13 The First Stage

After fifteen minutes of walking, he left the city and headed east towards Oxfair town. Archer decided to rest in the trees since it was a three-day walk to town. The town borders the Forsaken forest and is regularly attacked. The path from Vassia to Oxfair passes right through the forest.

When merchants travel through the forest, they hire adventurers to guard them. From what he learned from the memories, the previous town mayor built a wall to protect it from beast attacks.

After walking for a few hours through the forest under the afternoon sun, he got tired of walking. He looked around to find a spot to rest. He noticed a pond in the distance. Walking towards it, he suddenly decides to work out.

Although his body doesn't require it, Archer enjoys calming down his chaotic inner thoughts. He kept thinking about Alexa and the little girl he saw in the nightmare, so he found a spot and started exercising while clearing his mind.

He completed a grueling regimen of five hundred sit-ups, five hundred push-ups, and five hundred squats. Archer continued to push himself by running twenty laps around the pond. It took a while to finish, but he was out of breath when it was over.

Archer spent a second catching his breath, and that's when his stomach rumbled. Feeling hunger, he stopped running before venturing into the forest for food. After just twenty minutes, he stumbled upon a group of fifteen rabbits sporting small horns on their heads.

They were about the size of small dogs, with brown eyes and grey fur. Although the horns were not particularly long, they appeared sharp enough to inflict harm.

'Horned rabbits.'

They were all bunched up while eating grass. He had an idea, so he raised his hand and cast an Eldritch Blast at them. That's when a purple beam of crackling energy streaked toward the rabbits, striking the group's center.

Most flew away, and the rest exploded into chunks, but Archer quickly acted and cast the Cosmic Sword. It appeared in his hand as he charged the remaining six dazed rabbits. He lunged at the closest one, but it dodged to the side before the blade could touch it.

But Archer swiftly spun around and slashed at the agile rabbit, causing it to drop lifelessly. Suddenly, his instincts kicked in as he swiftly jumped to the side as another lunged at where he had just stood.

He observed the confused rabbit searching for him. In response, Archer raised his hand and shot a Fire Missile toward the rabbit. A lump of fire in the shape of the missiles on Earth flew forward so fast that he could barely see them.

It slammed into the rabbit's body. It died instantly, smoke coming out of its body. Archer roamed the area and swiftly dispatched the remaining four rabbits. He stood amidst the aftermath, with scattered body parts all over the place and blood staining the ground.

Suddenly, his stomach growled once more. He approached one of the carcasses and used his sword to slice open its chest. Completing the grim task, he inserted his hand into the cavity and pulled out its heart before he consumed it.

Once he ate the still-beating heart, he wasn't done. Archer wanted more, so he moved from body to body, cutting out the rest. After eating the bodies, he stored them in his Item Box and finished butchering the fifteen rabbits and eating their hearts.

Archer felt full, couldn't eat, and needed to rest. Looking around, he found a small log and walked over to it to check his status. 

[Experience: 350/1000]

[Level Up: 13>15]

[S.P.: 1>20]

[Mana: 1110/1450]

Archer was excited to realize he was only five levels away from achieving a new rank. However, he quickly calculated the experience he had gained from defeating the rabbits and consuming their hearts.

He acquired 750 experience points from the kills and an additional 1,500 experience points from consuming the hearts, totaling 2,250 experience points gained from the endeavor.

It was then that he noticed he had twenty points available to allocate. Archer invested five points in increasing his H.P. and mana while assigning two points to each attribute.

[H.P.: 390>440]

[Mana: 1450>1600]

[Strength: 155>175]

[Constitution: 120>140]

[Stamina: 130>150]

[Charisma: 320>340]

[Intelligence: 130>150]

Feeling rejuvenated, Archer stood up and went to the nearby pond to quench his thirst. After eating and drinking water, he felt much better now. With a refreshed spirit, he resumed his journey to Oxfair, walking along the road for two consecutive days.

During his travels, he hunted more beasts, taking down ten forest wolves, twenty-six horn rabbits, and five slimes. Instead of saving their hearts, he consumed them on the spot. While battling the wolves, one of them managed to bite him.

