Ryn stopped at the outer gate, hesitating once before pulling out the vial to inspect it once more.

The liquid inside spasmed and stuck onto one side of the glass like it was trying to break free.

A part of him wondered whether he should even take this path.

Amelia had told him that once she recovered, she'd follow the merchant to Khaz Vordun and try to look for the others.

Ryn wrapped his fingers around the vial before looping a leather cord around a hole in the cork and looped it around his neck like a necklace.

It sat nice and comfy against his chest, serving as a compass that would lead him to his objective.

He shook his head and took a step forward, into the semi-paved road, forcing himself to get moving.

There were no horses, carriages, or escorts.

Just the road stretching outward from Moran, narrowing as stone gave way to dirt… then to uneven ground.

And whatever waited at the end of it.

The road didn't last for long.

After a while, he was dumped from a paved pathway into open plains that stretched until the horizon blurred into mist.

Ryn walked for what seemed like hours.

Yet the skies never changed.

Clouds hung low and unmoving, smeared across the sky like paint dragged too thin. Light remained dull, like there had just been one time that was neither day or night.

Just a constant, muted gray that seemed to engulf everything in sight.

He checked the vial once.

The liquid pressed insistently toward the same direction.

With a sigh, he continued along.

The plains rolled gently, shallow rises and dips that promised variation but never really delivered it. Tall grasses shifted gently as Ryn passed through them, bending with indifference.

Ryn crossed one ridge.

Then another.

Nothing changed.

No landmarks rose to meet him. Just the same terrain repeating endlessly, like the world just…stopped progressing.

At some point, he realized he'd stopped counting steps.

Before long, something finally changed.

Mountains rose from end to end, jutting up from the ground like spears. Underneath it, what looked like a boreal forest with dark green hues that finally reminded Ryn that color existed in the world.

He'd half expected to run into at least some danger during his walk through the plains, yet none came.

It was strange. The more he thought about it, the more it didn't make sense.

Even if the panthers were corrupted, wouldn't they have to live normally as well?

And what was the range of said source controlling them?

Ryn glanced at the sky, then at the vial resting against his chest.

He'd been moving for over six hours now and the destination is nowhere in sight.

But he was determined to find answers.

Ryn exhaled slowly and started in the direction of the mountains.

The land rose gradually, grasses thinning as scattered trees replaced them instead. Not a forest yet—just enough cover to break the wind and offer concealment.

It was a good place to set up camp.

He slowed.

Hunting should be easy here.

The terrain was open enough to spot movement, but was just crowded enough to make animals feel safe.

Ryn crouched low and waited.

Minutes passed without anything to show for it.

Not even the tiniest bit of rustling.

His brow furrowed, but that was when he saw it.

A single rabbit emerged from behind a cluster of rocks, ears twitching as it sniffed cautiously at the ground.

Ryn stopped moving completely.

He drew Snow partway from its sheath, then stopped himself.

The rabbit would likely get away if he got too close.

Instead, he lifted two fingers.

A magical string made of pure light condensed between his fingers, along with an arrow that was so transparent that it looked invisible, already nocked.

The rabbit never knew.

The arrow crossed the distance in a blink and vanished on impact, the creature dropping instantly without a sound.

Ryn exhaled and rose, retrieving the body.

He scanned the surroundings again, slower this time.

Still nothing.

"…That's it?" he muttered.

One rabbit didn't sustain a land like this.

And it certainly didn't explain the absence of everything else.

Ryn straightened, unease settling deeper than hunger.

Then a realization struck him.

This wasn't overhunting by the panthers, it felt more like…avoidance from a big predator.

Ryn's instincts flared an instant before the thought caught up. A spike of murderous intent tore through his senses, sharp and absolute.

He barely managed to duck under it before he saw what it was.

A blade of compressed wind tore through the space where his head had been a heartbeat earlier.

The sound came a fraction later.

SHRRRK—

The tree behind him split cleanly in two.

Both halves slid apart and collapsed in opposite directions, the rest of the tree tumbling as it shook every leaf on the forest floor.

Ryn rolled once and came up on one knee, Snow half-drawn, heart hammering.

"…Wind," he muttered.

