The moment the gate swung open, the group took off. Amari and Marie ran ahead. Horace stayed close to Jack, his breath ragged and quick in rhythm with Jack’s own. Snowy and the bees took up the rear, their presence less of a promise for protection. At most, Snowy’s [Largeness] skill would prevent foxes from sneaking up on them.

  Despite the veterans’ warnings, there was nothing but silence as they crossed the meadow. Jack’s heart pounded with every step, his ears straining for any hint of danger. All he could hear was the rustle of dry grass and the muted thuds of his friends’ footsteps. He kept his gaze fixed on the egg, cradled tightly in his arms.

  “I thought there’d be foxes already…” he muttered, barely lifting his head.

  “Remember, Jack! Focus on the egg,” Amari replied instantly, his voice tense. “The presence of the elephant birds is keeping them away for now. The second we reach the trees, though, it’s going to be chaos.”

  Jack kept his eyes down, watching for the slightest dip or root that could send him sprawling. The ground began to shift, turning from the firm, dry meadow to softer, loamy ground. He could tell they were approaching the woods by the way the sunlight flickered and dimmed, filtering down in shards between the trees. The temperature dropped, the air turning cool and damp as they left the open field.

  And then, suddenly, things got busy.

  The first sign of the foxes was a faint whiff of musk and a sharp, earthy scent of disturbed undergrowth. A distant snap echoed from somewhere ahead, sharp enough to send a shock down Jack’s spine. Somewhere, the low growl of a fox pierced the silence, joined by others until it became a steady chorus. Jack tried not to tighten his grip on the egg as he waited for the inevitable chaos.

  “At 2 o’clock!” Amari called.

  “At 7!” Marie said shortly after, and the first explosions rang through the woods.

  The yapping of foxes grew louder, underscored by the thunderous blast of grenades and the swift slash of Amari’s claws cutting through the air. Jack kept his gaze down, resisting every urge to look up. The ground here was treacherous, roots coiling and the uneven forest floor threatening to trip him. One wrong step, and it would all be over.

  “Darn it, I let one get away!” Marie’s scream rang out. A thud followed as daggers sliced through the air, landing with a whimper. Jack fought the instinct to look up, but the sound had drawn him in. Against his better judgment, he stole a glance around—and instantly regretted it. In that brief moment, he glimpsed a flash of orange fur closing in from every angle.

  He snapped his attention back to his feet, heart pounding faster. The swoosh of Horace’s war hammer sliced through the air nearby. Foxes yelped and whimpered as they took blows from the hammer or felt the sharp sting of Amari’s shurikens. Some were sent sprawling by the firecrackers exploding around them, sending bursts of searing heat and smoke that Jack could almost feel against his skin.

  “This way, we’re not going to make it,” Horace shouted, his voice strained. “We underestimated how many people we need to carry someone on this quest.”

  “Even if we fail, we have two more tries. Just focus,” Amari barked, though Jack could hear the tension in his voice.

  “But I’m running out of stamina,” Horace said, his breathing coming in heavy gasps.

  Jack kept his eyes glued to the ground, each step a battle against the soft, uneven earth. Suddenly, the snarling grew closer, and he looked up just in time to see a fox leaping toward him. He skidded to a stop, heart lurching, ready to turn and flee. But then—whizz—something sliced past his ear. A shuriken hit the fox, who turned into motes of light, clearing his path.

  “I can’t keep holding them!” Marie’s voice was strained.

  “I need more stamina!” Horace’s voice echoed her distress, sounding drained.

  Jack bit down on his lip, his heart racing. The relentless growls and snapping jaws around were something straight out of a nightmare. He could feel they were close to failing. In a split-second decision, Jack broke into a sprint, but this time, he spun on his heel, racing in the opposite direction.

  “Jack! Where are you going?” Horace yelled, his voice nearly swallowed by the cacophony.

  “Since we’re about to lose this anyway, I might as well try something,” Jack called back.

  “Argh! Fine! I’ll cover you.”

  Jack sprinted toward Snowy, their paths converging so quickly it felt like they’d closed the distance in an instant. He slid to a stop beside her and looked at the egg. It remained unscathed.

  It’s time to see if Snowy doesn’t break you.

  “Stay still, girl,” Jack murmured, his voice low but firm. Carefully, he lifted the egg and lowered it into one of Snowy’s saddlebags. The egg was too delicate to stash in his inventory, but the saddlebags, designed for live cargo, were their best hope. Jack leaned forward, practically diving in with it, until his arms reached the basket’s bottom. Slowly, he let the weight of the egg shift from his hands, barely daring to breathe. The bulrush basket stretched just enough to cradle it, its elasticity forming a cushion around the precious cargo.

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

  A wave of relief washed over him, but it quickly twisted into cold dread as he looked up at the chaos that had erupted around them.

  For the first time, Jack could see what was happening. Since he’d stopped running, Amari, Marie, and Horace had halted, too, forming a protective line around him and focusing all their energy on holding off the foxes. The foxes didn’t look particularly strong. Even the weaker swings from Horace’s war hammer sent foxes flying back, but for each that fell, three more took its place. Though much lower-leveled than his friends, the crazed animals kept coming, relentless and snapping, each with the same unsettling red eyes fixed on the saddlebags.

  What about this egg can make the foxes this crazed? he wondered.

  His friends looked exhausted, their movements slowing despite their best efforts. Jack knew he had to act quickly, or they wouldn’t last much longer.

