Chapter 41: Hunt Rewards

His mind went to Kaelen. He said he would watch him but he hadn’t seen him since the start of this hunt.

Emeric preferred it this way. He didn’t need his older brother hanging around him for any reason.

He lay in the dark of the cave, the wyvern’s heart pulsing faintly in its leather pouch beside him.

He couldn’t sleep.

The adrenaline was still too fresh. His mind was going over every single possibility of curing Isolde. Once he could undo the curse, perhaps she would be able to begin the journey to walking.

There was the matter of her core being damaged. Could she use magic again?

No. One step at a time. First, the curse and then the other things that followed.

He tried to close his eyes but every time he did, he saw the wyvern’s jaws closing around him and he would jerk up again.

He stared at the ceiling, focusing on the rhythm of water dropping from the roof of the cave into a small puddle, creating a sound that echoed round the cave. His attention was pulled away by a system notification.

It pulsed into life.

---

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[COMBAT REWARDS CALCULATED]

That’s true. It had not given him any rewards so far. Did it take long because of all the things he had defeated? Before he could finish the thought, another pop up came.

[MAGIC BEASTS DEFEATED]

- Shadow Wolves: 6

- Stone Boar: 1

- Ember Cats: 2

- Dire Bear: 1

- Hawk-Lizard Hybrid: 1

- Thornback Wyvern: 1 (RARE)

[TIER PROGRESS: 91% → 100%]

[TIER BREAKTHROUGH ACHIEVED]

[9th TIER → 8th TIER]

[STAT CALCULATIONS]

- STRENGTH: 32 → 36

- AGILITY: 27 → 31

- MANA: 20 → 24

[CUMULATIVE DP: 104 → 114]

Emeric sat up straight, unable to breathe for a moment

He had broken through.

He felt it—the shift in his core, the expansion of his mana pathways, the surge of power that flooded through his limbs. He was stronger and maybe even faster now.

He clenched his fist, feeling the strength there.

He had done it.

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION — NEW SKILLS UNLOCKED]

[SKILL UNLOCKED: BEAST SENSE (PASSIVE)]

[RANK: E]

[DESCRIPTION: You can now sense the presence of magic beasts within 100 feet. The stronger the beast, the clearer the signal. This skill operates subconsciously and will alert you to nearby threats.]

[SKILL UNLOCKED: PREDATOR’S INSTINCT (PASSIVE)]

[RANK: E]

[DESCRIPTION: When facing a magic beast, you gain +5% to all stats. This bonus increases to +10% if the beast is of a higher Tier than you. Scales with skill rank.]

[SKILL UNLOCKED: SUMMONER’S CALL (ACTIVE)]

[RANK: E]

[DESCRIPTION: You may now summon a creature from the System’s bestiary. Summoned creatures are bound to you and will grow stronger as your Bond Meter increases. Cost: 10 DP per summon. Limit: 1 active summon until skill rank increases.]

[SYSTEM NOTE: SUMMONER’S CALL IS A RARE SKILL. USE WISELY.]

Emeric read the description again. Summoner’s Call.

He could summon a creature.

But that cost though. He had 114 DP.

He had to try. It was too good to pass on.

He thought for a moment. What kind of creature would he summon? About the many things his summons could help him with.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

He focused on the skill.

---

[SUMMONER’S CALL — ACTIVATED]

[COST: 10 DP]

[CURRENT DP: 114 → 104]

[SUMMONING...]

---

The air in front of him shimmered.

Light gathered and swirled, before something finally took shape.

A creature appeared on the cave floor.

Emeric stared.

It was small. No larger than his palm. A tiny, round body covered in slick black — wait. It was just slick black. There was no fur. Its body was the color of midnight, with two large eyes that blinked up at him. It had a long, thin tail that curled around its body and something that looked like wings?

It looked like a small dragon.

But that couldn’t be right. He couldn’t have summoned a dragon, could he?

No. Definitely not.

He stared at it, trying to make sense of the whole thing.

Its eyes were too intelligent and its black body shimmered faintly in the dim light, like there was something more beneath the surface.

It tilted its head at him, making a small baby sound.

Emeric frowned.

"What are you?"

The creature didn’t answer. It just continued to stare at him with those large, dark eyes.

He reached for the system.

---

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION — SUMMONED CREATURE]

[CREATURE: VOIDLING (JUVENILE)]

[TIER: 9th (Juvenile)]

[RANK: UNKNOWN — EVOLUTION PATH LOCKED]

[DESCRIPTION: A rare creature of void origin. Currently in its juvenile form. Feeds on mana. Grows stronger over time. Evolution requirements unknown.]

[ABILITIES]

- Mana Sense (Passive): Can sense mana signatures within 50 feet.

- Phase Step (Active): Can briefly shift out of phase with reality, becoming intangible for 2 seconds. Cooldown: 10 minutes.

- Devour (Active): Can consume small amounts of mana from inanimate objects. Cannot consume from living creatures yet.

[SYSTEM NOTE: VOIDLINGS ARE EXTREMELY RARE. THEIR EVOLUTION PATH IS UNIQUE TO EACH INDIVIDUAL. TREAT IT WELL.]

---

Emeric read the description and it didn’t make sense to him. Voidling.

He looked at the small creature again. It was still staring at him. Its tail flicked back and forth like a cat’s.

"You’re going to grow into something, aren’t you?"

The voidling blinked.

He sighed. "Fine. You can stay."

The creature immediately climbed up his arm and settled on his shoulder. It was warm. Soft. It nuzzled against his neck and made a small, purring sound.

Emeric shook his head.

"You’re not going to be any trouble, are you?"

The voidling ignored him.

I need to name this little thing.

I’ll name you Nyxie.

[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]

[NAMED: NYXIE]

He lay back down. The creature stayed on his shoulder, its warmth a small comfort in the cold cave.

He closed his eyes.

Tomorrow was the last day in this hunt. He couldn’t wait to go back to the main camp. He figured most people would be doing just the same.

Tomorrow, he would see her again.

And now, he had something new to show her.