Commander Cooper gently passed Cooper Trooper to his wife. The little baby giggled and clapped his hands as he went from daddy to mommy. The large bird folded his wings and eyed the Alpha Wolf troop, who had brought the news.

"Report," he ordered.

"Sir. We have received reports that our troops have successfully wiped out the last of the Crimson Gold Sect. Any items of value have been secured from the site."

"That's the situation? You interrupted this special moment for that?"

"No, sir. It seems like a group of humans intercepted our troops on the way back. The number of casualties is still to be determined. And they are currently making their way here. ETA: two minutes."

"Gather up the remaining troops. I want ability profiles and enemy numbers. STAT."

"Sir, yes, sir!"

The Alpha Wolf member saluted before sprinting away. Instead of running on his hind legs, he chose to go down on all fours. In the span of three seconds, he was gone, off to gather what remained of Tentative Camp's forces.

Commander Cooper faced his wife and placed the back of his wing against her cheek. Slow and gentle, he stroked her. With his other wing, he softly caressed Cooper Trooper, who happily cooed under the combined touch of his parents.

"Darling, I need to handle this. The humans on the way are most likely the Elders of the Crimson Gold Sect. They're out for blood and revenge. You need to bring Trooper and these kids to safety."

Mrs. Cooper's gaze hardened. "I'm staying to support you. I didn't climb my way up the ranks just to run away."

He opened his beak to argue, but she cut him off. "Did you forget that I outrank you?"

"And I'm the Commanding Officer here. I'm not asking you to leave because I don't think you're strong enough. I'm asking you to leave because I know you're the only one strong enough to look after our child."

Her expression softened, and Mrs. Cooper blushed at the words. She leaned forward and planted a kiss on the tip of her husband's beak.

"Fine," Mrs. Cooper sighed, adjusting her grip on Trooper. "I'll take Trooper and these kids with me to the portal back to Monsteria. But you better promise me that you'll run the moment things get rough."

"Of course. Your word is law, remember?" Commander Cooper chuckled.

"You know it," she giggled back. Then her voice grew soft. "Seriously. Trooper needs his father."

She gave her husband one last kiss on the beak, then broke away.

"I know," he said, leaning in to kiss her and Cooper Trooper before sprinting away.

Mrs. Cooper sighed as she watched her husband's figure disappear behind the myriad of tents in Tentative Camp. She turned to face Alwin, who was weeping at the loving display happening in front of him.

"It's just like a scene from a movie," he sobbed.

"C'mon, kid, we need to go," she said, walking toward the tent which housed the portal back to the city of Monsteria.

"Yes, Mrs. Cooper," Alwin sniffled. A third Spirit Hand popped into existence just to wipe the tears away from his eye.

As Alwin followed behind, Gus and Uchronia stirred in his Spirit Hands.

"What happened? Where are we?" Uchronia mumbled, rubbing her eyes with her leaves.

"I think we're in the canteen," Gus said as he sniffed the air with his eyes still closed." I smell something burning."

"No, we're not. We're back at the camp," she muttered.

Her small eyes, still full of sleep, jumped wide open. "We're back at the camp!"

Uchronia hopped off the Spirit Hands in a panic. She was still weak and couldn't find her balance even if it were right in front of her. As she wobbled, Alwin brought forth another Spirit Hand to hold her steady.

"Careful now," Alwin said.

"Alwin!" she shouted. "What happened to the cultivators? Where's the egg? Why are we back at camp? And most importantly, did we fail the final exam?"

"Gary Stew and the young masters are dead. Their Elders are on the way here to get revenge for destroying their sect. Cooper Trooper's right there."Alwin pointed toward Mrs. Cooper and Cooper Trooper.

The little baby giggled and clapped his hands when he heard his name. Though Mrs. Cooper was facing away, he could see the slightest grin crop up on the side of her face.

"We're back at camp because Commander Cooper carried us back. And last but definitely not least…"

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He paused for effect, then smiled. "We did not fail the final exam?"

"So we passed?"

"Yup! We passed so hard we nearly passed away. And here's the best part. We're the only squad to pass! Only by technicality, but still."

Upon hearing those words, Uchronia was suddenly fueled with renewed energy. She leapt forward and hugged Alwin. A bit of his new Crimson Gold King Ant form must've been leaking out, as he could feel himself turning red.

"Thank you," Uchronia said, still hugging him.

"Y-y-you're welcome," Alwin stammered.

"Alright. Break it up, you two," Mrs. Cooper grunted. "We need to go. Now! That's a direct order."

"R-right," Uchronia said.

They broke apart and continued to follow Mrs. Cooper. Meanwhile, Gus decided that he wanted five more minutes and went back to bed on Alwin's Spirit Hand. As they made their way to the tent, the sounds of screaming and battle began to fill the once peaceful air.

The Elders were here.

"Are those the Elders?" Uchronia asked. "What happened when I was unconscious?"

"It's a long story. I'll tell you when we're back in the Academy safe and sound."

"Kids, less talking, more walking. Pick up the pace," Mrs. Cooper hollered.

