Grone stood, stretching. "I'd like to teach you more about mana, but that's all for today. Trying to teach you everything at once would likely just confuse you. So, it's time to go home."

Tyler stood as well. "Okay, then." He picked up the bag of stones, emptied the stones into his pocket, and then took the empty bag with him. They both then headed towards the main road.

As they walked, Tyler said, "Oh, I've been meaning to ask you something."

Grone glanced at Tyler as they continued walking. "What is it?"

"It's about pets," Tyler continued. "When I was training here alone, I went to the main road and climbed onto George's wagon. He had a blue craven with him. He said it was his pet and told me about tamers and how people can have pets. Is all of that true?"

Grone said, "If he told you that tamers are rare and pets are rare as well, then it's true. Tamers can tame demon God's spawns and make them do as they command. They can also bind the pet to another person. It's not really a pet, to be precise. We just call them pets, but it's more like a slave. You can treat it as a pet, though. It will do anything you say. Pets can retaliate, but these 'pets'—these demonic spawns—can't. We call them pets, but they're essentially slaves that can't fight back."

"So they can't hurt people?" Tyler asked.

Grone shook his head. "No, they can't hurt the person they're bound to, or the tamer who tamed them. Think of it like this: a tamer might tame a creature like a hex horn. That hex horn will obey the tamer's commands. If the tamer binds the hex horn to another person, it will obey both the tamer's commands and that person's commands. If that person tells the hex horn to attack someone else, it will, provided the tamer doesn't give a conflicting command. But if that person tells it to attack the tamer, it won't. It can hurt others, but not its tamer or the person it's bound to. And tamers can only bind their pets to one person at a time."

"Oh," Tyler said, "Yeah, that's how tamers work. Oh, and tamers can fight too, you know. Just so you know, being a tamer doesn't mean they rely on their creatures. Some tamers are incredibly skilled fighters in their own right, though they're rare. Most people who meet tamers ask them to bind a creature—or pet, as we call them—to them, and they pay the tamer for the service. If I met a tamer, I'd probably do the same."

"Oh," Tyler said, "Yeah, that's how tamers work. Oh, and tamers can fight too, you know. Just so you know, being a tamer doesn't mean they rely on their creatures. Some tamers are incredibly skilled fighters in their own right, though they're rare. Most people who meet tamers ask them to bind a creature—or pet, as we call them—to them, and they pay the tamer for the service. If I met a tamer, I'd probably do the same."

Silence fell between them as they walked. Tyler's stomach rumbled; he was hungry. His tongue, however, craved something sweet. He thought about going back to buy an apple. After all, it was the only fruit here that was familiar to him, a taste from his old world. All the other fruits were alien, but the apple felt like home. He even remembered Grone using apples as examples when explaining the local currency.

They reached the main road and waited. After some time, a carriage came from the town, passing them by. The driver was a stranger, and the carriage held four passengers: what looked like two hunters, and two others who weren't armed or in armor. They simply passed through. Tyler and Grone waited, and waited. It felt like two hours passed before the same carriage reappeared, heading back towards town. Finally, Tyler said, "Why did it taking so long for another wagon to come along?"

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Grone said, "Well, you saw that I wasn't working today, right? Most people don't work today. It's the anniversary of the Demon God's defeat. People celebrate, and it's not a typical workday. It used to be a much bigger celebration, but it's toned down over the years."

Tyler said, "Oh, so that's why it's taking so long."

Just then, a wagon stopped beside them. Tyler and Grone climbed in. Grone paid the driver four copper coins.

"I could have paid," Tyler said. "I have the money."

Grone shook his head. "No, it's okay. You should save that money for when you really need it later." They settled onto the bench of the wagon. Tyler then asked, "What level do I need to reach to become an E-rank hunter?"

Grone said, "You need to reach level 22."

Tyler's eyes widened. "Level 22? To become an E-Rank?"

Grone said, "Don't worry, level 22 is actually the easiest level to reach. As I told you, the higher you rank, the harder it gets to level up. It's easier if you fight stronger, higher-level monsters, or train so intensely you nearly kill yourself every time... but, as I said, it's not that easy."

