The rain lasted through the night and part of the morning. Now, Liam and I are walking along the river, making our way upstream and to the small lake. The river itself is higher than usual as a result of the rain, and the lake probably will be, too. This is one of the best times to check for monster fish, though. They become more active when the water is rougher, so they're easier to spot.

Liam and I reach the muddy banks of the lake, then walk around it a little ways, into the small forest bordering part of it. We reach a series of large boulders that are perfect for resting on, and I grab the supplies from Liam so he can pull himself up easier, then I pass the stuff to him and climb up.

Casting my gaze over the surface of the lake, I determine there's only one monster that needs to be dealt with, but it's the Tier Four that hides in the middle of the lake, intelligent enough to realize that if I get to it, it's going to be in danger.

"I've always wondered, Rex," Liam says as we bait our hooks. "But you're only Level 17, right? Doesn't that mean you'd need four more around your Level to take care of the Tier Four monsters you hunt? Isn't the rule something like two Tiers lower when fighting alone?"

"Yeah, it is," I tell him as I cast my rod. "That's why what Cam and I do is even more risky than normal. However, Cam and I put in extra training to raise our abilities, so that even with our Levels being insufficient, we can still handle the monsters in the area. It takes a lot of effort to keep the monster population down, and there are only two Hunters here. Because of that, coming across Tier Three and Tier Four monsters isn't uncommon."

"Don't you and Cam let some monsters get stronger?" He asks.

"Yeah," I nod as he casts his rod. "Even though we hunt the monsters, we do that for multiple reasons. One of them is to make it easier for us to gain Levels, but another is actually for the environment."

"I thought monsters were bad for the environment?" He asks.

"Some can be," I nod. "Cam and I try to deal with those as soon as we find out one has spawned or evolved. But think about it, Liam – we eat monster fish, don't we? Most animals are monsters, and we eat them. We use their hide, their scales, their bones. There are few animals we don't call monsters, and they aren't monsters because they don't evolve by eating the hearts of other beasts. We bred it out of them over many generations."

"But doesn't that mean," he says. "They're good for us?"

"They are," I nod. "But at the same time, they're good for the environment. The world revolves around its ecosystem. Let's say we completely cleared all of the squirrels and rabbits from the fields and hills. Do you know what would happen?"

"Other monsters would evolve slower?"

"Yes," I answer. "But they would also lose a food source. The deer and birds eat them, you know. Well, and the deer eat berries and grass, too. If their food is gone, so will those monsters."

"But that's a good thing," he says. "It makes it safer to travel when there are less monsters."

"What do you think feeds the trees and the grass?" I ask. "The bushes and other plants? The soil. And the soil comes from a mix of decomposed plant and animal matter. You've seen them using manure on the farms, and you've seen the compost piles. It would weaken the environment around us to wipe out all of the monsters. The effects wouldn't be noticeable immediately, but over the years, it would be."

"I don't get it, though," he says. "How can monsters be good for the environment? They're vicious beasts that attack and eat even their own kind!"

"That's the cycle of life," I tell him. "You eat others, you be eaten by others. You eat the plants your body feeds. If we wiped out all monsters, we'd lose some of our food and supplies. There's a tree in the forest to the north, the abaraka tree, which grows a delicious fruit. It sucks up the nutrients the soil around it, preventing anything from growing for almost thirty feet in all directions around it. How does it spread its seeds?"

"Isn't it when its fruits drop?" He asks. "Some will roll a little bit away, and then decompose, and the seeds will grow a new tree. Right?"

"Roll thirty or more feet?" I ask, and he frowns as he tries to think. "Sure, some of the fruits might be at the edge of the canopy, but it won't grow into a tall tree. It'll compete for nutrients with the older, stronger tree, and it will lose. In the end, it will be a shriveled up tree until it's destroyed."

Something tugs on my line, and I pull back, bringing in the line with careful, practiced ease. Once I bring it up, I pull off the two-foot-long fish, snap it on the neck and remove my hook, then drop the fish in the basket on Liam's back. He only remembers then he's wearing it, and hands me his rod as he pulls his pack off. It's full of ice I made with my magic by freezing water from the well, to keep the fish cool until we return home. I hand him his rod back, then replace my hook, bait it, and cast out my line once more.

"I don't know," Liam finally answers.

"Monsters."

"Monsters?" He asks.

