The Primal Hunter

It had all started four days prior.

The house's construction was pretty much done, and Hank was considering making some simple pieces of furniture. They also had a sit-down to talk about plans to make a few more buildings elsewhere for themselves.

That is when Miranda got pinged by her skill that others had entered the Pylon of Civilization’s area of influence. Other humans. She was immediately filled with a paradoxical feeling of both concern and anticipation.

Concern about how many they were, their intentions, and their strength, and anticipation at the potential of having more citizens join the city. Maybe begin to actually to make it worthy of being called a city.

She notified Hank and the kids as they talked over what to do.

“Louise and Mark should go hide in the cellar of the house,” Hank started out with. At Miranda’s request, the cellar was rather well hidden, and you wouldn’t find its entrance without looking around for it. Which is to say they had put the pelt of an animal over the hatch.

“Not going to happen,” Louise said adamantly. “We both evolved too. If they want a fight, let’s give them one!”

“We should avoid fighting if we can. No matter how strong or how many there are,” Miranda sighed as she tried to calm down the fired-up Louise. The system clearly hadn't fixed the illogical mind of the young woman.

“I don’t want to hide either,” Mark said a bit meekly.

Hank chose to concede as they quite frankly didn’t have time for the discussion right now. “Fine, but no fighting unless absolutely necessary. And keep quiet.”

They spoke a bit more, all gathered around the house still, as they waited for the arrival of whoever was to come. The skill Miranda had that made her aware they were here did nothing more than that. It just gave her a vague feeling that someone had entered.

Not how many, not how strong, or where they were now. Miranda wasn’t even sure if she could feel it if they left the area again. So all they could do was to wait in trepidation.

Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, they didn’t have to wait long before someone arrived.

A hooded figure was hiding at the entrance to the valley and peeked out from behind a rock.

She saw the four people there, in front of a wooden lodge. The large bearded man with an axe over his shoulder, a woman, a young man, and a young woman all wearing robes. Two casters and a healer from what she could tell.

A quick Identify of all four showed that none of them were overly high leveled while they were all E-grade. The woman and the man being the highest leveled individuals at 33 and 34 respectively.

She quickly retreated to her group, waiting a few hundred meters away at a small clearing within the forest. As she walked out from behind a tree, exiting stealth, the group turned towards her, a young man in the lead.

“That was fast. Did you find anything?” he asked with a slight smile.

His face was pale, and his eyes seemed a bit listless despite his smile. He was wearing a robe with golden runes and a small chain around his neck, with the necklace itself hidden beneath his robes. But even with his weak appearance, she knew that he was by far the strongest in their party.

They were a group of five that had met and survived the tutorial together - from level 0 to where they were today without losing a single member.

The party consisted of herself, Eleanor, the archer of the group. Next was their defender, Christen, the only other woman on the team. She was currently sitting in a chainmail set resting against a log with their healer Silas tending to a large wound on her stomach - a particularly nasty one that was resisting his healing quite effectively.

didn’t quite fit into a role. He was initially a medium warrior but began picking up more magic

sole caster of their party and a weird one at that. He was specialized in kinetic magic, or more accurately recently, space magic. Displacement, teleportation, whatever the hell struck his fancy, he somehow figured out how to do, which is also how they had arrived where they were

in the valley, and from the looks

as to their classes or capabilities?”

an axe, and the other wore the standard caster robe from the tutorial. The last two looked like teenagers, one of them a healer and the other a caster. Both also E-grade,”

the answer. “This doesn’t make any sense. Why would we be taken here if they are so

do with the area? Have you noticed how we haven’t encountered a single

levels, they aren’t a threat,” the defender Christen asked, as her wound was beginning

nothing here, we should have created

hundreds if not thousands of kilometers. This wasn’t the first teleport either, but one of many they had been forced to perform

and her quiver on her back. If Jake were here, he would recognize the quiver as identical to his own. Also

Jake hadn’t encountered on anyone except himself. Not a single one of them was wearing their

by Christen at 48, Silas and Levi both at 47, and herself lowest at only 45. She

as he wasn’t entirely done healing the wound yet. Then again, perhaps it was best her natural regeneration did the

into the valley. The first sight meeting them was the idyllic lodge positioned right next to the pond with a waterfall - and the four people standing in front of it,

them, he felt a sense of dread. He had identified the woman in front and seen her level at 48 - fourteen entire levels above his own. And a quick glance at the

at each other for a while

smile. “We come in peace. So no reason to be that tense, I

help, we would be more

is up with this place? The absence of monsters is quite something. And did you build that lodge

was indeed made by us. My comrade here is quite the builder,” Miranda said, nudging at Hank. “As for

“Lie,” Silas interrupted.

transparency,

spine. If that was true, it threw off 90% of her plans for this interaction.

that I don’t know exactly why this area is as it is. Only that it is related to the owner of this land. The lodge behind me is also built for him, and this entire valley was already his home when we found it,” she explained. If lies didn’t work, she would have to use truths only. A

you say. Who might this

answered, praising the fact that she had forgotten to ask his name time and time again. “What I do know

What makes you think

he is human, but since Identify does not work on him, I couldn’t confirm. His level of power also making me doubtful of his humanity, to begin with,” she said, expanding on her prior explanation. Deciding

Neil asked, a bit confused.

just returned a single question mark,” Hank said,

It was the entity that had rewarded him the object leading to their

would have to get to the bottom

We don’t know to where. But I believe he will return within the

very purposefully tried to make her answers fulfilling to avoid too many follow-up questions. She wanted to, at all cost, avoid any mention

reckon this individual is?” Neil asked as

fear he will retaliate when he returns,” Hank cut