He quietly removed her hands from his cloak and forced them down. She hiccupped and shook in place. Ignoring the woman for now, Devon turned to Thelassa.

She rushed forward and grabbed onto the woman's shoulders. "We'll pay the amount, whatever it is, in addition. Please, Hunters. The disappearance is still fresh."

Devon closed his mouth and nodded. He turned around and addressed Alice and me standing behind him. "Cain, summon your wolf."

Alright.

While Devon pressed for more information, I backed up a few steps and held out my hand. Before I closed my eyes, Alice raised an eyebrow, and I gave a thin smile.

Okay. No distractions.

Not that it mattered. The system-guided skill came as easily as breathing. I pulled up the runic circle in my mind, conjuring the image of fangs, teeth, and claws. I let my energy rise into the spell lines, empowering the runes within. The cold of the void flared up as the runes burned a bright orange.

"Wulf!"

I felt a cold tendril lick my palm, and I smiled. Crouching low, I ran my fingers through the pseudo-fur of the summon.

"Hello, fella. I'm Cain. I need you to help me find someone, okay?"

"Woof!"

I spun around as I felt someone behind me. Alice was leaning over my shoulder, staring directly at the summon. "That's a shadow wolf. Like the Reds, their familiar," she stated.

Ah, crap. Forgot about that.

"Yeah," I replied carefully, waiting for the angry reaction to the summon.

Instead, she nodded approvingly. "So that's your first kill reward."

Huh.

"Yeah, cool skill."

She faced me with a hard look. "I'm glad you got Elias' revenge."

She walked away to join Devon, leaving me standing there with a concerned shadow beast prodding my palm with its icy snout. I reflexively scratched behind the ears and patted its head.

I guess we're still good.

When I joined the others, it was at the end of the discussion. Thelassa led the woman away while another priestess approached Devon and handed him a dirt-stained purple scarf.

"Here you go, sir. It's the only article of clothing the mother found," she said.

She bowed and disappeared deeper into the church.

Devon sniffed the scarf and then handed it to Alice. She turned it in her hand before also inhaling deeply. When she did, she held it away from her.

"Putrid."

Devon motioned for me to take it, and I raised it to my nose. I sniffed once and then quickly held it at arm's length. "What the hell? That's not a healthy smell for a child."

"It wasn't the child," Devon corrected.

"Then what? That's pretty sharp and smoky."

"Let's be off. Have your wolf join your shadow. Once we're out of the city, have it search the woods ahead of you."

He didn't wait to see if I understood what he meant and set off. We followed in step behind him, moving at a brisk pace. Several townsfolk pointed and stared, but one look at our faces and hurried steps made most hesitant to greet us.

It's almost like things are back to normal…

We reached the city gate and found it manned by two guardsmen. They shared a glance before promptly stepping to the sides and saluting in greeting without meeting our eyes.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Yeah, definitely back to normal.

Once outside the gate and far enough away from the wall that the guardsmen couldn't hear us, I had my summon emerge from my shadow, and he released a brief howl into the sky.

"Close your eyes, probe the connection you have with the summon. Access the mental link," Devon instructed.

I did as he said and felt around. It was like a feeling in the back of your head. Once you think about it, your active brain takes over.

"Done."

"Picture the skill; let the system guide you. Connect to it. Try to see through your summon's eyes."

The spell circle in my head began to spin, and I watched as the void in between rippled. The rotation continued until I felt a tug on my senses.

"Don't fight it, Cain."

His voice sounded distant, but I heard him loud and clear.

I let the black hole pull me in and felt my consciousness zip down the connection. It wasn't as if I suddenly took over the summon's perspective. It was more akin to having music play in the background as you watch something. You could focus on the lyrics, hear the noise, and understand what's being said, but it wasn't my main focus.

With the new experience, I had the distinct out-of-body experience of looking at myself from a creature only hip-level in height. I twitched, and I saw my finger move through the mental feed.

Devon stood up and walked to my side. When he grabbed me by the shoulder and shook, I nearly tumbled forward, and the connection recoiled, and my thoughts returned to normal, sans the visual perspective of my wolf.