"Specifically, the aralkama bird," I confirm. "After it reaches Tier Two, it develops a craving for certain fruits, the abaraka fruit among them. It will eat the fruit, and when it poops, the seeds go out with it. By the time it poops, it's usually away from the tree it feasted from."

"So its seeds spread," Liam says. "To another area, and a new tree grows."

"Correct," I tell him. "That's an example of monsters being good for the environment. It spreads the seeds of a tree."

"But doesn't that mean," Liam says. "That a bunch of land becomes unsuitable for growing stuff because of it?"

"Yes," I tell him. "This is just one example. Not all trees are like the abaraka tree. Many fruit trees rely on birds to spread their seeds. Most birds are monsters. There are also monsters which eat mushrooms. Some mushrooms spread like crazy, and only because there are monsters which eat them around do they not take over the area they're in. If we wiped out that monster, the mushroom would take over an area, choking out all other plants."

"Oh."

"Yeah," I nod. "Monsters are essential to the cycle of life in this world. We still have to cull them, though, or we humans can't survive. That's why Cam and I let some monster reach stronger Tiers. They'll be eating the weaker monsters in an area, helping keep the population under control while Cam and I handle other areas. Then we come in, kill those stronger monsters for the experience and to prevent them from becoming too strong, and the cycle continues."

"So," Liam draws that word out as he thinks. "We're part of the cycle, too. We ensure monsters don't grow too strong or numerous so they don't start just destroying an area, but also to protect our people."

"Correct," I tell him, then draw the symbol of the Hunters in the air using light magic, a violet sun with six spikes. "The circle in the center represents the cycle we Hunters are a part of, with each spike representing one of the six elements. It reminds us that all things are connected, even when they don't seem to be. That's why we bear it on our bodies."

"Can I see yours?" He asks.

I pull my shirt down, revealing my Hunter's Brand, with my Level displayed in the circle. Liam examines it for a few seconds, then stops to pull in his fish. I release my shirt and return to waiting for something to bite. Liam removes the fish from the hook, kills it, then drops it in the basket.

"There are Hunters who ignore the cycle, right?" He asks as he baits his hook.

"There are," I nod. "They end up being stopped by the Guild. Another issue that arises when we simply clear out all of the monsters is that it takes a lot of time and effort. Monsters at higher Tiers, with more intelligence, notice it. Then they hide. They continue to build up their power. Often, they'll keep just out of the range of the current clearing pattern, devouring things quickly so they can grow strong enough to kill the Hunters. Four times, this wasn't stopped before it got too late, and that's why the Hunters put an end to it. All four times, it caused the evolution of Star-Level monsters."

"Really?" He asks, then casts his line out again. "So if you and Cam were to start doing that…"

"It would cause a Star-Level monster to appear," I tell him. "But the Elder Hunter would notice when she checks our kills that we were doing it and tell us to stop. If we didn't, she would likely send a message to the nearest headquarters asking them to come out and stop us."

"Oh, okay," he says, then starts swinging his feet. "You and Cam wouldn't do that though, right?"

"Right," I nod. "Because we remember the cycle. The world exists in a balance. That's why Tier Seven monsters and Star-Level monsters are rare, too. It takes far too long for most to manage to evolve. They usually die before attaining the next evolution."

"But if you clear out an area," he says. "It causes what you said, which results in one."

"Yeah," I nod. "And the Star-Level monsters take things to an entirely new league of difficulty. That's why even more Levels are needed for each additional star."

We spend the next hour fishing in silence as Liam thinks over what I told him, and I think over the potential threat the Gate sensed. There's more to the cycle than what I told Liam. Otherwise, anywhere without people would be a breeding ground for upper-Tier and Star-Level monsters. But they aren't.

Part of it is because of what I said, that it simply takes too many fresh hearts for them to evolve. Part of it is because they tend to keep monsters from getting too strong, themselves, once they're intelligent enough. They desire little competition, even if they know that it'll make them take longer to evolve again.

The main reason the threats are closer to settlements, however, is much more simple.

Monsters are drawn to sacred power, which is necessary to fend them off. A quiet town like this, with maybe five hundred people and two or three Hunters at a time, excluding the Elder Hunter, doesn't draw too much issue. We Hunters are mostly necessary in a place like this to harvest resources for the townsfolk and to monitor the dangerous monster levels in the area.

But closer to larger towns or cities? Where there are dozens, possibly hundreds, of Hunters? The threat is much greater, because there are a lot more monsters. As a result, there are more Hunters to take care of them, and stronger ones.

