Noctis stood on a tree top camouflaged under the numerous branches and lush green. He had a shortbow in his hand.
After a week of practicing and mastering to a degree at a still target, he decided to test himself with a moving target.
In a short moment, a rabbit came jumping by looking around for food.
Noctis took notice of it and got in position to target. Locking in he focused on its movement. Knocked the arrow and pulled its string the furthest he could right now.
'Focus… Focus… and'
Noctis released the string and let loose the arrow towards the unsuspecting rabbit.
Unfortunately the arrow struck just beside the rabbit's foot, unable to hurt it in the slightest as the rabbit bolted away.
"not again dammit!"
He had missed the second time. After getting the hang of the bow and getting the targets easily he had thought he would be able to get started in the wilderness right away.
His instincts also allowed him to find targets easily. But he had forgotten to take into account the irregularities of the woods.
The vantage point itself threw off much of his training. He had tried hunting from the ground hiding in some shrubs.
Except he got spotted by the rabbit every time before he even had time to lock his aim.
Sitting at the top while trying to aim was incredibly awkward. It was hard to position for the little variations in the position of the rabbit. Not to mention the distance wasn't uniform or the same as when he was practicing simply standing in his backyard.
He heaved a sigh and got down to retrieve the arrow. He had to make some new ones too as he had lost some during some earlier shots.
'I need to practice in the woods itself if I have any chance of getting this right.'
***
It had been a month of practicing with his bow and arrow in the woods for Noctis. He had a much better aim, not just from a standing position at a still target but also from various vantage and distance.
He was standing atop a tree at this moment aiming towards the targets he had placed at various trees in the distance. The targets were at different heights and angles too.
It was easier to get rabbits and squirrels now, as long as he didn't get noticed immediately.
This also allowed him to get a much better understanding of the terrain of the forest as it played a much larger role than he initially had thought.
But he didn't let it get to his head and go deeper to hunt bigger targets. Just a month earlier he had already learnt that the woods would pose challenges that he wouldn't think of with his little experience.
Thus, he trained his aim, as he did his body to better prepare for targets that he probably would not be able to just one-shot while sitting down.
He had to be better at tracking and covering terrain as well as faster before even thinking of such. And his body was far too weak for that.
***
He stood a tall tree top scanning his surroundings. He noticed a small movement in a shrub at a distance but couldn't see anything from his vantage point.
Without moving he crouched down and knocked his arrow on the bow steadily. This kind of position would have been too taxing to handle half a year when he started but he could persevere for a good few minutes now.
A small creature white fur coat came into his view. Although it was still a bit shielded from a tree from his position. Without hurrying he stood still, tracking every movement of the rabbit.
Its body twitched multiple times but he held patiently, unlike countless times before where he loosened too prematurely and missed.
Finally the rabbit moved a little to the right, not in perfect view but enough to take full aim.
Noctis pulled the string and released it with just enough force to travel the distance and pin the rabbit's head to the ground impaling it.
***
In the very early hours of the morning Noctis was moving through the woods silently. Limiting his movements to not startle any shrub or off branches in his path that gave too much noise.
He had learnt to avoid dry branches laying in his path. He quickly and quietly moved through the trees by jumping and hopping off one branch to another.
He moved, maintaining just enough distance so as to not startle the squirrel he was tailing. He had tried to tail various animals to train his movement but this one was by far the hardest.
Not only was it lightning quick to travel through trees and get out of sight, it was incredibly difficult to stay out of its radar.
At the smallest indication, the little thing bolted away to some unknown depths of the universe never to be seen again.
After about a year of this, he had trained his body enough to keep up with anything in the outskirts to hunt.
The sheer amount of time he spent in the forest also allowed him a much greater understanding of his own potential.
The raw instinct he had for the forest and its complexity was astounding. He would never have been able to advance this much, this quickly if it weren't for this.
'I wonder if my birth has something to do with it'
Over the course of his time he remembered more and more memories of his years spent in this world. He knew he was living with his adoptive parents because he had some memories about living somewhere else, with someone else.
Unlike the memories of his time with his adoptive parents however the ones before them were very cloudy and vague. All he could figure out was that he heard his biological mother's voice in it.
Also that he spent an alarming amount of his infancy in the woods. That can't be a coincidence could it?
'Maybe the photographic memory doesn't work for much younger memories.'
Lost in his thoughts, he lost concentration just for a second as he moved just a fraction closer to the squirrel. The moment it noticed him, the squirrel bolted towards a tree, climbing up in a second and got lost in the lush branches of it.
Noctis sighed a little but he was still happy with the progress he had made over the years.
Not only in his training but also in his personal responsibilities towards his mother. Since he could consistently hunt rabbits, birds and such in a short time between his training and hunting, they didn't have to worry about food.
He also could hunt much more cleanly and accurately which meant he could persevere the feathers and pelts to sell without getting them all bloodied.
Depending on a few good games and the demand in the village market, she didn't have to work full days and could afford day offs.
He had also renovated the hut from its neglected, delipidated state, added sturdier doors and panels as well as did simple addition to better its foundation.
Although he felt it made him stand out to the occasional few people passing through here, it was worth it.
After hunting a few rabbits and birds he got up to leave the wilderness for today. Before leaving he looked towards the deeper part of the jungle.
It looked much more intimidating at sight to the sparse outskirts. It was rumoured to have much larger and dangerous beats.
Much better for Noctis, as he had started getting bored of rabbit meat. It was time he tasted something fresh.