remains, and you have only one chance to reply. Why did I hunt the scorpion?" the child asked.

The question seemed too obvious. They were hungry, and they needed food. It was that simple, but could it be a trick question? Hera looked back at the kid stumbling through the dunes. If she was in their place, the only thing she would look for was food and water.

"You wanted to eat," Hera replied with little confidence.

The kid nodded, and time sped up again. The sun went down, and the desert became dark, completely dark. Hera couldn't even see her own hands. A few moments passed, and the light came back. However, the entire landscape had changed. Instead of a sandy desert, Hera found herself in a deep jungle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hunter Biome – 2nd task

You have the opportunity to discover more about the hunter role.

Use your knowledge to identify who was responsible for the decision of hunting the Darikon Orangutans.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"For the decision? Why so specific?" Hera sighed. This bonus round was more troublesome than she expected.

Looking behind her, she saw the same area where she arrived when entering the jungle biome, but instead of more jungle, there was a small village. About a dozen wooden houses were spread around, and about 20 people scattered around. Some looked wounded, while others were frozen in a running motion. The closest group to her seemed to be building a wooden wall around the village's perimeter.

Hera walked over, studying each person. Most of the ones on the streets were muscular men and women. They had several scars, and all had toned bodies. The ones making the walls had some minor wounds, but a few were lying on the ground with more severe injuries. Among them, there was even someone who was missing an arm. The man seemed to have just been dragged out of hell. He was completely bloodied, and there was even a piece of bone sticking out of his right leg.

The wooden houses weren't safe from the scars either. Large claw marks covered most of the walls, and a few of them were partially collapsed. The village was in ruins. It was almost like walking through a war zone. Inside one of the few houses that were still in one piece, Hera saw a group of children huddled together with two older couples in front of them, trying to calm the group. On the side, a pregnant woman was lying in bed, and a teenage girl by her side, holding her hand. By the size of her belly, she shouldn't be in labor, but both had pained expressions.

Hera left the house and walked around once more. She noticed that one house had a large hole in its side, and it was easy to tell what caused it. The destruction had the same pattern as the trunk that she saw one of the darikon orangutans punching with its red mana fist. Doing another lap around the village, Hera still didn't know who was the instigator of the hunt. They had some crops on the back that seemed to be more than enough to feed everyone, and even the surrounding trees that were cut down to make the houses were being replanted. They seemed to have a great deal of respect for nature. Yet, all the people in the village had reasons to want the orangutans gone, and if the creatures weren't around, it meant that they managed to push them away. It wasn't like they were fighting some boogeyman that they never saw before. She spent half an hour trying to look for any clues but couldn't find anything that could help.

"Hang on. I might be thinking about this in the wrong way. Why is this happening?" Hera thought for a moment, "It's probably because of the orangutans, right? It looks like the village was doing what it could to give back what they had taken. In the future, this might prove to be a problem, but right now, it still seems to be working."

She opened her map, hoping that the information she got from the biome would still work. Everything was still there, and she could see that this area was right on the edge of the orangutan's territory. Or at least it would be if she hadn't created the river cutting the middle of the jungle.

"Ok, so I'm right. This has to be the orangutan's fault. They are the ones that attacked, and this was to defend themselves. This is my answer. The orangutans are responsible for the decision," Hera said out loud.

The confirmation appeared in front of her again, and Hera pressed yes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You have completed the Hunter Biome – 2nd task

Your answer is correct. The Darikon Orangutans pushed the village to look for ways to get rid of the monsters.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In response to the notification, time flowed again. She saw a group of orangutans approaching the village while the humans building the walls stopped to get their weapons. There was a moment where both groups just stared at each other intently. With a roar, the orangutans dashed out of the jungle towards the village. Just as both armies were about to clash, time froze again.

"This drove us to kill each other. We started as a group of farmers trying to live inside a jungle," an old voice came from behind Hera. It was one of the older women who was hiding inside the house. She was wrinkly and had thin white hair. One of her eyes was glazed over, and she had a cane to help her stay up.

"What happened after this?" Hera asked.

"We fought for months. We fought until one side was extinct. The village of farmers became the village of hunters. Hunters who didn't stop until all the orangutans were gone from this place."

Hera looked back at the frozen scene. There was fear in the humans' eyes, but some already had a spark of rage. Hunting wasn't always for food, sometimes it could be for revenge.

"So, tell me. Why did we change our ways?" the crone asked.

"You wanted to protect your people and avenge the ones you lost."

The old woman nodded, and time started moving slowly. Hera watched as each of the monsters got closer to the village. The first arrow was let loose, and just as it was about to hit an orangutan in the eye, a blinding flash of light covered the entire area.

When she opened her eyes, everything was dark. Hera patiently waited until she could see something again. This time, she was in a small camp by the side of a mountain peak.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hunter Biome – 3rd task

You have the opportunity to discover more about the hunter role.

Use your knowledge to identify the reason the expedition went after the Talaruk.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ok, this might be the last one. Let's do this!" Hera shouted excitedly.