It results in a cycle. One day, another Koraminal incident will occur. I don't want to worry Liam with that, though. It may not happen in our lifetime. But one day, a Star-Level monster will appear, one that manages to attain a few Stars and become too powerful to handle. It will continue to grow in strength, conquering first cities, then regions, then the continent.

The Guild is trying to find a way to slow that down, or even avoid it, but they know it's nearly inevitable because of the cycle we are in. Without Hunters, there's no real safety. With Hunters, the danger increases.

But again, that's not something for me to worry about. It likely won't happen for another two or three centuries. I'll be long-dead by then, having passed the art of protecting this town on to my successor. All I need to worry about is protecting my town and harvesting things they need.

As long as we only have two or three Hunters around at a time, this area will be safe until a calamity-level threat appears. We can even go without a Hunter for a few years – the Hunter here before Cam and I were branded died before we were even born.

Of course, that did mean we had to deal with a few stronger monsters at first, which is part of why I hit Level 17 in just nine years. I had to train hard to advance my raw skills and range of spells and flexibility with them in order to handle the stronger threats.

That, or to run away from them. One part of being a Hunter is knowing when to fight and when to run. Cam and I spent two years carefully picking where we hunted in order to optimize our growth and minimize risk. We attacked weaker monsters and avoided stronger ones until we could handle them.

Once it became viable, we began gathering resources for the townsfolk, too. While they can produce most of what they need here, the goods are better outside. My parents had died trying to gather some reeds to make a stronger rope with, their greed for materials driving them to improperly become Hunters and seek out resources before they were ready.

"Liam," I say. "What part of being a Hunter appeals to you most?"

I already know the answer, but I still want to check to make sure it's not for greed. We make a fair amount of money here, but that shouldn't be the reason for it.

"To help protect the town," he answers. "And to gather better materials so people can have better tools. And to supply them with some better food, too."

"And the pay?"

"That doesn't really matter, does it?" He asks. "I mean, we don't really use much money here, and we can trade a lot of what we gather for what we need. Don't you just keep all of your pay in a box, except for when a merchant comes and visits us?"

"Yeah," I nod. "I just wanted to see."

"Oh," he shrugs. "I mean, I guess the pay would be nice. But what am I going to do with it? I'll get everything I want by trading goods for it, just like you and Cam and everyone else here does."

He's honest with his words, which relieves me. I've raised him right, in my opinion, if he doesn't have the greed some Hunters have. Greedy Hunters have caused problems with the monsters in the past, too.

We return to fishing in silence for a couple of hours, then pack up our stuff and walk back to the actual town part of town.

"Rex?" Liam asks as we walk.

"Yeah?" I respond.

"You went to the city once, didn't you?" He asks. "Before you found me?"

"Yeah," I answer. "Cam and I went into the city at the Elder Hunter's suggestion to learn new spells. We had to spend money for it, and that week there probably cost each of us more money than Cam and I have spent otherwise combined. It was worth it, though, as we learned a few new things to help us battle monsters. We were returning from that trip when we found you."

"Oh," he says. "I thought you were younger than that. Like, maybe fourteen."

"No," I shake my head. "We were about sixteen."

"Okay," he says. "So why is the brand purple?"

I laugh at his sudden change in topic, and he gives me a curious look.

"The color purple, or violet," I explain. "Is associated with the arcane, the powers beyond our true understanding. We know what we need to do to wield sacred power, and how to change it, but we don't understand it as a whole. We can't even use it without the brands, which are made using sacred power we don't understand."

"Why is it purple, though?" He asks. "Why not, like, blue? Or green? Or red? Or something?"

"Because," I explain. "Purple dye is the most expensive one there is. Hunters are among the few who can afford to have things made with it regularly. Over time, the two became associated with each other."

Liam screws up his face in confusion.

"But weren't the brands purple before that?"

"According to the stories," I tell him. "It used to be brown. From the dirt we came, to the dirt we shall return. Around four thousand years ago, when purple dye began to be used regularly for Hunters, new brands started being purple. No one really knows why."

"The powers that be changed it?" He asks.

"Yeah," I nod. "It was taken as a sign, too. It told us the powers that be were still watching us directly, not just enforcing the power of the walls and the Gates and allowing us humans to compete with the monsters."

It was taken as another sign as well, but I won't bother going into the details of why people saw the change as a sign that the color purple was associated with sacred power. Liam doesn't need to know all of the reasons and explanations came up with for that.