Tyler started wondering how much he'd level up this time, if at all. He asked Grone, "Hey, what happens if a person kills another person's pet? Will they be able to level up from that?"

Grone looked at Tyler with a suspicious eye. "Yes, they can. Are you thinking of killing someone's pet or something?"

Tyler raised his hands defensively. "No, no! I'm just wondering if the rules are the same."

Grone sighed. "A monster is still a monster, even if it's someone's pet. It doesn't change their origin."

The wagon reached town, and they disembarked, walking to the market before heading home. The sun was setting as Grone opened his door; it was unlocked, as expected. His wife was inside, cooking; the aroma was delicious. Tyler also entered, greeting Grone's wife. She returned the greeting and asked, "Where were the two of you?"

Grone coughed, then said, "Oh, we were at Hector's. Hector and Adam were crafting some weapons—well, Adam doesn't really know how to craft, he was just helping—and I was helping Hector too. We spent the day there. I wanted to see how Adam was doing with his job." Lisa, Grone's wife, smiled. She still harbored some suspicion but let it go. "Well, okay," she said. "I hope it went well. Anyway, Dinner is just getting ready"

"Yeah, okay," Tyler said, heading into the kitchen. He went to a barrel in the corner, took a wooden cup, and dipped it into the barrel, drawing out fresh water. He drank deeply, three cups in total before he was satisfied. He was very thirsty and tired. "I'll be resting in that room," he announced.

Lisa came and sat at the table beside Grone, her face etched with concern. Grone asked, "What's wrong?"

She sighed. "Were you really just helping Hector today?"

Grone replied, "Yeah, we were just helping Hector."

"You weren't training him or anything, right?" she pressed. "I thought we both agreed that Tyler shouldn't become a hunter. It's too dangerous for him. He could die."

Grone said, "I know, that's why we were just at Hector's today."

Lisa felt a surge of anger, but she forced herself to calm down. It was so obvious her husband was lying; she could always see it in his face. And he knew she knew, yet he still lied. She sighed. "Okay," she said, "but please… I know you may not be training him, but if you're both planning on Tyler becoming a hunter, please take care of him. And I don't want you to be in any danger either, understand?"

Grone chuckled softly. "Alright, I'll do just that."

Tyler sat in a lotus position on his bed, training. He felt his mana; this time, it was already spread throughout his body. He didn't need to guide or direct its flow; it was simply there. It felt strange, yet incredible. It wasn't overwhelming power, but it was his power, a intangible part of him. He sighed, shifting to a more comfortable sleeping position. "I wonder how much I'm going to level up," he murmured before falling asleep.

Meanwhile, in the other room, Grone's wife stood and returned to her cooking. Once dinner was ready, she served it, then went to Tyler's room and knocked. She opened the door to find him fast asleep. "Hey, Tyler," she said, gently shaking him awake. Tyler's eyes fluttered open; he saw Grone's wife standing over him. He started to speak, but she interrupted. "Dinner's ready. I've served it." She then returned to the sitting room.

Tyler wondered if Grone's wife had been angry with him. Then he looked up and saw a system notification: "Level up. Level up." Tyler was surprised. He'd expected one level, or none at all, but two? Was this luck? he wondered. He muttered, "Status," and his stats appeared before him. "Does that mean...?"

SPECIES: Human

NAME: Tyler Evans

RANK: F LVL: 15

CLASS: Craftsman

HP: 60/60 MP: 60/60

STR: 51 AGI: 45 DEF: 61

STM: 33

STATUS: Healthy

Skills: Armour Craft, Weapon Craft, Weapon Mastery

Tyler quickly said, "Equip Bashing Hammer," and the weapon materialized in his hand. It looked incredible. The hilt was long, the length of his arm, and the hammerhead was silver and rectangular. The edges had small, blunt spikes, sharp enough to look menacing but not sharp enough to cut. In the center of the hammerhead was a symbol: three concentric circles.

Tyler asked himself, "What's so special about this hammer?" A system text box appeared beside the hammer, reading: `Attack: 67`. Before Tyler could fully register his surprise, another system message appeared, nearly giving him a heart attack: `User can now use skill: Bash.` Tyler exclaimed, "Wait, isn't that the skill those slimes use?"