Nobody knew what to say to that. They glanced around, searching for any signs of whether the Nubbits were close by, but even with the help of Chip and the two birds, they found nothing.

After eventually admitting defeat, the group moved past the area and began heading toward the exit gate’s location.

Along the way, they didn’t encounter any new beasts. The creatures always lingered a few meters away from them, keeping their distance, so there was no need to engage with them for now.

And carrying the logs was getting increasingly exhausting. Even the boar had to stop several times, clearly nearing its limit. The uneven terrain made it difficult to bear such weight, especially so for the unruly hooves that struggled on the ground.

After an hour of traveling and resting, Theo didn’t even need to close his eyes to sense it; the spatial energy was cracking visibly ahead.

Everyone caught sight of the gate’s silhouette and immediately picked up their pace and began moving briskly toward it. There was no way they were going to rest now.

Within a few minutes, they reached the vicinity of the gate. Theo quickly noticed how the trees were densely packed in the area.

"Everyone, we have completed half of what we set out to do. Beyond this, we just need to gather samples and set up a new camp for the time being," Theo said, letting out a deep sigh.

He glanced back at the group, who were smiling, talking to each other, relief evident on their faces.

’Everyone is alive... that counts as good leadership, right?’ Theo asked himself. But Lucien’s words about him not being a good leader echoed in his mind once again.

Theo smiled finally and decided to improve. He would work hard on his leadership skills too. The gate had already taught him more things than he had expected to learn.

Just when everyone continued chatting, Theo’s gaze drifted upward to a large branch. A sudden urge struck him: to look at the forest from above, like a bird.

He bent his knees and locked in.

A loud thud followed as the ground cracked slightly beneath him and the soil moved up a little.

The next thing the group saw with shock was Theo shooting high into the air and catching hold of a thick branch.

Kaelor’s eyes widened in amazement, while Merek looked at Theo with perplexed emotions.

Clara felt like joining him and moved her knees down to leap, grabbing a branch below Theo’s. Elias followed next.

One after another, the ground burst beneath them as they launched upward until the trio stood perched on different branches of the same towering tree, each wearing a different expression.

"For even the attendants to know hyper jump... this is ridiculous," Kaelor muttered with a disbelieving chuckle while Lucien and Cassian simply watched as the three continued to climb higher.

Theo bobbed his head above the canopy and took a deep breath as he gazed at the world from above. The forest stretched endlessly, its red trees and leaves forming a striking, almost surreal scenery from above.

Theo turned slowly, taking it all in with a smile, until something far in the distance caught his eye.

He squinted his eyes, trying to focus, but it was just too far away to clearly see what it was.

’Is that a tree... or something else?’ Theo couldn’t help but wonder.

The silhouette seemed to be a lot above the other trees, and Theo knew whatever it was, it would be much larger.

He looked below and dropped down onto one of the thick branches before jumping down completely.

The group below watched as he continued to drop from one branch to another before landing on the ground with a roll and getting up like nothing happened.

"Garrick, on the south side, have you sent your birds to see what that big silhouette is?" Theo asked.

Garrick blinked, still shocked to see him all okay after that jump, then looked at him with confusion. "What silhouette are you talking about, young master?"

"The one in the south, Sir Garrick. There is something bigger there, something way larger than these trees."

Garrick’s eyes immediately shifted to shades of green and gold as he turned his gaze southward.

"...I see nothing, young master. Perhaps you were mistaken?" Garrick said, treading lightly. Theo might not have been like the other nobles, but he was still one.

"Just to be sure, why don’t you send them toward the south? See what they find," Theo asked politely, making Garrick nod and sit to the side, his eyes still glowing golden.

Theo glanced at the others who were staring at him, then at the two attendants who had jumped down after him.

"Why don’t we take a short rest, then help out in cutting down these excess trees? We won’t be able to set up a camp around the gate otherwise," Theo suggested.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Soon, a small campfire was lit, and they ate and drank before resting.

The two women moved behind a large tree some distance away to clean themselves, using a small satchel filled with water and some dry clothes.

Theo did his best to keep others from wandering in that direction, though he was relieved to see no one seemed interested anyway.

Kaelor rested only briefly before picking up a sickle-like tool and beginning to clear the excess grass in the area. He had become a true camper in this gate, something Theo made a mental note of. He wanted to stay in contact with him.

Before long, everyone joined in, cutting lumber down and shaping it into a hut using both old and freshly cut logs.

By nightfall, they were already done with the structure, thanks to the many helping hands.

The attendants had gone and created a better campfire and also set up smokers along the side.

Everything seemed peaceful once again.

At that moment, Theo thought of using his skill on Clara and Elias to help them evolve into Foundation Humans, but with so many individuals around, it was too risky.

So he decided not to and instead went on with his work.

As night deepened and everyone settled down to enjoy a well-earned sleep...

Garrick suddenly got up and tapped Theo’s shoulder, a hint of urgency in his movements.

Theo woke up and immediately noticed the crazed look in Garrick’s eyes.

"Young master, there’s something strange in the south."