Theo stood up to look at him properly.

He could clearly see the craziness in Garrick’s eyes.

"But what I am curious about is how you could see better than my falcons." Garrick added, genuine curiosity evident in his eyes.

"It’s the Merrick genes, Sir Garrick," Theo replied smoothly, masking it with a little bit of lie. "I have been able to see far since I was young."

Garrick looked at Theo in a new light and nodded profusely.

"What did you see in the south?" Theo asked, bringing the man back to track again.

"A very, very large beast," Garrick said. "That might be why my falcons didn’t notice it earlier. It must have moved closer recently."

"A large beast?" Theo couldn’t help but sit upright, all traces of sleepiness in his eyes vanishing in an instant.

"A beast that big, what is it?" He asked in urgency, making the man’s eyes turn golden again.

"It’s a reptile-like beast again, young master. It looks to be the shape of a dragon, but it’s nothing like that."

Theo couldn’t help but want to look at it too, as the way Garrick summarized it was like he didn’t know how to do it.

"Can you check its status, Sir Garrick?" Theo asked and continued, "And is it even safe for your falcons to be near that beast?" he asked again.

"It’s been sleeping soundly, young master. It’s like the beast doesn’t care about them at all. But some beasts are like that; they ignore bird-types unless they’re large enough to pose a threat," Garrick explained, narrowing his eyes to focus.

Theo waited.

After a few minutes, Garrick began to speak.

"It’s a Crimson Spine Titan... and it is level 13. Its type is... blood?"

Kaelor stirred awake, listening to them while rubbing the sleep off his eyes.

"Everything alright?" he asked, making Theo look at him.

"We have a decision to make in the morning, Sir Kaelor," Theo said, his expression sharpening, making Kaelor curious.

"Sir Garrick, keep an eye on the beast. We can’t wake up the others just yet; it’s been an exhausting day."

Garrick nodded, his eyes gleaming with the same unsettled excitement, as if he were appreciating the beast.

Even though he tried his best, Theo couldn’t fall asleep after that. When morning finally came, Theo went to check on Garrick. The man was asleep, but then he realized that even though the guy was asleep, the falcons were still watching the beast.

"Everyone," Theo called once everyone in the group was awake.

"We have found a really big beast, bigger than any trees here, and broader too," he continued, drawing confused glances from everyone.

"It’s a level 13 beast, located in the south. And according to Sir Garrick, it might take us an entire day just to reach it."

After that, Garrick stepped forward to explain about the creature further.

He walked toward the tied-up reptile beast on the side.

"It looked exactly like this," he said, gesturing. "Its hands are way smaller compared to its body, and it has a tail lined with scales coming. And it’s completely crimson in color too," he spoke with one of his eyes still glowing golden.

As he rambled, the guy stepped a little too close to the beast. The beast suddenly snapped its mouth toward his feet, making him yelp and jump back in panic. Fortunately, its mouth was tied, so nothing serious happened.

"I don’t think we are ready to take on something that big, young master," Lysara spoke up for the first time.

Theo looked at her. "It is level 13, so you may be right. But... I can’t help being curious about what it could be."

"It’s a gigantic beast; what more do we need to know?" Lucien said with a frown.

Theo hesitated, feeling like he wasn’t able to put his thoughts into the right words.

’For starters, I need to understand what I want,’ he told himself.

Clara and Elias exchanged glances; after looking at him, they immediately understood what he wanted. But they also knew that this was something Theo had to explain by himself. And not something everyone would understand and agree with.

"Let’s at least take a look at the creature," Theo said, prompting several people to stare at him with their mouths open in shock, but he raised a hand before they could speak. "But it’s sort of a personal decision, so I won’t ask any of you to be a part of it. It’s completely optional."

At that moment, frowns spread across the group. Was he serious?

"Are you really thinking of going to that beast? It could be the last thing you see," Kaelor said in disbelief.

Lucien, Clara, and Elias immediately shot him a death stare.

Kaelor cleared his throat, trying to say it in a proper way. "What I mean is... we can simply record this finding on a piece of paper and leave it for someone who is more capable of handling it later, young master. There’s no need for us to even go near it."

Theo met his gaze, who seemed to be looking for better words to say next, as if guilty of what he had spoken before, but Theo only smiled.

"I am not asking anyone to come with me, Sir Kaelor. We will complete all the sampling first. After that, you all can leave. Clara, Elias and I will stay here for that beast."

Theo’s voice was calm and confident.

But to others, that confidence sounded like recklessness.

"If that is what you wish..." Kaelor muttered, shaking his head as if already expecting what was about to happen.

Lucien looked at his brother, unsure of what to say.

"Theo, we still have a lot of time. You can think about it," Lucien spoke carefully, trying to be nice and not undermine his decision too much.

Theo glanced at Clara and Elias. Their expression said everything: "Wherever you go, we will follow you."

It was the kind of look that made something settle within Theo. They were truly his ’real’ party.

A faint white flash crossed his forehead.

Near the hut, the mantis materialized.

A shiver ran down everyone’s spine, as if countless tiny needles were pricking their skin.

Theo’s gaze sharpened.

"I want to test this guy out."