We didn’t waste time once we stepped out of the sanctuary again, the plan already set and the map guiding our direction as we pushed forward across the province at a steady pace. There was no point conserving energy now, not when every hour mattered, cutting across terrain instead of following clear paths, the ground shifting from broken stone to open stretches of land as we closed in on the first marked zones along the way.
The first safe zone we came across wasn’t held by any alien race.
It had been overtaken by creatures.
We slowed as we approached its boundary, the signs obvious before we even stepped inside, the ground littered with broken bark and claw marks carved into stone, and when we crossed the edge the source revealed itself quickly. Large, thick-bodied boar-like beasts moved through the area, their hides hardened into something closer to layered bark than flesh, tusks curved and jagged as they tore through anything in their path. There were dozens of them.
"They’ve completely taken over," Knight muttered.
"Not for long," I replied, though I didn’t step forward immediately.
There was no need.
They were strong compared to what the zone would have originally held, but not enough to matter now.
Lyrate moved first this time, stepping into the zone as roots broke through the ground beneath the beasts, wrapping and tightening with precision while Knight slipped through the gaps between them, blade flashing as he struck cleanly where it mattered. I watched for a moment before stepping in to finish the few that tried to break out, the fight ending quickly without any resistance worth noting.
When it was done, the zone settled. No system notification of levels came for me.
They were too low for me.
We didn’t linger.
The second zone came not long after, and this one carried a different kind of presence. The monsters here were reptiles but mutated one called sorus. I had not seen them before.
The result was the same.
Lyrate’s control locked down their movement before they could build momentum, roots snapping upward and binding their limbs while Knight cut through them efficiently, and I stepped in only where needed, breaking through the few that tried to escape. It ended even faster than the first.
But there was still no level gain for me.
I exhaled lightly as we stepped out of the second zone, the path ahead clearing as we moved toward the location Lyrate had marked earlier.
"Too weak," I muttered.
"That’s going to happen a lot now," Lyrate replied without looking back. "You’ve already crossed into a range where most zones won’t give you anything unless they’re contested properly."
"Then we move faster," I said.
She didn’t argue.
We picked up pace again.
It didn’t take long before the terrain began to change, the ground opening into a wider expanse with scattered rocky outcrops and dead trees rising at irregular intervals, and the moment we stepped into that region, a shadow passed over us.
Then another.
Then many.
I looked up.
They were already there.
I scanned one of them.
[Monster Ash vultures - Level 43]
Dozens of them circled high above, their massive wings cutting through the air in slow arcs, each one far larger than any natural bird should have been, their bodies thick, and their eyes locked onto us the moment we entered their territory.
"Well," Knight said quietly, tilting his head upward, "there they are."
"They’re bigger than I expected," I replied.
"And higher," Lyrate added.
The first one dove before we could say anything more.
The air shifted sharply as it descended, wings folding in as it cut through the sky at speed before releasing a burst of compressed wind that slammed into the ground ahead of us, forcing us to shift position instantly as the impact cracked the surface.
"I see. So they can control the wind element," Knight said, already moving.
Another dove.
Then another.
The attacks came from different angles, each one forcing movement, their height making it difficult to reach them directly while the wind they generated disrupted any clean attempt to close the distance.
I stepped forward, activating Radiant Drive and pushing upward along a broken incline, trying to meet one mid-descent, but the moment I got close, it pulled back, the wind shifting around it and forcing me off balance before I could land a proper strike.
"This is inefficient," I muttered as I landed back down.
"Wow genius of you to find out," Knight replied, ducking under another burst of wind as he repositioned.
"They won’t come low enough for you to hit cleanly," Lyrate said, her gaze tracking their movement carefully. "We need to bring them down."
"Suggestions?" I asked.
She didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, roots began to form around her hands, darker than before, thicker, and carrying a faint sheen that didn’t match her usual constructs.
"Give me a moment," she said.
The vultures continued their assault, forcing us to keep moving, their numbers making it difficult to focus on a single target without opening ourselves to another attack, and I shifted my stance, deflecting one incoming strike before stepping back toward her.
"Hurry," I said.
"I am," she replied sharply.
The roots in her hands sharpened, compressing into elongated spikes, their tips darkened as if something had been infused into them.
"Toxin," she said. "Not lethal instantly, but enough to cripple them mid-flight."
She formed several in quick succession, handing them over without ceremony.
"Throw."
That was enough.
I stepped forward again, timing the movement with the next descent, and the moment one of them angled downward, I hurled the spike upward with full force. It cut through the air cleanly, striking the creature near its wing joint, and the reaction was immediate as its movement faltered, the stability breaking as it tried to recover.
"Again," she said.
I didn’t stop.
One after another, the spikes flew, each one finding its mark or forcing the flock to shift, and as more of them were hit, their coordination began to break, several dropping lower than before as the toxin disrupted their control.
"Now," Knight said.
I moved.
Impact Burst carried me upward again, but this time they couldn’t pull back fast enough, and the first one fell under the strike, the axe cutting through its wing before it crashed into the ground. Another followed, then another, the combination of toxin and pressure forcing them out of their advantage.
The rest scattered briefly, but not far.
"Three," Lyrate said. "Leave three alive."
I adjusted immediately.
The next strikes were aimed to injure rather than kill, bringing down three of them without finishing the job as they struggled on the ground, wings partially broken but bodies still intact.
The rest of the flock pulled away, retreating higher instead of continuing the attack. I stepped toward the nearest one as it tried to drag itself back, placing the axe against its neck without striking.
"I will kill you if you move," I said.
It didn’t understand the word. But it understood the intent.
Lyrate moved in, roots emerging again, thinner this time but far more precise as they wrapped around the necks of the three creatures, tightening just enough to warn them without choking them out completely.
"Bound," she said.
The roots hardened slightly, locking into place.
"They’ll resist," Knight said.
"They can try," she replied.
I climbed onto one of them, testing the balance as it shifted under my weight, then pressed the blade slightly against its neck again.
Lyrate gave them healing potion which forced her toxin out and we had our mounts. All of three of us climbed on them.
"Fly," I said.
This time, it moved.
Slowly at first, then stronger as the wings spread and lifted, the other two following as Lyrate and Knight mounted them as well, the control holding as the roots tightened slightly with each attempt at resistance.
We rose into the air.
The ground pulled away beneath us as the province stretched out in every direction, the map aligning with what I could now see directly, and without wasting time, I pushed the creature forward, guiding it toward the next target.
On the way, we didn’t ignore what lay between.
Any zone that came into range was taken, the advantage of aerial movement making it easier to drop in, clear quickly, and move again without slowing the overall pace, the mounts holding steady as we pushed them harder with each stretch.
By the time the next city came into view, the sun had shifted noticeably, the distance covered far greater than anything we could have managed on foot.
We descended just outside its boundary, bringing the vultures down into a forested area where the trees were dense enough to keep them hidden from immediate sight, and once on the ground, Lyrate reinforced the bindings slightly, ensuring they wouldn’t break free while we were inside.
Knight stepped closer, placing a hand on my shoulder, then on Lyrate’s.
"Ready?" he asked.
I nodded.
The shift came instantly as his phasing activated, the world dulling just enough as we stepped forward together, passing through the outer barrier of the city without resistance and emerging inside, unseen and untouched.