The Divine Hunter

The sky opened a gray curtain, and the dawn had not yet broken.

The sleeping boy was awakened by a sharp and abrupt whistle.

Yesterday's new acquaintance Carl flooded into the room, urging the sleepy Monty to leave the warm and soft bed.

Put on a brand new suit by the bed, made of wool, burlap, and hide, slightly larger than his size.

Throw on a pair of sturdy brown leather ankle boots.

The two came to the flat courtyard of Gawain's house.

There was already a strong bald man waiting in the center, his amber pupils swept over the two of them without emotion, and solemnly announced.

"let's start!"

...

The terrifying cold wind that froze people to death whistled, and Monty mechanically followed the bald man in the center of the yard while shivering.

Lunges stretch the hamstrings of the thighs and calves, stretch the back, chest and waist, and work the neck and ankle joints.

For a long time, Monty's most frequent daily exercise was running for his life, sneaking from place to place.

I haven't done a similar normative activity in a long time.

After a while, I was sweating all over.

"Little Monty, relax your neck and keep your back straight. Don't hunched over like an old man when you are young. Otherwise, there will be no little girls who will look up to you in the future." With a light press, as if magic power was injected, Monty instantly made a standard action involuntarily.

After about a quarter of an hour of preparatory exercise.

Monty's emaciated body was covered in sweat, but the sleepiness was gone.

The bald man strangely gave him a choice.

"What comes next is up to you, whether it's a few laps around the yard...or training with Carl."

"It's all voluntary," he stressed.

"Mr. Leto...Is there any difference between the two sports?" Monty asked boldly.

Although the bald man can't see any expression,

The beast's vertical pupils were a little intimidating under the dim sky, but his gentle tone was inexplicably convincing.

"The first kind of regular exercise is to exercise your body to make you strong and healthy, and keep you away from disease." Leto explained patiently, "The second is the introductory training for witcher apprentices..."

"To sharpen your skills... to avoid danger better, to launch counterattacks... but it is much more difficult than the former!" Leto said meaningfully, "Don't worry, think carefully, choose different, your future courses, and even your destiny It would be very different.”

Monty couldn't understand the Witcher's inscrutable words, just thought a little.

Under the temptation of Carl's sparkling big eyes, he decisively chose the second one.

As a newcomer, instinct led him to follow his friend's advice.

The witcher breathed a sigh of relief.

The three came to a row of wooden comb piles on the south side of the yard.

Monty and Carl walked around the gaps between the pillars, as if being chased by a hungry cat, a little mouse that was desperate to get into the corner.

Keep turning and circling, from the first stake to the last, and back again from the end.

The difficulty is much higher than pure running, but within ten minutes, Monty's bony chest rose and fell violently like a broken bellows, and sweat soaked his clothes for the second time.

Karl, on the other hand, was very proficient and at least twice as fast as he was.

He also kindly reminded that he could give up at any time.

This actually aroused the strong hearts of the young people. They were all eight years old. Why could Carl be able to complete the task easily, but he couldn't? !

Monty huffed and ran around the post for another twenty minutes.

Until he was panting heavily with his hands on his knees, his whole body felt weak, and the ground was wet with sweat down his chin.

The bald-headed man looked at him and nodded. This kid has poor physical fitness, but his will is still strong. It is not in vain for him to wander and grind on the street alone for so long.

Constitution can be regained through exercise and potions. If the will is weak, a natural coward, it is much more troublesome to reverse!

Monty rested for ten minutes and began a third strange exercise, standing on one foot, with a straight spine and neck, and clasped his hands on his chest.

While the other leg is raised, the sole of the foot is placed on the side of the knee of the standing leg.

Like a rooster standing on legs.

Crucially, Monty had to close his eyes to adjust his limbs.

According to the bald man, running in a different direction can exercise speed and reaction, while closing eyes and one foot independently exercise balance ability, which is suitable for children whose bones and muscles have not yet fully developed.

Monty couldn't maintain his balance at all. He only lasted for five seconds on the first attempt, and his hands and feet swayed wildly.

But he was not discouraged at all... Karl, who was walking with him, was standing on the high plum blossom pile and doing the same exercise.

He closed his eyes, his face was calm, and his body was as stable as a stone statue.

To his horror, Carl quickly increased the difficulty and jumped flexibly on the plum blossom.

