The Primal Hunter

At the edge of a crater in the middle of the forest, two figures sat drinking. The crater’s epicenter still carried the outline of what had once been a person with small smidgens of blood here and there.

Around the two people drinking were several empty bottles. They chatted as they drank down the familiar liquid that Jake hadn’t tasted for over two months. It was oddly nostalgic despite it not even being that long. It took him back to simpler days with way less fighting and death.

Of course, he was still thoroughly grounded in his new reality by the scaled man he was drinking with.

They had chatted about useless stuff for the most part. Jake had asked a few questions about the system, though, and gotten some useful pieces of information.

Halfway through the conversation, Jake took out a small notebook he had kept with many questions he had built up surrounding the system. It took a bit of convincing, but he managed to get the Viper to spill the beans on some details. They both knew that it was just Jake’s attempt to keep his mind occupied, but the god relented.

One of the questions were related to the dungeon titles:

“Nah, the dungeons titles are as normal as they come - 5 levels to the title at E-rank, increasing with every race evolution. Don’t worry too much about it; you will get those done quite naturally more often than not. The stat bonuses increase as well. It is pretty normal for most everyone at the higher ranks to cap out at least the Dungeoneer title before every evolution.”

Jake did try to get some info on actual dungeons but got shut down on that one. The Viper seemed quite adamant that for Jake to find out himself would be way more fun. The only thing he said was that dungeons came in many different forms, some of them not even recognized as real dungeons. They were also apparently temporal abnormalities that could “remember” who entered it and generated a new subspace for every new party or individual.

He also managed to get some precious info on the loot he had received:

“Gear? Eh, it has pretty set rules, actually. One can only get so much in a specific stat before equipment no longer gives anything - 20% per individual stat. But you can only get a maximum increase of 15% to your total stats, so you can’t get the full 20% in all of them. And yes, that’s after all other bonuses such as titles, skills, consumables, and so on. Making the number of stats you can get from gear increases even further. Strong gets stronger and all that. Though the stats from gear, as you have no doubt noticed, don’t receive any percentage bonuses.”

He even managed to get some excellent info on affinities.

“Affinities are just what kind of mana your body is naturally aligned with. Most of it is innate and cannot be changed unless you do some really wacky shit. Classes can also offer a skill that grants you affinity towards a type of mana - even one you usually would never be able to achieve.

“That isn’t to say that affinities are set. They get more locked in the stronger you get, but it is possible to influence them somewhat at a low level. Environmental factors often do play a role. In other words, if you are born on a planet filled with water, chances are you are going to have water-affinity.

“And if you wanted to, for example, get the water-affinity, it may be possible if you decided to reside within a space with only mana of that affinity for a long enough period. But your level of affinity likely won’t ever reach a high level, so most just stick with whatever they have.

“As for how many different affinities there are? Not telling!”

Jake had to be honest that he felt a lot better after only a few hours of chatting. He still felt like a piece of shit, but it was better. But the Viper did have one question.

“How did you know about Eversmile? Pretty sure time was stopped, and you looked like you were very much affected,” the Viper asked.

“I don’t really know. At one moment, I am just sitting there, and the next, I feel an influx of information in my mind, just a bunch of impressions bundled together. It showed the guy appear, make the corpse disappear, you coming, some talking or something, and then he was gone again,” Jake answered honestly, trying to describe the weird feeling.

It clearly came from his sphere. It was as if his sphere had kept observing even after his mind was stopped, and upon resuming, it threw everything that had happened at him. It wasn’t painful or anything, and the knowledge was way more comfortably digested and understood than even what he got through a skill by the system.

it is related to your bloodline, right?” the

answered, not wanting to hide anything. He knew that if the Viper wished to do him harm, he would already be a goner either way. And his intuition told him that the god in front of him genuinely didn’t have any malicious intent… despite

But the next time anyone asks you that, act

details of your skills,” Jake answered, seeing

his head. “The details of your bloodline should be your closest guarded secret. The fact that you have one cannot be hidden, but what it does

Yes, his was most certainly extremely powerful… but why did he need to keep it under

few distinctions that set them apart from everything else, one of them being…” the Viper said as he turned a bit

reading it somewhere...” Jake said, before asking. “How the

you know what bloodlines even are?” the Viper asked, still

innate abilities

say, but to call them abilities would be wrong. Bloodlines simply are. The system has granted all the skills you possess; they are

could say that a bloodline is the one thing that truly belongs to you. That has always belonged to you, always been a part of you. Which isn’t to say bloodlines and the system don’t affect each other. They most certainly do. Just as much as any

many covet a beneficial bloodline. Why many factions, clans, and powers want to have a bloodline enter their fold. It represents a vast advantage above others. A bloodline doesn’t take up a skill

also be a curse. Not just because others want it, but because the bloodline itself can be more a burden than a gift. From what I have gathered, you have one of the good ones. Treasure it, explore it, but keep that treasure buried deep and only

to do it with caution.

speech contained

mentions during the challenge dungeon. He did ask Casper after he unlocked it back

I get a bloodline? And

are your bloodline; to talk about the two of them

having supernatural powers before the initiation,” Jake answered,

doubt it. Think about what it does very carefully. Can you truly say that you haven’t felt even a tinge

him better at ordinary things. It gave him great intuition, enhanced instincts,

is also why he did so well at his job.

of the reasons why he had been good at archery. His bloodline also increased the perception stat, and the only stat he had entered the tutorial with at 10 was perception. Which meant it was already as good as it could

him. It increased innate things that all humans had. Everyone had gut feelings; everyone had instincts and that weird ‘eyes on the back of their head’-feeling if someone stared at them. Jake

yourself is all I am saying. It is quite possibly your greatest advantage

to have a bloodline?”

more common the higher rank you get. They are a lot more common for new initiates like you, but new bloodlines appearing in older universes are quite rare. Especially the useful ones,” the god said, fishing out

you say that it

isn’t always how they are attained.

then attain a bloodline at a higher rank? Is it possible to steal a bloodline?” the hunter asked,

you are the bloodline, and the bloodline is you. Absolutely inseparable,” the Viper said with a

souls. The bloodline doesn’t really exist in your body but within your soul - the deepest part of your soul. A soul is made up of many layers, each serving

with the world. It holds your senses, your thoughts. If it is broken, you lose consciousness. That layer will just regenerate with time.