As the pack stepped away from the bloody body of the moose, Winston stepped forward. Forming a saw of golden energy, Winston severed one of its legs and put it into his spatial ring. As he did this, the alpha returned as well, dragging the body of the other moose.

  The wolves watched in wonder and confusion as Winston demonstrated the powers of his spatial ring to them, moving the leg in and out of it. Winston kept sawing at the moose while he continued to make the leg appear and disappear. After a few more seconds, the wolves seemed to understand that he was trying to show them that he could carry the animals for them.

  Winston severed the extremities of each beast, staying far enough away that the blood wouldn’t reach him. After he’d fit an entire moose along with three legs into his ring, he ran out of room.

  He tried to communicate that he was out of space, but the wolves just watched him expectantly. Winston sighed. He missed [Charm]. He knew [Mental Manipulation] was much more versatile and useful in combat, but charm had allowed him to communicate with Erynd and would no doubt be useful now.

  As the seconds dragged on, Winston grew frustrated and barked at the wolves. His bark was filled with not just his frustration, but also the reason for it—that the pack couldn’t understand that he’d run out of room in his ring. Realization lit in the eyes of the wolves as they ran to begin dragging the remaining chunk of moose.

  As they worked, Winston sat in confusion. That had actually worked? He’d never been able to communicate with anyone other than other dogs, and even that had been a difficult and frustrating process. How had the wolves understood him so easily? Was it because they were more intelligent? Or had the System done something?

  Winston tilted his head. If the System had translated his bark, why couldn’t any of the other contenders understand him? That couldn’t be it. As he thought, the alpha turned towards him and barked loudly before turning and marching back the way they came. Winston tried to focus on the wolf’s bark, trying to make out the meaning. After a moment, it came to him. Approval. There was more to it, but he couldn’t quite figure it out. Winston sighed. Hopefully, he’d get better as he stayed with the wolves.

  ?? ′?? ? ??` ??

  When the wolves reached the camp, Winston dropped off the meat before turning away. Barking at the rest of the pack, he tried to convey to them that he was going to hunt on his own.

  Winston forced his way through the snow, forming a tiny, corgi-sized path behind him. While his small body allowed him to stay mostly atop the snow, he still sank in a bit. It was far harder than when he’d been moving along the path formed by the alpha and the other wolves before him.

  Slowly but surely, he made his way along the side of the mountain. For a while, he was alone with his thoughts, and the guilt came back stronger than ever. These ‘beasts’ that he was hunting were just like him. And he was going and killing them on a regular basis. Doing it as if it were justified. As if it were normal.

  Winston formed a wedge of golden energy before him, driving the snow to his sides.

  Still, there were no two ways about it. He could hunt and survive. He could find his humans. Or he could curl up in a ball, refusing to kill anything or even leave the cave. And despite how much he wanted to, he knew he couldn’t. If he did, he would die.

  He still had an alternative. [Consume]. He could gain energy simply by consuming the ground around him. Still, the best way for him to use [Consume] was to use it on the bodies of creatures he killed, greatly increasing his energy gain. While he could use it on materials as well, there weren’t exactly valuable gems lying around everywhere.

  Winston considered just consuming huge amounts of stone and snow, but he knew it wouldn’t work. While it’d been a viable tactic in the early Initiate ranks, the amount of energy he needed had sharply increased since he reached Acolyte. He’d already spent the same amount of energy he’d used to advance from Initiate 9 to Acolyte 1 several times over, and he still hadn’t been able to reach Acolyte 2.

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  Winston was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t notice the small figure stalking him until it was too late.

  In the end, it was his ability to sense energy that saved him. He felt a flare of mana behind him and spun around, a barrier of energy forming before him just in time to catch a bolt of ethereal energy.

  Winston dove to the side as his shield shattered. Still, it slowed the projectile enough for Winston to get out of the way.

