Chapter 64.Forest of No shade-4
After about 70 seconds, he forced his head up to look at the gaping wound.
It was partially closed. No heavy blood was gushing out anymore.
The same was true for his other wounds.
The smaller scratches had healed significantly, while the deeper gouges had closed up enough to prevent immediate death from blood loss.
Mylo thought about the venom of the Vexfangs, but having been infected by it once before, he recognized the symptoms, or lack thereof, and knew his skill usage had somehow burned the toxic venom out of his system as well.
In this cramped, crude hole, there was only one only light source.
It was the faint red glow radiating from the tips of the six spikes on the severed antler lying beside him.
This shelter wasn’t like the main cave; it had no natural faint red glow embedded in its walls.
The cave… I wonder if she’s all right.
Mylo’s thoughts drifted back to Tritia.
That girl… she was actually willing to risk her life for me.
Mylo shook his head, using his remaining strength to prop his body up inside the tight, cramped hole. He sat with his back resting against the curved wall, the hard dirt scraping through his torn clothes.
Tritia had nothing to do with him.
She was a girl who had been betrayed by the lunatic and kept as a slave.
She had only just gained her freedom.
How could Mylo let her suffer harm instead of taking it on himself?
In fact, he wanted to protect her.
Even the few short minutes he had spent with her made him feel a desperate urge to keep her safe.
He was certain of it now.
He had simply appeared in her life at a single, brief moment.
As time moved on, her life would continue forward, and he would fade into nothing more than a small, forgotten memory.
At least, that was what Mylo hoped for.
Closing his eyes, he remembered her face, the quick, vivid shifts in her expressions.
A tired smile spread across his bruised face as he shook his head gently.
“Please be safe, Tritia…”
He muttered the words softly into the dark, as if whispering a final goodbye.
Then, opening his eyes, he sat there looking at the darkness with spike’s faint red glow.
The weight of his situation slowly settled into his mind.
What he had just gone through, and what he would still have to endure to finish what he started.
Taking slow, deep breaths, he pulled his knees up to his chest.
The pain had finally subsided to a bearable extent.
Burying his face in his arms, he thought to himself:
Miss Chloe, you told me that we should fight fear with fear.
But right now… for some reason, I’m more terrified to move.
I know what the right answer is, and I know what I’ll end up doing anyway.
It’s just that right now, I don’t want to leave this hole.
If I could, I’d just stay right here as long as I could.
Tears escaped his eyes, soaking into his tattered pants.
He stayed like that for three minutes before wiping his face clean.
All right. That’s enough feeling sorry for myself, I guess. It’s time to move.
He couldn’t stay in this hole any longer. If he lingered here, he might lose the resolve to leave altogether.
He pulled over his machete, which was lying a short distance away. Its edge was chipped in several places, but considering everything it had been through, it was still in top quality.
If I manage to survive this and make it out, I’ll make sure to keep you as a souvenir for the rest of my life.
He then picked up the Tkern antler that had impaled his abdomen.
Its six sharp spikes were still radiating a faint red glow in the dark.
You’re not too shabby either. I’m sure you’ll come in handy.
His gaze then fixed onto the endless expanse of the dark forest.
Everything was silent; no wind blew through the jagged branches. The faint red tint on the canopies of the trees stretched across his narrow field of vision.
I’ll hunt the weak ones first, Vexfangs and Tkerns. Once I’ve accumulated enough Pran, I’ll start targeting the Nothroughts. This time, I’ll be much more careful about how I fight them. As long as I stick to the plan, it’ll be manageable.
He repeated the strategy in his mind:
Don’t fight Vexfangs and Tkerns in packs. Do fight Nothroughts when they’re together. If a single Nothrought appears alone, escaping is the first priority.
He stepped forward out of the small hole, his steady footsteps moving one by one into the dark.
[12:55:51]
Mylo was holding the machete in one hand and the antler in the other.
He was constantly checking every direction to find any trace of a monster, listening for even the tiniest noise.
