NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 15: Through The Forest
He followed behind, having at least some entertainment in watching the beautiful one in front of him as he walked. It was after some hiking that he remembered something, stopping for a moment—
"What's wrong?" Blythe asked, glancing back.
"Nothing, it's just…What happened to Florentine? The warrior I summoned—" He asked.
[Summoning Familiar "Florentine" to position.]
Just like that, his question was answered as snow-white particles gathered in front of him. After a moment, the tall, armored woman manifested with her hammer resting on her shoulder.
"You called me, Master? Where's that creepy guy? Did you beat him?" Florentine asked, glancing around at the trees.
"You're alive…That's a relief. No, we managed to escape though. You were a help, so thanks," he showed his gratitude.
Blythe seemed intrigued by the presence of the woman twice her own size, "You're quite the large one, aren't you? Do you possess giant's blood?"
"Huh? Who're you? I'm one-hundred percent human! Man-made!" Florentine assured, slapping her breastplate with a boisterous smile.
The look Blythe gave him was as if telling him "make sure she speaks to me properly", though he found it a bit amusing.
Moving along, it was reassuring having Florentine behind, watching their backs dutifully.
"That system of yours…Are you able to summon more?" Blythe questioned curiously with her hands behind her back.
"Ah, that's right—I should have some more available," he wondered, "System, what summons do I have?"
[PERMANENT SUMMON: (2) AVAILABLE.]
[NEW SUMMON POOL: "Greek Mythology"] [Maximum Familiar Capacity: (2)]
'A new summon pool? Like a limited banner? Huh, might try it out,' he considered, reading the interface visible only for him.
"What do you think I should go for? A weapon? Skill? Familiar?" Gael asked, unable to decide.
"Oh! A weapon! A big one!" Florentine excitedly gave her opinion.
Blythe spoke as though completely ignoring that idea, "Right now, I believe acquiring more allies is best at the moment. Your body is growing stronger, steadily. Having additional comrades will be a stronger benefit than what a weapon or ability can provide just by yourself."
That line of reasoning was one he agreed with, feeling there were better odds in greater numbers. They came to a stop, watching him as the choice was made.
He held his hand out, standing amidst a small clearing in the lush, green nature, "Alright—Summon: Familiar!"
It seemed the heightened odds were gone from the battle, leaving him with whatever fate granted him. A pillar of light collided with the ground before him, dispersing at once—
[Familiar Permanently Obtained: (R) "Pucha, Capybara Prince"]
What arrived was not a warrior dressed in steel, nor a sword-wielding legend, but a rodent the size of a large dog with bristly, brown fur.
"A capybara…?" Gael remarked, not knowing how to feel.
The mammal simply stood there idly, snacking on the grass at its feet. As it munched on grass, the stoic, fuzzy creature hardly looked combat-suave.
"This one…it doesn't seem all that handy in battle, does he?" Florentine questioned, kneeling down as she looked at the capybara with a tilt of her head.
"I have to agree…You might've struck a dud, Gael. Is this normal with your ability?" Blythe asked, looking over at him.
He scratched his head, "That's just how my system is—it's completely up to chance. Still, it described Pucha here as "Rare", so he must be kinda capable."
Though that was the case, it was hard to see any uniqueness to the docile rodent. Whatever the strengths of the capybara were, there was still another summon available, this time opting to try it—
"Summon: Greek Mythology!" He commanded while the other two watched and Pucha snacked on grass.
[Weapon Permanently Obtained: (R) "Kronos' Scythe"]
"Another rare–?" Gael reacted excitedly as the object manifested in his grip.
To his surprise, it was a weapon with a thin, obsidian handle taller than himself, ending in a curved blade that looked far too dangerous to swing around half-heartedly.
"A scythe?" Blythe observed curiously.
"Woah! That thing looks sharp, Master!" Florentine remarked, looking at the glint off of the blade.
It was certainly an unorthodox weapon, more so expecting a sword or spear to rely on, though it was surprisingly easy to wield. Despite its appearance, the ominous scythe was as light as a feather, though as he spun it around, it easily dismembered the tree branch in its path.
'Is it this light or has my body just grown that much stronger? It's hard to tell, I guess,' he considered.
"Careful with that thing," Blythe warned, standing a few feet away. "I don't believe you're a master of the scythe."
"Not exactly, but it doesn't exactly feel wrong. It's a bit natural, I think that's just how it is when I summon something," Gael theorized before resting the staff against his shoulder.
"I see. That's certainly interesting," Blythe remarked.
Moving along through the forest, it felt certainly more lively with the stoic capybara trotting alongside him.
"How far are we heading? My feet are killing me!" Florentine complained from the back.
"Aren't you a warrior or something? I'd imagine long marches are part of the deal," Gael reasoned, glancing back.
Blythe wasn't interested in hearing any of it, "Just keep moving along. It shouldn't be more than a few more hours away."
"Hours?!" Florentine groaned, dragging her feet along.
It wasn't as if he could really blame her, seeing as Florentine was at least six and a half feet with more than enough muscle, but also dressed in heavy armor. Still, he did expect a bit more resilience from the scar-covered warrior.
'Man, it's getting a bit annoying carrying this around,' he thought, leaning the scythe against his shoulder.
[Placing [Chronos' Scythe] in inventory.]
"Ah—"
The self notification from the system appeared as the weapon vanished from his grip. He stood there for a moment as the others looked at him.
"Where'd your weapon go?" Blythe asked.
"Didja drop it?" Florentine questioned, glancing around at the grass.
"No, I think I stored it—system, where's my scythe?" He attempted to address it.
Just like that, the weapon manifested into his grip from nothing. It seamlessly appeared, and just as quickly, he placed it back into the unseen inventory.
"That's handy," Blythe remarked.
"Wish I could do that!" Florentine laughed.
"Yeah," he agreed.