120 Belli — it didn't seem like such a big amount in the pirate world, but for ordinary people, it would only last a day, maybe less. I thought about it, examining the coins in my hand. Of course, you couldn't buy much with that, but for a start, it was something. In my situation, it was important because after using the fruit, my energy would drop significantly, and I had to eat a lot more to regain my strength.
"Of course, I won't be able to buy much with this, but if I bring a dozen of these fruits, I'll be able to gather enough to buy something really useful," I thought, hiding the money in my pocket. Turning quickly, I headed home.
When I returned, I immediately grabbed the net. This simple accessory would help me gather the fruits and carry them conveniently.
An hour of running and searching later, I returned to the forest with a dozen mangoes. These were large, ripe fruits that should have cost much more than I could have imagined.
The market of Notis City was still noisy, but not as much as at noon. I hurried toward the same grandmother I had successfully negotiated with last time. As I reached her stall, I noticed that she was still standing among her fruits and vegetables.
She looked up and noticed me as I approached.
"Well, did you come back with the fruits?" she asked, eyeing the net.
"Yes, ten fruits," I replied, pulling out the net and showing its contents. "These will be much better than the ones I brought you last time."
She nodded. "The ones you brought an hour ago were already bought, so let's have these."
"Mmm, now that's much better. I think for a dozen like these, I can offer you 600 Belli."
"Agreed," I replied, and she immediately handed me the money. That was more than enough.
She looked at me, narrowing her eyes as if checking whether I was ready for the next step.
"If you can bring 20 fruits tomorrow morning, I'll give you 1300 Belli," she said, and I felt a mix of excitement and determination stir in my chest.
I nodded, agreeing to the terms. This was tempting. The amount was even more than it should have been for that many fruits, and the chance to earn more was right in front of me.
"Great, I'll be waiting. But remember, the fruits must be in good condition," she added, and I noticed her gaze becoming more focused.
Now it was time to take the next step. I headed to the weapon shop. Of course, I didn't have enough money to buy a rifle or anything serious, but I had another idea.
I walked inside and quickly scanned the shelves. The owner, an elderly man with a thick mustache, lazily glanced at me, then continued wiping some knife.
"What do you want, kid?" he asked.
"Do you have musket balls?" I asked, approaching the counter.
He raised an eyebrow, gave me an appraising look, but nodded.
"Got them. But you don't have a musket, do you?" he asked.
"I don't need one," I replied, dumping all my money onto the counter and deciding not to explain.
"How many balls can I buy for this?"
The old man gave me another strange look but shrugged and began counting. A minute later, a small bag of metal bullets lay in front of me.
"A dozen," he said. "No powder," he added.
I nodded, shoved it into my pocket, and quickly left. Now I had what I needed.
All day, I thought about how to expand the potential of the fruit, and after a long brainstorming session, I had an idea.
Returning to the forest, I felt a slight thrill. This was the first real test of my combat abilities.
I climbed one of the trees, settled onto a thick branch, and took out one bullet. The small metal ball shimmered in the sunlight.
"The main idea is to use spring force to launch projectiles. The harder I compress my finger, the faster the bullet will fly," I thought, turning my fingers into springs.
I carefully placed the bullet at the tip of my index finger, then slowly started to squeeze. The tension increased. When I felt I had reached the limit, I released my finger.
The bullet whizzed forward, slamming into the tree trunk at the other side of the clearing.
I didn't even manage to track its flight!
"Ho-ho…" I exhaled, feeling a rush of excitement go through my body.
It worked. And it was damn cool.
I began practicing. A few shots missed, but with each attempt, I felt the tension more accurately.
With more practice, I could shoot ten times in a row from my fingers, I thought.
And if…
Enough. I'll save that for later, I thought, gathering the metal balls.
The next step was to climb higher. I tensed my legs, gathered all my energy, and shot upwards. The key was to grab with my hands and not crash into a branch.
