Two months later, in the northern forest of the Imperial Capital’s West Garden, Charles crouched low to the ground, a dagger in hand, his left hand gripping the roots of the grass as he crawled forward. His body hovered just above the earth, held tense in a way that allowed him to avoid making contact with the grass, muscles contracted in a constant, poised state.
"Sha-sha—" The faint rustling sound of an animal moving through the grass caught his attention, and his eyes brightened as he gripped his dagger tighter. He had been lying in wait for more than three hours, and finally, his first prey had come close.
As the noise grew louder, Charles steeled himself. A shadow appeared in his vision, and in an instant, he launched forward like a spring, swinging the dagger down with precision.
"Ci-la—" The blade sliced through flesh with a clean sound, and Charles swiftly withdrew it, flipping back onto a stone nearby with a graceful, gymnastic move. His balance was flawless, a skill honed under Jack’s rigorous training.
Opening his eyes slowly, Charles activated his "Child of True Vision," a flash of gold glinting in his gaze. But his excitement quickly faded to disappointment.
"Just a first-order cute rabbit..." he muttered, holding the twitching rabbit by its ears. It had big, innocent eyes, and its soft fur was somehow endearing. Charles scratched his chin, considering. “Well, at least it’s a start.”
In the past two months, he’d graduated from Jack’s daily beatings, finally developing a fighting style of his own. Although he was still no match for Jack, he was no longer a novice, and he’d even managed to shock Jack by revealing he could sense the wind element.
But Jack hadn’t let him rest. The very next day, he’d assigned Charles a new task. “Head to the Northern Forest in Xiyuan and bring back three prey. Do that, and I’ll teach you one of the three major combat skills of a first-order wind warrior.”
After packing lightly, Charles had ventured into the forest alone, but he quickly regretted it. The outskirts teemed with monsters, including second-order beasts and even a python as thick as he was, likely of the fourth or fifth order. After days of observation and planning, he was finally ready to hunt.
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His true target, however, was a young fire wolf about the size of a small dog. Unfortunately, it hadn’t appeared today, and he’d only managed to catch a rabbit. As he considered his next move, he heard faint voices approaching. Instinctively, Charles climbed onto a nearby stone, camouflaging himself with mud and animal dung to blend in.
From his hiding place, he could see two figures—a man and a woman—emerging from the trees. Their clothes were torn and dirty, the man’s left arm hung empty, and he walked with a limp. The woman, clinging weakly to his back, had no lower body at all.
Their clothing was familiar: they wore the tattered uniforms of Violet Academy. The man carried a bulging bag on his chest that caught Charles’s attention. He could sense their auras with his True Vision; both were first-order extraordinary beings, weaker than he was. They didn’t bear any family emblems, meaning they likely weren’t from the six blue-blooded families.
Charles hesitated, his dagger in hand, as the two drew closer. The man suddenly stopped, pulling out a Fire Control device and scanning the surroundings.
"Who’s there?" he called.
Charles made his move, leaping down from his perch. The man’s finger tightened on the trigger, but Charles was faster. He sidestepped the bullet easily and closed the distance between them, striking the man with his dagger in a single fluid motion.
The man’s eyes widened in shock as the blade pierced his throat. He collapsed, the woman falling from his back onto the ground. Blood sprayed onto Charles’s face, and he wiped it off with his sleeve before turning his gaze to the weakened woman.
“No… don’t kill me… I’ll do anything you want…” she whimpered, terror filling her eyes.
Charles paused, momentarily thrown off by her plea. Her gaze drifted to her ruined body, and she closed her eyes in despair.
“It’s my second kill,” he murmured, and the dagger came down swiftly, silencing her for good.
He dragged their bodies behind a nearby rock, carefully checking the man’s belongings. It was the first time he’d killed someone directly, and to his surprise, he felt nothing—not remorse, nor satisfaction, just an eerie numbness. He guessed that Jack’s relentless training had hardened him in ways he hadn’t realized.
Glancing at the woman’s face, he felt a shudder and shoved her into the brush without even searching her further.
“Well, sister, you tried. It wasn’t necessary.”
There was no time to linger; blood pooled on the ground, and he didn’t want to wait around to see what predators it would attract. Charles shouldered his bag, casting one last glance over the forest with a satisfied smirk.
The three prey were all here… and Jack’s task was complete.