Fay grabbed onto the electricity Jolt produced nearby. His creature had spun next to him, just close enough to channel the current he needed to form a spear.

He knew an electric whip wouldn't be enough to harm the large elephant-like creature. If anything, it would only empower it further.

So, using his own aether, he shaped the unstable energy into a spear.

It lacked consistent form, but it could be thrown, hurled at anything or anyone.

Today, however, it was meant for the Mastodrake.

The massive beast looked afraid, its eyes wide with wariness, the moment it heard the sharp crackling of Fay's aether-crafted weapon.

It lunged with its trunk in an attempt to ram him, but Jolt leapt in just in time, intercepting the blow and carving a deep gash into the creature's side.

Jolt, however, struggled to move afterward.

One of the Mastodrake's tusks had hindered his momentum.

That was when Somni's influence deepened.

The creature stood paralyzed in a storm of pain, fear, drowsiness, and a cocktail of powerful emotions that dulled its instincts and left it frenzied.

Fay seized the moment and threw the spear, aiming for a first strike, an opening attack for his next move.

The spear glided through the air, struck its target, and began to spread out its electrical energy numbing, burning, and tearing through a significant portion of the creature's armored hide.

Fay rushed in without hesitation, aiming for a decisive strike to the chest just as the time magic began to fade.

The Mastodrake's concentration had crumbled enough for Fay to act now that time had returned to normal.

He didn't know much about the anatomy of the beast, but if there was one thing he'd learned, whether here or back on Earth, it was that the chest was one of the best places to strike for a kill.

Months of hunting in the wild had taught him that.

But the great beast tapped back into its magic once again and somehow still had enough strength to reverse the grave injury Fay had dealt it.

In mere seconds, the open wound closed, as if by magic. Because, of course, that was exactly what it was.

"Why is it such a difficult day to hunt? First the leopard, now you!" Fay jumped back.

He had lost the initiative and would need to find a way to tear through the creature's hardened skin again, either by crafting another spear, which the beast no doubt recognized as dangerous, or by targeting a wound he could exploit.

He heard the sound of three more arrows. This time, they struck the same spot that had only just been healed by time magic.

He had just enough time to give a thumbs-up before readying his sword for another strike.

Fay would repeat the same blow, but this time, he was going all out.

He needed to finish the beast before it called for reinforcements, which would ruin not only their plan but also any chance of retreat.

These monsters weren't just large; they were hard to escape from.

He didn't even want to imagine what a herd of Mastodrakes could do to Horin and himself.

Another volley of arrows whistled past him, aiming precisely at the weak points as if guiding him toward them.

One target was low: its foot; the large animal didn't seem to be using it properly. Fay had suspected it before, but with it now clearly pointed out, he went for that leg first.

Channeling his wind blade to its limit, he charged once more and unleashed a flurry of slashes at the limb.

The leg gave way under the pressure, unable to support the beast's massive weight, and it collapsed just enough for Fay to spot the next arrow.

This one pointed at the neck. It was likely the best place to finish the creature, but it wouldn't go down quietly.

Fay ignored the fallen beast's last twitches and rushed to the other side, where its belly was exposed. This time, he aimed a little lower than before, knowing there were fewer bones in that section.

The creature didn't even have the chance to cry out.

It spasmed briefly before collapsing, its breathing fading into silence.

Fay stared at the body with a hint of sadness, but he couldn't help the pride swelling in his chest.

He had taken down something few of the Ravari warriors rarely dared to challenge.

It was a full-grown bull, its tusks as long as Fay was tall and gleaming ivory white.

The creature's plated hide was mostly intact. Its thick tail, however, was already being chewed on by Grin, who also needed to recover. Jolt soon joined him, starting on one of the hind legs.

Horin arrived not long after, scanning the body and thinking through which parts they should bring back.

There was an overwhelming amount of meat, and the two large leopards nearby would serve as a perfect meal for Mirage.

"Nice work with the arrows, Horin," Fay said with joy while still catching his breath. "Being so close clouded my thinking. Only when you started hitting certain spots did I finally understand."

He offered the praise as he crouched and began slicing off sections, focusing on the softer areas like the trunk and tongue.

These parts were better suited for humans, while his creatures tore through the toughest of the hides parts, they could probably eat stone if they had to.

Grin, in particular, helped with prying loose a portion of the plated armor.

Next came dismantling the leopards.

Their meat would go to Mirage, but the coats, thick, patterned, and valuable, would be preserved. They'd make excellent blankets or even fashionable clothes he would not mind having.

Fay did his best to mimic the techniques of the leatherworker girl, Sihra, the one Kimya had always meant to speak with but never got the chance to.

"Well then, I think we need to cut the gems, especially now that your creatures were so kind as to break into the cores section," Horin said, bringing Fay back on track.

He quickly finished dismantling the two black leopards and sliced through to retrieve the Nightglass cores. Then, he made his way back toward the Mastodrake, eager to see what the Chrono Fragment would look like.

As Horin slowly pulled it free, she noticed a smoky, glass-like bead, the rare Chrono Fragment. It was about the size of a small marble, yet it radiated a powerful presence.

Each second, it pulsed rhythmically, as if ticking, even without a body to sustain it.

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