Leonar took a deep breath, holding the energy pistol the way Damian had shown him, aiming at one of the cans scattered on the ground.
He lined up the sight with his target and, exhaling, pulled the trigger.
Bang!
A flash of light shot out, but it missed the can entirely, vanishing somewhere among the rocks at the edge of the camp.
Damian laughed, amused and carefree, folding his arms as he watched Leonar.
"Relax, kid. At this rate, you'll scare even the cans away," he joked, moving to stand beside him. "Let's try again. Deep breath, slow exhale, and stay calm. Don't rush the trigger; feel the weight of the gun, let your arm steady."
Leonar nodded, trying to follow Damian's instructions.
He took another breath, feeling the gun tremble a little less in his hands, and fired again.
But once again, the energy beam missed its target.
Leonar huffed, frustrated, while Damian kept smiling with patience.
"You know, Damian," Leonar said, still staring at the gun. "Something's been bugging me... How common is it to run into monsters while we're gathering?"
Damian shrugged, glancing toward the horizon.
"Depends on the area," he replied casually, but Leonar's gaze insisted, pressing for a clearer answer.
"Yeah, but, like, an average? Something that'll tell me how worried I should be?" Leonar persisted.
Damian let out a mocking laugh, turning to look at him.
"What, are you scared?" he asked teasingly, raising an eyebrow.
Leonar sighed, not hiding the truth.
"Yeah, I am."
Leonar's honest answer made Damian laugh even more, but this time with a hint of empathy in his voice.
"You're not alone, Leonar. Of course, I'm scared too. But that fear is what keeps me on my toes. That's why I practice every day—to make sure that, if something does happen, my chances of survival go up, even if just a bit."
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Leonar nodded, repeating the words softly.
"Increase the chances of survival…" he murmured, feeling his hands sweat more and more, to the point where he had to wipe them on his pants to keep a firm grip on the gun.
Looking at Damian, Leonar swallowed before asking,
"And do you think I stand a chance?"
Damian looked at him silently for a moment, then shook his head.
"None," he replied, leaving Leonar in shock.
But seeing his expression, Damian broke into a wide grin and gave him a firm pat on the back.
"Come on, relax! I've got your back, and so does everyone else. Just promise me you'll work hard and do what I ask."
Leonar nodded, grateful, though Damian's joke left him a bit uneasy.
Before he knew it, they were walking in formation, moving in line with the rest of the gathering team.
Some were pushing a cart loaded with tools and empty storage compartments, ready to collect the crystals they'd be gathering.
Soon after, they arrived in a desolate area, littered with monster corpses scattered across the ground—remnants of a recent hunt.
The gathering team split into groups, and soon they began dismantling the creatures with swift efficiency, extracting the crystals with specialized tools.
Leonar was assigned the task of hauling the crystals back to the cart and organizing them to fit as many as possible.
With the pistol now hanging at his side, he moved carefully among the bodies, making sure not to trip over the monster parts that others were still dismantling.
Driven by curiosity and an odd feeling, Leonar activated his ability.
His vision shifted again, and this time a yellow hue began to color the ground and some of the corpses.
Except for his human companions, who still appeared in a reassuring green, the yellow indicated that something was off.
Leonar swallowed and deactivated the ability; the slight burning sensation returned to his eyes, and he chose not to push himself.
'I know it's been a while since I've used it, but it shouldn't hurt my eyes this much…' Leonar thought with some annoyance.
Just then, a loud shot shattered the calm of the place.
Leonar turned quickly, seeing one of his teammates firing at a creature that, though it seemed dead, had made a last attempt to attack.
Luckily, the shot hit the mark, and the creature fell without causing any harm to the team.
Breathing a sigh of relief, everyone resumed their work, extracting crystals and securing them in the cart.
Time passed, and the process continued without further incidents, until a deep, ominous hum, almost like a monstrous wail, sounded in the distance.
The noise was guttural and powerful, and everyone in the team looked up, tense.
Leonar's instincts kicked in, and he activated his ability immediately, focusing it in the direction from which the noise had come.
His vision started to tint red on the ground.
Whenever Leonar saw that color, it meant something very bad was bound to happen.
Heart pounding, Leonar turned to his teammates and shouted,
"Something's coming!" he yelled, drawing his pistol quickly.
The others reacted instantly, unsheathing their weapons and getting into position.
The hunters, who had experience with these encounters, took the lead, forming a defensive stance that shielded the gatherers.
Leonar tried to mimic their movements, holding his pistol out front as Damian had taught him, while the creature's roar echoed, growing closer and closer.