章節 11: First Hunt(2)

[3 years later]

It has been three years since I began my training with my sister.

In the first year, she taught me how to aim by having me shoot arrows at the target that was only a dozen or so meters apart from us.

After hitting the center of the target rapidly 10 times, she decided to increase the distance by making me shoot from a hundred meters away.

Then she increased the distance to one thousand meters. She continued to increase the distance until I could hit the center of the target from ten thousand meters away with perfect accuracy.

In the second year, she taught me how to sharpen my senses by blindfolding me and making me shoot at the target like I did in the first year while increasing the distance.

In the third year, she taught me the art of hunting, but without actually hunting any animals.

Elves hunt animals only when needed, rather than for fun. So, she taught me how to conceal myself from the prey by blending with the forest, how to identify animals from their footprints, and how to track them with the scent they left behind.

After three years, she concluded that I had learned everything she could teach me and that I only needed more experience to become a better ranger. So, to give me my first experience, she decided to take me on the next hunt rangers will have.

Before I left for my first hunt, Mother held a small celebration among family to celebrate my birthday and congratulate me for completing my ranger training.

We laughed, drank, sang, and danced all night. At the end of the night, my sisters and mother gave me their gifts before all of them started fighting to decide who would sleep with me.

Alleria gave me a black dagger adorned with a red gem on the top and end of its handle. She said she made this dagger thinking of me, with the black representing my hair and the red gem symbolizing my eyes.

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Sylvanas gifted me a pair of dark red gauntlets with sharp, pointed fingertips adorned with beautiful red jewels on the fingers and top.

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Vereesa gave me a black elven sword with a dark red handle and interlocking chains on it.

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Finally, mother gave me a magnificent dark bow, just as she had promised when my training began.

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[Calima málos]¹

I'm currently trying to find my first hunt with Sylvanas and four other rangers, who are part of our hunting squad.

Those four are elites among the rangers. Sylvanas chose them for our hunt to show me how to lead a group since they are more experienced and know how to execute orders properly.

That's why she didn't bring any other ranger who, like me, was going to hunt for the first time since she didn't want them to put me in danger if they ever made a mistake because they lack experience.

And it's good for me to go on my first hunt with experienced hunters. Instead of trying to learn by myself while making mistakes.

I turned my head to the side to look at the 'elite' hunters, who were walking with a stiff stance and a slight sweat on their faces. Since it was their first time hunting with the ranger general in such a small group.

It's not that they never hunted with her but Sylvanas only led a hunt once a year with all the rangers under her command to restock meat and fur while maintaining the animal population.

We walked through the forest, searching for any footprints or smells to track animals that we could hunt.

After walking for a while, one of the rangers spotted the footprints of an elder wild boar.

"G...General, we came across the tracks of an elder wild boar. Should we proceed with the hunt or look for another prey?" The ranger said it with the utmost respect,while her voice trembled slightly as she spoke.

The elder wild boar is one of the largest animals in the elven forest. They are twice the size of an elven male, with long horns on their heads and spikes on their backs, along with steel-like fur.

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It's an animal that even most experienced hunters avoid because of how dangerous it is.

"Hmmm...My brother deserves the greatest hunt,while it's not a dragon, an elder boar will do. Its skull will make a fine trophy on his wall. Proceed with the hunt."

Sylvanas calmly commanded the rangers with an authoritative tone, unlike how she talks to me. Her voice is full of love. But this is her real self - calm and authoritative.

"As per your order, General," the ranger said, lowering her head.

After the ranger left, Sylvanas embraced me from behind.

"Just like I taught you before, Mirwa¹, close your eyes, focus on the sound of the wind. Let it forge your path and guide you to your hunt."

I closed my eyes, focusing on the sound of the wind. I started to hear the sounds of Sylvana's soft breathing right beside my ear, rangers' footsteps in the distance, leaves falling from the trees, birds singing, frogs croaking, and the river flowing.

I heard a loud splash in the river and the rough breathing of a beast. As I opened my eyes, Sylvanas was looking at me with a smile.

"You did well, Mirwa. Now that you know where your hunt is, it's time for you to lead us to it," she said as she gently kissed my lips.

"Aren't you going to check yourself or order other hunters to confirm?"

"I already know where the beast is. You didn't notice, but you were in a trance for ten minutes, Mirwa. But don't worry, it's perfectly normal since it's your first time trying to focus in a forest this size. It will get easier with practice, and there are rangers here for you to command. I'm just here to observe."

I looked over at the rangers who were examining the elder boar's footprint.

"Ten thousand meters ahead, at the river, is where the beast is. What have you learned about the beast by looking at the tracks."

"My prince, it appears that the beast is alone, as there is only a single pattern of footprints on the ground. Since there's no other footprint, the beast is without a herd. The beast may be more aggressive than others, so it is best to be careful. Additionally, the beast appears to be larger than usual since the depth of its footprints is deeper than any other elder boar we have encountered before."

"Hmm... let us move since the beast will not stay in one place, as it seems to be only cleaning itself. We can strategize on how to take the beast down along the way."

After I finished my words, we rushed forward. Since the beast is busy cleaning itself, it will be less alert, giving us a chance to catch it off guard.

After traveling for a few thousand meters, a scout appeared in front of us, stopping us in our tracks. The scout quickly moved herself in front of Sylvanas and respectfully lowered her head in greeting.

"My apologies for stopping your hunt, Ranger General. While patrolling the forest, we encountered a small caravan of humans traveling through the forest."

After hearing the words of the scout,I grabbed the scout's shoulder and looked directly into her eyes with great hatred, causing her to tremble despite knowing it was not aimed at her.

"Where" I uttered a single word with great anger and hatred in my voice.

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{A/N: Well I was originally going to make the first hunt just a simple boar hunt But halfway through I said fuck it and changed it to a human hunt The next chapter is going to be gore and will show the MC's brutality.}