Chapter 38: The Hunt Begins

The nobleman stepped closer.

"I find it hard to believe. You were Unblessed for seven years. You expect us to believe you just, magically— became strong?"

Emeric met his gaze.

"I don’t expect you to believe anything. I don’t care what you think."

"Forget him Tristan."

One of the noblemen said, clearly not getting the enjoyment out of what they thought would be premium entertainment.

The nobleman’s smile faltered as he caught Emeric looking at him with a deathly glare.

"You should care, Halden. The Hunt is dangerous. Men die out there. Accidents happen." Tristan said.

Emeric didn’t flinch.

"Are you threatening me?"

"Just making a friendly observation."

Emeric stepped closer. Tristan stepped back, just slightly.

"I’ve been threatened by better men than you. And I’m still standing."

Tristan’s face went pale. His friends stopped laughing.

Emeric turned and walked away.

He could feel their eyes on his back. The whispers started as soon as he was out of earshot.

He didn’t care.

He had bigger things to worry about.

That night, Emeric sat alone by a small fire.

Most of the encampment was still awake—laughter, music, the clink of glasses from the larger tents. But he was content to sit in the quiet.

He stared at the dark of the Azure Mountains.

Tomorrow, he would enter it.

He closed his eyes and breathed.

DAY ONE

The horn sounded at dawn, alerting all the participants of the hunt.

It echoed off the peak of the Azure mountains and rolled through the encampment like a wave. Emeric felt it in his chest.

He stood at the edge of the forest, his sword in his hand and his pack on his back.

Around him, nobles and their retinues surged forward. Knights in gleaming armor, mercenaries with scarred faces and hard eyes. Squires carrying supplies for lords who had never carried anything heavier than a wine glass.

But Emeric was alone and he preferred it that way.

They all gathered around the royal tent as the messenger read from a parchment.

The tent was supposed to house the king but rumors had been spreading for years that no one had seen the king and he was really dead. The queen was the one ruling the nation.

The information basically read what he already knew. The one to kill the most impressive or highest number of magic beasts would be declared winner and many rewards would follow.

The messenger folded the parchment as soon as he was done reading and another blast of the irritating horn went off to signify the start of the hunt.

Emeric watched as they ran into the forest in droves, standing back to wait the chaos before he set off.

Kaelen was somewhere left of where he stood , staring at him. Emeric didn’t care.

He stepped into the trees, allowing it to swallow him whole.

Trees that looked quite ancient— rose like pillars, their canopies so thick they blocked out the sun. The air was cool and damp. It smelled of moss and old earth. Somewhere in the distance, he could hear a river rushing over stones.

He moved quietly. His Wind affinity stretched outward, sensing the subtle shifts in air pressure—the rustle of leaves, the snap of twigs, the breath of something moving in the underbrush.

He found the Shadow Wolves first.

A pack of six.

They looked sleek and black-furred. Eyes like midnight. They circled him, growling low in their throats.

He didn’t wait for them to attack.

Wind gathered around his blade. He moved—fast, faster than they expected—and cut the first one down before it could lunge. The second fell a heartbeat later. The third tried to flank him. He spun, lightning crackling along his sword, and drove it through the creature’s skull.

The howl split the afternoon air, sending a message through the forest.

The remaining three fled.

He let them go. He had what he needed.

By midday, he had taken down a Stone Boar and a pair of Ember Cats.

The boar had been tough. Its hide was like rock, its tusks like spears. He’d had to use Wind to deflect its charge, then Lightning to enhance his speed as he drove his blade into its eye.

That was the only weak spot he could find.

The Ember Cats had been faster. They’d attacked from the trees, their claws leaving trails of fire in the air. He’d taken a burn across his forearm before he killed them both.

The wound healed. Regen was in effect.

He cleaned his blade and moved on.

He had found a cave close to the river. He dragged all the magic beasts he had killed into the damp cave, carefully covering them with leaves to secure his kills.

He would need proof of what he had killed.

He went back into the jungle, to find more kills.

He caught glimpses of people in the trees—nobles in fine armor, mercenaries with hard eyes. They watched him cut through beasts like a veteran.

"The Unblessed Halden."

"He’s not bad.

"Lucky. That’s all."

Emeric ignored them. He wasn’t there for their approval.

---

As evening fell, he had returned to the small cave. He camped outside it, a small clearing and a stream directly in front of it.

That’s when he felt something from behind him. He sensed he saw anything.

Like a change in the atmosphere. It was a presence at the edge of his awareness. Someone was watching him.

He turned around, his sword half-raised, but there was nothing there.

Then a voice from above.

"You’re better than they said you’d be."

He looked up to find a woman sitting on a branch about twenty feet above him.

She wore her midnight hair in a tight braid, a bow strapped across her back.

Her eyes were menacing, giving him the once over that made him feel like he was being stripped bare.

She dropped to the ground without a sound. Her boots barely disturbing the leaves.

"Vespera Pendragon."

"I’m familiar with the Pendragon name."

"Good. Stay out of my way and don’t be a hero."

"What?"

She studied him, ignoring the response to her threat. Her gaze moved around him to the cave behind him, seeing the magic beasts he had killed today.

"You’re not Unblessed."

"I was."

"And now?"

He said nothing.

"Do well to stay out of my way Lord Halden."

She turned and disappeared into the trees.

He didn’t hear her leave nor did he see which direction she went.

He was alone again.