The rabbits were jumping around peacefully and undisturbed. They were incredibly cute. With their tall ears and tiny fluffy mustache; they came in all sorts of colors such as brown, black, white, and many more. Sadly, I had to kill them; of course, I didn't want to do it, but I had no choice.
I switched to my dotation rifle, and right after I aimed. The target was moving rather slowly so it should've been an easy hunt overall, the only risk was that the prey could've escaped due to its enormous speed. I took a deep breath.
"Oh dear, forgive m-"
"Who's there?!"
I almost jumped back, but it was too late, they escaped and he saw me...
"You there, show yourself."
I had no choice but to do as he said. Keppy so far has been silent.
"I'm not looking for trouble," I said
"Oh well well well, what do we have here. A masked stranger wearing an unusual obscure suit with some sort of body armor and an unknown object in his hands. Scary."
The person now standing in front of me is... a librarian I guess... As dull as it sounds it is a real one. He looks quite old yet menacing; His outfit is rather interesting since he's got a blue yet fine tunic and a leather backpack in which he carries all sorts of documents; he was reading one but then I disturbed him. I wonder what h-
"Why are you staring at me stranger. Do you perhaps want to kill me as you planned to do with the bunnies?"
Crap, he's got the wrong idea.
"No... it's just that..." I couldn't find the right words to describe the mixed feelings I got from this weird encounter. "You see, I never expected to meet anyone else in this new world..."
"New world? Could you be perhaps... an outsider?"
"What's an outsider...?"
"Javeeh the Almighty has chosen you, stranger."
"So... Javeeh gave me a second chance at life...?"
The old man was looking at the ground immersed in his thoughts; did he even listen to me?
"Outsider... may I ask your name?"
"Michael Kittenberg"
"Pardon me for the unusual encounter. My name is Nirbert. I'm a librarian in the nearby village."
"It's a pleasure Mr. Nirbert."
I didn't even expect to even meet intelligent life in this new world, let alone a damn old man! What am I even supposed to do in a situation like this? Should I ask him for some information? I'm just too confused to even act right now.
Whilst I was lost in my thoughts for a very brief moment, I noticed that Nirbert was observing me head to toe; his gaze was quite intense for an old man of his age.
"S.W.A.T..." he mumbled to himself
I had no choice but to strike up a conversation since I felt like this situation was far too awkward.
"Oh. S.W.A.T stands for 'Special Weapons and Tactics'. In my old world, it was an elite unit created to respond to critical situations. I was a part of it, and I served in the unit for over 4 years."
"Intriguing..." just as he said that he began touching his long white beard in such a way that it indicated he was thinking of something.
"Michael, would you like to come with me to the village? It is very rare for us to meet an outsider, so we would like to learn more about you."
He does seem friendly though. I might as well follow him; I didn't even want to kill those fluffy bunnies anyway.
"Sure. I'm rather immersed in this world, so I might as well begin to get used to it."
"Excellent!" His face immediately brightened up, almost as if he waited for such a moment his entire life. "Come with me then, I'll show you the way."
I nodded and right after I began to follow him. Whilst I was walking with him I decided to take a look into my surroundings. We were traveling on a stone road in the middle of the lush lowlands; various trees were randomly scattered across the fields whilst bunnies, birds and even butterflies were roaming undisturbed around their dark yet comfortable shadows. The weather was pleasant; the azure summer sky was filled with fluffy clouds flying undisturbed.
Deep in the distance, I could even see the village; it was surrounded by tall pike walls and a few scattered towers. Inside the walls, I could see a tall building that mimicked a church, but it was different. People were minding their daily business, some were working in the yellow fields surrounding the village, children were happily running around, and others were going into the nearby forest. I could easily tell the villagers were living peacefully. Or so I thought.
Just as we arrived at the gates the villagers were curiously observing me; some were too scared of my appearance to even talk to me whilst Nirbert was moving forward undisturbed. A few villagers passing by would ask him who I was and he would respond: "An outsider." Whenever they heard those words the villagers would become petrified at my sight, almost as if they consider me a mortal enemy that cannot be defeated.
