He slowed to glance around the paddock as soon as he made it out the doors. The herd was milling about. Many were resting quietly. It was the small hours of the night, and they were always exhausted from being overworked.

The exception was a small knot of agitated horses in the corner. Max had cut the pregnant mare and the mule out from the rest of the herd and forced them to stand near the far gate to the exit.

He really understands me, Tobias realized, at least to a point.

He glanced over his shoulder to see that the smoke had begun to drift from the open barn door. It had grown late enough in the night that it was almost early. Soon, Support pathers who had to start breakfast for their betters would be up and about. Someone would notice the smell of smoke and start looking.

Other horses had already caught the scent and were drifting away from the barn with agitated, whiny whickers.

Tobias went to Max and the other two. With soft words, he grabbed a lead rope from his storage ring—it appeared in the palm of his hand like magic—and reached to close the pre-System clip to the loop on the mare's halter. When his fingers brushed her fur, he received another prompt.

Do you wish to train this steed?

1/3 Steeds In Training.

He had forgotten that he had received two more slots along with his additional two levels. The answer was easy.

Yes, he thought.

Another prompt: "Do you wish to make this your primary steed?"

No, he thought firmly. The mare was a good, stolid horse, but she lacked that special something Max had.

The moment he selected the last prompt, a light flashed in the back of the mare's brown eyes. She turned to stare straight at him, and he swore he saw recognition there. Something that was more than animal.

"Hold still," he said softly to her. "We're getting you and your baby out of here."

Then he went to the mule, who was extremely unhappy with tonight's circumstances. He clearly wanted to join the rest of the herd, but every time he moved, Max would shove him back. And when Tobias walked up to him, he presented his hind end, which was a not-so-subtle threat to either back away or get kicked.

Max bit his neck, and the mule squealed. Tobias used that distraction to slip beside the upset mule—a move so dangerous he would have never done it under any other circumstances, but they were running out of time—and laid a hand on his side.

He immediately received the prompt to train the steed, accepted, then declined having him as his primary.

Suddenly, the mule went quiet. He whipped his head around and stared at Tobias with a look of frank disbelief on his horsey face. Tobias clipped the rope onto his halter.

"Okay, I'm going to pony you, which means that you and the mare will follow behind Max. We're going to go fast, so you two have to keep up."

Then he tied both ropes to Max's saddle, one on each side, and ran to the open gate.

This was just in time because the fire had been steadily growing and someone had finally noticed. Smoke was now pouring out of the open doors, and a sullen yellow-orange glow could be seen through the slats in the wooden boards.

"Fire!" a voice called in the distance. "The barn's on fire!"

Tobias pushed open the paddock gate. The horses watched as it swung open, but they were creatures of habit and didn't understand freedom when they were presented with it.

From behind, Max let out a defiant scream and then pushed a few of them to get moving forward.

Then one of the burning timbers inside the barn fell in with a loud crash and a rush of hot air that threw a few sparks out into the paddock. That was enough to startle the herd. With Max's ungentle encouragement, that startle turned into panic. Tobias had to leap to the side to keep from being trampled as horses rushed past him and away from the barn.

Max ran by, bringing up the back of the herd, with the mare and the mule tugged along behind him. It may have been an accident, but he ran just close enough for Tobias to reach.

Tobias leapt up, catching the saddle horn and pulling himself up the rest of the way.

The stirrups were too high—he'd underestimated the length of his legs, probably going by estimations of when he'd been a child—and Max had a long, uphill stride he had never experienced before. But this was the first time he had properly ridden on a horse since the System had destroyed his life.

For a moment, Tobias felt nothing but exultation and triumph.

And the second that he properly found his seat, Max switched from a bumpy, long stride trot to the next gear: a three-beat canter that forced the mule and the mare into near gallops just to keep up.

Tobias passed by Support pathers who were running to the fire. Some shouted questions at him, and at each other. Tobias rode on.

Behind him, the entire barn suddenly roared into flames as if it were an oil-soaked rag.

He glanced back, and for a blink of an eye, he was thrown back to the day the System arrived and his dad's stable burned. He couldn't save him or the horses back then, but he could do something now.

He kept a loose hand on Max's reins, but was under no illusion that he had control over the horse. Max wasn't trained, didn't know the commands, and pretty much put up with Tobias riding on his back only because he wasn't a strain to carry, and they were somewhat bonded through the system.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

But the Clydesdale wanted to run, and Tobias let him. Some of the free horses ran with them. Instinct told them to follow the stallion. And in a horse's mind, running from danger was the first, second, and third options. The fourth being to kick it.

So when they turned down the next lane and saw three of the Overlord's guards barring their way, Tobias gripped the reins and had to use more force on the bit than he would have liked—and a lot of heel—to get Max to stop. The mare and the mule slowed to a stop along with him.

The free horses, however, had no compunction and dashed forward, making several of the guards swear and leap out of the way. They watched the horses clatter down the street and then turned to him.

"What are you doing?" one of the guards yelled at Tobias. "You, support Pather! What are you doing with these horses?"

"Barn's on fire!” Tobias called back. “Haven't you heard?"

"So? They'll call the mages to put it out."

Yes, the mages and wizards. Elemental magic users who lived up in the castle, tucked safe in their beds. They could put a fire out, but it would take some time for them to roll out of their blankets and come on down to the village. That was, unless, the Overlord woke them himself.

The freed horses gave him an idea. Tobias pointed forward as if frustrated.

"These are the Overlord's personal mounts. I've got two already," he said, gesturing to the mare and the mule. "You want to run after and stop those?"

