C59: Royal Quest and The Hunt
4/13/26
sorry for the late post. meant to do this early but then got caught up watching something and fell asleep.
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"Yes, I do believe I have just the job for a hunter such as yourself." The queen speaks aloud her thoughts as she looks at me with certainty.
"Alright, where would you have me go?"
"There is a giant serpent somewhere within the forbidden forest. I wish for you to slay it and bring me one of it's heads along with multiple vials of its blood. It is quite a fine delicacy for one such as myself." She briefly explains, adding in her little details about her reasoning.
Though that doesnt really narrow it down for me much except it also does. That is because I burned half the forest down so if it's out in the open then I can easily find it, but if not then it's somewhere in the second half after the windmill area. Might even be in that one poison swamp cave that leads to Iosefka's former clinic.
"Might I ask how big is this 'giant snake'?" I asked to get a bit more details and thankfully, while she snorted her annoyance at my question, she at least explained.
"Larger than a standard lesser Yharmanite dwelling"
'That doesnt really answer my fucking question but it should be a bit more than one storey high at the very least. But I also don't know when she last saw a poor person's house. That could very well have been a mansion in her time. Old ass hag.' I keep my face blank as I curse her existence for the hell of it before lowering it and simply stating.
"Very well, m'lady. I shall seek out and slay this beast for you before delivering you your trophy" I get up and step back a few times, lighting up the lamp which I somehow only noticed now because it was in the middle of a bunch of candles, which in hindsight should have made it more obvious instead of hidden but I got lost in the statues, so… sue me.
Returning to the dream, I have a quick chat with the Doll, informing her of everything that happened in the castle before heading into the workshop where Gehrman is, flicking him off and upgrading the Evelyn to +6 with my surplus of stones.
Technically with the stones there I could have gotten it to +7 but im instead doing that for my tontritus as im sure it will have more usage from now due to the kin category becoming widespread. Im sure there will be a few beasts out and about but since I plan to keep my two weapons relatively even, the damage won't be crazy different as a result. I also change around the stones on both weapons as I found a pretty good one from the small ravine with the worms in Cainhurst.
If anything, I'm still a bit miffed that my first grade 4 adept stone is for 'thrust' damage instead of general attack or even just blunt. Thrust is the most useless one out there as none of my weapons use it except the new rapier and the saw spear which I don't use and never upgraded.
[Side Quest created: Hunt the mysterious snake in Forbidden Woods.
Task 1: Track down the unknown snake monster in the forbidden forest.
Task 2: Kill the Beast and Collect the materials that Annalise the Vileblood Queen desires.
Task 3: submit all required items to Annalise or her chamber maid.
Rewards (T's refer to the rewards for each task):
T1-10k Blood Echoes. 3x lesser skill shards.
T2- +100k Blood Echoes, 3x random pet features extracted from target beast, 3x lesser skill shards.
T3- +400k Blood Echoes, 2x greater skill shards. Free 10x rune of aberration rolls.]
"Oh, cool. A sidequest. Wait a moment. Your really trying hard to get me to use more gacha. Free random 'parts' from the so called giant snake as well as a few free rolls once I complete the quest. Ah you fucker. Cant say no to free spins." I grumble to myself as I check up on the last few things in the dream.
Having found nothing else new in the rune category. I proceed back to the Forbidden Forest where I release Gerald so that he can go hunt for a bit by himself. He can also let me know by returning if he found the giant snake that I told him about which I have to hunt down.
"Heh" I chuckle to myself as I watch Gerald go off, he turns around half way and sticks his tongue out at me while pulling down one of his eyes and then scampering off quickly.
I shrug in response as we both begin our search for the giant snake.
(Gerald POV)
Flesh and blood splatters around me as i rip apart the wandering men. My claws strike first by aiming for their limbs to prevent them from attacking me…or running away.
'No no, no running. Such tender flesh'. I 'think' to myself as I take glee in the massacre I create. I don't really get some of what my master says but I can see that his mood has changed quite a bit. He feels less resistant to me or other beasts. He will casually start a massacre if given the option but it feels less needless and more focused on his goals.
I'm terrified of him.
During my first meeting, he was weak beyond belief, hardly comparable to me but he pulled out one trick after another to prove superior to me. Yet now while I slept, he grew rapidly. He feels more beast than man, more than even me.
I happily tear apart my prey to curb my 'hunger'. He does it to his loot. Such a strange desire, things.
I slay, I kill, I feast upon their echoes. I grow. It feels so nice. I need not much else, yet I bear hate in my heart.
I hate how my new power makes my mind move so much. Sleep is better, sleep is kind. It has no expectations of you except to be beside it. Not like killing, but it's so fun compared to sleeping. I can't get enough.
Most of all, I hate his smile. It feels genuine but fake. A lie that he tells himself to appear nice and happy. He smells tired.
The 'forest' he burned down is barren now once more. I am required to meet up with him as we move to the other half. I smell something unpleasant, a fierce beast, its scent is fading but still strong. Might be this snake we hunt.
