TCOB: CHAPTER NINE

And where do you think you are going... Clyde?

A week later…

Longboat village of Loue Province

Ashcol Duchy,

Eris - Ethania.

…

It was midnight, and in a small field overrun by plump wheat stalks stood the shadowy figure of a man. He stood with his feet slightly under a foot apart as he drew back the twine of his bow.

THWACK!

With an audible recoil, the crude bow in Clyde's hand snapped back, releasing its payload. The arrow arced in the air for twenty metres before embedding itself in the trunk of a large tree.

[You have inflicted 66 base damage | You have inflicted 7.3 effective damage | You have inflicted 2 penetrative damage]

[Target has partially resisted]

[You have inflicted 1 penetrative damage | Damage effect induced]

[You have gained experience | You have unlocked a new class - Archer]

[Modifying new class to match the main class… | Modify success]

[You have gained the subclass - Archer(Peasant[novice])]

"What?" Clyde murmured incredibly as he opened his status.

|Status|

Host Name: Clyde

Race: Human(Otherworldly)

Skeletal Age: 19

Gender: Male

Titles: N/A

Divinity: 0.2/????

Class: Commoner(Peasant Farmer[Novice])

Lvl: 2/10

XP: 87/100

Sub-class: Archer(Peasant[Novice])

…

~Archer(Peasant[Novice])

Steady aim - Lvl 4

Lesser Night vision - Lvl 2

Lesser Target identification - Lvl 2

Lesser Ballistics sense - Lvl 2

Lesser Range finding - Lvl 2

Lesser Lead correction - Lvl 1

Lesser Motion tracking and detection - Lvl 1

Lesser Spatial sense - Lvl 1

…

~ Archer(Peasant[Novice])

Sticky Fingers - Dexterity is increased by 20%. Effect is lifted if stamina drops below 70%.

Keen eyes - Perception is increased by 20%.

…

Equipment:

|Crude bow:

+5 base damage

STA drain penalty; 0.1pts/min on idle | 0.5 pts per shot

Conditions of use; None

Special effect; None

Weight; 5

Durability: 4.8/5

Cost; 4 small pouches of grain|

Clyde nodded briefly before he began appraising the other items.

|Crude leather Quiver(Storage):

Maximum capacity; 30 arrows(50% FULL)

Conditions of use; None

Special effect; None

Weight; 1

Durability; 2/2

'Cost; 1½ a small pouches of grain|

|Crude arrow(consumable):

+2 penetrative damage

Conditions of use; None

Special effect; Inflicts bleed status between 0.1~0.5pts/min per every registered effective damage

Weight; 0.2

Durability: 0.2/0.2

Cost; a handful of grain|

Inventory: (EMPTY)

|END|

"Oh," Clyde said with a frown, "the bow's durability dropped again?"

Shaking his head, Clyde left the field to return to his hut. Although the thought of having to repair the weapon after every two days of use miffed him, Clyde was in too much of a good mood to get grumpy. The new class, his small increase in strength, dexterity, and perception, and a slew of new skills were enough to override his usually perpetual negativity. Even his defence falling by a point did not seem to bother him… at least not enough to be an issue.

Clyde could vaguely feel that he had grown a bit stronger. Over the past few days, he was somewhat hesitant about his choice of staying behind to get used to the feel of using the bow he crafted, but now he was glad he did.

Unlocking a new class was an unexpected boon for Clyde as he had no memories of doing so before. His only memories of the system's growth mechanic were of gaining experience every time the season of harvest arrived and he successfully brought in some crops.

"So, I can unlock new classes with practice and repetition," Clyde reasoned as he stepped into his hut. "As for experience, given the data I have, it seems the only way I can get those is by being productive."

Clyde dropped his bow and quiver by the work table before dropping into his bed.

"Farmers have to till the land, tend the farm, and then harvest," Clyde thought as he stared at the thatch ceiling. "Archers have to consistently(at least to some extent) hit and kill targets with their bows. Then soldiers? They might only be able to gain experience during conflicts?"

The thought lingered in Clyde's mind as he fell asleep.

…

The next day, Clyde walked down a dirt path as he entered another peasant's pasture. A few farm animals looked up from their grazing towards Clyde as he walked past.

"Hello, Binny," Clyde greeted politely as he stopped beside a woman milking a cow, 'how has your day been?"

