14 Hailer (1/2)

The furball, otherwise known as the unconventional clicker to Tang Gon hasn't shown up in a while. The system, unlike the previous time, did not summon the furball for Tang Gon. Nor was there any way for Tang Gon to make the system summon it.

From time to time, Tang Gon would see shadows of it pop out of the trees or in the bushes off in the distance. Every time he would try to approach it, the furball would just magically disappear. It was always too quick and ran away before Tang Gon had any way to react to it.

Seeing the furball once again, Tang Gon having learned his lesson, quickly summoned his Pyro Snake. The Pyro Snake following his command lunged at the furball and wrapped around it, preventing it from escaping. This time, Tang Gon was successful in capturing it.

Rushing towards the Pyro Snake that held the furball in its grasp, Tang Gon quickly grabbed it afraid that it would disappear once again. This time, upon contact with Tang Gon, the furball started glowing. Before he knew it, the furball gave off a warm bright light and disappeared.

[+50 Clicker Points]

The system was starting to get on Tang Gon's nerves. The previous time was him petting it and gaining 20 some clicker points easily, but now he had to actively search and catch it. This was not getting easier for him.

The 50 plus clicker points, however, was in fact an added bonus. While this couldn't compare to the bonus clicker points he received as part of his beginner's bag, this was still a considerable amount.

[Tracker -10 Clicker Points]

Tang Gon cheerfully laughed as he watched the scout leave his sight. There was no way he was going to let the scout get away this easily.

...

The encampment was situated south of a nearby stream, right off of the leveled plain. As resource was scarce, the main camp had to essentially live off of the land. The proximity to the stream provided them the use of water and the occasional fish for meals.

Sometimes, there would be wandering animals that approached too close, giving them the opportunity to hunt them down, providing meat, lard, fur, and other items that were scarce, but high in demand.

The scout unaware of being tracked by Tang Gon and his system made his way to the main camp, prepared to show the commander of the dangers and harm Tang Gon just caused their camp when he entered the gremlin nest.

Seeing the site just over the horizon Hailer ran forward. He was finally there. It wasn't that far, but in the forest, one always needed to be careful. Careful of everything. Pitfalls, quicksand, hordes, and poisonous plants were some of the few dangers that they had to be careful of when going in. These alone claimed the lives of many of the soldiers stationed there.

As a result, the recruitment stations were open at the start of every month. The only requirement was to prove their strengths. Very little training was involved and as long as they could fight, they could join. The military structure of the empire was more profit-oriented, operating more as a mercenary guild with military structure.

Because the empire was involved in the manufacturing of ores and production, they shared a close relationship with merchants, traders, and dealers.

The work was dangerous, but the considerable benefits offered by the empire lured in many people. The majority of which came from poor families or were orphans that had nowhere to go. This was where most members of the lower society came to rise to the top.

As long as they survive for enough years, they could then maintain a comfortable position as a sentry or even a captain of the guards in a small town nearby. From there they would earn enough coppers and silvers to comfortably get by. There was the occasional beer on the weekends and excess splurges on holidays with extra side dishes.

The yearly campaign was a way that the current empire maintained its power. Although it was filled with gremlins and other minor hordes, there were considerable benefits to attacking and raiding the monsters. By using the monster population to its advantage, the current empire bolstered their combat force and advancements.

For one, this protected the nearby towns that lived off of mining the nearby forestry and metal veins. The second was that the army was able to collect the valuables that the Gremlins and other monsters had a habit of hoarding and stealing.

The forest was extremely dangerous and forced those to be in a constant state of caution. Hailer was just one of the many scouts recruited and sent out.

Before he knew it, Hailer was in front of the main camp.