The Hunter's Guide to Monsters

How do you upgrade a village into a town?

First, have a village.

Hah.

Second, be a noble. Or be favored by a king.

If the latter, how lucky! Simply ask the king for a town charter. 

If not in the favor of a king, like the very plebian Krow, hope that you have a good registration roll or go and quest for a castle.

If you want a castle, good luck! Hope you can survive a raid at your level (lol).

Third, have a ton of money.

Oh, too bad. He was broke. 

Why, it's easy to fix that: slaughter is the only way!

So simple! Just carve a bloody path through million and a half monsters that spit acid into your eyes, bite through your clothes, and put you in a constant state of being minorly poisoned!

Krow sulked in his mental commentary as he waded through a mass of dead Tasseline Verdant Serpents.

[You've butchered a monster to acquire its Tasseline Verdant Snakeskin!]

[You've butchered a monster to acquire its Tasseline Verdant Snakeskin!]

[You've butchered 1000 monsters!]

[Congratulations! You've acquired the Butcherer Badge!]

A Badge?

His mood improved suddenly.

A Badge!

He'd gotten a Bronze Soldier Badge in his last life for eliminating a hundred and one bandits in total. The increase in stats helped so much.

When he hadn't gotten any for killing hundreds of monsters, he thought the feature hadn't been implemented yet.

Did that mean there wasn't one for hunting?

Tsk.

[Butcherer Badge]

[The smell of raw meat lingers around you.]

[Effects: 10% more meat from butchering. 10% sharper knives. 1% added chance of acquiring higher graded items from a carcass.]

Ah? No stats?

Krow deflated.

Then subclass Badges were only useful for the craft.

Too bad.

He could do with a boost to his stats.

Even in the outer edges of the Forest, the monsters were stronger than those of similar levels he'd encountered before. It meant more XP, but it also meant more bullets.

The clearing around him was full of dead snakes.

Just how many snake nests were around Cerkanst?! This was the fourteenth daily quest that dealt with the Serpents encroaching on the herb fields.

Eight Tasseline Verdant Serpent monster nests eliminated already. What were the odds that he got the same quest tomorrow? Krow snorted to himself. High odds, no bet.

He tossed the badge into his Inventory.

[You've acquired your first Badge, and unlocked the Achievement Collection Page of the Inventory!]

Once, long ago, that notification had excited him.

Collecting old coins had been a hobby, a reminder of his father, who had owned the collection before.

Once, he'd dreamed of joining the whole mass of people posting their Achievement Collections on the forums, showing off their prowess.

But after so long with only a single badge to show, when people always said it was easy to get their first ten Badges, every time he saw the page, he only felt it was mocking him.

Now, as a monster hunter, he likely won't gain so many badges as the battlers. So what was the point in competing?

He looked at the single badge in his Collection.

A thousand monsters butchered.

His first achievement badge in Redlands.

It was still a bit uplifting.

He smiled, turned back to work. The smile turned into a grimace.

The hometown quests involved getting acquainted with the prominent people in a village. That meant taking the daily quests from them ten times.

Usually that lasted four to six days.

[You've butchered a monster to acquire its Reptile Mane Tassels!]

Since Krow went beyond the bounds of the request to eliminate monster nests, rather than just the monsters required, it had taken him longer than the last time.

Weeping skies, but he hadn't had multiple people send him on the same quest before.

It saved time, but still.

If he never had to see one Tasseline Verdant Serpent again, he'd be very content with his life.

Who told these things to breed so many in one nest?!

A long sliding sound in the herbs jolted him out of his standard complaining session. He whirled, butcher knife tossed from his dominant hand to his left and brandished defensively, as his right then continued down to draw his revolver.

How many times in these days had he been ambushed after that particular sound?

A silver marked head rose above the tops of the herb bushes, diamond shaped, with a long neck following after.

[You've been challenged to battle!][Silverstripe Tasseline Serpent (Anaret Gren) Lvl 15 (31)]

[HP: 4500][MP: 1121]

What?

Monsters can challenge?! Was his first thought, but then he had to dodge a fanged lunge, and the second name flickered in place of the first.

A possessed serpent.

Lvl 31? HP 4500?!

Shkav, someone tell him that 1121 MP could not be used by a snake to do Spells.

Three Breeze Boomerangs sliced toward him not a moment later.

At least give him five seconds of hope, damnit!

The usual discreet bark of his revolver thundered loud in the isolated quiet, echoed by the near cliffs.

He changed cylinders, leaping upward to a ledge.

The possessed Serpent started to sway, coils turning around each other, long body curling and swooping.

It was a rather pretty dance.

Major Exhaustion, blinked his status.

He tore his eyes away from the snake, double-jumped higher. Five Low Revitalit removed the Exhaustion, and a Low Heal took care of the lost HP.

The big serpent coiling up the cliff wall. How could it move up a vertical surface that easily?

He shot a ledge out from under it, gaining a frustrated hiss as the serpent slid back down.

Hah. He aimed, kept shooting.

Its defenses were greater than the average monster. His shots barely dented the HP.

Was the hypnotism a Spell from the possessed or a feature of the Serpent?

From the dance, the ghost probably took advantage of a natural serpent skill.

-12% HP.

Major Poison.

Gah!

That was the thorn-spitting technique the smaller Verdant Serpents used on him. Just ten times more effective.

Krow glared as he jumped away, drinking potions as he went.

What did he know of spirit possession?

The stats would be halved. So for being Lvl 31, it was about ten levels weaker. Especially since the snake it was possessing was only Lvl 15.

Why would it challenge?

Obvious.

It wanted Krow's body.

"I know this body is pretty nice," he called back. "But stealing it is just harsh, you know?"

The snake/ghost answered in Breeze Boomerangs.

He hated fighting ranged attackers!

Why did he not have bombs?

This fight would go better if he had bombs!

He made a note to search for Incandescent Emerald Dracontomelons as soon as possible. The explosive fruits would be a blessing.

The Minor Paralyzing Mist Vials had no effect on a poison user.

He aimed, holding the stance for a long moment as the snake rapidly closed the distance between them.

Krow gained Lvl 10 days ago already, and the skill 'Mark Critical' was already part of his arsenal.

It allowed him to see the weak spots in an opponents defenses. It gave him the perfect targets.

The skill activated. The snake's eyes glowed.

He emptied his cylinder, aiming for the eyes, flipping above the snake to dodge another thorn-spitting attack.

[Critical Hit!][HP:2289]

Hsss-rraarrssss!

One eye oozed darkly stained viscous fluids, half closed. It lashed out with its tail, against the cliffside.

Krow slipped off the grassy ledge with a yelp.