"Let me finish first," Marcuse said and explained, "This group is weak, and we can\'t protect it forever. Guys like Althord will come here to take advantage of everything, and once they have their fill, they\'ll leave and join the other groups."

"T-that\'s. . ." Claire couldn\'t say anything because she did hear about it from the gossiping slaves that Althord was planning to join the Right Oasis. But she, too, choose to ignore it.

"Besides, I\'m not confident that the other Oasis wouldn\'t raid this camp once their resources depleted. To make it so much worse. You and I couldn\'t do anything about it if the other beings decided to take over this Oasis," said Marcus.

Ryu thought the same too. "The faster we accumulate food and search for the exit, the better. We can\'t stay in here forever."

".. ."

".. ."

Both Claire and Echbert were starting to get worried. Claire was just a Rank-B berserker, while Echbert was just a slave who knew simple spells. How were they going to survive if Marcus suddenly left?

Sensing her distress, Marcus smiled at Claire. "Don\'t worry. You can come with me to search for the exit. You two have been very helpful in running this group."

Claire almost sagged in relief while Echbert had tears in his eyes.

"Thank you very much, sir Marcus!" then Echbert\'s face grew sad. "But. .. what about the others?"

.. .

.. .

"It\'s not our obligation to take care of them," said Claire when the others wouldn\'t say anything. She took it herself to be the bad guy and spoke the truth, "We can\'t always protect them. The best we could do is give them supply to last them outside the protective zone."

"They could also join in the other Oasis or formed groups," Seraphina said consolingly. Though even she doubted her words. No one would take in halfbreeds and slaves unless they knew how to fight, with the exception of Marcus, that is.

It was a pity, but such was their situation. They couldn\'t afford to be a hero when they themselves didn\'t know if they could live.

Marcus slapped his knees. "Alright then. It\'s decided. I\'ll tell them tomorrow. The earlier they knew, the better so they could prepare ahead."

Echbert sighed in defeat.

Ryu looked over at the halfbreed and slaves on the other side. They were a bunch of pitiful creatures who were only dragged by their masters in the nightmare sea and, in turn, were trapped in the Islet. It was not their fault that they were born that way. But because they were halfbreed, their fate was already sealed to become slaves.

Then something clicked in Ryu\'s mind. Coffin. Ferris was able to be stored inside the storage ring with that item. Then maybe. . .

"Do you have preserving coffins with you?" Ryu asked with an eager tone.

Marcus\'s face brightened, but then his expression fell. "I have, but I only have two just in case. .. ," he coughed when his tone broke, "in case Jane or Theodore. . ."

He then shook his head and said, "I think it\'s not enough."

"And even if it did, those you put inside is either dead or asleep. You can\'t put them while they\'re awake," Seraphina added, guessing Ryu\'s thoughts.

Claire frowned. "And those things are expensive. Only the nobles could afford them."

Ryu\'s shoulders slumped. There was got to be away. He just needed something. .. Maybe a spell. . .  or an item. . .

Then he remembered. .. Faux! But he no longer had any crystals left because he used the last one to ask about Ferris\'s condition. But Faux did give him a small marble that could summon her. But that was meant only when he completed Rigulus items.

Maybe she wouldn\'t mind if he used it even if he didn\'t complete Rigulus\'s quest.

"Is something the matter?" Seraphina asked Ryu when she found him just staring at his cup in silence.

Upon Seraphina\'s sweet voice, Ryu remembered that she handed him two Lizard\'s tails!

He recalled that there was still one tavern that he didn\'t get the chance to visit!

Lizzaforth\'s Tavern!

He might be able to find some items that could help him! Rather, maybe he knew how to wake Ferris!

Ryu shot to his feet. "Sorry. I have something to do."

Before anyone could react, Ryu bolted to his tent.

"I-is he okay?" Claire wasn\'t really worried when the halfbreed acted strangely.

Seraphina nodded. "I think he just needed time for himself."

"Poor guy. It must have been tough for him to leave his fellow halfbreed," Marcus muttered.

Seraphina forced a laugh. "Maybe." Though she already had an inkling of what Ryu might be doing about now.

Seraphina sighed under her breath. \'He is so predictable.\' She then licked her lips and grinned. \'And so adorably cute.\'

Meanwhile, in the halfbreed and slaves side of the group, it was led by Canaan and Abby. They were the group who were in charge of the miscellaneous stuff. They weren\'t built to fight because of their short stature and lack of fighting and magic power, unlike the other taller and bulkier ones in Althord\'s group.

"I wonder how much longer are we going to last at this rate?" Abby said. She was a half hare and half-human. Her snout crinkled while her tail curled next to her.

"Not much from the looks of it," Canaan replied, "With Althord\'s hugging all the food and Marcus couldn\'t do anything about it. . ." His fox ears stood on alert, and his teeth bared. "I say we steal all the food in the storage and find the exit ourselves."

".. ."

The group of halfbreeds quieted.

"B-but. .. we can\'t fight. .. ," the others murmured.

Canaan frowned. "We don\'t need to fight. We just need to search for the exit. As long as we are careful and camouflage our scent, then we will be fine. Some of us knew spells and skills. And our advantage is that we are small and nibble on our feet. If there are beasts and monsters, we just avoid them. If Tiamat is in the air, then we will hide."

The others looked at each other with worried faces. They never ventured outside the protective zone before. They didn\'t know if they could do it.

"We have no other choice," Canaan said with a stern face and voice. "No one will help us but ourselves. We are either stuck here giving our fate to the palms of those mortals, or we grabbed it by ourselves."

Abby\'s eyes shook with determination. "Canaan is right. If we died, we at least died trying. I, for once, don\'t want to die here as a slave for another, waiting to be fed and used whenever they want. And after that, discarded in the end."

The others\' faces changed. The Left Oasis had little hope of finding the exit at this rate, with Althord hugging all the food while Marcus lost his leadership grip. Sooner or later, this group would break, and they\'re the ones who would suffer the most. In the end, they\'d still be left for the dead.

But now that the food and water storage was full, it was the best time to steal it and venture outside the protective zone. They\'d either forged their own path or wait for the mortals to decide it for them. Either way, they\'d still end up outside the protective zone. It was better to be outside with lots of supply than none.

The halfbreeds faces changed into one of determination as they planned their next move.