Ethan hadn't tried this out yet, so he had no idea. He thought about it for a couple more seconds and then decided to go for it now. This was as good a time as any to try dismissing them and see what happens.

He took a deep breath, glancing at the injured goblins. They were weak but still alive, their blank eyes betraying no emotion as they sat silently in front of him. "Alright, let's see if this works," he muttered to himself.

"Dismiss," he commanded, focusing on one of the injured goblins. Instantly, the goblin shimmered faintly before vanishing into thin air.

Ethan quickly opened his system screen, scrolling to his summoning list. There it was—the dismissed goblin, its entry no longer grayed out, now listed as "available." Ethan clicked on it, summoning it back into the physical world.

With another shimmer, the goblin reappeared, but it was still injured. The gash across its chest remained, and its blank expression hadn't changed. The goblin wobbled slightly but stood upright, awaiting his command.

No miraculous healing. No reset button. It seemed the dismiss-and-summon trick didn't work the way he had hoped, at least not for healing.

Maybe it needed more time? It was a question for later.

He once again dismissed the goblin and then proceeded to dismiss the other goblins as well.

It was best to resummon them after perhaps procuring some first aid materials or other healing magic things? He did not know how that worked in this world. Surely, there was some sort of healing magic?

"Alright," he muttered to himself, glancing at Shadow, who was sitting nearby and licking her paw nonchalantly. "We'll figure out the healing thing later. There's got to be something in this world that works. Potions? Spells? Bandages at the very least?"

The system wasn't giving him much to go on, but Ethan figured it wasn't impossible. After all, this world had summoning magic and weird stat screens—healing couldn't be far-fetched.

Shadow let out a low purr, as if agreeing, and padded over to nudge against his leg. Ethan smiled faintly, crouching down to scratch behind her ears. "Guess it's just you and me for now."

He stood, his legs still shaky from the recent battles, and turned his attention toward the path leading back to the carriage. The driver was probably still waiting, likely grumbling about the delay. Ethan didn't want to keep him waiting any longer—he'd pushed his luck enough for one day.

"Let's head back," he said, more to himself than anyone else, and started walking. Shadow followed closely at his side, her tail swishing lazily.

He checked out some of the system notifications as he walked and saw that all of his summons had leveled up from the fight, well, except for the spiders and the worm. He himself was probably just an inch away from leveling up.

"Level 6... " Ethan sighed. In just a single trip, so much had happened. Engrossed in his thoughts, he continued walking.

As they approached the area where the carriage was parked, Ethan heard some noises. Maybe another carriage was taking a break at the same spot. Perhaps this was a famous pit stop?

But that works out for him. The more the merrier. This way, he would be able to gather more information without giving away too much about himself.

As Ethan approached the clearing where the carriage was parked, the sounds grew clearer—muffled voices, the clinking of metal, and the occasional bray of horses. He slowed his pace, peering through the trees to get a better view without revealing himself.

Shadow, ever alert, crouched low, her ears swiveling toward the commotion. Ethan knelt beside her, trying to discern what was happening.

His eyes widened when he saw another carriage parked near his own, flanked by two men wearing mismatched armor and carrying crude swords. Bandits, maybe? Or just heavily armed travelers? Something looked suspicious.

The driver of his carriage stood off to the side, gesturing animatedly as he spoke to the newcomers. His voice was raised but not aggressive—more frustrated, if anything. Ethan couldn't make out the words from his distance, but it didn't seem like an outright fight.

Maybe he was just overthinking?

As he was thinking about what to do now, the carriage driver suddenly turned in his direction and looked straight at him. "There he is! I told you he did not suspect anything. Go get him and stop blaming me for your stupidity! I have done more than enough already!"

Ethan froze as the driver's words echoed in the clearing. He sold me out.