The Primal Hunter

Jake had been so damn distracted by everything else going on that he hadn’t even noticed Eversmile before he was right there. Sure, he had seen the figure approach, but his aura had been entirely hidden, and with so many other notable presences filling the hall, he had managed to blend in long enough to surprise Jake.

Yeah, this type of setting really wasn’t for Jake, throwing him off this game that much. And now this…

To say Jake was taken aback by the question would be an understatement. Especially when one considered who it came from. Eversmile wasn’t some insignificant figure, and Jake’s mind began to work at high speeds as he tried to give a non-commital answer. One that could hopefully give him at least some information to go off.

”Why are you asking?”

”Karma,” Eversmile simply answered. ”Now answer me.”

Jake really wanted to tell the guy – or girl, at this point, Jake had no idea what the fuck Eversmile was - to just fuck off, but felt like that wouldn’t be a good idea. Eversmile was just too eccentric and unpredictable. Plus, the true answer shouldn’t be that suspicious.

”From the Challenge Dungeon made by the Viper,” Jake answered honestly.

”Hm? That could explain some of it, I presume,” Eversmile said, seemingly deep in thought. ”But not all of it. If these boots are indeed connected to Vilastromoz, then it appears I will need to have a conversation with him.”

By now, Jake was getting really curious himself also as he took a chance. ”Why the curiosity? Is it that odd to see boots given to a Chosen with powerful connections to their Patron?”

”You are fully aware there is something with those boots far more complicated than merely a connection to your Patron,” the Primordial didn’t even try to entertain what Jake said. ”However, seeing as you have been cooperative and the fact the Malefic Viper would likely gladly share the details of our future conversation with you, I shall give you an explanation.”

Jake felt the sound of fingers snapping… as the entire world around him seemed to twist and turn. He felt like the ground beneath him fell away, as everything was replaced with an empty space that made Jake feel as if he was deep under water.

The only two things that remained were Eversmile and Jake himself. Then, the strings appeared. Multi-colored threads spread out from Jake and Eversmile, countless of them, but soon they nearly all faded. However, a few strings still existed, and Jake saw them all connected to the boots on his feet. One of these threads led to Eversmile himself, while all the others simply disappeared into the vast emptiness of the space he was in.

”As you can see, there appears to be a powerful karmic connection between these boots and myself,” Eversmile said, motioning toward the thread connecting them. ”Despite that being the case, I cannot see any reason for why this would be… much less the cause of all these other threads.”

Jake, floating in the odd space, took a moment to really get his bearings. Things were seriously freaky, especially as he also felt the conference room all around him through his sphere, making it certain he hadn’t actually been transported anywhere. In the real world, he was just standing and staring into empty space while his mind and potential soul were taken somewhere entirely different. What made everything even worse was the distortion between these two things, as time seemed slowed in the real world while at the same time overly fast within this special state.

”What are these other karmic threads?” Jake asked, confused.

”This is the second conundrum,” the god pointed out as he reached out and touched one of the threads. ”I do not know. They are obscured… no, they make no sense in the first place. As if they are misplaced within both space and time, leading to something that once was or never came to be. Some of the threads I do recognize, though.”

Eversmile began walking through the odd space as he tapped a karmic thread. ”This one leads to the Malefic Viper. Unsurprising, based on what you said.”

Jake slowly nodded. Yeah, that made sense.

Tapping a second thread, Eversmile spoke again. ”And this… this is Valdemar.”

That… was weird?

third thread was tabbed.

Okay, definitely weird.

a fourth.

he just continued while walking a circle around Jake, tapping thread after

”Wyrmgod.”

”Starseizing Titan.”

”Rigoria.”

”Yggdrasil.”

”Stormild.”

”Aeon.”

reached the last

connected to a single pair of boots through karmic threads. And to not misunderstand. These are not weak connections. They

was more than a little confused as he tried to search his brain for an explanation as he blurted out a potential

he used them while

Eversmile said as he thought deeply. ”The connection to the

as he also realized that this entire thing hadn’t been done by Eversmile simply out of the kindness of his heart or to help Jake. He had done it to try and make Jake spill more information, something that had definitely worked. Perhaps it was also done to spark Jake’s curiosity and to see if he truly

he was not going to volunteer. Not just because that was private history between the Viper and his first master, but because Jake wasn’t sure what to do with the implications of it all if the First Sage was somehow the cause. Hopefully, he would get some answers when they would get their fateful meeting… Jake just needed a lot more profession levels first to

and the best course of action would be to simply question Vilastromoz,” Eversmile said after a

Amazon without the author's consent.

working theory?” Jake ended up asking, not

and they were infused with further Records in the process of becoming an item in one of the Challenge Dungeons created so many eras ago, leading to some sort of mutation caused directly by the system simply because of how much time passed before they were claimed. Some form of mutation that linked the boots to the Records associated with being a Primordial, thus also naturally forming a karmic connection with all who carry those same Records,” Eversmile explained, surprising Jake a bit

Take this experience as a reward for your help. Oh, and I say this genuinely: congratulations on beating Yip of Yore on the All-Time Leaderboards. It’s both an achievement worth recognition and something that has certainly

again, as everything returned to normal in an instant. Jake found himself back in the hall entirely, standing alone with a glass in his hand, no

Sylphie chirped, confused, as Jake looked

himself. ”Eh, the woman that was just there.

asked, even more

with confusion before shaking his head. ”Never mind, I blame the alcohol. See, this is why

agreed, having already learned about the horribleness of

had just been greeted by some woman who said congratulations before walking off into the crowd, with Sylphie seemingly finding the encounter so forgetful she couldn’t even remember how the

as C-grades, they both had near-perfect memories… yet when Jake also tried to recall the transformed Eversmile, he just saw

dude as a straight-up enemy. That would be fucking terrifying, Jake thought. A shapeshifter with such skills could cause so much chaos without anyone even

Jake was deep in thought, he barely

Daolord. Quite a few people noticed the two approaching Jake as if several expected something interesting to potentially happen. The Demon Prince even threw Jake a smile from across the hall as

from this close. He could definitely see how she had gotten such a high placement on the Leaderboards. She was powerful, and she had also gained a lot of levels, as one had to remember she wasn’t a dragonkin, but a full-on dragon. Well, soon she would be… as a C-grade, she was still not fully mature yet,

you on your exemplary performance within Nevermore and can only begin to imagine the wonders you will show us in the future,” the princess from the Regalflight said

offense, though, as he responded with a nod of his own. ”Pleasure to meet you both, and let’s not pretend like the two of you didn’t also

”Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Aishalstromoz Regalflight, daughter of the Dragon of Gold and Princess of the First Golden Palace.

and hey, Jake knew who this Dragon of Gold was. Aurustromoz, the current leader of the Regalflight - the most powerful of all the dragonflights but also the fewest in number. Oh, and the eighth-place finisher on the All-Time Leaderboards, above even Ell’Hakan. To learn she was his daughter meant her father was an extremely powerful god, and from the looks of it, she was living up to her