Given his current strength, Xavier didn’t have problems dealing with small groups of Goblins anymore. Xavier allowed the seed of greed inside his heart to germinate, and he began his pursuit of Goblins.
Since investing more Soul Essences into his Foundation Stars decreased the droprate of Soul Essences and Common Card Shards, he started hoarding Soul Essences instead of investing them. His strength was high enough to stockpile some Soul Essences and he felt that it was necessary to make full use of the Goblin Hunter privilege, as long as he still had it.
He obtained a Soul Essence for every second Goblin he slayed, and one Common Card Shard for every fourth Goblin he killed. Meanwhile, Infected with stats similar to Goblins didn’t reward him as much. Every 10th Infected killed by Xavier rewarded a Soul Essence. Sometimes, he had to kill more Infected to procure 1 Soul Essence.
Pacing through the streets of the quaint village was one of the easiest tasks for Xavier. He had no problem taking shortcuts as he found his next target. He took the Goblins by surprise and eliminated them in no time. The screams of the Goblins and their disgusting cackling blasted through his ears like an alarm at full volume, but Xavier ignored them. He massacred the disgusting monsters and continued to move through the village.
As he was about to reach the third group of Goblins, a group consisting of more than 20 members, Xavier found a group of people hiding in a building complex that connected three houses.
At first, he noticed a few middle-aged people who were crouching on the ground. Their hair was matted and their clothes torn. It seemed they had been running around for a while. Something poked from behind them and Xavier peered at them intently.
At first, he assumed it to be one of the nefarious goblins but soon he saw little feet and scared, chubby faces hiding behind the grown-ups. There were also a few elders in the group who were failing at the task of making the kids stay put. But Xavier’s sudden appearance seemed to have startled them. He was covered in blood and reeking like a pig.
If that wasn’t enough, he was also holding blades that glinted malevolently in the dim light. No wonder, all of them were staring at him as if he was a monster as well.
Xavier saw the survivors, but he chose to ignore them for the time being. Even if he wanted to help them, he would just get all of them killed by trying to help. The street was filled with Infected and he spotted several groups of Goblins further back in the street. Helping the survivors would cause a commotion and attract both Infected and Goblins.
I’m not strong enough to protect everyone yet. I need more strength. I have to be stronger. More. I need more!! Xavier thought, his eyes gleaming fiercely. The burning flames of greed ignited in his eyes. He glanced over to the families and smiled lightly.
Just wait a little longer
Leaving the families in the houses gave them a chance to survive longer. He could distract the Infected and Goblins with his presence and continue to grow stronger by hunting everyone. The survivors could leave their hiding spot freely once the street was cleared, increasing their odds at survivability even further.
Nonetheless, Xavier felt a little uneasy leaving the desperate and helpless families alone. They looked clueless and afraid. It didn’t sit well with him to leave them alone just like that even if he had decided to ignore them earlier.
While he was in a moral dilemma, Xavier heard high-pitched sounds from further ahead. It sounded like someone young, probably a kid, was screaming at the top of her lungs. His eyes flicked to the group of Goblins that crowded around someone, or something further ahead, and his gaze sharpened. The Goblins’ cackling was already disturbing, but the high-pitched sounds were even louder – and filled with pain.
Xavier’s heart skipped a beat when he heard the noises.
Was it really a little girl getting attacked by Goblins?
Is that a human? Are they…?
His mind went blank for a moment, and he shot toward the group of Goblins with hurried strides. An Air Bullet conjured in his left hand and shot out, piercing the leg of the closest Goblin. The Goblin screamed out in pain but it was already cut in half before its scream alarmed anyone.
Another Air Bullet was conjured and released thereafter.
This time, Xavier was close enough to aim at the neck of a nearby Goblin. The Air Bullet propelled forward, stirring the wind in the surroundings in all directions right before the bullet impacted. The Goblin’s neck was punctured and a fountain of blood gushed out right after. Xavier, however, didn’t pay any attention to the Goblin. He severed the sword arm of another Goblin and conjured a third Air Bullet.
