A Dual Crest Summoner In Infinite Summoning World

Once again, Auren and Kenzo were in the very front row of the class, seated on the green grass, listening to the old scribe go on and on about how certain rules came to be. By the time class began, Auren had nearly forgotten the scared look the new girl, Katla, had given him after seeing the horse rider.

There was clearly something going on with her, but he couldn't let her know what he thought—or she might stop coming to the classes altogether, or worse, even leave the village.

But when Thomas started the lesson-hearing, surprisingly, the girl herself stood up from her place—which was in the last row behind the girls. She took a few steps forward as half the class looked at her, and then stopped near Auren, looking down at him. She was asking to sit with them, he realized. Auren gestured for her to sit down. She did so promptly—clearly, the attention of so many children was akin to torture for her.

She didn't say anything. Auren let her be and listened to Kenzo's numbers with half a mind. When most of the kids got bored of watching them and turned away, Katla's breathing had returned to normal. When Kenzo finished his one to hundred—with over ten mistakes—the girl spoke up.

"Can you tell me who the horse rider was?"

It was his first time hearing her voice. Her accent was indeed a bit too much not to notice—but in another life, that would have been a cute thing instead of something to be hated for.

"What is it to you?" Kenzo said before Auren could reply.

"Just asking," she responded.

Kenzo was about to say something else, but Auren simply gestured for him to stop. The fact that Dante had left the village was no secret—her family must have already known that, too. Which meant she was trying to get from them something more than what was known in the village.

"Dante was invited by the Duke of Summer. The horse rider was a knight in the service of the Duke's Sword Hand," Auren replied. It was the same thing the village knew.

The girl nodded, not pushing for more info. For a nine-year-old, that was quite clever—knowing when to stop.

Auren added, "A lot of nobles are going to gather here for this whole month. The Earl has plans to enter the forest."

Katla's head shot up, her clear blue eyes trying to understand from his expression why Auren would reveal that to her. His blank face, however, was not very helpful.

Once the class ended—thankfully with no punishment this time—Kenzo and Auren reached home on time. They started fighting with wooden swords to hone their skills in front of Auren's house, where a tree provided good shade. It was winter, but the time around midday was still quite sunny.

It wasn't much of a practice for Auren, but it was still better to have a person attacking him slowly rather than imagining things. Hanzo had notified the elders about the Basilisk and the hunting party. They didn't really have to do anything as a village, but it still required them to prepare a little for the few high-rank nobles passing through.

This Sunday's meeting would notify all the villagers with full details, effectively stopping anyone from entering the forest until the hunt was over.

It wouldn't be as long as the last hunting party Granny had mentioned. Dante and Hanzo had found the nest of the Basilisk and knew exactly where the beast was. The party just had to go, fight it, kill it, and return. If they were lucky, it would barely last ten days. M|V|LEM*PYR is the home of this chapter

In the evening, Auren and Kenzo went out to play in the village—but there was another agenda in Auren's mind. Leaving Kenzo with the other kids as they started playing silly games, Auren arrived at Elder Tamun's smithy.

"Hey! Isn't this the richest boy in the village? What can I do for you, young lord?" said the hearty old man with calloused hands and a glint of mischief in his eyes.

Auren made a face of mock exasperation, then broke into a smile seconds later. Ever since the money made from his board games had provided the villagers with a lasting wall—which had increased their population—people had started referring to the hollow wall as 'Auren's Checkers Wall'. It was no secret that he had made quite some money with his games.

"Elder Tamun, I want something made—but only if you promise to keep it a secret from my family, and keep the items here, at your place. I'll pay extra for all the secrecy and trouble," Auren said, presenting his request.

Tamun's face showed signs of surprise, but after a few seconds it changed into understanding.

"Let me guess—you want armor?"

Auren knew the man was sharp. He simply nodded.

"You don't have to worry about anything, kid," Elder Tamun said, putting his hammer aside and crossing his arms over his chest. "You've done a lot for the village. And even if you hadn't, Sir Dante's family will always be taken care of. Don't let the words of a few dumb people fool you—Dante Goatshield is someone the whole village is proud of. He made the name of Rootfast Village famous in all of Lowfield. You've no idea how jealous people are of your grandfather for receiving such a once-in-a-thousand heir."

"I know, Elder," Auren admitted. "And there's no doubt in my mind that the village will aid us in time of need. However, as a man of your experience is already well aware, having a tool at hand in time of need is better than having all the means and knowledge to create it. My trust in this village is exactly the reason why I want you to make it—and hold onto it, at least until the hunt ends."

Tamun showed a slight surprise at the mention of the hunt but said nothing on the matter.