Chapter 23: Two Flower Fawn
Over the next few hours, Ain deployed the same trick and hunted four more Horned Wind Rabbits, bringing his grand total up to six.
It was already evening by now. The previously bright sky was now dyed a deep yellow, as if a piece of yellow cloth had been draped over it. The forest floor was starting to become darker, with occasional rays of yellow light peeking through, giving the forest a sense of mystical beauty, as if something sacred would appear with the lights.
But, of course, nothing of the sort occurred. In the small clearing, with a halo of yellow light, only a chewed-up snake carcass and covered-up traces of blood were present.
Seeing this, Ain, who was hiding in the vicinity, finally decided to end his hunt.
It had taken him a few hours to arrive here. It would already be dark halfway through his journey back, so he decided to spend the night here.
Although it was risky, Ain was also filled with an unexpected sense of adventure. Moreover, he had yet to find any Misty Herbs. It left a bad taste in his mouth to leave without completing his objectives.
After considering all this, Ain packed up his bags and was ready to search for a suitable place to camp. He still had more than an hour left before complete darkness took over.
After some thought, he decided to search the vicinity of the pond first. He had noticed that only one side of the large pond was occupied by the Horned Wind Rabbits. If he could find shelter nearby, it would be for the best.
He had yet to notice any other spirit beasts nearby. It was safe to assume that this was the Horned Wind Rabbit's territory.
Even if he failed to find shelter, there was another reason for Ain to go to the pond.
After his recent harvest, Ain became increasingly aware of the extra weight from his bags. Although it was bearable, it did begin to hinder his mobility and flexibility. With this thought, he decided to stash his loot away to make it easier to search for Misty Herbs. He planned to retrieve it the next day before leaving.
His method of stashing was simple. Soon, Ain arrived at the far side of the pond, away from the rabbit lair.
After some simple scouting, he tied the bags used to store his loot together and tossed them into the pond.
The bags were waterproof and weighed down by their contents. Soon, they were hidden by a layer of algae on the pond's surface.
Ain was fairly confident in this method. He took into consideration the lack of spirit beasts nearby, as well as the small aquatic lifeforms that were clearly unable to damage the bags. Just to be safe, he had rubbed the scent masking powder on the bags before tossing them in.
After the extra weight was off his shoulders, Ain's mobility increased, and he continued searching the vicinity for a place to set up camp.
Since he did not want to head deeper into the forest, Ain searched in the direction adjacent to the pond. But before he could go further, he heard some rustling sounds in the nearby bushes.
Nox, who was floating beside Ain, quickly notified him of an incoming spirit beast. From its aura, it was at Beginner Rank-1.
Unlike the Creeping Snake and the Horned Wind Rabbit, even Ain was soon able to perceive the spirit energy fluctuations. He quickly hid behind a tree and peered out stealthily.
With some more rustling sounds, footsteps started to become audible. Not long after, a creature entered Ain's vision.
It was a small fawn, reaching only up to Ain's thighs. The fur on its back was leafy green, and its belly was creamy white. There were two small flowers, resembling yellow roses, growing on its head.
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Seeing this scene, Ain felt astonished at his luck.
"Two Flower Fawn!" The spirit beast's name and relevant information appeared in his mind.
He had seen a mission to scout for its area of activity with a reward of 6,000 star coins! This was equivalent to hunting one Horned Wind Rabbit. And this was only for its information.
Now that one had appeared before him, he had to capture it alive.
The Two Flower Fawn was a wood-attribute spirit beast, generally found deeper in the Duskfield Forest. It was a uncommon spirit beast good at healing and support. The fawn's combat abilities were subpar, but its skills such as Restoration and Vigor were highly sought after.
After contracting a spirit beast with healing and support abilities, a spirit tamer could make a living in the city without having to venture out into danger. Many teams would also welcome such spirit tamers, increasing their safety in a team.
Moreover, Two Flower Fawns would always awaken Sprout as their first innate skill at Noble quality. This was a skill useful in cultivating spirit plants.
