Zachary glanced at the nearly unconscious seagull and considered it. They were competing against the other survivor groups. A captured seagull was worth double the points. It was worth it.

“If you want it, it’s yours.” He said.

Heather didn’t move and instead tugged on his arm, “Zach… we don’t have any orbs left.”

Her voice was a mix of playful and pleading.

He had traded her twenty-four summoning orbs before. But she had to share that amount among her group so she did not have any to spare. In fact, he doubted if any of the others had spare orbs.

As for him, he currently had forty-nine fresh soul orbs. He was hoping to keep them and sell them when he returned home. Each one would fetch a sizable sum. But given the situation, he decided he could part with a few.

“Fine, the first one is free. Don’t say that I am stingy.” He said and handed her one.

“You’re the best!” Heather said and had her treant to drag the giant bird over.

Zachary and the rest continued their luring efforts. Dream quickly drew another seagull over. This one was a juvenile that was quickly killed. It produced a tiny, white anima crystal like a bead of glass. These seagulls only had a normal type and no special attributes. He kept the crystal while Nellie wrote down some notes on a leaf to keep track of their overall points.

Following this, they drew two seagulls at the same time. They were both large and tough, definitely at the adept rank.

“Get ready, we’ll have to go all out!” Zachary warned.

“I’ll take the bigger one!” Carlos shouted.

“I’ll get the other,” Shuhua said.

The two seagulls landed next to the pond. One of the beasts directly stabbed its beak into the murky water. Dream managed to avoid it but there was nowhere it could escape to. Zachary quickly reached for his summoning belt and Dream’s orb, ready to cast a long-range recall.

Before the seagull could make another attempt, it was intercepted by a barrage of mud. Carlos’ bullfrog showed off its prowess, showering both birds with smelly, sticky muck that stuck to their feathers, making it difficult to fly or even flap their wings.

Following this attack, an array of green vines that had been creeping toward the seagulls suddenly leaped up, grabbing onto the closet one. The seagull squawked angrily and tried to break free but more vines wrapped around its legs and started to snake up its body.

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“Wisteria! Don’t let it go!”

Shuhua’s summon was a vine demon, a plant type Ensouled that was made up entirely of vines. It was the best at constricting and entrapping, far superior to even treants.

As for the other seagull, it had suffered most of the mud attack. Before it could move, it was beset by a crustacean that looked like an overgrown crayfish. It had a spiky protective carapace and a pair of scissor-like claws.

“Nasty, don't let it escape!”

Zachary chuckled to himself as he watched the monstrous crayfish carve up the seagull until it looked more like a featherless turkey than anything else.

“Carlos, your summon names are terrible,” Shuhua said what was on everyone's mind.

“Shut up! Deal with your own seagull first!”

While they argued, their summons finished subduing the two seagulls and dragged them away and out of sight of the other seagulls that were still circling the sky. None of them came down to avenge their fallen brethren. There was too much happening all over the beach. Seagulls were being taken down left and right by mysterious foes hiding in the trees. There was also plenty more free food laid out as the marines would summon more livestock as bait when the numbers diminished.

It was a chaotic battle all around. But it wasn’t like the survivors could do whatever they pleased. Those that chose to engage the seagulls out in the open beach quickly suffered losses. Gray wolves, insects, or flower demons; the seagulls didn’t care what they ate as long it was alive. They had insatiable appetites and attacked everything that moved.

Zachary gave Carlos and Shuhua one summoning orb each. He then checked up on Heather.

“Did you get it?”

“I got it!” Heather showed him a summoning orb that now contained a sizable white crystal.

“I think I’ll catch one too,” He said with a smile. “Nellie, do you want one?”

“Yes, boss!” She replied enthusiastically.

“I thought I was the boss,” Heather complained.

The two women shared a laugh.

“Hey, only the first one is free!” Zachary insisted.

They continued to lure seagulls one or two at a time. Zachary and Nellie both caught adept rank seagulls. Dream’s allure was simply too strong and irresistible. Their teamwork was also efficient and effective.

However, there were still many dangerous moments. One time, three seagulls came down together which resulted in a messy brawl. Shuhua’s vine demon suffered serious injuries while other summons were also wounded. There was another time when their luring efforts drew the ire of a large flock of seagulls. At least eight or ten seagulls attacked the small clearing, even knocking down some smaller trees in the process. Zachary had to recall Dream and the whole group retreated into the jungle. They only reemerged after the seagulls got frustrated and left to join other battles.

The morning dragged on. Zachary and his group killed many seagulls but the battle seemed endless. Captain Willis never mentioned a time limit. She intended to borrow the prisoners to destroy the seagull horde. They would continue until the threat was eliminated.

After a while, both summoners and their summons were worn down by the constant fighting. Their stamina and soul power were drained. Accumulated wounds were starting to take a toll.

“Let’s take a break. The seagulls aren’t going anywhere,” Heather said.

“Sounds good to me,” Zachary said and recalled Dream.

Around him, the others also recalled their summons and retreated to their camp. Right as they were about to get some rest and have some food, Heather let out a small cry.

"Ah!" She clutched her forehead in pain and turned toward the dense jungle that lay to the east.

“What’s wrong?” Nellie asked.

“My parrot died.” She bit her lip in worry, “Jerry… Everyone, check your scouts! Get ready to fight!”