Chapter 12. The Black Boar

Chapter 12. The Black Boar

Pov: Ray

We were running through the forest. Branches lashed our faces, the ground underfoot was uneven, our breathing was ragged, but we could not stop. We had made a mistake. It had looked like an excellent opportunity… at least that was what I decided in the moment. But now we had failed.

Den was running ahead, carrying Nick on his back. Nick was unconscious, and his stomach… damn. A huge torn wound, blood would not stop flowing. Because of me he would die. Because of my decisions. And not only him — our entire team could die.

Yes, the idea had been shared, but I, as the leader, made the final decision.

The request had been simple: light hunting in the forest, horned rabbits, small game. Just to gain some experience and bring meat back to the village.

But we went too deep. Then we saw it — the black boar. And at that moment we had a “brilliant” idea.

If we could kill it and haul the carcass to the Adventurers’ Guild, everyone would see that we were not just village kids, as the old man called us. We were real seekers of adventure.

I stopped and listened, trying to catch the slightest sound. I needed to let Den and Nick get farther away. If the black boar came too close, I would draw it onto myself — it was the only chance for them to escape.

The plan had seemed simple from the start. Den was supposed to hit it in the eye while it slept and finish it immediately. But everything went wrong. The arrow only grazed the area just above the eye — the boar woke in a rage. It began to prowl, searching for the source of the pain. Nick stepped forward, drawing it to himself to give Den time for a second shot.

But none of the shots worked the way we expected. Each time an arrow sank into its flesh, the boar seemed only to grow angrier. It sped up, tore the ground with its hooves, and charged straight through.

I shouted, trying to pull the beast’s attention onto myself. But it was too late — the boar reached Nick. Its tusks pierced his stomach, and he did not have time to dodge. The impact tossed him aside like a rag doll.

We rushed to him, grabbed him, and Den threw Nick onto his back. The boar did not fall behind. It had been pursuing us for hours since then.

We could have returned to the village long ago if we had made it to the road. It was only four to five hundred meters from here. But going along an open road was certain death. In the open the boar would gain full speed, and we would not have a single chance.

In the forest the trees kept it from accelerating. We could maneuver, we could dodge. Several times it almost caught us, but I managed to draw its attention to myself, knocking it off course. Then I would return to Den and Nick again.

No rustle, no heavy steps, no hoarse breathing — only insects and the rare cries of birds. I looked ahead. Den and Nick had already slipped behind the trees, leaving me a little behind.

It seemed the black boar had fallen back. Perhaps the wound had finally slowed it?

No. I must not hope for that. Every time I thought it had fallen behind, it appeared again — like a shadow, like an inexorable force tearing through the forest.

“We need to move faster,” I whispered to myself.

A little more… just a little — and we would reach the village.

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Pov: George

Yes, days pass calmly and unhurriedly now. Not like before, when I wandered the wild lands, faced monsters, and risked my life at every step. But village life has its advantages. Quiet. Peace. I have not regretted for a single moment that I chose to become a guild master in such a backwater.

Although… one more pair of hands would not hurt. I have to do everything myself. Right now I am preparing dinner for the young seekers of adventure. My food is nourishing and healthy, as it should be for those who want to survive in the field. Well yes, the taste may not be the finest… but no one has died or complained, and that is already something.

I was immersed in my work when I heard a crash — the guild’s front door was thrown open as if it were not a door but the gate of a fortress.

“Some idiot is at it again,” I grumbled. “You cannot open a door like that…”

Yes, the doors are sturdy, but it is irritating.

A few seconds later the bell rang.

Then again.

Then a third time.

“I am coming, I am coming, I am not deaf!” I muttered, setting the knife on the table and getting up without hurrying.

I opened the door to the main hall, and a scene unfolded before me: three new seekers of adventure — essentially village teenagers dreaming of becoming true adventurers — stood at the entrance. One of them was unconscious, with a huge wound in his stomach. I hoped he was still alive.

“Old man, please, help! Nick is dying! Save him!” the boy shouted.

I quickly pulled out the health potions I always keep in the registration desk drawer for emergencies. Fortunately, such cases are extremely rare here.

“Bring him here,” I said, taking Nick. I carefully poured one potion into his mouth and the second directly onto the wound. One might have been enough, but I did not want to risk it: two would work more reliably. I was not about to let anyone die in my guild before even becoming a true seeker of adventure.

The wound on Nick’s stomach closed quickly. It looked like the boy would not die.

“And what the hell happened?” I barked. “You were supposed to hunt small game! How in all hells did he get a wound like that?”

The two boys beside him, trembling, kept silent. I took a deep breath, trying to calm down a little.

“Enough silence. Explain what happened,” I said, lowering my voice but keeping the pressure.

Slowly one of them — Ray, if I remembered correctly — began to speak. With each phrase my anger only grew.

Damn it! This is exactly how beginners die most of the time. These idiots went too deep into the forest and decided to hunt a beast far stronger than they were. What were they thinking?

