Grin, who had won, cried out with his insidious laugh. His body, still unstable from being recently created, began to shrink again.
As for Fay, he lay down without caring who or what might be watching. He spread himself out and tried to rest—or so he thought. In that brief time frame, he had fallen asleep.
What felt like a few hours turned out to be only thirty minutes when he was woken up.
[Hey, wake up. You need to put your creature away. He's going to eat half the savanna if you don't.]
Fay couldn't get up for his life. But he had to. If that creature ran off, it would be difficult to catch and return it to the void.
The boy looked up and saw that Horin was the only one around. She was perched above the tree, her bird already gone, nowhere to be seen.
Fay cracked his neck and twirled his shoulders. They still felt stiff and sore from cooling down after the fight.
Looking around, he saw his creature right beside him. The large hyena had grown in size again after eating three whole meals. Nothing was left around him—not even blood.
Fay placed a hand on the creature's head and dismissed him without a word. He didn't want it to lose mana by staying in the real world and would work with it later when he summoned it again.
Then he looked behind him. Jolt was also present. The creature scanned the area as if still hungry, its gaze locking onto a distant herd of armored elephants.
"I don't think you can kill those…"
Fay forced himself up and recalled his other beast.
Horin, still above him, seemed to wear an expression of envy, which made Fay curious.
"What now? Are you mad about something new?"
Fay scoffed, recalling what had happened earlier.
[Two creatures. None of us has two.]
Horin growled—just low enough for no one to hear—but did her job and looked around. In the distance, she could see her father and the others about to return with fresh meat the tribe leader had hunted while the rest were still fighting.
[Help Father, so we can return.]
The girl seemed to give up on talking further and jumped down. Fay followed her and saw that today's food was three large hogs, all cleaned and ready to take back.
Each one was pierced with a thin log and carried by several warriors.
Fay wasn't tall, so he doubted he could reach their shoulder height to help. What he could do, however, was assist the water bearers—those who usually went to the river to fetch water.
Soon, the group arrived back. Mira, as always, stood at the gate, eagerly waiting for Fay and whatever the tribe would bring. This time, she was with friends, each one pointing at the warriors and hunted animals with delight.
"I hope you remember what hog tastes like, Mira. I think it became one of your new favorite meats, right?"
As they got closer, Mira ran up and hugged his legs. She nodded at his question, then looked around. Fay already knew who she was searching for.
Well… at least one of us is being liked…
He thought to himself.
Then Mira spotted Horin and ran toward her. The two began to talk, even though the older girl didn't seem entirely comfortable. Still, she couldn't show the same hatred she directed at Fay to his lovable little sister, so she responded with short, clipped sentences.
Fay chuckled and helped place the boars down with the others. He would get a share of the meat to cook for himself and his sister.
The village usually did this. Not every day was like the grand welcome feast they'd had on their first night.
Life in the village was good—even if days like this left him tired to the bone. But that was part of life in these lands. The only task left for today was night watch. Everyone had to take turns, and tonight was his.
So he picked up his share of the meat, cooked it as quickly as he could, and then went to sleep. He made sure Mira was fed and ready to take care of herself before that.
On some afternoons, the children were taught stitching, hunting, or leatherworking—there was no age limit when it came to learning the essentials of life.
About six hours passed before Fay woke up. Night had fallen, and it was his sister who shook him awake. The young girl looked sleepy and was now heading off to her own bed.
"Did you eat all the food I left for you?" Fay asked, tucking her in.
"Yes, and learned to make toys. Want to finish tomorrow."
Mira showed him a half-sewn doll—a rather ugly version of Jolt. He chuckled and rubbed her hair before placing the toy beside her.
"I'll be back later. Don't wander off, alright?" Fay patted her once more, gave her a kiss, and stepped out of the tent.
The night was cool, the moon high in the sky. Three warriors were already gathered, preparing to climb the cliff.
Fay's shift was stationed above the canyon. There, he and three others would take turns keeping watch. One would wake the next after two hours, and the cycle would continue until all three completed two rotations. By then, the rest of the tribe would be stirring, and they could finally leave their posts.
Fay, feeling refreshed, asked to take the first watch. The other two were a cheetah-like catfolk named Hohna—a female around twenty-five—and a man he didn't recognize. The newcomer looked like a serval, with long ears, a narrow face, a lean body, and yellow fur dotted with spots.
They both nodded at his request and began settling in to rest while waiting their turns.
It was going to be a long night. Nothing could be seen for miles, and Fay wasn't exactly the ideal candidate for this role. Some of the catfolk had night vision or keen senses of smell—he didn't.
What he did have, however, were two creatures. He didn't need to summon them yet, though.
Instead, he took his place beside a rock and quietly began his watch.