Chương 172: Meeting (III)
Zero ran with the frenzied crowd of cats as they all split up into groups and slaughtered monsters
in a wide variety of sizes, shapes, and levels, from swarms of Baby Spiders to Grey Wolves. The Cat People battled with a ferocity that he saw patches of Grey Wolf fur flying in all directions. He was glad that they were on his side and not his enemies. Every single one of them was above level two hundred. Even though the cap level of players was two hundred, he knew that they were higher levels that players could reach because the transformation of turning into a hybrid dragon was around level two hundred and fifty. He didn't know how or when the limit would be released, but he hoped it would be soon.
Drawing his black Katana, Kamori, he swung it downwards, hacking the Baby Spiders that chattered among its brethren. One side of the Baby Spiders' legs was torn away, making it loop to one side. This gave Zero the chance to strike towards the exposed belly of the Baby Spiders. Instead, he twirled the sword around him and slashed another in the face, stopping its tracks. It flopped over dead, twitching.
"Not bad for a hybrid." M2 rushed out and brought out a sword that was thin and fast. It reminded Zero of a fencing sword. Like a blur of lightning, the sword swished around him like a swarm of hornets repeatedly stinging its prey. Each strike cut the legs, fur, and parts of the body of its enemies like minced meat.
A howling cry of the wolf pack could be heard echoing. Then, a large pack of Grey Wolf jumped in on the group fight.
"Not bad yourself." Zero ran in and thrust into a Grey Wolf that jumped from the side. He cut the Grey Wolf in the stomach as guts fell out.
It was like a game; the thrill of hunting down their prey in the middle of the battle was like a high to the cat people. Every single one of them was grinning cheerfully as they attacked non-stop. It was truly a strange sight to see battle-crazy cats that danced around their prey like it was a game with plastered smiles.
The young cats chuckled and jumped in three on each side of a giant spider. Each one grabbed a hairy leg of Spider.
"Pull!"
All of them simultaneously pulled. A loud pop-like sound could be heard while the legs were pulled out of their sockets. With a loud thump, the body of the Spider rolled on the ground, unable to move. They laughed out loud at the strange sight of the legless.
"Kahahah!" M2 laughed with glee. He swiped and strike one after the other batting the Grey Wolf like it was nothing.
Zero batted the flying Grey Wolf that came from the side and he heard a yelp when his Katana made its mark.
Teeth, claws, fury, and wicked blades of iron flew from left to right as both M2 and Zero hunted down the pack of Grey Wolves as if it was nothing. Even though Zero was in his human form, his abilities did not falter nor lag behind M2's.
Two more Grey Wolves growled and started prowling around both M2 and Zero. They both watched carefully, waiting for any sudden movements. M2 snaked in first, stabbing the Grey Wolf on the left, while Zero took the one on the right. They were both doing well, covering each other's backs. Slash after slash, M2 quickly dismembered and destroyed his Grey Wolf, and following closely behind was Zero.
"Not bad. Not bad." M2 whistled in glee. He was humming a tune while he was fighting.
Another Grey Wolf jumped out from behind the bushes, and M2 whirled around in a circle. His sword went straight into the jaws of the Grey wolf's mouth, while Zero's Katana sliced down onto the wolf's back.
A splintering cry of pain and anger from the wolves crying yelp could be heard echoing in the forest. Then, with the pack of Grey Wolves dead and the large nest of Baby Spiders, Zero put away his Katana and brought out his knife. He squatted down and began to skin and cut up the wolf's meat.
"That's one thing you just can't get used to," M2 spoke as he eyed what Zero was doing. "The thought of skinning for their pelts makes my stomach go in circles several times."
"Really? It doesn't bother me. You get used to it if you do it enough."
"I understand the need for reality in a virtual reality game, but there are some things I wish the
creators of this game took out. It's a bit too extreme."
"I wouldn't think so. For actual hunters, they might find this normal, though the number of
real-life hunters playing this game compared to people who don't are quite high."
"Either way, I wish they were an off button that magically gets this part over with. Then, you can have my kills."
