Chapter 293 - Hunting Grounds (Patreon)

After Zeke chose his skill, he had to resist the urge to go directly outside and test it out. As was the case with his other skills, making the choice had come with some rudimentary information on how to use it – otherwise, it would have taken weeks to figure out the mechanics – and he had to admit that he was cautiously optimistic about his decision. Certainly, it wouldn’t as flashy as something like [Blade of the Colossus] or [Earthen Bulwark], but [Event Horizon] would hopefully shore up one of his weaknesses.

However, now that Zeke had made his decision, the adrenaline from such a momentous moment had begun to fade, leaving the weight of his fatigue unfettered. It wouldn’t do to explore the new skill when afflicted with such exhaustion, so, for the first time in quite a while, Zeke settled down and went to sleep.

Some indeterminate time later, he awoke feeling better than he had in weeks, but that wasn’t terribly surprising. While hunting the golems, his momentum had driven him forward at a breakneck pace that didn’t seem to have room for proper rest. There was just something so addictive about rapid progression, almost as if he was afraid to stop until he soaked up all of the experience. Certainly, the golems were difficult opponents, and fighting them hadn’t been pleasant – but the loophole he’d found allowed him to progress at a pace he knew was abnormal. Even now, after years of experience with the Framework, the influx of experience left a euphoric feeling in its wake.

Often, Zeke had wondered if that was the whole point. After all, the Framework existed to funnel powerful people into progressively higher planes so they could fight a war against demonkind. What better way to do that than to attach a wave of ecstasy to the process of gaining experience? Couple that feeling with the sheer satisfaction of seeing verifiable improvement, and it became an ironclad system of addiction.

But Zeke didn’t mind. Even without it, he’d have worked toward growing stronger. After all, he’d spent most of his life on Earth doing just that – with obsessive dedication, no less – so it made sense that his second life would be no different.

Rising from bed, Zeke quickly dressed himself in one of the spare outfits he had in his spatial storage. With a pang of regret, he remembered that most of his clothing had been purchased by Abby back during their first stay Jariq. She’d done so because, in her words, he’d taken to dressing like a vagabond. Not for the first time, he wondered where she’d ended up. Was she happy? Probably not, considering that she was alone; by her own admission, she’d never done well in that kind of a situation.

She deserved her misery, though. Zeke hadn’t wavered in his confidence regarding his choice to leave her. Her betrayal had forced his hand, but even if it hadn’t, the clarity that came with time and distance told him that their relationship would never have lasted. And even if it had, they’d have both ended up miserable. They were too different, and their individual issues just exacerbated everything.

Abby was desperate to prove she was worthwhile, but she was fundamentally incapable of seeing herself as anything but weak. Regardless of how far she had progressed, she still thought of herself as inferior. Zeke expected that that inferiority complex was the root of her choice to attack Micayne and throw everyone into mortal danger.

By contrast, Zeke was sometimes too confident. Too sure of his own path. And on top of that, he wasn’t blind to the fact that he’d grown more callous the longer he’d remained in the Radiant Isles. Perhaps it was his half-demonic nature – after all, he knew that his time being tortured by the succubus had changed him, both physically and mentally – but Zeke suspected it was more mundane than that. It was difficult to continue fighting the proverbial good fight when everyone kept turning on him.

From the very beginning, most of the people he’d encountered were terrible. Whether it was Julio, that idiot who’d attacked him in Beacon, the Spiders, or the rulers of Jariq, everyone seemed hellbent on killing him. So, why should he care about such a stagnant cesspool? Even so, if he’d thought he could have saved the people of the Radiant Isles, he would have. But they were doomed. He knew it. So had Abby.

And still, she had acted – not because she really wanted to save them, but rather, so she could play at being the hero. The tree goddess’s whispers were only the spark that lit the fire. Abby had chosen her own path. He hoped she was happy with that choice.

Because Zeke wasn’t. Even though, from rational perspective, he knew their relationship was always going to end, he still regretted how everything had gone down. But that was the past, and he needed to look to the future. To that end, he finished dressing, ate something, then headed to the one level of the tower he hadn’t really explored: the Hunting Grounds.

It only took a moment after arrival for him to realize that the level wasn’t at all what he had expected. The name suggested something like a wildlife preserve where he could hunt captive creatures. Not the most sporting situation, but he’d hoped it would translate into a little easy experience. However, the notification that flashed before his eyes negated that expectation.

Please choose setting: jungle, plains, or indoors.

Zeke chose the one he thought would be least complicated by picking the second option. To his surprise, he found himself beset by another prompt:

Please choose scenario: single combat, small group combat, or horde.

Again, Zeke chose the simplest option by selecting single combat. Yet another notification appeared before him.

Please choose opponent: humanoid (intelligent), humanoid (animalistic), troll (adult), drachnid, Jotun…

On and on it the list went, itemizing every single creature Zeke had ever fought. Even the golems and demons were present. Playing it safe – or perhaps because of nostalgia – Zeke chose his very first opponent: a troll. When he did, another notification appeared:

Please standby while the scenario is formed.

The formless space in which he’d first appeared suddenly shifted, and over the next few seconds, became a grassy plain with knee-high grass. Looking up, Zeke saw a few wispy clouds drifting across a brilliantly blue sky that was illuminated by an actual sun. He expected that it was all an illusion of some sort, but he didn’t rule out the possibility that the tower had either created everything he saw or at least transported him to another place.

The reality was that he had no idea how the tower worked, just that it did. The underlying runes were a complete mystery to him, and he expected that he would need to progress much, much further down his runecrafting path in order to understand even a tenth of what he’d seen.

