NOVEL NEXT Side Story 1 – Johnny Cash
"Yo, boss, going for your solo vacation again?" A young boy called out to Johnny Cash, a notorious bounty hunter.
"Piss off," he snarled while polishing his magi rifle.
Just a while ago, he received a notice from the Bounty Hunter Association suspending him from any bounty hunting for three weeks. The last time, he was suspended for crippling a suspected tax evader. This time, he shot a guard who got in his way during a chase. Luckily, that guard only received a minor injury which was later treated by a local healer.
Although Johnny was quite infamous at the moment, he used to be a renowned bounty hunter who had not failed a single task for twenty years straight. That was, until he lost his wife. It was a tragedy. A certain group of thugs, in retaliation to the losses he inflicted on them, had broke into his house. By the time he returned, they had already tortured his wife just to finish her off the moment he opened the door. From that night on, he was a changed man. He was drunk on grief, but no grief could last forever as it soon transformed into madness.
Given that this wasn't his first suspension, he wasn't going to loiter around and do nothing. Money. That was the only thing that kept him going. What better way to spend this time than to go on a hunt and make some money? Hunting. It was one of his hobbies. Why else would he choose to be a bounty hunter if this type of activity didn't tickle his fancy?
During one of the mornings on his vacation, he had set up a sniping location. He didn't have any particular goals or targets.
Bang!
As he approached the fallen falonta, he heard a tiny voice speaking the common language. It was called the common language because all mortal races spoke the same language in this world. In the case of the fey, the world system converted the original language to the common language of this world. However, it was known by the mortals that only the most powerful and intelligent fey beings could converse with the mortal races. So far, there had been no exceptions. Because of this, for the first time in years, Johnny was wary of the possible dire consequences of meeting such a being.
However, what greeted him wasn't as he expected. A small, barely fist sized, green little winged fey, peeked at him from behind tree branches. It had vibrant wings like no other fey he had seen before. His lips curled into a wicked smile while thinking, a rare species will sure fetch me loads.
Before his thoughts ran wild, just to be sure, he checked the status of the winged fey.
[Level 21 Fey (Plant);
Species: Strawberry Trickster
Physical: 3/5;
Spiritual: 60/65;
Traits: Bewitching, Devious, Rapid Growth, Cloning;
Abilities: Absorption, Charm;
Description: A tricky plant fey that likes to toy with their foes.]
The species name was completely foreign to him.
He couldn't see the unique abilities nor any stats that only higher level individuals had the privilege to observe. However, just this status was enough to give him second thoughts.
Shit, I almost fell for its trap. I better play it safe.
Just the traits and abilities were enough for most mortals to be tricked but he was different. He had both [hunter] and [harbinger]. The ability [hunter] allowed him to track his target remotely as long as he had visuals within two days and that he focused on a single target. The moment he lost focus, the ability would reset. It was a topnotch ability for a bounty hunter. The ability "harbinger" was acquired the day he lost his wife. It allowed him to see a potential future of the next few seconds. This was an extremely versatile ability when used properly.
He shouted, "You green fey, get down here or I'm coming up. I know you speak."
To that, he heard the little fey whisper, "What would you do with me?"
Johnny thought, you little shit is trying to lure me in? You've got guts, I'll give you that. Don't blame me if I show no mercy!
"I said, get down here. Or I'll smoke your brain out," He howled.
"My wings are broken. I'm not suicidal enough to jump down."
"Tsk, shitty fey. You're messing with the wrong guy here."
He wasn't going to take any more of this non-sense so he jumped up the tree where the fey was hiding. To him, jumping up a tree wasn't difficult with his hidden agility stats but it did use up quite a bit of his stamina.
Squish.
"You killed a baby bird! How could you!" The little fey cried out.
Actually, Johnny didn't even notice until the fey had mentioned it. He really couldn't care less about a single dead bird.
"I only needed one," he pointed his rifle at the fey, "what says you?"
"I'm a plant! I don't know what you want!"
Bang!
It was a scare tactic to stop the fey from using the [charm] ability. To him this ability was one of the most dangerous ability he knew. Once charmed, removing the charm effect was extremely difficult and took a very long time to wear off naturally. Depending on the level of this ability, the being under such effect would even do the most unimaginable acts when commanded.
He quickly captured the little fey and continued to apply fear to the unfortunate fey. This was actually the most effective way to prevent spiritual type fey beings from utilizing their abilities. The only problem was that the little fey kept trying to talk to him.
It just won't shut its trap! His mind raged.
However, when the little fey had tried to sell him on a money making method, he was taken in by surprise. From what he understood, fey beings didn't live in societies built by mortal races. They shouldn't have a clue how money worked. Not only that, for a fey to propose a model to continuously generate revenue was beyond his wildest dreams. Because of this, he gave some serious thoughts.
"Show me it."
"It?"
His veins almost bulged from anger. In fact, he was guarding too cautiously against being charmed by any means necessary.
"Don't f---ing mess around!"
He knew full well that negotiating with a fey was seriously ill-advised, especially with such a fey that had |devious| and |bewitching| as its traits. It was equivalent to speaking with a devil, one of the legendary beings in this world.
Johnny was a greedy man. That nearly brought his downfall. After he had cut off the little fey being's limbs, he received a terrible but an unclear premonition. That was when he sped up the process by placing the fey on the ground.
Boom, boom, boom.
Shit! He cursed in his mind.
What greeted him was one of the worst fey beings that he could encounter out here. He didn't even know how they could have came here without any warnings whatsoever from the local authorities.
[Level 34 Fey;
Species: Groltolic;
Physical: 325/325;
Spiritual: 192/192;
Traits: Rapid Regeneration, Mammoth;
Abilities: Undying Breath, Enhanced Physical, Thunderclap;
Description: A type of fey that pummels its foes while refusing to fall.]
Collectively, these fey beings were known as trolls. Groltolic was the third evolution of the original species. Just three of them could completely level a town. Magi canons had to be deployed to even have a chance of killing one of them because of their ability to regenerate without end.
When he had looked down again at where the decapitated little fey should have been, only a red fruit remained.
I knew it! I should have just killed it.
However, he still grabbed the red fruit and quickly made his escape while fully utilizing his [harbinger] ability.
In the end, he did manage to escape, but just barely. One of his arm was completely pulverized by a troll. His Lo-Fruushka, the ride he had with him, was abandoned and sacrificed for his escape.
After this incident, he vowed to one day hunt all fey beings to extinction. Furthermore, his primary target was the little fey that had managed to give him the slip. As for the red fruit he had with him, he sold it for an exorbitant amount of cash to be used for research purposes. Using that money, he replaced his destroyed arm with a magitech arm. This new arm was a combination of advanced mechanics and complex magic that augmented his combat capabilities to a new level.
His spirit burnt with renewed rigor having found this new ambition, a purpose in life. "Strawberry Devil, let's see who'll have the last laugh," He snickered by himself.
Interestingly enough, Johnny was the first person to coin the term "Strawberry Devil" as he considered all fey beings as devils.