A First Quest (4)

Chapter 12: A First Quest (4)

Avoiding this blow was nigh impossible.

Stunned, Jake could only stare at the paw hanging over him. As the boss lowered it down, it grew much bigger and, before long, was the only thing Jake saw.

The boss finally flopped his pawn at him, shrouding Jake in pain and shadow.

His arms went numb, and the wooden bow creaked under the pressure. A few precious durability points of the weapon had fallen off. Similarly, Jake's health points had tanked.

Jake caved in the ground below him, stuck.

[You have lost 91 HP!]

The pain wasn't that high since Jake was a player with the pain sensors lowered. He still felt that alongside the numbness spreading across his arms.

Jake, however, hadn't developed what most players did on their first serious contact with monsters—the monster shock. 

It was a term related to civilized and unfamiliar with pain and battle players receiving the first severe taste of blood and pain along with the monster literally being on them.

Ordinary wolves were perfect to learn about the monster shock since their attacks could only be completed with them gnawing on players' bodies and leaping at them. Wolves, therefore, were ideal existences to confront the monster shock and develop a few coping mechanisms against it.

But Jake had been so diligent in his hunts that no normal monster could threaten his health points. His occupation had helped him stay intact for so long, too. He also didn't really know much about it because he refused to listen to his sister and friends' advice about the game.

Jake was here raw in body and mind.

That said, his diligence was also the reason he hadn't developed any of the monster shock. 

Ever since picking up the bow, Jake imagined his path and battles. What if monsters enclosed up on him? What if any of them bit him? What if he sustained damage that took away his arms?

Jake was so into becoming the best archer that he couldn't think of anything else, and his pictures of future battles sometimes turned into real images.

In one of his views, he had the scenario of him being at the boss' feet. That image became a reality, but Jake was such a natural hunter and fighter that with him expecting this to happen, he could react appropriately without any hint of fear or shock in his heart—instead, some nerves pulled at his organ.

Jake's arms numb, he twisted his torso and got onto his feet without the help of his hands. The bow was still clenched in his left hand because the numbness didn't even allow him to drop it.

He made a break for it and escaped from the boss' reach.

The wolf, however, hadn't made a move. He followed Jake's running away, studying him. Glitters of intelligence flashed in his red eyes as thoughts popped into his mind.

The human with fragile and thin arms could have survived his attack… his bow hadn't splintered, too. How was that even possible? He also had enough strength and quick reaction to escape and fight back!

Although those thoughts hadn't been that straightforward and more instinctive, the result was the same—the boss stood wary and suspicious of Jake.

Just like players had their monster shock that haunted some even to this day, monsters often developed what was known to be the cultural shock.

After witnessing that Jake hadn't lost his arms and bow and even made a break for it, the boss was stunned as Jake came out as a much more demanding and mysterious opponent.

This was more or less the crux of the cultural shock. 

Monsters had enough skills to tell that humans were weaker than them from their build, and it could have been said that they looked down on them. That said, just like Richard had told Jake that some bulky players lacked strength stat, monsters couldn't see through stats and instinctively studied their opponents based on their appearance.

Of course, as players later coped with their own shock, so did the monsters with higher levels. Players also grew more intimidating with levels, so it was quite a natural process.

But it was exactly for that reason that Jake could have distanced himself from the boss without paying any price. He also shred the negative effects on his arms with time and short hands exercise.

He entered the soldier stance despite the distance not being that wide; at least fifteen meters separated him from the wolf boss.

Drawing the strongest anchor point, Jake released arrows one by one. Two of the three had been so weak that they bounced off the wolf's hide. 

The first arrow struck the most damage. 

Alas, it was not the critical strike.

The boss grew more confident upon feeling that. He leaped into his wild rush and dashed at Jake.

'I must avoid- wait, I am in the soldier stance?!' Jake thought as his legs tangled, throwing him onto his rear due to his mistake.

His nerves had pulled a trick on him as he instinctively entered the soldier form despite having less distance than he needed and wishing to stay in the joker form.

Muscle memory was at fault here as it was a double-edged sword. Also, lack of experience played a crucial role here.

Jake didn't have time to think about it: the monster's frame loomed over him.

BANG!

He was hit by the wolf's paw again. Due to the cultural shock, the monster swept his paw and sent his opponent flying. It was quite a good choice.

Rolling on the ground, Jake used those precious seconds to think about his state.

'Stamina has fallen below fifty percent, and my fingers are strained… that's what Master warned me about… my strength has significantly fallen. I also entered the soldier form without realizing it. I must pay more attention to my stats and forms!'

As he rolled, Jake had been grazed by stones.

[You have been impacted with mild bleeding!]

[Mild bleeding— a player loses five health points every fifteen seconds.]

Jake stood up, blood trickling down his cheek from the scratch.

He found himself in the most dangerous scenario—the one he had been confident not to be in.