  Without missing a beat, he snatched up his ocarina and blew the first note. Sitting Wind filled the air, soft but steady, weaving around them with a calming rhythm.

  You’ve played [Sitting Wind].

  Success rate: A

  +300XP in [Bard]

  Audience bonus: +150XP in [Bard]

  “Oof. Perfect timing. Thanks, Jack!” Horace’s voice regained some of his usual energy. He drew on his replenished stamina and charged through a group of foxes, sending them flying.

  “Thanks!” Marie echoed, sounding breathless.

  “No worries! Let’s move!”

  Marie dug a few bombs from her pouches and sent them flying ahead, the most powerful blast yet, opening a way through the wall of crazy foxes.

  Jack ran, urging Snowy to follow. Horace, Amari, and Marie tried to keep the path open, but the foxes were already filling the space left by Marie’s special bombs. Jack’s fingers moved instantly to start another song. This one was different, demanding precision that was nearly impossible in the middle of a fight.

  “I don’t know this one,” Amari managed to say in the middle of the chaos, intrigued.

  “Oh, you’re in for a treat,” Horace said with a grin in his voice.

  This better work. Jack’s heart hammered as he attempted Sonic Valley, but the chaos made it impossible at first. Twice, his fingers slipped, the melody collapsing into dissonance. He grit his teeth, trying a third time, and finally, the notes flowed together, spiraling outward in a disorienting pulse.

  You’ve played [Sonic Valley].

  Success rate: C

  +150XP in [Bard]

  Audience bonus: +400XP in [Bard]

  Foxes began stumbling mid-charge, yipping as they veered off course, disoriented. It was working, but this respite was fragile.

  “What a massive confusion debuff!” Amari shouted, impressed.

  “Well done, Jack!” Horace added.

  With the stamina boost and the foxes’ confusion, they finally had a brief reprieve. Jack kept his ocarina to his lips, pouring out song after song, creating a barrier of sound that slowed and scattered the foxes just enough to keep them from overwhelming the group.

  He managed to get Snowy through the corridor, and they were out of the encirclement. Horace and Marie took the rear now while Amari took the front. Jack’s melodies, while not too powerful, made a huge difference. His friends could play more energetically without having to worry about managing their stamina so much. Slowly, the forest began to thin, and up ahead, the Agropastoral Institute came into view.

  “One last stretch! Come on, guys!” Amari’s voice urged them forward, though Jack could hear the strain that even he couldn’t quite hide.

  They broke free from the trees, but the foxes still trailed them, relentless and hungry. Then, a low, rumbling call shook the air, followed by the unmistakable thunder of heavy stomps. Elephant birds appeared on the horizon, massive and fierce, charging toward the foxes with their beaks flashing. The giant birds stormed past Amari and the others, plunging into the horde of foxes, scattering and pecking until the creatures yelped and turned back to the forest.

  The group didn’t stop running until they’d passed through the metal gates of the institute. Safe at last, Amari, Horace, and Marie turned to Jack and flashed him a thumbs-up.

  "Well done, Jack," Amari praised, clapping him on the shoulder. “Smart move putting the egg with Snowy.”

  Jack exhaled, feeling the tension drain from his shoulders as he carefully lifted the egg out of the basket. Snowy’s calm temperament had been a blessing; any other creature, even at her level, might have panicked or jolted with the chaos around them and broken the egg, but Snowy had plodded forward, completely unbothered by the swarm of foxes snapping at her cargo.

  "With this, the hard part of the quest is over. Now we just need to check in with an NPC."

  “We’re going to head out now, guys,” Horace announced.

  “You’re leaving already?” Jack asked.

  “Yep. I need to stock up on poisons,” Marie replied.

  “Same here. I need to gather wood for crafting and restock materials for traps,” Horace added.

  “Smart. I’ll help Jack wrap up the quest and then head to the count’s mansion,” Amari said.

  Wait. They didn’t get the quest! Are they getting nothing out of it?

  It dawned on Jack that his friends had done all of this only for his benefit. When he raided the compy nest with Amari, he’d unlocked a title. When he did the allosaurus quest with Horace, he got a mount out of it. When he and the group had gone out to look for a queen bee, they had spent plenty of time hunting, and they’d been paying back for a favor. This time, they had gone out of their way to help Jack with nothing in return.

  Jack looked back at the Vulpine Woods. Dealing with the crazy foxes had been very stressful. They had given everything they had to ensure that Jack could gain a level.

  Jack took a step forward. “T-thanks, guys! Thank you for going out of your way to help me.”

  “What are you talking about, Jackie? We’re a team!”

  “If you grow stronger, we grow stronger,” Marie added.

  Jack smiled. He wasn’t sure what the future might bring them and what it would be like to be on the run from IronIre together. But he didn’t regret his decision to side with this team. “Alright! I’ll make sure I keep growing stronger.”

  “Just make sure you learn a song to boost defense quickly,” Horace said jokingly.

  “No. Learn one that makes bombs explode louder.”

  “What’s even the point of that?” Horace shot back.

  “It will make it more fun to go on hunts.”

  “I’ll do my best,” Jack said, laughing.

  Marie and Horace summoned their horses. “Need a hand getting on your horse, Marie?” Horace teased, grinning.

  “Bite me, you stupid gorilla,” Marie shot back, smirking as she mounted her horse. Horace laughed, and the two veterans waved goodbye before riding off toward Embersgate.

  “Come on, Jack,” Amari said, turning toward the institute. “Let’s get this egg delivered and wrap up this quest.”