The day is a normal one for Odepayi, who hunts for a living. He is arguably one of the strongest people in the village.
In his kills, he has taken down an elephant, a gorilla, an anaconda, and other animals.
He usually tells the village children about his adventures and how he survived.
“ The elephant walked past; a farmer threw tantrums. Can a farmer dare to kill an elephant with a hoe?” he would say, thumbing out his chest and tapping it with his palm whenever he wanted to start his stories.
His adventures did not stop with only animals; he went in search of the animals into the evil forest and fought with some angry gnomes who vowed that he had trespassed, while also being fortified by the pleased gnomes.
It is the beginning of another quarter of the year, and the dry meat he has in stock is down, and it seems he has to go hunting.
He carried his dane gun, put on his protective bracelet, and wore his rifa skirt, which was made of Tiger skin and slicked with cowries all over it.
“Today is a good day,” he reckoned to himself, looking at the cloud which was bright in the sun’s richness.
As he was stepping out of his house, putting on a look that looked like a zombie, everyone knew that it was time for business.
“Much more kills,” an old man walking with a staff said as his wrinkled face smiled. " Thank you, the old one,” Odepayi replied, and within the blink of an eye, he was already in the center of the jungle.
He laced his eyeliner, which was given to him by the big-eyed gnome, one of the gentle ones he met a year ago in the deepest forest.
“ The eyeliner will make you see animals from hundreds of miles away,” he recalled the voice of the big-eyed one and smiled.
Odepayi blinked his eyes to scan his environment but saw nothing.
“ As now,” he ruminated to himself and decided that he should go deeper inside the jungle.
“ Well, I have a few weeks to spend here,” he soliloquized to himself.
It is customary for people to spend nights in the forest, and Odepayi had spent two months before when he was asked by the king to hunt for a lion, which was needed for the new year ritual.
All of a sudden, the jungle became deserted, and a gigantic tornado erupted out of nowhere. At first, Odepayi wanted to run and hide, but he noticed that the Tornado was after him and decided to face his fears, so he stood in defensive mode.
The Tornado came and turned around him in a circular motion as he kept being alert, tracing the wind with his eyes.
“Do you think I am scared of you?” Odepayi uttered, summoning the courage and breaking the silence.
“ I know you feared nothing,” a gigantic voice echoed from within the wind, and Odepayi knew he had met his match.
“So what? I am not even close to the evil forest; what brought you here?” Odepayi uttered.
“ To take you away on a tough job,” the strange voice replied.
“ I am going nowhere with you,” Odepayi said.
“Let's go, " Tornado said, picking Odepayi up, who fought relentlessly until he was dropped.
“ We will continue this process till you get tired, and I will still carry you.
Let loose and follow the flow; it's some people's answered prayers “ the Tornado said, and for all that was said, Odepayi decided to be an answered prayer for the people he didn't even know.
He let loose and followed the flow, and within the twinkle of an eye, the Tornado carried Odepayi to a strange kingdom.
From afar, Odepayi saw a dragon walking majestically towards a person blind folded. Although Odepayi had never seen a dragon or fought one.
He stated, “A lazy person is someone who sees what he can do and runs away when given the opportunity”
Without wasting time, he took out an oily gel in his crossed sack bag. It was a gift from the little fire fairy, whom he protected during a heavy rain, and it said the gel was for fire protection.
Odepayi quickly rubbed the gel on his body, held his dane gun firmly, which was hung at his back, and he raced like a Ninja towards the huge beasts, which were surprised to see someone daring them.
It opened its mouth and blazed fire towards Odepayi, who only used his arm to cover his eyes.
“Who is that stranger?” The king of the unknown kingdom asked his general.
“We just noticed he came out of thin air,” The general replied.
“ Should I shoot him down?” the general asked.
“ No, let us see. No one. Not even you in this kingdom has tried to fight the beast, even after the reward I promised, so we have nothing to lose”
Before the dragon knew what was happening, Odepayi had held onto the tail of the dragon. It wagged its tail angrily to ward off the man who held it, and Odepayi fell, rolling on the ground.
Everyone in the arena couldn't take their eyes off the stranger, who was impressive.
Feeling threatened, the dragon stepped back and floated in the air and wanted to escape. Observing this, Odepayi stood up again and ran in the same manner, but this time, he jumped and held onto the leg of the dragon, which tried to fly away with him.
Everyone saw Odepayi climbing the body of the beast and hanging around it, twisting all around its body, depositing different cuts onto the beast’s body with a golden dagger before leaving a stab on the throat of the beast.
“What sort of dagger is that?’ the general inquired of a man who looked like a sorcerer.
“ It is a magic one,” he replied, dimming his eyes.
“The beast is falling!” A shout echoed from the crowd, and Odepayi and the dragon landed on the floor with a loud sound, and Odepayi blacked out.
With a cough, Odepayi woke up and found himself standing beside the dead beast.
The crowd roared in happiness even though Odepayi believed he had just added another hunted animal to his list.
The king raised his hand, and the noise quenched like a fire that was poured water.
“ Thank you for fighting for this sake you know nothing about,” the king continued after clearing his throat with a smile.
“ You have broken our generational curse,
This dragon has been terrorizing our kingdom for generations now, which demands the princess each kingdom has till date.
This day, when the princess turned eighteen, as always, has been a sorrowful one for the kingdom, as we will observe her being devoured by the dragon, and you have made it a day to celebrate.
Who are you?” the king concluded, looking at the Queen, who was blushing.
“ I am Odepayi, a hunter,” he replied.
“ Do you know what the reward was for killing the dragon?” the king asked.
“ No,” Odepayi replied and continued.
“ It's a tough job, but someone’s got to do it,” he concluded.
“ It is time.” This was heard audibly, and the Tornado resurfaced.
As Odepayi wanted to jump on the Tornado, he felt someone hold him tightly.
“ I will go with you; I am the prize to whoever kills the dragon, whereas you also saved my life,” a young lady who looked like a princess said.
“I believe she is safe with the stranger,” the queen said.
“ Thank you for freeing us from this plague," The king replied, and the roaring continued.
“ I am now your gift, " the Tornado also said and continued with a humorous laugh.
“ You can summon me anytime, and I will take you anywhere you wish.
It is not easy to do a tough job that everyone runs from, and if someone’s going to do it, then the person must be compensated handsomely.