Broken

Chapter 26 (Yejun)

The next day found Yejun and his party running all over the forest, tracking and hunting the Elka. As Alex had said, the large, deer like monsters were very flighty, taking off the second they suspected anything that could do them harm could be near by. Today was a day that the mages truly shined, especially Jurie, who could trap the monsters quite well with her root manipulation skill.

Once the two meter tall monsters were stuck in place, Alex would then take them out with one of his many spells, seeming to prefer one that used wind to create a blade of sorts, killing them almost instantly, and quite cleanly too. The Battle Arts students took more of a support role this time. If they got to close, and Jurie hadn't managed to completely lock the Elka in place, they could be gored by their massive antlers. Not only were the antlers surprisingly sturdy and sharp despite their frail appearance, but they also contained a nasty poison that could make parts of a body literally rot off. 

It was just safer for everyone if the mages were left to handle these particular monsters.

"I have to admit that they are pretty..." Wendy sighed, running gloved fingers though the green mane of a downed Elka. It seemed she had attained some kind of enlightenment by the time morning came, and had taken a strange new, apathetic stance, on everything throughout the day. That, or her soul had just come to terms with the fact they were all stuck here, and no amount of complaining on her part was gonna make that be done and over with any faster.

"Its a shame about the pelts though..." Benny said, eyeing the beast.

The Elka had very pretty brown hide. However, both it and the monster's meat were laced with poison that was not safe to either consume nor have on one's skin. 

This did mean that the group didn't need to fully dismantle the monsters today, saving them all a lot of time, and letting them avoid getting absolutely gross. The hide could be used, but none of them had the skill for it. Selling the hide would be an option, but considering how much space the skins would take up in their enchanted, university provided, magical storage bags, it just wasn't worth it.

So they gathered the antlers for the University, and then Wendy harvested the Elka's hair, which did not contain any poison. She seemed quite pleased with it, so at least one of them got something additional out of this hunt.

"Man, running after these things today has been a lot." Sighed Luka. "I don't even get to hunt the monsters we find."

Carter shrugged. He was seated on a boulder, eyes peeled for any danger while Paul was seated on the ground  near his feet, sharpening his curved dagger. "Its good that its that way. We're going home tomorrow anyways, so its nice to take a day and not have to fight all that much."

"Are you guys done?" Monica called, shielding her eyes from the sun. She was on one side of a gully with Jurie. They had just crossed the rickety bridge strung across the steep cliffs, ready to start heading back in the direction of camp. The day was more than half over and they had traveled far during the hunt, so it was time to make their way in for the night.

"Back across the bridge." Paul ordered, gesturing to Wendy, who had just finished stuffing the last of the buck's hair into her satchel.

"Must you always be so bossy?" Wendy huffed, her viper's tongue back in action now that she had eased off the melancholy.

"Yes." Growled Paul, jerking his head toward the bridge. 

They could only cross it two at a time for fear that the damn thing would just drop them all into the rapids cutting through the earth, carving out the cliffs either side of the bridge. 

"You wanna go next?" Benny asked Yejun with a teasing grin.

"No, go ahead." Yejun said, no doubt sporting a visibly pale face. He may not have reacted much to death and blood, but heights were never a thing he had been very good with. Even looking out the third story windows of his apartment could induce anxiety in him at times.