  Getting to his feet, Winston found himself facing a strange creature. It was a fox, but it wasn’t. Behind its petite body were billowing white tails, blending perfectly in with the snow.

  [Nine-Tailed Fox(2 Tails) - Acolyte 4]

  As the two circled each other, Winston instinctively flinched back as he saw the beast’s face. It was unnatural, the very sight of it giving Winston chills. The fox had not two, but six crimson eyes.

  Taking advantage of Winston’s momentary distraction, the fox launched another translucent bolt. Winston danced out of the way, blinking in surprise at his own agility. He supposed the points he invested into dexterity really were making a difference.

  Winston countered with a shard of his own energy, but the fox dodged. Winston growled. The fox was just testing his defenses. It was Acolyte 4, and he had no idea how strong it truly was. He needed to be ready when it attacked.

  Winston began condensing an orb of energy, concealing it behind him. While he did that, thin tendrils of blazing golden light extended from him. They remained limp, but Winston could stir them into a frenzy at a moment's notice, creating a defensive field.

  As the orb hidden behind him continued to condense, the fox made its move. It dashed towards him, dashing across the snow at an alarming rate. Blasts of energy shot from Winston, but none made contact. It was as if the fox was in three places at once, leaving phantom images behind it as it ran.

  As the fox neared him, the tendrils of energy around him whipped to life, launching themselves at the fox. Still, he made sure not to strain himself too much, conserving both mental and Food Energy.

  The fox stopped in surprise, and for a moment, Winston thought he had it. One strand hit it, then another, but just as a third was about to make contact, the fox disappeared. Winston growled in alarm, looking around wildly. After a moment of panic, Winston calmed down and began looking for any signs of energy.

  After several minutes of silence, Winston began to relax. Had the fox fled after a single injury? Winston turned to continue on his way. As he took a step, Winston felt energy flare up behind him. He spun around, ready to fight, but he was too late. The fox was right there, leaping towards him. Winston yipped in terror and launched the orb he’d been condensing at the fox.

  The golden marble whipped through the air, moving faster than the eye could see. The projectile blasted forward, striking the fox and…passing straight through it? The fox disappeared, and Winston heard the tiny orb explode, striking a tree hundreds of feet away.

  Winston whipped around, layers of energy forming around him. Standing before him was the real fox—he hoped. As it walked towards him with indifference, it split into two, then four.

  Winston growled and began forming more tendrils of golden light as half a dozen foxes surrounded him. Each fox bore the same patch of missing and burned fur from where he’d struck the original. Winston whimpered. He had no idea which one was real, or if any of them were real.

  He shot out a tendril of energy, punching through the heart of one of the foxes. The illusion blinked out of existence, only to be replaced by another a moment later.

  Taking a breath, Winston focused. Concentrating, he tried to sense the energy of each fox. All of them were emitting small but steady amounts of energy. Some more than others, but Winston couldn’t tell. It was as if a veil of mist obscured his senses. He knew he could pierce it, but it would take far too much time.

  Winston felt his head begin to ache with concentration. Giving up on trying to detect which one was real, Winston began to charge an attack. He poured rivers of energy into it, condensing it into a spear until it was a dark-bronze color. Still, he wasn’t going to just aimlessly launch the attack. No, he was going to use [Devour].

  Winston wasn’t sure exactly how the Soul Shard worked, but it let him target the fox’s illusions. Concentrating, Winston devoured the beast’s ability. Winston felt the energy used on the skill flow into him as five of the foxes disappeared in unison. There was a cry and alarm and confusion from behind him, and Winston spun around.

  There, standing in shock, was the original Nine-Tailed Fox. Before it could react, Winston launched the spear of energy at it. There was a resounding bang, and Winston squeezed his eyes shut as golden light filled his vision.

  When his vision cleared, Winston found the fox standing in the middle of a patch of melted snow and scorched stone. It was bloodied, but still very much alive.

  or a Tower Climber. It just happened.

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