I tell him but and he too sniffs the air, he recognizes it and shakes his head to tell me no. He then stops as he puts his hand under his chin to think.
"Oh right, I almost got lost again but there is a tunnel back where we came from. Might be there" I looked away to hide that I rolled my eyes at him. So dumb.
We both backtrack as best as he can guide us before we encounter snakes. Yes snakes but small ones. He calls them viper pits, I call them prey.
My hands tear them apart with ease. Worthless to cut them as the snakes are tangled together. I grab, twist and pull. They spill so much blood. He calls it a blood bath of sponges…what is a sponge?
We met many more snakes, they tasted good. Blood slick with bits of venom that make me feel giddy, I kill faster and better. We reach the cave.
Bit ones here, same as deep in the forest but few there, plenty here. Have to cut, have to tear, piece by piece, chunk by chunk by chunk. Blood everywhere as they shoot water and poison but barely works on me.
'Hehe, too weak." I clear 5 of them while he only kills two. Making me do all the work. So lazy, how did he become strong? I remember…I remember a word he called me back then. 'Hackz'. I don't understand it but I feel he is this hackz now. He strong but lies to be weak.
We go inside. Many snakes, many many snakes. We kill, I feast. I grow and he drags his feet. So lazy.
Soon smell bad, very bad. Ew water everywhere. But, big worm here. Similar to other 'pits' but one snake with 3 heads. It guard eggs, big eggs for big snakes. All water is more eggs….so many…dinner time.
(mc pov)
"Holy shit, there are so many snakes here. It hasn't even been that long since I was last here. Did the moon really do all this or is there something else at play?" I question as my tracking skill cant pinpoint to the target I want as I reveal to me the hundreds of small to large eggs burrowed underneath the poisonous swamp water.
The only thing I can properly tell is that the water is warmer now, far more so than it was when I was last here which is probably why my target likes it so much.
My Tontritus would be a bit more useful here but if I kept procc'ing the bolt effect then it will be worn down and maybe even break. No, im taking out gascoigne's axe and extending it to spin to win this shit.
Just as I'm about to start the rampage alongside Gerald, I stop as I change my thoughts. 'Is this how a Seeker would fight. No, it wouldnt be. So how do I?'
Gerald doesnt share my hesitation to act as he charges in and begins to crush the various eggs under his boots while fighting the giant pit vipers. I instead think thoroughly. 'How would I fight with my cosmology skill? Just assault them all with tendrils of darkness?'
I shake my head of this crude workmanship that i've grown accustomed to as i decide to try something new. I activate chaos step doing so spawns the usual barrier around me but then ice begins to spread around me to a range of 5 feet.
I try to work with this by manipulating the already made ice to get a feel for it with my cosmology skill.
It's hard, very much so compared to simply redirecting Logarius' fireballs. Yet this challenge only makes me feel like im on the right path as the system even confirms it in it's own way.
[Due to repetitive actions, Ice manipulation has been learned. This is listed as a subskill of Cosmologist.]
"Alright, Ice manipulation" I cheer to myself as I genuinely feel my work grow easier as I turn the ice around me into small figurines to spikes and barriers. The skill levels up right away to level 2 and my work gets easier but there is one thing I don't like. I cant make more ice. Maybe im not at a correct level of skill yet, the ice manipulation or maybe even my cosmology skill but it's enough for me now as i set up the foundations.
I deactivate the chaos barrier around me as I manipulate the ice around me to create footholds to ensure I don't get poisoned…if I can even get poisoned with my new physique. Ill test afterwards but for now, the ice spreads out a bit further than the original 5 feet.
Scientifically, I believe this is possible due to the different ice limits that dirt and water have as the area around me is only frozen around the very top unlike the brick i have under my feet.
Cosmologically, it's because the entire five feet around me was actually frozen but because im in the 'up' direction, and i had the barrier, it was no obvious and instead was mist that surrounded me to freeze anything that got close. This also includes underground and thus my range reaches 20 feet of ice which occasionally shrinks to form spikes and spear that skewer the various snakes and worms that inhabited this area from before.
Step by step, or rather float along, I have killed about 30 lesser viper pits and 5 giant ones while Gerald has slowed down after killing 50 lesser pits and 20 giant ones.
He's bloated.
Not from actually eating the snakes and their blood but from oversaturation of his own xp. I know this thanks to the pet system pop up, asking if I'd like to evolve my pet Gerald.
I truthfully did not expect this as while I knew he too had a level. It was far more hidden than my own as only his stats grew rather than an actual level. Im instead more shocked that I can control the way his so called evolution would go rather than it being random is based on his own 'style'.
Instead it's based on a few choices and my preference. The design is very human. I approve.
Though the choices themselves are quite widespread.
[Pet evolution options: 1-Blood Siphoning Beast (i). 2-Amalgam Beast (i). 3- Elemental Beast (i).]
'I know im a whore for elemental creatures and it would be very compatible with my current cosmology skillset but ill at least take a look at some closer details.' I remark to myself as I click on the '(i)' for each to see what it tells me.
