182: hunter

Before long, the crocodile leg hanging over the campfire was sizzling.

Sayyid also sprinkled some salt on it.

Although he didn't recognize snacks, he did recognize table salt.

Sayyid took off his gloves, washed his hands with bottled water nearby, and tore off a piece of crocodile meat.

"Blow on it," Sayyid said, bringing the crocodile meat to the Little Girl's mouth.

"Hoo—"

The Little Girl puffed out her cheeks, blowing hard on the crocodile meat.

Only after feeling the temperature drop did Sayyid place the crocodile meat in the Little Girl's hand.

"Ah, so hot—"

The Little Girl tossed the crocodile meat up, rubbed her hands repeatedly, and then kept blowing on her small hands.

Seeing this, Sayyid's face under his mask was filled with helplessness.

"Sorry..."

Sayyid tore off a few more pieces of crocodile meat, let them cool for a long time, and then handed them to the Little Girl.

The Little Girl took a bite of the crocodile meat and nearly threw up, her small face turning beet red.

But remembering that Sayyid had painstakingly grilled it for so long, she forced herself to swallow it.

The unprocessed crocodile meat was fishy and tough.

Moreover, some parts were burnt, and... too much salt was added.

"The meat Uncle Soldier grilled is delicious," the Little Girl squeezed out a smile.

No matter what Sayyid did, the Little Girl's face was always turned towards him.

But her pupils were unfocused.

Sayyid also tore off a piece of crocodile meat for himself, put it in his mouth, and ate it expressionlessly.

The taste didn't matter to him and the Soldiers.

"Uncle, what was that rustling sound just now? It was so nice to hear."

While eating the crocodile meat, the Little Girl asked.

The two had been on the run until they hid in Dam Zero this afternoon, finally getting a moment of peace.

As for the remaining Asala Soldiers in Dam Zero, Sayyid had killed them all.

Originally, Sayyid didn't want to see his derivative body causing trouble, and he had killed most of the derivative body.

But when it came to the Soldiers, he ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it.

However, witnessing what happened to the Little Girl and her mother made Sayyid realize.

If the derivative body of the Asala Soldiers were not killed, these sins, which did not originally belong to them, would only multiply.

"Carving wood," Sayyid replied in a deep voice.

"Is that Uncle's hobby?" the Little Girl continued to ask.

"I suppose so."

"Oh, right, Uncle, I still don't know your name."

"Sayyid Ziyateng."

Hearing Sayyid's reply, the Little Girl's expression was a bit puzzled.

"Such a long name. My name is Su Mulan."

"I have hobbies too, but unfortunately, I can't see anything, so I can only listen to my mother tell me stories."

After Su Mulan finished speaking, Sayyid couldn't help but be curious.

"What's your hobby?"

Su Mulan puffed out her cheeks, a little embarrassed.

"Hunting..."

Hearing these two words, Sayyid instantly fell silent, staring blankly at Su Mulan in front of him.

After a long time without hearing Sayyid's reply, Su Mulan became anxious, gesturing continuously with her hands.

"I know I can't see, so it's impossible for me to hunt, but I really like it."

"Mom tells me stories about hunters every day."

"Hunters are really amazing. Those beasts are so scary, but to hunters, they are just prey!"

There was a hint of sadness in Sayyid's eyes.

Hunters... are they amazing?

The hunting skills his father taught him indeed allowed him to gradually stand out from the crowd after joining the army.

But whether facing the village where he grew up or Asara, he failed to protect them... Su Mulan nervously rubbed her hands, not having heard Sayyid's voice for a long time.

In the air, only the crackling sound of the campfire burning branches remained.

After a long while, Sayyid couldn't help but ask:

"How can a Little Girl like you be interested in hunting? And you live in the city, where would you find prey?"

Su Mulan rubbed her fingers and stubbornly replied:

"Who says girls can't hunt?"

"If I could see, I would definitely become an excellent... when I grow up."

Mid-sentence, a pain shot through her amputated lower leg.

Only then did Su Mulan remember that even if she could see, she couldn't become a hunter.

Her dream of hunting in the legal hunting grounds her mother spoke of, when she grew up, was even more impossible to achieve.

Tears streamed from Su Mulan's empty eyes.

Sayyid also didn't know how to comfort Su Mulan.

Fate is always so unfair.

As Su Mulan was crying, a cold object was placed in her small hand.

She first froze, then touched it.

Just as she was about to touch the sharp arrowhead.

Sayyid reached out and gripped the arrowhead, which prevented her from being pricked.

"This is a crossbow!"

Su Mulan exclaimed in surprise; if it weren't for the tear stains on her face, one wouldn't even know she had just been crying.

Sayyid couldn't help but shake his head and smile bitterly.

Children's emotions change too quickly.

But compared to that, Sayyid was more curious about something else.

"You know about crossbows?"

"Yes, I have one too, but Uncle's crossbow is bigger than my toy crossbow!"

Su Mulan said, hugging the crossbow to her chest.

The crossbow that Sayyid could use with one hand, Su Mulan held like a large sniper rifle.

"Uncle Sayyid, can I try it?" Su Mulan's voice was full of pleading.

Sayyid reached out, aimed the crossbow into the distance, and then said:

"You can."

Su Mulan's right index finger searched for a moment, then found the crossbow's trigger.

Click—

Bang—!

Even a crossbow has recoil; unlike a gun, the recoil from a crossbow is more of a vibration.

Su Mulan's hand was numb from the shock, but her face was full of joy.

She excitedly wanted to jump up, but forgetting about her amputated lower leg, she nearly fell when she stood.

Sayyid supported Su Mulan, his eyes full of disbelief.

The direction Su Mulan aimed in, and the direction the crossbow ultimately hit, were perfectly consistent!

Although the aiming was random, the difficult part was maintaining its stability.

Whether it's a bow and arrow, a crossbow, or a firearm, they all have one thing in common.

Aiming is not the most important thing; stability is.

When he first learned to hunt with his father, he would often aim correctly but miss.

It wasn't until he figured this out that he finally achieved pinpoint accuracy.

"Do you really want to be a hunter?"

Sayyid asked.

Su Mulan nodded firmly without hesitation, then her face showed disappointment.

"But, I can't see anything..."

Sayyid took out a blue syringe from his chest rig.

It was a perception enhancer.

"If you can't see with your eyes, you can listen with your ears."

"If you're interested."

"I can teach you."