"Good morning," I greet Cam as he descends the stairs, wearing just a pair of pants. His hair is messed up from sleep, and he's fixing it with his fingers. "Hangover?"

"No," he answers. "Just tired. We were up pretty late last night, telling Liam those stories."

After Cam and I felt the buzz hitting us, we stopped drinking, and that was when Liam pounced. He decided awhile back that the best time to get us to tell him stories of our hunts is when we're a little buzzed, as he finds the stories more entertaining. I'm pretty sure we don't tell them any differently than normal, so the real reason is probably that we're more willing to tell him many stories, staying up late and only falling asleep because of exhaustion, not intent.

"Yeah," I answer. "He's heard them all before, but insists on hearing them again."

"Yeah," he nods. "Have they left?

"No," I answer. "At least, no messenger's come our way., and Kain himself hasn't come by, either."

"What's breakfast?" He asks.

"Fish, fruit, and a fruit dip," I answer. "It's on the table."

"Thanks," he walks over to the table, rubbing his temples.

"Dehydrated?"

"Yeah," he answers. "Maybe I had a little more alcohol than I'd realized? We did have a few more drinks after Liam passed out."

Beer, not wine.

"Okay, maybe I do have a migraine," he winces, and I realize the sun peeked through the clouds and the window and hit him square in the face. "Ow."

"It's probably going to rain today," I say. "The air feels and smells like it, and clouds have been rolling in all morning, coming in from the northwest. We have a lighter layer now, but the way they were moving when I was outside, the really thick, dark ones will be over us in maybe an hour, two at most."

"One thing I'm jealous of with you," Cam groans a little, rubbing his temples as the sunlight disappears again. "Is your tolerance to alcohol. Why is it you never get hangovers?"

"I get hangovers," I tell him. "I just remember upon waking that a Hunter in the city taught us how to cure them with light magic after he bought us a few too many rounds."

"Oh, right," Cam groans, and the tips of his fingers against his temples glow for a few seconds. "That is much better. I hate that you're able to think rationally with a hangover."

"That's the price you pay for being able to cast magic while drunk," I tell him. "I can't draw on my sacred power at all while drunk."

"Yeah," he says. "I guess that's a good trade-off. What did you season this fish with?"

"Just a blend of juices," I tell him. "With some vinegar added. I let it soak for a little bit, and that's it."

"You tried something new," he says. "A different blend."

"Yeah," I respond. "Did you check on Liam before coming down?"

"He was still passed out in his bed," Cam nods. "When did you move him there?"

"After you passed out," I say. "But before I stuck you in the guest room."

I return to reading as Cam finishes breakfast. One of my books mentions angels, it just calls them by a different name. Instead, it calls them 'winged messengers', and I was looking it up when Cam came down. I remembered having read about people with wings before when I woke up this morning and started going through my book collection. It's been a few years since I read this one, though, which is why I didn't remember it before.

Unfortunately, it's not very helpful. All it tells me is the same stuff Ryan did – that the winged messengers served the mythical ancient gods, and don't exist. The book itself is an examination of the ancient stories and how they were unmasked as false.

According to this, there really is nothing behind the tale of winged messengers. It even mentions a Hunter who imitated their form a long time ago, but portrays her as someone attempting to start a cult based off the ancient tales. I suppose there's some information that made it out regarding the incident.

Based on the book, the chances are high she was trying to start a cult. Kris did say the Master Hunter had to look up the information, it's possible they left that part out, either the Master Hunter in their letter to him or the old Hunters in the archives. Most likely, they want to keep an eye on those who hear the voices to make sure they don't try to create a cult which interferes with society or the Hunters.

This book says that she managed to convert an entire town to her cult before she was stopped, and that the cult's main purpose was to turn everyone into a Hunter. That would be disastrous, because of the whole thing with sacred power attracting monsters and causing higher populations in the area.

Which is probably why the Guild wants to keep an eye on us, just in case another tries starting something like that. The book is suggesting a tie between that and Koraminal, which happened soon after her. At least, based on its timeline, and Koraminal did happen a few centuries ago, which is when Kris said her incident happened.

Closing the book, I stand and return it to the bookshelf, someone knocking on the door just as I slide it back into place.

I walk over and answer it, finding the Soul Strikers there.

"Good morning," I greet them. "Preparing to set off?"