His eyes scanned through the group of Goblins swiftly until he found the source of the pained, high-pitched voice. It was not a young girl. Instead, it was a small, red-feathered Sparrow that was not even the size of Xavier’s fist. It chirped loudly in pain as it was kicked through the surroundings. Crimson blood mixed into the fiery red of its plumage, making it hard to discern how severe the Sparrow’s injuries were.
A Sparrow? That’s not what I expected….but it’s better than a little girl
Xavier thought at first while twisting his body to evade a spear thrust from the Goblin to his right.
But since I’m already here, I might as well finish my job.
The energy in his body began to churn and five Air Bullets were conjured and released in quick succession. The Air Bullets destroyed the bows of the Goblin Archers, taking care of Xavier’s biggest worry. He then used Dash to accelerate and slit open the throats of the nearest Goblins.
One Goblin after another fell victim to Xavier’s combination of Dash and Air Bullet. The two Common Cards worked great as a combo. Their potential increased further due to the ruby katana’s extreme sharpness. It cut through the Goblin’s hide, flesh, and even bones.
Two Goblins pounced at Xavier from the left, but he countered them. He eliminated one of the Goblins with a high kick to the monster’s head and slit through the other Goblin’s wrist with a flick of his wrist. The katana hummed as it moved through the air with great velocity. It cut through more enemies, resulting in more and more notifications popping up in the corner of Xavier’s sight.
Slowly but steadily, Xavier’s energy storage was consumed. His Stamina was being drained as well, but he did not yet think about integrating more Soul Essences into his Star of Energy. Instead, he regulated his use of Air Bullet while dealing with the remaining Goblins.
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Xavier noticed from the corner of his eye that four Goblins never diverted their focus from the Sparrow. They trampled upon it and kicked the Sparrow through the street. They didn’t even take note of Xavier as he appeared behind him, reeking of their comrades' blood. All the grotesque creatures cared about was toying around with the poor Sparrow, whose left wing was twisted unnaturally. Xavier stared at the Sparrow, his eyes narrowing as the glimmer of hope in its eyes dispersed. The little Sparrow that had been enduring the Goblins' cruel beating for who knows how long was about to give up.
"Will mankind turn out to be as cruel as Goblins?" He mumbled to himself, unaware of the fact that his voice was loud enough for the Goblins to hear. But that was not an issue.
They turned around, but only to see a streak of red light flash past their eyes. A moment later, their heads fell to the ground with a loud thud. Their corpses followed soon after, crashing onto the ground lifelessly.
The white wisps of Soul Essences ascended from the bodies of the deceased. They moved toward Xavier and merged into the Classless Deck. Simultaneously, a Common Card Shard dropped in front of him. He picked it up out of instinct and pocketed it, not realizing that he had completed a set of 10 Common Card Shards. Xavier was oblivious to the bright glow shrouding the Card Shards as he paid full attention to the Sparrow.
The red plumage of the Sparrow was soaked in its own blood. One of its wings was broken and twisted. But the internal bleeding and damaged organs were probably the Sparrow's biggest issue. Broken bones could be healed, and blood could regenerate quite easily in a world like this. But internal bleeding and squashed organs were not a simple matter.
Maybe it was possible to heal the Sparrow with a Healing Card. But Xavier did not have something like that.
Should I end its life? A quick death is better than dying in unbearable pain.
The Sparrow was writhing in pain, and unable to move. Yet, it tried to flap its other wing and move around. The glimmer of hope that had dispersed a moment ago had returned.
All of a sudden, something formed on the Sparrow's beak as the little creature opened it wide. Though its beak was wide open, all Xavier could see was a small ember manifesting inside. Following that, the temperature around him increased drastically. The ember shot out of the Sparrow's beak and passed through Xavier's legs before he made a move.
Xavier didn’t expect the Sparrow to have enough power to create an attack like that. But even more surprising was that he had never been the Sparrow’s target. A pained scream, followed by an inaudible mix of noises and gurgling rang out behind Xavier. He spun around and saw a Goblin howling in agony as an ember burned its face. The Goblin was missing an arm and must have acted dead to stall time and got up only after fooling Xavier that he killed all of them.
Did I miss one? I could have died.
