Hunting

"Hunter?"

Roland was not surprised that learning Basic Archery had awakened a new profession.

His gaze lingered on the final line of text, and his brows gradually furrowed.

"Two survival skills."

"What exactly do these survival skills include?"

"Making fire by drilling wood? Purifying water? Or identifying edible things in the wild?"

Countless possibilities flashed through his mind.

Roland looked up at the sky, which had already grown completely dark, then finally shook his head and temporarily suppressed his jumbled thoughts.

"Forget it. I'll leave the verification until tomorrow."

He moved his arms, sore from his prolonged practice, and carefully gathered the arrows scattered around the Training Ground before leaving.

As the night breeze brushed past the manor's paths, Roland suddenly remembered the information John had revealed the previous night.

"Right. I should go ask Mister Bronson whether he knows anything about those strange incidents in Black Fir Forest."

Following his memory, Roland soon arrived at the secluded wooden hut.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

The crisp knocking sounded especially harsh in the quiet night.

The wait was longer than he had expected.

When the wooden door finally creaked open, Bronson's haggard face appeared through the gap.

His eye sockets were deeply sunken, yet his eyes glittered with an unusual light. His entire person radiated a sickly vitality.

"It's you, Roland."

Bronson's voice came with heavy breaths.

"I remember that we agreed the research assistance would take place five days from now."

Roland replied with a trace of apology.

"I'm terribly sorry to disturb you, Mister Bronson. I just have a few questions I'd like to ask."

As he spoke, Roland suddenly sensed a familiar feeling coming from behind the wooden door.

It was the unique sensation he had experienced when he first felt flames after awakening the Blacksmith profession and obtaining the [Heart of the Furnace] trait.

At that moment, he could clearly sense that some Fire Source inside Bronson's room was radiating violent and uneasy emotional fluctuations.

"I'm terribly sorry."

The corner of Bronson's mouth twitched slightly as he forced out a smile.

"I'm afraid today isn't very convenient, because right now I..."

He hurriedly glanced back into the room, then turned around and quickened his speech.

"I'm conducting an important study."

"How about five days from now? When you come to assist me, I'll answer all your questions at once. Would that be all right?"

Sensing that Bronson was growing increasingly agitated, Roland could only nod lightly.

"All right, Mister Bronson. Then I'll—"

Before he could finish, Bronson waved his hand and decisively shut the door.

"Cough, cough."

The force with which the door slammed loose some dust, making Roland cover his mouth and cough lightly.

He stood where he was, recalling the abnormally violent fluctuations he had sensed from the flames, and slightly furrowed his brows.

"What exactly is Mister Bronson researching?"

With his mind full of doubts, Roland turned and slowly walked toward the dormitory.

"Given the situation, I can only come back to visit five days from now."

After returning to the dormitory, Roland washed up briefly before burying himself in the soft bed.

Fatigue washed over him. His head had barely touched the pillow before he sank into dreams.

The next morning, when the first ray of sunlight pierced through the clouds, Roland was startled awake by a burst of hurried hoofbeats.

He had just rubbed his bleary eyes when he heard a familiar shout from outside the door.

"Roland! Are you awake?"

"This young noble really has an abundance of energy."

Roland shook his head helplessly. After gathering his belongings, he pushed open the door.

The morning light fell gently across the open ground.

Darko stood outside the door with two fully armed guards, holding four fine horses.

The young noble was dressed in close-fitting hunting clothes, with a dark green cloak draped over them. A jewel-encrusted dagger hung at his waist, while he held two finely crafted short bows that gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

"Oh! Roland!"

The moment Darko saw Roland, he warmly came forward, familiarly draped an arm around his shoulders, and led him toward the horses.

"You finally got up! So, can you ride?"

Roland hesitantly nodded.

"I should know a little."

"Perfect!"

Darko excitedly clapped his hands and pointed at a docile brown mare.

"I specially picked this one for you. Not only is she gentle, but she also runs quite steadily. Come give her a try!"

Although Roland had never ridden a horse since transmigrating, the former owner of this body had been a stable boy and had mastered the most basic riding skills.

They were not particularly refined, but they were barely sufficient.

"All right, Young Master Darko."

After saying that, Roland followed the Original Body's memories and gently placed both hands on the horse's neck.

The brown horse snorted and docilely lowered its head, slightly easing his tense nerves.

"Relax. Just like this."

Darko demonstrated how to swing himself onto the horse.

Roland closed his eyes as the Original Body's memories surged like a tide.

The rough feel of the reins, the scent of saddle leather, and the rhythm of his body rising and falling with the horse's back.