"Okay," he tells me.

The discussion ends as we enter the town, and we make our way to the small market set up in the middle of it, trading the fish for some fruit and vegetables. Cam stopped by the house before Liam woke and told me he was going to hunt some hares for us to eat for dinner.

After trading away the fish, we make our way to Greta's tanning house. She has the hides of the deer and snake from yesterday already under treatment for tanning, the building itself smelling strongly of various and decay.

"Hello, boys," Greta greets us, looking up from the boot she is making. "I take it you're here to discuss the hides from yesterday?"

"Yes," I answer. "The only thing I want made is a new pair of gloves for Liam here. I was going to wait a little bit because he's getting ready to hit his growing phase, but his old ones are a bit too worn-out, and there are only so many times they can be patched up."

"I can do that," she says. "I can also leave a little extra room for his growth, but not enough it will hinder him."

"Thanks," I say. "Do you need to measure him again?"

"I do," she answers.

She pulls out a strip of measuring cloth and beckons for Liam to approach. She measures his hands, wrists, and arms, then gives me an appraising look.

"Do you need a new winter jacket?" She asks. "Winter will be upon us soon. I'm still tanning that boarbear hide you had sent to me a couple of weeks ago, and it'll hold up to damage."

"Winter is months away," I tell her. "But yes, I'll need a new jacket. Would you do the boarbear hide for me? Did you leave the fur on, or did you strip it?"

"You had two of them," she tells me. "So I have one with fur, and one without. It'll turn it inside out for your jacket, so you've got the rain protection on the outside and the nice, warm fur warming your body. I'll make one for Cam, too."

"Alright," I say. "Is there enough for Liam, too?"

"Not from the one with fur," she tells me. "But I can add fur to the other. It won't feel the same, but the outside will be the same."

"No," Liam tells her. "I don't need something that tough. And I'm going to be a Hunter once I turn ten. I just have to catch something in the next couple of months that you can turn into a jacket for me, right?"

"That is correct," she tells me.

"Okay!" He says. "Then I'll do my best to get good enough to do that! I want to have my first good catch turned into a jacket for me! Oh! But I'm probably going to need a rain jacket. The cloak I have is nice and all, but Rex says cloaks aren't good for fighting monsters in."

"They aren't," I tell him. "They'll too easily catch on things if you're moving around a lot in a fight. That was a lesson Cam and I learned rather fast, after ignoring the Elder Hunter's warning."

"Okay," Liam nods. "Then can I get just a leather jacket made? That should be enough to keep me warm on chilly days and mostly dry on wet days."

"It will be a few weeks," she tells Liam. "Maybe a month or so before I can make a jacket like that for you."

"That's fine!" He tells her. "Rex still has some of his old jackets, so I'll wear one of those until you're ready!"

"Okay!" She laughs. "Is there anything else you want with the hides, Rex?"

"No," I answer. "Feel free to use them for whatever you need. Wait, yeah, actually, I think Cam needs new gloves soon, and maybe new boots. His are starting to look a little worn-out."

It's about time, too, considering he's worn the same pair of boots and gloves for the last five years. They could have lasted longer than that, except that with our hunts and harvesting stuff, he's given them a lot more wear than normal. Cam is probably trusting me to have noticed and inform her, rather than coming to tell her himself.

"I can fix those up for him," she tells me. "Will they last until the boarbear hides are ready? Or should I put a rush on it?"

"How long before those are?" I ask. "A month and a half?"

"Thereabouts," she answers. "Then a few more days to make them."

"Yeah, they should last that long," I tell her. "Thanks, Greta."

"You're welcome," she tells me.

"Have a good rest of your day," I tell her.

"You as well, boys," she says.

"Bye!" Liam says, then we leave. "Are we going to the Elder Hunter now?"

"Now," I tell him. "We're heading home and wash our clothes from yesterday, since they're a bit muddy. Remember? I usually only visit the Elder Hunter to update my Level, receive my rewards, and find out if there are any requests, or to turn in gathered stuff for a request."

Or inform her when there's an issue that might need someone outside of the town to come help with, but that has never happened.

"Alright," he groans. "The ground's going to be all muddy. We'll just get all muddy again, and not just our boots."

"We can sit on stools," I tell him. "And I can dry the mud with magic, remember?"

"Oh, right!" He laughs. "I forgot that! I can't wait until I can learn that spell, too!"