Summoner's Clue (3)

How could Leonard possibly know about this stone creature? That was the question the rest of the party was asking themselves. Impressed by his knowledge, they couldn't help but be even more impressed with Leonard.

Simply standing there, he didn't flinch when the huge rock came at him. They could all sense his trust in Zeus, which further proved their connection. Moreover, Zeus's actions and swift response were something they hadn't seen before. Even if he was a Player, it was still impressive.

Yuna watched with sparkling eyes. Her gaze lingered on Leonard's back as he stood firmly, scrutinizing the golem that had slowly disappeared into thin air.

Though everyone else was surprised—since normal monsters wouldn't die this way—Leonard remained calm, as if he already knew why it had happened.

Taking the chance, Brian asked Leonard about the creature.

"How could that possibly happen? Is that normal?"

Leonard and Zeus knew very well that it was a summon.

"That wasn't a normal monster. That was a summon," Leonard said, surprising everyone.

"A summon? You mean what a Summoner Class Player could call? Was that why Zeus defeated it so easily?" Brian asked.

"Summons aren't that strong. But still, what Zeus did was impressive. He was fast like lightning."

It was common knowledge that summoners were weaker than normal humans, and their summons were considered subpar, barely helpful in battle. Furthermore, the art of summoning wasn't well known to the public due to the complexity of being a summoner.

Zeus, hearing their assumptions, couldn't help but shake his head. He dismissed their ideas. "That wasn't a weak summon. The golem Leonard identified was stronger than a chanak. Its skin was thick, and its body was hard. The impact against my fist was strong—I could feel it."

Everyone was stunned. If Zeus said it that way, then it meant the situation was serious.

They couldn't believe that there was a summoner capable of summoning something that strong. That creature, the golem, could have easily killed them if they had fought it.

Their hearts pounded wildly, especially Liam's, as he was shaken by the fact that he hadn't even detected the threat from the monster. It had all been up to Zeus and Leonard. He felt as though he'd failed in his role.

"Summoners aren't strong... but with what Zeus just said, could we be facing an extraordinary summoner? A one-in-a-million summoner?" Liam muttered, agitation building in his system. He couldn't calm down.

Brian scratched his head, and Fred stepped forward, ready to assist.

"If we must fight, then let's go. We can't just stand here doing nothing."

Leonard shook his head. "We can't be hasty. That summoner wasn't normal. The fact that the golem was strong means that if he wasn't agitated by its easy defeat, it must have been one of his weakest summons. Furthermore, we heard no reactions. So let's calm down."

Brian and Jane nodded.

"That's right. We still don't know why that summon attacked us. It could be from the lost civilization, guarding it. It might have been hostile to drive us away from the treasure," Jane suggested, sharing her thoughts with everyone.

Yuna, who had been silent until now, joined the discussion. Her keen and sharp eyes were only slightly inferior to Jane's.

"I saw someone moving in that direction," she pointed toward the area of the lost civilization that Jane had noticed.

Everyone's hearts pounded except for Zeus, who silently opposed their assumptions. He already knew where the summoner was but couldn't leave Leonard alone with people he couldn't trust.

'This is difficult. I don't know how many magic points Leonard still has after three continuous days of keeping me summoned. If I rush to capture the summoner, I might disappear with Leonard draining his magic points.'

Keeping his composure in check, Zeus devised a plan for the current situation. There were factors he couldn't overlook.

"How about we slowly approach that lost civilization?" Leonard suggested, causing some division among the party.

"I can't agree with this," Liam voiced out, laced with deep concern. He knew very well that their unknown enemy was slippery, hiding his presence too well.

Yuna nodded. "I don't want the same thing to happen as it did inside the tower."

Brian's eyes filled with worry as he noticed his party members' concerns. As the leader of the party, he knew they were already challenged by their overestimation of themselves in the tower, and repeating the same mistake would be foolish.

Leonard bit his lower lip and nodded. 'I can't be hasty… I'm not alone this time,' he thought, recalling that his previous actions were only bound by not having to worry about others.

Now that he was a member of a party, he couldn't help but worry about them. Sighing, he agreed to Yuna and Liam's suggestion. The party retreated, heading back toward the main road with the hope of distancing themselves from the hostile, unknown enemy.

But they were wrong in thinking that the summoner had attacked them from the lost civilization.

"That fucker is still following us," Zeus alerted everyone as he stood at the back of the line.

Worry painted everyone's faces. Who could this enemy be? Why was he doing this?

Then, just a few meters away from their previous location, another summon appeared. This time, it was coming from the sky.

"Two golems," Leonard pointed to the sky, and Zeus immediately leaped from his position, catching the golems by their legs and swinging them away from the party.

In an instant, the threat disappeared, leaving silence among the members as they watched how fierce and strong Zeus was. Furthermore, Liam was surprised that Leonard had easily spotted the golems in the sky.

In Liam's mind, he couldn't help but feel impressed despite the grave situation. Leonard was a master at detection! 'If Leonard became an assassin, he would be greater than me. He can easily detect any presence coming toward us.'

Leonard's focus remained divided between their surroundings and their trek to the main road. He pointed in one direction, noticing another golem.

Yuna also noticed how sharp Leonard was, feeling even more impressed with his skills.

'Leonard is a strong Player. That's for sure.'

However, Leonard hissed as more golems appeared, scattered in every direction, almost surrounding them. He ordered everyone to stop, alarming them with his pale face.

"This summoner is not simple. How can he summon so many?"

Hearing that, everyone's fear skyrocketed.