All of a sudden, Aaron approached the river, but then a bunch of fish appeared out of nowhere and tried to bite his face and arm… he moved backward in a hurry and fell on his butt.
"What the fuck…" Aaron furrowed his eyebrows.
They had a robust and elongated body with a laterally compressed form. It seemed that their body was designed for rapid movement in the water, allowing them to chase prey efficiently. They had small, overlapping scales that covered their body. The scales are usually arranged in a pattern that provides them with protection and flexibility.
Their head was relatively large compared to their body size. They had a pronounced underbite, with the lower jaw jutting out further than the upper jaw. This arrangement allowed their teeth to interlock when the mouth was closed, giving them a formidable biting force.
Some of the fish fell on the shore but soon returned to the water. Aaron saw them getting invisible as soon as they touched the water.
"It seems that they can use camouflage when they stop moving… and they are carnivores, to hell with their small size," Aaron thought while looking around for them. "I don't study animals and their behavior and characteristics, but this is interesting…"
Aaron had an idea… he grabbed one of the horns and then cut the palm of his hands a bit. When blood began to fall on the river, and his hand approached it, numerous fish jumped from it and tried to bite his hand. They didn't reach it, but one of them was unlucky enough to be caught by Aaron's other hand. The creature struggled, and Aaron snapped its head by trying to stop the creature.
Ding! [You obtained 05 experience points
"Ah… I underestimated my newfound grip strength," Aaron said and then frowned. "Anyway… even fish can give me experience? It must be because they can use magic to camouflage… these blue orbs keep coming at me, after all."
Aaron did the same thing again and again… he wanted to cross the river, which was twenty meters wide, and he also wanted to study and hunt those things. He also wanted to check if they were tasty.
Since they were similar to piranhas, Aaron wondered if they would taste the same. Some people might describe the taste of piranha meat as similar to other fish, while others might find it to be slightly different or even unique. The taste of piranha can depend on factors such as the species, the diet of the fish, and the way it is prepared. It's worth noting that piranhas are more commonly known for their sharp teeth and aggressive feeding behavior rather than being a popular food source. In some regions where piranhas are consumed, they are often cooked in stews or grilled. Or so Aaron read in the past.
Aaron caught a bunch of them and opened them as well to see if they had something inside them different from the fish from Earth. He didn't find anything odd with them or anything usual… Their appearance was the same, and so was their interior; the only difference was that they could use magic to become invisible by standing still.
"I want to learn that, but I need to study magic and mana and its principles… it might come in handy," Aaron thought and then sighed when he realized that there was no wood around for him to cook the fish. "Still, I am a thief, so I might learn something similar to that eventually."
Aaron checked if he could learn new skills with the skill points that he had, but he could only use them to level up the skills that he already had. That was convenient, though. He won't have to waste endless hours grinding for certain skills.
In the end, Aaron reached level four just hunting those fish. Their numbers in the area were high, after all. Once he increased his dexterity and perception, he was able to catch and kill two of them at the same time… he lost some health thanks to it, though.
"Enough studying animals for today, it is time to cross the river," Aaron said and then threw his backpack and other stuff to the other side of the river and then jumped on it with all his might to cross as much distance as possible in the air.
In the end, Aaron wasn't attacked before he reached the other side, but he wondered if he could keep hunting like that in other areas of the river. That kind of 'spawning' point was quite good to kill time when he was bored or resting, after all.
Aaron approached the forest and soon confirmed that some of them had fruits with them… that was good. A hunting place with free meals, Aaron couldn't ask for more… Staying there for a day to build strength and then move on was going to be the best first step in the mission that he could have asked for.
Before getting any of those, Aaron checked the area while he had two horns in each hand, and he was ready to use them. At first, he didn't find anything or anyone on his path, but while the grass wasn't so tall, he could see some parts where it had been smashed by some things that had the same shape as the creatures he fought first… it seemed that it was their forest.