A mud-filled hand popped out from a small opening hidden behind a large boulder. The air around the boulder was clean with a hint of flowery smell.
A few loud coughs sounded and Kyle finally crawled out from the round tiny opening. He patted his chest and wiped the mud clinging to his hair and face.
"Damn it! If I knew I have to crawl in the tunnel to find the exit no way in hell I would have entered this shitty opening!"
He sniffed his arm and cursed again. His ears twitched when a barely audible laugh sounded behind him and he was damn sure it was Haylee!
He snapped his head back with anger but found nothing. The boar's hiding skills were indeed incredible. Even with Kyle's newfound (S-)-Rank strength he wasn't able to pinpoint the boar's location.
He took a deep breath and ignored the infuriating laugh. But, it seemed the world was hell-bent on angering him because in the next second another laugh echoed in his ears. And this time the culprit was none other than his own bonded beast!
Kyle's expression hardened, he gazed at the clean and pristine red bird sitting on a nearby rock. Unlike him, Bia was enclosed in a thin white shield. He was not sure what happened between Bia and Haylee when he was inside the shield but the duo seemed to have gotten closer. It was evident because the boar was giving her special treatment!
'Aghh! Did he not say he wasn't allowed to help or harm others? This is blatant favoritism!'
Kyle remembered each second of the torture he suffered after he entered the narrow tunnel. How he had to crawl in the mud for hours and how his precious set of clothes was gone just like that. He swore inwardly he was going to make Haylee regret his decision of not enclosing him in a white shield as well!
While he was thinking about how he should exact his revenge, he finally noticed the scenery around him. Kyle ignored Bia and hurriedly moved to look behind the boulder.
He raised his brow slightly. All around the boulder, the ground was filled with flowers of every kind. Kyle shook his head to remove the remnant of mud from his hair and briskly moved between the flowers. The ground beneath his feet was soft and mushy. He looked up and an astonished expression appeared on his face. He was still on the same mountain he appeared after he entered the secret realm but now it was not dark and gloomy. Instead, the mountain was filled with life and greenery.
"Woah, do not tell me we just got teleported to another realm?"
Kyle's voice was dim but because he was alone, his voice traveled almost in all directions. He froze for a second when he caught sight of the countless floating islands beneath the clear sky, each with a big castle on the top.
"All these islands are very similar to the one I saw inside the mountain. Don't tell me..."
-'They are all treasure lands.'
Bia completed his sentence with a chuckle, she spread her wings and started flying above his head. Kyle's eyes twinkled with mirth. He rubbed his hands ready to enter the nearby treasure land, but before he could take a step forward Haylee's astonished voice sounded behind him.
"Kid, you are inside a newly grown herb garden. Don't tell me you are going to leave without taking any?"
Kyle stopped and blinked his eyes. After a second, the meaning behind the boar's words finally dawned on him. He looked below at the hundreds of vibrant flowers, swaying around his feet. His eyebrow could not help but twitch. Now he finally believed the fact that he was inside an ancient secret realm.
"Are you sure these flowers are herbs? I don't even know their usage."
He bent down and plucked one of the flowers from the ground and observed it carefully. Indeed they did not look normal because on each petal he could sense abundant of dense mana. Kyle sucked in a deep breath and gazed at the rows of flowers.
Without even waiting for another second, he dived down and started plucking everything. An evil laughter echoed in the eerily silent mountain. Anyway, he would sell half and give the other half to his master who could very well know what these flowers are used for.
After an hour, the winged boar started regretting his decision to tell the kid about the herbs because the kid didn't even leave behind a single petal! The once vibrant part of the mountain was left barren when Kyle was done.
After an hour, the winged boar started regretting his decision to tell the kid about the herbs because the kid didn't even leave behind a single petal! The once vibrant part of the mountain was left barren when Kyle was done.
Kyle sighed blissfully and peeked inside his mind space to look at the huge mountain of flowers.
"Good."
His ears twitched when he heard a faint distant cry. It felt like someone was crying for help. He frowned for a second but ignored it because first, it was too far away. Second, he was inside a dangerous secret realm where every individual was responsible for their own life.
Kyle grabbed the hem of his shirt and tossed it away with one swift movement. He took out a clean piece of cloth and wiped his bare upper body before donning a brown hoodie, especially to hide his bright silver hair.
"Tsk.. it's fine for the time being. I will change after I took a bath somewhere."
After he was clean, Bia dived down and landed on his head. She narrowed her eyes at the floating islands.
-'Which one?'
"Of course the nearest one."
Kyle eyed the nearest island but before Bia could tell him about the location of the stairway leading upward toward the island, he took a deep breath and started gathering mana under his feet. A startled cry came out from Bia's throat when Kyle suddenly lost his balance and staggered backward.
"Woah.. Woah... be steady..."
-'What the hell are you doing!'
Bia hurriedly balanced herself on his head and grabbed his hoodie with her sharp toenails. Kyle chuckled and once again gathered mana under his feet.
"I am trying to fly. If you can't let me climb your back then I can fly on my own. After all, I broke through to (S-)-Rank. The rank where one can fly naturally."
This time he did not stagger and made his posture steady. Kyle's smile widened when his feet left the ground, he felt a tingling sensation all over his body due to the weight of natural gravity pressing down on his shoulders.
"Well, it's not as hard as I expected."
Haylee laughed dryly at his exclamation. If he remembers clearly usually it takes a month or two for humans to get familiar with the sensation of floating after they broke through to (S-)-Rank. Now this kid just tried twice and succeeded. Not to mention he was saying it was not difficult at all! How infuriating.
....
