Hunting

The dense forest was filled with a chorus of rustling leaves and distant growls. The evening sun filtered through the thick canopy, its light spilling in fragmented rays that painted jagged shadows across the undergrowth.

Perched on a high tree branch, Xaren watched his target—a deer-like monster with three horns and four eyes on either side of its head. It weaved through the trees with desperate speed, its breath coming in ragged gasps.

But it wasn't running from him.

Three bear-like beasts charged through the foliage behind it, their backs lined with kite-shaped, bone-like plating that jutted upright like natural armour.

"And then there were four…"

His quiet remark reached the ears of the young, brown-skinned demoness seated on a lower branch nearby.

She lifted her right arm, flexing her fingers experimentally, and though her face bore no expression, the faint glow in her eyes betrayed her fascination at how light her limb felt under Xaren's gravity magic.

"You want to handle the big ones first?" 

To her question, Xaren responded without taking his gaze off the creatures below.

"Yeah, I'll take the one on the left. You handle the one on the right."

"Then we tag-team the middle one?"

"Yep."

With that brief exchange, Xaren drew his spare sword from his magic pouch, channelling fire-attributed magic power to heat the blade.

Then, without hesitation, he leaned forward and dropped from the branch, his feet meeting the back of one of the bear-like monsters. He stomped down on either side of its plated spine, forcing it to stagger, while his sword lashed out in a downward arc, tearing through its thick fur.

The creature barely had time to react to neither the sudden weight on its back nor the searing pain from Xaren's sword before Xaren amplified both his own weight and the beast's, forcing it onto its knees with a bone-jarring thud.

The second one spotted him and lunged at him from the right, but Xaren quickly bent his upper body back, narrowly avoiding its sweeping claws. Then, he used his magic to launch himself back upright, thrusting his sword forward.

The red-hot blade pierced deep into the monster's side, eliciting a painful roar that shook the trees. With a quick punch to the hilt, Xaren sent the beast hurtling through the air, his sword still lodged in its flesh.

Meanwhile, Ilya moved like a gust of wind.

She crouched low before shooting forward, slipping beneath the bear's massive frame. Her sword flashed upward, slicing through its underbelly as she dashed past, carving a deep, gaping wound.

A wet squelch followed as its entrails spilled onto the ground.

Dashing out from beneath it before it could collapse atop her, Ilya flipped her grip and thrust her sword into its right eye, the blade piercing clean through its brain and instantly ending it.

Without wasting a second, she wrenched the blade free, spun on her heel, and hurled the weapon like a dart toward the second bear—the one Xaren had sent airborne.

The blade struck true, embedding itself deep into the creature's skull. By the time its body crashed to the ground, it was already lifeless.

"Oh, nice aim."

Xaren remarked, leaping off the dead bear beneath him. He extended a hand toward the corpse of the second, and both of their swords, still lodged in its flesh, trembled before being wrenched free.

'Attraction.

By his command, the blades flew over to him and he passed Ilya's over to her.

"Thank you."

Ilya accepted her sword, giving it a quick flick to clear the blood.

Then, they simultaneously turned to face the deer monster, now standing frozen in terror. For a moment, it hesitated—then bolted.

Too bad for it, Ilya was faster. 

With a single step, she vanished, and the deer barely had time to register the movement before a thin line of crimson traced across its throat. 

Its head separated from its body, flipping through the air. Ilya caught it by one of its horns, her fingers tightening around the rough surface as the rest of the monster collapsed to the ground with a dull thud. 

Seeing Ilya take down the monster in an instant, Xaren let out a low chuckle. 

"Your speed is as unreal as always." 

Ilya, still holding the severed head, cast him a sidelong glance.

"It's normal," she replied quietly, her voice as even as ever.

Her gaze shifted toward the three slain monsters, her tone unchanged as she asked, "What do we do with them?"

"Toss 'em across." 

Xaren jerked his thumb toward the distant stream as he responded.

No further words were needed.

Lifting the four lifeless bodies into the air with gravity magic, he made his way toward the stream he had gestured to earlier, with Ilya silently following behind.

Her eyes traced the way magic flowed around the corpses, observing how Xaren manipulated gravity to reduce their weight to the point that they floated effortlessly.

She had seen him do it multiple times before, but the sight still felt strange.

By the time she was done theorizing how Xaren could have weaved his magic power to achieve this result, they'd reached the stream.

True to his word, Xaren tossed the three bear corpses across the stream without ceremony. Then, lowering the deer's body to the ground, he crouched beside it and got to work.

His hands moved with practised efficiency, washing away excess blood, slicing through the flesh, and removing the unnecessary parts.

Ilya crouched beside him, watching silently as he stripped the hide and rinsed the meat thoroughly, making sure no trace of blood remained.

"You seem like you've done this a lot."

Xaren glanced at her, raising a brow.

"Didn't you also get a bunch of foraging knowledge stuffed into your head back in the newborn zone?"

"I did. But there's a clear difference between someone acting on received memories and someone acting on personal experience."

Her words made sense, and Xaren gave a slight nod.

"True. I have done this a lot. I didn't have anyone giving me meals in the newborn zone, after all."

"…"

Ilya didn't respond right away. Something about his words felt off, and her Instinct skill only reinforced that suspicion.

But she also knew Xaren wouldn't elaborate, so she let it go. Instead, she wordlessly helped him wash the meat he had cut.

Once they were finished, they left the unwanted scraps behind for scavengers and made their way back through the trees.

Their campsite was a small clearing they had made earlier, the ground cleared of debris and a few logs arranged for seating. A pile of firewood sat in the centre—gathered from the trees Ilya had cut down earlier with her wind blades. 

Xaren snapped his fingers and a spark of fire magic ignited the kindling. Soon, bright flames crackled and licked at the logs, casting a warm glow over the darkening forest.

Skewering the fresh meat, Xaren propped it over the fire, the scent of roasting venison filling the air. He then rummaged through his magic pouch, pulling out some small bottles containing salt and a few other spices he had swiped from the Cinder Outpost's kitchen before they left.

Ilya didn't even bother asking how he got them. Instead, she simply raised her hand, summoning a gentle breeze that carried the rising aroma away from their surroundings.

"Oh…I was just about to tell you to do that."

Xaren muttered as he noticed the unnatural wind, and Ilya plopped down on a nearby log before responding.

"Last time we were out camping, Carack burned a rabbit he caught, and the scent attracted a pack of wolves we had to fight off."

From her short explanation, Xaren could tell she had no desire to repeat that experience.

He chuckled lightly and sat down on the log opposite hers, using a long stick to turn the meat over the fire.

"Why did you want us to hunt, though? We were given enough rations for the trip."

Ilya's voice was as calm and quiet as ever, but Xaren could hear the curiosity behind it. Instead of answering right away, he reached into his pouch and pulled out a strip of dried meat jerky, holding it up beside the sizzling venison.

"Tell me, Ilya. Between a good, juicy cut of this roasted meat and a bunch of lightly salted, dried strips of jerky… which would you rather eat?"

"…I see your reasoning."

That was all Ilya said in response. She would much rather eat fresh deer meat.

Xaren silently tossed the jerky back into his magic pouch and then pulled out a bunch of papers from it, holding them up.

"While our meal is getting ready, how about we review the file? We're supposed to toss it anyway."

At his words, Ilya gave a small nod and silently moved over to sit beside him on the log. 

Xaren pulled a few short-cut logs closer, arranging them like a makeshift table. Then, he set down the stack of papers in his hands—the mission details, the reason the two of them were currently within this unnamed forest.