Deadmeat Saga

Chapter 42 – Inner Forest Hunting. Sorry, its for your own good.

The following early morning, while the sky was still dark.

Gerhart was soundly asleep when he felt a pair of lips kissing him, a naughty tongue entering his mouth, a hot body pressed against him.

"Mmm. Mmph. Lick*."

Gerhart embraced the body, kissing back. Half a minute later, Hope separated from him, her cheeks red and glowing.

"Good morning, Hope. Why did you wake me up like this? Not that I am complaining." Gerhart smiled.

"You requested me to wake you up like this last night, remember?" Hope shyly said.

Gerhart slowly recalled the night before. After leaving the feast, he had a passionate night with Hope. Before they slept, he told her it would be nice if she woke him up with a hot kiss.

"Haha. Well, I am glad I did." Gerhart said, grabbed her, and rolled around.

"Hya?!" Hope gave a cute yelp as she found Gerhart's massive frame on top of her. "W-Wait, we need to go hunting today..."

Although she said that, Gerhart knew her status.

Status: Excited, Aroused.

"Are you sure?" Gerhart whispered in her cute mouse ear.

"Uuu... this is an unfair question..." Hope complained with a red face.

"Hmhm. Just teasing you." Gerhart chuckled and got up.

"..." Hope blankly stared at the ceiling.

Status: Aroused, Confused.

"Well, what are you doing? Get up. We have a long day ahead of us." Gerhart said while getting dressed.

"... Yes..." Hope begrudgingly got up.

Status: Slightly Aroused, Frustrated.

As she was about to reach the door, Gerhart grabbed her from behind and whispered in her ear. "Don't worry, I won't let you rest tonight."

Status: Aroused, Excited.

.

.

.

After putting on their armor, Gerhart and Hope ate a quick meal they had saved beforehand. Since they were going to hunt with the hunters, they woke up even earlier today, making eating breakfast with Asher's family impossible.

While eating leftover meat, beer, and fruit, Gerhart looked at the living room, now transformed into a massage parlor. Beside the covered statue were an actual massage bed, incense burner, oil jar, and a tea set.

{Light Aphrodisiac Scented Massage Oil: Seed oil mixed with flower essence and non-addictive soft aphrodisiac. Recommended for the sensual arts.}

{Light Aphrodisiac Incense: When lit up, ejects a nice-smelling smoke with non-addictive soft aphrodisiac. Calms the mind while enhancing libido.}

{Light Aphrodisiac-Laced Tea Leaves: Tea leaves mixed with a non-addictive soft aphrodisiac. Calms the mind while enhancing libido.}

"So it was detectable, hah? Good thing we got Libby first." Gerhart thought. "But with this combination, I am unsurprised Havre took down ten women in a row." 

Among the ten women, two of them were watchwomen, including Kerry, leaving only two watchwomen not under control. Gerhart also heard she got two of the remaining female hunters, leaving only the non-bachelor one and another who likes more professional massages. The rest were either frustrated women with dysfunctional partners or lesbians and bisexual women. As for the exact details of what transpired- Gerhart left it to the imagination.

After finishing their meal, Gerhart and Hope took their gear and proceeded to the Kennels, where Romilda took the female wolf out.

"Good morning, my husband." Romilda quietly said.

"Good morning, Romilda." Gerhart nodded and took Farus out of his cage.

"Woof! Wruf!" [Master! I was so bored!] Farus let out excited barks.

"Yes, yes. Don't worry, Farus. You will get some action today." Gerhart smiled, patting the wolf. He then turned to the female black wolf. "Have you decided on a name yet?"

"I think I'll call her Banshee," Romilda said.

"Your call. I want to learn Strength Burst and Harden Body." Gerhart said.

Goliath's Physique and Tyrant Bloodline made these two skills tailor-made for him.

"Sure!" Romilda happily agreed.

Several minutes later, three humans and two wolves proceeded toward the village entrance, where Gerhart spotted Kerry, another female watchwoman, eleven hunters, and two other wolves.

Among them, Gerhart noticed that Kerry and the female watchwoman both had reverent looks in their eyes, and two of the four female hunters were the same. Of course, they hid it as quickly as they revealed it.

"Gerhart! Good morning." A lean man with a light beard in his mid-thirties and a bow on his back walked forward with a light smile.

"Hey, Kasper!" Gerhart greeted back.

Kasper was the acting hunting leader. He might not look much, but his talent is the real deal. His Agility and Dexterity are B-grade, and his level is 38 with Advanced Archery and Aura Control talents. He was currently 34 and close to retirement from hunting.

"Let's not delay and lose daylight. We have a long trek ahead of us." Kasper said.

"Sure." Gerhart nodded.

He and Hope then quietly followed Kasper and the other hunters through the outer forest. Although they encountered some weak monsters, they fled once they saw the sizeable group. Although aggressive, these monsters were not stupid. They wouldn't commit suicide against an unbeatable foe. The ones who usually hunt them are the younger children.

