Monster Hunting 401: A LitRPG Fantasy Adventure by Andrew Karevik (book suggestions .TXT) 📗

gear. That’s why they use these coins.” The old man produced a small bag and spilled the contents out on the table. A few golden medallions clattered out. A single coin managed to roll all the way up to me, as if trying to reach me specifically. “To make sure that charms and enchanted gear are only sold to actual slayers and not just curious civilians with a bunch of wheat for trade.”

The coin was made of gold, with the symbol of a ruby printed on both sides. The metalwork was cautious, intricate and perhaps even handmade. It looked nothing like the portrayal of money in the history books. Written on one side of the coin were the words “The hunt never ends”, forming a circle so the words seemed to connect.

“Wow…” I whispered, gazing at this coin. An entire group of Venators, operational and established enough to have their own outposts and shops.

“So, over time, I learned their tricks, found a way to get some of those Bloodpoints myself and well…learned how to trap the hell out of this place,” Brimley continued. “Monsters never stop pouring into the mountain. So I actually managed to pick up where the previous owner left off. Making crafts and charms of my own, building trap blueprints and the like. Found a crafting class known as the Artificer. And hunters come in, just like you, though they’re usually looking for me.”

“Where do they go?” Trig asked. “When they’re done uh, shopping here?”

A darkness fell over Brimley’s face as he shook his head. “A few leave the way they came in. But most? They enter the Shadewood. And they never return.”

Trig and I both looked at one another. I could see the color draining from my companion’s face as the reality began to sink in. It’s easy to be gung-ho about fighting some abstract concept far away, but now that we were on the cusp of the Shadewood, the young man was beginning to have his doubts. As was I. But unlike him, I had an obligation and a duty to enter those woods.

“That is most unfortunate,” I said. “But that is where we are headed. Perhaps if they survived, we could meet them.”

“That’s a very big if, ma’am,” Brimley said. He finished his sausage and shoved the plate away, frowning. “But I don’t suppose we can delay the conversation any longer. If you wish to reach the woods, I can take you. But I’d warn you against entering.”

“How convenient, your warnings only came after we aided you,” Trig chuckled.

He laughed as well. “It’s a poor salesman who talks you out of the sale before he gets what he wants. But in all earnest and honesty, I must protest your entry. Though I have never been inside the wood itself, I have met a great many man, woman and hybrid who wished to enter that place. And I have never seen them again.”

“Well, then I suppose if you really cared, you’d give us a discount,” I replied, pushing back my own plate. The man made a mean Kinru sausage, that was for sure. “Because we’re going in there as soon as we finish harvesting those corpses.”

“There are many foul words in this world,” Brimley said with a snort. “And none more foul than discount. But please, stay as long as you like. I don’t mind the company, nor the extra protection.”

We finished up our breakfast (or was it dinner? Hard to tell underground) and went about our duties. Trig was tasked with butchering the meat of the L’Gara, using his stealth abilities to do so without being caught by the other monsters lurking beneath the trap door. Brimley spent his time fixing the damage I had done to the hinges, and I turned my attention to the alchemical harvests that our recent expeditions had provided.

There was yet another laboratory within this shop, one that was a mixture of professional harvesting equipment and improvised gear created by the ingenuous Brimley. I had to admit, for being someone who knew very little about the ways of the Venators, he certainly knew how to make do. I wondered if it would be worth the conversation of bringing him back home with us. Artificer sounded like an excellent class and he could teach our engineers a thing or two. But…I suppose that conversation would have to come up once we returned from the Shadewood.

The harvesting process went quite quickly, thanks to the larger vats and distilleries provided by an actual lab, and I was able to finish up three batches in a single day. Quite the haul!

Glurp Yield:

Firnin: 300 points

Estoan: 250 points

Lab Bonus: +100%

Weaknesses Revealed:

- Impeding Hunger: Glurps’ need for constant nutrients absorbed from living matter forces them to attempt attacking any stimulus they receive, whether real or not. If these attacks fail, they expend tremendous amounts of energy.

- Liquid Breakdown: While Glurps appear to be composed of mud, this is a mere form of camouflage. A Glurp can appear as any color, in any liquid state. However, while they mimic liquids, they are solid in nature, just flexible and amorphous. Water attacks dilute their ability to hold themselves together and will bypass their natural damage resistance.

L’Gara Yield:

Firnin: 500 points

Estoan: 500 points

Kaos: 1 point

Lab Bonus: +100%

Weaknesses Revealed:

- Stranded: When outside of water, the L’Gara suffers considerable strength and accuracy penalties. Though the creature is functionally able to move by dragging itself along the ground, it will suffer from suffocation after only a short time.

- Heat Intolerance: Though fire elemental attacks tend to be diminished due to their aquatic environment, the L’Gara cannot tolerate high levels of heat. Finding some way to superheat their water will quickly kill them.

Ilrex Yield:

Firnin: 0

Estoan: 300 points

Lab Bonus: +100%

Weaknesses Revealed:

- Echoconfusion: Lacking eyes, the Ilrex relies upon echolocation to target its prey. Its high-pitched shrieks give it the ability to pinpoint opponents. Silence spells or damage to its mouth will hinder its ability to use this power. When blinded, the Ilrex will easily attack anything