“Anyway,” Zachary said and got to his feet.

“Oh, are we going?” Jean-Pierre asked with enthusiasm.

Zachary didn’t bother to reply and opened his supply bag. He slid four empty summoning cards into the summoner’s belt and put it on. He also took out the dagger just in case. He looked up to find Jean-Pierre and Katherine had done the same. They were now looking at him expectantly like beggars after seeing a kind-hearted benefactor. But he wasn’t such a person.

“What?” He asked, “I’m going. You two can do whatever you want.”

He then turned to leave, finding an opening in the underbrush and pushing away stray plants that blocked his way.

Katherine wordlessly followed close behind.

“Hey! Wait up!” Jean-Pierre called out and also followed.

The three of them entered the Jungle with Zachary in the lead. He went slowly, taking time to observe his surroundings. A few plants were familiar but too many were strange. The small insects flitted about all around but they weren’t much of a threat. The air smelled like trees. It smelled of abundant life and hidden dangers.

It was probably close to noon. With the clear sky, the sun blazed with unbearable intensity, especially through the gaps in the foliage. The air was so thick with humidity that one could almost taste it. After walking for only a little while, his tattered shirt was completely soaked with sweat. If the coarse fabric didn’t offer a tiny bit of protection against sharp leaves and stray insect bites, he would have thrown it away long ago.

Zachary suddenly stopped and looked up. He heard something from ahead. It was faint and he couldn’t make it out clearly.

“Shush!” He said.

He looked behind. Both Jean-Pierre and Katherine were also alert. They both had their small knives in their hands but he wasn’t worried about them backstabbing him. At least, only Katherine was directly behind him and he had a sense that she wouldn’t do something like that as long as he didn’t do anything to offend her.

“Die!”

A shout interrupted the peace of the jungle. A flock of small birds took flight in fright, reacting to the unnatural sound that never existed in this place before.

Zachary headed toward the source. His pace wasn’t fast or slow. He was still aware of his surroundings. Considering all the possibilities, this was most likely an opportunity and he needed any chance he could get.

“Haha! Die, bastard, die!” The harsh voice became clearer and clearer.

Ahead, beside a massive tree trunk, two survivors were locked in combat. The smaller person was lying on the mossy ground, their legs twitching and their arms flailing, while a large man sat on their chest, his thick fingers around the other person’s neck. The one being strangled tried to fight back but it was in vain. Their punches already lacked any real strength.

The large man looked up and glared at the approaching Zachary.

“Back off! This one is mine!” He snarled.

His eyes were crazed and bloodshot. This combined with his wide chest and messy gray beard, he was more like a wild beast than a person.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“We should kill him,” Jean-Pierre whispered, his voice unexpectedly cold.

Zachary frowned. He had also considered killing this ugly old man for the extra supplies. After all, he had killed a few people already. But he wasn’t a murderer. He hadn’t made a decision so quickly like Jean-Pierre.

“I’d rather not. Let’s go.” Zachary said.

By now, the person beneath the large man had already stopped moving. The opportunity had passed.

Zachary turned and left.

Katherine followed obediently.

Jean-Pierre gave the killer a disdainful look before quickly catching up.

“We could have taken him,” Jean-Pierre said. “I know you were thinking about it too. And Katherine here isn’t a weak chicken either. Three against one, he had no chance!”

“Not worth it. But don’t let me stop you if you really want to fight.” Zachary replied.

“Tch… whatever.”

The trio traveled in silence for a while, each person lost in their own thoughts.

For Zachary, the death of another competitor didn’t affect him too much, even if it was cold-blooded murder. There was going to be plenty more of that in the days and seasons to come. There were only four tickets out of this place and so many people fighting over them.

To survive, to claim one of those four pardons, what mattered wasn’t a few more deaths but the summons one obtained. They were all summoners. This was a competition between summoners and their Ensouled. Otherwise, there was no point in humanity’s millenniums of progress.

“Shh!” Zachary sensed something.

He signaled to his group and hid behind a large fern.

Just ahead, there was a wild Ensouled. He was able to sense its presence before he could see it. This meant it was either not good at hiding, confident in its own strength, or both. This could be either good or bad depending on what kind of Ensouled it was.

The beast was large enough that it towered over the nearby bushes and saplings. Its hide was greenish and looked very tough. It stood on four thick legs with a rotund body, a small head, and a long appendage in place of its nose.

“Some kind of elephant?” Jean-Pierre whispered.

Zachary nodded but he wasn’t sure what kind. In place of ears, the beast had many growths that looked like large leaves. They were verdant and vibrant and formed a ring around the beast's neck like a mane.

Their group was still far away and the beast hadn’t noticed them. It was happily munching on the plants and flowers in its surroundings, leaving behind a wide trail on the forest floor. It was probably the one responsible for creating natural paths in this jungle.

“Should we fight it?” Jean-Pierre asked.

This time, his voice was filled with uncertainty and a tinge of nervousness.

Zachary shook his head. He had no idea if this was a novice rank Ensouled or an adept rank. It could even be at the expert rank and he would have no idea if it was good at hiding its soul aura.

The rank of an Ensouled was notoriously difficult to judge without fighting it. Some Ensouled would change their physical appearance after they advanced but some remained identical until higher ranks. As for the number of soul paths it had unlocked, that was even more impossible to tell unless it displayed its full power.

The Old World had many elephant-type Ensouled but none like this. His knowledge was also limited to the Republic of Adorin. He knew a little about neighboring nations like the Kingdom of Selisk and the Bonnai Islands but not much else. Within the three continents and five seas that encompassed the Old World, there were many independent factions. Some Ensouled were popular worldwide while others were unique and even strictly controlled so that rivals wouldn’t be able to obtain them. Zachary was still twenty years old and his experience was limited.

The elephant beast gradually moved away and this made his decision easy. There was no need to risk it all so soon. It was too dangerous to fight without any summons. And even if the elephant wasn’t that strong, its sheer size made it a challenge with just three people.

Zachary slowly got up to leave but ducked down right away. “Hide!”

As he said this, shouts rang out.

“Over here!”

“There it is!”

In the direction the elephant was going, a dozen or so survivors came into view. Many of them had long sticks that looked like hand-made spears. They spread out and faced the beast in a rough arc. They clearly wanted to capture this Ensouled.

“Where did all these idiots come from?” Zachary muttered.

He watched the impending battle through the leaves. He was pretty sure that the group had no chance but he was also curious about the elephant.

“How long do you think they’ll last?” Jean-Pierre asked, also looking through the same bush.

“I don’t know, but depending on how many people die, get ready to grab their supply bags.” Zachary said.

“Haha, got it!”