Soaring through the skies, Kiefer estimated the shore to be about 100km east of Harentes and the soul flower to be on the seabed some 200km offshore. Even though the distance of 100km is not very far and Kiefer could quickly cover it within minutes of continuous teleportation, with Risea's current level of technology which was oddly similar to Aioa's, it was still a great distance.

Kiefer spotted another city along the way, slightly smaller in size than Harentes. The distance between the two cities was covered in dense forestry while, beyond the 2nd city, it was a pale green meadow which slowly transitioned into the white sandy beach on which lies the port city.

The port city was half the size of Harentes. While the other two cities were circular in layout, the Port city was elongated and stretched along the coastline for almost 5km. Ships of varying sizes and purpose lined her docks along the entire stretch, with some even dropping anchor not too far out in the sea. Such large vessels chose instead, to send smaller accompanying boats to conduct trade with the city since they could not enter the shallow waters.

The waters around the city were murky and disgusting, making one unwilling to dip even their toes in. However, the further away it got from the shore, the clearer the water became, eventually settling on a calming deep cerulean colour with frothy white waves adorning its surface. From Kiefer's view up high, he could spot numerous white sails swaying in the wind as they rode the waves towards the Port City.

Mutatis. Kiefer began reminiscing the city he had built and couldn't help but wonder what became of it after he perished. How was Isana and Sher faring? Is Rashael helping to develop Mutatis as per his plans? There were so many questions running through his mind and yet, he could only focus on the task at hand if he were to have them answered.

Resuming his journey once again, Kiefer fought back the urge to descend upon the Port City. He knew he could not afford to waste time on human interaction. There would be plenty of that once he'd returned to Aioa. Teleporting rapidly through the clouds, the small elf child donned in a cream coloured cloak went unnoticed within the skies as he left the Port City behind him.

Standing on his mana platform below the clouds, Kiefer smiled as he watched the trail of ships sail past on the busy trade route. What should have been a straight path between 2 continents had now been skewed into a 'V' shape to avoid the region where the soul flower and the dragon resided.

"I guess I better get on with it then. I really did not expect Viscount Cloude's basement to house another soul flower as well. To think there were two flowers within such close proximity to each other." Kiefer muttered quietly to himself as he sent out another mana pulse to locate the flower and the dragon guarding it.

He could see a flock of wyverns with their riders racing through the air below him towards the continent. He had not expected the residents of this world to have tamed magical beasts to such extent. Ignoring the wyverns, Kiefer teleported down to sea level where he erected his dome shield as he prepared to go underwater.

"Ooops. This might not be as easy as I thought." Kiefer lamented as he found it increasingly difficult to proceed after a mere 2m underwater. While the dome held within it enough air for Kiefer to breathe for the duration of his journey, he had no firm ground to anchor himself and drag the large bubble of air down with him, making it virtually impossible to reach the seabed.

After thinking about it for quite some time, Kiefer finally arrived at a solution that seemed feasible. As he activated his permafrost spell, the seawater froze into an inverted hemisphere of ice roughly 50m in radius. Willing his mana threads into a conical drill, he started digging into the ice as shards of ice crystals began shooting out of the hole in the floating ice island.

With this method, Kiefer made his way down several hundred metres, freezing the seawater as he descended the ice pillar. Then he felt a sense of rumbling and stopped momentarily, preparing to face the dragon. After a short while, Kiefer finally realised what was happening as the pillar began tilting with him still trapped in the hole in the middle. The dimensions of this gigantic ice block would not allow it to float vertically, and hence, it was tilting to restabilise itself.

"Fuck me. How could I have forgotten such basic physics on buoyancy." Kiefer cursed as he teleported back to the surface, watching the island tilt to form a massive ice log spanning 500m long. "Back to square one, I guess..." Kiefer sighed as he began to think up yet another plan.

"I probably won't be able to lure the lizard out since it would be hugging the flower with its life. I would use a black hole, but I would then risk losing the flower as well. What to do what to do..." Kiefer pondered as he sat on his mana platform just inches above the tip of the sea waves.

Once again coming up with another not so sane idea, Kiefer immediately got to work, opening his PD and retrieving a weapon he had only used once. The pitch black neutron sword could only be wielded using his mana ropes, measuring at five neutrons thick and 1.5m long. The thin but heavy sword floated in mid-air, almost as if it was weightless. Kiefer then quickly let it drop, anchoring himself to the heavy sword with his mana ropes as it dragged him down into the abyss.