In any case, Zeke didn’t have long to ponder such things, because only a moment after the environment formed, a familiar creature appeared. Zeke tried to use [Inspect], but for the first time ever, it didn’t work at all. Still, he didn’t need the identification skill to know that he faced a recreation of the troll warlord he’d fought at the top of the troll caves. For a long moment, the monster just stood there like an unmoving mannequin. Then, a final notification appeared:

Please ready yourself from combat. Begin in 3…2…1…

The moment the countdown finished, the troll erupted into motion, moving so quickly that Zeke barely managed to dodge to the side. Since fighting in the troll caves, Zeke’s stats had grown exponentially, and any monster he could defeat back when he only had a dozen levels under his belt should have been laughably easy for the current version of him. However, the troll’s stats seemed to have increased to the point where it could pose a decent challenge. Even so, the attack had only gotten so close because Zeke had been a bit too stunned to take that final prompt’s advice.

Now that his blood was pumping, though, Zeke wasted no time before summoning his hammer and launching himself at the creature. His first attack – a sledgehammer strike – was meant to end the fight in a hurry, but the troll once again surprised Zeke by batting Voromir to the side with one of its axes. Even as Zeke’s hammer thudded into the ground, he felt the bite of creature’s second axe.

Instinctively, Zeke tried to activate [Metallurgical Repair], but to his surprise, nothing happened. That brief moment of shock earned him another wound – this one on his shoulder – and he dashed backwards to reassess the situation. The troll didn’t follow, allowing Zeke a moment to gather his wits.

One after another, Zeke tried to activate his skills, but just as before, nothing happened. Or rather, the runes lit up just like any other time, but there seemed to be something keeping the skills from full activation.

Frustrated, Zeke tried to embrace his path, but he was similarly stymied. Finally, the tower seemed to take pity on him and gave him another notification:

Use of Skills and Will are prohibited within the Hunting Grounds. Adjust accordingly.

“Well, isn’t that just fantastic,” he muttered. It almost felt like the tower was mocking his attempts to use his various abilities. “And what the hell is Will?”

By context, he expected that it was probably the proper term for the energy associated with his path, but he couldn’t be certain. Perhaps that was something he needed to ask Jasper when he went back to the slave barracks. Nomenclature and the curious nature of the tower aside, for now, he had to concentrate on the angry troll in front of him.

Idly, Zeke noted that his wounds, while painful, hadn’t actually done any damage, which gave him some hints as to the purpose of the Hunting Grounds. It seemed to be intended as a sparring program where he could focus on his raw technique. If that was the case, some of the potential opponents would probably be far more than he could handle. He’d beaten each and every one of them, but that was with the benefit of his skills. Without them, it would be far more difficult – and in some cases, impossible. Still, Zeke couldn’t help but grin as he faced off against the troll.

The golems had been a great boon in terms of increasing his power, but fighting them had been incredibly unsatisfying. So, he quickly found himself looking forward to his time within the Hunting Grounds.

Hefting his trusty hammer, Zeke once again faced off against the troll. At one point, Zeke had needed his martial path – or Will, it seemed – in order to defeat the warlord. And even then, it had been a close thing. Now, without the benefit of his skills or his path – and with the creature’s seemingly inflated stats – Zeke would have to rely solely on his technique.

So, he focused his mind to a sharp point and advanced on the monster. The first salvo was exploratory – just a couple of quick jabs with his mace – but it gave Zeke all the information he needed to confirm his suspicions that the troll’s stats had increased from their first encounter. Perhaps the tower would do continue to do so each time it created a new opponent; that way, Zeke would always find a challenge.

And that was fine by him. He never expected to be the same sort of technician someone like Silas Martel had been, but he knew there was plenty of room for improvement. So, Zeke continued to poke and prod the troll as he tested its abilities. And what he found was actually a little disappointing. The troll was fast and strong, but its technique hadn’t been enhanced like its stats had been. As a result, Zeke quickly found that, so long as he kept his wits about him, the fight wouldn’t be difficult.

In the end, his assessment turned out to be correct, and after toying with the troll for a few minutes, he ended the fight with a leaping strike that crushed the monster’s skull. Not a surprising end to the conflict, given that trolls weren’t exactly known as tacticians. Things would almost assuredly be different if he chose a different opponent – like the Jotuns or an intelligent human.

Still, now that he’d determined the purpose of the Hunting Grounds, Zeke wasn’t interested further sparring. Certainly, he’d wanted to investigate the level’s purpose, but his primary reason for visiting had been to test his new skill, which had been rendered impossible by the level’s rules.

As the tower continued to evolve, perhaps that restriction would be lifted.

In any case, if Zeke wanted to test [Event Horizon], he would need to do so outside the tower. To that end, he quickly returned to the teleportation platform and chose the Entry Hall as his destination. Not long after, he found himself striding through the doors and out into the ruined city that surrounded the tower.

Without the golems, the ruined First City felt incredibly empty, and in some ways, it was a perfect metaphor for what had happened to the dwarves themselves. Like the city, the inhabitants of Min Ferilik were a mere shadow of their former glory. Zeke wasn’t certain how their fall would come about, but he knew it was inevitable. That was the price of the demonic influence; it had robbed them of something vital, and now, they were merely going through the motions of a hollow life.

If they hadn’t captured and enslaved him, as well as many others, Zeke might have pitied them. In any case, he pushed those thoughts away and began his original hunt anew. After all, he still needed a test subject, and his new skill – if he understood it correctly – was perfectly suited for that endeavor.

To that end, Zeke stalked through the tunnels, remaining as hidden as he could manage as he searched for a potential guinea pig. Eventually, he managed to find another kobold ranger. The little monster took off the moment it sensed Zeke, but that was just fine by him; after all, he needed to test his skill, didn’t he? Never was there a better opportunity.

So, without further delay, he raised his hand, channeled mana into the runes governing [Event Horizon], and let it loose.