When Red returned to his room, Aurelia spoke to him before he could even breathe.

“You can’t stay there.”

‘I wasn’t planning to.’

“Why not?” Red asked, despite his thoughts.

“I have been to the Crystal Sky Sect before.” she said. “They have ways to spy on their territory even if you’re not staying in their sect proper.”

The youth frowned. “What kinds of ways?”

“I wasn’t allowed to study it at length, since my visit was short-lived. However, from what my elders told me and from what I witnessed, they have a formation that encompasses their sect and the surrounding mountain chain that they use to defend their territory.”

Red was shocked. “They surround an entire mountain chain with a formation?”

He knew of formations that could envelop entire cities, but not one that could encompass a mountain range. That was thousands of kilometers of territory to cover, and the potential cost and materials necessary to build that kind of formation was hard to wrap his head around.

Aurelia grunted. “Well, not the entire mountain chain, but a good part of it, yes. I tested it in the past by causing a commotion a long way away from their sect peak, and they still managed to send one of their disciples to investigate in less than half-an-hour.”

“Doesn’t that mean they could spy on me at any time?” Red asked.

If that was the case, then never mind staying in their territory, just stepping foot in there would be dangerous to him.

“They wouldn’t have any reason to.” Aurelia said. “As far as I understand, this formation can’t spy on everyone at all times, since even in their territory they still have dozens of thousands of people. Its main use is to detect strange or powerful sources of Spiritual Energy in their territory and swiftly respond against any invaders.”

“The energies in my body probably count as strange, don’t they?”

“They most certainly do, but they’re too small to catch anyone’s attentions, and even then I can help you mask their emissions. The problem isn’t the energies in your body, but rather the curse you have to deal with.”

Red understood her worry. Even with the Moon Being in a slumber, there was no guarantee that state would last forever. In the future, he would need to undergo his same cycle of draining and absorbing under the lunar gaze, and it was hard to think that this kind of powerful formation wouldn’t pick up on it.

Aurelia continued. “This is not even to mention the fact you will be surrounded by sect cultivators. They are way more perceptive and resourceful than the people you have dealt with up until now, so even with my help, there’s no guarantee you will go by unnoticed. If you happen to come across someone in the Spiritual Awakening realm, then it’s pretty much a guarantee they will notice the oddities in your body."”

The youth hesitated. “… What do you suggest I do?”

He trusted the woman’s judgement on this. She spent her whole life in a sect, after all.

She chuckled. “It’s simple. Go in there, get as many resources as you can from your elder’s deal, and then leave as soon as possible. These sects are always in need of agents in the secular world, and someone as young and skilled as you would make a perfect candidate. Offer yourself for such a position and then get sent to another corner of this continent where you can cultivate in peace.”

Red had to admit this was a rather good plan. Even if it meant abandoning Allen and Rimold, the youth had very little choice in the first place when remaining could mean he would be outed as some sort of aberration and end up implicating his companions too.

Of course, he didn’t believe the woman was suggesting this for his own sake alone, but it still didn’t invalidate her argument.

Red nodded. “I will do as you say.”

“Good! You finally have some sense in your head!”

The youth, of course, didn’t intend to tell Hector this right after he promised that he would assess the situation first. However, there were other reasons as to why Red would prefer not to be bound in one place again other than for his own safety.

For one, he didn’t forget the requirement the spirit hawk had given him to become a true disciple of his master. He needed to break through to the Spiritual Awakening Realm before he turned thirty, and there were only thirteen years left for that. Even the support of a sect might not be enough for him to achieve that, so he knew he would need to search for opportunities in the wide world to advance as quickly as he could.

He would need to make enemies for resources, explore dangerous places for hidden treasure troves, and put himself in danger for the slightest chance of advancing at every opportunity. It would be a perilous journey, but one Red felt eager about undertaking for his own advancement and to deepen his understanding of the world at large. This journey of his would begin as soon as he opened his Spiritual Sea, and to bind himself to another place would be a blow to both his future and his spirit.

Allen would be safe where he was, and beyond that, the young master also needed to pursue his own path. To have Red at his side on every turn would be undermining for both of their futures, while putting Allen’s safety at risk too.

The youth could only hope that his companion understood this when the time came to part ways.

…

A few hours later, Red, who had been focusing on organizing his belongings he had gathered over the years, was surprised by a fluctuation entering his detection range - one that didn’t belong to anyone in his sect. The youth frowned, and he immediately stood up with his sword in hand.

It was still the middle of the night, so it was hard to imagine that a visitor or guard was coming to greet them at this hour. Upon further examination, though, Red felt that this fluctuation was rather familiar.

‘Could it be…’

He hesitated. The fluctuation, however, continued to approach the sect, so he chose to walk outside to meet this visitor.

