Suddenly Levi heard a loud noise like a monster was screaming in pain. The noise was coming from a great distance. Levi’s hands and feet were shaking unwillingly. It was as if his instincts were telling him not to go there.

  The monsters of the forest were also running in fear.

  ‘Is it that thing that Derek and other adventurers were talking about,’ Levi thought.

  After a while, the forest creatures finally calmed down. It was all normal again. Levi started walking in search of a suitable prey. The forest was beautiful as always, with colorful flowers and tall trees.

  “If the forest wasn’t life-threatening it could definitely become my new happy place,” Levi said.

  Levi saw a pond nearby. He went there slowly thinking he might find some otherworldly fishes there. But there were no such thing. He saw beautiful butterflies flying. The butterflies were of different colors.

  He saw a pale young man in his early twenties in the pond. He went there. He saw there were swords, armor; his armor had a beautiful crest. From the looks of it that man was probably a knight of an esteemed household or something.

  Levi called out to the pale young man.

  “Hey, who are you? Could I know your name?”

  The pale young man didn’t reply. It was as if that young man didn’t hear Levi in the first place. Levi thought he might be busy taking a bath, that’s why he didn’t answer. So he decided to wait.

  To his surprise, the man wasn’t coming out of the pond. The man was repeating the same thing again and again.

  Levi decided to go close to him to see what was happening. Levi carefully went close to the man, keeping a distance. He saw the man had blank eyes and was still repeating the same thing again.

  The man was taking a dive in water, then coming up looking at the sky with his blank eyes.

  “What’s wrong with you? What are you doing? Do you need any help?” Levi said.

  Again that man didn’t respond. Levi held the young man’s arms.

  “Snap out of it. What are you doing here?” Levi said.

  Levi suddenly felt an ominous presence, like something was watching him. It was chilling and it sent shivers down Levi’s body.

  Levi’s survival instinct kicked in. He quickly left that place because he wasn’t strong enough yet. He should first put on his own oxygen mask.

  Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  “I’ll report it to the guild when I return. I’ll take one last quick look then return to report this incident to the guild,” Levi said.

  Levi was again walking in the forest. He saw an adventurer party. The party had 5 members. There was a man who looked like a mage in that adventurer party. The mage looked like he was in his early thirties.

  Levi told everything he witnessed in the pond and told the mage to report it to the guild since they were returning from their quest.

  “We’ll go there and see what’s happening. Don’t worry,” the mage said.

  The mage was that party’s leader and well experienced. Levi was relieved at last. He parted with the adventurer party.

  Levi again began to search for his prey. He was determined not to go empty-handed. He saw something moving in the bushes. Levi quickly hid. His eyes fixed on the bushes.

  ‘Come on. Any decent monster would do,’ Levi thought.

  Levi saw a small creature which was similar to a rabbit. It was jumping from one place to another. Levi was focused.

  “Time to test my skills,” Levi thought in his mind.

  Levi was holding his newly purchased crossbow. He was confident. He shot the bolt targeting the rabbit. It hit the head of the rabbit. The rabbit stopped moving. Levi went near; he put the rabbit in his bag.

  Levi kept searching, thinking he might find some more prey. After searching for a while he found some flowers that he saw Derek holding the first day they met.

  ‘Looks like luck is on my side today. I got a prey and these medicinal flowers. I should probably head back,’ Levi thought in his mind as he was plucking the flowers.

  After plucking flowers Levi started walking. He was planning to sell the prey and flowers to the shop. He walked for a long time and reached Avalon gate.

  “You’re alone today, boy. Where is Derek?” the guard said.

  “Derek is on a special quest,” Levi said.

  Levi paid the entry fee and entered Avalon. As he was walking he saw a man selling grilled snakes. A lady was selling fresh fruits. There was an old lady who was fortune-telling for 4 coppers.

  Children were playing with small magical birds. Some were running and laughing.

  Levi went to a medicinal herb shop to sell the flowers. Levi entered the shop and saw a young lady in her early twenties. She looked angelic. She had big eyelashes. She was so beautiful that if there were a thousand persons in a room anyone would look at her first.

  “I got some medicinal flowers from the forest. I would like to sell them. How much are these flowers?” Levi said.

  “It’s 10 silver each. You got 5 flowers so you’ll get 50 silver coins,” the lady said in a soft voice.

  The lady gave Levi 50 silver coins. Levi left the shop.

  Next Levi went to a butcher shop to sell the prey he hunted. When Levi was about to enter the butcher shop he saw two sharp knives as a symbol for the butcher shop.

  When Levi entered the butcher shop he saw a thin man in his forties. He was sitting idly in his chair.

  Levi gave the prey that he hunted to the thin, timid man.

  “I want to sell it,” Levi said.

  The thin man was surprised. It was like he had seen some secret treasure.

  “I… I can’t believe my eyes. You really caught a swift rabbit. You’re a lucky boy,” the timid man said.

  “How so?” Levi asked.

  “You don’t know what you’ve caught. Are you a new hunter?” the thin man said as he was observing the swift rabbit cautiously.

  “Actually I’m hunting for the first time, this is my first prey,” Levi said with a smile.

  “Boy you sure are lucky. A swift rabbit is extremely rare to come by. Nobles and royals will pay a generous amount to get this. You can get at least 30 gold coins for this. 30 gold coins can cover all the expenses for a commoner for at least a year,” the timid man said in a happy tone.

  “Why do the royals and nobles pay so much to get this?” Levi asked.

  The timid butcher lowered his voice and glanced at the door.