Jumping from one stake to another, mixed with difficult twists.

While jumping, he twisted his wrists and swung a training sword smoothly, with a graceful posture like an elk crossing a jungle ravine.

Monty is so envious!

The second time, the third time, he gritted his teeth and tried for half an hour.

Finally, he was able to stand on one foot for twenty seconds.

At this point, an hour and a half has passed since the morning exercise.

…

The bald-headed man fell to the ground, and the little boy with a red face nodded.

"Okay, boy, your performance is barely enough for a newcomer!" The bald-headed man's voice was calm like a pool of stagnant water, as if everything he did was ordinary. "But I never complained from the beginning to the end, I am a little man!"

"Gulugulu..." Monty's eyes were sour, but he covered his groaning stomach embarrassedly.

"Today's exercise is over, are you hungry?"

Carl led him into the room.

A burst of meaty aroma hit the face.

Monty swallowed and stood stiffly in place, like a stunted sapling struck by lightning!

He couldn't believe his eyes!

A table of sumptuous food has been prepared in front of us: stewed potatoes, baked bread, fresh crabs, lobsters caught from the mouth of Nuocheng...

An unfamiliar fat cook sat on the ottoman by the door, smiling so warmly that she seemed to be looking at her nephew.

The meat soup last night was already a delicacy for him, and now this meal is simply the gift of eternal fire!

No... He no longer believes in eternal fire, this meal is a gift from the Gawain family!

"We, can we have breakfast?" he asked tremblingly.

Most people in Nuocheng usually only eat two meals a day, a full meal at noon and a small meal at night.

This is a well-established rule, of course, to save the cost of living.

"Witchers don't have so many rules. They eat open when they're hungry. How can they endure a lot of training if they don't get enough nutrition?" Karl wiped the sweat from his forehead, and skillfully became a bowl full of basil leaves and basil leaves. Broth of peppers, turnips, radishes, potatoes.

With a piece of bread dipped in rich soup, he handed it to Monty with a smile.

"You're welcome... The teacher said that we are young and our bodies need to develop, so we must never go hungry!"

Monty took the big bowl and didn't gobble it up like he did yesterday. He murmured and asked, "Why are you being so nice to me? I have nothing, I'm still an idiot, I don't understand anything, and beggars hate me for begging along the street. ."

Even on the temple island of Nuocheng, the orphanage run by Eternal Fire is far inferior to the humble Gawain's house in the woods in the suburbs!

The witcher brought him back from the brink of death.

Then treat him warmly like a family member.

What is the purpose?

"Monty, don't you understand? After joining the Gawain family, we are family..." Carl repeated according to the teacher's words, "Family should love each other and help each other."

family?

Monty had a small mouth, revealing a deciduous tooth with an astonishingly wide gap, and his blue eyes flashed with tears, falling into sluggishness.

Happiness came too suddenly.

He couldn't remember how long he hadn't heard the word since his parents died.

"Don't say nauseous words." Carl followed his teacher's instructions to observe his emotions and took a sip of the hot soup. "What do you think, are you tired of witcher training? Can you hold on?"

"It's much easier than I used to beg for food in the city." Monty sucked his nose, shook his head, and swallowed the bread, blocking the sourness in his throat.

"The training in the future will be more difficult and more difficult!"

"No matter how hard or tired it is, it's better than being a homeless child and a beggar!"

"Remember what you said today, don't make me look down."

...

After breakfast, the warm sun in the morning slid across the blue sky.

The teacher in charge of the morning training disappeared, and another big man with a lightning scar on the right side of his face and short brown hair began to guide him in the second course.

"Carl, little Monty, to join the Gawain House, you must abide by a few rules. If there are no rules, the whole world will be in chaos!"

"Although you two came earlier, you can't bully the children who join later, understand? Answer me loudly!"

"clear!"

"Secondly, follow the teacher's arrangement and don't make trouble unreasonably!"

...

Monty and Carl sat in a boxy classroom, listening meticulously to Escal's calm and powerful lecture.

From time to time, I used a charcoal pen to carve a few crooked characters on the yellowed board in front of me.

Born in a family of merchants, Monty received a certain enlightenment education and had a little foundation in writing. He recognized that the teacher taught the northern common language.

