In the dead of the cold night, a blonde young man was like the wind, sprinting across a forest that was coming alive.
Daru tried summoning his steed, but it didn't work.
He could only run to where Elara had gone. Soon, he passed their fir tree.
'Why did she have to d–'
Before Daru could finish his thoughts, however, a shadow loomed above him. His pupils constricted into slits and he instantly turned.
But then, he froze, allowing himself to be swooped.
Weaving through the trees while being carried, he asked.
"You…dealt with that thing?"
"Why, of course. How else would this princess be back in our hollow?"
"How?"
Elara flapped her Nawkari wings, losing the Night Dive bonus but elevating them above most of the young trees thriving in the Small Forest.
Only a few mature ones towered over them still.
She then recounted what happened as she flew eastward.