[Blood Siphoning Beast. Voracious creature that has grown more in-tune with that of blood itself. Becoming far more agile and dextreous in exchange for a necessary craving for blood. It's claws grow sharper and naturally imbues a blood toxin into all attacks. ]
'Oh fuck, i could turn him into an australian vampire. Super funny but also crazy toxic with the poison. Wait, poison? Oh right, Gerald naturally has poison since he was the bsb before. That also means I have that skill too from the pet skills bond thingy. It wasnt very useful before but I could totally do poison manipulation…maybe'
I joke before I remember something that was an originally key factor of Gerald which became all but useless once we got to forbidden forest as everything here is already poisonous or venomous except the half beast villagers. I then look at the second option.
[Blood Starved Beast +: Grant ascension to your servant as they pursue their original path but with greater limits. Double physical prowess and enhance original features.]
'Not bad, double physical, that certainly works for me as an improved shield while I act in the back with my magicks but ill take a look at the last one before I give my true opinion' I give my thoughts again as I act somewhat dismissive of this option before looking at the third option.
[Elemental Beast: An intermediary of the natural world. It can not fully transform yet but its bond allows it to manipulate a random natural element among six of them to learn and gradually master. More would be bonded to as the beast grows stronger and its controls are enhanced. Gain 1 elemental mastery skill and elemental outburst skill]
"Ahhhhh, ow, motherfucker" I was stuck in a drooling daze as it was everything I could ever want with plenty of potential in the future, making him relevant to me even a long time from now. Unfortunately,I completely lose track of my surroundings and get jumped by a few snakes which I stab to death with spikes or turn them to mush with my saw cleaver.
I try to reorganize myself but my mind keeps drifting out to all the possibilities as I am very damn jealous of my own pet. My sole consolation is that I could get the same elemental mastery from him thanks to my bond skill.
Regardless, I had to move myself back and out of harm's way to let myself calm down before solidifying my resolve as I put my all into manipulating the ice that I had left behind where I was previously. But a single jump crosses the distance again as I rapidly approach my target while Gerald keeps accumulating with the rabble viper pits that gradually becomes less and less. What was once hundreds of small snakes and dozens of giants is now reduced to dozens of small ones and a few handfuls of giant ones.
"Hoooh, okay, calm down. Don't sprout a boner in the middle of battle. Focus…no don't think about the rune of aberration thing and making Gerald some monstrosity, not right now. Damn it, Kill the beast first then bust" I hit my head with my palm a few times in hopes that the pain would distract me but with my level 5 pain resistance, it's harder than you think.
"RAAAGHH" While im stuck in the corner, my mind actively stroking itself at it's fantastical thoughts while I try to actually hunt the giant snake. Gerald reaches the giant snake first and im forced to finally use the skill which had recently reached level 2, Hunter's Will.
Immediately i feel a sense of apathy flush through my body as all the useless meandering thoughts fall in place as only the hunt fills me up.
"Hoh, so much better. Though I cant say I enjoy this sensation too much but as long as I don't overdo it, I shouldnt fall back on my old habits." i praise the skill briefly before returning to my ice and letting it flow forward quickly, crushing the remaining snakes along my path before I split the ice into various steps that I can use to dash around as I reach the giant three headed snake.
While the Hunters Will skill is very strong, it has it's limits and my excitement is seeping through the more time I take. So I must finish this hunt quickly to finalize everything. Granted this also means this skill is also getting plenty of xp as I think of this.
Nevertheless, I meet up with Gerald as we surround the knockoff Hydra. I use overwhelming combined with weapon echo to deliver a series of multiple blows all around the hydras body. Each of these strikes lands about 20 times on each point I designated as having higher stats seems to work similar to leveling up the skill itself as I can manipulate it far more, allowing me to spread out my multiple attacks to land on it's body.
This causes multiple chunks of flesh to explode all over as it seems the hydra has multiple worms within it's body that jump out at the two of us to protect their 'host' or mother or whatever is actually going on here. My weapon echoes take care of the oncoming snakes but to be fair, this hydra isn't even a boss. It's a random quest related enemy and that is the only reason it has so much health.
Afterall, I had never heard of this creature in the game itself. The closest would be the amygdala but those are clearly cthulhu mythos while this is more like an offshoot from dark souls.
"KRAAAHHH" The creature groans in agony as my icicles dig into it's mutilated flesh while Gerald tears it apart from the other side of my. It's quite pitiful if not for the hundreds of mobs it had under it's control that only arent swarming me to death is because of my magic skills.
I choose to finish off the creature by going the overkill route as I get to know the beasts limits. I add in Shatter echo and the beast truly explodes. Though I primarily target it's body so that I can collect it's heads and blood for my quest.
BOOM splash splish splash.
The creature falls and I get the 2 tiers of rewards from the side quest but I pocket it all before using a bold hunters mark to return to the last lamp and then returning to the dream.
I have to digest my gains. Not only from the first two quests but also finalize Gerald's evolution. I might have to also spend some time familiarizing myself with the new aspect of the pet system. There are also my hundreds of Millions of echoes that I have to use finally.
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