He suddenly opened his eyes, planted his left foot in the stirrup, and smoothly swung his right leg over the horse's back. The entire movement flowed as one.

"Beautiful!"

Darko clapped loudly.

"Looks like you're more skilled than I imagined!"

Roland, seated on the horse, had no time to respond.

He was focusing all his attention on adapting to this long-forgotten sensation.

His legs unconsciously tightened around the horse's belly, while his hands instinctively adjusted the reins.

The horse seemed to sense its rider's unfamiliarity and uneasily stamped its hooves several times.

"Relax your knees."

Darko rode closer.

"Let your body move with its rhythm, just like... yes, like a piece of driftwood floating in water!"

Sunlight filtered through the treetops, casting dappled shadows across the horses' backs.

Riding from memory and actually controlling a horse were ultimately two different things.

Roland spent a long time adapting before he recovered that subtle sense of balance.

Although his movements were still clumsy, he could at least ride forward now.

"Well done, Roland!"

Darko let out a loud whistle and swung his riding crop forward.

"Follow me. I'll take you somewhere wonderful!"

He deliberately slowed down so that Roland, a beginner, could follow at his leisure.

The horses' hooves clattered over the manor's gravel path as the group gradually moved away from the manor walls.

"Young Master Darko."

Roland gripped the reins tightly, struggling to maintain his balance.

"Where are we going?"

"Hunting!"

Darko's voice brimmed with irrepressible excitement. When he looked back, the sunlight happened to fall across his flying golden hair.

Roland relaxed when he heard that.

After all, Darko's passionate love of hunting had long since spread throughout the entire manor.

Looks like this young noble simply wants to get closer to me.

After pondering this, Roland turned his attention back to controlling the horse beneath him.

In the Golden Valley Kingdom, even the cheapest mule was worth a considerable sum, let alone a well-trained warhorse.

Being able to practice riding for free was practically a gift from heaven.

Darko occasionally turned around to share interesting hunting stories, while Roland divided his attention between responding to the young master's enthusiasm and practicing his riding.

The two guards remained silent the entire time, their vigilant eyes constantly sweeping over the bushes on both sides of the road.

The group left the manor and proceeded along the path to the north.

Before long, a lush, dense forest appeared before them.

"You two wait here."

Darko nimbly dismounted and ordered the two guards behind him.

"Keep an eye on the horses. If anything goes wrong, I think you both understand the consequences."

"But, Young Master..."

One of the guards hesitated, pressing his lips together before finally stepping forward.

"Baron ordered us to—"

"I said..."

Darko suddenly turned around. The warmth he had shown while speaking with Roland vanished without a trace.

His voice was now as hard as iron, his eyes utterly devoid of warmth, as if the two people before him were nothing more than tools that could be replaced at any time.

"Wait here!"

"We're so close to the manor. What danger could there be?"

"Yes, Young Master."

The two guards exchanged a helpless look and could only lower their heads in obedience.

As he turned around, Darko's face once again wore the enthusiastic smile from before.

"Roland, can you shoot a bow?"

When Roland gave a slight nod, the young noble stuffed a short bow into his hands without asking.

"Then take it, Roland. I begged Mister Hawk for a long time before he finally made it for me."

Feeling the smooth warmth against his fingertips, Roland looked down.

The bow was made from dark yew, its surface polished as smoothly as a mirror. The bowstring was woven from fine horsehair and shimmered with a pearly luster in the morning light.

Exquisite copper decorations were set into both ends of the bow limbs, carved with the image of an eagle spreading its wings.

"This workmanship..."

Roland could not help praising it softly.

The bow's weight was distributed perfectly. Even a beginner like him could feel its natural balance when holding it.

Compared to the short bow John had given him, this short bow personally crafted by Hawk could completely be called a perfect masterpiece.

"Let's go, Roland. I'll tell you..."

As he spoke, Darko grabbed Roland's arm and led him into the dense forest.

After entering the forest, Darko immediately lowered his voice and pointed at the marks in the mud and the broken young branches.

"Judging from these traces, a wild rabbit passed through here this morning."

He analyzed the evidence confidently, then followed the trail forward.

Before long, a gray rabbit feeding came into view.

Darko excitedly licked his lips and lowered his voice.

"How about it, Roland? Do you want to try first?"

As he spoke, the young noble drew an arrow from the quiver and handed it over.

Seeing this, Roland could only accept it helplessly.

Recalling the principles John had taught him the previous day and that wondrous sensation, he slowly drew the bowstring.

"Thrum!"

With a muffled twang as the bowstring snapped back, the arrow shot through the air.

An afternoon of hard practice had finally borne fruit.

Although he failed to hit the gray rabbit's head precisely, the arrow pierced straight through its body.