Holding his breath, Kiefer immediately sank into the clear waters, which eventually became devoid of light. He felt a slight thud as the sword hit the seabed after which it continued to fall at a slower rate. Reacting as quickly as his enhanced senses allowed him, Kiefer stowed his neutron sword away as he suddenly illuminated the surrounding sea floor with numerous orbs of light.

What greeted him was a giant gleaming dragon no smaller than his dragon form glaring straight at him. The dragon's scales seemed to shimmer a mix of blue and green under the illumination of Kiefer's orbs of light. Its face resembled that of a seahorse, with a single row of spikes running down its spine with webbed skin in between. Wingless but streamlined, this dragon had obviously evolved to be the top predator underwater. Its slender limbs extended to reveal webbed talons with frills of skin underneath the armpits.

Kiefer took a quick glance around, looking for a flower, managing to spy a single red and orange petal sticking out from underneath the dragon's arm. Before the dragon could make its move to lunge at the intruder, the young elf had disappeared, reappearing high up above the water surface.

Exhaling quickly and taking a deep breath in, Kiefer smiled surreptitiously. He had seen the ocean floor; now he could teleport there at will. His body that was dripping wet was blown dry momentarily by a blast of heatwave, and Kiefer prepared to drag the dragon up with the next teleport.

Kiefer's next moves happened in a flash, completing his primary objective almost instantly. He teleported directly to the seabed, his mana threads extended from his body, binding the sea dragon before teleporting back up to the surface. Releasing the sea dragon that was now howling in frustration, Kiefer quickly teleported back down again, storing his first soul flower within his PD and disappearing without a trace.

The enraged dragon kicked up a storm as dark clouds loomed over the ocean. Thunder clapped as scores of lightning struck the ocean surface, forming bridges of light between the sky and the ocean. The thief who stole his most prized possession, though, was nowhere to be found. All that's left was a large wingless dragon howling in agony and misery, his sole purpose in life robbed from right under his nose.

Kiefer could not be bothered to waste his time fighting and killing off monsters. His only goal was to retrieve the flowers and anything else was simply a hassle. He did not owe the King of Harentes anything and with his power, there was nothing that the King could pit against him to deter him from taking their flower. His next target was the dragon in the west.

[[Back on Aioa]]

"Good evening mum." Seras greeted as he climbed the stairs and headed for his room. He had not been back in a few months and yet, there was not a speck of dust on his table. Even his sheets seemed to have been freshly washed and pressed as if his mother had been expecting him to return.

"How was school?" Mrs Sanders yelled from the kitchen, projecting her voice towards the upper floor of the house. However, only silence ensued as Seras shut the door to his room to get changed. Within moments, Seras was back down in the kitchen by his foster mother's side, stirring a pot of clam chowder.

"So how was school?" Mrs Sanders asked once again, this time with a soft, calm voice as she chopped some vegetables at the end of the kitchen bench.

"It was a little rowdier than I expected," Seras replied as he placed the lid back on the pot to let the clam chowder simmer.

"Oh? How so? I'd have thought you would avoid interactions with other students given how shy you are." his mother asked with a curious tone.

"That's what I wanted to do, but there is this girl that seems to be obsessed with me for some unknown reason. To make matters worse, she's the dean's niece and the most popular girl in our cohort. She's really powerful, so there's nothing I could do about it." Seras complained, shivering at the thought of spending another few more years with that monster.

"That's odd. I didn't think there'd be anyone more powerful than you. Didn't your entry score show you have a much higher mana concentration than others? How high is her MU? Is she Natural or Augmented?" Seras's mother asked, pressing him for more information.

"Don't know," Seras replied, turning the tap on to wash his hands. "Never occurred to me to ask. But she's a Natural that's for sure. There is no way an Augmented human could reach her levels. She's even mastered the mystery class skill."

"Aha..." Seras's mother chuckled. "Don't fret too much about it. Like you said, she is the dean's niece. I'm sure they have their little secrets to staying ahead of others. Why don't you go and set the table? Your father should be back from his camp soon. He took 2 weeks' leave from his duties to spend some time catching up with you."

Seras nodded as he followed his foster mother's instructions. The rest of the evening passed by in a blink as Seras's first family dinner in months concluded with his father making inappropriate plans for Seras to join the army and his mother pulling his father away by the ears for even thinking of such a ridiculous notion.

Seras returned to his room and began his nightly ritual of meditation. Every night, he would spend at least 3 hours seated motionless and cross-legged on a piece of cushion as he meditated, trying to feel for the mana within his body. Meditation was an essential training process for anyone who focused on enhancing their physical attributes as it allows their body to improve its compatibility with their mana, thereby increasing the effectiveness of the enhancement.

