Depthless Hunger

As Kai explored the wilderness, he let his first monster core roll around in his palm. He had seen them set in crystals in the city, but this was the raw material: a sticky orb of flesh. It felt disgusting to the touch, especially since he'd had to tear it out of the monster corpse personally.

But it was the first thing he'd earned during the trial. The only equipment he'd been given before going through the portal was a sack, and he should put the core back inside, but for the time being he wanted the reminder. He'd actually survived a battle against a monster. It would be the first of many, if he succeeded and joined the hunters.

Since it didn't seem that any weapons would be provided, he headed toward a forested region to the east. He could find a better club there, plus he thought he saw some sort of building in the same direction. Though he'd never been allowed inside the monster reserve, based on Monskon City in the distance he could estimate that he'd been placed near the western side. Most likely the final goal was toward the center.

Along the way, he wondered what he would find first: weapons, monsters, or other humans. The humans worried him most, since they could easily turn on him. Kai thought he had a decent reputation among the other trainees, but he had no connections among the nobles and he spent too much time training to make many friends.

Fortunately, he didn't run into any threats before he reached the forest. Kai found a sturdy branch and tore it off a tree, then began to strip away the bark. Right in the middle of his work, a monster shrieked and jumped onto his back.

He instinctively raised the branch to defend his neck, just before claws arrived. The creature on his back was small and looked a bit like a monkey, but it had six limbs that were clawing into his back. When he tried to swing over his shoulder, the monstrous monkey easily ducked aside.

A second later he slammed his back into the tree, then threw his head back and felt it connect with the monster's skull. The combination was enough to stun the creature, and it dropped with an eerie moan.

Stunned, not dead. Kai whirled and stabbed the monkey with his branch, only to realize that he still hadn't sharpened it. Fortunately, the monkey was much less durable than the dog-like monster, so he was able to bludgeon it to death without any more trouble.

He was bending down to see if he could find its monster core when he heard several more shrieks.

Kai leapt up, ready to defend against a whole horde of the monkeys, but the sounds weren't getting any closer. When he tracked the source, he abruptly realized: there were three of the monkeys attacking a pair of humans deeper into the forest. They were crying out as well, desperately trying to fend off the monsters, but they already looked pretty bloody. The creature that attacked him must have wandered from the others.

After checking for ambushes, just like he'd been trained, Kai rushed in. His first swing caught a monkey in the side of the head, smashing it into the ground. The other two leapt backward, screeching. He roared back, waving his stick and his other arm over his head. Fortunately, these monsters weren't the most bloodthirsty, so they retreated deeper into the trees.

"Are you alright?" Kai asked as he turned back to the two humans. Two young men about his age, severely torn up by the monkeys' claws. According to city law, anyone with basic combat training could attempt the Hunter Trials. Clearly these two had expected it to be much easier.

"St-stay back!" One of them waved a broken stick in his direction. "We don't have any monster cores!"

"Or anything else," the second added. "Just let us retreat, okay?"

Kai sighed and swung his stick up onto his shoulder. "Tell you what, if you let me take the monster core from the dead one, we'll call it even."

They scrambled out, leaving him to try to harvest the two monsters that he'd slain. That proved frustrating, due to the monkeys' tough fur, so he ended up crafting a few weapons first. Only a stick with a sharpened point and a rough wooden axe, but they would be better than nothing. He hadn't really thought his survival training would be useful in the Hunter Trials, but he had always worked hard at it because he assumed Gunjin recommended it for a reason.

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As soon as he was finished, he took the two small orbs of flesh and left the forest. The monkeys might be relatively weak, but if they teamed up on him in an ambush, they could be fatal. The blood soaking into the back of his shirt proved that. He could hunt monsters once he had fully awakened, since his Class awakening could make his crude weapons completely obsolete.

Still, as he walked back over the plain, Kai couldn't help but glance at the three orbs in his sack. They varied more than he expected, unless that was just what different grade cores looked like. Something to ask about when he wasn't fighting with everything on the line.

