The First Hunt (2)

Seated on the floor of the room given to him, Evan began pondering on several issues as darkness surrounded him because of the absence of light in the room.

'I feel I am getting closer to the novice stage of mastery in the Whispering Retribution art. As for the demon reaper, I can't practise it in my current malnourished state. I need to let my body recover and what better way than eating monster meat?'

Unknown to him, Evan had a wild grin on his face at the thought of killing and roasting some house-sized huskies and pigs!

Mastery of martial arts can be split up into five stages.

Novice, Intermediate, Expert, Grandmaster and Creation.

Novice was the first level of mastery of any martial art and signified that the user just started performing the martial art. This was the realm of mastery Evan was currently aiming to achieve with the Whispering Retribution art.

'Currently, I'm a rank 1 warrior in the middle stages of said rank. The way for me to rank up is through the constant use of mana, allowing the mana to permeate through more of my body, subtly changing it.'

The warrior's path specialised in using mana internally, so the greater number of times said warrior channelled or used their mana, the higher the chance for it to come into contact with the body, making the body more durable after each use.

Through life or death tempering, warriors can instinctively memorise the most efficient use of mana, whether that is increasing the overall power exerted by the body or just using the mana pathways with the highest efficiency.

So the way for warriors to increase their rank is through constant battle.

'What is the essence of being a warrior? Is it the refusal to give up even when the odds are against you with a high probability of death? Or is it the intent of persevering through anything to ensure that those behind you suffer no harm?'

Pondering on this issue for a while, Evan felt that his first conjecture was closer to the truth, although many warriors in history used the second option to fuel themselves into becoming death machines.

Evan felt, as well as witnessed by the members of his family, that the path of the warrior was to never give up, even in the face of death.

No matter the odds, a warrior always remained stalwart and attempted to win with everything they have.

They either won or died trying.

With warriors being the offensive force of humanity, and the only humans who could fight monsters and zombies head-on with just their body and a weapon and remain alive after one exchange.

The leading political factions held them in extremely high regard.

However, high-level warriors were rare as most warriors climbing up the ranks lost their lives in the early stages of their ranks, either through sacrificing themselves or through being thoroughly outclassed by a monster one-on-one.

'Sigh, I agree with the temperament of not giving up, no matter the odds. However, I don't think I'm able to sacrifice myself for humanity, at least not yet.'

With his mind in turmoil refusing to return to a semblance of calm, Evan sighed as he closed his eyes, trying to enter a meditative state to bring peace to his mind.

Half an hour later, his mind finally calmed down from its hyperactive state, allowing him to heave a tired sigh as he stood up and plopped onto the bed, closing his eyes.

'My first hunt is tomorrow! Let's see what those overgrown animals have in store for me.'

***

'Ugh.'

Groggily opening his eyes, Evan stared at the ceiling for a few seconds, gathering himself together before jumping out of bed and getting ready to embark on his first forage through the forbidden wilds.

Walking towards the bathroom, he washed his face and got dressed, scrutinising himself carefully in the mirror, before setting off to the cafeteria, which was the designated meet-up point the squad decided on the night before.

Entering the cafeteria, he instantly noticed Astrid as her shiny blond hair that was tied in a ponytail made her stand out in this place filled with despondent gloom.

Ordering some food, Evan carried his tray and sat beside Astrid, waiting for the rest of the squad to arrive.

Gazing at Astrid, Evan saw she still wore an expressionless look on her face, creating an awkward silence that ensued between them.

'Sigh, I've lost my communication skills and I'm pretty sure she rarely speaks as well. There is no harm in trying to say something.'

"Good morning."

Looking to his right, Evan saw her nod in response to his greeting, something which caused a wry smile to appear on his face at the irony.

'I guess this is karma for all the times I've done that to other people.'

Look at her profile from the side. He couldn't help but wonder what circumstances forced her to become a mercenary as he sighed in melancholy.

Her cold nature reminded him of all the events which led to him being where he was today, as a rush of unpleasant memories flashed through his eyes, leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.

A taste that the bland military food failed to remove.

Shaking his head slightly, Evan sighed again in quick succession as he lifted his spoon to eat another mouthful of the grey-looking gruel on his tray.

However, his hand froze just as he touched the gruel, as an angelic voice made its way into his ears.

"You're someone who has had a hard past judging by the similar expression you wear when you look at people."

Hearing her words, a complicated expression appeared on Evan's face as he replied.

"You could say so."

'Truly only a fellow person who's experienced a tragic past could be able to understand at a glance a person's experiences based on their facial expression.'

"I know this stating the obvious, but you as well have experienced something of that magnitude. Sigh, well let me introduce myself properly. My name is Evan Grant and I'm a rank 1 warrior, a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Gazing deeply at Evan for a few seconds, deciding whether to reply, Astrid finally agreed to speak.

"My name is Astrid, I'm a rank 2 mage specialising in casting offensive spells."

After this period of conversation, both parties continued eating their respective dishes as another round of silence ensued.

After finishing his meal, Evan stood up intending to search for the other members of the squad as they still hadn't appeared yet.

"I'm going to go search for the other members. See you later."

Gazing at Evan's receding back, Astrid was deep in thought as a frown emerged on her face.

'Those emotionless eyes of his seal an untold amount of pain threatening to ignite from the smallest spark. I can only barely perceive the amount of trauma he has experienced. His trauma and thirst for vengeance are on another level compared to mine.'

Remembering her own experiences, her already cold expression turned even icier as a new thought entered her mind.

'I do not know why I talked to him in the first place, but I got a subtle feeling that he is going to play a major part in what's coming.'

As her thoughts strayed, Astrid didn't realise when she had finished that tasteless blob of gruel as she sighed and turned to her attention towards inspecting her surroundings.

Ever since she was young, she had built this habit of inspecting every person close to her in the immediate vicinity as if expecting them to tear off their masks and reveal their true selves.

'Sigh, let's just see where this hunt ends up going. Wait till I have enough wealth, you scum of the earth. Only then will you know what true despair feels like.'

As her thoughts converged on the image of a middle-aged man, Astrid's emerald green eyes showcased an extremely glacial light enough to freeze anyone in their tracks.