In his mind, Seras already had a plan for his month long break. He would be doing what he had attempted to do but fail all these years since he left the forest - find his family of Seraplors. It would have been easy had he gotten access to the research materials and records of the zoologists who tagged his family, but alas, he was denied time and again by the people in charge.

Morning arrived as the twin moons set beyond the horizon. His bag was already packed with essential camping materials, as he kissed his foster mother on her cheeks, her eyes reddening. It was always unbearable for her to see him go, expecting him to return each and every time with scars and bruises. However, this time, she was a little more relieved, knowing her husband would be following him on his trip north.

The father-son pair remained silent for the initial part of their journey. The streets were relatively empty that early in the morning and it only became quieter once they left the borders of the city beyond the toll gates.

There was a gaping contrast between the highly developed technological giant called Portal City and its surroundings. Once outside the borders, what greeted the father-son pair was a long stretch of prairie which ended at the base of some snow-capped mountains far off in the horizon. There was a dense green forest that covered the mountain range and the valleys they encompassed, famous for the magical beasts and the occasional demon beast attacks. The road led to the edge of the forest where it split to surround the mountain range, leading only to forward army base camps that were the first line of defense against the demon beast horde.

While there used to be mining towns further north within the mountain range, they had all been abandoned with the recent increase in the demon horde's expansion of territory the past decade. The Bike hummed quietly as its pistons drew energy from the moonstone core situated in the middle of the engine. Seras was hugging his father's back, a pair of thick goggles shielding his eyes from the wind as they sped along the road, making their first stop at a mana refueling station.

"We'll park the bike at one of the bases then travel by foot from there. We can stock up on some rations while at the army outpost. A logistics officer there owes me a favour." Sanders explained as he made a right turn in the fork in the road. Seras kept quiet, clutching onto the vial of his mother's hair he had slung around his neck the past decade.

It was already nightfall by the time they reached the outpost. It was relatively small, housing only a company of marines and a single Spectre. The outpost was only about as big as three soccer fields, with numerous trucks parked neatly in a row along the perimeter. The Sanders boys managed to strike a deal with the commanding Spectre and retrieved five days worth of rations in exchange for several packets of cigarettes that Sanders had bought at the refuelling station.

They spent the night peacefully within one of the bunk beds, surrounded by the thick musk of testosterone filled soldiers tired from a day of workout. Several howls could be heard from within the forest but none that was close enough to trigger an alert within the outpost. The Spectre's standing orders were merely to hold the line and defend the perimeter. Hence, he made no effort to actively seek out the demon beasts that lurked within the forest.

By morning, Sanders was already fully loaded with his spectre gear, lugging a set of proximity sentries and sonar radar on his back. A short tactical dagger with a serrated edge was firmly slotted in the sheath that was bolted to the front of his left shoulder. He had with him a sidearm on each side of his thighs and a mana powered gauss rifle slung on his front. The titanium- carbon nanotube fibre suit protected every inch of his body except his head, which would be covered by the helmet that was held in his right hand.

"You ready son?" he asked as Seras nodded firmly, both man and boy enhancing their bodies as they sprinted off into the forest. One was an inexperienced Natural, the other a Veteran Augmented Spectre, both skilled in physical combat and spell casting. They had little to worry as they proceeded with their search, father carrying the gear while the son carried the supplies.

Sanders knew Seras had gone on such trips alone before, and wondered how his son felt each time. He knew that there was a lingering affection for the Seraplor family and with that, a crushing weight of worry that pulled down on his son. Until he could determine his original family's condition, Sanders knew Seras would forever be affected by this burden and be hindered in his improvement and his future. If there were any time to dissolve that issue, it would be now, on this trip where he could accompany his son.

Seras led the way, already familiar with the forest like the back of his hands. His first stop was always the den where he separated from his mother. It was 3 hours enhanced running from the edge of the forest to the den. The next would be the river a little further up north, and finally, he would search the base of the mountains near where the wyverns nested. Wyverns had always been his mother's favourite meal, and he had hoped he might come across her while on her hunting trip.

The den had been abandoned, as it had been the last few times he came to search, each time reigniting his memories of his family. The smell of animal fur was all but gone and what remained were crumbling memories of his playtime with his siblings. The river was crowded with magical beasts, ranging from 4 armed bears to crystalline horses and wolves. There was even a flock of draeries darting about along the edge, barely out of reach of the annoyed carnivores.

