Zachary returned to the tree shelter with Boba. Jean-Pierre and Katherine greeted him expectantly. He had become the informal leader of their little group. He originally wanted to ditch them as quickly as possible but now, he wasn’t sure.

“This tree is a good place for us. There doesn’t seem to be adept rank Ensouled around here but all kinds of novice rank ones. My boa snake,” He showed them Boba who was wrapped around his arm, “Has been a great help with that. His senses are very sharp.”

Boba seemed to understand the praise and wiggled its head. He patted it and it flicked out its tongue to tickle his fingers.

“He’s quite cute, isn’t he?” He asked, continuing to stroke Boba and not caring for an answer.

Jean-Pierre scrunched his nose, “Uh… sure, man.”

Katherine took a step backward as if the tiny snake was going to suddenly fly at her face.

Zachary ignored them. He raised Boba’s card to his forehead. With a ray of white light, the snake was recalled.

This was a necessity as Ensouled residing within cards should only be summoned for short periods of time. Longer was possible but that could damage the card itself. The soul bond facilitated by these cards was the weakest type and most limited. Although the soul had been captured, it was unwilling and rebellious.

If the summoned stayed out for too long, it placed undue stress on the card and the soul bond. This could end with the card shattering and the summon escaping. In many cases, the Ensouled would then attack their former masters due to lingering resentment.

Zachary slid Boba’s card into one of the four empty slots on the right-hand side. Empty cards on the left and summons on the right, this was his style. He patted his belt and looked up at the other two.

“Anyway, we can continue to catch them with the net trap and also build some bigger traps. I’ll show you guys how. Our summoning cards are limited so we don’t need to use them on everything we catch. We can directly use their anima crystals to train the ones we already have and their flesh as food. Of course, if you find an Ensouled that catches your eye, we won’t kill it.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Jean-Pierre said.

“Good!” Katherine also chimed in.

“Alright, let’s get to work.”

Throughout the morning, Zachary showed them how to build more net traps as well as other kinds of traps. Bird traps used the thinnest green vines as ropes. Hooked up to a springy branch and baited with ripe fruits, it would snare any bird hungry enough to stop by.

Deadfall traps worked well on the ground. These used large stones and fallen tree trunks to crush moderately-sized creatures. For the even larger ground-dwellers, they could build pitfall traps but that would require more time and effort to dig the pits so they left that for another day. These new traps weren’t as reliable as net traps but they were passive setups. They could build multiple ones and only needed to check on them occasionally.

These traps worked very well. It also helped that the jungle was teeming with life. Before sunset, they had caught five more novice rank Ensouled and a handful of small creatures that could be used as bait.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

The most notable Ensouled was an armored insect that looked like an overgrown pill bug. It was over a meter across when curled up into a ball. Its yellowish shell was covered by sharp spikes that destroyed the deadfall trap it had triggered. They ended up catching it by throwing their biggest net onto it and beating it into submission with large rocks.

Jean-Pierre used a summoning card to capture it. He offered it to the others but Zachary feigned disinterest to hide his weak soul while Katherine didn’t need to pretend. She seemed genuinely disgusted by all the Ensouled they had found so far. She was especially spirited in killing the ones she deemed ugly and creepy.

After nightfall, the three companions went back up the tree to rest and eat dinner. They distributed their spoils for the day. Katherine received two anima crystals since she didn’t have a summon yet while Zachary and Jean-Pierre each got one.

“What are you going to use your anima crystal for?” Jean-Pierre asked, breaking the silence.

“Not sure…” Zachary thought about it.

There were a few options. Since anima crystals contained Eternum, they could be easily absorbed into one's soul. This helped replenish one's energy after a hard battle or as fuel for soul cultivation. It was many times more efficient than absorbing Eternum from the environment.

Because of this, anima crystals had inherent value based on the amount of Eternum they contained. Back in the republic, they were used as a form of currency. Crystals from high rank Ensouled were worth more than ones from the lower ranks. Even in this wilderness, if the survivors didn’t have to kill each other, they could barter and trade using crystals.

“What about you?” Zachary asked.

Jean-Pierre shrugged, “I’ll probably hold onto them. It's pointless trying to improve any of these Ensouled. It would be better to catch an adept rank Ensouled directly.”

“We’re not ready for that.” Zachary pointed it out.

“I know. But if we can catch enough novice rank Ensouled, we can do it. Everything has a weakness, you know that.” He sighed like an old man dispensing wisdom, “The sooner we can capture an adept rank Ensouled, the better. If we can’t, it is only a matter of time until we die. I’d rather not wait for it.”

“We need a plan.” Zachary said, “We have to find the right target. It has to be an isolated one. We also have to build a team of the right novice rank summons to counter its weaknesses. Only then will we stand a chance.”

“Right, and we’ll need everyone…” Jean-Pierre emphasized that last word and glared at Katherine, “To contribute.”

“You don’t have to worry about me.” She retorted.

“Oh yeah, what are you going to do? Stab the adept rank beast to death with your fruit knife?”

She snorted, “I haven’t found the right Ensouled.”

“You… why are you so difficult?”

“…”

Sensing that this argument would go nowhere, Zachary got up and headed for his branch to rest.

Jean-Pierre, Katherine, and himself; they each had their preferences and it was difficult to change them. They were still strangers to each other and also competitors. Each person was different and so were their ways of summoning.

Jean-Pierre had no special requirements for his summons as long as they were strong, as long as they could beat up other Ensouled. He currently held the purple stag beetle and the yellow pill bug. He had also caught another summon the night before but it was much weaker than the other two. Therefore, he released it from its card and killed it for its anima crystal. It didn’t matter that he had already formed a bond with it, albeit a weak one.

Katherine was a far more finicky summoner. She had a very narrow preference and she stuck to it. Zachary had a hint of what it was but he wasn’t certain. She hardly said anything to either of them. Even so, he found it silly that she was being so stubborn about it. They were in the New World. She was putting herself at a great disadvantage. But she didn’t care and didn’t waver.

As for himself, Zachary didn't have many requirements. He wasn’t picky like Katherine but he wasn’t so focused on fighting ability like Jean-Pierre. His Boba appeared weak and useless but it had great senses. And since he had bonded with it, he wouldn’t be so heartless.

Any Ensouled was fine with him. Each one was blessed by the mysterious energies of the world. Each one was unique and had its way of surviving. He was interested in exploring and learning about all of them.