Free Web NovelChapter 14: Hunter X: The First Tale
–Chapter 14–
Title>> Hunter X: The First Tale
With his eyes unable to widen any further without popping out, Xavier let his words express the level of shock he felt.
"By the gods..." he exclaimed.
[Absolute Drop Authority Activated]
[Scanning...]
[Secondary inheritance detected]
[Status: Suppressed]
[Override initiated]
After everything he had learned so far, from discovering that the Fallen Princes he’d met so many times before were merely echoes to awakening a Hidden Class...
His unpredictable Talent was now searching for yet another way to deepen the rabbit hole swallowing him whole.
Because what exactly did Absolute Drop Authority mean by a secondary inheritance? Wasn’t the dragon bloodline all there was to it?
The questions prickled at the back of his mind... and they remained, even after another golden-bordered interface appeared.
[Secondary Bloodline Detected]
[Origin: Demon]
[Aspect: Cruelty]
[Purity: 08%]
[Status: Dormant]
"Okay... that’s actually insane," Xavier muttered, unable to hold back his thoughts anymore.
His stunned expression remained frozen in place like a portrait, and honestly, if he was an idiot, he probably would have been drooling from the sheer overload of rewards.
Because as surprising and generally confusing as everything was, it was actually happening to his body.
Each unlock, each new discovery wasn’t some abstract or isolated occurrence. They were all happening in real time, inside his body.
Adjusting and readjusting his very cellular composition. And with each passing moment, he felt his humanity growing thinner and thinner.
"You are a demon too?" Xavier blurted, raising his head to make eye contact with the Prince, who had taken a few steps back.
The Prince remained silent, finding no reason to respond. Or perhaps he was just as surprised.
"Why didn’t you ever give it out all this while?" Xavier asked again, confusion evident in his voice.
"I chose not to. It was not mine to give."
Xavier’s now-slitted pupils narrowed immediately.
"But it was mine to find?"
"Yes..." the Fallen Prince nodded as he turned his back to Xavier and looked toward the Mirror, Luminiera, watching as each Echo stepped forward before disappearing one by one.
"You will not send another," Xavier said, his voice heavy with confusion.
"No."
The Fallen Prince answered in the same calm, monotonous tone.
"My purpose here is done. Her cruelty is now your burden, my friend."
The words had barely left the man’s mouth before another notification appeared in Xavier’s vision.
[WORLD FIRST ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED]
[First Player to Obtain an Origin Bloodline — Server 1]
Xavier frowned before his eyes shifted to the next blue screen.
[Do you wish to make the tale of your achievement public or keep your tale quiet?]
A new set of options appeared.
[Make Public] — Your name will be broadcast worldwide. The first ink of your story has been written.
[Stay Quiet] — Some tales are better told at the end.
"Hmmm..." he murmured.
His eyes lingered on the options.
It took only two seconds.
’Hide?’
’Why?’
’Why would I hide?’
It was definitely going to become public knowledge that someone had obtained an Origin Bloodline before everyone else.
After all, the first world announcement was already hanging over every player’s head. The countdown to the first World Event wasn’t disappearing anytime soon.
So what changed if his name was attached to being first?
For the past five years...
That had always been who he was.
People could know he was the first.
People could know he was inside the game like everyone else.
What they would never know was how.
Or where.
That information belonged to him alone.
Besides...
If Grace saw the announcement, she’d know she wasn’t alone.
She’d know he was here.
And she’d know he was coming for her.
Without another thought...
He selected [Make Public].
Another screen appeared.
[Player Name Registration]
[You have not registered a display name.]
[Current Identifier: Not Assigned]
[Register a Player Name]
Xavier smiled as he typed.
H U N T E R
He paused for only a moment.
Then pressed one final key.
X
Ding!
[Player Name Assigned: Hunter X]
Ding!
[GLOBAL ANNOUNCEMENT]
[THE FIRST TALE HAS BEEN WRITTEN]
[Player: Hunter X — Server 1]
[Achievement: First Origin Bloodline Obtained]
[Duration: 47 Minutes]
The announcement hovered before Hunter X, but he barely acknowledged it.
Instead, his attention returned to the Prince.
There was still so much he wanted to ask the dragon... or perhaps the hybrid.
Much to his annoyance...
The Prince was gone.
"You kidding me...?"
Only his own voice echoed through the empty throne room.
Luminiera had also fallen silent.
Or perhaps...
The torch it had guarded for ages had finally been passed on.
Xavier remained in the quiet for exactly three seconds before turning back to the announcements, the class description, and the limitations tied to his new power.
He sighed before pulling up his map.
First things first.
He needed to leave the Realm of Untold Tales, which, unbeknownst to him, was now forever tied to his fate.
***
The announcement didn’t stop at Server 1 only...At the outskirts of the Elven Territory on Server 4...
Grace was three steps into a conversation with an NPC when the notification suddenly swept across her vision, interrupting the immersive dialogue.
Even the NPC paused naturally at the interruption.
Around her, players throughout the novice village reacted instantly.
A girl to her left gasped as though she’d been physically struck.
Two players behind her immediately broke into rapid conversation.
Their voices blended together, and their fingers moved across their interfaces so quickly that Grace couldn’t follow the messages they were typing.
Grace’s eyes left the crowd and settled on the single name displayed across the announcement.
’Hunter X.’
’47 minutes.’
She hadn’t even fully processed what she’d read before a proud smile spread across her face.
Five years + of watching Xavier achieve impossible things had made that reaction almost instinctive.
"That’s definitely my brother..." she whispered.
Immediately, she opened the menu.
If Xavier had revealed himself...
Then surely he’d leave something behind for her to find.
She quickly checked the party menu first.
Nothing.
Then the map.
Still nothing.
"Maybe he left something in chat."
Opening the World Chat, Grace searched for even the smallest trace of him.
The chat was already moving faster than she could read.
***
[JOHNwick501]: FORTY-SEVEN MINUTES. I know we’re all in a mess, but how does someone get a bloodline in FORTY-SEVEN FUCKING MINUTES?!
[Holder of Rule34]: I swear that’s literally impossible. The Stockholm Village spawn doesn’t even happen until the forty-minute mark.
[Sun_Yuhan234]: It happened almost exactly at forty minutes. Hunter X must’ve reached it the instant it spawned.
[JOHNwick501]: THEN WHY IS THE TIMER FORTY-SEVEN MINUTES, YOU FUCKING RETARD?!
[Hannibal_202]: wait wait wait
[RoadRager10]: Shut up!
[Hannibal_202]: Isn’t Hunter X the one who popularized the Stockholm Village exploit?
[LordBiggy235]: HE TAUGHT US ALL HOW TO DO IT.
[CrazyBandit]: So he just speedran his own exploit faster than everyone else. Talk about style...
[JOHNwick501]: It still doesn’t add up. The math doesn’t work. You can’t get from any spawn point to Stockholm in forty-seven minutes at Level 1.
[Tragic_Killer]: Fuck all that... the world’s ending and your nerd asses be doing math?
***
The chat was complete chaos.
No matter how long she searched, Grace couldn’t find her brother anywhere.
That worried her even more.
She knew Xavier never did anything without a reason.
So where was he?
And why wasn’t he speaking in World Chat?
Still...
She couldn’t afford to stand here accomplishing nothing.
If Xavier were here, he’d be the first person to tell her that.
Turning back toward the NPC, Grace resumed the quest dialogue.
She needed levels.
She needed a bloodline.
And she needed to survive the first World Event. So she could meet with her brother again.
–End of Chapter–
