18

Name: Vindictus

Race: Human

Class: Ranger

Sub-class: Archer

Level: 10 EXP: 4500/4500

EXP Pot: 12200

Health: 229/229

Mana: 195/195

Strength 25

Vitality 23

Agility 26 [Bracers +1]

Dexterity 18 [Bracers +1]

Intelligence 17

Speed 24 [Boots +1]

Luck 30 [Ring +5]

Charisma 15

Points available: 2

Skill Points: 6

[Boost Summon – Level 2]

[Harvester Skill – Level 3]

[Alchemy – Level 1]

[Smithing – Level 3]

[Leatherworking – Level 6]

[Eagle Eye – Level 1]

[Power Shot – Level 3]

Vindictus headed deeper into the woods to find the ranger. He knew the general area and there were no real detours in the area. He thought he might run into an animal or a trap but there was nothing until he could see the small house where the ranger lived. Once he could see the house, he slowed to almost a stop and took one step at a time. He was not willing to get caught in a trap. If you got caught in one you would lose the mission. The woods were also not as well trapped as the trail since it was only animals that would come out of the woods. These were easier to spot and avoid since they were designed for animals. So, his trip through the woods was not only to deal with his shadows.

Vindictus knew that he was past all of the traps when an older man stepped out of the house. "Well, you are a lot smarter than the last guy that tried to come and see me. Come on up and let me tell you what I need you to help me with." Vindictus walked forward and sat in the chair that Fox indicated. As he got closer, he saw that the man's left arm was so mangled it would probably never work again. The man saw Vindictus looking. "Yeah, this is part of the reason that I need you. There is a golden-eared bear in the area that I can no longer deal with."

"Chased out of the area or permanently removed?"

"It needs to be permanently removed. It has started hunting a few humanoids."

"Understood sir. I will take care of it."

"You are not going to bargain for a reward?"

"The bear needs to be removed from the area for the sake of the people. Even if I get nothing out of it the karma alone would be worth the effort. And I am sure that you have a bit of knowledge that you might be willing to share with me."

"You have a good attitude. I have a few things that I might be able to teach to you, if you are smart enough. And if you are an idiot, I should have some equipment that you can use."

"Hopefully I am smart enough to learn. Where is the bear's general area?"

"You will need to head to the southeast a little further. There is a large cave in the middle of a clearing that the bear makes its den."

"Thank you Master Fox I will head out right away." Vindictus gave the man a deep bow and started to head to the southeast.

"Hey take two steps to the right and then walk towards the birch tree. If you can do that you will not have to worry about any traps."

"Thank you for your consideration." Vindictus was happy that he did not have to worry about any traps on the way out. He had hunted the bear before since it was considered the boss of the beginner village. It was a chieftain level monster and the strongest thing in the beginner village. This thing was brutal but the rewards were well worth it and Vindictus was shooting for a second reward to go with the first one.

Vindictus knew that he was getting close when he saw a few younger golden eared bears. He stopped just out of the threat range and the first one and had to find a spot where he could draw one without drawing more than one. Once he was in the right spot, he started to draw them over one at a time. He quickly circled around the cave entrance killing all of the regular bears. He did not take the time to harvest from them since he needed to finish with the chieftain bear before the other bears started to respawn.

Vindictus moved towards the opening of the cave with an arrow knocked and ready to fire. He took half steps once he started getting closer and then froze when he got the notification. [You have discovered the lair of the Golden Eared Bear Chieftain. You will get double EXP and loot drops if killed without leaving combat.] Vindictus was not expecting this as he had never had the first kill of one of the region bosses. He hated that it was not treated as a dungeon since it was a single instance but he would take what he could get.