"Yes," Seth answers. "We wanted to say hello and chat before leaving."

"Come in," I step aside, letting the team into my home.

"Thank you," Seth says, looking around. "Hello, Cam."

"Good morning," Cam says, then pops a berry into his mouth.

"Kris," I say. "Was there anything about the Hunter you told me about you didn't tell me?" I ask.

"Why?" He asks, and I tell him about the book. His gaze travels to the shelf, eyes catching on the books. "Ah. No, I wasn't aware of that, but that book does use factual information. The Guild wouldn't let it be published if it didn't. If that's the case, then I can understand why they'd be concerned."

"Well, it was only one person," I shrug. "And starting a cult is a sign of other underlying problems. I won't be trying that at all."

"That's good to know," Seth chuckles. "Before we left, I wanted to ask if you knew that sacred weapons can change?"

"They grow with us as Hunters," I nod. "As our true style changes, we can find new ways to use them."

"That's part of it," he tells me. "But since you're young and planning on using it for a long time, I thought you should know. Sacred weapons can undergo a full transformation. The longer you've had it, the more likely this is to occur, but it can also happen under an extreme circumstance. It is, after all, a manifestation of your soul. Your soul can change over time. Every Elder Hunter, and nearly every old Hunter alive, has had their sacred weapon change once. Your local Elder Hunter's sacred weapon is a plain staff, but she started off with a spear. However, she can split it in half and turn it into a pair of batons, when she could not do that with her original one."

"That sounds incredible," I say.

"It is," he nods. "It's not likely something that will matter to you for many years, but I thought you should know now, anyway."

"Okay," I say. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he says.

"Rex," Kain steps up to me as Seth takes a step back. "Once again, I apologize for abandoning you. You seem happy now, so that makes me happy. I'm going to try to visit from time to time now, though it might not be but once a year. I know we've lost that brotherly love and connection we used to have, but I hope we can reforge it, even as rarely as I'll be here."

"It was fun knowing you when we were little," I smile. "And I'm sure it'll be nice getting to know you again, Kain."

"Yeah," he says, then pulls me against him for a hug. "Sorry, Rex. I should have been here for you."

"You had your reasons," I return the hug, then we separate. "I don't blame you for it."

"Alright," he says, then pulls away and looks at Cam. "Hey, Cam."

"Hey, Kain," Cam says.

"It was good seeing you again," Rex tells him.

"Same to you," Cam says.

"Well," Seth says. "We should get going. The merchants want to get on the road before the storm hits."

"Okay," I say. "Enjoy your trip, and your travels."

"Enjoy your hunts," Seth responds.

The Soul Strikers leave, then I go to the table and sit down.

"Want to go on a hunt today?" I ask. "We'd have to leave Liam behind, though."

Hunting during a storm can yield us monsters that we normally wouldn't come across. We aren't sure where they are when there aren't any storms, but there are definitely some monsters around when it's storming.

Especially during the spring storms. Some of those monsters prove especially useful, too.

However, Liam is too low in Level and too lacking in ability to actually manage against them right now. The true spring storm monsters won't be showing up for another two or three weeks, but that doesn't mean we can't find a few things now.

"You think he'll be okay with it?" Cam asks just as I see Liam descending the stairs, dressed and ready for the day.

"Hey, Liam," I say. "Just as we were discussing you. Cam and I were thinking of doing a hunt during the storm, but it'd be a little too dangerous for you. Would you be okay with us leaving you behind?"

"You've been doing that for years," he tells me. "I know I can't handle this stuff. I'll just practice my potions stuff while you're gone."

"Alright," I tell him. "Come in breakfast."

Liam joins us at the table and eats breakfast, then helps me wash and dry the dishes, Cam putting them away. Once that's taken care of, Cam and I get changed into our garb, pulling on jackets to repel the rain. I slip on a pair of gloves as well. If I don't, my fingers will go numb from the chill of the rain. Cam always wears gloves while hunting, so it isn't a problem for him. We fill our baskets with thin, but tightly-woven clothes and some rope, then cover them and make our way back downstairs.

We keep Cam's gear for storm hunting here, mostly because I have more space in my home than he does his. Today, it turns out to be a benefit, since he doesn't need to return home before we go out on the hunt to pick up anything.

"We're setting off," I tell Liam, who nods, already at work with a pot on the fire.

