Hektor had hoped that he would see civilization by now, or at least some kind of town. But half a day's worth of travel with his mount was not enough for the teen to reach his desired destination. With no map and just a general idea of a direction to go on, his journey showed no sign of ending.

The monsters he was worried about seem to be situated far from his current trail.

"I'll be able to summon another one tomorrow morning." He muttered, looking forward to the other options that his ability could provide.

Soon enough at around half past noon, his search for something different would stop. With a wooden watermill a hut was situated on the side of the river.

From an outsider's point of view, a small boy wearing the gear of a mercenary was not an uncommon sight. His mount on the other hand was weird, which is why from the moment he stopped by eyes were already on him. An old man with a crossbow welcomed him, aiming straight for his head.

"State your business soldier." The man said as he readied his shot.

"I mean no harm, I just need to ask for directions sir." The boy's tone was practiced, almost monotone the kind you would give to a person with a higher position.

"Well then sonny boy, a town's present east of here but your battlefield should be up north." The old man then raised his left hand to shoo him away.

"Thank you sir, I'll be on my way." He headed east.

"A deserter huh, with the looks of it the boy was sold to that army I've been hearing about." The old man waited until the boy left his periphery.

"Boys, capture the lad. He'll fetch us at least a couple of thousand if you bring him back as a deserter."

"Right away pops!" A lanky man with large sword on his back stated as he ran after the boy.

"Hehehe I guess we're eating good, for the next few weeks!" A smaller man with a large scar on his face exclaimed as he followed his brother to hunt the young soldier. On his back was a quiver and he carried a shortbow.

Deserters were a common sight, but these deserters also needed to hide away from the leaders that they promised to serve. They fetch a decent amount of bounty for the common man but most of the time it's not worth the trouble. But a child soldier was far weaker than a regular soldier. In the eyes of the family, this teen was nothing but easy prey. So much so that even a commoner who only knows how to hunt would feel confident in facing one.

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It was quick, Hektor was unprepared for what would happen next. He fell right off of his mount in pain as the arrow dug through his shoulder.

"Hehehe bull's eye little buddy!"

Hektor was quick to try and stand up, without even needing to command his minion the black scaled lizard pushed on to attack. Hektor's shield was knocked off of his back from the shot that sent him flying but he still had his spear in-hand. With a heavy breath he tried to analyze his predicament.

"At least two…" His lizard companion was unusually fast, keeping the attention of the lanky swordsman.

"Then I can take on the archer." Just as he said so he was forced to jump to the side as another arrow flew towards him.

"Oi Tim, hurry up with the damn lizard! The kid's kind of fast." The short one said while pulling out another arrow from a quiver.

"I'm trying to! This little bastard is a bit too fast!" Another strike of his would be dodged by the lizard as it nibbled at his feet.

Hektor rushed towards the archer, spear in-hand. A purplish light encapsulated the tip of his spear. With a single well-placed jab his spear slid through the unarmoured archer's stomach. While regular soldiers are those who steeled themselves for combat, a commoner who only knew how to use a weapon was cannon fodder compared to any of them.

Unlike the hunter's son, Hektor was used to combat. He turned his spear and spun, using the same spear to decapitate the archer.

[A soul has been added to your collection.]

"One, down."

He diverted his attention to the swordsman that finally managed to slice at the lizard's torso.

"I finally got you!"

With the swordsman distracted Hektor jumped towards his target and pierced right through his skull.

The battle was brief and it seems that they both underestimated the soldier.

[A soul has been added to your collection.]

"Where did they even come from?" He asked and just as he did so another arrow flew towards him, this time it hit him right on his left arm.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. You feed them, you teach them but at the end of the day they'll only disappoint you."

It was the old man from earlier. Hektor didn't even need to ask why at this point. "There's no town to the east huh?"

"Uhuh, you learn fast slave boy. But it all ends here." The old man aimed right for his thigh.

With his quick feet the boy managed to move fast enough just for it to graze his leg.

The old man shot arrows towards him a few more times before the Lizard could finally register the situation. The minion was wounded but the purpose was clear, it needed to help its creator.

"Just give up already, you already took down those two useless clowns. You've proven yourself, You are too injured to fight. It's time to cut your losses boy."

This time the old man really hit him right at his thighs. Empowering a spear strike with aura was one thing but usually Hektor would have a different answer to projectiles. One of the only two spells he knew. But with his mana locked, he was someone that can be handled by a regular person.

The Lizard ran straight for the old man, biting at his right arm forcing the crossbow off of his hands.

"What the-" The old man mistakenly thought that the lizard was dead, due to his son's gloating from earlier.

This chance was the only thing that Hektor needed. His spear flew forward piercing the old man's chest.

Still injured from his battle a few days ago, with no mana and suffering from new injuries Hektor could only cough out a bit of blood as a small smile formed. He then headed for the hut.

"I guess we found our camp for the night."

Souls: 7 -> 10