However, he swiftly killed the wolf, and his wound healed rapidly. Having become accustomed to the sensation of leveling up, Archer hardly noticed the changes anymore.

Archer earned 1,500 experience points from the wolves, 500 from the rabbits, and 250 from the slimes, boosting his overall experience by 2,250 points.

When he encountered slimes for the first time, he felt puzzled. These creatures resembled wobbly, slimy balloons rolling along the road. Recalling that the previous Archer had seen them, the current Archer relied on those memories to comprehend their existence.

He shook his head and proceeded to check his status.

[Experience: 100/2000]

[Level Up: 15>21]

[S.P.: 0>35]

[Rank: Apprentice]

[First Evolution Available]

[Void Blast: 1>2]

[Cosmic Shield: 1>2]

[Cosmic Sword: 1>2]

[Eldritch Blast: 0>1]

[Plasma Shot: 0>1]

[Strength: 165>175]

[Stamina: 150>160]

[Intelligence: 150>160]

[Regeneration: 0>1]

Archer was pleased with his status boost. He noticed that Regeneration had leveled up, most likely due to his injury. He also ranked up and unlocked the first evolution, which confused him as he didn't know what it was. So, he selected it.

[First evolution: Activate your draconic bloodline by evolving into the first stage.]

''That's interesting.''

Archer needed somewhere to evolve, looking into the forest from the road. He finally made it to Oxfair in one piece but didn't want to evolve inside the town. That's when he spotted a massive tree that reached high into the sky, not even a mile away.

He thought the branches of a tree would be the safest place to do it, so he ran toward it. After running for about five minutes, he reached the tree. Jumping up the branches like a monkey until he reached the top, he looked out over the landscape.

The forest was big and primal, with tall rowan, dogwood, and ash trees. Sunlight streamed down to the fertile ground, where sprouts thrived. Most trees had branches, and occasional flowers added color to the green scenery.

Distant roars suggested large herds moving through the forest, creating a lively atmosphere. He settled in and selected the evolution option.

[Initiate 1st stage of evolution?]

[Yes or No?]

Archer selected Yes.

After waiting a short while, he felt a heavy feeling spread throughout his body. Then, just after it started, he passed out as his body was wrapped in a cacoon-like substance.

_____________________________________________

[Ella's P.O.V.]

A petite blonde elf dressed in a maid's outfit cleaned a window inside Ashguard Castle while deep in thought. 'It's only been a few days since he left, and it's dragging on. I want to join him!'

Since Archer left, she has had much time to study and think about him. She's learned Stone Spikes and Earth Dome. It was lucky that the Ashguard family didn't bother with the spell books in the library as they were taken as spoils of war or bandit camps.

In the few days since he had been gone, Ella finally realized she had liked the boy since they first met when they were both five. But when he was an Ashguard, she had no chance of him returning her feelings.

However, now that he is free from his hateful family, he may accept her confession when they meet. As she finished cleaning one window, she moved to another. She did that for an hour until the head maid, Maria, approached her. ''Ella, there was a letter delivered here for you.''

The woman smiled as she handed the letter to the child. While thanking her, she took the letter. ''Thank you, Maria.''

Ella stopped working for a while and opened the letter.

'To my Ella.

It's only been a few days since I left, but I miss you.

Check your balcony every night for two weeks after receiving this letter, and I'll be there.

Don't won't write back as I will return to the city in a week.

I'm going to train in the forest.

Love.

Archer.'

Ella beamed with joy as she completed reading the letter, carefully tucking it into her pocket. Diligently, she cleaned the windows to avoid any potential scolding for unfinished work.

After wrapping up the window-cleaning task, she returned the cleaning supplies to the storage cupboard. With a content smile, she headed to the maid's quarters to relax in her room.

However, before reaching her destination, Ella noticed a peculiar sight through a window—a Mana storm brewing above the Forsaken Forest. Swirling energy formed a vortex around one of the tallest trees, culminating in a resounding explosion.