"Remember that you're vulnerable to physical disturbances in that state. Learn to peek and nothing more. If you want to stay alive."

"Got it."

"From here on out, you two are to scout the forest and track down the monsters that took the girl. Use common sense; if you think you'll die, don't. Retreat," he commanded.

"And if that means leaving the child behind?"

I met Devon's eyes, the irises around his pupils stark crimson. Something came over me, and I felt a challenge inside my chest. The lake of magma that rested in my core flared up, and the world became a little brighter in color. It felt like every detail sharpened by a few degrees.

Alice became stiff while Devon's mouth twitched into the beginning of a snarl.

"It means you leave them behind. If you die, others die. There are no second chances, Grimm."

I growled and felt the energy sputter as my vision returned to normal. The realization of what happened hit me, and I clutched my head as the foreign thoughts returned, blaring the words into the forefront of my mind.

Leader!

"Wh-what was that? What just happened?"

Devon shook his head, his eyes now normal. "Focus on it later. Begin the hunt."

Alice took off, and I joined her while commanding my summon to run ahead. My shadow wolf overtook me quickly and bounded between the trees.

Damnit Devon. Not everything has to be a lesson!

Unsure of what to look for, I veered left from Alice's path. With Devon combing through the eastern forest and Alice scouting southeast, I directed my summon to the south while I carved a path southwest.

The forest was filled with bright colors and thick flora, but I watched my steps and jumped over the roots as I saw them. I felt my summon off in the distance, but little grabbed my attention. After nearly three minutes of pointless running deeper into the woods with nothing to show, I stopped and rested next to a large trunk.

My eyes closed, and I began to connect to the wolf. Through its eyes, I saw it moving through the trees at a much faster pace than I had achieved. It darted and weaved, running deeper until the thick canopy overhead began to shade out the sun. At a narrow stream, the wolf stopped and sniffed the ground before pivoting and heading upriver, following the bank.

I opened my eyes and continued, remembering Devon's words not to spend long in that state. After a couple of minutes of running, I stopped and dropped low.

Something rustled in the grass, and I silently removed my axe from its sheath. My fingers curled around the shaft, and I nestled deeper into the lush bush covering my side.

The creature moved closer; a small rock bounced past my head, rolling to a stop a few feet away.

I inhaled. Just out of view, I heard heavy breathing. Something solid hit the ground, and I slid my arm underneath me.

One more step.

The creature shifted in place, and hot breath blasted across my skin, smelling like berries and alfalfa mixed with damp earth.

Not prey.

I carefully stood up, and my head rose above the bush to meet the curious gaze of a three-eyed deer. Its antlers were small nubs in the middle of two sets of ears. It chuffed again, and the yellow spots of fur on its backside stood up.

I stared into its deep black eyes, the irises nonexistent and alien.

My hand slid behind the beard of my axe, but I kept it at my side, not wanting to spook the thing. It didn't attack. Instead, it twitched its nose before lowering its snout to chomp at the bright red flower growing on the bush I used for cover.

Friendly, alien deer. Of course, they exist in an alien world.

It wasn't my prey. It wasn't a monster, merely a forest beast foraging for food.

I took careful steps back and kept my eyes trained on its legs. It looked at me for only a moment before returning to its grazing.

Once several feet out, I relaxed and regulated my breathing to a normal rhythm.

Not even a week in, and you're already a savage who swings axes at deers—Hell of a change, Cain.

The deer turned my way before moving on to the next set of flowers on a bush only a few feet away. As I watched it swallow whole a colorful cluster of petals, a buzz in my connection sped up my heart rate.

A deep howl blasted through the trees, and the deer bolted away, crashing through the brush.

I closed my eyes and sank into the connection.

Come on, come on…

My brain struggled to understand what happened; the movements were too fast. But then a crude weapon sank into the ground, missing my wolf's paw by only an inch. When it looked up, the foreign thoughts came to life.

Prey!

My wolf found the target of our hunt.