CHAPTER 2: CHAPTER 2: RED FINCH HUNTER

Herag clearly felt that the moment he stepped into the forest, everything around him went quiet.

The animals in the forest noticed this intruder, and the chirping birds and insects went silent.

Herag lightened his steps, adjusted his breathing rate, and began to search for his target prey in the view.

Soon, a gray rabbit appeared in front of him.

Herag bent his bow and set an arrow: "Shenlan, activate auxiliary aiming."

"Calculating wind speed..."

A blue auxiliary line appeared in his field of vision, and Herag adjusted his shooting angle, aiming at the rabbit.

Whoosh!

The rabbit twitched its ears but didn’t have time to jump away before its head was pierced.

Herag cautiously observed the surroundings, confirmed there was nothing unusual, then went to pick up the rabbit.

He lifted it and weighed it in his hand, estimating it to be about five or six pounds.

He pulled out the arrow and wiped it on the rabbit’s fur, then placed it back in the quiver for continued use.

"My control over my body is still too weak."

Herag felt that his ability to control his body was still inadequate, lacking stability when shooting arrows.

A few minutes later, Herag found his target again.

In the tree to the northeast, there were two birds, a pair of Red-vented Bulbuls, pecking at each other as they preened their feathers.

Herag held his breath, calmed his mind, silently drew his longbow, and the arrow glinted coldly as he aimed at the amorous Red-vented Bulbuls in the tree.

Whoosh!

One arrow, two birds!

The arrow pierced through the heads of both Red-vented Bulbuls, stringing them together like candied fruit.

The Red-vented Bulbuls were small and had little meat.

The wild animals here were particularly abundant, you could say they were overpopulated, so naturally, no one raised concerns about animal protection.

The afternoon passed, and Herag had a bountiful harvest.

Three rabbits, seventeen Red-vented Bulbuls, and two fish.

If it weren’t for his body giving out and no longer having the strength to draw the bow, he could have continued hunting.

As evening approached, the setting sun cast its glow over the jungle, and Herag heard strange beastly roars deep in the forest.

He immediately became aware of the danger and quickened his pace to leave the forest.

At the castle gate.

"You caught all this?" a Castle Guard asked, wide-eyed and incredulous.

"Of course, here are the Red-vented Bulbuls you wanted, pay up!" Herag said with pride.

The guard swallowed as he eyed the string of Red-vented Bulbuls around Herag’s neck and awkwardly felt his pockets, saying, "I’ll just buy five."

"Alright," Herag didn’t expect him to buy them all anyway; any profit was good profit.

Servants in the castle didn’t receive salaries and only got some bonus money on certain holidays.

The guard naturally received a salary, but it wasn’t much.

Herag returned to the castle with his bounty in tow, drawing a lot of attention along the way.

"Where did this kid find all this?"

"I heard he hunted it himself."

"I’d rather believe the animals ran into a tree and died themselves."

...

"Old Henry, look at what I’ve got!" Herag flaunted the rabbits and fish in his hands.

"This..." Old Henry immediately noticed the arrow wounds on the game, doubting his own eyes.

"These rabbits and fish are for you, consider it as repayment for borrowing your bow and arrows. Use it to replenish your strength, better delay meeting the gods; they’ll be there anyway," Herag laughed as he placed the rabbits and fish down.

Old Henry did not refuse, just nodded quietly, seemingly recalling something as he looked at the bow and arrows.

"Can I borrow the bow and arrows for a few more days?" Herag asked.

Old Henry seemed a bit dazed and responded sluggishly, "It’s yours now."

"Huh? It’s mine?" Herag knew that this longbow was Old Henry’s prized possession, and now it was given to him just like that?

Old Henry waved his hand, "You take it. I can’t draw it back anymore, it’s always good for an old friend to be put to use."

After returning to his small room, Herag set to work skinning the rabbit; there was also a pile of Red-vented Bulbuls to process.

By the time he finished, it was night. A rabbit and individual Red-vented Bulbuls were roasting over the fire, while a fish was kept in a basin to be eaten in the coming days.

There were very few seasonings in this world. Herag found some commonly used spicy wild herbs in the forest and scooped some salt from a jar to roughly season his food.

Rabbits needed a longer time to roast, while the Red-vented Bulbuls, having little meat, cooked quickly.

Herag took a bite of a Red-vented Bulbul and found that it didn’t have the sour taste he expected. Instead, it was exceptionally fragrant and crispy, proving the guard right about the deliciousness of the Red-vented Bulbul.

"Detected food compatible with Constitution, continually consuming 150 Red-vented Bulbuls can increase Power by 1 point."

Seeing this chip notification, Herag was startled.

What does 1 point of Power mean? With it, he would transform from weak to mighty directly.

This world was indeed extraordinary; in his previous life, there was no such food that could significantly change one’s constitution after consumption.

There were Official Knights in the castle, and it was said that one Official Knight could easily handle dozens of ordinary people.

Baron Buck was even a Great Knight and was rumored to possess Extraordinary Power.

Herag had never seen this firsthand, and having only arrived a few days ago, he had always thought these were just exaggerated rumors.

But now, he began to have more ideas.

After feasting on the Red-vented Bulbul and rabbit, Herag for the first time felt the sensation of being full.

"The feeling of being full is indeed great." He lay contentedly on his bed and soon fell into a deep sleep.

Early the next morning, after finishing his tasks, Herag once again strapped on his longbow and headed into the forest.

This time his goal was clear: only hunt Red-vented Bulbuls.

At the same time, he paid attention to various plants in the forest, many of which didn’t exist in his past life, and he couldn’t identify them.

Every time he encountered a new plant, he would cut off a bit and smear it on the back of his hand to observe for any reaction. If there was no abnormal reaction, he would place it on his lips to let Shenlan analyze its composition.

After a few days, Herag actually discovered a plant that could enhance Constitution.

"Detected compatible food: named Red Leaf Fern, continually eating ten pounds can increase Constitution by 1 point."

In seven days, Herag ate 200 Red-vented Bulbuls and fifteen pounds of Red Leaf Fern.

"Check current physical status."

"Herag Merlin: Power 1.4, agility 0.6, Constitution 1.4, Spirit 1.2."

After consuming 150 Red-vented Bulbuls, any additional didn’t have an effect, seemingly due to his body developing resistance.

The Red Leaf Fern was extremely unpalatable, bitter especially; Herag forced himself to eat it to become stronger.

He also found that after gaining one point each in Power and Constitution, agility automatically increased by 0.1, but Spirit showed no change.

Herag clenched his fist, sensing the explosive power dormant within his body.

During this time, Herag gained some fame because he returned with a full harvest every time he went hunting.

As a result, he earned a title, Red Finch Hunter.

Every time he returned from the forest, a string of Red-vented Bulbuls hung on him, which led to the name.

"Herag boy, come out quickly!" Old Henry’s long voice called from outside.