Once he got the notification, he drew back the one of the last fire arrows that he had and sent it into the mouth of the cave. [-100 sneak attack.] 'Wow, what a defense.' He should have been over 200 damage with that arrow and sneak attack damage. He was suddenly wondering if he had enough arrows on him. The bellow that came out of the cave almost managed to freeze him in fear but his ten years of experience let him develop a personal resistance to fear and mental effects in the game. He could feel the ground shaking and knew that the bear was coming out and the area of combat was now everything inside of the trees so he could run around. But this was not his best option.

Vindictus sent one more arrow into the cave and then darted to the right and found a small break in the growth that was covering the elevated cave. He ran through the break ignoring the few points of damage that he took from the thorns that framed the path and to a point above the cave opening. He dropped to one knee and started sending arrows at the back of the bears head as soon as it came out of the cave. The bear roared and turned around and tried to find Vindictus.

[Golden Eared Bear – Chieftain

HP 4900/5000

MP 100/100

Roar – Causes Fear to the weak willed

Slash – Mana infused claw attack does triple damage

Bite and Tear – on bite bear can pick up and shake anything that is medium sized or smaller. This not only does bite damage but does additional +100 tearing damage and activates a bleeding and stunned state]

The bear looked around and then as soon as it looked the other way Vindictus would send another arrow. Vindictus was trying to hit the bear in the back of the head as many times as he could since that would give him double damage for a sneak attack and there was also a higher chance of getting a critical since he was hitting in the head. The bear turned around and glared at the top of the cave again but like before he could not spot Vindictus. When the bear finally turned again Vindictus activated Rapid Shot and Power Shot and sent his last few fire arrows into the back of the bear's head yet again. This time he got three arrows to hit before the bear got turned around and two of the three hit critical damage on top of the sneak attack.

Luck was on his side again and the critical hits not only triggered the burning effect but also the bleeding effect. But now the bear knew where he was and he could no longer get the sneak attack bonus. After all of those arrows he had only dropped the health of the bar by about a quarter but he was not going to let up. The bear was now circling around the cave trying to find a path up to Vindictus and every time there was an opening Vindictus would fire as many arrows as he could. He activated his rapid shot when the cool down reset and his power shot only when it was at the opening of the cave and close enough that he could really make every shot count. Vindictus was lucky that this was the beginner village and this boss did not have battle regeneration that a lot of the later bosses would have.

After what seemed like an eternity the bear dropped down to the 10% berserk line and roared again. Vindictus was ready for it and ignored the fear effect and fired another arrow, while setting his feet. When the bear went into rage it would ignore everything and run up the hill taking a considerable amount of damage in the process. As soon as it tore through the first set of trees Vindictus took off down the side and slide through the brush. There was more damage on the way down than the way up but it was easy enough to ignore.

Vindictus ran around to the front of the cave and waited. The bear in its rage came barreling up the back of the hill and before it could calm down it went right over the front and slammed nose first into the ground. The health bar dropped to barely a sliver of health left. Vindictus looked at his last three arrows and triggered the luck effect on his ring and fired them all at the bear's face. All three hit in almost the same spot and critical hits popped up. While still under the luck effect he ran forward and harvested the bear. A crazy number of items and the head of the bear dropped. Vindictus did not even look through them he simply threw them into his inventory and ran into the cave.

There were two more things in the cave, one was a silver chest that could only be opened the first time the bear was defeated and a small ball of fur. Ignoring the chest Vindictus walked over to the ball of fur. He got just a few feet away and activated the animal companion bonding ability and sent his energy towards the little ball of fur. The ball of fur stood up and growled at Vindictus. Vindictus was prepared for this and pulled out a piece of alpha wolf meat and passed it to the bear. The bear sniffed and took a few bites and then scarfed it down in excitement. As soon as it was gone Vindictus pulled out another smaller piece and this time he put it right in front of him. After it was gone, he held out a third piece and the bear took it out of his hand and the bond in the system clicked into place.

"I am going to call you Ursi." The bear nodded his head in acknowledgement and Vindictus smiled and handed him another piece of meat. Then he walked over to the chest.