They were back in the road again, free and breathing the fresh air of the open fields. What had transpired seemed to have lasted too long, making the sight of the beautiful carpet of green grass and the blue sky, all the more relieving.
But not everything had returned to normal, expectedly so. Irene was colder than when he killed the swans, and this time, the reason was immediately clear. He almost beat the innkeeper to death in front of her, with blood splattering out. He had never seen her so terrified before, and it did not matter that he gave him a healing potion in the end.
Yet, he was not about to apologize. He believed, he had done the right thing. So, they continued to ate their lunch and slept side by side, but kept to themselves.
Furthermore, he himself was also not in the mood for conversations… or even hunting.
In the following days, Anthony would encounter several opportunities to put his hunting attire back on. But his appetite was not there, not after consecutive massacring of soldiers and getting stoned on what would have been his execution. And all the violence and the blood, had finally taken a toll on him.
He would have nightmares of the events, and would wake up in cold sweat. Something that was worsened by the silence inside the wagon.
Several days passed, and they hit three weeks on the road, and covered more than a third of their journey. Their travel had been smooth sailing, thanks to the superior quality of their wagon and the coach. The rain did pour occasionally, but none was neither long nor strong enough to erode the ground.
The pups had noticeably increased in size, but not big enough to provide other than an early warning sign. But Irene seemed to enjoy their company, and Anthony was not so worried of her getting lonely.
He, on the other hand, wasn't so mentally healthy. Boredom, paired with exhaustion and bad dreams, was a torture he wanted to be out of as soon as possible.
So, on the 23rd day of their travel, when he saw another bachelor herd of elks, he decided to overcome his nightmares and provide himself something to do. Hoping that testing out his leatherworker occupation could provide enough distraction.
For the first time in quite a long time, the wagon stopped not for lunch or for the night. Irene thought there was a problem ahead, and peeked outside the window. He saw Anthony dismounted from the driver's seat, with his Huntsman attire, and his horse. Spotting several elks in the distance, she immediately knew what he was up to.
He noticed her in the corner of his eye and pivoted his head in her direction. The young woman was quick to hide, but not as quick as not to be seen by him.
A sad smile came over his face. He knew if he just talked to her, she wouldn't be able to resist reconciling with him. Anthony had noticed her glances while they ate, and he saw in her eyes a certain longing. She wasn't someone to hold grudges for long.
But he was not ready… he thought.
Anthony mounted the stallion and rode towards the meadows. He summoned a throwing spear, instinctively.
Everything seemed foreign after not doing it for quite a while, and he was worried he would underperform tackling tough beasts like elks.
So, it was a surprise, that when everything began, he was as good as he remembered he was. Nor was there any trauma attack all throughout the proceeding. It felt just like any other hunting.
He used the same "hit-and-run" tactic, and the herd did not fare any better than his first. The hunt yielded eleven elks, the entire number of the herd. Seeing the large bodies, scattered on the ground, made him a bit guilty of how effective he was. If he stayed in the area for long, he might cause a population imbalance.
[Used Skin]
[You have obtained Medium Hide x1]
[You have obtained Antler x2]
Right after he switched to his Leatherworker Attire, which was nothing but a white tunic and an apron, and used the "Skin" skill for the first time.
The corpse was stripped of its skin and all that remained was flesh. A skinless elk was something he had not seen before. A deer, yes, but not an elk.
The hide was expectedly found in the inventory, and with gloves on, he pulled it out. It was the cleanest piece of work he had ever seen, not a cut or a hole, not an inch wasted. His father could never such good a job, neither could he, having never learned how to do it in the first place.
But that was the least impressive skill out of the three.
[Used "Refine"]
[Obtained Medium Leather x1]
Bam, in a snap of a finger, the hide turned to leather, ten days of work saved. What was a rough piece just a moment earlier became perfectly square. 20 square feet in length, smooth all over and orangey brown in color. It smelled of earthy scents, reminding him of many things from his childhood.
He was again blown away and could not wait to try out the last and ultimate skill. If it was what he thought it was, he would be able to turn leather into leather goods.
Well, it was… but the skill was not completely something he expected it to be.
There were tiers of what could be crafted at certain levels of mastery. And with the level, he was currently on, he was only allowed to use thin leather, to craft regular quality items. Medium leather, as it turned out, could only be used after reaching the next level of mastery, to create High-Quality items.
Yet, it was not enough to dampen his spirits. With no way around it, he could just sell it along with the pair of antlers.
[Are you sure you want to sell Medium Leather x1]
[You have obtained Tokens x600]
[Are you sure you want to buy Antler x2]
[You have obtained Tokens x400]