After speaking, Du Pont realized he had misspoken and silently berated himself for being so unsettled. But to his surprise, the Barbarian Butcher did not take it seriously at all. He merely glanced at Du Pont's hand gripping the hammer handle tightly, then seemed to understand and revealed a cruel smile.
"Not quite. If you successfully launched a sneak attack and landed a blow like that, very few novice adventurers below level three could withstand it. Even Classed individuals with strong physiques, like Barbarians and fighters, would be seriously injured even if they did not die on the spot. They would not be able to fight back. But in a drawn-out fight, it would be much harder. If both sides had weapons, you'd have to fight for dozens of seconds at least. Not many idiots would obediently hold their foreheads out for you to hammer."
The nearby farmers quickly backed away when they heard that.
"I see." Du Pont fell silent for several seconds, though no one knew what he was thinking. Then he asked, "You seem to be a Barbarian. In your tribe, how old are children usually when they begin practicing slaughtering livestock and going out to hunt?"
Hearing the question, the Butcher took another bottle of ale from his waist, pulled out the cork, and took a swig. A nostalgic look appeared in his eyes. "It varies. Five or six? Seven or eight? It mostly depends on whether the tribe is short on hands. If we brought back a lot of prey and had to hurry to migrate, adults would have children use daggers to practice skinning small animals. After all, they did not have the strength to butcher large prey. As for hunting on their own, those with better talent who awakened Classed abilities started at around twelve. Their bodies had not fully developed and their bones and muscles were still weak. Ordinary people started after sixteen. Once they hunted a stag or a carnivorous animal like a wolf, they could declare themselves adults."
An indescribable look flashed through Du Pont's eyes. "Then how old are they when they take part in tribal wars and kill people?"
"That depends too. Mainly on whether the chieftain plans to annex another tribe, or whether another tribe plans to attack us. If things are urgent, anyone who has reached adulthood has to fight, even if they are not a Classed individual. Age does not matter." After saying that, the Butcher looked at Du Pont with interest. "What, feeling uncomfortable after killing an animal for the first time?"
Du Pont nodded honestly. "I can't explain it. It just feels strange."
"Looks like you're some rich young master after all, getting hung up over such bullshit." The Butcher's tone was not pleasant, but he still gave an explanation. "Guilt is mostly just an unnecessary emotion people get when they're too full and have nothing better to do. You feel strange because you haven't killed much. Kill a few more times, and you'll become numb to it."
Du Pont's expression became rather colorful after hearing that. "Do those cold-blooded killers think the same way?"
"Of course. What's killing people? Kobolds, goblins, and Gnolls may be less intelligent, but they are still intelligent creatures and can speak. Which famous adventurer has not stained his hands with the blood of hundreds of intelligent creatures? They even came up with the term humanoid."
The Butcher looked into Du Pont's eyes as he spoke. "Once you kill something, you kill it. A wolf hunting to fill its belly would not show any mercy even when killing a newborn fawn that could not yet run. These livestock, on the other hand, have been cared for by people since birth. They never need to struggle for food or worry about disease. When people need them, they repay that care with their lives. Even those annoying druids would not say anything about it, because that is their fate."
Du Pont nodded after hearing that. His feelings were still complicated, but the sorrow he had felt at the beginning was gone.
It was different from swatting mosquitoes and flies. Taking the life of such a large animal so easily had left him at a loss.
It was called a calf, but it still weighed three or four hundred jin. Yet it had died so effortlessly, with just one swing of a hammer.
So life was this fragile.
During a spare moment, he glanced at the system panel, which had also provided information on this hunt.
You precisely struck the calf's weak point (Creature Level 1/8). The heavy blow dealt 16 damage. The calf lost all Health and died. You gained 10 Experience Points.
After taking several deep breaths, Du Pont's hands finally stopped trembling. He returned the hammer to the Butcher, then picked up the long, slender pig-slaughtering knife nearby. The moment he held it, his eyes widened in surprise.
This was actually a magic weapon.
+1 Butcher's Blade Type: Dagger Material: Steel Damage: 1D4+1 Damage Type: Piercing, Slashing Critical Damage: X3 Enchantment: Enemy of Beasts. Deals an additional 1D4 bleeding damage when attacking beasts. Value: 300 gold coins Description: This simply designed, crude-looking dagger was exceptionally sharp and had clearly been carefully maintained. Its specially lengthened handle was obviously made to suit its owner's hand, making the slaughter of animals twice as effective with half the effort.
The Butcher saw Du Pont's surprise and felt a little smug. "Didn't expect a kid like you to know your stuff. You haven't been wasting your time here."
Du Pont nodded in acknowledgment. "But with your physique and strength, you don't need such a powerful dagger just to slaughter pigs, do you?"
