This Beast-Tamer is a Little Strange

Without hesitation, Kain bolted in a direction his instincts directed, abandoning all thought of heading North. "Guard! Carry me!" he barked, leaping onto one of the surviving Vespids.

Thankfully, its boosts provided by Queen were still active, and the berserk state had worn off upon the tiger's defeat, meaning that its mind was restored and able to take direction.

He recalled Aegis and Bea into his star space and clung tightly to the Vespid guard as it surged forward, its wings beating furiously.

A deafening roar echoed from behind him, the sound so powerful it shook the trees, the earth—the very air itself even.

The crackling sound of flames that had engulfed the small area of the forest suddenly ceased, snuffed out in an instant, and the oppressive presence grew fainter as the Vespid guard carried him farther away.

Kain didn't stop until the feeling completely vanished. Only then did he command the guard to land, his heart still pounding in his chest.

He leaned against a tree, trying to steady his breathing.

However, upon calming down, his thoughts were a whirlwind of confusion and frustration.

"I went West…" he muttered, his eyes narrowing. He'd been so focused on fleeing that he hadn't noticed until now. "Why didn't I run North?" Then he could have at least made some progress in heading to his destination.

He couldn't even sense where the creature was coming from, heading North should have been as good an option as West. It was strange that his body didn't move as he'd expected…

As he ruminated over his failure, he caught sight of faint strings of light at the corners of his vision. The threads shimmered and twisted in a way that was both mesmerizing and unsettling, disappearing whenever he tried to focus on them directly.

His breath hitched. Threads of Destiny.

The spiritual skill he'd exchanged points for long ago as one of his rewards for representing the school, was finally showing signs of progress.

It had been months since he'd received the skill, but hadn't seen any indication that he was close to success—until now.

The first level of the skill, which allowed the user to sense the threads of fate, was likely finally learned during the outbreak of his potential in this life-or-death situation. Warning him of danger or highlighting opportunities.

'That's why I fled West,' Kain realized. 'The threads must've guided me toward the safest direction. If I'd gone North…perhaps I wouldn't be here now.'

That aura emitted from it was likely even beyond indigo-grade. He would have had no chance of survival if they were to have met.

He shuddered, not wanting to dwell on what might have happened. For now, his priority was clear: make his way North. Thankfully, with the spiritual skill Threads of Destiny finally preliminarily learned, that task got a whole lot safer.

Focusing on the shimmering threads at the edge of his vision, he tried to get a handle on sensing them more accurately.

They flickered in and out of sight like flashes of light and were difficult to focus on, weaving an intricate web that seemed to stretch endlessly into the darkness.

He couldn't yet make out the full meaning of their colours, but he didn't need to—he chose to trust his instincts, which had proven much more reliable the last few minutes since the skill activated.

Closing his eyes for a brief moment, Kain recalled the location of the Northern Shield constellation he had glimpsed through the canopy earlier.

Thankfully, since he'd headed West without taking any turns, he was pretty easily able to re-orient himself to the North.

"Let's move," he murmured, climbing back onto the Vespid guard and directing it forward. "Fly low, and keep quiet."

He had only 15 guards remaining after the last attack, but they were still enough to surround the guards carrying him and provide a sense of security.

The buzzing of the guard's wings was muted as it skimmed just above the forest floor, weaving between the gnarled roots and dense undergrowth.

Kain kept his eyes on the threads coming off from the Vespid Guards at the corners of his vision, noticing how they shimmered more brightly when he veered slightly toward a direction that they ultimately didn't get ambushed on. The only time the threads dimmed was when they were attacked by a massive rodent-like spiritual creature lurking beneath the ground.

It had managed to instantly kill a guard after leaping from the earth and would have killed more had Kain not seen the rapidly dimming threads and told them to scatter in time.

It wasn't a battle as difficult as the tiger, but after defeating it, instead of security, he saw that the light of the threads around him were continuing to dim, indicating that company would likely be joining them soon if they continued to stay. Kain didn't bother to remove any parts from his kill and quickly left the area.

Thankfully, as they travelled, the threads of the guards grew brighter, indicating that the danger had passed.

The second test of the skill came not long after. A faint ripple in the threads caught his attention, and he tugged on the guard's antenna, signalling it to stop. Moments later, a shadow passed silently in front of them, its form obscured by the dense foliage.

Kain's breath hitched as he caught a glimpse of the creature—a panther-like spiritual beast with glowing red eyes, its sleek body blending seamlessly with the darkness.

Its spiritual power was released freely to ward off any creatures from its territory, indicating it was indigo-grade. Not something he could face and survive currently.

The panther prowled away without noticing them, and the threads shimmered faintly in approval as Kain directed the guard to take a detour.

As they pressed on, Kain noticed other areas where the threads' played a role aside from avoiding spiritual creatures. At one point, the threads dimmed slightly when he veered left, urging him to adjust his course to the right. Moments later, he saw why—a nearly invisible array of spider threads were hidden within the vegetation to his left, a trap that would have been invisible to him in this dim lighting, had he not been warned.

The journey was slow and fraught with tension, but the threads of light never steered him wrong. When he finally felt safe enough to land and give his Vespid guard a moment's rest, Kain took stock of his surroundings.

Using what he'd learned in his Wilderness Survival Course, Kain was able to notice some odd features of the surrounding environment.

At first glance, it appeared unassuming, but he noticed several points that looked as though it was fraught with human activity and those tracks were being intentionally concealed.

That gave him hope. If a lot of humans were passing this point—that meant he was close.Nôv(el)B\\jnn