The Primal Hunter

Jake concentrated as he flew with Miranda and Lillian in tow. It took quite the toll to keep himself moving fluidly and make sure that the two women weren’t tossed around by any sudden pulling. He couldn’t do the tactic where he just touched them with mana as it wouldn’t work on living beings, so he had to use the mana ropes.

Mystie had just used her mana to directly affect the outer layer of the nine people’s bodies; it was an application of mana far above Jake’s own. He wasn’t even sure if it was a skill. But hey, the bird was D-grade; it only made sense.

He already knew that the Mystsong Bird had a larger mana pool than himself by quite a margin from the ritual. Once more, not surprising, considering it was a D-grade beast focused solely on magic. He did take a bit of inspiration and visibly improved while flying, making the ride for Miranda and Lillian a bit smoother.

Miranda looked like she was using every sliver of her willpower to remain calm, while Lillian looked relaxed, like being carried after a winged human wasn’t that far-fetched. Jake couldn’t help but think about what kind of shit Abby had dragged that entire group through…

Neil and his party also all looked relatively calm. They were more experienced and had spent plenty of time doing teleportation and what-not. Of course, it also helped that Mystie was a pretty damn smooth flyer and mana-controller.

As for Miquel and his goons… they looked like they were contemplating the life choices that led to them being carried through the air by a bird that could kill them at any point if it got annoyed. At least they had the decency to remain still to not make it harder on Mystie.

The trip that should have taken hours was completed in thirty-five minutes. Fifteen minutes of that spent walking when they first began, and the rest finished soaring through the air.

They landed a few kilometers from the forest but still a fair distance from the fort. The area was the same plains that Jake had traveled initially to reach the woods, but another section. This part had many more hills, and the grass was rather tall in most places.

It actually reminded him a bit of the Lucenti Plains… though no stags or deer anywhere. Well, he did spot a few from above when flying over the forest, but none of the Lucenti variant.

Touching down, Jake – pretty elegantly if he had to say so himself – put down Lillian and Miranda. Mystie landed together with him, depositing all nine human packages on the ground too. A bit harder than Jake, as one of Miquel’s men fell on his butt.

“Alright, that was awesome,” Christen said as she didn’t mind her ruffled hair. “I want wings now.”

“I am sure there are ways to fly or at least levitate without wings,” Levi said. “Heck, I can nearly fly with my wind-armor.”

“Who cares,” Neil jokingly said while trying to get his hair under control. “Teleportation is way better.”

Eleanor and Silas both just shook their heads. Silas did go over and check if Miquel and his two followers needed any help, but they were clearly okay, just a bit shocked at the entire situation.

Why did we even bring them along? Jake wondered. Well, it was Miranda who had decided who would go, so it was on her.

Bringing Neil and his party Jake understood. They were all useful to some degree and relatively strong. They worked well as a team, and there was something to say in power in numbers. Also, it would allow Jake to not bother with weaker things and just let them handle it.

Their band of 11 people and one bird walked the rest of the way at a more than steady pace. It didn’t make sense to just casually stroll when they all had rather high stats, so it didn’t take long for the fort to enter their view after passing over a small hilltop.

high perception, allowing him to practically zoom in on it; he quickly got a grasp of the

was large and clearly some kind of medieval exhibit or maybe even an event-spot before the world changed. It didn’t look damaged in the least but looked like an old fort

walls were thick, placed on the

were dangerous as they had

in the surroundings, and it was the only structure for many kilometers. Jake guessed it had wells for water as the ground was well-moisturized, and hunting beasts were, of course, an option when

need either after becoming E-grade, and whatever he did need, he got through eating random herbs for his Palate of the Malefic Viper. Eating

some of the atmospheric mana. Jake didn’t know if all

of course, in the same

F-grades to feed. The environment, such as the wind and weather, wasn’t an issue for any humans, really, as the body’s natural resistance made regular sickness a

thought as he stood there considering all these things. Oh, but fungi does… oh shit, I can already imagine someone getting a fungal infection from some high-level mushroom… like that D-grade Indigo-fucker… I really need

fort little more than a

out of his stupor. But not forgetting… the mushroom

runes that swirled around her. First, he felt her aura disappear,

eyes, but in his sphere. He had long realized that all those magical techniques didn’t work against it. Like back in the sewer dungeon, his sphere

mainly due to the encounter with Miquel, who somehow got the idea that the bird was controlling them or that they were willingly serving it.

– now invisible – bird made quick progress towards the fort in the distance. As they had passed the hill and were now within line of sight from the fort, Jake felt it. A gaze had landed upon them from a distance, and he returned

and he saw the man quickly turn away in fright as he turned to yell something. Of course, Jake was too far away to tell what he said, and lip-reading wasn’t in his skill-set. Does lip-reading even work correctly with the translation skill? It

Jake had already seen a few more people appear on the wall, and it

the way in the back. Miranda and Lillian took the front with the party of five, and

though they didn’t rush, and soon they

flying towards them with a net hanging beneath it. Jake could see the small

since his return to Earth… in fact, he had encountered none. Back when he made his way out of the city, he

All were using the same medieval weapons as Jake and the others. Yet

remote-controlled as it floated down. It was a quadcopter-type, but Jake did notice something when it

to make it all possible. It made him wonder if it was a profession or class or maybe someone with great synergy between the two. Robot

with the net holding the walkie-talkie right in front of her. He just gave her a small nod as she took it out

the voice said in a

believed all technology to be gone, but then again, it was only a matter of time before human ingenuity allowed them to recreate things.

A craftsman made it. Now identify yourself and your intentions for coming here,” the voice answered, sounding a

was never if the forest was a better settlement than out here or if it was worth it for the fort’s humans

disparity in numbers and the fear of diluting her own influence. But… the masked man had opened her eyes to how little that mattered now. No matter what happened, he would be in charge. No leader would be appointed without his say-so. She could be replaced if he so wished… and she wouldn’t be replaced

time with Neil and his party ever since they joined their little city, and he had also spoken of D-grades and how they were all absolute monstrous existences. They knew they wouldn’t stand a chance against one. He told her that the disciple of Kallox in the tutorial he was in also served as the final boss. That disciple was only a projection of what the disciple had been capable of just after