Ethan's heart pounded in his chest as he stood face to face with the Antler Deer, its massive horns towering far above him. The creature's eyes glowed with a malevolent red light, and its hooves thudded against the dirt road with a menacing rhythm. All in all, Ethan felt that the fight was about to reach its climax.

Without hesitation, Ethan ducked, lowering his center of gravity, and jumped at the creature. The blade in his hand shimmered in the afternoon light, and he felt a surge of energy course through his body as he grasped the hilt tighter mid-jump. Here we go! Ethan screamed in his head.

He charged forward with a fierce battle cry, the sword high above his head. The Antler Deer responded to his charge with lightning-fast reflexes, lashing out with its powerful hooves. Seeing this, Ethan dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding a crushing blow to his chest. Shit, he thought, recognizing how close the creature came each time with its blows.

He danced around the creature, his sword flashing in the sunlight as he slashed and thrust with incredible speed and precision, cutting deep into the creature’s limbs and hide, drawing black blood. The Antler Deer snarled and snapped, trying to catch him off guard, but Ethan was too quick and agile, evading its strikes with what seemed to the monster surprisingly easy. All those hours with Gloomy sure are paying off now, Ethan thought as he avoided yet another of the creature’s attacks and got ready to go on the offensive.

He leaped into the air, his sword trailing behind him like a comet, and aimed at the creature’s neck. The Antler Deer did not wait for Ethan’s blow to connect and lunged forward; its antlers poised to skewer him while he was vulnerable. Ethan smiled and disappeared in a flash, reappearing behind and above the creature, coming down like a rocket - sword first.

He sliced into the creature's flank with a deft stroke, drawing a spurt of thick blood, and rolled away from the beast. The Antler Deer bellowed in a fury, spinning around to face him again, unable to land a blind kick at Ethan’s position where he was just a second ago. Oh, no, you don’t, Ethan thought, evading the kick.

Ethan didn't flinch and met the creature's gaze with steely determination, his jaw set and his eyes burning with a fierce glare. He knew he had the power to defeat this monster, no matter how powerful it thought it was. Moreover, he now knew there were larger and scarier monsters out there than this deer right before him.

He circled the creature, remembering the tiger he had defeated and the prey in its jaws. But, come to think of it, it caught a deer similar to the one right here, albeit a bit smaller, he thought, observing the creature and seeing the similarities.

The battle raged on as the two combatants locked in a deadly dance. Ethan's sword, made from pure mana, glinted and sparkled, leaving trails of shimmering light in its wake with each slash connected with the deer's tough hide. The Antler Deer's hooves pounded against the pavement, sending clouds of dust and debris into the air, unable to catch Ethan in his teleporting, which he had started to get the hang of.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Ethan saw his opening. He darted forward with speed, his sword blazing with magical energy. The Antler Deer lunged once more, but this time Ethan was ready.

He teleported, reappearing directly above the creature's head mid-strike. Ethan spun, and with a mighty stroke, he brought his sword down at the creature’s head, slicing through the deer's skull with a sickening crunch. Black bile spilled all over Ethan as he flew over the beast and landed in a comical roll next to it.

The creature fell on its side, its size shaking the ground, and let out one final, mournful cry. Then it stilled, its eye still locked with its foe. Ethan stood there for a moment, panting and sweating, his sword still held aloft. He had won the battle but at a cost, as he noticed a pain in his left upper thigh. Touching it, he saw a stroke of red on his fingers. Then he stumbled and sat down.

He dismissed his sword and turned away from the fallen creature to look at the carriage, seeing that the women in it were safe. Then, seeing that the monster was not moving and Ethan was on the ground, Claire jumped out of the carriage and ran toward him, despite Alice’s pleas and grasping hands.

Looking back at the deer, Ethan noticed the notification next to it and mentally selected to open it.

You have defeated [Antler deer]!

Do you want to loot [Antler deer]?

Yes/No

He mentally selected ‘yes,’ watching new items appear in his storage.

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[Antler deer] has been looted!

* [Monster essence (mithril)] has been added to your storage.

* 50 [Aspect tokens (mithril)] have been added to your storage.

* [Stone of Swiftness] has been added to your storage.

Ethan pulled out the stone to examine it, reading its properties.

