~The leaflings need to start pulling their own weight as soon as possible. If that thing continues to do as it pleases, the decay might eventually spread deeper into the forest,~ Lucius thought to himself, before grabbing Hannibal and Alpha with his tail, and galloping towards the camp.
On his way there, he pondered over things more carefully. Could he and that creature be linked somehow?
It was far-fetched, but he had felt abnormal levels of hostility towards the creature's energy. Like magnets repelling each other.
~In fact, what the hell am I even doing in this world?~
Lucius had long accepted that this wasn't a dream, and perhaps due to his former training, he had gotten over that fact a little too quickly. However, he had never actually stopped to ask himself why. Why was he here? Who brought him here?
At the very least, he knew that whoever brought him here must've had a very important reason. Otherwise, why else would he have a system attached to his brain?
~A god perhaps?~ he thought, finding the thought a little idiotic. However, rationally speaking, the presence of magic through everything on the table.
~Let's say it was a god. Why did it bring me here without saying anything to me?~ he pondered.
Though after some consideration he realized that once again his lack of knowledge was stopping him from making any viable theories.
~If only the 'furry-folk' weren't such aggressive creatures. Perhaps I could've enquired more about this world from them, since they seem to be the dominant species. But there was mention of the 'owners of the green forest' perhaps they might have some information,~ he thought to himself just as he arrived at the camp.
"You guys go rest, speak nothing of what you saw. I'll give an order to avoid going to that section of the forest later. Right now I don't want the leaflings getting frightened over something they have no effect over," Lucius ordered, before climbing up a tree to continue his pondering.
He left Alpha and Hannibal with a lot of unanswered questions. The two of them were not complete idiots, they had lived a few years, and not once had they seen a creature like that. They were near certain that whatever was going on involved Lucius.
The two abnormalities just had to be linked, and Lucius knew that they might've suspected this. But he had no answers for them... he had no answers for himself.
~Hmm, this should be a secondary task. Though I am itching to know what brought me here and why, I have to gain enough power to hold some form of influence. Otherwise, the owners of the forest won't deal with me. Or worse, whoever brought me here might decide that it was a mistake and I'll be powerless to stop it,~ he thought to himself.
~Only more reason to get everyone locked and loaded as fast as possible,~ he decided, before closing his eyes for a few minutes of rest.
*
Early the next morning, Lucius gathered Asclepius and Pagan and headed for the forest. He had ordered Alpha and Hannibal to keep watch of the leaflings while they were away.
"So are you going to tell me why exactly you dragged me from my experimentation?" Asclepius asked.
"Pagan is going on his first mission, and you on yours," Lucius explained, both Pagan and Asclepius riding on top of his back as he galloped deep into the forest.
"Lighted One, are we really going to find boars out this far?" Pagan asked.
"Probably not," Lucius answered promptly.
"Wait, what's my mission?" Asclepius butted in before Pagan could ask a follow-up question.
"You are going to acquire information lines, boar hunting spots specifically," Lucius replied.
"Information lines? You really think creatures are just going to tell me where their hunting spots are?" Asclepius asked, unconvinced by Lucius's apparent lack of logic.
"For the right price, yes. Besides, creatures of your size wouldn't be able to hunt boars anyway. If perhaps they saw a nesting ground during their travels, I'm sure they'd be more than willing to spill for a bit of meat," Lucius replied.
"Ah, I see. But we didn't bring any meat," Asclepius said after some thought.
"That's where the first part of Pagan's mission comes in. The Warring and Special Operations Department's first division is the hunter's division. I need to know that I can rely on you to hunt even when I am not around. And that means being able to differentiate creatures that you can handle from creatures that you can't," Lucius explained, before halting at a trail.
They were now well within the pristine part of the forest, as Lucius called it. And though the trees here were incredibly thin, they were also very densely distributed, making for excellent cover.
"Okay, now start your hunt," Lucius said, taking Asclepius and Pagan off his back.
"Lighted One, where is this beast I will be hunting? Is it perhaps up one of these trees?" Pagan asked, completely lost.
"There is a trail here, meaning that this path is traversed quite often. You also have your earth sense, so you should have an idea if a creature is close by, and whether or not you can handle it," Lucius explained, already sensing three creatures a distance away.
"I don't sense anything," Pagan said after a moment.
"Amature," Asclepius snorted, brushing past Pagan as she followed the trail.
"The creature is probably smaller than a boar based on the footprints. A beast definitely, a four-legged one," Asclepius whispered, bending over to get a better look at the footprints.
"How do you know that?" Pagan asked, moving close to take a look as well.
"I was born a hunter," she answered rather quickly, shoving Pagan away as he got a little too close for comfort.
"Guess you aren't completely useless then," Pagan replied, shoving her back with even more force.
~They remind me of me and my sister when we were younger,~ Lucius thought, quickly suppressing the memory as it was about to dig its way out.
"So Lighted One, should we follow it?" Pagan asked.
"You're the leader of this operation, I'm merely here to give you marks," Lucius replied.