They weren’t approaching from the main road and instead were using the ruined and abandoned buildings surrounding the sect’s street to sneak over. Red approached the area where he felt this individual coming from, and with a hand on his sword examined the surrounding area trying to spot where they were hiding.

Even with his crimson sense and his dark vision, though, he felt it difficult to locate where they were with his eyes.

“Come out,” he said. “I know you’re here.”

The fluctuation shivered slightly, and yet no one stepped out. Red was starting to feel a little uncertain, when he finally saw something shift amidst the shadows.

“Please, don’t speak too loudly.” A female voice reached him. “I do not wish to awaken the others.”

A middle-aged woman wearing a dark dress stepped out from behind the building. She was sporting a long, braided ponytail, and smiled softly at Red. This was a familiar face - someone whom Red and his sect didn’t have much contact with over the years after Eiwin and Narcha disappeared, but who still always offered her services to sew them their uniforms.

This was Frida, the seamstress.

Red frowned. “What are you doing here?”

…

Some ten minutes later, Red, Hector, Domeron, and their unexpected visitor were all inside the meeting hall.

The elder was staring at the woman with a suspicious expression. “You are the Crystal Sky agent?”

The woman nodded. “I am.”

Hector’s expression worsened. “For how long?”

“Before you even arrived in town.”

Red was faintly aware of the woman’s background. She was here before Hector had even established himself in town.

Hector snorted. “I never pried into your background, but for someone like you to be able to maintain their own independence from Gustav for so long meant you had some strong backers. I never expected it to be an entire sect.”

Frida smiled. “Gustav didn’t know either. He was just told to stay away from me and my business.”

Domeron was massaging his temples with an exasperated expression. “So, were you supposed to spy on us?”

“I’m not a spy.” She shook her head. “I was merely meant to inform the sect of the situation in town… But yes, I was meant to give special attention to your elder, considering his background.”

Said elder was glaring at her. “So all that preferential treatment back when we arrived was just a guise to spy on us?”

Frida smiled at the old man. “I was informed to establish a connection with you and your sect, but you know very well I didn’t need to offer you discounts on my products to accomplish that. You all needed me more than I needed you.”

Hector frowned. “Then why did you do it?”

The woman’s expression fell. “You know damn well why I did it.”

Red, who was quietly observing the interaction from the side, was reminded of the supposed connection between Frida and his master Goulth, and how it might have ended in extremely bad terms. It was a taboo around the blacksmith, though, so no one in the sect dared to ask him about it. The youth himself was never too interested in the topic, so he respected Goulth’s wishes and never tried to learn about it behind his back.

Besides that, he was also surprised that the woman didn’t seem afraid of Hector. In fact, the more Red stared at her, the more he felt as if there was something she was hiding right beneath the surface of a dignified merchant.

Hector also seemed at a loss at being told off by the woman, but he held himself from snapping back. The last thing the elder wanted to do was to insult his new ally.

Seeing this strange atmosphere forming, Domeron decided to interject. “The escape plan - have you come to discuss it?”

Frida looked at the swordsman with a smile. “Not in the mood for a conversation about the good old times?”

“It was almost twenty years ago and there was nothing good about how that ended.” The man shook his head. “None of us are in the mood for talking about it.”

The woman's expression turned serious, and she nodded. “You’re right. None of us want to talk about it.”

She took out a pouch from her waist before untying it and dumping its contents on the table. There were six small purple crystals, glowing with a faint light.

Just a pure glance at it told Red that these were not ordinary items.

Hector looked surprised at this. “These are…”

“Concealing Magical Crystals.” Frida nodded. “They will hide both your form and spiritual emissions from anyone below the Spirit Core Realm. You will use those to arrive at our meeting spot outside of town.”

Red now understood how valuable these items were.

The elder seemed at a loss for words. “They brought these here just for us?”

“The Crystal Sky Sect always makes good on their promises.” she said. “Besides, as far as I have been told, you still have some friends in there. Once they heard you were willing to put your life on the line for the safety of your own sect members, some of them decided to spend some of their own money to make sure the evacuation succeeded.”

Hector scoffed at this. “Friends? If they had stood by my side back then, none of this would have happened. They are probably just feeling the weight on their consciences.”

“Even so, you shouldn’t deny their assistance.”

“Oh, I won’t.” The elder shook his head. “Where are we meant to go to meet the people of your sect?”

“I will guide you to it when the time comes.” Frida said.

“And when will the time come?”

“Tomorrow night.”

“That soon?!” The elder seemed surprised.

Frida nodded with a helpless expression. “The situation with the empire could worsen at any time.”

Domeron frowned. “Why do you say that? Did something happen?”

The woman seemed hesitant, but she sighed upon meeting the gazes of the trio in the room.

She sighed. “It’s Bernard. He’s on the move again, and we have reason to believe he could be targeting this town.”