PATH OF THE STAR HUNTER

Chapter 13: Chapter 13 Kindness pays off with kindness.

Observing the random loot, Desmond spent a few seconds reaching one of the fruits, retaining just a bit of mental clarity this time; he didn’t try to eat all the fruit in one go. He tries to take just one bite to feel the effects of the fruit, thinking that if it is similar to the last one he consumed, he runs the risk of being knocked out long enough for a new beast to arrive and have the pleasure of enjoying its smooth meat.

Jum!

He didn’t even bother trying to figure out the flavor that he had just put in his mouth; after chewing a few times, he swallowed and waited to feel the healing effects the fruit was supposed to have.

Feeling a gentle stream of warm energy coursing through his body, the pain that lingered from the two blows received fighting the aqua rabbits the day before began to fade. In contrast, the new wound on his back began to give off an itchy sensation as the pain subsided slightly.

After his injuries improved enough, he hurriedly shoved the rest of the fruits into his small supply backpack and proceeded to leave the area at a hurried pace. Although he had only achieved two more prey today, Desmond had been too confident in his last battle and now needed to heal his wounds in a safe place, so he began to return to the little cave in which he slept the day before.

Desmond kept his guard up during his return journey, and his senses entirely focused on avoiding unexpected and dangerous encounters with other magical beasts. He occasionally took small bites of the healing fruit on his hand and felt his injuries continue to improve.

By the time he got to the cave, the wounds from the water bullets he had received yesterday had disappeared entirely, and only the severe pain in his back persisted. He verified that the cave was still free of beasts when he arrived first. Having confirmed this fact, Desmond was a bit surprised by the effectiveness of the beast repellent he had used on the cave.

.....

At last, safely, Desmond slumped to the ground, all tension drained from his face and the stress of keeping his concentration to the max relaxed. Not wanting to waste time or feel any more of the agony of his new injury, he scooped out a couple more fruits and consumed them without even taking a breath between bites.

Relaxing as gentle currents of energy massaged and nurtured his flesh, healing the damage that Desmond had accumulated; as a matter of fact, Desmond also had several hidden wounds in his body due to his battles so far. A couple of muscle tears in his right shoulder from the use of the bow, inflammation in various joints such as his ankles from the strain of his movements added to several muscle injuries and micro-fractures in his hands acquired during his short but intense battle against the swift fist monkey.

The cooling sensation soon began to cause Desmond’s accumulated fatigue to emerge as he fell asleep peacefully.

(A couple of hours later, in the middle of the night.)

Crack!

A sudden noise interrupted Desmond’s sweet and deserved rest; he quickly got up and took his weapons, and with his bow in hand and an arrow ready to pierce the unexpected guest, Desmond watched patiently for the intruder to show up.

An arboreal fox limped forward slowly; it was larger than those Desmond had seen the day before. Its fur was an orange color that reminded Desmond of a summer set; its antlers were more majestic than its peers. But what was noticeable about his appearance were the claw marks that covered his entire right side and the blood that constantly fell to the ground. Desmond took advantage of the fox’s lack of momentum to analyze before a possible battle.

The details of the materials were not Desmond’s concern at the time; the only thought he had was to complete one of the most challenging objectives of his current mission: Hunt a zero-star class, mid-level magical beast.

Having his bow ready to launch an attack, he carefully observed the beast in front of him. It seemed strange that despite noticing him, the fox had not revealed a hostile attitude until now, he thought that perhaps the fox had simply resigned himself to his inevitable end, but he changed his mind when he saw its eyes. There was pain and fear in them, which didn’t seem strange at all; what made Desmond change his mind was what he saw after that; he saw longing. Whether it was the fox yearning for life or something in it, that look struck a chord in Desmond’s heart. He felt that he had seen those eyes somewhere, but he couldn’t remember where. . . No, it would be more correct to say that he refused to recognize it.

Those eyes and his lack of hostility led Desmond to decide something that any human in his world would find ridiculous: lower his weapon to a beast. As he continued to stare at the wounded fox as it looked back at him, Desmond took out the remaining healing fruits and placed them in front of him; then, he took a couple of steps back and waited.

The fox seemed to notice the lack of aggression and malice in Desmond’s actions, so he proceeded to approach while still limping. He sniffed the fruits for a few moments before quickly eating them all. Moments later, the fox’s wounds slowly began to heal, and a phenomenon Desmond would never forget occurred in front of him.

The antlers of the Great Arboreal Fox began to glow, emitting a light of a faint golden hue, slight and colorful flowers grew along with its antlers, and the wounds started to heal at a rate dozens of times faster.

Desmond supposed that he had something to do with the resonance of the elemental affinity nature of the Great Arboreal Fox and the elemental energies of the fruit. Still, the specifics of the event were irrelevant at this time to the hunter, who only enjoyed the majesty of the scene he was witnessing.

It took a few minutes for the light to fade and the flowers to wither; now, a completely healthy fox was in the cave with Desmond, but despite recovering its maximum state, the fox did not present any change in its attitude that could alert Desmond.

The fox’s eyes, now full of life, looked placidly at the human who had just forgiven him and saved his life, then he focused on the bow that was now on the ground a short distance away. He calmly approached and began inspecting the bow.

Desmond did not even remember leaving the bow on the ground, worried that his neglect would cost him dearly. He continued to watch the events that unfolded between the fox and the bow.

After he finished whatever the fox was doing, the fox leaned in until the tip of his antlers touched the bow, and something happened that dropped Desmond’s jaw.

The antlers of the fox began to twist and wrap the part of the wooden bow as if it were vines, then the tips of these vines dug into the center of the bow and began to destroy it from within, slowly extending until it reached the ends that hold the bowstring. The vines started to turn on themselves and solidify when the whole process was over; a beautiful golden flash covered the object for a second before revealing its new appearance.

A beautiful wooden bow of a slightly orange hue lay silently on the ground. Its medium body retained the appearance of spiraling vines, but the upper and lower blades mimicked the image of a fox’s tail. It was simple in its design but exquisite in the feeling it gave off.

The great arboreal fox, now with antlers only half as large as they once were, took one last look at Desmond before bowing and leaving quickly.