"Bye," he says.

Cam and I leave, making our way to the Gate. By the time we arrive, the rain has begun, and there are flashes of lightning in the sky, the boom of thunder echoing out soon after.

"Welcome back, boys," the Gate greets us. "The others have already left, if you came to bid them goodbye."

"No," I tell him. "We're heading out for a hunt."

"May I see your brands?" He asks.

Cam and I undo the front of our jackets and pull down the collars of our shirts to show the Gate, then he opens. The rain is freezing, so we both quickly fix our jackets, then we pass through the Gate, which closes behind us.

We head east, towards the plains past the hills. The trip takes us a little more than two hours, and we don't see many monsters on the way. At the same time, the storm picks up, growing heavier, and we can see lightning striking the ground in the distance every few minutes.

It's not too dark to see, but it's dark enough visibility isn't great. Cam and I keep a lookout for monsters, including the sky. While most bird monsters don't come out during the storms, there are some that do, and those ones can be especially annoying.

From time to time, we do see a monster on the crest of a hill, but ignore it. The ones on the hills aren't the ones we're hunting at the moment.

Cam and I reach the plains and walk off the path to head a little south, towards the river. It's already begun to overflow, and we can see our first target there. It's a deer with blue-green fur and silvery antlers, standing under a tree around ten yards from the river. I activate my lightning body as Cam moves back, and once I'm within twenty feet of the deer, it snaps its head to look at me.

Unlike normal deer, the storm deer won't hesitate to attack an approaching person. Sure enough, I only take another step before its antlers crackle with electricity before the sparks join together in a bolt that lashes out at me.

With my lightning body, I'm able to take the attack. Because it's not a Tier Five monster, I don't need to tune my form to its lightning, the attack weak enough for my defense to dissipate it. Based on the number of antlers and the silver tail of the deer, this is a Tier Three one.

The deer attacks me that way twice more before openings its mouth and releasing a jet of water. Though my lightning form can handle it, I still summon a wind wall to stop it. At the same time, I summon a spear from the ground. This is a fight I can win with relative ease, I think, I just need to mind my footing and turn it into a close-range battle.

The wind and the rain will make it difficult for me to attack outside of lightning, which won't affect this thing much. The water jet only worked because it's pressurized, and water magic won't have much effect on a storm deer, either.

Moving forward, I wrap the spear in compressed wind, then begin my attack on the deer, which does its best to avoid the attacks while continuing its own attack. It seems limited to the two attacks, though I know it can also ram me with its antlers and most likely manifest a gale of wind.

Putting a little more charge into my lightning body, I enhance my speed more, managing to lunge forward and slice through the deer's neck. It starts to bleed out and falls to the ground, and while that might last for awhile, it would be wrong of me to leave it like that, so I quickly end it by slicing through the back of its neck as well, then I field dress it before we use water magic to wash the mud off of it before wrapping it in one of the clothes we brought. With how tightly they are woven, they'll repel the water of the storm.

Cam carries the deer with his magic as we move on to our next target. The next three fights are against storm deer, and they all go similarly, though I use the greater lightning body from the start, ending the fights much more quickly than the first.

Then, we come across a plant-like monster. It really does resemble a plant, with a thick green stem covered in thorns, a yellow and blue flower on its head, and more than a dozen root-like legs it uses to crawl over the ground. It has a pair of arms as well, long, triangular protrusions with small spikes running along their edges. Overall, it's about two feet in height.

Okay, it actually is a plant. However, some plants are monsters, being both plants and animals. While we can find them when they aren't storming, the best time to hunt them is during a storm. During one, the gel inside of them changes properties, and if we kill them, it retains that. Then, the gel is usable for making potions and salves to soothe numbness, paralysis, and stuns, rather than burns.

The yellow in the flower proves to us that the gel has already converted over to the cure for shocks, which means it's time to hunt it.

The trick, however, is to kill it without opening it up. If we open it up before it's time to extract the gel, then the gel will go bad. Thankfully, Cam and I have experience fighting these things, so we know how to handle it.

Rather than casting my lightning body spell for this fight, I leave myself normal. I also don't summon up another spear, my old one lost after the last fight. Cam distances himself, as normal, and I draw in close.

Turning, the plant monster looks at me, no doubt having felt my approach through the vibrations in the muddy ground, even though the mud should absorb it enough to prevent that. Its roots are rather impressive in that regard.