The group continued its advance until they reached an area where the air felt a tad heavier. The canopy of trees hid more of the sunlight, but certain plants emitted a colorful glow.

"Woof! Wruf!" [Master! We should be careful from here.] Farus warned.

"We are now in the inner forest. From here, the monsters will be E and D grade and can pose some threat." Kasper said to Gerhart and Hope. "From here, we shall split into four groups."

He then turned to the other hunters. "Kay, Ada, with me. Wolfgang, you lead Per and Cilly. Kaleb, you will be with Heiner, Konstanze, and Romilda. Hauke, you're with Greta, Gerhart, and Hope. Each group will take a hound. Today, we will dwindle the monster population and harvest any easily harvestable and valuable parts. Questions?" He asked, but his eyes were on Gerhart and Hope.

"Yes. What do we do if we encounter a monster from the Deep Forest?" Hope raised a hand and asked.

"Avoid confrontation and try not to provoke it. If provoked, attempt to gain terrain advantage and engage in a defensive fight until it gives up. And don't run into the goddamn Deep Forest if you value your life. Of course, if you feel confident enough, you can try and kill it. High-grade meat and materials are always welcome." Kasper said.

He then looked at the others. "Any more questions?"

The hunters remained silent.

"Good. Spread out." Kasper orderd. 

Following his orders, three groups headed in three directions, leaving Gerhart and Hope with a male and female huntress.

Hauke was an agile spear warrior, while Greta was an athletic ax thrower. On a side note, perhaps it was intentional or not, Hauke and Greta were the only gay members of the hunting party. Coincidently, Greta was also under his control.

"Gerhart, Hope, follow." Hauke motioned.

"Okay." Gerhart nodded, following the man.

The four hunters then walked toward the right, around the edges of the inner forest. After five minutes of walking, they encountered the first monster. The creature was similar to an elk, but its horns were sharper, and its teeth were razor-sharp.

"Grr... Roof." [Careful, Master. It is more powerful than me.] Farus said.

"Rabid Elk, hah? That's a D-grade monster and a territorial one at that. It is too close to the edges for comfort. Greta." Hauke turned to Greta.

"On it," Greta said and pulled out a throwing axe.

"Weearrgh!" The elk monster gave an ear-grating bugle as it charged at them with red eyes.

"Oh, shut the fuck up!" Greta cursed as her axe got covered in red Aura and threw it.

Whirr* Whirr* Whirr* Splat*

The throwing axe accurately hit the charging elk on the head, splitting it in two as it collapsed, sliding until it reached the huntress.

"Hmph. I never get used to that goddamn bugle." Greta muttered as she skillfully extracted her throwing axe, seemingly used to this scene.

"Good job." Hauke nodded, pulling out a knife and extracting the antlers.

Once he finished, he handed over the antlers to Gerhart. "Take this. These antlers fetch a high price."

"Okay." Gerhart took the antlers while giving a pitying look toward the elk as if seeing wasted money.

"What a waste..." Gerhart thought as he followed Hauke and Greta to continue killing monsters in turns.

Gerhart killed them with the Emerald Flame Sword, while Hope killed them with an arrow. Hauke proved his speed, killing monsters with grace. Of course, they extracted valuable monster materials, leaving most of the carcass behind. With each new carcass, Gerhart felt increasingly pained and annoyed about being unable to absorb them. Even if not for the talents, the energy could have amounted to over a hundred points!

After killing a dozen monsters, Hauke stopped.

"Okay, take ten." He said.

Gerhart and Hauke then sat at one side, and Havre and Greta sat at another side. Meanwhile, Farus was busy eating the carcass.

"You handled yourself pretty well. Those monsters don't pose a challenge for you." Hauke said.

"They can't compare with Thomas." Gerhart earnestly replied.

"I can't argue with that," Hauke said while sipping from a canteen. "I hear you now live with Havre?"

"Yes." Gerhart nodded.

"Can't blame you. Havre is a sweet girl, and her massages are great." Hauke smiled. But then, he leaned closer and whispered. "By the way, what magic did you cast on her? I felt Havre was uncomfortable before you arrived, but now she is right as rain."

"You don't say." Gerhart made an intrigued look. But in his mind, he couldn't help but think, "Wow, those are some high senses. No, his instincts and perception are not high. Is it related to his secondary stats? Is it Charisma?" He guessed.

With that, Gerhart checked Hauke's Charisma and found one of the secondary stats.

Emotional Intelligence: S

"HIGH! He probably sensed something was off about her through interactions." Gerhart thought.

While chatting with him, Gerhart received a message.

Asdis Elkington has converted successfully.

"Havre is hard at work..." Gerhart thought.

Soon, the ten minutes were up, and the group continued hunting. Every few minutes, they would encounter a monster and harvest some of its parts, filling their bags.

