The Hunt

It was a cold autumn morning. 

Leaves drifted lazily from the trees, now fading from lush green to warm, earthy tones. 

Animals scurried away to prepare for the harsh winter ahead, gathering food and shelter.

One human in particular can be seen preparing his hunt, draining it of its blood.

This human in particular, now stands tall at 6 feet, with his body properly managed, a far cry from his previous appearance, five years ago. Yes, this human is Bjorn, the MC of this story.

Looking at him now, it was hard to believe this was the same boy from five years ago. This transformation hadn't come easily; it was the result of long hours of labor and the discipline that had pushed him past hunger and weariness.

Bjorn's foster family, he knew, was barely making ends meet. He'd seen the strain on their faces when another mouth to feed had stretched their resources even thinner. So, he made up his mind. He went all around his village to find odd jobs in exchange for food, so that he may not be any more of a burden to his foster family. 

He also did this in order to prepare his body for training, a situation where two birds are hit with one stone.

At first, people had been hesitant. They took in his thin, fragile frame and shook their heads, sometimes giving him scraps of food out of pity. But over time, he found small jobs with the farmers, work that required physical strength he gradually built through sheer persistence. 

With that job, he had started to train. He trained his biceps through plowing up and down repeatedly. He also thought that this is kind of a good training for swordsmanship, so he straightened his back and trained meticulously like those in anime.

He did this for two years, before switching to hunting. Since his body is now well adjusted to his age, he wanted to hunt more, or…. just to get more food to eat…

So he hunted.

He hunted not with a bow and arrow, but with a sword bought from a traveling merchant.

He did this so that he may be proficient with the sword when he came to Orario. Plus, he had this vague feeling that the sword was just right for him. He easily trained with the sword as compared to the other types of weapons. 

His learning speed while using the sword is at least 5 times better than learning other weapons… 

So he hunted the forests of his village with a sword. 

Soon, he was hunting game in the forest, his footwork honed by weaving through trees and dodging low-hanging branches as he tracked his prey. He did this for three years, making him proficient with hunting using a sword.

Going back to the current time, in a nearby tree, numerous deer and small animals can be seen hanging with their feet tied in the air, with a rope and unto the branches of the tree. Together with that, there is a single cut on the animals' neck, so that blood can flow out and the meat be well preserved.

Bjorn looked at his hunts hanging from the tree and it gave him nostalgia. 

The nostalgia stems not from his first hunt during his current life, but his first hunt during his previous life.

You see, Bjorn had also lived in the mountainous and forestry regions of his country, since it is away from prying eyes due to his job.

His job… will be a story for another time, but… he hunted with a knife during those days. He cannot fire his pistols since there were numerous hunters, bounty hunters, psychopaths, sociopaths, and the police hunting him. If he fired, the enemy would definitely know his location….

Going back, while reminiscing of his past, Bjorn heard a rather loud growl behind him.

Bjorn turned sharply, his hand flying to the hilt of his sword. In front of him is a rather large grizzly bear… eyeing his hunt… eyeing him…

Of course, Bjorn wondered how the fuck did this bear came here….

A bear…. Their territory is so far away from here, how the hell is it here… 

He still wondered for a moment, but now wasn't the time to question it; he had to stay focused.… He cannot avoid losing his concentration against the bear.

After a few moments of eyeing each other, Bjorn growled at the bear....

Yes… it is fucking stupid… but he did it so that the aggro turns to him… his hunt is his… and his alone..

In return, the bear growled loudly at Bjorn, so Bjorn also growled loudly….. This went on for a few more back-and-forths, before the bear started rushing towards Bjorn.

This time, Bjorn did what is recommended by many experts and non-experts…. run.

He ran across the forest, zigzagging between the trees, so as to confuse the bear.

Once he secured a sizable distance from his hunt, Bjorn turned around and unsheathed his sword. 

Sword in his right hand, he adopted a defensive stance, the blade angled downward, his left hand steady on the sheath.

Seeing this, the bear became a bit nervous, slowing down its steps… but its hunger prevailed against its instincts, so it hastened its rush again.

Bjorn waited until it was close… too close… then sidestepped, swinging his blade in a quick slash across its shoulder. The sword only grazed it due to the thick hide of the bear, only leaving a shallow wound. 

The slash connected but only a superficial wound was made… A small slit can be seen on the bear's right shoulder.

Seeing this, Bjorn stepped back so as to create distance between the two.

Bjorn then looked at the small wound…

A direct slash doesn't make it…. I need to slash at an angle.

The bear started to rush again… 

Bjorn tried to sidestep again, but the bear also sidestepped towards Bjorn's location too… 

It looks like a piece of the bear's rationality came back when it was wounded, although superficially…

To counter the bear's unexpected change of direction, Bjorn jumped and twisted mid-air to deliver a heavy, angled slash along its back.

The slash resulted in a deep laceration on the bear's back.

This…. Definitely angered the bear… its eyes locked on him with a savage determination.

Annoyed, angry, and hungry, the bear roared loudly towards Bjorn. Its eyes can only see red, and it vowed to never stop until it sees its prey's blood.

Knowing this, Bjorn readied himself. He then looked towards his sword…

"Shit…"

Bjorn's sword was chipped… Its edges are chipped, on both sides, save from the still somewhat sharp tip….

"Oh well…"

Bjorn immediately bolted out of the place.

The bear, with his fury against Bjorn, chased him.

Bjorn zigzagged around the trees, making a beeline towards seemingly no destination…

The bear still chased Bjorn no matter where he went…

The bear locked in on him when suddenly, the boy it was chasing disappeared…

It chased the lingering smell from the boy and it stopped at the part where the smell halted… It was under a tree.

Suddenly, a boy, disguised by the remaining leaves of the tree, came crashing down from the top of the tree. His sword pointed at the head of the bear.

Before it could react, Bjorn dropped from above, aiming the tip of his sword at the bear's head. The blade drove deep with the help of gravity, piercing its skull with a sickening crunch. 

Still fighting with its remaining strength, the bear tried to chomp down on Bjorn as its last act but…

Bjorn immediately pulled away from the body of the bear.

The bear slowly crawled to Bjorn, while giving threatening yet regretful growls…

After a few seconds, the bear laid still…. devoid of any action, devoid of any life… It lay still, lifeless, its body slumped at his feet…

Bjorn immediately sat down and caught his breath. 

The remaining adrenaline from the situation was slowly being removed in his system… He breathed hard while looking at the sky… It was a strange but sad blue sky, after a few moments it drizzled for a bit, seemingly feeling sad about the dead bear…

"Hey, I did my best too, you know?"

….

..

.

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Hey!! How did I do? If you can give me some tips and suggestions… it would definitely be appreciated!

Peace out my dudes!