Xavier reacted first, slitting the throat of the burning Goblin with the ruby katana. Then he turned back to the Sparrow, who’d grown even weaker than before.
No, that’s not important. Did that little one protect me just now?
Xavier wanted to ease the Sparrow’s pain by ending its life initially. However, after witnessing how the poor creature used its last bits of energy to rescue him from getting backstabbed, he hesitated.
If grandma can raise Sparrows, shouldn’t I be able to do the same? It saved me, quite literally…so it should be fine? As long as I can save it, that is…
Xavier hated owing favors. However, it was on an entirely new level if one owed a favor to a mutated animal that looked as miserable as the Sparrow. For others, it might have been a simple task to help Xavier, but the Sparrow pushed itself to the brink of death to save a stranger. That made him feel guilty.
Staring at the Sparrow and how its breathing grew weaker, Xavier’s guilt worsened. He felt like he had to help the Sparrow and rescue it to retain the humanity within him. Even if the world had turned into a slaughter fest, he wanted to harbor some hope and not turn into a bloodthirsty beast. His parents had raised him differently.
After a moment of wondering what to do, Xavier bent down to lift the writhing Sparrow from the ground. He gently scooped it up in his palms, but every little movement pained the Sparrow.
Will it survive until I reach home? It’s already on the verge of death and every step I take hurts it. No. It will be dead by the time I reach home. What else can I do? What would I do if my condition was as bad as the Sparrow’s? Is there anything I could do in the Sparrow’s situation?
Using a medic kit was out of option. Painkillers were probably not helpful either – not that Xavier had any, in the first place. So how could he rescue the Sparrow? What would he do?
What did he do to survive until now?
He increased his Foundation Stars. Suddenly, he felt as if he had found a way.
Monsters and mutated animals don’t have Classless Decks…but they should have Foundation Stars or a similar system…right? Can I give my Soul Essences to heal it? Is that even possible? The blazing boars were stronger than the Mutated Dogs. And the Mutated Dogs were stronger than Mutated Cats. Did they obtain more strength due to the variety in their starting stats, or did they grow stronger? Can mutated animals even grow stronger? I don’t think I’ve seen a stronger version of a Goblin, or an Infected either. But…it shouldn’t be impossible, right?
“Retrieve a Soul Essence from my Deck!” Xavier ordered.
Command cannot be executed. Soul Essences cannot be retrieved.
“Try again!”
Command cannot be executed. Soul Essences cannot be retrieved.
“I just want to give some of my Soul Essences to this little fellow. Listen to me, Messages, or System, or whatever the hell you are!” Xavier was slowly losing his nerve. The Sparrow’s breathing grew even slower than before. It was barely hanging onto its final thread of life.
Integrate one Soul Essence into Ember Sparrow(Dying)?
“Yes, yes, yes! Hurry up!!!” Xavier exclaimed, his heart skipping a beat.
Integration failed. Error! No Taming Class/Card detected.
Target does not possess sufficient favorability, trust, or loyalty to bypass Taming Class restriction.
“Fuck this shit!” Xavier cursed, his eyes moving to the Sparrow. He cleared his throat and tried to keep his calm, “I’m sorry to say this, but you don’t have many options. Either, you trust me, or you…die. It might sound bad…but your condition is worse. Just accept my Soul Essence, or you will die!”
Xavier allowed the Sparrow to make its choice. If it was unwilling to accept his Soul Essences, there was nothing he could do about it. At least, he would not live with the guilt that he did not try everything possible.
The Sparrow didn’t react and simply lay in his palms. Several seconds passed yet nothing happened. It seemed like the Sparrow was quite reluctant to accept his Soul Essences. That was a shame, but it was something Xavier would have to accept. He could not force the Sparrow to accept his Soul Essences.
He let out a defeated sigh and was about to find a resting place for the sparrow but he sensed something. It was only ten seconds later that he was bombarded with a flood of messages.
Ember Sparrow(Dying) accepted your Soul Essence.
One Soul Essence has been transferred to integrate into the Ember Sparrow(Dying)
By accepting the host’s Soul Essence, a bond has been established.
Error! Error! Classless Deck has been detected.
Soul bond incomplete. Taming failed!
****
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