While walking, Hope talked to Gerhart away from Hauke's ears.

"Gerhart, we are far enough..." Hope whispered.

Gerhart quietly looked at Hauke's vulnerable back and narrowed his eyes. "Wait until the next prey," Gerhart whispered back.

Soon, their group encountered another monster. It was a brown bear with- Antlers.

"Gau!" The bear roared, going on its hind legs in a threatening manner.

"Antler Grizzly, hah? Gerhart, your turn." Hauke turned to Gerhart.

"On it." Gerhart nodded, dropping his loot bag and unsheathing his sword.

"Growr!" The bear roared and rushed forward in all its anger.

Gerhart narrowed his eyes and ran toward it. When the bear was about to bite at him, Gerhart narrowly dodged and performed an upward swing.

Slash* Thud* Plop*

The bear's head separated from its body, falling on the ground, and soon its body followed. It twitched several times before dying.

"Good job! A clean kill." Hauke nodded and walked over.

"Hauke, I want this pelt as a rug. Can you show me how to do it?" Gerhart asked.

"Oh, sure. I think we fulfilled our quota for today anyway." Hauke nodded and walked toward the bear.

Crouching down, he put his spear on his side and pulled out a hunting knife. "We first need to remove the guts so it won't rot. After that, we can start removing the skin."

While Hauke was busy with the bear, he failed to notice Hope and Greta glancing at each other and nodding.

"First, you need to do an incision here, here, from the anus up to the ribs, careful not to damage the guts," Hauke explained while carefully making some incisions.

"Oh! Can I try?" Gerhart requested.

"Sure. Here." Hauke said, giving Gerhart his knife.

"Thanks." Gerhart smiled, taking the knife before tossing it away.

"Hah? Why did you— Thud* Crunch* Ah!!!"

Before Hauke could respond, he suddenly received a knuckle sandwich to the face, breaking his nose. However, Hauke retained consciousness and attempted to grab his spear while distancing himself from Gerhart. But he found that Gerhart grabbed the spear shaft, not letting go, and prepared to launch another punch.

"Ugh!!!" With little choice, Hauke let go of his weapon as he rolled away, dodging the punch, attempting to draw his hunting knife. However, he quickly remembered Gerhart threw it away.

"W-What's going on?! Why am I being— UGH!" Before he could gather his thoughts, someone struck his back.

Rolling several times on the ground, he looked at his second assailant, seeing it was Hope who kicked him hard. He felt his internal organs rattling.

"J-Joo! Ghreta! Fel— Thud* Crack* Kaha!" Before he could plead for help, his companion kicked him in the chest, his ribcage cracking.

"Sorry, Hauke. This is for your own good." Greta apologetically said while lowering her leg.

"Cough* Cough* Wha— Geho!" Before Hauke could recover, Gerhart pinned him to the ground, clutching his neck and choking him. Hauke wanted to resist, but his limbs were held by Hope and Greta.

Soon, Gerhart sensed his struggles were weakening, his eyes rolling to the back of his skull, so Gerhart let go.

"Haah! Haa!" Hauke breathed in and out, drool coming out of his mouth.

But before he could breathe his third breath, he saw something crazy. Gerhart pulled out a knife and slit his own wrist. He didn't even have the time to comment as Gerhart shoved the wounded arm into his open mouth and even blocked his nose.

"Gurgle* Cough* Gulp* Cough*." Hauke struggled as he unintentionally gulped Gerhart's blood.

"W-What is this madman doing?! Why is he making me drink his blood?!" Hauke stared at Gerhart with fear and hate.

But then, he saw Gerhart's eyes shine with silver light. "Submit," Gerhart ordered as thoughts of submission entered his head and his eyes slowly shined with silver light.

"T-This is bad! Oli! Run away! Take everyone and run away! This man is a monster wearing human flesh!"

Unfortunately, those thoughts were soon extinguished, whitewashed with submission to Gerhart.

As Gerhart saw Hauke's eyes were now silver and docile, he smiled and activated his power. "You are mine, now."

Hauke Elkington has converted successfully.

Gerhart removed his still-bleeding hand from Hauke's mouth. "Heal me." He ordered the relic.

The next moment, black energy snaked out of his body, healing his slit wrist at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He then looked at Hauke. "Mashter..." He said with a nasal voice because of his broken nose.

"Heal him," Gerhart commanded the relic.

The relic did as commanded, black energy seeping into Hauke as his grievous injuries healed. In less than a minute, Hauke was as right as rain, albeit bloody.

Gerhart got up and stepped back, and Hauke got up and knelt. "Master."

"Stand up. From now on, pretend nothing happened," Gerhart instructed.

"Yes, master." Hauke stood up.

"Oh, and continue skinning that bear. I still want its pelt." Gerhart remarked.

"..."

Farus, the only one idle in this ordeal, couldn't help but shiver.

"Thank the canine gods I submitted early..."