The roar of a beast swayed the branches and leaves of the old evergreens of Ashen Grove, rippling through the air. The full might of a Lower Elite Exalt Beast, yet Oscar stood undisturbed and even looked bored. As the beast slashed with its large claws, Oscar saw through it all and dodged.

His Prinstyct caught all of its movements, having been upgraded further by the advancement. One could train their Prinstyct, but the biggest boon was always the advancement that enhanced every spec of the Exalt. However, that didn't mean the prior training was rendered redundant, as Oscar's Prinstyct held a certain edge due to its early awakening.

The beast eidolon, the veil that obscured a beast's intent, was rendered null before his mighty Prinstyct. But the enhanced vision did not give Oscar any joy as he had faced enemies such as Maia and Orden who worked around his Prinstyct.

He needed to get stronger!

Oscar strode ahead and punched the beast with all the Ein he could muster under this pressure and Reis, sending the beast flying, and its body caved in where his fist landed. He stared at his hand and cursed that the Ein could not extend past his skin. He couldn't even ride his deer anima because the pressure of the laws of Ashen Grove restricted the anima from coming out.

"I wonder how powerful a person needs to be to place restrictions and rules that affect an entire realm." Oscar harvested what he could from the beast and carried on his way. His current location was near the border between the middle and outer regions.

He stopped in front of a shimmering line that extended from the ground, a veil of green flames and light that seemed out of place for the dense forests. The flames were the barrier, the border between the outer and middle regions, preventing any elements from either place from spilling into each other. Only a person such as himself could cross safely.

The flames felt hot but did not burn; rather, they warmed up his body and wrapped him in the sense of comfort, uplifting the pressure that restricted his Ein. Stepping through, Oscar unleashed his Ein to the fullest, caving in the ground underneath him, and gazed around.

The middle region did not look any different from the outer, but the air was different. There was something else to it, not the smell nor the taste but a feeling, stifling air as if he had wandered into a den of predators. Oscar sighed and continued walking until he finally reached the base camp in the middle region.

It looked the same as the one in the outer region except for the missing gate. The guards by the entrance stopped Oscar, and he underwent a similar identification process to ensure he truly was Oscar.

"Congratulations on becoming a Middle Elite Exalt. I hope you can add to our endeavors here." The one who assessed Oscar smiled.

"Thanks; I hope to do my best." Oscar nodded and went into the base. A similar sight of fabricators and alchemists hard at work and a large array of tents lined up for people to rest in. He suddenly realized that searching for his friends in this big place would be hard.

However, the central area, where many tables were set up for students to relax and eat, was the perfect place for him to wait. Sooner or later, one of his friends had to come by this place and notice him. He went to one of the tables and sat down in silence, listening to the various conversations from the groups gathered.

Some lamented about their losses, grieving over their dead friend; some cheered at the victory they won against other factions and gleefully looked over their spoils, and others, like Oscar, did not interact but mulled in their own corners.

How odd. Oscar thought. How odd that a single place can have so many different conversations and opposites in topics and emotions. Did the groups not know of the other conversations taking place?

"Oscar?"

A sweet and soothing voice called his name, and Oscar smiled, knowing who it was. He stood up and turned around to see Serena, her red hair flowing down her shoulders and her green eyes looking at him with a pleasant surprise. Without warning, the beautiful merchant daughter embraced him with a burst of sonorous laughter, resting her head on his chest.

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"It is you! I've been waiting so long." Serena looked up with a flushed face and moist upturned eyes, which Oscar could smile back at.

"How have you been?" Oscar managed to peel himself away from Serena's vice grip. "It's been over a week. I can only assume you've been through a lot."

"Fufu." Serena giggled. "I'll tell you about it later, but I need to wash up right now."

There were patches of dirt on her clothes which were slightly torn, exposing some of her body, a charming display that many others could not peel their eyes from. Oscar's eyes twitched from the stares directed his way, pained gazes of jealousy of his close relationship with Serena. But the most damning stare came from another who was close by.

"Serena, who is this person?" Behind Serena, the man who gave him the nasty stare walked up and faced Oscar with a cold expression.

"Fabian, this is my good friend, Oscar, you know, the one who is in the princess's clique," Serena said.

"Oh, is that so?" Fabian smiled. "Nice to meet you; I am Fabian Roan."

