Drake Brand.
“This is really good…” I said as I looked down at my bowl of steaming hot stew.
“My wife is the greatest cook in the village! No, in the entire world!!!” Gunnar exclaimed as he dug into his food.
“Flattery won’t earn you a second serving.” Said Astrid, the proud smile she had betraying her words.
Today I joined Gunnar’s family for dinner. As usual the way Astrid handles the wild game is perfect resulting in a meal that tickled my sense of taste and made me drool.
The main ingredient was the Icehorn meat we hunted. Gunnar suggested that we each take one of the legs back with us instead of selling it whole. Astrid was thrilled with the catch and immediately went in on the prep
The next day arrived quickly.Same as the one before it the two youngsters headed out to the Frozen Woods to hunt whatever Magical Beasts they come across, only this time Gunnar wasn’t around to guide them.He stressed out how important it is to stay out of the inner of the Magic Zones, telling the two to keep an eye for the triangle marking it and to run the moment they see something other than Greywolfs.Since Drake’s party consisted of only him and Rollo he felt a bit restless but it also helped pump the blood through his veins.They are Hunters now. They have to risk their own lives and it’d be pointless to have an escort with them all the time.A quick game of rock, paper and scissors helped
Hearing the guttural scream deep in the woods the two rushed toward the source.As they ran, Drake’s eyes picked the triangle carved into one of the trees. They were entering the inner circle of that magic zone, something Gunnar had repeatedly told them not to avoid.But this isn’t the time to falter. Someone is in trouble and a scream like that wouldn’t be heard unless the matter is serious.Drake moved despite himself. He realized that the danger ahead might be too much for him yet he wasn’t about to stop. He rationalized it by thinking that, whatever caused that scream, it’d definitely have a Soul worth hunting.As they approached the source the sound of shouting and yelling became louder accompanied by the occasional barks and howls.
The giant Bloodfang swallowed the Soul that spawned from the corpse of one of its followers.Drake watched carefully, cursing his inability to do something about it. A window appeared alarming him of the change the Bloodfang was going through.The beast’s level increased to 45 in a single instant. A moment after that its whole body began to convulse as it slowly grew larger.“What the hell is going on…” he murmured to himself.Drake did not understand. That Soul belonged to a level 25 C tier beast. Even if he assumed that it was of the same grade, he couldn’t comprehend how it managed to increase the beast’s level by 5.The Icehorn Soul he ate yesterday was a C tier as well but
“Can’t believe you killed all of them…”Harald made his way to the site of the massacre. The ground was littered with the corpses. The Bloodfangs which threatened to devour him and his companions were reduced to nothing.It frustrated him. How was this newbie able to achieve this when he only got his Hunter title two days ago?“Hey.” Drake suddenly spoke causing Harald to flinch. “You good at skinning?”“Well…”“I’ll give you a quarter of what we get from selling these so do mine as well.”Harald had killed three while Drake got a total of eleven. It’ll take quit a while to handle all
Opening his eyes Drake was overwhelmed with a sense of deja-vu. Back in his room on the second floor of Gunnar’s house, he thought about how he had slept in the same bed for three nights yet still found the sight of the ceiling unfamiliar. Removing the heavy layers covering him he got up and walked to the small basin in the corner, washing his face before checking his body. He could see no injuries which was weird considering how many times the Crimson Fang had thrashed him around. He was sure at least some of his bones were broken during the fight. Sighing in relief Drake put on the clothes that were beside his bed and walked to the first floor. It was already night so he thought everyone would be asleep but the faint voices coming from the kitchen told him sound are still awake.
“Here it is.”Having finished his work Bjorn went inside his workshop to fetch something. After a couple of minutes he came out with a strange looking object wrapped in an old sheet.Once unwrapped Drake learned that it was a sword. A single edge falchion with a curved blade with the edge side vastly wider than the back side. It was a little on the shorter side however its width and thickness made it appear sturdier than the average sword.“I made this a while ago for practice.” Bjorn said. “A failed attempt. Turns out originality doesn’t really sell.”Picking the blade Drake gave it a few swings. Even with the little experience he has he could tell it’s of a much higher quality than the average, weighting three times as mu
“Did you find something?” Gunnar asked.“We found three Crimson Fangs and a whole bunch of those damned Bloodfangs.” Said Leif with a long sigh.“No sight of the alpha.” Tyr added.The two of them went ahead to scout and soon enough found themselves almost at the center of the magical zone. There they found a large pack of white wolves laying around three larger ones with red fur.Though at first it might seem like they’re just lazing around, in reality they’re absorbing the Magical Essence from the surroundings. That process is only possible in the Essence rich areas at the center of the magical zones which makes them rather dangerous because of the beast’s tendency to gather there.
The loud howl sent Thors village into a state of panic. Pushing the matter with Edda aside, Drake quickly ran to where everyone had gathered.“What’s going on?” He asked Gunnar who was guiding Astrid and his kids to the hall.“Don’t know.” The man answered. “I doubt it’s anything good though.”“It’s the Alpha.”Turning toward the voice behind him Drake was surprised to see a huge bear like figure clad in thick armor. It was Ragnar. The equipment he had on seemed to enhance his already inhuman size; bulky full plate armor covering a set of dark red leather. A cape made of crimson fur hung over his back and a helmet with one sharp horn protruding from the front covered his head.