The sun was gradually rising up over the horizon as Axel moved towards the north grass fields. The pasture there was home to many fox species, including the Red and Gray Foxes. Beyond the pasture further in the east was a thicket of evergreen trees that seemed to endlessly expand in the distance.
Axel did not dare to enter that forest. Monsters several folds stronger than a Gray Wolf wandered about, and there would be sometimes a stray goblin that would escape from the seals in the dungeon.
Just as he was about to enter the area where the Gray Foxes were, a tanned boy wearing a tail cap yelled out,
"HEYA, WHERE ARE YOU GOING OFF TO?????!!!!!!!!!!"
Axel thought that he was speaking through an electronic speaker, which obviously didn't exist in this world. He then went up and replied,
"Uh, I'm about to hunt some Gray Foxes in the pastures up ahead."
"WOAH, ARE YOU INSANE!!!! YOU LOOK LIKE YOU ONLY HAVE SOME YARN WOVEN CLOTHING ON AND NO WEAPON!!!!! HOW ARE YOU GOING TO BEAT THE FOXES BARE-HANDED?????!!!!! HAAAAHAAAAAHAAAA!!!!!" the boy's voice boomed like thunder.
Axel could not help but shake his head. Apparently this boy either had a hearing disability or his voice was just naturally loud. Then he cheerfully replied,
"I've got no choice but to go with my bare-fists, my only weapon which was a wooden stick snapped in half when fighting a White Spider a few days ago."
"HAAAAHAAAAHAAAAA!!!!!!!!! YOU MUST BE A NEWBIE WARRIOR OR SOMETHING. BY THE WAY, THE NAME'S DEIAN, I'M A SHEPARD AT THIS TIR CHONAILL PASTURE. TELL YOU WHAT, I'LL LEND YOU MY WOODEN CLUB!!!!! AT LEAST YOU WON'T GO OFF WITHOUT ANYTHING TO DEFEND YOURSELF WITH!!!!!!!"
Axel took the wooden club from Deian, and looked at the scratches and dents on the surface. Apparently, this was a wooden club very low on durability, and could break anytime. No wonder this guy lent it to him so willingly. It was as if he didn't want it back in the first place. Then he thought it was better than going off to hunt without any weapons. Moreover, a wooden club with max durability points would cost about 600 gold at any weapon store. This had been a great harvest for Axel.
"Thanks Deian! I'll be sure to repay this favor sometime!" Axel shouted as he went east to where the Gray Foxes where.
Upon reaching the middle area of the pasture where the Gray Foxes resided, he saw a rather large boulder the size of two humans high and hid behind the rock. He peered over the side of the boulder and saw dozens of gray foxes out in the open. He thought of a strategy that he rarely used in the original Mabinogi game.
"I could use Rock-Throwing Action to lure the gray foxes to set a 1 on 1 fight with each of them." Axel thought.
Rock-Throwing was a useful action skill that did not require any stat prerequisites. In the game, the player would pick up a rock, and use it to throw it at an enemy, in hopes of getting its attention. It can also be used to hit dungeon switches. The range was the same as any elementary magic bolt spell and could reach a target from 1200 meters away.
This was perfect for Axel, who did not have any powerful combat skills at the moment. If he was able to aggro the Gray Foxes one by one, and fight them individually, it would decrease the chances of him being in danger.
Like a ninja, Axel with a rock in hand took baby steps towards a Gray Fox nearest to him upon walking out the boulder. In a single motion, he took a pitcher's stance in baseball, and slugged the rock at the fox's back.
"RRrrrrrr!!!!" the gray fox growled as he turned his attention towards Axel. It observed the human from far away him and thought he was a weakling that had dared to provoke it.
At this moment, Axel took the club in both hands and got into a swinging stance in baseball. He thought if he wanted this fight to end quick, he would have to utilize a full body power stance from baseball that could exert the great amount of force when an attack was executed.
The gray fox started to come over and began to circle around Axel, attempting to find the perfect timing to attack Axel. It's hind legs were uprooted up above the ground, maintaining a power stance that could jump at Axel anytime.
Before the fox could leap and kick Axel, the wooden club blocked the movements of the agile beast. Axel swung the weapon like a bat, but stopped midway to block. He was experimenting with his reaction speed with a weapon, and still playing it safe for now. If he had follow through with the wooden club and did a full strike, his body would be unguarded after for a few seconds. Axel wasn't going to take any chances if that happened.
The bout with the fox leaping and Axel blocking lasted for a few moves, and then Axel slowly adapted to the timing of his blocks. In the next mid strike, he started another attack that seemed up swing all the way but he pulled it back at last second. The fox was not able to see through this feint attack, and was already in motion to attack. Seeing this chance, Axel swung his wooden club swiftly at the fox's forehead. Seeing that it had been tricked, the fox was fuming and tried to get back on its feet after taking the hit head on.
If it was anything, Axel did not dare waste this golden opportunity to put in the finishing blow. He bashed the fox repeatedly as if a watermelon had split apart, and the dark red juices splattered all over his face and t-shirt.
"Haaaaahhhh!!!!" Alex exclaimed as he took a large breath. It was quite exhausting to keep blocking with the wooden club and the entire fight had lasted about 5 minutes. Although the duration of the battle was short, he realized that his stamina and strength seemed to be only a bit better than his original body on Earth. It was maybe a good time to do some fitness training like jogging and push-ups.
After resting for a good half hour, he went to lure another gray fox again. He continued this block and feint attack strategy to fight the gray foxes and took breaks between each fox defeated accordingly.
By the time he had defeated enough gray foxes to deliver pelts to for Ferghus' deal, it was already late afternoon. As Axel tidied up his face by wiping his t-shirt over it, he noticed the sky suddenly turning gloomy and sinister. Several black clouds gathered in the distance and black mists were gathering in the middle of the group of gray foxes up ahead.
"Sh*t!" Axel cursed. This was really his unlucky day. In the origanal Mabinogi game, the weather changing and black clouds gathering could only mean one thing. A Field Boss was about to be summoned onto the pastures!
Not long after, a Giant Black Wolf appeared from the black mist and howled,
"Awooooooooooo!!!!!!!"
This intense howl gathered all of the black wolves from deep within the forests farther east of the pasture. To Axel who wast still only Level 3, this was a terrifying scene that almost made him shudder. At the same time he was also relieved, as he was still resting behind the large boulder that seperated him from where the Field Boss was summoned.
Anyone who had played Mabinogi in the early stages would know that this Giant Black Wolf was a existence that rivaled most dungeon bosses. Those who were brave enough to challenge Field Bosses reaped rewards that would advance their level and equipment by leaps and bounds.
"I'd better skedaddle out of here!" Axel thought as he would be in a world of pain if the Giant Black Wolf detected his presence.
As soon as he took one baby step in the directions of the town, he felt a dominating aura pressuring him from behind. When he went to look behind, the Giant Black Wolf was staring at him intensely, and the normal Black Wolves were already dispatched to chase him relentlessly.
Axel was dashing as fast as he could while shedding tears endlessly. The black wolves were about to catch up to him, and he would have zero chance of surviving if he was forced into close quarter combat with them.
