<h4>Chapter 44: The Journey Back</h4>


    Despite my best efforts, I couldn''t fly for more than a quarter of an hour. Even that goal seemed out of reach most of the time. Out of breath, I once againnded on the soft, mossy forest floor. With a burning sensation, the wings on my ck turned into a ck-ember mist.


    Vixia had taught me how do to this. She called it ''hiding'' my wings, though it felt more like making them disappear. Once I hid them, I couldn''t feel them at all anymore. The muscles that connected to my entire upper body also seemed to disappear. It was a weird and unpleasant feeling, like I was losing a part of my body.


    Now, with a lighter and more nimble body, I headed south. I alternated between flying and walking. After a few hours of journeying, dusk settled in. I once againnded on the mossy forest floor and checked my surroundings. I was in the middle of a very tnd, covered by this forest. There weren''t very many ces I could use as shelter.


    With a sigh, I walked around, looking for a tall tree. If nothing else worked, I could at least wait out the night on the higher branches of a tree. My efforts were soon rewarded by a nice, tall tree with a thick trunk.


    With a smile on my lips, I summoned my wings and flew to the higher branches of it. When I found a suitably durable branch, Inded and hid my wings. The fiery glow at the end of my feathers would make every creature in the general area aware of me.


    "Now then," I mumbled as I took a fruit out of my inventory. "This is rather convenient." I could see most of the forest from such a high vantage point. It looked beautiful as always. As I watched, the golden-purple glow of the setting sun slowly faded, allowing the dark night sky to take its ce. The unfamiliar stars shone as I closed my eyes to rest a little.


    I woke up to cheerful chirping and a cool breeze. As I opened my eyes, the golden sea of trees before me took my breath away. No matter how many times I saw it, I''d never get tired of it. I took some food from my inventory and ate it, waiting for the sun to rise and the forest to return to its normal, green colour.


    I still couldn''t make sense of how the leaves literally changed colours with the phases of the sun. Was it magic?


    I shook my head. I was being silly – it was how OTHERWORLD had made this world. A thought gnawed at the back of my mind, but I dismissed it and prepared to fly again. Even if it was a fake, virtual world, being able to fly was amazing. I let myself fall, then with a powerful beat of my wings, took to the skies.


    I kept my pace of flying until I couldn''t anymore, then walking and once I had rested my wings enough, flying again until around noon. I''d have kept at it until dusk, but a bunch of vulture-like monsters interrupted my peaceful day.


    Honestly, I wasn''t expecting anything to attack me in broad daylight since I was now much stronger than most things in the general area. So, a sudden rush of wings took me by surprise. Unable to manoeuvre properly, I felt the scratches of their talons and their piercing beaks on my skin.


    I motioned to summon my scythe, but decided otherwise and summoned my in, metal sword instead. I wasn''t used to using a scythe or to flying. There was a good chance I''d somehow end up cutting off my own wing if I tried to do both at the same time. Instead, I swung my sword to cut off one of the vultures'' head.


    The swinging motion shifted my centre of weight, effectively messing up my fragile bnce. Not only did I miss my target, but I also found myself falling.


    Inded on the mossy ground with a loud thud and scrambled to get back up on my feet. Thankfully, the tree branches ad slowed my fall enough, allowing me to survive it with only a couple dozen scratches.


    The cultures screeched, I could see them circling the air above me, but they made no effort to chase me down. I took this chance to use Soul''s Respite and allowed the dark shadows to heal my wounds. Then, with a wicked grin on my face, I sent some Dark Bolts after the vultures.


    Several thuds sounded as the corpses fell all around me. "That''s what you get for messing with me." I quietly said as I looked at the map to find my bearings. As I walked through the forest, I couldn''t help but think about what just happened. I had no clue on how to properly fight in mid-air. I really needed to learn aerialbat if I wanted to take full advantage of these wings and their mobility.


    Thoughts and worries whirled in my mind as my journey back to Stonepatch Vige continued.


    I kind of regretted making that promise with Vixia. But then again, if I hadn''t, she probably wouldn''t let me leave. With a sigh, I gave up on that train of thought. What was done is done. Now, the best thing I could do was focusing on what I can do.


    I had to grow stronger. Strong enough to kill the Demon Lord. Once I''d done that, the game would be over, and we all would finally be released. How I''d do that was another question entirely. I needed to protect Erik and the others. Rina and Alex too, I couldn''t let anything happen to them.


    There was also the question of why Rohir, Erik''s sworn god, would send a phoenix to kill him. It didn''t really make much sense to me and I didn''t blindly trust Vixia''s words. I''m sure she hid more information than she shared with me.


    A distant shout interrupted my thought process. My ears perked up as I recognized that voice. It was Erik''s! But... What was he doing so far away from the vige?


    I sprinted towards his voice. Shortly before I reached him, I heard lightning cackle as several lightning strikes illuminated my surroundings, followed by the pained wail of the creatures it hit.


    They finally entered my vision as I slowed my steps. Erik and the rest of the group were apanied by Rina and Alex. They all seemed somewhat tired as they sheathed their weapons. Before them were the corpses of a bunch of vulture-like creatures, much like the ones I''d killed earlier.


    "This is annoying!" Alex shouted. "We don''t even know where they went!"


    "Hush!" Samantha suddenly said with a serious tone as I made my way towards them through the bushes. "Something approaches!" She hooked and arrow and without skipping a beat, shot it towards me.