Skill Hunter -Kill Monsters, Acquire Skills, Ascend to the Highest Rank!

Ike woke up to the gentle light of dawn and the twitter of birdsong. He sat up, rubbing his head, and looked around. Silver snoozed on his bed in cat form, and, half-propped up in the corner, Orin snored away, one arm slung around an earthenware jug. Ike chuckled.

"He really did live up to his promise."

He looked at Silver and Orin, then shook his head. It'd be cruel to wake them this early. Silver said he was done with me, and I agree. I learned much, but I need to see the world to understand more. Moving quietly, Ike gathered up his gear and packed it away. He picked up the swords last and looked at them, not really sure what to do. The serrated edges meant they weren't suited for sheathes, nor had Silver made any. He tried tying them to his pack, but suspended on his back, so far from his hands, meant he couldn't reach them if a monster came at him. At last, he stuck them through his belt, one hooked through either side. The cloth Silver had wrapped them in wound loosely around their blades, serving as a sort of tether and edge-protector.

Ike looked at his filthy clothes and makeshift sheaths with a sigh. I should buy a good set of clothes and some nice sword holders while I'm in town…and then only ever use them in town, because it seems like I ruin whatever I'm wearing the second I step outside.

With one last glance at Orin and Silver, Ike set off.

In the time he'd spent at Silver's hut, he'd read much of Orin's guide. He ran through the low-level monsters in his head, considering the pros and cons to himself. The Fulgur-Loups are big lightning wolves. According to Orin, they drop a lightning skill. Given how easily I absorbed Lightning Dash as opposed to River-Splitting Sword, I think I might have a lightning alignment that makes it easy for me to absorb lightning skills…or something like that. I might as well lean into it. The problem is, Fulgur-Loups are fast, fast enough Lightning Dash at its current level might not give me much of an advantage, and they hunt in packs. I don't think I stand much of a chance right now.

He turned his mind back to the book, searching for monsters with high lightning- or magic-defense. If I have resistance to lightning, it'll be easier to take down the Fulgur-Loups. Hmm…

Unable to clearly remember the book, he reached over his shoulder and pulled it out of his pack. He quickly flipped through the pages. At last, his eyes lit up. He jabbed his finger at the page. An ugly, warty toad stared at him from the page.

…covered in a thick, oily hide that absorbs and repels magic, especially water and lightning magic. Weak to fire. Belly good, legs tasty. Solo hunters. Watch out for tongue.

A clear weakness or two, a hide that repelled the element the Fulgur-Loups used the most, and a one-on-one battle. Ike nodded to himself. That decides it. Giant Toad, here I come.

I don't have a fire skill, but there's more than one way to roast a toad.

Mind made up, Ike sped up, pushing himself to a jog. He re-wrapped the book and strapped it to his belt once more, a bit clumsy from his speed. Gotta pick up some supplies in town. I'm not equipped to set a toad on fire right now.

Something flickered in the undergrowth to his left. Motion hurtled toward him. Ike jumped back and drew his sword.

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A knife struck a rock in the center of the path, throwing up sparks. A squad of men and women dressed in dark clothes lurked out of the forest. At their head, a familiar face smirked at Ike. "Long time, no see."

"Hello, Rob the Robber," Ike mocked him.

The man laughed shallowly. He waved his hand, and the knife twitched, then leaped off the ground and flew to his hand. He spun it around his fingers, looking over it at Ike. "I usually don't hold grudges, you know?"

"You struck me as the charitable type," Ike deadpanned.

"I made a special exception just for you. Siccing the wallwraiths on me and my men? Uncalled for," Rob said, shaking his head.

Ike shrugged. "I think attacking hunters to steal their kills is pretty rude, but what would I know?"

Rob laughed. "You're working too hard. Why take the hard route, when you can take the easy route? At the end of the day, I make the same amount of money as you. No—probably more, since I don't have to waste my time hunting."

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Ike narrowed his eyes. "You think you're in the right?"

"In the right? Who cares about right and wrong? Right won't buy me nothing. No, no. I think I'm in the gold."

"Filth," Ike muttered. He circulated his mana, subtly adjusting his stance. His eyes darted from one man to another. Four of them. Knowing these guys, there might be more in the trees.

Rob's standing forward. I'll charge him first. Once he's down, I'll cut left. They came from the right, so the two on the left are less likely to have someone hiding in the trees as backup. Finish up the fourth with the last strike. Then handle whoever's in the trees, if there's anyone in the trees.

"Speaking of, did you know there's a bounty for your head? Your uncle wants you dead. Something about causing trouble for his factory." Rob leaned in, conspiratorially. "Between you and me, I think he's just pissed that the city finally noticed he wasn't paying taxes."