"Well done, Roland!"

Darko could not help applauding and cheering when he saw this.

"I never thought you'd have such outstanding talent in both forging tools and archery."

"You flatter me, Young Master Darko."

Roland smiled slightly. His gaze followed Darko as he went to retrieve the prey, but his attention was fixed on the golden text floating before him.

[When you fight an enemy, related insights increase. Basic Archery has gained one experience point.]

"Can killing a rabbit also grant experience?"

Roland pondered this inwardly.

"[Theory and Practice] This trait was unexpectedly useful. Killing an ordinary Kobold earlier gave me three experience points, while a mutated Kobold gave me six. It seems that the experience gained is closely related to the enemy's strength."

As he pondered this, Darko returned, carrying a gray hare.

He pulled out the arrow and said half-jokingly,

"Still, your archery is a little worse than mine. With prey like this, it's best to aim straight for the head. Otherwise, you'll damage the pelt. Just wait—I'll show you what I can do!"

Facts proved that Darko had not been bragging.

Over the following hours, Darko gave Roland a perfect demonstration of his skilled tracking techniques and superb archery.

Through observation, Roland discovered that Darko's archery skills were only slightly inferior to John's.

Considering the considerable age gap between them, the young noble's obsession with martial skills was evident.

In less than half a day, the two of them had hunted more than a dozen hares and two animals resembling roe deer.

They then carried their heavy haul together to a clearing beside the stream.

After a simple cleanup, Darko drew the dagger from his waist and deftly skinned a hare.

Seeing this, Roland was suddenly struck by inspiration, and an idea sprang into his mind.

"Does skinning wild animals count as a survival skill?"

Thinking this, Roland walked over to Darko, who was processing the rabbit, and asked with feigned curiosity,

"Master Darko, could you teach me how to skin a hare?"

Darko looked up, a smile of approval appearing on his face.

"Of course, Roland. I didn't expect you to be interested in this sort of thing."

He shook the blood from his hand and crouched beside another hare.

"The key to skinning is making precise cuts and following the grain of the muscles."

Darko gently cut a slit in the rabbit's belly with his dagger.

"Look. Start here, and keep the tip of the blade against the boundary between the skin and flesh. Don't go too deep, or you'll cut the internal organs."

Seeing this, Roland immediately activated the [Focus] trait.

He firmly engraved Darko's practiced technique and the angle of each cut into his mind.

"Give it a try."

Darko handed him the dagger. "Remember, keep your movements steady. When you encounter fascia, use a little force to tease it apart."

"I understand, Master Darko."

Roland accepted the dagger and, recalling the details he had just observed, imitated Darko as he made the first cut across the rabbit's belly.

Unfortunately, he misjudged the depth of the blade. He immediately cut into part of the internal organs, and a fishy smell began to spread.

"Tsk. A mistake beginners often make."

Darko wrinkled his nose, but there was no reproach in his tone.

"It's fine. Tilt the blade outward a little, like this."

He took Roland's wrist and adjusted the angle.

On his second attempt, Roland's movements were much more cautious.

He could feel the blade struggling forward between the tough rabbit hide and soft muscle, encountering resistance from the fascia from time to time.

In a few places, he used too much force, leaving ugly cuts in the rabbit hide. In others, he skinned too shallowly and had to redo the work.

"Slow down. Follow the grain."

Darko guided him from the side.

"That's it. Yes, just like that. Oh, leave the skin connecting to the hind leg there."

With the experience of his previous two attempts, Roland was already handling the knife with ease when he made his next cut. Though he was somewhat slower, it wasn't long before a perfect rabbit pelt landed in his hands.

At the same time, a line of golden text slowly appeared before his eyes.

[Skinning learned, current level: Lv.1]

After seeing the notification, Roland hurriedly shifted his gaze to the Profession Panel.

When he saw that the survival skills required to change profession to Hunter had gone from zero out of two to one out of two, he excitedly clenched his fist.

"I knew it! Skinning really is a type of survival skill!"

Just as Roland was growing excited, Darko's praise sounded beside his ear.

"Well done, Roland!"

Darko had already lost count of how many times he had praised the boy before him that day.

"He's mastered riding, archery, and even skinning so quickly. Could it be that those with extraordinary talent excel at everything they do?"

With that thought, the admiration in Darko's gaze toward Roland became even more difficult to conceal.

"Seriously, Roland, you should follow me from now on."

Before Darko could finish speaking, a rustling sound arose nearby.

The two exchanged a glance, then cautiously lowered the daggers in their hands and drew the iron swords at their waists, turning toward the sound.

The next moment, numerous short figures appeared indistinctly among the dense forest.