[Aspect of Swiftness] (aspect, rare)

An aspect seed containing the power of speed.

“Are you all right? What is that?” Claire asked as she reached Ethan and crouched down, first looking at the slightly red patch on his thigh and then at the shimmering and transparent orb in his hand, noting the clear, crystalline material that glowed with soft light and shimmered as if filled with a liquid.

“Is that…?” she began, her eyes wide.

“Yea, an aspect seed,” Ethan said, ignoring the pain in his leg, handing the seed to Claire, who took it, turning it around and glancing back at the carriage.

“How did…? Where did you get it? Wait, you can loot monsters without a gathering ritual?” she asked quietly, giving the orb back to Ethan, who nodded in turn.

She glanced at his injury and then back at the carriage and said hurriedly, “Ethan, listen. You must think Alice is as playful as she looks, but she can be devious. Hide the orb, and do not tell her that you have looting abilities. They are quite rare and valuable. You understand?”

Ethan nodded, “Sure, but why? You seem to have enough wealth as it is, and I doubt this little orb here is worth much.”

Claire shook her head and said, “As fun, as she is, I have seen her lose her way a couple of times with people who thought of her as a friend. If she wants to have something, she will do anything in her power to get it, even if it means selling out a stranger who saved her from some bandits, as he is as clueless as he looks. Ethan, be careful around her and others in Veer. The world is not as simple as you make it out to be.”

He nodded in understanding and said, “All right, I got it. So keep my head down and blend it. That is the deal?”

“Yes, until you are stronger,” Claire explained quickly, seeing Alice run up to them.

“Oh my!” Alice exclaimed, looking first at the deer and then back at Ethan. “Ethan, you defeated that vile creature. And what a fight it was! You were dashing in and out like it was nothing! How did you manage it? Wait, was it adept rank?”

Ethan decided to lie a bit, storing the orb behind his back, and said, “No, apprentice. Otherwise, I would not have left the fight relatively unscratched.” Then, seeing as the monster slowly started to dissolve, he got up and winced.

“Are you all right?” Alice asked with concern, extending her arm to support him.

“Yea, yea, I am going to be all right. Let’s get back on the way. Would not want to arrive after sundown, yes?” Ethan said and started moving toward the carriage.

Seeing what Ethan was doing, Claire added, “Yes, let’s. Give me a hand Alice.” Both women held their hands out as Ethan took them and returned to the carriage as quickly as he could.

Once inside, Claire shut the door and started their trip back to Veer, glancing out the window to see that the monster had lost almost all its shape, and the black bile it left in its wake had begun sinking into the ground.

As they were on their way, Ethan touched the wound, surprised to find it partially closed already and not as painful as before. “Do the aspect seeds increase the body’s resilience?” he asked, surprising both girls.

“But of course,” Claire confirmed. “By absorbing an aspect seed, you start accumulating mana in your body, gradually transforming it from flesh and blood to something made from pure mana. It does, however, become mostly mana only at paragon rank when we believe those who have achieved it have gained full immortality. How quickly though you begin depends largely on your rank.”

“Right, Claire, as if someone had ever confirmed that rumor. Paragons do not hang out with us simple folk. Who knows what they are actually doing out there,” Alice said.

“What do you mean somewhere there? Are these guys like figures of myth?” Ethan asked.

“Not myth,” Claire explained. “Not all of them are that well known or public about their doings. Veer has not seen one for decades. Some even think that those who achieve such a rank leave Erde altogether. It is theorized that you gain access to some powerful abilities to travel the world and even leave it upon reaching paragon rank. No matter what aspect abilities you started with.”

“Really?” Ethan asked his hopes of getting back home renewed at the news.

“Calm down, Ethan,” Alice said. “It is just a rumor. And what is more, paragon rank is not something everyone achieves. Almost no one does. Expect the lucky few who do not share how they managed to do it in the first place.”

“By fighting monsters, of course,” Claire explained. “How else? All the texts I have read point to the fact that the only way to progress beyond grandmaster rank is by fighting monsters. That is the only known way to accumulate enough mana to advance. Even though everyone believes using cores is the way to progress.”

“Not everyone,” Alice said. “I have heard that some guilders avoid them like the plague. I do not know why, however. Nevertheless, their choice keeps the price lower for the other nobles buying them up to advance their aspect seeds.“