3 First Kill

Hunter King's brows furrowed at the end of that last explanation. So far, the information had seemed pretty monotonous, but at the end, it suddenly got very… free.

In the end, he just shrugged and started walking forward, hoping he would encounter another living soul.

During his casual trek, he stopped by a large tree and decided to test something out. If his power level was 120 and the average human had 5, then he was as strong as twenty-four men.

Hunter's test bore positive results when his fist smashed through the trunk easily, leaving a fist-sized hole in it.

Hmm, it seemed he was strong enough to punch through it cleanly without any effort, but his power wasn't high enough for the force of his punch to fell it or obliterate it.

Despite his amnesia, Hunter knew that there were ways to increase his strength, mainly by leveling and distributing points to my stats. The knowledge just popped into his head unbidden.

Perhaps it was knowledge he possessed before losing access to his limbic system? Then again… what was knowledge if not memory?

Or was the storage of data handled separately from the storage of experiences by the brain? Though Hunter's intellect stat was reasonably high, he knew he wasn't smart enough for this train of thought so he decisively cut it off.

So, without any memories and thrust into a world he had no idea of, Hunter's only choice was to get stronger and survive.

To power up.

For some reason, the thought of powering up, the thought of getting stronger through effort made his blood boil out in excitement, writhing within his veins with desire. It translated into a manic grin of determination that settled on his face for a while.

Even though he had walked for what could have been hours, he felt no burn in his muscles nor fatigue whatsoever.

Hunter had the feeling that he could walk for days without tiring, but then food and water might become the new problem. The simple solution was that he needed to find a place of shelter and food as well as information.

That meant he needed to find a settlement.

However, he was lost deep in woodlands and had not the slightest clue as to where he was. What he wouldn't do for a map right now, no matter how simple.

In response to his thoughts, a panel suddenly flared before him, displaying a scaled digital map of his immediate environment. He saw a white marker which was labeled as [me] within an enclosed sea of black with very little green surrounding me, probably the area he had traversed so far.

He sighed when he realized that this map required him to explore an area before being able to see its layout.

It seemed the only way to find civilization would be to stumble upon it, so Hunter kept wandering aimlessly, his casual walk undisturbed by the forest's inhabitants. That was, until he disturbed one of them.

By sheer accident, Hunter stomped on the torso of a large snake, one so big it looked like the roots of a tree. Naturally, the reptile hissed in pain and turned to see who would dare cause it pain.

Seeing that it was a lone humanoid, the snake seemingly sneered and bared its fangs, leaping to place those sharp teeth deep into Hunter's throat.

Despite the velocity of its lunge, the snake seemed to be moving in slow motion to his eyes. Hunter was able to easily arrest its attack by grabbing its neck – or whatever passed for it since its whole body was a neck – and squeezing.

Hard.

The reptile hissed again, this time in fear as it realized it was outmatched and unable to escape Hunter's strength. It started to thrash as he squeezed harder, its body whipping around the foliage erratically, sometimes whipping Hunter's bare torso or legs.

Hunter felt no pain, just the barest feeling of touch despite its size. His hands continued to press harder until its head went pop and its body stilled for good. Dropping the reptile, Hunter only gave it one look and walked along, continuing his aimless trek.

｢You have gained 5 experience points to the next level.｣

When the sky started to darken, Hunter heard his stomach growl angrily, threatening slow torture if he didn't satiate immediately. Troubled, he looked around for anything edible, noting a few fruits and berries that he soon plucked.

He didn't toss them into his mouth carelessly, however, as none of his abilities stated that he was resistant to poison.

Hunter casually stuffed them into the pocket of my pants. Meh, if his hunger grew steadily enough to reach desperation, he doubted he would care about a stomach ache.

"Now to find some meat." Hunter muttered hungrily.

His mouth couldn't help but water at the thought of a meaty meal, his desire for it growing with each step he took until it overcame his dullness.

He employed one of the few things he was able to discern about himself, his ability to track. Hunter looked to the ground in the area around himself and noted small paw prints in the soft earth, hinting at the presence of small critters, probably rabbits.

Following the signs of its passing as quietly as he could, Hunter eventually came upon a break in the shrubbery, his tracked prey right before him that was nibbling at some leaves with relish.

With a moment to coil his limbs in preparation, Hunter burst forth through his hiding spot and pounced on the poor little bunny, roaring victoriously at his catch…!!!

… or that was what should have happened.

Instead, Hunter found himself practically teleporting right on top – and over – the now startled critter. Fortunately or unfortunately, his movement was halted by a tree, his head acting as the stopping agent.

BANG!

"Fuck!" Hunter cursed angrily, grabbing the sore spot on his scalp and writhing in pain.

However, his attention was momentarily robbed by a notification.