Gradually a shrine in the distance became clear. Almost certainly one of the waypoints that Gunjin had urged him to find. There seemed to be a few other people closing on it... and a whole group moving toward him instead.

Kai gripped his makeshift spear tighter as he realized that he recognized the group: Irunians. They were from the nation far to the northeast and they didn't try to blend in: they all had straight dark hair and wore sweeping red and blue robes. Irun and his own nation of Goralia were allies, but that didn't mean anything here.

More importantly, Irunians stuck together and they did not mess around. There were four of them, two men and two women, all of them armed. How had they gotten steel weapons so quickly? If they decided to attack him, he was going to have a major problem.

"Greetings." The man in the lead raised a hand and then bowed to it. "I am Tusquo Agyama, of Irun. May I ask your name?"

"Kai Granfian." Kai lowered his spear and tried a smile. "I hope you aren't here to fight?"

Tusquo didn't smile back, but gave a solemn nod. "We have been separated from half our number. Allying with someone familiar with local monsters is the wisest course of action."

"That's fine with me. How do you get those weapons? Did they let you take them in?"

"You dare?" One of the women stepped forward, her eyes flashing. "We would never cheat in the face of an honest challenge!"

"Calm." Tusquo raised a hand to hold her back, but didn't look away from Kai. "I think he meant no harm. Tell me, Kai Granfian, how do you think we came by these weapons?"

Was it some sort of test? Kai looked over the weapons, noting that they all appeared to be made of pure steel, without any wood or cloth bindings. All he could do was guess... "I know that Irunians have a skill they call the Path of Steel. Did it create them somehow?"

"Correct. Some of us have learned the Path of Steel, but we are here to absorb mana and awaken the Classes of Goralia. If you assist us, we will forge you a weapon as well."

Irunians were generally known as loyal allies, so Kai figured that this was probably a good opportunity. He did his best to copy their raised arm bow and smiled at the group. They seemed welcoming enough, and the woman he'd offended even muttered an apology. Kai wished that he had the spiritual sight to judge the group, but based on their toned bodies and the way they held their weapons, he guessed that they had decent training.

As for the Path of Steel, Kai got a good look at it for the first time in his life. Tusquo sat down and cupped his hands together, then liquid metal just... flowed out of his skin. It wasn't technically any more fantastical than the amazing things hunters could do with mana, but Kai still watched raptly.

They wouldn't answer questions about their nation's art, but they did let him choose his weapon. Kai thought for a while before requesting a long two-handed sword. He'd trained with every weapon up to the point of competence because Gunjin said that was the best way to prepare: his Class might turn out to use any weapon or none at all, so it was best not to specialize. He figured that a two-handed sword was reasonably flexible and would get him through the Hunter Trials.

Once he was armed, the entire group went back to walking and compared notes. They wanted to know about the local monsters, so he told them what he knew. Fortunately, it didn't seem like they were just trying to use him, because Tusquo reciprocated as soon as he finished talking.

"I do not want you to fear betrayal, Kai Granfian." Tusquo gazed at him seriously. "No one in our group would cheat, but... we do have information that we ordinarily would not. On the second and third days, there will be additional announcements. The prizes are meant to award all who acquit themselves well, not to encourage competition. If a team works together effectively, all will profit."

"What do you know about the prizes?" Kai asked.

"Anyone who endures through all three days will be given one of your mana potions, though one of little value. Those who have accumulated many monster cores will receive a pill that increases the growth of one's Class. And those who prove strongest will receive a scroll said to permanently improve training."

That sort of thing was the exact reason that Kai was determined to succeed at the Hunter Trials. It was impossible to buy your way to great strength, but you did need some resources. The poorest of the poor could rise high, so long as they could win competitions.

Just when he was about to ask another question, Kai heard earth crumbling. He looked up in time to see a large rock hurtling toward them. Immediately he dodged, and all the Irunians got clear as well, but Kai had seen who had thrown it.

There was a group of eight competitors, and Kai recognized some of them. He groaned and drew his new sword.