Zero quickly harvested his prey and moved from one to the other effortlessly. They were times when the other Cat People would bring him the spoils of the hunt. They did not complain; instead, they were happy to have fun fighting and hunting for prey.
Zero felt a bit uneasy about the Cat People because they hunted their prey as if they were sports. They would bat at their prey as if they were toys for a while before killing them; most monsters usually died out of heart attack or exhaustion. So they were not enemies he would like to fight against, especially with their nasty habit of playing with their prey.
As time passed, the other cats hunted down the prey effortlessly, making the travel easy. In all honesty, he had never had such an easy hunt before. The cat people were natural hunters who fought with wit and claws. They made their way towards the Draconis Village in under an hour clearing monsters as if it was nothing.
"Stop!" Zero yelled out towards the Cat People. "It's here."
The cats stopped and stared at him oddly. They did not see what he could see, the towering Draconis Village that was invisible to the naked eye beside the dragons and him.
Zero raised, fidgeted around, looking through his pocket. Finally, he found what he was looking for a special card key that all Draconis residents had that identified them to the VillageVillage. It was Garrett's idea to enforce such a policy for all new and old residents that came to the Draconis Library, but it was now endowed with a special power to bring down the flying boat that brought residents back in.
"What are you doing?" M2 asked. He glanced curiously at what Zero had in his hands. "I don't see the Draconis Village anywhere. Are you sure we are at the right place?"
Zero ignored him and raised the card. The card glowed blue brightly, and blue light from the sky shot down towards the card connecting one to the other. The cats stared up, mesmerized by the sight of the pretty light that struck the card. Their eyes glistened mischievously at the sight of a new toy. Even M2 was drawn toward Zero with his eyes glued to the card. All the cat people were ready to pounce on Zero.
Just as the bright light appeared before them, it thinned out and disappeared. Their mesmerizing eyes were saddened at the loss of a new toy, and their gazes were brought back to their usual cheerful and aloof attitude.
Off in the distance, a small blue dot became bigger and bigger. Finally, a large boat appeared from the sky. The cats scattered like roaches as they hid behind trees, watching with curious eyes. Zero did not hide nor move; instead waited patiently for the boat to land in front of him. With a loud thump, the ship landed. A gush of wind went outwards as Zero was pushed back a couple of steps.
"It's gotten bigger," said Zero. It wasn't long since he left the VillageVillage in a small boat, but now a larger boat ten times its size was in front of them. Moreover, it was not crafted shabbily but more elegant with a flare of artistic taste.
"Did this just come from the sky?" M2 stared with awe. "Fascinating. Truly, fascinating."
"Chief Librarian," A Lunar Rabbit stepped out from the large boat and bowed. "When I noticed your call, we sent our best boat down to bring you back up. Unfortunately, though, I did not know we were expecting guests." He glanced wearily around him.
"These are the cat people. They came on a pilgrimage and sought sanctuary on our land. If you don't mind, I would like to bring them all in with us."
"All?" The Lunar Rabbit gasped. His ears flopped over, dismayed at the predator in front of him, and gulped. "I-I-I'm not so sure that would be a wise idea, especially a....cat." He whispered the last part, only audible to Zero. "We don't do well with cats, Chief Librarian."
"I'll talk with them. Give me a moment."
"But Chief, they're cats, for crying out loud."
"Let me deal with them, okay?"
"Yes, Chief." With a bow, the Lunar Rabbit walked back towards the boat, worried about what Zero would say.
M2 walked over next to Zero, "So what did the Rabbit say? We good?"
"Well, I need to speak with Elder Mako and Elder Miki."
"Alright," M2 turned around and called out towards Elder Mako and Miki. "Elders, please come forward."
"MemoryMaker, what is it?" Elder Miki was the first to come. Then Elder Mako was next.
"Zero has something to say."
"Zero, what is it? What's holding us up?"
"Elder, I have a requirement you must uphold when you stay at the Village."
"If they are reasonable, we will uphold it."
Zero took a deep breath before he said what he had to. "First, please leave the Lunar Rabbits alone."
"Lunar Rabbits, you mean that giant rabbit you just talked to?" M2 asked.
"Yes. They would like to be left alone. No trouble between you or them. This is one of the requirements."
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