Ike snorted. "And you're willing to take my head for that?"

"I'm willing to do anything for gold," Rob responded, shrugging at Ike.

Something shifted behind Ike. He tensed. Shit. I stalled too long.

Before they surround me…

"So? Are you going to—yikes!"

Ike charged Rob. Rob's hands blurred faster than Ike expected, and a knife intercepted his strike. The force of Ike's blow threw him back. His arm flew up.

Lightning flashed. Ike closed in. The green blade blurred, and red splattered into the air. Rob stumbled back, clutching his neck.

Ike dug his toe in and hurtled after the two to the left. At night, after Silver finished, he'd spent hours practicing using the footwork of the sword technique and Lightning Dash at the same time, and now, the moves came together smoothly. The two figures looked up, startled. He ran through them, slashing once. Two heads dropped behind him.

Drawing to a halt, Ike looked at his blade. His eyebrows raised. There was almost no resistance. Damn! Silver's skills are no joke.

He whirled. The fourth man ran at him, grabbing a sword from his waist as he charged, his face red with rage. Cool, Ike waited. He lifted his sword and reset his stance.

The man screamed and slashed at him. Ike parried, then twisted his blade. The man's sword flew away. Without hesitating, Ike cut the man's neck.

He spun, expecting to see more men racing at him from behind, but instead, two figures in black fled messily. Ike paused, hesitating for just a second.

A moment later, he shook his head. I let them live before, and they came back for revenge. I won't make that mistake again. He dashed after them. Lightning arced behind him.

One heard him coming and turned. She threw a ball of fire at him. Ike batted it away with the flat of his sword and closed the gap. She raised her hand to block the blow. The sword cut through her wrist and throat alike. Her face paled, and she dropped to the ground.

The final man just ran. He pulled away from Ike at high speed, a cloud of dust rising up behind him. Ike watched him go. He's using a speed skill. I'd know.

Casually, he lowered to a runner's stance, putting one hand on the ground, holding the sword in the other. He counted down in his head. Three. Two.

The man vanished into the distance. Very little of him remained visible through the trees.

One. For the first time since he'd trained with Silver, Ike activated Lightning Dash to its full strength. At the same time, Lightning Clad climbed up his calves, strengthening his lower legs. He burst down the path.

The man loomed, growing larger and larger. He looked over his shoulder at the sound of Ike's approaching feet and stared at Ike in horror. Turning back forward, he ran with all his might, to no avail. In another few steps, Ike caught up.

The man whirled. He gestured, and the plants around them whirled, darting for Ike.

Ike ignored the plants and closed the final gap. Lashing out, he severed the man's head. The man's head bounced to the ground. All around Ike, the plants fell still once more.

Ike stood. He slashed the blood off the sword, then knelt and wiped it clean on the man's clothes. He went through the man's pockets, but only found a few coppers. Summarily, he kicked the man's body into the undergrowth, then walked back for the rest.

Most of the black-clothed party carried very little. He found a shortbow and a few arrows on the woman's body, and a strange feather charm on one of the men, but that was the limit of it. On Rob, on the other hand, he found a pouch with twenty gold and the knife the man had used. He went to lift it off the man, only for Rob to grab at it.

Ike startled. On-guard, he jumped back.

Rob laid there, dead.

Cautiously, he approached and reached for the knife again. Again, Rob's hand moved with it, but this time, he realized why. A wire connected the back of the knife to a bracelet on Rob's wrist. A strappy sheath further up his forearm concealed the knife in his sleeve when he didn't need it.

Ike snorted. I thought that was a skill when he called the knife back to his hand, but it was just a cheap trick. I wonder if he had any useful skills at all?

He shrugged to himself, freeing the knife and sheath alike from Rob's arm. To be fair, he only preyed on poor, low-Rank hunters like me, and he ganged up on us. If he had any confidence in his skills, he'd simply attack me himself, rather than ganging up on low-Rankers.

Come to think of it, he'd never seen Rob fight. He put his hand on his chin, looking down on the man. Was the man I was so afraid of, only an illusion all along?

With a shrug, he kicked Rob into the bushes. Attaching the bracelet to his own wrist, Ike strapped the sheath to his forearm and set off again. Ike played with the knife as he walked. He flicked his wrist and waved his hand around randomly as he tried to figure out the way Rob had called it forth. Left? Right? Maybe a quick flick…?

The knife snapped out of its bindings and sliced through the bottom of his sleeve.

Ike grimaced. He looked at the fresh slash in his sleeve and shook his head. I really can't keep clothes in one piece, can I? I'm going to be up all night with the needle and thread, at this rate.