After we found the Boar, the Hunters were all filled with joy, it was finally time to go back and rest. It had been a long hunt, and we ended fighting unexpected foes in the form of demons, but we were able to reach the prey we were seeking… However, this was still rather bad.
To think that we had to go through so many demons just to reach a wild boar was ridiculous, the amount of these demons is too much, and it seems that this place should really be taken care by the Duchy itself if the Duke doesn't want the entire forest to be filled with demons.
If the demons are let to be, they'll end up forming an army and invade the rest of the duchy, they'll go through each village, one by one, until they only leave a barren land behind.
"We finally got the boar…"
"Your spirit is really powerful, Blake…"
"You're the hero of today's hunt, thank you for coming with us."
"We are forever grateful."
"Indeed, you've saved our lives more than once today. To think that we had to go through so many demon to just find a wild boar… I remember the old times when wild boars dominated this forest and there were way too many, every time we entered it, we would encounter one after an hour of searching, instead of having to take over half a day like today…" sighed Gradus.
"The Demons… were they not here before?" I asked. "Are they a recent thing?"
Gradus looked at me with contempt and nodded.
"Indeed, they only appeared around a few years ago in this volume, before they were not that many and often as common as goblins, which only you can find around the Third Layer… after you pass through the Third Layer it is Wild Territory which goes all the way to the snowy peaks you can see faraway, in there it is said that there is a white dragon that keeps the mountains in perpetual snow…" said Gradus.
"But anyways, that dragon ain't doing crap for us, the demons are slowly devouring anything in our forest until nothing will remain except them…"
"Hm… I see. So the Demons perhaps have begun an invasion just a few years ago, if they are not thinned out every day, they'll continue to reproduce…" I said. "We need reinforcements from the Duke himself, he needs to invest a bit in this, this is really a serious matter.
If the demons overrun the village they'll simply continue moving forward and destroy everything on their path until they reach his duchy and knock on his door, by then, there won't be much he could do other than run away and lose all his riches in the process."
"Ah… T-That's right… I guess I had not thought it too deeply but indeed if the demons are not thinned out… bad things will eventually happen. Not only the entire village is in danger, but the entirety of the duchy is in grave danger, everything could go awry if we let them reproduce…" said Gradus.
"Little Blake, you're strong, you can even take down demons… But even then, you won't be able to take down an entire army of demons… We really need help."
"Yes, I agree… After we prepare the meat and send it to the duke, I would like to prepare a "gift" for him, with a note. Is that possible?" I asked. "I swear it won't be anything bad, but it could make him realize the state of the village."
"Hmm… Sure thing." Said Gradus. "The guards that send back the meat do accept other things to be sent as offerings to the Duke… We can also give them a message. But those guards are very untrustworthy, they see us as pretty much slaves, I don't even know if they'll tell him or just laugh it off and call us insane and never tell him anything…"
"Indeed, that's why I will prepare him a beautiful gift." I said. "It is just demon meat; I am sure he'll like the premium meat of an Oni."
"Oh yes, perhaps that could giant some favor from him!" said Gradus. "Good idea, Blake."
Yes… It is an excellent idea, isn't it? I will send him a wondrous and delicious gift, and a note telling him to get his shit together and help this place if he doesn't want his duchy to be overrun by demons before it is too late.
We quickly moved back to the village after packing up the boar inside my bag. In the way, we encountered four Imps scouting the area and a pair of Gray Wolves, which all were killed by me and Eleanora for the most part, they were easier to kill now that our stats had skyrocketed so much, and I was able to utilize that x10 EXP Card until the last minutes, earning a nice amount of EXP.
Each Imp gave me 400 EXP, while the two gray wolves was 100 EXP each, that multiplied by x10 plus +20% from Hard Worker gave me enough EXP to level up to Level 6.
With that, I had increased my stats once more, I spent the Stat Points into Mana as always, as I am capable of boosting my other stats using magic, so Mana is the priority that I must increase, and it is also the fuel of Eleanora, so I cannot really pick other stats for now, while I saved the 10 Skill Points for later.
Eleanora ended adding all her points to Strength for this time, as she felt like she didn't had enough strength to one-shot low-level enemies yet, even though her strength is already superhuman…
At the end of the journey, we finally reached the village, and we were greeted by my family and the families of the hunters, who were all worried.
"Blake, you're back! And you're… COVERED IN BLOOD?!" cried my mother, almost falling unconscious out of horror.