Chapter 22: Devils Don't Deserve Mercy

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Raegar sat on the branch, carefully skinning the Bramblehares one by one, as Saki taught him many years ago. The fading light painted the forest in an orange and gold glow. Next to him, a small fireplace he'd built in front of his tent crackled softly, its stone ring keeping the flames contained. The warm glow provided just enough light to work by, ensuring the fire wouldn't spread as he focused. 'I can keep the skin, feet, and eyes to sell. The meat is mine, but they are only cheap Tier One monsters. but will get me enough coin to get some food,' he thought, carefully sorting the items. Raegar placed them neatly into boxes that came with his magic bag. An hour later, he had an enormous pile of Bramblehare meat stored away, which would last him for another week, but he needed spices. Once that was done, he pulled out the pile of books Yuki sorted for him and soon realized there was one he hadn't bought. He read the name of the one that caught his eye, ''Kaldorra's Bounty: The Forager's Field Guide? Did she buy it for me?'' Following that, he took out his dagger and sharpened a stick to piece a chunk of rabbit meat and hung it over the fire to cook before dousing it in moonlit sage, which would make it taste better. He then got comfortable while reading, which taught Raegar about dozens of plants and flowers he could harvest for many things. This caused him to think with sparkling red eyes, 'More coin for me, and these Bay Leaves sound spicy, so I need to get some of them.' Raegar kept reading, absorbed in the task, until the mouthwatering aroma of cooked meat reached his nose. Without hesitation, he grabbed the sizzling rabbit meat. He blew gently on it to cool it down, then took a bite, savoring the rich, smoky flavor. 'Delicious,' he thought with a smile. Following that, he continued reading while eating the rabbit steak as the moon appeared, causing its light to shine through the canopy. A few hours later, he was done with the book, but quickly noticed several sounds from below. Raegar looked over the edge, only to see an army of creepy-looking ant monsters swarmed past the tree while following the river north. This surprised him as he only seen a few creatures, but that's when his senses came to life, leading to him spinning around. As he did that, three ants staring while their mandibles snapped in his direction. He quickly reacted and cast Stormfire Bullets into the monsters skulls, causing them to explode as their exo skeleton splattered everywhere. 'Tier One, this will be easy if it's only these guys,' he thought while a spark deep inside sparked to life. The remaining creature charged at him, its beady black eyes wild with fury. He quickly dodged its lunge, narrowly avoiding its sharp claws. With a wave of his hand, he unleashed a Lightningfire Blast. He got excited as the reddish-yellow flames engulfed the creature in an instant. Raegar watched as it was consumed by the flames, its form disintegrating into ash, which then floated away on the wind. When the fight was over, he spotted three Aether Cores, which he added to the ten Tier Ones he gathered so far. Raegar let out a yawn before returning the tent and crawled into the sheets, only to fall asleep seconds later. The following morning, Raegar woke to the rhythmic sound of rain tapping against the tent. He sighed, momentarily frustrated by the wet start to his day, but quickly pushed the feeling aside. Determined to make the most of his time, he gathered some Aether and began focusing on expanding his pools, eager to improve his abilities despite the weather. An hour later, he collapsed to the floor of the tent. 'I can't expand them!' he internally fumed. 'What am I doing wrong? I'm doing one at a time like the instructions said, but it's useless.' Raegar was following the Aether Chronicle guide to Aether Gathering, but he was doing something wrong. ''Well, they are full at least and I can still use magic,'' he muttered before eating the last of his sweet bread. His mood soured even further, but he pushed the feeling aside and began brewing some tea to calm himself. However, his moment of peace was shattered when an explosion rocked the tree beneath him. Rushing outside, he peered across the river and saw a chaotic battle unfolding. A group of three vampires were outnumbered and clearly losing, fought desperately against a group of armoured devils. The enemies appeared almost human, but they wouldn't fool him, with two horns protruding from their foreheads and wings sprouting from their backs. Their assault left the vampires at a severe disadvantage. Raegar's grip tightened around the handles of his daggers as he watched the carnage unfold. ''I might as well help these people,'' he muttered under his breath, his eyes narrowing with determination. ''Devils don't deserve mercy.'' Without a second thought, Raegar extended his hand toward the branch, unleashing a fierce Lightningfire Blast. The explosion sent him hurtling through the air, crossing the river in an instant. As he descended toward the Devils, he braced himself and crashed into their ranks with force, sending them into disarray. Shaking off the impact, Raegar's body surged with energy as he activated his Enhancement Magic, his movements becoming a blur of speed. Each step he took created a sonic boom, the air itself trembling with every strike. His blades tore through the Devils' armor as if it were paper, their cries of agony drowned out by the chaos he unleashed. He was a whirlwind of destruction, moving faster than they could react, leaving nothing but devastation in his wake. In the middle of the forest, Raegar slew the surprised Devils with ease as he surprised them. When only a few enemies remained, he unleashed a barrage of Stormfire Bullets, each one tearing clean through their torsos with precision. Moments later, the lifeless bodies crumpled to the ground. Raegar scanned the area for the vampires, but they had vanished without a trace. ''Where did they go?'' he muttered before shrugging. He continued on through the forest and ended up fighting more Forest Widows that surprised him while thinking, 'Are they tracking me? They're spiders, though?' After dispatching the remaining foes, he moved on, only to encounter the next challenge, creatures that would become a source of frustration. They looked like baboons but were as large as humans, their size and menacing presence enough to test his patience. As he continued down the monster trail, Raegar noticed them stalking him from the shadows. They fancied themselves stealthy hunters, but their clumsy attempts at sneaking didn't escape his keen eyes. 'They're hilarious,' he mused as the monkeys circled him. 'Let's see if they can fight.' Moments later, the creatures made their move, Raegar sprang into action, unleashing a relentless barrage of Stormfire Bullets. Explosions erupted across the monster trail, echoing like rolling thunder. The creature's pain-filled screeches and howls filled the air just before they launched their attack. They charged at Raegar, their massive forms bounding toward him. One leapt, claws outstretched, but he spun to the side, narrowly dodging. As he swiveled, a dagger flew out of his hand, embedding itself in the creature's throat. Another lunged from behind, but Raegar dropped low as the beast's claws swiped through empty air. Within seconds, he hurled a second dagger; the blade piercing its chest with a sickening thud. The remaining monsters snarled and surrounded him, their eyes gleaming with feral rage. Raegar's movements were quick as he sidestepped their attacks, his daggers finding their marks with deadly accuracy. One by one, the monsters fell, their howls fading into silence as the last one dropped dead. He stood on the trail, panting, his chest rising and falling with exertion. With a flick, he summoned his blood-streaked weapons back to him. Taking a moment before crouching beside the creatures and began looting. Seconds later, Raegar carefully plucked the Aether Cores, their faint glow pulsing in his hands, and took some of the meat as well. Following that, he continued walking while cleaning off the daggers before checking on his inner pools. 'Most are full, expect fire and lightning,' he mused. Raegar climbed across another river, but this one gave him the creeps. When he got close, something launched itself at him. He yelped before using Flash Step to dodge the sudden attack. Without hesitation, Raegar unleashed a Stormfire Bullet, the blazing projectile streaking through the air and piercing straight through the creature's head. It let out a final, guttural groan before slumping lifelessly to the ground. Only then did he inspect the attacker, realizing the monster was a massive eel-like creature with sleek, dark blue scales that shimmered. [Drop some powerstones, comments, and gifts to help the novel grow; I appreciate all the support you can give]