Master Of None

The group was already walking the trails they had come through. Their conversation about the brook tigers had gotten a little more in depth. ”I know that they were considered a menace at one point and anyone traveling around here with the tall grass and lakes would be at risk. That’s why they were first considered a major monster to hunt.” Walker was sure that most of the group knew this besides Niel and maybe Leon. 

”If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be good for them to be exterminated? If they caused death in such numbers?” Leon felt this was similar to the kraken and their spawn. 

”No, they were a very important hunter around here. They kept a lot of small nuisance monsters in check. You have seen those rats around the water, right? What about stone crabs, fang clawed crayfish, and mist dragonflies? All of those are monsters that reproduce fast and cause a ton of problems for merchants and adventurers. The brook tigers kept them under control until they started to hunt the merchants and adventurers because it was easier to surprise them.” Walker looked at Gil who had more than impressed him. Gil had known much more than he knew. 

”Gil’s right. The brook tigers were very adept in sneaking around and their fur was valuable. Both made them a threat. But when they were depleted in population people found that the mist dragonflies would cause this area to be impossible to traverse. It’s the same with those poisonous moths near the swamps.” The idea that they would potentially have to hide from the mist was worrying but it was still not warm enough for that kind of weather just yet. 

”Then the fang clawed crayfish are just what they seem. They are large crayfish that have three mouths with sharp fangs. Their claws are their secondary and tertiary mouths. They hide in the water and then use their powerful tails to leap out and snap chunks from passing prey. Then they hide again. After they hope that their prey is defeated so that they can consume it later.” These monsters had been chased away by Lusts’ poison. They would also be the first to survive since they would be able to sense the purified waters. 

”If they even try to come I will wrap them with my ivy.” Alma had some wrapped around her arms just waiting. The idea that these monsters would return so fast had her on edge. She was much more comfortable in the forest and after their sneaking in to the water elf castle, she felt it better to be prepared. 

”If such monsters are around I will know. I have a skill called water sense. It lets me sense the water nearby. It’s so that merfolk can avoid large predators. I will focus and pick up small monsters in streams nearby or pools.” Leon was using this skill while he had been in the lake and it was one thing that was attributed to his underwater battle senses. 

”Hmm, a good skill to have. I just have draconic instinct. It’s a racial skill every dragonkin gets. We can get a sense of where we might be struck. It is why many of my kind can avoid sneak attacks from unskilled assassin type warriors.” Neil had a very good idea of Leon’s skill and found it fair to share his own. 

This stunned Walker since the skills sounded very valuable to have. ”I use my ability to sense mana like that but I wonder if I can learn a skill like nature’s sense or something. I have the ability to sense the natural mana in living creatures anyway, it could be easier than I know.” Walker had yet another goal and skill to try to learn and integrate in to his style. He felt that he had so many that he had constantly neglected them because he had not properly trained them. Every time he learned something it would be pushed to the back of his mind since he was not altogether comfortable using it or it did not flow in to his style of battle. 

”I think I should do the same thing. If the elves have an arcane marksman skill like hunter’s sense or the archers pull skills I might want them. The archer’s pull helps them line up shots without looking. I can kind of do it but not the way the skill works. Just by training.” Gil wanted to start practicing too. He had felt the slight rivalry flare up when Walker said he wanted to learn a skill like that too. 

”Then you can train it with the enforcers. They should have a few options for you to learn.” Since Alma was not experienced with such a skill she didn’t want to suggest the ones she knew. If Gil was guided a different way she would feel bad for misleading him. 

”Does the queen have a skill like that? Or do you?” Leon put Alma on the spot while everyone looked at her. Even Midnight had her head turned to the side with interest since Midnight wanted to find the dragon version of sensory skills. 

”I would say the skill I might be after is called root pulse. It lets me tap in to the nearby roots of plants to sense vibrations in the ground. But I won’t be able to focus on that for some time. I have other goals to meet first.” There was a strong determination that had grown in Alma’s eyes since she had spoken to Gil about her quest. 

Gil gave her a nod of encouragement and looked ahead for any enemies on the trail. He had to get stronger as well. If he didn’t then he wouldn’t be able to stand beside Alma and protect her if need be. He would not be left behind. 

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