The branch cracked under my grip but held. I instantly pulled my legs to my chest, compressing them like springs, and then snapped them straight, pushing myself upwards.
I found myself even higher, on a sturdy, wide branch, offering an excellent view of the surroundings.The forest stretched in all directions, its green crowns swaying in the wind.About ten minutes later, I spotted my first target — a small boar rooting around in the earth for roots.I started moving forward, easily hopping from tree to tree.
The springs in my legs helped me make powerful jumps, and my hands grabbed onto branches with the agility of a monkey.
It was perfect.
From above, I had the best vantage point. I could track the animal's movements without giving myself away.I crouched down, moving along the branches, trying to be as quiet as possible.The boar was still digging in the ground, unaware that it was being watched. I carefully placed a ball into my finger/spring and started to compress it, preparing to shoot.
Click!
The projectile shot off, whistling as it sped downward. But at the last moment, the boar jerked, and the bullet only grazed its side, leaving a scratch. The animal lifted its head, nervously shifting in place.
"Dammit, not enough precision." Yes, that was one of the issues — accuracy, because it's hard to hit a moving target from a distance.
I began moving further, hopping from tree to tree, moving parallel to the boar. It sprinted forward, but after five minutes, it seemed to calm down and began moving its snout from side to side, cautiously looking around.
I loaded another ball into my finger, squeezed harder, and shot again.
This time, a hit!
The boar let out a sharp squeal and jerked, but it didn't fall. It bolted off, running away, and I immediately followed, leaping from one branch to another.
Moving from above was more convenient — there were no bushes or uneven ground to get in my way, and I could easily track its path.
I reloaded my finger and fired again.
The bullet struck its neck, and the boar stumbled, collapsing to the ground, thrashing.
For a few more seconds, it tried to get up, but soon it went still.
I froze on the branch, watching my prey.It worked.
Now, all that was left was to climb down and take the carcass.
I carefully descended from the tree, trying not to make noise so I wouldn't scare my prey.
My muscles worked in sync, and using the springs in my legs, I easily and quickly covered the last few meters to the ground.
By the time I reached the boar, it was lying still. Its body twitched slightly from the last spasms, but its strength had already left it. I crouched beside it, inspecting the animal. The bullet had hit its target perfectly — I felt satisfaction from the accuracy of my shots. This was my first real hunt using my abilities, and it was a success.
The boar wasn't too big, but it would be enough food for a week. First, I scanned the carcass, assessing how much work was ahead. I realized I needed to prepare a little before starting the butchering. Although I had little experience, I knew that I needed to bleed the animal first, or the meat would spoil. It weighed around 50 kilograms, I thought.
To be honest, when I first came to this world, I was very surprised to learn that I was quite large for my age — about 1.4 meters tall and weighing around 35 kilograms. Even with poor nutrition, I had still grown fairly big.
But that wasn't important now; I needed to focus on the task at hand.I took out my knife and carefully slit the boar's belly.
The blade cut through the skin and flesh, and then I pulled out the innards by hand, trying to work quickly and carefully. It smelled unpleasant, but I got used to it quickly. The internal organs slipped out of the animal's body, and I carefully set them aside. I didn't need the intestines or other parts, so I made sure not to contaminate the meat.
Once I had removed all the innards, I tried to lift the carcass slightly so that the blood would begin to drain from the body. At first, it didn't flow, but after a few seconds, when I slightly tilted the animal, the blood began to drip downward. I lifted its front legs to let it drain completely.
Once the blood was gone, I scanned the carcass again — now I could continue with the butchering.But not so fast: the smell of blood could attract predators. I had already stayed too long, I thought, tossing the boar's body over my shoulder.
It wasn't as heavy as it could have been, since people in this world seemed much stronger than I was used to back home. I handled the weight easily, but still, I needed to hurry — night was approaching, and I didn't want to become a target for something bigger and more dangerous.