It turned out they had stumbled on a black boar and tried to finish it. But the boar was no longer an ordinary animal — now it was the hunter. The behavior of a wounded black boar is especially dangerous: if you do not kill it immediately, it can pursue its offender for days, for weeks, until it catches up and kills the one who hurt it.

According to them, they last saw it about an hour ago. That meant… it would be here soon.

I left them in the main hall and hurried to my room. Not a second to lose. I needed to meet that black boar at the forest’s edge — otherwise villagers could be hurt. I grabbed my weapons quickly and headed toward the forest from which the boys had come.

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Pov: Alisar

[Quest No. 23 completed.

Gained +3,000,000 experience points.]

--

[Quest No. 24 completed.

Gained +4,000,000 experience points.]

[Status]

[Name: Alisar
[Level: 42
EXP: 1,622,560/1,900,000
Rank: 3]

HP: 4,970 (+840)
MP: 7,860 (+840) (+1,520)

Strength: 177 (+28)
Defense: 163 (+28)
Speed: 157 (+28)
Intelligence: 166 (+28)
Magic Power: 161 (+28)
Magic Defense: 307 (+28) (+152)

Free Attribute Points: 0 (+152) (-152)

Skills: —

Special Skills:
• Training Room (Rank 2)
• Alchemy (Rank 1)]

At last I had completed another quest.

Two days had passed since I returned to that same spot in the ravine where many of the red berries grew — let us call them raspberries — and those little peppers.

Last time I was thoroughly sick of them, but it seemed I had already missed them: their taste again felt wonderfully pleasant.

Yes, even the tastiest food becomes cloying if you eat it without a break, but now that is not a problem.

And finally… I reached level 42.

From level 41 my rank rose to the third, and now, as before when the rank changed, the experience requirements rose sharply.

With each new level you need more experience points, and the gap between levels grows by leaps.

However, there are advantages as well.

For example, when I went from level 40 to 41, each attribute received +8 points.

But the real breakthrough came with the free attribute points.

Before, I received 8 points per level, starting from level 21 up to level 40.

Now, from level 41, I receive 64 free points for each new level.

Yes, these are small details, but it is damned nice that growth becomes not only harder, but also distinctly more rewarding.

When I say “two days passed,” in fact, two days passed only for me. For the rest of the world it was still the same day when I had come here from the village.

And in that time I learned an important lesson: never, under any circumstances, leave animal carcasses — or any meat — in the training room. Never.

Getting rid of it was very difficult. The stench was unbearable. I did not want to touch the already decaying body with bare hands, so I used my old clothes — the ones I was going to throw away anyway. Fortunately, it worked, and I was able to haul the corpse out.

Well, here I acted like an idiot again. I took the corpse out of the training room and left it right by the river. And who in their right mind leaves a decaying corpse near the water they intend to drink? Yes, that was foolish.

I could not carry the carcass far — it was far too heavy. I had to move it back into the training room and then find a more suitable location. I chose a spot away from the road and the ravine, but I did not go deep into the forest. That was where I left the body. I think it will not attract dangerous predators — such a rotten smell will bring only scavengers. So there is no special risk.

That was how I finally got rid of the corpse and returned.

When I came back to the place where the raspberries and peaches grew, there was no foul smell in the training room anymore. Well, that was logical — after all, 25–30 days had passed there. It is good that the room has air circulation. The large windows constantly let in fresh air, and thanks to that the smell dissipated on its own.

If it had been a sealed space, I think the stench would have remained inside. Moreover, if it were truly airtight, the oxygen would have run out quickly, and the skill would be utterly useless.

After the incident with the boar’s body, I developed a new habit. Now I wash much more often than before. After every training session, before resting, I leave the training room and go to the river to wash thoroughly.

I constantly feel as if the reek of rotting meat had soaked into my skin and was now coming from me. Of course it is only an illusion… but I cannot shake it. Therefore, if I do not wash, I simply cannot rest properly.

And now — I had just washed in the river and headed to my tent. Setting it up did not come immediately: I had to fuss with it a bit, but in the end it worked.

Why do I need a tent? First of all, for storing food. Yes, the rations are meant for long storage, but I do not want to take risks — even they can spoil over time. So I decided to turn the tent into a small storehouse.

Of course, wild animals could poke their noses in here, but I show up every one or two minutes (by outside time), so the chance that something will be stolen or gnawed is small. People almost never come to these parts.

Besides food, I began to store surplus health potions here. I am creating quite a lot now, and I have leftovers beyond what I use myself. I keep them here because I do not know how long it takes for potions to spoil.

I created two health potions. Yes, that was all there was mana for — as usual, I drank the rest myself to recover.

I opened the small pouch once used for food and dropped the potions inside. There were about ten in total already. No, exactly ten — counting the two I had just made.

I put the pouch in the tent and stepped outside.

Yes, time to sleep. Of course I am not sleeping here — sleeping in the open is unsafe. The training room is the most reliable place to rest, and I have long been used to using it for sleep.

I was about to activate the skill… when goosebumps ran over my whole body.

A cold touch to my neck made me freeze.