She began to walk faster. As the background music of battle intensified, her walk morphed into a jog, then into a full-on sprint. The whole time, Cooper Trooper was just giggling away, completely oblivious to the danger he was in. To be fair, he was a child.

Then there was Gus, who was snoring away, completely oblivious to the danger he was in. To be fair as well, Gus was a child, too. To be even fairer, he was a child blessed by Cor and had information downloaded into his brain. Honestly, he should've known better.

The giant tent that housed Tentative Camp was being ripped apart left, right, and center. Its fake sky, clouds, and sun were torn asunder. It was like the end of the world. Fire rained down from above, setting ablaze the regular-sized tents inside.

Mrs. Cooper hunched forward and tucked little Trooper deep within her chest. Embers peppered her shell as she ran toward the portal tent.

Gus had his mouth open, sampling the delicious smoked produce pouring into his gullet like a gift from the heavens. He was still being carried by Alwin's Spirit Hand, too.

Uchronia had activated a skill he hadn't used since the early days of his tenure in the Human Hunter Academy, Spirit Barrier. A small blue translucent bubble was wrapped around her entire body, shielding her from the drops of fiery fabric. It flickered in and out of existence, occasionally letting in burning embers that singed her leaves. She must've still been low on Mana.

Alwin, ever the genius and gentleman, had to protect her. He sent forth his Spirit Hands to act as a makeshift umbrella. They floated above her and took the brunt of the falling cinders. Flames scorched them, turning them black before they dissipated in a puff of dust. Another pair took their place. Then another.

It wasn't the most efficient use of Mana, but it was good enough in his opinion.

However, in Niwla's opinion, he could do better.

Alwin begrudgingly gave partial control to Niwla. The slime would continue rolling to their destination while Niwla was allowed to experiment with spells on the fly.

Niwla brought out some Spirit Hands as well as a Spirit Barrier to shield themselves. It was blasphemy, in Alwin's opinion. The best defense was a good offense. He shouldn't need any defensive skills. That's why he took the burning rain head-on like the manliest man a less than one-year-old slime could be.

But fine. If they were going to do this. It was time to cook up another combination.

The Spirit Hands spun around Alwin and his Spirit Barrier. There was a flash of Mana. And poof.

It was a dud.

Both skills crumbled apart under the incomplete fusion. The barrier shattering like broken glass, and the hands disintegrating mid-spin.

Niwla hadn't found the right parameters yet. So, he tried again. And again. And again. With every iteration, he was getting closer.

From both skills falling apart before even fusing, to a semi-grotesque fusion that only a mother could love. Each failure was one step in the right direction. Finally, after a dozen fizzles and malformed abominations that would haunt Alwin's dreams, something passable emerged. Although the stability of the new skill left more to be desired.

Niwla sent the brand new Spirit Barrier Hand to protect Uchronia. As the name suggested, it was a Mix between Spirit Barrier and Spirit Hand. The combination was superficial at best. It featured a thin layer of Mana encapsulating the Spirit Hand that buzzed weakly under the falling embers, and its movement was sluggish.

Both mobility and defense were sacrificed in order for the Mix to take place. It was weaker than a regular Spirit Barrier and moved slower and had less grace than a regular Spirit Hand. But it got the job done. In Niwla's opinion, it was good enough.

And in Winal's opinion. Well, he didn't object. He didn't really say anything. So it was probably good enough as well.

"Thank you, Alwin," Uchronia said, though it was difficult to hear over the roaring battle all around them.

There was also the fact that his new Spirit Barrier Hand was barely useful. By the time Niwla had figured it out, they had arrived at the portal tent. Like everything else in Tentative Camp, it was on fire.

Mrs. Cooper didn't hesitate. She charged in, pushing open the flaps as she shielded Cooper Trooper beneath her chest. Uchronia followed behind, protected by both his Spirit Barrier Hand and her own fading Spirit Barrier.

Gus was shielded by the air surrounding him. In other words, he was rudely awakened as flames cooked his body whole. He let out a yelp and hopped off the Spirit Hand, running around the inside of the tent until Mrs. Cooper had had enough of him and grabbed him by the head. Gus still continued to scream, his paws paddling uselessly through the air.

Alwin wanted to brave the flames like a super manly, macho man. Niwla said no. He erected a Spirit Barrier, much to his annoyance.

Thankfully, the inside of the tent hadn't caught on fire yet. Even more thankfully, the tent within the tent that housed was portal was still intact. The glowing gate shimmered and hummed with Mana. "In you go, kids," Mrs. Cooper yelled.

"Aye, Ma'am!" Alwin replied.

"That's Mrs. Bow-ma'am Cooper to you," Mrs. Cooper scolded.

"Sorry!"

Mrs. Cooper threw Gus headfirst into the portal, his screaming growing even louder as he soared through the air, only to disappear when he passed through.

Uchronia was next, hopping through the glowing gate with ease.

Then it was Alwin's turn. He took one roll forward.

An explosion tore through the tent above him. Fabric shredded. Metal splintered. Fire and concussive force ripped the air apart.

The portal gate cracked, shattering right in front of him.

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