Breakfast, skipping school, once again a new pet.

John and Cynthia had shattered the barrier when it was time to get up, showered one at a time, and then went downstairs hand in hand. Brenda was already waiting for them with a plate of eggs and bacon for each of them.

“Sleep well last night?” Brenda asked with a knowing wink, both teenagers blushing heavily.

The three of them ate their breakfast while keeping up a semi casual conversation until it was time for Brenda to go to work. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Cynthia, don’t be a stranger!” With those cheery words, Brenda went outside, waving from her car and then driving off.

With his mom gone, John turned to Cynthia, his girlfriend wrapping her arms around his neck to pull him into a kiss. “Mhhhh, you taste like bacon,” she giggled.

“So… I don’t really feel like going to school today. I mean, I got a beautiful girl to spend the day with,” John teased, getting a small wink from Cynthia.

“Well, about that. I need to get going actually. I have work to do back in the camp. I will be free again this afternoon though,” Cynthia said with an apologetic shrug.

“Well, that sucks, anything I can help with?” John tried for a last time.

“Sorry, but how about this: you go and train a bit on your own, and I will reward you for it when we meet again later, hm?” Cynthia stuck her tongue into her cheek when she said reward. “School is a waste of time in the Abyss anyway, most problems can be fixed with magic.”

John looked a bit downtrodden until she promised him a reward. “Ehm, sure! Yeah, I am down for that,” John nodded like a madman as Cynthia gave him another kiss.

“Remember, John, the more powerful you get, the better. The Hunters will not be there to save you every time. Becoming self-reliant is a must for every hunter. Out there, you can only count on yourself,” Cynthia sounded a bit gloomy, but her words rang true.

John knew Cynthia had a point, so he nodded. “When did my little fluff enthusiast become so wise?” he asked teasingly, earning himself a smack to his chest.

“You dick, I was trying to give you some advice!” she pouted and turned away from him.

John’s arms still wrapped around her pulled her back. “I know, I felt like I have been too passive these past few days as well. It’s time for me to actually start doing things on my own, without someone holding my hand. But, before that. I have one more question for you. Do you need a ritual fire to offer things to the gods or will any fire do?”

Cynthia looked at him in surprise. “Why?”

John tapped at his inventory, pulling out the small token Gaia had bestowed upon him.

“Another one?” Cynthia asked as she rubbed her eyes. “You got another pet token? HOW!?”

“Ehm, how do I put this… Cernunnos made a bet with Gaia. Gaia lost it. Cernunnos asked her to give me a new pet token for it as well as something trippy.”

“What was the bet about, do you know?” Cynthia asked suspiciously.

“As far as I know… Well, don’t kill me. They made a bet about me getting laid. And you kinda helped Cernunnos win.”

Cynthia facepalmed, sighing heavily before facepalming again. “Gods. Are. Fucking. Weird. But okay, who am I to question them giving you a new token. To answer your question: That fire in front of the temple? Normal fire, we just keep it going out of worship and convenience; that way we can offer whenever we need, you know? So, if you want to offer that token to Artemis, you could just toss it into a candle’s flame.”

John thanked her for the information with another kiss. Cynthia pushed him away as she pulled out her cellphone. “Dad will be here in a few seconds. I look forward to seeing your new pet, but I need to go.” With those words, Cynthia kissed his cheek, then walked out through the door, waving at him as Arnold pulled up; Cyn got in, and they drove off, Arnold waving at him from the car.

John calmed his mind when he got a new quest popup.

Yes, yes, I know I am late, deal with it. Here’s your daily quest.
Clear a dungeon's final boss on your own 0/1.
(“With pets” is counted as “on your own" as they are kinda belonging to you.)

Reward: 1 skillbook
1 skill evolution point

John, sighing at Gaia’s attitude, hit accept as always. He then walked to the livingroom, finding a few candles; taking one and a box of matches, John focused on creating an empty barrier for the second time that day.

Create Illusion Barrier lvl up. You can now choose between humanoid and non humanoid enemies.

“Wait just one second! This skill levels up after 4 uses yet my other skills have not leveled up once even after using them a dozen times, what’s the deal, Gaia!?” John shouted at the ceiling of his deformed living room.

Ugh, fine, stop shouting. Patch note 1.001: skill exp can still be earned when grouping with people more than five levels above you.

“Thank you, Gaia,” John said with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose for a moment.

John put the candle on the floor, striking a match and lighting it. Then he once more retrieved the token, sitting down on the floor as Jack licked his palm. “I’m gonna get you a new friend to play with, Jack, are you excited?”

Jack cocked his head, letting out a soft mew. Then he gave John a soft headbut against his hand.

“I will take that as a yes. Artemis, lady of the hunt, please accept this token,” John spoke solemnly as he threw the coin shaped token into the fire.

As was the case the previous time, John’s vision faded to black, a feeling like his mind was getting dragged across space once more filling him.

A few moments later, John’s vision cleared, and he was standing on a practice range, a group of centaurs firing in wide arcs at the targets while a by now semi familiar goddess was shouting instructions at them. When he arrived, she turned to him, however.

“What, you are back? Didn’t I give you a pet already two days ago?”

“Ehm, yeah, Gaia gave me another token after losing a bet to Cernunnos.”

“Okay… I am not going to get into that with you. Hmm, I planned on teaching you this lesson later on, but it seems the timetables are shifting already. Now I know why they say you can’t judge late bloomers with any form of logic. Have your second pet, Mr Newman. And go with my blessing” With those words, Artemis turned around, flicking the token at his forehead while turning.

John was knocked out again; this time he was transported to the skies first. He was a hawk, flying to the nest of an eagle while it was out hunting. He snatched one of the young in the nest and flew off, leaving the other two alone. John landed on a nearby branch, about to eat the blind bird when his mind got pulled away.

This time John was on the savannah, chasing after a herd of Zebras, his strong body dashing through the dry grass, slowly closing in on the one straggler in the back. John pounced, his weight throwing the weaker creature onto the ground. His fangs bore into its neck to finish it off, and then his mind got pulled away once more.

The next flashes of images flew by one after the other. One time he was a fox killing a rabbit that had wandered too far away from its home. The next he was a spider, catching a butterfly that had flown into his web.

“We do not hunt for fun, John. Nor do we hunt to slaughter. Part of the hunt is to kill the weakest creatures so that the stronger ones survive. Hunters should never kill just to kill. By culling the weak, the strong survive, which results in a more worthwhile hunt in the end. It’s a circle that is of vital importance to both the natural world and to our livelihood. Every creature has a role to play in the grand scheme of things. We all need to pull our weight to maintain the balance.”

Those words echoed in his mind as he woke up, the sound of scratching and mewing filling his ears. John’s eyes opened, looking around to spot...