?As Kyle rode on the back of Bia, his gaze lingered upon the mesmerizing floating islands that surrounded them. With a careless wave of his hand, he felt the soft feathers beneath his touch.
'Why do I feel like our roles are reversed?'
Kyle let out a chuckle. He truly liked the feeling of riding a beautiful and huge phoenix.
Bia rolled her eyes. Yet, she did not dislike Kyle's thrilled and excited emotions. With a huff, she increased her speed. The cold air brushed past Kyle's face and he closed his eyes with a sigh. He was on the verge of sleeping on her comfortable back but it was impossible when the said ride had become a glutton.
With a groan, he tapped her neck and pointed his finger toward a mountain.
"Go there. I can sense some strong monsters."
Bia shot him a nod and lowered her body above the mountain. Kyle glanced at her back one last time and jumped down on the carpet of grass with a sullen expression.
Who knew when he would get another chance to ride her back?
He shook his head and narrowed his eyes in the distance. Meanwhile, Bia decreased her size and circled above his head.
The duo ventured up the mountain and thanks to Kyle's scent perception skill, they stumbled upon a group of (B)-Rank winged drakes only after a few minutes.
These monsters had sleek and muscular bodies, covered in scales of vibrant green and fiery red. Their sharp claws and long, serpentine tails added to their intimidating presence.
Kyle did not have to do much to kill them. His fear skill alone was enough to send the monsters into a frenzy.
After he was done, the duo found a quiet corner and lit up a fire. Kyle evenly sliced a few pieces of meat and impaled the meat onto the sharp blade of his sword.
His heart ached whenever he noticed the tiny crack in the middle of the shiny blade. Still, he knew there was nothing he could do about it except look around for a new weapon.
As the flames danced and the delicious aroma filled the air, the duo enjoyed a peaceful meal. The only problem was Bia's ruthless remarks as to how the meat was not cooked properly.
Kyle had to cut off her voice with a speechless expression.
'Why the hell are you eating so much if you don't even like it!'
He so badly wanted to say it out loud but stopped himself for the sake of the amazing ride she had given him.
After their meal, Kyle closed his eyes and leaned into a nearby boulder. Bia quietly climbed his shoulder when she noticed his even breathing.
She kept an eye on their surroundings for a few hours until Kyle rubbed his eyes open.
Strangely enough, his body was feeling refreshed as if he never got injured in the first place. He gazed at the bright sun that never set in the realm and stretched his body for a while.
After Kyle was done, his eyes sparkled as he narrowed them at the floating islands around him.
"Now that the strongest enemy is down. I believe it's time for us to 'check' this realm properly."
Bia raised her brow. She understood very well the meaning behind his words. With a flap of her wings, she landed on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
-'Do you not want to check on the others?'
Kyle hummed and continued exploring the mountain.
"They are strong. Also, we will kill if we encounter anyone from the dark race."
He paused for a second with a deep expression.
"Do you have any idea where is Haylee? I want to meet the guardian of this place."
Bia moved her body on his shoulder with a frown.
-'I don't know. He disappeared into thin air after I found you. Anyway, why do you want to see the guardian?'
Kyle's eyes narrowed into the distance when he sensed blood through his skill. He was sure the blood did not belong to a monster.
"I saw something interesting and now I have a lot of questions."
Bia wanted to know more but she was too sleepy that's why she left it for later. Kyle left the mountain and started moving toward the scent of blood. Still, he stopped after every few minutes to pluck out every precious herb he sensed nearby.
After an hour, he paused in front of a large structure filled with crawling insects. The structure was tucked beneath a towering and old tree trunk. Kyle gazed at the countless snail-like insects. They were sitting around an underground tunnel. Wisps of steam were drifting out from the tunnel mouth and Kyle was sure the smell of blood was coming from the tunnel.
He slowly stepped into the structure and tiptoed toward the tunnel quietly. It was better to not alert the insects because even though they were weak, they were just too many in numbers.
However, his plan failed miserably when Bia cracked her eyes open with a yawn. She flapped her wings on his shoulder and a few round heads snapped in his direction.
Kyle halted in his tracks and stared at the nearest pair of eyes. He let out a groan and immediately stopped himself from just tossing the little bird away.
Bia froze on his shoulder. Her eyes darted around to assess their situation.
-'Why are we standing in the middle of hundreds of hungry monsters?'
"Ah... I wonder why?"
Kyle waved at the monster and kicked off his feet to fly when a few of them pounced at him. He clicked his tongue and gazed at the tunnel.
"Bia go distract them."
-'Just kill them.'
He shot her a glare and blue flames erupted around his body. The flames surged in all directions, successfully clearly the path in front of them. A few of the bold monsters still dared to pounce at them but failed due to the bone-chilling coldness.
Kyle hurriedly approached the tunnel and gazed inside. He kicked a nearby monster and dived inside the tunnel. Bia's body rolled off his shoulder but he grabbed her before she could drop.
