"Chirr! Chirr! Chirrr!!"

A bird with bright blue feathers shot out of the base of the monolith. It sang loudly as it flew over the island amidst the mist, across the deep chasms that separated it from the rest of the ruins. The bird's incessant cries echoed off the tower of grey stone and across the ancient city.

Soon after, a furball the size of a pig rolled out of the monolith. A person followed close behind. The pair dashed madly towards the narrow land bridge that separated the monolith from the rest of the ruins. Laden with leather sacks, their heavy footsteps joined in harmony with the steady rumble of waterfalls all around them.

Zachary first realized something wasn't quite right when he reached the start of the land bridge. Boba was supposed to alert him of incoming dangers with its sharp senses. But it didn't do anything as if it had decided to take a nap. He glanced to either side but saw no wolves. The path ahead was also clear.

The next thing he noticed came after they crossed the bridge unscathed. Wander's shield was intact and at full strength, having suffered no damage. In fact, nothing had attacked them at all.

"Wait... hold on a minute."

His footsteps slowed and eventually stopped. Fighting the instinct to run to safety with sheer curiosity, he broke formation and turned around. They were alone. There were no wolves or any other Ensouled anywhere in the vicinity.

Even more shocking, the pinecitta tree that grew in front of the monolith was gone. What remained of the magnificent tree that had withstood the test of time was just a short stump. Littered around the stump were countless piles of bones. Nearby boulders and stone blocks wore deep cuts and old bloodstains. These were all marks of battle, a terrible battle that far surpassed his last stand with Aaron's small group of survivors.

"Wan! What happened?" Wander asked as he took physical form.

"I don't know. They look like wolf bones." Zachary pointed to a nearby carcass.

Wander went over and sniffed the remains, "Yeah, smells like it. Do you think it was that bastard Aaron who came back for revenge?"

"It's possible. Or maybe the act of opening the doorway and releasing the wave of Eternum attracted a group of stronger Ensouled over."

He looked around nervously as if expecting to be ambushed by something. The ruins were quiet except for them. Not another soul could be seen or sensed. Yet it was almost eerily quiet as if they were being watched.

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Wander felt it too and quickly came back to Zachary's side, "Well, let's not stick around. In case that happens again."

"Yeah. Let's go, stay sharp everyone!"

Only when they left the outer borders of the ruins did Zachary breathe a sigh of relief. He could finally put this place behind him. Ahead lay a thick jungle in all directions, hiding even more unknowns and strange creatures.

They set off towards the south. When Zachary and Katherine had first arrived at these ruins, they had come from the west. He didn't want to go back the way he came. But further east would take them deeper into the New World with the potential of encountering much stronger Ensouled. That was a danger he didn't want to deal with at the moment. There were less than two months until the return of the republic navy. It wasn't a lot of time but he didn't have to rush and take unnecessary risks.

His current priority was to find a new hunting ground. He urgently needed to expand his summoning lineup and build a proper squad capable of battling both wild Ensouled and human survivors. He was now alone and could only rely on himself and his summons. Offense, defense, and support; he had to consider everything. Whatever he caught also couldn't be too weak. There wasn't enough time to improve their soul cultivation from the bottom of the novice rank to the limit and also seek breakthroughs to the adept rank.

The first slot to fill in his lineup was another scout. He currently had Boba, Blue, and himself to a limited extent. Boba had sharp senses for short-range scouting while Blue could fly long-range. They were good but he still wanted another scout in case one was injured.

"Smart, always good to have a backup plan," Wander praised.

Next, he needed a plethora of summons with strong attack power. He needed melee brawlers like what he used to have with Hammer and Oakley. He also required long-range attackers like Arrow. If he wanted to slap a tiger's ass, so to speak, he had to have enough strength to bring it down and capture it. Otherwise, it was a waste of time.

"Mm, mmm. The more we have, the better," Wander said, "If some get injured, we can throw in reinforcements."

Lastly, he needed a few summons with strong defenses for personal protection. The summoner was the most important member of the team and the most vulnerable. It was a popular strategy to target the summoner with sneak attacks. He didn't want to rely solely on Wander's shield for survival.

"Wah… are you already unhappy with me? I just bully Sugo a little bit here and there. It's not a big deal. Why do you have to hold a grudge?" Wander asked in protest.

Zachary shook his head and laughed, "Wander, it's not like that. You are equally important to me as my own life. We have an eternal soul bond, remember? If I die, you die. If you die, I will too. We need extra muscle to protect both of us. Plus, you are my secret weapon, my trump card. It is customary for summoners to hold their strongest and most important summon as a last resort. I can't easily reveal your existence, especially when fighting other people. You're my greatest advantage."

"Ah, I understand. Wahaha, humans are always so sneaky. No wonder, no wonder..."

Wander fell silent with a strange expression, as if he had thought of something unpleasant from his past.

Zachary wanted to ask but held himself back. There was no need to nosy right now. They had all the time in the world, in fact, an eternity.