"Fine, thank you," the peasant woman replied, turning around briefly to flash Clyde a warm smile. She spoke as tugged gently on the animal's udder. "Feeling better now?"

"I'll live," Clyde replied dismissively before looking around the farm, "Is Jen around?"

"No, he and the boys went to find Jeje. Somehow, the goat managed to force a hole in the fence and ran away again. Is there something you need?"

"I wanted to ask if I could borrow Maggie for a day?" Clyde replied, turning back to the woman. She appeared to be in her mid-late twenties with her light-brown hair tied in a messy bun and a slightly baggy grey dress that looked a bit worn for wear hanging from her shoulders. Despite the deplorable state of her dress though, her sizable buttocks and wide hips which curved out against the volume of her clothing managed to catch Clyde's attention.

He stared at the woman momentarily, trying and failing to stop himself. As he looked at her, he seemed to just discover that her faintly freckled face was more than pretty enough for a woman of her standing. And while her bust was just slightly above average, her lithe frame and wide hips more than made up for that.

Still, Clyde was confused as to why he even considered the probability of Binny's open sexuality. This wasn't the time or place for such casual devilry and Clyde was the one to believe in the virtue of restraint when necessary. Yet still, his subconscious mind was prodding him to make a move on the woman. It appeared his new body was still struggling with acclimating to its steadily rising testosterone levels.

Shaking his head mildly to clear his mind, Clyde drew a faint breath as he reminded himself of the possibility of a severe rejection or worse, her husband walking in on them. He couldn't risk his true purpose for coming here for some minor gains like getting laid.

Thankfully, he recovered just in time to see the woman turn to stare incredulously at him.

"You want Maggie? Again?"

"I promise I will be careful this time," Clyde replied without missing a beat.

The woman stared at him for a moment before shaking her head in disbelief. "You boys don't learn, do ya?" she murmured before waving him off. "Maggie's in the back. Try not to die this time."

"I won’t," Clyde replied before heading to move the animal.

A few minutes later, he returned to his farm with the donkey. Leaving the creature tied outside, he entered his hut and came out a moment later with a large knife in hand.

With a dull stare, Clyde examined the animals in his pen. After a few moments of deliberation, he selected a moderately sized sheep before taking it away.

[You have inflicted 66 base damage | You have inflicted 66 effective damage | You have inflicted lethal damage]

[Target has died]

Clyde stared at the notifications before turning to look at the knife he stabbed up the sheep's skull and sighed. "It appears I don't get experience for indiscriminately killing farm animals. Or do I need to unlock something like a [Butcher] class first?"

Clyde turned his gaze back to the animals in the distant pen, contemplating before he gave up the thought. It took a week of practice before he could unlock the [Archer] class. Who knows how long it would take to unlock [Butcher]… or how many animals he would need to kill. It wasn't worth the effort.

With another sigh, he began processing the slaughtered creature. By twilight, he had already turned a large portion of the sheep into strips of smoked meat, cleaned bones. He had also managed to extract a few sheets of raw leather and a pile of fleece from the animal’s corpse. Although he was somewhat reluctant to give up the bones, fleece, and leather, he decided to do so, as without processing both, they would just be useless burdens.

Carrying everything back in, Clyde began to pack up his supplies into a few hand-crafted leather bags before arranging those on the donkey outside. Leaving the fleece and a few non-essential items behind, like the farm hoe, Clyde picked up a piece of charcoal with the intent of leaving behind a message when he realised something crucial.

He was illiterate.

Well, he still remembered how to write Korean and English, but this region's written language, Morgar, was unknown to his predecessor, hence him. So, with another sigh, Clyde bent over and began drawing rough hieroglyphics that he hoped a layman could translate without too much problem.

'I took Maggie,' it read(somewhat?) 'Keep my hut, its contents, and livestock in exchange. Take care.'

Was Clyde feeling guilty? No. He just didn't want to give the village constables a valid reason to not come after him. By doing this, he reckoned(hoped) they probably wouldn't, given his memories of their overly complacent personalities.

So with another sigh, he led the donkey out…

Only to see Lorin standing in the path with his arms crossed as he stared disapprovingly at him.

"And where do you think you are going with farmer Jen's donkey, Clyde?"