A Dual Crest Summoner In Infinite Summoning World

Only attacks using too much Chi and base force were what he would have to look out for. At least no one would be able to stab him, even through the gaps in his armor.

Auren took another bath and wore the thin layer of pitch-black, rubber-like black particles. He could only cover his arms up to the wrists and legs up to the ankles. Above it, he wore his simple clothes, hiding it completely. And finally, above all was the new steel armor Elder Tamun had made for him.

It was quite heavy, even though Elder Tamun had done his best to make it light—crafting it as small as possible while still protecting all the important parts of the body. There was also a sword, a steel sword made just for him. It was slightly bigger than the wooden one he had used for all these years, but the increased size was perfect for him now.

He needed a trusty weapon now more than ever, especially when he couldn't show his black particles to others.

Auren was fully ready. Sable and Granny packed some bread and dry fruits for him in a little sack. They didn't have any horse other than the one Dante owned. Auren was still learning horse-riding, so he hadn't thought it wise to buy one for himself yet. Before leaving his house, Auren gave Sable all the money he had. That wasn't going to be of much use in the forest—it could even make him a potential target.

"Always stay with everyone. You don't have to fight it—just run, defend yourself, and come back to me safely," Sable said, kissing him on the forehead. Granny also hugged him, saying a paragraph worth of things, most of which boiled down to: 'You better not die out there.'

The hunting party finally reached the forest gate. Hanzo came to take him. Auren bid farewell to all, even Theren, and then turned back. Hanzo was also a commoner—better off than others financially, but still a lower middle-class commoner—not able to afford costly horses that went for multiple gold coins. So they both walked, along with the other foot soldiers and simple, small-named knights.

The nobles, their children, and the more well-off blue-ranked knights all had horses. The Earls had even brought a wagon, but that they left in the village along with the extra soldiers they had brought. In total, the hunting party had around 30–33 people, half of whom were nobles and their children. It was clear the Earls didn't want to sully their names by bringing too many people to kill one basilisk—those wouldn't make good songs.

The whole village had gathered near the forest gate to see the 'Brave Ones' off, chanting their Earl and Baron's names. Not all villagers knew what had happened yesterday and this morning—and even if everyone had known, some might still not have agreed, being in favor of the Baron no matter how horrible the guy was.

They entered the forest, slowly making their way toward their target. Auren was at the front of the group with Hanzo, the guide.

Hanzo was the only local other than Auren. Most soldiers didn't care much, but the look in some of their eyes didn't sit right with Auren. He had seen those eyes before—contempt, jealousy, and outright hate for just existing. Then there were other things going on among them that had nothing to do with him.

Such as the two Barons under the foreign Earl—they were really competitive. Even their men were constantly eyeing each other. The two Earls were still talking nonchalantly, without a care in the world, even though the monsters in this forest were fearsome to say the least. Carefree was the one with absolute power—who would know that better than him?

Auren noticed the little lady looking toward him from the back many times. The Baron's daughter was trying her best to keep her busy with chats of this and that topic. They weren't alone, though—both daughters of nobles were surrounded on each side by the sons of the four Barons and one, two—even the Earls. Trying to talk to the two girls—some succeeding, some failing, some didn't even have a chance to try.

That looked exhausting. Petricia, the Baron's daughter, couldn't even shake them off without offending them, and she didn't seem to mind the flattery and jokes at all, laughing with practiced control. Auren felt like he was amidst some fancy play in a theater. He tried his best to ignore them and focused on his surroundings.

Hanzo was constantly telling him which section of the forest they were in, how to recognize this tree or that plant, and how to read prints and signs of animal activity. He obviously wouldn't be able to learn it all at once, but he tried anyway—in a world where there was no transportation at all and everyone had to travel on their own, it was better to have survival skills. He had already decided to ask Hanzo to teach him even after this hunt ended—maybe unlike Dante, he would take him along.

Normally, 40 kilometers on horseback was nothing. But they were in the forest, and not everyone had horses. Auren was feeling the weight of his armor by mid-afternoon—the heat rising, sweating becoming common.

One of the first things Dante had taught Auren was how to maintain his Chi-to-physical-strain ratio. Controlling Chi was his strongest point—and he had more than enough in his body to use a barely noticeable boost every little distance, making his hundred steps feel like barely 20–30.

The trick was to use boosts in smaller amounts than the natural recovery rate of Chi. Dante had said it was truly difficult for black crest Summoners, but having a small body and a large quantity of Chi meant Auren never had any major problems with his stamina.

Even when some soldiers and knights walking alongside him started grunting and breathing heavily, Auren was still good to go double the distance they had already crossed.