When we first encountered these, Cam and I had no idea how to handle them. We ended up spoiling several of them before returning to town with the rest of our catches and asking the Elder Hunter for the information on them. It came with a fee, of course, but that's how we found out the solution was rather simple.

Until they reach Tier Three, that is, and this one seems to be Tier Two.

Cam releases several bolts of lightning around him, drawing the monster's attention long enough for me to get close to it without it attacking. Then, I use wind magic to pull it out of the mud. With it only a couple of feet in front of me, flipping it over and burning a knob-like protrusion under it is quite easy, though I have to use more sacred power for the fire because of the wind and the rain.

Immediately, the monster's limbs go limb, the monster dead. It turns out, that knob-like protrusion is its actual head – it contains the monster's brain. That means all we have to do is destroy that, and we're able to use the gel, the roots, the flower, the thorns, and the flesh, not a bit of it wasted.

At Tier Three, it becomes a bit more difficult, as that's when they start to set their roots deep, making it tougher to pull them out.

I place the monster in Cam's basket, then we resume our hunt. We stop our trip only for a brief lunch under a tree, then return to the hunt. If we don't, we'll lose out on some stuff until the next big storm, and these deer pelts are especially useful in making jackets for repelling the rain.

A little past our normal dinnertime, Cam and I return to town, the Gate welcoming us back before letting us inside. We make straight to Nick's shop to pass off the fourteen deer we caught.

"You got a big load this time," he comments. "You normally only return with six or seven."

"We got lucky," I tell him. "They were especially active out there. Can you make sure to send the pelts to Greta so she can start on jackets?"

"Sure thing," he tells me. "You boys get home and dry now, okay?"

"We have another stop to make first," I tell him. "Then we'll do that."

"Good," he says. "Now hurry on, or you'll catch cold."

Cam and I nod, then leave and make our way to Hailey's home. The alchemist answers when we knock on the back door, her shop closed.

"We have some stuff for you," I say once she lets us inside, the back room her actual work room.

"Thank you," she says as I start pulling the plant beasts out. "Ah, yes, those will prove most useful. I've begun to run out of the stuff I make with those."

"We're giving you half," Cam tells her. "And the other half are going to my Ma."

"Alright," Hailey says. "It looks like you two managed a nice catch today. There are eight of them?"

"Yes," I answer. "Four for you, four for Cam's ma. The monsters seemed to be especially active today, possibly because of the storm's intensity."

"Okay," she says. "You two get home and get dry now, okay?"

"We will," we tell her, then start making towards my home.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Cam tells me once we're at the fork in the road where he leaves to head to his home, though the storm has picked up enough he has to nearly shout from right beside my ear. "Hopefully, the storm's died down by then!"

"See you tomorrow!" I respond.

We walk to our homes, and when I arrive at mine, I remove my boots immediately, then pull off my basket and jacket. Cam will return his basket and the wraps and ropes in it when he stops by next.

"Welcome back," Liam looks at me. "Well, you're not all muddy this time, but you still need to go take a hot bath to warm up. I'll make dinner while you do that."

"You'll burn dinner, more like," I tell him. "Give me twenty minutes, then I'll get to work on dinner."

"Okay," he tells me. "I put some clothes in the bathing room for you already. I'll clean the mud off your boots."

"Thanks," I tell him, then head to the bathing room.

I pull off my shirt and drop it in the basket, then strip off my pants and hang them on a bar to dry before I run the bath and heat it up. I climb into the bath and lower myself down, feeling the hot water soaking into my chilled body.

Closing my eyes, I think over the hunt today. Something was strange. I know I said the monster activity was because of the storm's strength, but there's some part of me that doubts that. Cam and I have hunted in storms this bad before, and the monsters weren't this active.

I'm probably still on edge because of the wolves, but it still worries me a little. Could it be a foreboding of some sort? Or did we just happen to come across a more active area today?

Only the powers that be know. Just like only they know why I happened to come across that statue the day after Kris told me about a woman who made a pair of wings of light. Though that story's been debunked if Kris was right about that book using only facts.

Sinking all the way into the bath so that the hot water covers my head, I push my thoughts away from that stuff. I need to relax, not think about mysteries. I also need to make sure to not take too much time in here, or Liam will complain about how long it takes to get dinner.