The Primal Hunter

Sitting down around the table, the Viper finally brought out the owed bottle of booze. Duskleaf didn’t appear particularly interested but nevertheless joined them with a glass.

“I promised to answer a few questions, so here we are. Just know that there are things I cannot or will not tell you. Some because the system isn’t a fan, and some because the knowledge will do you more harm than good,” the Viper said, opening the conversation.

“I guess first of all… how the hell do you even know things? Things about Earth and such. I at first thought it was just a god-thing, but Duskleaf looks like a big question mark whenever you make a reference or a joke?” Jake asked. It wasn’t really valuable information, just something that had been irking him.

“Didn’t see that question being the first. See, I don’t know everything!” the scaled god joked before continuing. “There are a lot of skills out there. As you no doubt know, the system can give you access to knowledge and Records and I happen to have a skill that allows me to know things. Think of it as me having access to a limited form of Google or Wikipedia that provides me with widely known information.”

“That sounds overpowered as fuck. How to get it?” Jake asked, gaping slightly. Holy shit he wanted that skill.

“Yeah, good luck getting it before being well into godhood. And it isn’t actually as good as it sounds and has many limits. But yeah, it is called Partial Omniscience. Quite a few other gods have similar skills, but I doubt anyone has one better than mine. I got it a couple of eras ago, so it is a bit of a new addition. The amount of useless info it provides is staggeringly stupid,” the Viper joked.

“Doesn’t it take its toll to have that much crammed into your head?” Jake asked with genuine concern. A mere fragment of knowledge had brought him to his knees; he could only imagine the weight from all of it.

“Jake, I have more in wisdom than your entire planet collectively. I am good,” the Malefic Viper answered dismissively. “But we both know that my awesomeness isn’t what matters right now.”

“True,” Jake said, before leaning back in the chair a bit. “What can I expect when I return to Earth?”

“When the system comes, it changes a lot of things. Life planets, such as your Earth, is one such thing. As you can likely already guess, your planet was actually quite small and fragile before the system with what its inhabitants can and will be able to do in the future. It has thus been terraformed to be more fitting for the new world,” the Viper answered.

“What exactly does that mean?”

“First of all, size. It is a lot bigger than before. A lot of it will still feel familiar, but a lot will be different. The general layout of the planet remains; it is all just… bigger. Oceans are deeper, landmasses expand further, mountains now extend toward the sky, taller than ever, forests become endless metropolises of trees that extend into the horizon,” the god began.

“Secondly, the creatures that lived there will have changed. While the enlightened races – aka humans – spend their time in a tutorial, the animals that remained lived through this baptism. Now joined by others made by the system, they have changed. Don’t underestimate them.”

“D-grades?” Jake asked, concerned.

“From the original inhabitants? Yes. Many. The energy to terraform the planet has also gone into these animals, allowing them to grow far more than usual. But I doubt you will be able to find any, and they will be few and far between. Grouped around natural treasures or special areas. I would be more concerned about the third thing. Tell me, what do you think would have happened to the King of the Forest if you hadn’t killed him?” he asked.

“Don’t tell me…”

“Yeah, he would have joined you back on Earth. And he is far from the only one. Many creatures have been placed in tutorials, and now they will come to Earth. The same would have been true for the four Beast Lords you killed. Of course, now they are dead, which will leave a gap. One for you to exploit,” the Viper smiled mischievously.

“Hold your horses; what do you mean they would have come to Earth? Doesn’t that mean a bunch of extremely powerful, possibly sapient beings with their own agendas will come to Earth? What the hell?” Jake asked, slightly panicking.

“It isn’t that bad. These D-grades won’t be able to walk about as they please but instead be placed in certain areas. Remember the bubble from the tutorial with the inner area? That bubble would have been what moved. Only the original inhabitants can enter, while someone like the King of the Forest can’t leave. Of course, after a while, the bubble will disperse, and they will be free to roam about,” the Viper clarified, dispelling much of Jake’s concern.

He went back to the last part of what the god said before with a sigh of relief. “So, what am I meant to exploit?”

Smiling, the god explained. “A gap has been made with the death of the King of the Forest. More accurately, his forest has been left behind. It will, without a doubt, be close to where you will be upon returning to Earth. Find it and establish yourself there. Locate the Pylon of Civilization. Ought to give you quite the head-start and a nice base of operation. Trust me on this… it will prove very fruitful down the line.”

sure I am interested in settling down and getting a base. My current plan is to search for my

it comes to leadership, so just find someone to dump it on while reaping all

felt a creeping sensation as he

more serious than before, not carrying a hint

there in silence, letting the word ring out in the room.

father, Robert, had always been a resourceful man, his mother kind yet strong-willed. Caleb

them back?” Jake asked, trying to

than anyone else, to try and bring someone back to life… if it is possible, I still don’t know how. If there were a body and certain items and skills, it had been done only for those who died just moments earlier. If the Truesoul is gone, however… it isn’t possible," the Viper answered. “Not like it matters currently… they

said, a bit angry. “Then why the hell

goal to accomplish. He would do everything to succeed and would struggle until he won. He had done so when he set his

your family is? How far away they are? Are you even certain you are strong enough to help them? And have you considered the consequences

give me a clue as to a general direction…”

system wouldn’t have given that information either. It is naïve to think that you can find a handful of people in a short time on a planet that has changed so significantly with your limited power. It’s far more important for you to get stronger. Also… for once, believe a bit in them. Maybe they can take care of themselves, and your babying will

a bit, and as much as he hated it, he didn’t really feel like he could dispute any of the points. But at the same time… he felt a bit regretful. He had chosen Hunter’s Tracking to better find them. One Step Mile to hopefully travel faster to them.

supposed to do?” he asked

path ahead of you is long; you will meet other people you want to protect

stick around through it all,” he finished with a light smile while motioning to himself and the silent

but… he had to recognize that he was going to Earth alone. It's just that he still felt a bit…

him that he was far from comfortable with. Jacob had somehow survived, but he was incredibly unsure precisely what their meeting would be like. Casper was apparently an undead, so that was a whole thing he wasn’t sure how to handle. Jake himself felt regret towards not helping either

never really had any friends outside of work and his family. They had all been pushed away through time, or he had distanced himself after his less than positive experience during university. The only other ones

plop himself down there and do alchemy or something. Get his head straight. But what

Yeah, fat chance of that happening. Would he become a hermit living alone in the woods? That didn’t appear tempting either. For the first time

have a plan. Not a long-term

guess whatever comes, comes,” he muttered

Minutes outside

then,”

the world returned to what it was before he entered. Except

other things he could expect back on Earth until he

guess we will see each other later,” he said, addressing the two gods. “And thanks

for, right? It would get monotonous if you thanked me every time I helped you. Just take care of yourself. Don’t die on me quite

added, opening his mouth for the first time in quite a while. “And remember

any time soon. If ever. And don’t worry, I

there a while, taking in the atmosphere. It was likely the last time the three would meet in quite a

his last battle with the King, he had grown to entirely new

far longer than it actually was. Well, for Bertram, it had been far longer. He had spent most of his time in a time chamber with

both had grown in their own way. Bertram had skill-upgrades, his swordsmanship now a rare skill in itself. When he entered the chamber, he was a competent fighter by Earth’s standards.

their professions. Bertram