A major reason Tink hadn’t associated Felix with other humans most likely had something to do with his Class, Faymancer, which he suspected was also the reason she had been less wary of him despite him being a human as well.
Realizing that should Hans become aware of Tink’s existence and decide to take her wings, there wasn’t really much he could do to stop him, as the difference in power was far too wide, Felix surreptitiously used a leg to block Tink from his line of sight.
Cold sweat trickled down Felix’s spine as he slowly dragged his leg in front of Tink, secretly hoping Hans wouldn’t notice his subtle movements to hide her from him.
Freezing soon after as he suddenly heard Hans call his name while staring at his feet, Felix felt his blood run dry as cold sweat washed over him, a thought emerging in his mind.
‘Shit! Did he notice?’
Oblivious to Felix’s attempts to hide Tink, Hans briefly stared at him, lost in thought.
Opening his mouth as though to say something, Hans hesitated. Subconsciously glancing toward Felix’s feet, or more precisely the shadow beneath them, he muttered.
“Hey, kid!...” Pausing briefly, he soon decided against it and changed his mind.
“Never mind. Just wanted to say, good job helping out last night. We couldn’t have done it without you. Anyways, you’d best get some rest soon. It’s getting late, and we’ll be heading out tomorrow first thing in the morning.”
With that, Hans didn’t bother waiting for a reply and simply turned around and left.
Finally able to breathe once more after nearly having his soul abandon him at Hans suddenly calling out his name while staring at his feet, Felix felt his legs turn weak as he nearly collapsed on the floor.
But powering through, so as not to accidentally draw Hans’s attention once more, he remained standing.
After confirming that Hans was far enough, Felix finally glanced at Tink.
Contrary to Felix, Tink had been unable to maintain her composure. Upon seeing that Hans had left, she immediately collapsed onto the floor, breathing heavily as she struggled to calm her racing heart.
Noticing this, Felix gave a dry chuckle as he steadied his own beating heart as well.
Despite not being the one in danger, he still felt the adrenaline from the situation, as should Hans truly decide to take Tink’s wings for himself, and Felix choose to stop him, he wasn’t sure he would survive the attempt.
Though Felix didn’t really think Hans was the kind of person to do such a thing, he was also aware that people’s greed could be a frightening thing at times, and you could never truly know what a person was capable of until the day you did.
Adhering to Hans’s advice upon realizing it was already getting dark again, Felix decided to get some shut-eye after having had a long day already.
......
Early the next morning, the sun still hung low on the horizon, painting the world in a warm orange tint.
Having woken up a while earlier than the others, Felix went to check on Tink.
Before returning to sleep near the group, Felix had left her inside a tree with a hollow carved into it, using a stone to ensure that nothing else could enter.
Though he had considered taking her with him, he quickly rejected the idea. Even if no one in the group accidentally noticed her, there was always the chance he might roll over in his sleep and accidentally squish her in the process.
Removing the stone he had used to block the hollow, he heaved a sigh of relief upon seeing that she was still okay inside.
Despite securing the place to ensure nothing would attack her while she slept, there was always the possibility that a larger creature might discover it and attack without him knowing.
Having woken up when he removed the stone, Tink lightly yawned as she stretched a bit.
Looking at her tiny figure, Felix noticed that aside from her clothes, which were still somewhat torn, her skin had already completely healed. This was due to the Attribute he had used on her yesterday, causing the wounds on her body to heal immediately upon activation, while also restoring her Stamina and Mana reserves.
Knowing they planned on leaving today, Tink had been adamant in her attempts to come along with him.
Floating around him while making various ‘Fairy noises’, she tried convincing Felix that she was now healthy enough to follow him.
Chuckling at the gesture, Felix only had to remind her of Hans for her to begin having second thoughts about the idea.
Seeing that she was still downcast about not being able to accompany him, Felix tried cheering her up.
“Oh, come on! Where’s the overly active Fairy that I’ve grown attached to over the past few hours? And what’re you moping about? It’s not goodbye forever. I’m sure we’ll definitely meet again later on.”
Hearing his words, Tink immediately brightened up at the last part.
An eager look that practically screamed, ‘Really? You promise!?’, appeared on her face.
To which Felix simply replied.
“Sure thing!”
Nudging her lightly with his finger, he smiled as he said so.
In truth, he didn’t want to leave her alone either. But considering it would be far more dangerous for her to come along, as he could barely protect himself, much less someone else, he knew it was the better option.
Not to mention, she could also be spotted by someone in the group while he was trying to hide her. The risks were simply too great, so he concluded that the safest option was for them to part ways for now.
Elated upon hearing Felix’s confirmation that they would meet again, Tink floated toward his head, and he suddenly felt a light, soft tap against it.
‘Did she just kiss my forehead?’
Before he could voice his thoughts, however, Tink had already flown away.
Landing on a flower some distance away, she turned back once more, waving fervently at him, a warm smile plastered across her face as she did.
Returning the smile, Felix waved goodbye as well, and moments later she turned around and flew off.
Standing there for a while until he could no longer see her tiny figure in the distance, Felix eventually turned back and returned to the group.
After some time, the others began waking up as well, as dawn had already passed.
Signaling to those still asleep, Hans spoke loudly, causing several of them to jolt awake.
“Alright everyone! Time to continue onwards. If we start now, we should be able to make it to our destination before dark. So prepare your stuff, we’ll resume our journey soon.”
Hearing this, despite having rested for nearly an entire day, some still groaned in frustration.
Though they weren’t as tired as before, they were still mildly exhausted from battling throughout most of the previous night. Not to mention, the thought of carrying their backpacks all the way to their destination was exhausting on its own.
The backpacks had been a major reason for their earlier exhaustion, as everyone had to carry their own belongings. An order Hans had been particularly strict about in order to avoid discrimination or indirect bullying of those with slightly lower Ranks than the others.
.....
A while later, the group had already made significant progress, taking multiple stops along the way to rest.
Each time, Felix would pick up a few seeds that had fallen from the trees above, play with them for a while, then toss them into his bag or pocket, a habit he had developed some time ago in case of emergencies.
A few hours later, around the evening period, the group finally reached their destination after travelling for a little over two months.
Before them stood the entrance to a great cave of sorts, its sheer size easily dwarfing them, making them appear like a colony of ants in comparison.
An eerie, sinister aura lingered around it, as though beckoning them to enter. The sight sent a cold chill running down their spines, leaving them staring in a daze.
A gentle breeze blew against their skin as they took in the sight, as though welcoming them into the...
...Grand Labyrinth!