MTL - Monster Hunt: Notes From a Hunter-Chapter 5 human courage

  Chapter 5 Human Courage

  Looking at his hands full of calluses, with thick joints, much rougher than those of his peers, but also much stronger.

  The unhealed right hand was still trembling slightly, which seemed to reflect the fear deep in his heart that even he didn't want to face up to.

  Are you afraid of being impaled by those fangs?

   Afraid of being crushed by those giant hooves?

  I'm just a seventeen-year-old trainee hunter who hasn't become a regular yet. It's normal if I can't beat the Big Wild Boar King. Isn't it all right when I get stronger?

  Gordon tried to comfort himself, but such thoughts made the depression in his heart even heavier.

   It's even more uncomfortable than the congestion stuck in the throat just now.

  Take out his own hunter notebook, staring at the hunter guild crest branded on the cover of the animal skin.

  Before the profession of hunter appeared on this land, what kind of mentality did those ancestors face those monsters that could not be resisted by manpower?

  No strong armor and sharp weapons.

   There is no support for a variety of props and information.

   There is no retreat to "get back to the field after becoming stronger".

  There are only clansmen who must be guarded behind, their homes, and the courage to be forced out.

   What about yourself?

  Has my courage been completely shattered by the big wild boar king's sudden advance? Even if I put on sharper weapons and stronger armor later, will my hands stop shaking?

  After retreating this time, do I really have the guts to stand in front of that guy again, or even initiate a charge?

  Walking outside the tent, under the bright starlight, Gordon once again looked at the hunter's knife in his hand that had accompanied him for a whole year.

  The blade is not sharp enough, but it can still leave scars on the Big Boar King.

  The shield has cracks, but it also tenaciously remains intact.

  Close your eyes.

  Wearing thin armor, holding simple knives, but still shouting, the backs of the pioneers who charged towards the monster came to mind.

  A subtle but bright emotion, like a torch, bursts out from the depths of the soul.

   Not fear, not impulsiveness, not hysterical recklessness, but something hotter.

  Gordon opened his eyes, looked at his still numb but no longer trembling right hand, and murmured unconsciously:

   "Is this courage?"

   Patted his cheek hard until two ridiculous red handprints appeared on his face.

   Put away the notebook that symbolized the identity of "Hunter", sheathed the blade, tied the round shield on his right arm again, and tightened the strap.

   "Then, let's start again!"

  Two hours later, Gordon returned to camp.

  The effect of the colored ball allowed him to roughly grasp the position and distance of the big wild boar king. He did not choose to approach the opponent rashly. Before the official battle started, he still needed to make some preparations.

   During the time he left the camp, he searched the nearby mountains and forests, trying to collect all possible materials, and these seemingly inconspicuous things may become important weights in subsequent battles.

  At this time, he was sitting cross-legged on the ground inside the tent, sorting out the mess in front of him.

   "Seven medicinal herbs, a few pieces of honey, one seed of patience, four blue mushrooms, three poisonous mushrooms, and two paralysis mushrooms."

  Some of these materials were collected by him just now, and some were collected in the storage box two days ago.

   "The recovery medicine first."

  Gordon used a stone mortar to mash and mix all the herbs and blue mushrooms, added a small amount of water, stirred thoroughly, and filtered. The final green liquid was the most basic recovery medicine.

  Although the ratio of the ingredients is not right, and the medicine has not been properly extracted and blended, the potion cannot achieve the optimal effect, but time is tight and there is no time to worry about it.

   What's more, I was lucky enough to find a beehive and cut a lot of honey back.

  According to the instructor's "secret recipe", he added a lot of honey to the recovery medicine, which can greatly enhance the effect of the recovery medicine and make the bitter potion taste better.

  The recovery medicine that has not been extracted and concentrated is a bit too much. Looking at the medicine filled with the iron pot for cooking soup, Gordon is a little numb.

   After swallowing half the pot with his head back, Gordon burped loudly.

  These crude recovery medicines are indeed not as effective as those that are carefully blended and stored in small glass bottles.

  After drinking the potion for more than half an hour, he felt that the pain in his right arm had basically disappeared completely, and the dull pain caused by the impact on his internal organs also disappeared.

   With a little rest, you should be able to return to the state of complete victory.

   He poured all the remaining medicine into the water bag for later consumption.

  The messy pile of mushrooms that are a local specialty was also used by him.

  In the past, he belonged to the combat group who disdained to use too many props, but now, his thinking has changed—the method that can increase the success rate of hunting is a good method!

  Many hunters like to use added raw meat to attract monsters, enticing them to eat them to weaken them.

   For example, paralyzed raw meat, highly poisonous raw meat, etc., sound cheap, but they are very effective hunting methods.

  The big wild boar king is an omnivorous monster, and they also eat meat, but what these guys like most is the mushrooms that can be seen everywhere in the forest after the rain.

  Gordon decided to use this to set the big wild boar king.

   It is best if you succeed, and there is no loss if you fail.

   However, it is not so easy to fool these guys who have lived in the jungle for generations, ate mushrooms, and have a better sense of smell than dogs.

  Paralyzing mushrooms Poisonous mushrooms, even though they are also mushrooms, if placed in front of it, it will never even look at it.

   Some degree of camouflage is necessary.

   For this reason, Gordon specially dug out the most expensive settlement item collected in the past few days from the storage box - the big matsutake.

  This peculiar mushroom that grows in the depths of Xiuletsen Hill has an extremely mellow and rich nutty aroma. It is also a rare delicacy not only for humans, but also for the Big Wild Boar King.

  A single one can be sold at a price several times higher than the reward for this task, and it is as lucky as winning the lottery if you can collect it.

  Gordon endured the pain and chopped up all the big matsutake mushrooms. After mixing these fragrant and tangy mushroom mince with sticky honey, he smeared a thick layer on the pile of poisonous mushrooms, paralysis mushrooms, and sleeping mushrooms.

  Hope to deceive the Big Wild Boar King's sense of smell.

  As for the shape, it doesn’t matter. Everyone knows that when the big wild boar forages, its nose is arched, and when it smells to the appetite, it will directly bite, and it doesn’t use its eyes to see.

   After finishing Black Heart's bait, Gordon carefully crushed a poisonous mushroom that he intentionally left over, and evenly spread the purple-black juice on his hunter's knife.

  This kind of poisonous mushroom contains a deadly poison, which is true for humans, but it also has a certain effect on monsters.

  According to the instructor, some hunter weapons will use special monster materials rich in poison, so that their attacks will have the attribute of "poison", weakening the physical strength of the hunting target.

  My own crude method that doesn't even count as quenching poison is definitely not comparable to those advanced weapons, but as long as it can cause a little more trouble for the Big Wild Boar King, it is worth it.

  Looking at the sky, there are still about four or five hours before dawn.

  Gordon lay down on the bed.

  Even though he was excited and his thoughts were so overwhelming that it was difficult to fall asleep, he still closed his eyes forcefully, trying to force himself to fall asleep.

  In order to hunt later, he must reserve physical strength and recover from injuries.

   "One El, two El, three El."

   A few minutes later, in the narrow tent, only a slight snoring sound remained, echoing shallowly.

  (end of this chapter)