But compared to the private school teacher hired by his father at a high tuition fee, this hideous teacher taught more wonderfully.

Escal's explanation is detailed and lively, and even a trivial letter or word can lead to a concise and interesting example... Monty was fascinated unconsciously.

...

In the afternoon, he changed to another field survival class, and the teacher became the man whose skin looked like a burn patient and his pupils were scarlet.

When Monty saw him for the first time, he was terribly frightened and kept his head down, not daring to make any contact with him.

For fear that he would open his bloody mouth towards him and rush towards him like the legendary water ghost.

Kaiyan noticed the boy's strange behavior, didn't care at all, and spoke slowly in a gentle hoarse voice to himself.

It has to be said that his storytelling is also a must.

Monty gradually forgot his appearance.

"Gawain's House is built in the woods in the wilderness, and it is possible to encounter various wild animals. There are several kinds of animals that you need to pay special attention to..."

"Suppose the two of you strayed into the alder forest while playing hide-and-seek, and bumped into a hungry wild boar, a pack of wolves roaring at you with foul-smelling mouths, what would you do?"

"Run!" Monty replied without hesitation, completely caught up in the teacher's weaving story, "Escape while calling for help!"

Kaiyan shook his head, and deep pity was revealed in his scarlet eyes, which made Monty's heart clouded, and he suddenly held his breath in tension.

"Sorry, you're dead."

"Pinch your arms and legs now, are you thin, short or short?"

"You can't run as fast as a little rabbit. Wherever you go, you'll be caught by a beast within 100 meters and bitten to death."

"Tell me, Carl, what should I do?"

"Find a tree to climb up." Carl said confidently, raising his chin, "then shouted, waiting for you to rescue!"

"It's still a little brainy, boy, it's worth your time to climb the plum blossom pile." Kaiyan nodded, "But it's winter now, and the beasts are not as active as summer, as long as you two little devils are obedient and don't run away secretly. Go hide-and-seek in the woods, that can't happen!"

...

Kayan placed an orange-yellow flower with oval leaves and petals in front of the two of them.

"guess what is this?"

"Chrysanthemum?" Monty moved his nose, a light fragrance, a spice that once operated at home was also this kind of orange-yellow finely crushed petals.

"Sunflower?" Carl said with an innocent smile.

"Boom!" Kaiyan patted his little head. "In the winter, the sunflowers are so bright and lush. Didn't you remember the herbal medicine the owl taught you?"

Carl begged for mercy pitifully, "Don't, please, Uncle Kayan, don't tell the teacher!"

"Look at your future performance. Monty has a point..."

The boy's heart was lifted, his thin fists waved behind him.

"It's called calendula, it belongs to the Asteraceae family, and it is a gift of nature." Kayan wrote its name on the whiteboard.

"If you get lost in the wild and really can't find food, you can use this thing to temporarily satisfy your hunger. If your skin is scratched by a branch, crush it, take some of it, and apply some to the wound to reduce inflammation."

"Now, open your mouth and taste! Remember the taste."

...

The first day of Gawain's House was divided into three parts, the morning witcher apprenticeship training, the morning culture class, and the afternoon general knowledge class.

Not only can exercise, but also learn knowledge, and there are hearty food to enjoy.

Young Monty felt a tinge of unreality in his delight.

It's all like a dream!

Is this kind of paradise really something that a fatherless orphan like him can enjoy?

...

As the sun sinks into the horizon, twilight falls.

Eight teachers whispered around the campfire, discussing plans for tomorrow.

The youngest entered the dark woods alone with an owl whose eyes were extremely human.

After an hour of extra practice, Carl returned to the bedroom and lay side by side on the Chase bunk with Monty.

Rumble talked about his ideals.

The magic of the witcher, the wonderful life.

Always with a bright smile.

These ignorant words planted a seed in Monty's young heart.

"Becoming a witcher, will I be as carefree as Carl?"

That night, Monty had a strange dream. In the dream, a big man with gray-green pupils stood in front of Carl, drew five fingers and made a strange gesture.

What are you muttering in your mouth?

And a big man with white hair made the same action towards him.

As if he had returned to his mother's amniotic fluid, he sat cross-legged unconsciously.

Firefly-like sparse spots of light lit up in the dark sky, mischievously lingering.

Had fun with him all night.