A little over half an hour had passed after Hazel and her group finally departed for Meir. The city of Portland was no longer visible as they were already in another town. The crisp, cold air breezed by the group while the night sky, illuminated with countless stars, gracefully hung over them.

"Oh my," Evelyn muttered in disbelief. "It's been so long since I've flown around that I completely forgot about the thrill!"

Before either Hazel or Damien was born, their mom used to fly in a monoplane with a propeller. She liked to fly that plane because she got a thrill from the wind blowing against her face and being several hundred feet in the air. Their mom even promised the siblings that one day they would actually try and fly one together, but that day never came.

However, that no longer seemed to be the case now that Hazel and her mom were now riding Nycteris in the air. So, it seemed that their promise was somehow fulfilled. For the most part, at least.

"You want to try some tricks like you did back in the day, Mom?" Hazel asked, a daring smile present on her face.

Instead of taking her offer, her mom faltered with a blush. "O-oh no, we couldn't! Besides, we're not properly wearing seatbelts for us to do such a thing."

For some reason, Hazel found her blushing face amusing. According to what she was told as a child, her mom was quite a daredevil. Aside from flying planes, she would also frequently skydive when given the chance, along with riding hot air balloons. It seemed that her mom really liked to be in the air.

While reminiscing, Hazel suddenly came up with an idea, and her wicked smile widened with malicious glee.

"Hey, mom..."

"Yes, dear?"

"Watch this!"

Making her declaration, she suddenly stood up on Nycteris before jumping off, resulting in her mom screaming in fear.

"H-Hazel?!"

Evelyn desperately searched for her daughter, clearly frightened by what she had just witnessed. Just then, Hazel suddenly appeared before her, flying in the air on her own while doing a Superman pose. The witch looked at her mother with a sly expression.

"Pretty cool, right?"

Her mom furrowed her brow angrily. "Young lady..." She started in a cold tone that caused Hazel to panic while she flew in the air. "When we land for a break...you are in for such a scolding!"

Hazel's face grew pale upon realizing the impending doom she was bound to face. At the front of the group, the elves and Chegyaeyi looked back with pitying gazes, knowing that she just dug her own grave with that stunt. None of them even tried to take her side in the whole mess, probably knowing that it was pointless to try and help. In the end, Hazel was left to fend for herself.

While flying in the air next to Nycteris and her mom, a sudden panel materialized before her.

[Astrid Skogr: You really didn't think that one, though, did you?]

Hazel's head slumped in shame as she sent a response.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

[Hazel Thatcher: Yeah...]

...

A couple of hours passed before the group finally decided to descend and take a break. If Hazel was right, they should be in New Hampshire right now, or at least near the border of the state, while closing in on the border to Canada.

They descended into a forest near a town about a couple of miles away. The reason why they landed in the woods rather than within the town was that they didn't want to attract any unwanted attention. Since there were likely players in the area, Hazel and the others decided that it would be for the best if they stealthily entered the town.

Or they took shelter in the woods and simply headed off into the town to find supplies and such while they were still there. Either way, the forest was their best option for this.

Before they could head into the town, Hazel was given a firm scolding by her mother after pulling that stunt from before. She was currently on her knees as her mom verbally lashed at her daughter as punishment. Meanwhile, Astrid and the others simply watched from the sidelines, knowing that interfering in the matter would only end terribly for them.

This lasted for nearly half an hour before she was finally free.

Once the scolding session was over, the group then talked about what they should do for the moment. It was currently still nighttime, and there was still plenty of time before morning arrived. What they planned to do was enter the town, searching for supplies, and return to the forest where they were currently staying.

They were only staying here so Nycteris and the Griffins could take a break after flying for so long. While they were here, exploring the area would benefit them greatly. They already had plenty of supplies like food and water, along with potions and the like, but it wouldn't hurt them to find more supplies for their trip.

"Alright, so since there are six of us, three of us will enter the town while the other three stay," Hazel declared while raising her hand. "I'll volunteer to enter the town, so who wants to join me?"

Almost immediately, Astrid and Chegyaeyi raised their hands, signally that they wish to join her as well. Hazel nodded before turning to the other three, that being her mother and the elves.

"Okay, so Chegyaeyi, Astrid, and I will enter the town while you guys stay and keep an eye on our mounts. Any objections?"

The elves and Evelyn shook their heads in response.

"No objections here," Tine stated.

"Just be careful while you're out there, dear," Evelyn said with a worried tone.

"You got it," Hazel promised. "We'll be as careful as possible."

Once the groups were made, Hazel's group soon made their way over to the town while her mom's group stayed behind to tend to Nycteris and the griffins.

Hazel's group calmly roamed through the woods, slowly making their way to the town. Around them, various sounds could be heard from the snarling beasts to the ominously loud chirping insects.

A little while passed before they finally made it to the town. They walked out of the woods and soon found a road and followed it into the settlement. Because they didn't want to cause any problems, Hazel and the others stealthily entered the town by getting off the road and sticking to buildings nearby.

Aside from the visibly cracked street that could possibly only come from an earthquake, several buildings were completely destroyed or close to falling apart. Another thing that caught Hazel's attention was the current population...which appeared to be zero.

Through the aid of her Astral Eyes, Hazel scanned the town to see if any enemies or players were present. However, aside from several monsters and the like, she couldn't find a single player in sight.

Her face shifted into a frown. "My astral eyes aren't picking up any players. There are monsters, which should be a given, but mostly dire wolves and the like."

"Well, that's a bit concerning..." Astrid mused, tapping her chin with her finger.

"Indeed," Chegyaeyi nodded. "Still, even if there's a chance that this town has no players, we shouldn't be careless. There could be a group of players lurking somewhere, and they could ambush us when our guards are down."

Both Hazel and Astrid agreed with the lizardfolk's statement. Just because Hazel couldn't find any players in the town didn't mean they weren't there. Plus, her astral eyes didn't get a complete lay of the land. She might have missed something, and that was where the players were hiding.

"Alright, for now, we stay hidden and search for a building that has food and other supplies like a supermarket or something."

Astrid and Chegyaeyi nodded, acknowledging her statement. The trio then searched the town for a store so they could grab what they needed and leave as soon as possible.

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