Ryn twisted again as a second gale blade carved through the grass, shaving the earth itself and sending soil and roots scattering like mist. He felt it pass close enough to tug at his coat.

Whatever was attacking him wasn't trying to feel things out.

No, it wanted him dead.

Ryn pushed off the ground, retreating diagonally as he snapped his awareness outward, cold mist flooding the field that relayed information back to his head.

That was when he heard it.

Clack, clack, clack, clack…

Ryn knew exactly what it was.

The sharp steps of clicking, along with the ability to use Wind Essence. There was only one monster that fit this criteria.

A Gale Mantis.

His jaw tightened.

So that's what cleared the plains.

Ryn didn't engage immediately.

He'd fought a Gale Mantis once before, with a ten-man squad. He was the only one who walked away.

Every shift of its body was accompanied by a sharp change in pressure, which caused the mantis to quite literally leave after images as the environment filled in the void.

Needless to say, he was the only one that came out alive.

Ryn skidded to a stop and planted his heel, twisting sideways as another blade of wind screamed past him. He lifted his hand instead.

An arrow of condensed light formed.

He let it loose immediately.

It tore through the air, punching straight through trees as it made its way toward the creature.

CLANG—!

It struck the mantis square in the chest

The impact rang out like metal on stone.

The mantis shifted slightly as forced rippled through its body—but the arrow shattered, dispersing into light as it failed to pierce.

Ryn's eyes narrowed.

"…Tch, only dented."

The Gale Mantis responded immediately.

Its forelimbs swept outward in a precise arc, wind spiraling along their edges. Three blades of compressed wind erupted forward, staggered just enough to cut off every clean escape route.

Ryn moved before they fully formed.

He ducked under the first, rolled through the second, and felt the third graze past his shoulder—fabric tearing as the wind screamed by.

Ryn fired another arrow.

Then another.

Both struck true.

Both dented the mantis' exoskeleton, cracks spiderwebbing briefly across the hard outer shell before dispersing.

"…Damn it," he muttered, already forming another arrow even as his thoughts raced.

At this rate, he'd run out of MP before even managing to damage it.

He lowered his hand and drew Snow out from its sheathe instead.

Ryn was done testing the waters, going back to how he beat the Mantis in his first life.

A lucky shot in the back of the creature's neck, where no armor had been to protect it.

This time, there was no luck, and he'd have to replicate it again.

Ryn exhaled sharply as another blade of wind tore past him, close enough to rip a strip from his coat.

The Gale Mantis was an intelligent creature, and he knew exactly how to win against a stronger opponent.

By making them think they've won.

He rolled to a knee, coughing once as he forced air back into his chest.

The mantis was already moving.

It crossed the distance in a blur, wind folding around its body as its forelimbs rose, both scythes extended for the kill.

Instead of dodging, he ran towards it, aiming for the narrow gap underneath its head.

Right under the mantis' head, he executed his plan.

Snow flashed.

Cold Essence surged as Ryn slashed horizontally into the ground. Frost exploded outward, mist freezing instantly into a wall of ice between them.

The Gale Mantis staggered but wasn't scared, as the creature reeled back in for a follow-up.

A gigantic cleave came from the right, cutting through the ice like it was paper.

But Ryn was already gone.

Aquila flared, infusing his legs with as much kinetic energy as possible before he jumped.

Ryn managed to twist in midair to see the weak spot.

He barely managed to reach out and touch it with his hand before the Mantis turned, launching a killing thrust at his body.

Ryn barely managed to bring his blade up to block the attack, but the sheer force of the hit sent him flying.

The impact came a heartbeat later.

Ryn's body hit the tree like a thrown weapon, hard enough that wood exploded outward.

The entire tree ripped free from the ground and crashed instantly.

Pain detonated across his back, partially blunted only because he managed to condense Essence to the area right before impact.

Blood burst from his lips in a violent cough, splattering across the dirt as his lungs spasmed for air.

Snow slipped from his grip.

The blade struck the ground point-first, plunging deep into the earth beside him.

Ryn sagged against the trunk, barely upright, breath ragged and uneven.

Then, a shadow loomed over head.

Wind coiled tightly around its scythes once more, arm extending before it reeled back, ready to end him

Blood spilled as he coughed one, but a small line managed to escape.

"Got you."

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