He felt as if his ears were filled with a loud ringing, even though the entire forest was steeped in complete silence.
Just then-
Pitch… patch… pitch…
A noise made him jerk his head.
He heard something moving through the bushes.
Alerting himself immediately, he slipped behind a nearby tree, waiting there for a full minute before silently creeping in the direction the noise had come from.
As he pushed through a thick, tangled bush, he came across a single Tkern feeding on something on the ground. Its faintly glowing antlers revealed its position instantly.
Taking silent breaths, Mylo crept forward. The distance between them was barely ten meters.
After observing him for a moment, Mylo dashed at full speed.
Kekeke-kekek!
The Tkern noticed his approach and whirled around, equipping its antlers to attack.
Mylo wasn’t intimidated at all.
He used the antler in his hand to smash away the attacking Tkern’s strike, simultaneously swinging his machete upward from below, clean-cutting its head off.
Slash!
He had barely finished the stroke when he heard another raspy laugh from nearby.
Kekekekekek!
Spinning his head around, he saw another Tkern standing there, laughing.
Ha?… when did it get here?
The second Tkern’s antlers charged straight at him.
Mylo turned on his heel to dodge as the sharp spikes swung at him.
Having no other choice, Mylo took two massive strides and launched himself into the air, bringing his machete down with all his body weight behind it.
The blade split the Tkern’s back straight in half before it even had a chance to dodge.
Kek!
The Tkern let out one final, choked gasp as its life vanished.
[Faint Pran absorbed]
[Faint Pran absorbed]
[Pran(8->27)]
Mylo had barely tried to stand up before another raspy laugh echoed through the trees.
Kekekekekek!
Looking ahead, he saw another Tkern.
!?… is this place just crawling with them? Just how many are there?
He wondered if he should turn around and run in the opposite direction.
But clicking his tongue, he charged straight toward the Tkern instead.
I need to gather more Pran.
These are the only ones I can hunt easily while earning a decent amount of Pran.
I have to make the most of this opportunity!
After that, the hunt continued for quite some time. He would spot one or two Tkerns here and there, strike them down, and their dying cries would inevitably attract more Tkerns into the area, sending him after them in turn.
Throughout the entire process, he made sure not to waste a single drop of Pran on his skills. He wanted his reserves to reach a level where he felt comfortable facing stronger monsters.
But still, how many of them are actually out here?
Don’t they usually hunt in packs?
Why am I only finding them separated like this?
Slashing down another Tkern, he suddenly found himself standing in a relatively open clearing.
[Pran(248)]
Looking around, he noticed that the density of the trees had thinned out, opening up the space around him.
Something… something isn’t right. This feels completely wrong…
He stopped chasing a fleeing Tkern and froze in place, casting wary glances in every direction.
…Am I just being paranoid? I don’t feel good about this place, but I can’t put my finger on why…
His thoughts snapped shut midway as a heavy, resonant sound reverberated across the terrain.
Thump.
His head jerked back toward the direction he had just come from.
Thump! Thump!
The ground vibrated with every step.
Don’t tell me…
His eyes widened in shock.
He knew those footsteps.
He knew the terrifying creature that walked to that exact rhythm.
Although the forest had thinned, it only made visibility worse, leaving fewer trees for the faint red tint to cast recognizable shapes against.
Out from the abyss of the sparse woods emerged a massive silhouette.
…It laid a trap for me…? Nothing like this was mentioned anywhere!
Emerging behind that towering shadow were several smaller creatures.
Soon, the faint red glow radiating from their antlers entered Mylo’s field of vision.
The lunatic had never documented any behavior like this!
The Tkerns were being used as bait, a deliberate trap set specifically for him.
Did the monster really possessed that level of intelligence?
Numerous Tkerns now surrounded him in a wide arc.
And leading them all was that towering shadow.
Mylo felt a sense of deja vu.
Massive in scale, featuring a rock-hard head and two thick, pitch-black horns. it was a Nothrought, commanding the pack of Tkerns that now blocked his path.
[11:51:33]