The freed horses already looked small in the distance. Someone from a Warrior path could match them for speed if they had the skills, and with effort. The men standing in front of Tobias didn't look like they were fans of effort. They also didn't know a nag from a thoroughbred, as the horses that had run past them were common plow beasts.

"Let him through," one said, then looked to Tobias as he took his own advice and stepped aside to give way. "Stay away from the trees, Support pather. You don't want to get caught in the wildy this time of night."

"I won't," Tobias lied and lightly slapped Max's rump. The Clydesdale shot off as if he was trying to jump a river. The poor mare and the mule were yanked along with him, but they found their stride easily enough.

Ahead, the street opened to fields. Beyond that lay the wilderness and a chance at freedom.

Tobias fully expected to be attacked the moment he stepped past the boundary of trees and into the dark forest. The wildy was the territory of System monsters, and a big reason why Support pathers put up with tyrants like the Overlord ruling their lives.

Because despite the indignities, cruelties, and forced servitude, at the very least they could count on not being eaten. Mostly.

Despite all the judicious hunting and leveling from the Warrior pathers, monsters still came out of the wild to attack those near the tree-lined border. Apparently, human beings tasted like candy to them.

The wildy was a dark place of horrors, and not anywhere Tobias would have voluntarily gone in the past. Yet, as he sat on Max's back, feeling the awesome strength of the stallion and having just killed a Warrior pather several levels above them... a part of him thought: Bring it on.

They were already halfway across the final strip of outer fields that separated Alpha City and the wildy. The only ones who farmed the border fields were criminals on punishment duty. It was considered a low-key death sentence, and he was headed right for it, but it was better than what lay behind him.

Congratulations! You have acquired a new class skill: Horseback Riding—level 1.

He should level this up fast. It was a shame that the System didn't take his previous experience into account.

Mom used to have to practically drag me off the horses, he thought with a twitch of a smile. His memories of his mother were clouded with complex emotions. She hadn't... been a very good person in the end.

He dismissed the notification and felt himself settle into the saddle in a way he was just beginning to recall. Maybe it was the new level, but he now remembered how to move with the horse a little better. He just wasn't some passenger on Max's back. Riding was an active process, and if he did it correctly, he could help Max along and reduce his strain.

Tobias glanced back and saw the mule and the mare were still keeping up. The mare looked a little sweaty, but neither were run out. They were used to working long days, and had the muscles to carry them through.

He glanced behind himself and saw the silhouette of Alpha City, now outlined in an ugly brown glow from the fire. No one had managed to put the barn out yet. Either the wizards had not been called in, or the fire had spread to other buildings. He suspected it was the latter.

Tobias hoped it didn't spread far—it would only hurt people who barely had enough to scrape by to begin with. But he knew that the more trouble the fire caused, the more chance he had to escape unnoticed.

He flashed back to the guards who had briefly, lazily stopped him. They hadn't been eager to run to stop the fire, probably because it wasn't near any of their homes.

The freed horses that had led him out had peeled off the main lane to go eat sweetgrass growing by the crops. He wasn't going to stop or waste time trying to chase them down and catch them—he only wished them the best of luck and a nice night.

Bending forward, Tobias put more calf into Max's side and urged him to greater speed.

Max seemed to be of the same thought, and within a minute, they were to the trees. The world became darker as Max entered the forest.

Tobias braced himself, halfway expecting claws on his neck the second they were in the shadows, but... there was nothing. There was even a thin path ahead. Max took it, weaving in and out of the trees easily as if he were a horse half his size.

The mare and the mule were not so quick on their feet and Tobias signaled to slow Max down. The stallion tossed his head, objecting at first, but Tobias was patient and unyielding. The mule, who was slowing the fastest, was pulling back on the rope tied to the saddle as well.

Reluctantly, Max slowed to a trot.

It grew darker the further they went inside the forest. The path became narrower too. Behind them, the mare gave an unhappy snort. She didn't like how close the vegetation had become. Anything could be hiding, lurking in there. Neither did Tobias, but they didn't have a choice.

He had no idea where he was going, other than they had to put space between themselves and the overlord. And the only way to do that was to keep going.

Before the System, the forest didn't used to be like this, all dark with loose moss hanging off the branches and an ominous feeling to the air.

Far off, an animal gave a shrieking cry, and Tobias couldn't tell if it was aggressive or fearful.

All the horses flinched, but by then they had been on the move for quite some time. No one had the panicked energy to bolt. At least not until they were faced with a direct threat.

"Easy," Tobias said, laying a hand on the stallion's neck. He urged Max into a slower walk.

They continued on, and as they went, Tobias had to make corrections every once in a while. Max wasn't used to thinking about having a rider astride his back, and if Tobias wasn't alert, he would have been scraped off the side of a tree or knocked over by a low hanging branch.

You have gained a level: Horseback Riding—level 2.

As he gently corrected Max and urged him to steer clear of obstacles, he gained another class skill.

Congratulations! You have acquired a class skill: Horseback Riding—level 1.

I'm sure the monster that eats me will be very impressed, he thought.

They followed one wildlife trail after another, and the vegetation grew narrower until finally, Tobias was forced to dismount. He arranged the other horses in a single file line, Max, followed by the mule, followed by the mare.

Then he took Max's reins and led the way to walk the horse forward while he remained on foot. Tobias thought that if the stallion hadn't been running all morning, he might have objected. But he followed Tobias more or less docilely...

Right up to the point he didn't.