The Crimson Claymore Read Online Free PDF Page B

kheshlarn territory, and it made their path an easier one to follow. It also meant that they held less cover from wandering eyes, and so they made pace carefully. Searon only hoped the tales of the kheshlars were true—that they had sensitive hearing—and only that rumor kept him at ease through the open path.
    Often he looked back at the kheshlar with scattered glances, where he studied her. He noticed her looking back at him and smiling without the attention of the wizard. Her smile was sincere, and she seemed to be studying him as much as he studied her. She had long blonde hair that sparkled in the sunlight, with waves that bounced with each stride. His eyes remained on her as often as it did the beast she traveled with. She rode on top of a jaguar, and he admired the beast’s bronze fur with black spots. At first, he had been afraid of the creature when it had approached shortly after the start of their journey. Soon, he realized that the kheshlar had called the beast and she climbed atop it like he would a horse, but without a saddle! It kept high pace along with their horses, and so she hadn’t slowed them in the slightest.
    When the light from the stars touched them, she only seemed to glitter more in their glow. Her namesake was true, and she shone with their same intensity. It was almost as if she glowed at night, but it came and went with each smile that graced her lips. Searon wished he could get her to smile indefinitely because it brought such a profound beauty to her that he could never even dream of.
    They agreed to stop to rest for the night, or at least for a time. There was nothing past their plan besides to stop and rest to find food. The kheshlar took off west through a small forest without a sound despite the scattered broken branches that lay among the bare trees. Searon decided to head east to search for wild game. His stomach was grumbling for something besides dried meat and water that filled his saddle.
    He stalked the bare forest for what seemed like an hour before he heard the faint footsteps and the sound of a trickling stream. Peering through a prickly bush, he noticed a large wild boar drinking water. It shone black with stiff bristles and fine fur. Searon hadn’t seen such a large boar before, and his mouth watered at the savory flavor it could create over a hot fire.
    His hand dropped to the back of his sash where he grabbed an arrow from his quiver and detached his bow from his back. Its fine oak exterior molded in his hands as he remembered handcrafting it as a young man. The smooth texture rested in his left hand as he notched the steel arrow with his right. He hardly used the bow for more than hunting, and most of the time it stayed with his saddle and horse. Keeping his aim steady, he licked his left index finger and checked for wind. It was blowing to his left slightly in the same direction the small stream was heading. He held his bow tight, aiming to the right of the boar, and let go of his arrow. It whistled through the air with barely a sound, and before it could reach the boar he already had another out and notched. He didn’t need the second arrow, as the first one struck the boar in the heart.
    He walked to the large beast that lay by the stream, taking its last drink. At least it became hydrated at its death. With struggle, he hefted the beast onto his shoulders and struggled forward one step at a time. He didn’t expect it to weigh so much, and his mouth watered even more at the amount of meat he would have.
    Back at the camp, Karceoles sat on a stump with his long-stem pipe in hand in front of a fire. Both the pipe and the fire were smokeless, and Searon set the boar down beside it. The wizard laid his pipe on the stump and rose to his feet, tying the boar to a few large branches he seemed to acquire with twine.
    “Magic trick?” Searon asked, glancing back at the fire.
    The fire burned the wood, and it turned black, but there wasn’t any smoke or the smell the smoke