Slaughtering was considered skilled work, but it was still something ordinary civilians could do. Given how stingy the academy was, how much could it possibly pay?
This Barbarian's arms were nearly as thick as Du Pont's thighs. When he smiled, he looked somewhat like the Zhang Fei Du Pont had seen in television dramas in his previous life. Forget slaughtering pigs—even wrestling a bear would probably be easy for him.
"I'm a retired adventurer, after all. Of course I have some savings. What's wrong with spending a little money on something I like?" As he spoke, the Butcher set down his bottle. "Besides, the materials needed for the enchantment were mine, so they cost nothing. The mage who enchanted it was an old teammate of mine, so there was no processing fee. To forge this dagger, finding a good blacksmith and spending five gold coins would have been enough. Add it up and subtract it all, and it basically cost nothing."
"..." Du Pont was about to step forward with the knife when the Butcher suddenly said, "Wait. Want to try something interesting?"
"Something interesting?" Du Pont was puzzled. The Butcher stepped forward, flexed both arms, and directly hoisted the huge fat pig onto his shoulder. "Slaughtering something weak is pretty boring. I'll put this pig in that pen and untie it, then you can kill it."
"Huh?" Before Du Pont could respond, the Butcher had already reached the pen and effortlessly untied the rope around the pig's legs. "All right, give it another try. Remember, make it quick and clean. Don't dirty the meat."
Du Pont looked at the Butcher, then at the pig. He quietly activated the system's inspection function, and immediately began cursing inwardly.
Domestic Pig (Fattened) Creature Level: 1/4 Attributes: Strength 16, Agility 10, Constitution 15, Intelligence 2, Perception 8, Charisma 4 Attack Methods: Melee Charge (1D6+2), Bite (1D4) Weakness: Timid Treasure: Over 150 pounds of raw meat Description: Domestic pigs are timid animals, but if one goes berserk, even a level-one adventurer without a combat class would have to put in considerable effort to defeat it while armed. Bare-handed, there is absolutely no chance of victory.
"...Can I beat this thing without using magic?" Du Pont flexed his biceps. "Without tools, even three or four farmers probably couldn't hold down a pig this big, right?"
"Don't you have a knife?" The Butcher did not care and had already returned to his spot to pick up his ale. "Besides, domestic pigs aren't wild boars. They are not that hostile, and they are naturally timid. Once you go in, you'll have plenty of time to get close and land a fatal blow. You could say it's a fool that won't fight back."
Du Pont keenly sensed the hidden meaning in his words. "What if I don't kill it in one strike?"
"Then it might bite you." Looking at Du Pont's troubled expression, the Butcher reassured him, "If you're really scared, you can cast Mage Armor. With that protecting you, there's basically no chance it can bite through your robe. At worst, it might knock you over a few times. Of course, if you really can't beat it, you can shamelessly use Magic Missile on it. This pig is going to end up as food today anyway. Who would blame you if there's a little less pork?"
Du Pont thought, You just said only shameless people use Magic Missile. How am I supposed to use it now? Besides, I don't know a damn thing about Magic Missile.
But he could not say that aloud. Looking at the domestic pig in the pen, which was secretly watching its surroundings, Du Pont took a deep breath to bolster his courage, picked up the dagger, and walked inside.
Compared with the calf from before, tied up and unable to resist, he felt much better about killing prey that could fight back.
This large pig was stronger and more powerful than he was. For someone without offensive magic, it absolutely counted as a formidable opponent.
Wait, was this way of thinking a little masochistic? Shouldn't it be better the easier something was to kill?
But before Du Pont could settle on a strategy, the pen's gate had already been shut. The Butcher's voice came from behind him. "Don't be fooled by how fat and stupid it looks. It has plenty of muscle, and it's smart too. If it bites you, you might lose a chunk of flesh."
"Thanks for the warning." Du Pont answered aloud, but he remained where he was, observing the massive, powerful pig before him with sweat gathering in his palms.
His Strength was only fourteen, and his body had been somewhat weak lately. In a contest of pure strength, he definitely could not beat it.
Perhaps, just as this Barbarian had said, he only had one suitable opportunity. If he failed to kill it, things might become troublesome.
But could an attribute panel decide everything?
Not necessarily. Even when humans on Earth were still primitive people, they could hunt saber-toothed tigers and mammoths. Their physical fitness might not have been stronger than that of modern humans.
So where did the difference lie?
Humans possessed intelligence. They could use tools and create weapons. The Butcher's instruction and the dagger in his hand gave him ample courage.
Though he was only an apprentice, the Butcher was a profession even ordinary people could take up. There was no reason he should lose to ordinary people.
Du Pont stepped forward.
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