They quickly expanded their search to the base of the mountains. With the help of the proximity sentries, Seras had managed to come all this way unharmed, packing and leaving before any real danger approached too close. His father had yet to unload even a single round. Their search was silent but detailed, and it had already been a week since they departed from the outpost. The rations had run out, but Seras, and his father had no problem hunting down a Trenitt or two for meals.

As they approached dangerously close to the territory of the demon beast horde, Seras and his father picked up their pace and their vigilance. They could hear the cries of the demon wyverns feasting on their weaker non-demonised counterparts up in the mountains. It was already the 9th morning since they entered the forest, with no results so far. Just as they began packing up their camping equipment, the proximity sentries went off, alarms blaring in Sander's helmet.

Reacting instinctively, he picked up the sonar radar and activated it, while bringing the butt of his gauss rifle up to his shoulder. Seras was also on high alert, scanning his surrounding carefully as a gentle breeze blew through the undergrowth, causing the blades of grass to sway. Everything was still and quiet as even the cries of the wyvern seemed to be drowned out by the silence. All their senses now focused on their immediate surrounding.

Sanders slowly raised his left hand as he tapped a button on the side of his helmet, switching the view in his HUD to infrared just in time to see a red hot body jump towards him from the treetops in a distance, crashing down the trees in its path. A deafening roar broke through the seemingly long silence as Sanders dove to the side to avoid the pounce.

There, standing in the middle of their campsite was a huge Seraplor at almost 10m long, three tails swishing side to side as its fur gleamed in different colours. With a mangled coat of fur and deranged red eyes, it bared its fangs at the two humans, blood from a recent kill dripping down the corners of its mouth. The canines were grossly overgrown, not normal for a regular Seraplor.

Sanders wasted no time firing a shot towards the body of the beast, only to find that the fur of the beast had deflected his gauss rifle's shot with ease. Seras, on the other hand, was frozen in his spot, looking at the demon beast with tearing eyes. He had noticed the missing patch of hair on the back of the creature's neck, right at the place where he had torn off his mother's fur for safe keeping.

"SERAS!" Sanders bellowed as he fired a few more shots near the beast to distract the animal long enough. "MOVE! It's been transformed by the demon queen's aura! We have to run!"

As if waking from a dreamlike state, the stunned Seras shook his head to clear his mind, looking at the crouching Seraplor. As it pounced once more towards him, Seras moved with lightning quick reflexes and dove straight for it. Avoiding its claws and fangs, Seras grabbed one of her thick limbs and tossed her over his shoulder, smashing her into the ground as he stood still once more.

"Mum..." Seras muttered, tears in his eye as he saw the electronic tag in her ear, trying to approach it, hoping against all odds that she will recover. Sanders was already sprinting towards his son, praying that he will reach Seras before the Demonic Seraplor did.

*Clap Clap Clap Clap*

An applause resounded through the forest undergrowth as the temperature dropped rapidly, ice crystals forming in thin air and drifting onto the ground in a shower of sparkles. It broke the tension of the fight as Sanders stopped in his tracks to direct his attention to the source. The Seraplor seemed to have calmed down, crouching timidly and obediently.

From the sky, a beautiful woman drifted down amidst the snow, her short silver hair glistening in the rays of sunlight, emerald green eyes as cold as the ice that surrounded the woman shining brilliantly. As she landed gracefully on the ground, he placed her hand on the calm Seraplor and caressed its head gently, inspecting it before turning her attention to Seras and his father.

"You... who are you!?" Sanders demanded as he pointed his rifle at the woman, against all his instinct that was telling him to run.

"Me? I am what you pathetic beings call the demon queen." Isana announced as she swept her gaze from Sanders to Seras.

"Moooom!! That's the boy I was telling you about! He seems pretty good huh!?" a familiar voice rang out from above as yet another lady descended from the skies, her black hair contrasting her mother's silver.

As she landed next to Isana, Kina smiled brightly at the sight of Seras, making him shudder reflexively.

"He's indeed quite powerful, although nowhere near your father's strength. We will have to monitor his growth then. If he doesn't cut it, then we can just have Sher or Feir eat him." Isana commented nonchalantly.

"K- Kina? What is all this?" Seras managed to stutter a question as his mind fell into chaos at the flood of new information. "Di- did you just call her mum?"

"Yep!" Kina replied jovially as she skipped to Seras's side. "My mum is the demon queen Isana of the north." She continued as she hugged his arm.

Sanders had a tough time consolidating the information, his aim was still trained on Isana, but his mouth, like Seras's, was gaping so wide they could fit a draerie inside.