I Am The Only Witch Hunter

Siderius and Ashe went on another trip in the Rottin Woods. The harsh sunlight from before had completely disappeared, replaced by a blue and gray hue spreading across the land.

The air was colder. The wind was fiercer. And the cloud filled the sky like a thick layer of cotton.

Siderius let out a huge breath. His breath condensed into visible white vapor and formed a tiny white cloud in front of him for a split of a second before disappeared.

Ashe stood not too far from him, wearing many layers of ordinary commoner clothes. She rubbed her two forearms repeatedly to warm herself.

"What are we looking for today, Master?" Ashe said. The white vapors escaped her mouth.

"Grayground." Siderius said. He unbuttoned his bear cloak and threw it over to Ashe. "Winter is coming. You will need better clothes."

Ashe caught the cloak. His warmth still lingered on the fur. It embarrassed her just by the thought of it. But she held it in and put on the bear cloak. The thick fur warmed her up immediately.

"I will tell Kraus to visit the tailor in Mucktown." Ashe said.

Siderius shook his head. "You need better clothes. A suitable uniform to traverse in the woods and fight.

A uniform similar to me."

Siderius pointed at his black attire. Ashe observed the uniform closely.

Compared to ordinary clothes, there were certain traits that Ashe could spot on his uniform. There was no seamline. The leather folded naturally on each other like it was born that way. Then weak spots of the uniform was thicker and provided more protection.

The leather was also flexible to an impressive degree. It breathed well and could provide a certain amount of insulation.

Ashe noticed there was a tear on the right forearm of the uniform.

"What happened, Master?"

"Oh, this? Last desperate attack of the Chaos Beast I killed. It exploded and tore my forearm apart."

"Are you alright, Master?"

Siderius smiled. "Of course, my apprentice. I am always alright. You can see how important the attire is in combat. This tore forearm is the best example.

Without it, I may have lost an arm already."

Siderius used <Parare> to block off most of the attack. The remaining force got through to him, tearing the forearm of the uniform and also injuring the flesh inside. He had multiple layers of defense and that was the reason he survived. That day, he was planning on adding another layer.

Ashe nodded grimly. "Let me help you fix the forearm, Master."

"No need, my apprentice. What you need to do is focus on practicing your Alchemy and conditioning your body. I have other plans for my uniform."

"I understand, Master. You did say something about 'Grayground', Master. What is it? Why are we looking for it?"

"A certain type of tree. It has a very high concentration of the Earth element and a natural defensive capability. It is a very good source for tannins."

"Tannins, Master?"

"You never heard about tannins?"

Ashe shook her head in a daze.

"It's a mixture we use to treat leather. It will make the leather harder and more durable, suitable to make leather armor. But that is only one of the reason why we are on the trail."

Siderius squatted down and swept the leaves on the ground away, revealing the footprints of some type of animal.

"We need to find a suitable hide to make your uniform. Tell me. What is the animal this footprint belongs to?"

Ashe squinted her eyes and focused on the details of the prints. A footprint with hooves tat was around a handspan. The front tracks were larger than the hind tracks. Its left and right tracks were far apart, indicating a wide stride.

"Is this a buck, Master?"

"That's a question."

"This is a buck, Master." Ashe reinforced her answer.

Siderius nodded. "Very good."

"Are we making my uniform from deer hide, Master?"

"Yes and no. I was thinking about fusing a deerskin and boarskin together to make the uniform for you. The deerskin is very comfort and provides great insulation. But its weakness is clear. Deerskin is not durable.

Boarskin is very durable and has a very good water and moisture resistance. It will be a good material to fight back the snow of winter."

"Which skin did you make your uniform from, master?"

"Water buffalo skin. It is exceptionally durable and offer a little bit of insulation. It also has very good water resistance as well. But it is not a piece of comfortable clothing.

It has a rough and grainy texture and can cause you quite a headache."

"Can I use buffalo skin as well, Master?"

"Why?"

"Because it is more durable..."

The truth was simpler than that. Ashe simply wanted to have a similar uniform as Siderius.

He chuckled gently then said. "Don't ever underestimate comfort, my apprentice. It can be a difference of night and day.

Comfort helps you stay longer in the fight. Your mind will be more at ease. The deerskin also breathes much better, preventing heatstroke. It is also more flexible than the buffalo skin, allowing for more maneuverability.

There is a reason why I choose the deerskin and boarskin over the buffalo skin, my apprentice."

Ashe lowered her head. "I understand, Master..."

"Let's keep going. If we're lucky, we can find a fine buck before the end of the day."

The pair continued tracking the animal. They had done this for many, many times. Bows in their hands and arrows between their fingers.

Ashe had become much more confident with her archery skill lately. She was far from comparable to Siderius but she could call herself an experienced hunter.

The tracks became softer and more blurry the longer they followed. The buck had entered a sandy area. The dirt here was very dried and dusty, making any type of tracks hard to maintain.

However, the two of them knew that the buck was very close. It shouldn't be that much farther away from the both of them.

Ashe released a handful of milkweed. The white floss was blown away, showing the direction of the wind clearly.

The hunter and his student stood silently, watching the clusters of white milkweed floss floated away. The floss flew away from them, following the trail of the tracks.

"We are upwind. Our scent is being blown to any animal down there." Ashe whispered.

This time, Siderius took the role of the observer. He nodded in agreement. "And what do you suggest we should do?"

"Let's circle around and go downwind. It should provide us with a better position to track the buck."