"Hello, I am Oscar Terr." Oscar reached out and shook Fabian's hand, sensing the increasing grip strength, presumably to hurt his hand or embarrass him in front of Serena. How childish...Oscar could crush his hand but decided against it to avoid fanning Fabian's unnecessary competitive nature against an ally.

After letting go, Oscar sighed at Fabian's furious gaze. It seemed his attempt to settle this without an issue failed. His unharmed hand struck Fabian's pride and fanned the flames of hostility.

'How on earth did you become a Middle Elite Exalt with that attitude?' Oscar could not believe one was so petty but then recalled Samuel. Feeling tired from his exchange, Oscar turned and said, "I'm heading to get a tent for myself."

"Then come with me, I'm by Mary and others, so you should be able to meet them soon." Serena pulled on Oscar's hand, making Fabian grind his teeth. "In fact, I was going back to see Mary. She's resting for today."

Oscar smiled. "Lead the way!"

They departed, leaving the fuming Fabian behind, but Oscar didn't care about someone like him.

"If you want to know, I only allied with them for today because I was recuperating earlier, and everyone else was out. They're not bad, and we worked well as a four-man team." Serena smiled while pulling Oscar's hand with both of her arms.

Oscar wished to separate but let her have this moment. "Thanks to you, Fabian hates me. Even though I did nothing."

"Hmph, if his own emotions take him over during these trying times, then he's not worth thinking about." Serena scoffed.

"Says the one that couldn't resist lunging straight for me," Oscar teased.

"That's different. If it produces a harmonious result, then it's fine." Serena retorted.

"And what part of this is harmonious?" Oscar gestured toward how Serena was pulling him like his arm was a rope without care and a heated gaze in her eyes. Not to mention her so-called harmonious result ended up in Fabian hating him.

"Don't worry about it!" Serena continued pulling Oscar until they ended up in a cluster of tents. Her hands spread wide as she twirled around. "This is where we have been staying; feel free to pick a tent nearby. Or perhaps we can share one?"

Serena's tilted head with an innocent smile did not work on Oscar, who turned around coldly without reacting. He ignored her huffs and complaints and found a suitable tent for himself.

"Serena…what is all that noise?"

Oscar walked outside to find Mary rubbing her eyes, her brown hair had grown longer and reached halfway down her back, but it was disheveled with bed hair. He was about to greet her when, suddenly, Austin came out of the same tent, embracing her with his arms around her shoulders, looking tired as well.

"Geez, you two love birds need to stop making me jealous." Serena pouted.

"Clam it." Austin yawned. "So what is all this noi–"

Austin and Mary both stared at Oscar with wide expressions. Their faces slowly turned red. Oscar sheepishly waved his hand with an awkward face, unable to know how to start a conversation after seeing this.

"O-Oscar. When did you g-get here?" Mary stammered. Her eyes were shaky, and her hands covered her face in embarrassment.

"Just now," Oscar replied, and he turned to Austin with an incredulous look. "Austin, that time in the illusion."

"Don't"

"Was the pers–"

"Shut it." Austin stared coldly at Oscar, but Mary quickly tugged on his clothes.

"Don't stare at Oscar like that. He's a good friend and someone I truly respect." Mary huffed. Her small stature seemed bigger with her fierceness.

"More than me?" Austin asked.

Mary chuckled and wrapped her arms around Austin, pecking him on the lips. "You're different."

Oscar laughed. "You both just forgot I was here."

Seeing their faces flush again, Oscar laughed more. He did notice that Austin and Mary had been interacting more often ever since Portland Island, but he never thought this would happen.

"What about Frederick, Emily, and Charles?" Oscar asked. Their group members who entered the middle region were Frederick, Emily, Serena, and Charles. The rest were Greater Elite Exalts and were fighting in the inner region.

"Charles advanced to the Greater Elite Exalt realm and went on to the inner region with a few others," Serena explained.

"Frederick and Emily went out due west. Actually, they went out very recently, about an hour ago." Mary said. "If you leave now, you could catch up to them."

Oscar felt delighted that they were all still alive, and he could not contain himself. He needed to go to them no matter what.

"Where did they go?" He asked in haste.

"They went out to harvest the fruits of the Golddew Fig Tree."