System of the Beast Slayer [litrpg Adventure]
Copyright© 2025 by CaffeinatedTales
Chapter 11
Roy woke on the straw mat that morning.
After a month of scraping and hunting, the little green bar on his personal template finally blinked a plus sign again: Level up, 1 → (503/500). He bore a pair of dark circles under his eyes, and although he had not unlocked any new ranged weapon skill, satisfaction warmed him like a small hearth.
Three of his weaker stats nudged up, modest gains compared with last month: Strength 4.2 to 4.3, Constitution 4.1 to 4.2, Willpower 4.5 to 4.6.
Agility, Charisma, Spirit and Perception held steady. That told him something crucial: once an attribute passes five, it would not grow by itself without targeted training or other factors.
Carnage in his skill list stayed at LV2, unsurprising since the forty-odd beasts he had killed this month were not enough to advance it.
Roy focused his intent on the experience bar. The template’s text jumped and then changed.
Personal Level: 2 (3/1000)
You have gained 1 Attribute Point, 1 Skill Point.
As usual he dumped the attribute point into Perception. The feeling of the world opening like a curtain washed over him; Perception leapt from 6 to 7 and became his highest stat. A new prompt also appeared.
You have unlocked a new Skill.
Unnamed LV1: Your Perception far exceeds that of ordinary people. You have evolved a new sense that, via a special observation method, yields basic data about a target. The higher an observed target’s Perception, the more it resists your scrutiny and the less information you obtain. At LV1 Scry grants +1 Perception bonus to Scry checks.
Roy froze. Attributes could auto-unlock skills? He had not expected that, but it was a welcome surprise.
This new skill had strategic value. If he could quietly Scry an enemy’s basic stats and abilities ahead of time, he could tailor tactics and choose the right tools. With higher Perception he could observe from farther away and stay hidden.
A grin slipped across his face as he pictured himself watching an enemy’s weak point from a distance and drawing a ranged weapon from Inventory at the perfect moment.
He named the skill Scry.
He held onto his Skill Point for now. He would test Scry first, see how it worked, then decide whether to spend points on Carnage or Scry. The watchman and old Jack would make good practice targets.
Roy greeted Old Mole and Susan with a bright nod and headed out. He had barely gone a few steps when he saw an unusual crowd in the village square, dozens of people pressed around the notice board, voices high with excitement.
The shadow the Grave Hag had cast over the place seemed to have lifted.
Roy squeezed through.
“Witchers have come, Kagen’s saved!” someone shouted.
Three travel-worn figures stood at the board, their looks and gear impossible to miss.
On the left was a man with a red headband, a hard-boned face and cold expression; beside him a hooded figure kept half his face in shadow, deep folds at the mouth and a faint, unreadable smile. Both looked like they might share blood. Both were around six feet tall.
The third was bald and shining, a high, hooked nose and deep-set eyes. He stood broad and hulking, muscles like carved rock, taller than six foot four. Just the way he crossed his arms made the air feel tighter, as if the space around him shrank.
All three wore black leather patched with gray scars and dried blood. At their waists were small pouches, bottles of alchemical vials hung from a bandolier, a pair of short swords crossed on the chest and several throwing knives on thigh plates.
Each man wore an odd pendant, a coiled snake forming an intricate, mysterious pattern.
The swords at their backs were plain sheaths; the blades inside were about four feet four inches long.
Most striking were their eyes, amber like a cat’s, eerie and unnerving.
Roy stared at the bald leader and felt an inexplicable pull; the man’s gaze was smooth as still water, almost fathomless.
A translucent info panel flickered above the bald man’s head.
Letho
Gender: Male
Age: 80
Identity: Witcher, School of the Viper
As a child he endured three mutations and survived the Grass Trials. He possesses speed, strength, reflexes, coordination, vitality and recovery far beyond normal human limits. Trained in swordplay, alchemy and Monster lore. His immune system is highly resistant to most plagues and toxins that kill ordinary people. He has access to Witcher Signs; his lifespan is long but his mutations make him reproductively isolated from normal humans.
HP:?? (Perception insufficient to read)
Energy:??
Strength:?
Agility:?
Constitution:?
Perception: 19
Willpower: 10
Charisma: 6
Spirit: 10
Skills:
Alchemy?? (Perception insufficient): encompasses blade oils, potions, decoctions, special toxins and bombs.
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