Soon enough, I arrived at the spot on the atlas, landing high up on a tree branch to overlook the ground below.

However, there was no sign of my nestlings. Then again, this place was noticeably darker, unlike Typhon's team that had gone to the grassy plains and I didn't expect Artemis's team to remain out in the open.

All around was the thick forest filled with mist, wild lush greenery growing everywhere, and the ever present echoes of creatures battling in the distance.

My senses pulsated with vibrations of all kinds, as I detected prowling creatures and insect monsters, both far and near. And although I could barely see the ground from where I perched, I could make out the heat trace of a centipede creature not far below my tree.

I had [Mimic] active so I was calm, but as usual the dark fae was panicking.

[It's going to eat me! Don't stay here! It will see me on top of you!]

The dark fae buzzed around on my head as she talked, and I realised just how bizarre she must appear. If any monster was watching, it would look like she was walking on nothing. That alone would be enough to scare them off!

[Then get off me] I replied, a bit annoyed. [My head is not your seating space.]

The dark fae immediately sat down with a pout, her tiny arms stretching around my horn to hug them. [You don't have to be so mean about it.]

I sighed helplessly.

I expected Artemis's team to be hidden somewhere nearby, so I scanned around below the tree. According to the Atlas I was right on top of their supposed location but finding them was proving difficult.

The last time I saw them, none of his team was close to evolving, but I'd already made that mistake with Typhon and I didn't want to take that risk again.

Quite frankly, I was surprised his team had made it so far.

They weren't the strongest or fastest team so it was surprising they made it this far.

Unless…they were the reason I had failed my quest.

Which meant they had spent very little time hunting…

I was slightly annoyed, but I put it aside for now. Finding them was far more important, so I continued to search.

The forest ground was littered with leaves and all kinds of forest debris. On landing from the tree, the ground was solid and comfortable under my body, reminding me so much of the safety I often found hiding under the sand when I was much smaller.

If I was a scared snake, it was the first place I would think to hide, so I activated [Mana Sense] to search.

There was a rocky outcrop not far from me with plenty of cracks that small things to hide in, and under it I detected small traces of mana. I rushed to it immediately to pry it open, and there I found the snakes I was looking for.

But it took me a second to figure out what I was looking at.

[What happened to them? They stink.] The dark fae cruelly announced from the top of my head.

[I have no idea.]

I was shocked too. To say the nestlings were haggard was an understatement. The snakes looked like they had been through hell. They were all shivering, their bright scales were smeared with some dark slimy fluid and they all smelt of death and other rotten matter.

Four of them were awake and seemed to be keeping watch over the last snake who was fast asleep, but I could hardly recognise my bright eyed nestlings from before. After uncovering them, they all hissed defensively at me like I was the enemy.

I noticed the sleeping snake had a distinctive spade-like pattern on her scales and I recognised her from before. Why did it seem like they were all crowded around to shield her? Did something happen?

It was only after some time that their jaded nerves calmed down, allowing me to peer closer. It seemed they had finally recognised me because Artemis came forward to meet me, his body looking noticeably limp.

This of course made me anxious, but there were no visible injuries on their bodies, and although their HP's were low, they were in no danger. Even the sleeping snake's HP was almost recovered.

However, I didn't brush it off. The nestlings were obviously terrified.

I didn't know what had scared them so much, but they looked so pitiful that I felt bad.

Without another thought, I instructed Artemis and the others to move the sleeping snake onto my back. There was no other way around it, the fastest way for them to recover was to bring them back home.

And with all the snakes loaded, I activated [Mimic] once more to fly away.

But I soon heard low mutterings from the dark fae who was less than pleased. [They smell. Why did you bring them up here?]

Who did this brat think she was?

[Complain about them again and I'll stick you in the ground myself.]

The dark fae quickly shrank behind my horn to hide.

But she did have a point.

The nestlings desperately needed a wash, and I didn't feel like bringing them back to the cave in their state. So instead of going back, I took a detour to the lake, where I instructed the snakes to wash off.

The sleeping snake had woken up in time too and on seeing the lake, her groggy eyes had a spark of excitement that made me feel relieved.

The calm lake must have been a welcomed sight after everything and soon, the tiny snakes were swimming laps in the water – especially the spaded one who seemed to be teaching the others.

Well…it looked like they were back to their normal selves.

The dark fae saw them playing and scoffed. [What's so fun about water? It's wet. It gets in everything. It's not good for wings...]

Her tiny figure buzzed impatiently in the air as her eyes followed them eagerly. She may have said that, but it was obvious she wanted to play too, but didn't want to be seen as childish.

What a silly fae. If she wanted to join them, she should just do it.

A suitable name for her flitted across my mind, but since she wasn't actually a part of my [Pit], I dropped the thought.

As for the excited snake who was playing in the water, and I thought the good name that would suit her lively, fiery nature.

I was about to name her when I spotted a small blue creature speeding over from across the lake.

I blinked in disbelief. No way!

It was the feline kitten.

As the blue fluff ball bounded towards me with speed, I decided to cut the playtime short. I quickly instructed the nestlings to leave the water, eager to get away before it reached us.

But the dark fae squealed all of a sudden.

[Kyaaa!! What's this? It's so soft!]

I looked back and to my horror, the kitten had crossed the lake to appear by my side, purring loudly next to my tail, and the dark fae buzzed around it with sparkling eyes.

[It's so cute. Can we keep it?]

Why was she behaving like a kid asking permission to keep a pet?

You are Eighty years old, damn it!

The dark fae continued to squeal loudly as she stared at it from every angle. She had already started to climb the feline's small body, riding its back like her own personal tiger.

The hell.

Was it following me all this while?

No, that's not possible.

Which means, by some dumb coincidence and my bad luck, it was living nearby and recognized me after hearing the ruckus caused by my snakes.

The dark fae seemed knowledgeable about creatures, so I asked her what kind it was. She didn't even hear me and continued to cuddle with it, mumbling excitedly.

[Look at its round head and soft paws.]

I saw the small creature rolling around on the ground, its bright purple eyes staring longingly at me, its fluffy belly exposed, bright pink paws outstretched without a claw in sight.

Yeah no. I wasn't falling for it.

[We should go.] I said and turned around.

The dark fae was jolted out of her bliss and squealed loudly. [What? WHY?]

I ignored her and looked at the snakes that were out of the water, looking very clean and cheerful as they waited for instructions.

I noticed the feline had seen them but didn't react to them, almost like it didn't see them as a threat at all and I was immediately suspicious.

The first time was understandable because I'd rescued it and maybe it was grateful. But now, it was just strange. Me saving it, didn't mean every snake was the same as well, and it should have been wary around them.

This feline creature seemed to lack all awareness.

Such carelessness was only common among inherently strong creatures and it was anything but.

I appraised it once more, just to be sure.

--------------

LV10 Ivenium Vegara

Specie: Ailith Felinae

HP: 94/94 Defence: 74

MP: 68/68 Intellect: 60

SP: 120/120 Magic: 76

Attack: 130 Agility: 140

Skills:

[Bite: LV8][Stealth: LV7][Night Vision: LV10]

[Pounce: LV8] [Scent:LV9] [Purr: LV10]

[Auditory Enhancement: LV9] [Claw: LV10]

[Sprint: LV10] [Silence: LV10]

Resistances:

[Pain Resistance: LV6]

[Fatigue Resistance: LV9]

--------------

And...yeah. I had to leave it.

Its results were definitely too odd.