Hunting

Zerin often accompanied the village hunters for safety, and also to make things easier for them. Winter arrived, so it was way harder to find animals in the forest, and the edible fruits and vegetables were scarcer too.

Kai was actually surprised by the winter because it was harsh, and the snow was falling on the Silka village for the first time in the entire year.

"You keep this clothes on, and listen to your father," Seneca said as she dressed Kai in fur clothes, "It is cold outside."

Hugh would be coming with them in the hunting too, but he was not wearing that many clothes. "It is because of my passive brother. I am prone to be an ice mage, so cold does not affect me that much," Hugh explained.

"Useful," Kai said.

The hunters were quite happy that day because Zerin was with them.

"With mage Zerin here, we will certainly find food," a middle-aged man said.

That was Loui, one of the best hunters the village had, and one of the few. The village had a total of 4 skilled hunters, and Zerin who helped them when possible.

"It's not like that," Zerin said, "I am a retired mage now."

Loui laughed, "Retired or not, you can still do things we can't, and we are glad to have someone like you with us."

The villagers of Silka disliked mages at first. It had been hard for Zerin and Seneca to live there at first, but the villagers soon got to know them, and realized they were acting stupid. They were scared of mages because it was something unknown to them, a realm they would never be part of.

Jane had a far easier time when moving to the village when compared to Zerin and Seneca. While Zerin was an ice mage, and Seneca a Fire Mage, Jane was a healer. Everyone saw the healing magic with good eyes, and for many people who were not too knowledgeable about the subject, the healing magic was a gift from the gods.

Anyway, they all left the village, moving to the forest to look for food. It was really cold outside, and the snow was making it harder for Kai to walk around. He was starting to miss having a normal-sized leg, and not one belonging to a six year old kid.

"They seem to like you a lot," Kai said to his father.

Zerin was surprised by his son's attention, "Yes, they do. Do you know why?"

Kai quickly understood that as a test, and his mind started working at full speed. He knew his father was an ice mage, and his mother a fire mage. It was certainly related to that. Kai wasn't that dumb about history, and because of the current world he was in, he sort of had an idea as to what his father did to make everyone love him.

"Well, you know how to use ice spells, so I bet you can freeze the food so that it won't spoil. This will make you quite valuable seeing we are far from everything, so saving food for winter is a must."

A six year old kid would never think about that. Kai wasn't afraid of telling that to his father. Zerin knew Kai was smarter than the peers his age, and he would never even think that his son was someone from another world, reincarnated. Those were things from fairy tales.

"Yep, that's correct. You will be quite the good mage with such intelligence at a young age," Zerin praised him.

"Thanks. I am only like this because you taught me a lot of things, father."

Kai could see a brief sadness on Zerin's face, probably thinking about the fact Kai was not his real son. But then it vanished, exchanged for a warm smile, "I am the one that should be thanking the world for having such a lovely kid. Now, remain close to me as we are getting into dangerous areas. Hugh, you too."

The animals in the area were not that dangerous to skilled hunters or a mage like Zerin, but Kai and Hugh were just kids, and any predator had the strength to kill them. Kai knew that very well, and that is why he remained close to his father.

'I don't want to die again. This world is so exciting I don't want to leave before exploring everything!'

After traversing through the forest for around one hour, one of the hunters saw something on the ground. "A deer footprint. This is valuable for us."

The winter had just started, and although the village had a lot of food stored, they wanted to take advantage while it was still easy to find food. Things would only get harder as time passed.

"Let's follow this track," Loui said.

Kai had zero knowledge about hunting, and it was a useful skill in any world. When passing by the mark the deer left, Kai kneeled and examined it, making a mental note to remember how a deer track looked.

Zerin nodded in acknowledgement when he noticed his son's behavior, 'My kid is smart.'

They followed the deer's track, eventually reaching a type of cave in the middle of the forest. It was a warm place, and the deer probably looked for shelter in such a harsh condition outside.

"It is probably inside. We have two options, either go inside, or wait for it to leave. What do you think, Zerin?"

Both options were fine, but considering Kai was with them, Zerin opted to enter the cave to return home as fast as possible. Kai was just a kid, and staying in the cold like that would not be good for him.

The hunters understood the reason Zerin wanted to do that, shifting their gazes to both Kai and Hugh, "Okay, let's go then. With you here, it shouldn't be a problem for us."

They slowly entered the dark cave, utilizing some torches to see inside. Kai was not feeling too good about it. 'If anything happens here, I can't protect myself.'

However, once his gaze went to his father, who looked as calm as ever, Kai relaxed. 'I am worrying too much, my father is here with me.'