Once I entered the village I could see different houses, most of them built with clay and wood since the villagers were very poor. There were some interesting buildings but I bothered not to ask my guide since we stopped in front of a house that was distinguishing itself from the others. The walls were made of stone blocks with some tall wooden pillars in between whilst the roof was shaped triangularly and made out of wood as well; there were various curved windows on the walls, beautifully crafted.
Nirbert knocked twice on the wooden door and it suddenly opened. A man in elegant clothing. welcomed us inside and gently asked us to follow him, he was most likely a butler. We passed through a hallway into a beautifully decorated room. There was a big grey fireplace at the center of the room with some shelves scattered to the sides whilst on top of it, there was the head of a deer. To the sides of the room, there were various bookshelves filled to the brim, and in front of the fireplace, there were a few armchairs and a round table. Sitting on one of those was a grumpy and balding fat man, dressed in a purple coat with black pants and a large green collar on his neck. At the sight of us, he immediately changed his expression to one of disgust and anger.
Nirbert took a kneel, and I followed suit.
"What are these vagabonds doing at my place Borebort?"
"My lord, the man dressed in blue is the village's librarian. He came here in the hopes of talking with you."
"Oooh, Nirbert! Yeah, I'll let him stay. But who's the one right next to him? That black outfit is very dubious."
I stood in silence waiting for Nirbert to give him an answer.
"My lord, this man right here is an outsider. His name is Michael. He claims he is an elite warrior chosen from his world to respond to the direst of situations."
"A warrior you say? This. This one right here might do the work. Those cowardly militiamen aren't even capable of killing a slime, let alone the beasts."
"What kind of beasts?" I asked
"Werewolves."
I was surprised and confused too. I thought to myself:
"I just arrived at this man's home and he already asks me to work for him as if I were some sort of mercenary, like who does he think he is?!" I then recomposed myself, but I decided to be careful, so I began asking questions.
"Is there anything I should be aware of when engaging these monsters?"
"You don't know? Werewolves are notorious for their speed and attacks, in particular their bites and claws. At night, they are the most dangerous." he told me rather surprised.
"And during the day?"
"During the day they are less likely to attack you, but if they're hungry they will not hesitate to rip your flesh apart."
"Don't they turn into humans during the day?"
He began laughing and denied that fact. I thought they were capable of turning into humans whenever they wished. But I can't expect everything to be the same as in my old world, now can I?
"How can you kill those beasts?"
"Basically as if you would kill a human. There is no difference, only in power and speed."
"Do I get the right to have a weapon?"
"You don't have one? The generous lord Timothy might as well gift to you this sword and some food. Forged thanks to the might of our village's blacksmith. Borebort, bring the items to Michael." said the lord with a slight smirk on his face.
"One last thing. What will I get in exchange for the services I offer?"
He began laughing in a fake manner and then said: "Oh but how could I forget? If you manage to prove your might and bring me the head of a werewolf, I will reward you with a large sum of gold. The werewolves are located deep in the forest near our village. The militiamen are too scared to go in.
"Very well then." as I said that, I went back to the doorstep alongside Nirbert who has been silent so far. Borebort was awaiting us outside, with a sword elegantly held into both of his hands and a leather bag filled with uncut bread, apples, pears, and some dried meat.
It was obvious that the lord was lying about the reward. He thinks I will not come back alive, but I will prove him wrong.
Nirbert so far looked far more different than usual; he assumed a weird expression that was a mix between scared and sorry.
"I must return to my duties. I brought you here so I could talk with Lord Timothy about you and your future here in the village, but it seems like he wants you to finish a job before he would talk to you again. You're on your own for now Michael, good luck."
"Thank you Nirbert." as I said that he went on and left me in front of the lord's house.
"Damned coward." I thought to myself. Right then I was interrupted by Keppy who said only one thing.
"We need to talk."