Early the next morning, the party quickly had breakfast in awkward silence.

Since they had planned to begin their journey back to the puppeteer's grove today, Cedric openly told everyone he would be staying back.

The rest of the party didn't seem too surprised, as most of them already knew this by now.

Once they were done with breakfast and were ready to leave, they said their goodbyes. Then Cedric approached Leon and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Take care of these guys, okay?"

Leon smiled. "Sure, but uh… who will take care of you."

"Tsk. By the way..." Cedric reached into his inventory and took out a piece of paper, then handed it over. "Look out for this guy."

Leon took it and squinted at the name. "Casimir Adalricus?" He frowned, trying to recall the face that went with the name. "I think I know this guy. If I'm not mistaken, he's a member of Alicia's party."

"He is? Well, look out for him. In fact, look out for every cadet from the Bastion of the Somarian Pride."

"Why? Have they rubbed you the wrong way?"

"I have a feeling those guys are plotting something against those from the bastion of crimson and silver."

"Hmm…" Leon pocketed the piece of paper. He turned to leave, paused, and looked back at Cedric. "Good luck, little crow."

Cedric bristled and kicked him in the back. "Who are you calling little crow."

Leon stumbled forward with a hearty laugh, rubbing his lower back as he waved a hand dismissively.

Then he began leaving with the others.

Cedric turned around, but just as he was about to start moving, he felt someone embrace him from behind. Celeste leaned in and muttered, "I'll see you back in the grove."

By the time Cedric turned around, she had already pulled away and hurried to join the others.

He smiled, then turned away, but rather than begin his journey north, he hopped onto one of the obsidian boulders and sat cross-legged.

For his own safety, he decided not to disturb the Saurians at the Saurian outskirts. They were a pain to deal with due to their extremely tough hide, and since he was alone, many things could go wrong if he decided to face that vast horde all by himself.

Two of his ravens had already begun flying across the Saurian outskirts and towards the shattered peaks, and so, he closed his eyes and focused on their vision.

One stopped after one kilometer at a safe spot on the branch of a large tree, while the other continued onward.

At that moment, Cedric's form suddenly exploded into a flurry of black feathers, and by the time the wind settled, Cedric was seated on the branch, waiting for the other raven to reach a safe spot that he could jump to.

The raven that he had swapped with dissolved into a feather on top of the obsidian boulder that he had been sitting on before marking that spot as an anchor for him.

Cedric then opened his palm and two feathers appeared, shifted into ravens, and immediately took off.

In the next seconds that followed, Cedric swapped again. Though it was Aika that activated the skill this time. When he appeared atop a hill, he waited a few minutes, and when his countdown was over, he swapped again.

Just like that, Cedric traversed the Saurian outskirts while conserving his mana.

***

Later that night…

___

Cedric was seated atop a cliff chewing on a blade of grass, while Aika sat beside him drawing in mana.

It was snowing over here, and below the cliff, the landscape was covered in snow, with pine trees stretching as far as the eye could see.

Two ape-like creatures could be seen walking below the cliff. They were about three meters tall, possessing long, powerful limbs that ended in curved claws, and their fur was a matted, bone-white color.

Cedric exhaled the cold air and looked away from the creatures to Aika, then he reached out his hand to her and spoke, "I'm ready."

She slowly opened her eyes, then nodded. She reached out and held his hand, and her form shifted into a katana in his grip.

He then stood up, balanced himself at the edge of the cliff while looking down at the two creatures, then muttered, "Arlo."

Above, three ravens were hovering in a circle. Then one cawed and began diving down towards one of the Yetis.

Cedric unsheathed his katana, and suddenly his form erupted in a flurry of feathers, appearing above the Yeti. He adjusted his grip mid-air, and like a falling shadow, descended on the creature, driving his blade deep into its neck.

Before the creature could fall, Cedric kicked off the corpse and spun in the air before landing on his feet, crouching low.

The other Yeti spun, then let out an angry snarl and leapt at him with its long arms outstretched. But before it could reach Cedric, he vanished again in a flurry of feathers, appearing in the air above it. His blade descended and the large head of the Yeti rolled off.

Cedric flicked his blade to clear the blood, then began slowly walking deeper into the snow-covered forest.

He had barely walked a dozen meters when another Yeti suddenly lunged out from the side, bursting through a dense thicket of pine branches. Both of its hands were raised high as it prepared to crush him into the snow.

Cedric simply leapt back a bit, dodging both fists, and the moment his feet touched the ground, he leapt again and spun, beheading the creature.

The blood sprayed across the snow and splattered over Cedric, staining his clothes with a sudden, steaming warmth that stood out against the freezing air. Cedric wiped his cheek and flicked his blade and continued on.

Suddenly, the forest began to grow lively and he could hear snarls and the heavy sounds of footsteps coming from all directions.

It seemed as if the rest of the Yetis had been alarmed and were all coming for him. He took a glance at the map displaying over two dozen red dots closing in on his position from every direction.

A small smile grew on Cedric's lips and his blue eyes changed to black. He ran his fingers across his katana and the flames of decay engulfed the blade.

At that moment, several Yetis launched out from the trees, charging towards him with primal fury. In the same breath, Cedric lunged, and the clearing exploded in a whirlwind of chaos, black fire, and blood.

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