Chapter 9: fox demon
With excitement and enthusiasm, Jake arrived at "Clark's" house. "Grandpa Clark, I'm here. Is there anything I can help with?" Jake greeted warmly after knocking on the door. The old man could call him Clark, but Jake didn't dare to do the same.
"Oh, it's you? I know you. Nina said you're a helpful kid," Clark greeted Jake with a smile. "I actually have something that needs assistance."
It seemed that good deeds were indeed rewarded. After helping Nina catch chickens yesterday, although he only received a bowl of chicken as a reward, his reputation had spread among the villagers, and their goodwill towards him had increased. That was better than any other reward.
"What do you need? Just tell me," Jake said, patting his chest. After all, this was a beginner's village, and the tasks wouldn't be too difficult. Jake wasn't worried about being unable to complete them.
"Well, I've been researching a new hemostatic medicine recently, and I'm missing a few medicinal herbs. I'm getting old, and my legs aren't very agile, so I need someone to gather herbs for me. Those herbs are in the forest ahead," Clark explained.
"Leave it to me. I'll gather the herbs for you," Jake immediately offered.
"Thank you. You really are a helpful kid, just as Nina described," Clark looked pleased as he watched Jake.
"It's nothing," Jake said. Then a trace of hesitation appeared on his face as he continued, "But I'm not familiar with medicinal knowledge, so I'm afraid I won't be able to recognize the herbs you're looking for."
"That's true. Although those herbs aren't particularly rare, someone who's unfamiliar with them might not be able to identify them," Clark, the pharmacist, acknowledged. "In that case, let me teach you the skill of herb identification. With that, you'll be able to recognize those herbs."
Another skill! Jake instantly felt delighted. Although herb identification seemed to have little practical use, having an additional skill was always good. Who knew when it might come in handy?
After learning herb identification from Clark, Jake set off. He also had a herb shovel in his backpack, which Clark had given him for digging up the herbs. The forest, their destination, wasn't far from the village. It was filled with many wild beasts. However, with the invasion of the demonic aura, many of the creatures had turned into demonic beasts and become even more fierce.
Before Jake left, Clark repeatedly reminded him to be careful. If he encountered demonic beasts, he should hide if possible or return if necessary. Jake also prayed that he wouldn't encounter those demonic beasts. The encounter with the demonic rabbit left a deep impression on him. Although it was the lowest-level monster, it posed a significant threat to Jake. After all, he was still a level 2 newbie. Yesterday, he had been busy sightseeing and hadn't taken the opportunity to level up. Now, faced with a somewhat dangerous task, Jake regretted not leveling up yesterday.
"I hope my luck won't be that bad. I probably won't encounter them, right?" Jake thought to himself. However, as luck would have it, just as Jake entered the forest, he saw two fox-like creatures blocking his path. At the same time, when those two foxes noticed Jake, he also noticed them.
Jake used the Appraisal skill, and some of the fox's attributes appeared before his eyes. Fox Demon: Level 2, aggressive monster, high agility, weak defense, no skills. To Jake's surprise, the Appraisal skill didn't reveal specific attributes of the fox demon. He wasn't sure if it was always like this or if it was because his own strength was lower than the fox demon's.
However, Jake didn't have time to dwell on these thoughts because the two fox demons were already charging at him. Jake realized the meaning of "high agility" mentioned in the description. The speed of the two fox demons was incredibly fast. The grass and shrubs in the forest couldn't hinder their movements as they swiftly maneuvered. In the blink of an eye, they had already appeared in front of Jake.
Jake didn't dare to be careless and quickly took out the medicine shovel, using it as a weapon. Clark's medicine shovel: Bronze level. It was a medicine shovel Clark used when he was a young medicine apprentice. It increased the success rate of digging herbs and had an attack of 3 and agility of 1. Jake originally thought the rusty medicine shovel he found in a corner was just an ordinary shovel, but he didn't expect it to be a bronze-level equipment that could also be used as a weapon. Furthermore, it could increase his attack and agility, making it much better than the broken wooden stick he had before.
Without time for reflection, as soon as Jake took out the medicine shovel, the two fox demons were already in front of him. One jumped to attack his upper body while the other attacked his legs from the ground, demonstrating perfect coordination.
Jake seized the opportunity, swung the medicine shovel, and hit the fox demon in the air. Although the fox demon was highly agile, it couldn't change direction while in mid-air. It took a solid blow from Jake, and with a "thud," the fox demon flew away at an even faster speed than before. Jake even noticed a trace of blood on the medicine shovel, indicating that he had dealt a heavy blow to the fox demon.
"Ah!" Jake didn't have time to rejoice. Although he had sent one fox demon flying, the other had already pounced on his leg. Its sharp claws easily tore through Jake's pants, leaving three wounds on his right leg.
"Get lost, you beast!" The real pain made Jake forget that this was a game world. After being scratched by the fox demon, he was filled with anger. He kicked the fox demon away and, as it pounced again, struck its head with the shovel. The fox demon flipped over and struggled for a moment before lying motionless on the ground. As for the previous fox demon that had been sent flying, there was no movement for quite some time, indicating that it had likely been instantly killed.
Although Jake was only at level 2 with low attributes, the medicine shovel increased his attack by three points, and the fox demon was only a level 2 monster. Considering the blow to the head, it was understandable that the fox demon was instantly killed.
This gave Jake a deeper understanding of this world. Although it was a game world, it closely resembled reality. Strikes to the head or heart were extremely damaging, and it was even possible to be instantly killed.
"Huh, why hasn't this fox demon's body respawned?" Jake, who had originally planned to leave, was surprised as he looked at the dead fox demon lying on the ground.
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