Two silhouettes walked into a forest filled with slightly tall trees that towered over them.
One of them was a kid who looked to be about five years old.
He was dressed in a sleek black outfit that covered him from head to toe and held a short sword in his hand.
His eyes were filled with apprehension and a slight hint of fear—after all, he was doing something dangerous.
Modret, dressed in a dark blue robe, held a small dagger in his hand as he glanced at the clearing. His eyes were filled with resolve. "Time to obtain an ability!"
He took a step forward, and Axel immediately followed behind him, his eyes scanning the forest. After a few minutes of walking, he heard a faint creak of wood. Instinctively, he crouched down. Not too far away, he spotted something.
"Shrubs!" he exclaimed faintly, then quickly rushed toward it. It was a messy, dirty-looking liquid. Without hesitation, Axel dipped his hand into the liquid and rubbed it on his face, smearing some on his clothes as well.
Modret watched him in confusion.
After Axel was done, he turned to Modret. "Young master, please rub this on your body. It'll mask your scent, causing wild animals to be unable to trace you. It'll also make insects stay clear of your body."
Modret was amazed. But glancing at the dirty liquid, his face scrunched up. 'Anything for being awakened.' Gritting his teeth, he dipped his hand into the dirty liquid and smeared it on his face and clothes.
'Fortunately, I wore a dark robe. If not, I'd look like a mess by now.' Modret sighed in relief, then the two children continued their journey.
Just as Modret thought they were wandering without direction or gain, the faint sound of twigs breaking echoed.
Axel immediately crouched down, dragging Modret slightly. He whispered into Modret's ear while staring at a few branches not too far away, "There seems to be an animal, young master. Don't make any noise so as not to scare the beast away."
Modret nodded quickly, then glanced in the direction Axel was looking and noticed a little furry creature munching on a few nuts.
"We don't have any arrows or crossbows, so we have to quietly approach it. Once within lunging distance, either lunge at it or hurl our weapons. Hopefully, our aim is on target."
Axel whispered his plan aloud, then added, "Young master, please wait a bit. Let me try and kill the animal."
As he began moving, Modret stopped him. If Axel killed the animal, his decision to come here would be for nothing. He had to be the one to deliver the killing blow.
'If only I could activate the bloodline consciously… would I be able to kill wildly and unbridled?' The faint thought flashed through his mind, but he quickly pushed it aside and said to Axel,
"You can injure it, but try your best not to deliver the killing blow."
Hearing his words, a peculiar expression surfaced on Axel's face. He looked at Modret weirdly but still nodded, complying with his order.
Then, silently, he began approaching the creature, which hadn't sensed the danger yet. With the shrubs masking his scent and him slowing his pace to a crawl, the creature didn't notice a thing. Finally, little Axel was upon it.
The moment he approached, he lunged at the furry rabbit. But just as he did, the rabbit seemed to sense the danger, quickly climbing up the tree beside it and hurriedly scurrying off.
Axel was unwilling to let go and climbed the tree, scaling it like an agile monkey. With a few strides, he reached a particularly high branch.
Modret was stunned by Axel's agility. He watched the little boy moving like a slippery serpent, his expression filled with surprise.
Just as Axel reached the rabbit, it jumped onto another tree, then another, dodging swiftly and not giving Axel a chance to swing his short sword at it. In the blink of an eye, the rabbit disappeared into the trees.
Axel watched it with a disappointed expression. He leapt off a few branches and landed on the ground with a loud thud, scattering gravel.
"I apologize for my incompetence, young master," Axel bowed apologetically.
Modret rubbed his nose awkwardly. If Axel, who could move so agilely, was calling himself incompetent, then what face did he have to call himself competent?
He waved his hand dismissively. "You don't have to worry about that. There's still time to catch more creatures."
"Yes, master!" Axel bowed once more, then quickly led the way, trying to sense every direction in hopes of encountering another creature.
…
Time passed slowly, and soon the sun dipped lightly below the horizon.
Axel moved with lightning-fast reflexes, his speed sharp and agile as he reached the line of sight of a squirrel. The moment he did, his short sword moved at lightning speed, striking toward the squirrel's stomach.
Shink!
With a sickening sound, the creature let out a wail and collapsed to the ground. But it wasn't completely dead, staring despairingly at the two children in front of it.
Modret quickly approached the squirrel and delivered the final blow, causing the chime of the system to echo in his mind.
[Gained 20 shadow fragments.]
[Shadow fragments: 827/1000]
After more than twelve hours of hard work, he had finally brought his shadow fragments up by so much.
Although his hands were sore and his muscles ached, Modret's eyes were brimming with excitement and a hint of fervor.
'So close! With a couple more kills, I should finally complete the shadow fragment and awaken an ability!'
"Young master, isn't it enough? We aren't even gathering the beasts to eat," Axel groaned beside him, dragging his weakened body groggily. His eyes were filled with tiredness and exhaustion.
As the one who had done most of the work, his childish frame couldn't handle the heavy responsibilities. He was even faintly on the verge of collapsing.
"My father should be worried about me by now," Axel muttered softly.
"Be patient. We'll head back to the manor soon," Modret reassured him with a smile, patting his back lightly.
Just then, the trees rustled faintly, and a few figures walked out of the shadows…
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"