In nature, spirit beasts only evolved when they reached the limits of their ranks. This Rank-1 Two Flower Fawn's quality was currently Noble, but it could reach as high as Transcendent. Hence, they were precious spirit beasts that many spirit tamers wanted to contract as their spirit pets.
Ain didn't waste any time and immediately dashed towards the Two Flower Fawn, intent on capturing it.
The fawn immediately noticed the movement and ran away in a panic. Although their combat abilities were weak, they were good at escaping.
Dirt and dead leaves flew in the air as the two figures sprinted across the forest floor. The fawn’s swift movements were commendable, but Ain didn't let up and continued chasing after it.
Noticing the direction of its escape, he ceased being too cautious of his surroundings.
It was running towards the direction Ain originally came from. He had already cleared the path, so the surrounding terrain was clear to him. With Nox right beside him, he would become aware of any large signs of life immediately.
The chase lasted for about five minutes before Ain caught up to the fawn. He had noticed the fawn slow down slightly as it approached a few interconnected trees. He found it a little odd and began to slow down as well.
When Ain also approached the trees, a bad feeling suddenly arose in his heart as Premonition suddenly gave him an intense warning.
At the same time, Nox also conveyed a message in a hurry. Due to their direct connection, Ain immediately understood.
There were three humans and a spirit beast hiding amongst the trees!
In the fraction of a second, the passive abilities from Ain's innate talent displayed their power. Numerous thoughts and possibilities flashed through his mind before he decided on a strategy.
‘Possession!’ Ain shouted internally, and Nox instantly used its skill.
As soon as the possession was completed, Ain stepped heavily onto the ground and turned into a blur as he jumped up and raced towards one of the ambushers.
Boom!
At the same time, a small explosion occurred right behind him.
The moment he accelerated, he briefly glanced at the attacks that had just passed by his vision: an arrow, a snake bite, and a blast of spirit energy.
The one Ain approached was a skinny man with slanted eyes. Due to Ain's unexpected response, panic colored the man's face as he hurriedly shouted, "Shie- Ahh!!"
But before he could complete his words, Ain's clawed hand dug into the man's chest, leaving a bloody, gruesome wound behind. He had failed to cast his spell in time, falling victim to Ain's first real use of Phantom Claws.
"Caw! Caw!" At this moment, cries of a bird sounded in Ain's ears.
Ain didn't spare even one glance and immediately used the momentum to land on a nearby tree branch before shuttling off into the canopy before the other two spirit tamers could react. He traveled from tree to tree, putting some distance between them before returning to the forest floor, continuing with his escape.
His escape lasted for thirty seconds, and then he quickly concealed himself, waiting for any signs of movement. Only after sensing no movement did he cancel Possession and let out the breath he had been holding.
At this point, he had already connected all the dots.
This was a trap! The Two Flower Fawn was someone's spirit pet!
Just this morning, he had become aware of spirit tamers hunting each other outside the city. Although Ain had been cautious, the temptation of the Two Flower Fawn made him overlook the dangers.
There were various instances where he should have become suspicious.
Although Ain was a Beginner Rank-1 Spirit Tamer, his ability to precisely sense the surroundings was not strong. This would only change at Rank-2.
Despite that, he was still able to clearly sensed the Two Flower Fawn before it appeared. It was obviously releasing its energy to draw Ain's attention.
He had also been carefully trying to cover up his traces, but it was inevitable to be tracked by someone more experienced.
One of the ambushing spirit pets was a Beginner Rank-1 Creeping Snake. It could've helped its spirit tamer track Ain, who had killed a few Creeping Snakes on the way.
When Nox reported the number of ambushers, Ain immediately became wary. If there were three spirit tamers, there should also be three spirit pets. He was already aware of the Two Flower Fawn, and Nox had detected the second spirit pet, which was the Creeping Snake that tried to bite him.
Thus, one spirit pet was still missing.
This was why Ain struck like a bolt of lightning and immediately escaped.