?


    20 seconds ago...


    It struck Replicus as he put in more effort to his thoughts, and all the possible conjectures. When therge bird beast had appeared over the Sacred Forest and cast a shadow, the Prator had not felt the influence of energy that he hade to expect when unnatural abilities were activated by various kinds ofbatants.


    He had expected traces of mana or Aura, but there were none, which was the first g to drop in hisp, announcing that this beast wasn''t a usual one.


    Now, however, given that Pherdanta had pointed out to him a key detail he had almost overlooked...


    ''That''s right. The Forest didn''t remain painted ck...'' Replicus thought. He had seen that from the sky, where he had teleported Yuyui and Timmit.


    As for the reason why, unlike the sea, the forest didn''t just be a dark mass...


    ''Sacred Forests are the only ces that are resistant to the formation of Clusters...'' Replicus thought.


    Indeed. This must be why.


    Clusters were formed by the harsh energies of the Deities –  who had sacrificed their physical forms to make thend, sea and skies of Aigas – shing chaotically.


    Replicus didn''t really understand why, but he did understand the how.


    Sacred Forests, especially if they were densely popted by mystical beasts, managed to ward off the chaotic energies that formed possibilities for Cluster development. Among these energies, Primus, a low level form of Divine energy could also be found, which meant that the Sacred Forest expelled the effect spawned by the bird creature after it had left.


    ''I didn''t feel the Primus, either because all my senses, including those thate from my skills were limited by that thing''s powers, or because the Sacred Forest warded off the Primus that allowed for that shadow effect... which is why it didn''t be permanent...'' Replicus thought.


    Intriguing.


    As he imagined this, his extended vision caught something odd, and he quickly turned to Pherdanta and Kenno.


    "Go to Grim''s side."


    Without bothering to ask why, the two Unlimited vanished from Replicus'' side, ording to his order.


    *


    Grim found it hard to break free. The hold over him was so powerful that it refused to allow him even an inch of movement. And with therge red eye pressing a course intent onto his mind that both hurt and disoriented his thoughts, Grim found the task of mobilising his energy be increasingly difficult.


    ''Fan...tastic...'' he thought with some manner of sarcasm. ''So much for some carefree fun...''


    Indeed, it wasn''t fun anymore.


    This whole scenario was undoubtedly ominous. The darkness that therge bird was leaving behind could act as some form of gateway from which it could invite... whatever it is that held Grim now.


    ''I did my fair share for probing. The boss must have already seen by now, right? '' Grim thought. ''And now, I should take probably avoid bing a corpse...''


    The Unlimited''s own red eyes sparkled as he used every bit of mana he could while resisting the glow from his unusual opponent. An inhumane growl fiercely belched from his mouth, and he opened his eyes to look daringly into the opponent – the uncertain shape hidden by the darkness.


    Tufts of white hair began to grow from Grim''s face, and what could be seen of his neck. His skin began to change colour, and...


    "Aggrante."


    A word and a harsh boom interrupted Grim.


    Aser-like throng of light that tore through darkness, dispersing it with deep highlight, and a corrosive effect, shot past an inch from Grim''s arm.


    He was rmed.


    All of a sudden, the firm grip he felt around him vanished, and so did the eye that had been weakening him. Only the stunned figure of the great, stone bird remained, pushing its wings against the waves.


    Grim turned from within the waters and saw Pherdanta, her cold face looking ahead, and her dark hair with green ends flying in all directions. She was pointing forward with her index finger that still had a glowing dot before it.


    Kenno swam beside her.


    He gave Grim one look and shook his head, to which the white-haired Unlimited shrugged, as though asking, "What?"


    The former bandit leader extended his hand to the side, and his palm emitted a bright glow.


    Then, as quickly as one could blink, all the water within a six kilometre radius froze solid.


    The waves that had been arching up stood still, and even droplets that had floated from the main body found themselves turning to kes or clear orbs.


    On the surface of the sea, three holes could be seen atop the hard ice, and from them, Pherdanta, Kenno and Grim swam out.


    As Pherdanta squeezed the water from her ponytail, Kenno gave a quick flick to Grim''s forehead.


    "And here the boss was praising you for not relying on your Hidden ss abilities so carelessly," he said.


    Grim, who had wanted to say he wasn''t going to do anything of the sort, stopped when he remembered that even though he had stopped midway from his transformation, white hairs were  yet to fade from his face.


    "Well, I had to. The boss saw what I was up against," he ended up saying.


    Kenno narrowed his eyes.


    "Both of you, pay attention," Pherdanta interjected while looking below the surface of the ice.


    A momentter, therge form of the great bird sted up from the entrapment of solid water, and red at the three while beating its wings.


    Grim quickly filled the others in.


    "Aside from being pretty quick on its wings, and having a decent defence, this thing isn''t that hard to deal with. Either of us could kill it easily. The problem is that it can open a path with its darkness for something more dangerous..."


    Pherdanta had been about to draw her sword, but when she heard Grim''s words, she wore a disappointed look. Kenno was the same.


    Grim couldn''t believe what he was seeing. It was like these two had up and lost their will to fight entirely.


    The bird beast got ready to emit another wave of darkness, and it was Grim who was the fastest to react. He was pretty sure preventing whatever that thing that hade out before from doing so again, was the best choice.


    However...


    "I''ll take it from here..."


    The three heard a voicee from their Granted Armament.


    It was Replicus.


    At almost the same time, a thin streak of grey lightning shed from behind them and smashed into the bird beast with a blight sh.


    The moment it did, therge creature disappeared.


    Grim looked at his peers.


    "Where do you think it went?" he asked them.


    His answer came shortly after. A distance away, back on Deign, the ind, a stunning glow wasing from the Sacred Forest, as well as an undting force that rocked the sea.