Zamel stopped running to catch his breath. He was lucky to have escaped the previous fight without encountering anything else. He checked the hollow space beneath the exposed roots of a nearby tree and found nothing amiss. Breathing a sigh of relief, he rested his weary body and calmed his mind to plan his next move.
Beside him, Ulfram, the ferocious cub, rested against his legs, lying down, though their connection conveyed that he remained vigilant.
Zamel relaxed, reassured by the fact that he was not alone in facing the dangers of this forest, despite his lack of survival experience.
He had begged the old, burly bastard— the prime culprit behind his unfortunate situation— to at least give him some time to learn the basics of survival, but the man brushed off his pleas with a sage-like declaration. "Weakness is the teacher, pain will be its lesson, and you're its student."
That was all the wisdom he had been offered along with a brief rundown of the do's and don'ts of the forest, which could be summarized as: 'Survive' and 'Don't die,' that he didn't bother to explain clearly and ignored all of Zamel's questions to clarify what he just said.
Zamel erased the thoughts of the old man out of his mind so as not to ruin the peaceful moment he had in this green hellhole—despite knowing that relaxing here might be the stupidest thing he could do.
He tried to remember what the Patriarch of Bisdoma said before he was abandoned to this place to fend for himself. He directed his mind on the "evidence" that would help him find his way back to civilization as he recalled the words that stuck in his head: "Learn the ways of a beast. Think and act like them without forgetting who you truly are."
From what he understood, he needed to do what the denizens of this forest had been doing their entire lives. He also remembered that the burly old man had mentioned the cloth in his possession carried a scent.
Without hesitation, he activated his two perception-boosting skills to try his luck. Hoping to find a clue, he focused on his sense of smell, bringing the cloth close to his nose and inhaled deeply in search of a faint trace.
Zamel focused solely on detecting the hidden scent in the cloth, losing awareness of his surroundings as he became fully absorbed in finding the clue. Although relying solely on his first bond might be dangerous, he trusted Ulfram to warn him if any beast saw them as prey.
Time passed, and at long last, he caught a scent—a faint one, though he couldn't determine its source. He seized the opportunity, clinging to the clue like a desperate man as he enhanced his sense of smell to learn more.
A dull ache began to form in his mind for reasons unknown, but he ignored it, unwilling to let anything distract him. The more he focused, the closer his mind came to its breaking point, yet he refused to give up.
Finally, he couldn't endure it any longer. He canceled his skills and clutched his head as unbearable pain throbbed in his mind.
Yet, it was worth it. He identified the scent, but his discovery did not bring him relief. The scent vaguely resembled that of a beast. He didn't know what kind, nor did he wish to find out. But if he wanted to escape this place, he had no choice but to find it—unless he was willing to remain trapped in this forest.
He sighed, allowing himself a moment of rest to recover what little energy he had left. He nibbled on a small portion of his rations and took a careful sip from his water bag.
Once he felt somewhat recovered, he forced himself to move and patted Ulfram's head, grateful for his companion's help by being aware of their surroundings.
He got out of their temporary refuge as he looked up at the sky to see what time it was, thankfully the sun barely passed its peak, yet he knew that he was slowly running out of time.
He activated his perception skills once more, hoping to find the same scent from the cloth. Thankfully, he caught a trace. Excitement surged through him, but he forced himself to stay focused.
"Alright, Ulfram, let's move," he whispered to his first bond before they swiftly dashed toward the source of the scent.
As they moved forward, Zamel glanced toward his companion but didn't see him. Still, he knew his first bond was running beside him. Suddenly, the old man's words echoed in his mind: "Learn the ways of a beast. Think and act like them without forgetting who you truly are."
Right, he was in a forest, surrounded by dense foliage that countless beasts used to their advantage for stealth and concealment. He recalled his only stealth skill and activated it.
At first, he barely felt any changes, yet he knew the skill had activated—and he was right. His footsteps barely made a sound, his movements flowed seamlessly across the forest terrain, and instinctive knowledge filled his mind—guiding him on where to step to remain silent. Above all else, he could feel his body becoming more concealed, making it harder for any beast that relied on its senses to detect prey. He also felt a slight boost in his perception.
Satisfied with the advantages he gained from using the skill, he moved forward with renewed vigor, reassured that he would survive the unfortunate situation he was in.
After hours of traveling, he arrived in front of a cave, where the scent leading inside had grown more noticeable. He hid behind a tree as a tinge of fear gripped his heart. His instincts roared, warning him that whatever lurked inside was stronger than him.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to think of a plan. Rushing in blindly without knowing what kind of beast lived inside the cave was a death wish—and he had no intention of dying. Instead, he decided to stay hidden and wait for the creature to leave its lair.
With that in mind, he braced himself for what would be the most tedious task he'd have to endure in this forest—waiting.
Yet, the beast wasn't cooperative. Hidden in his spot, boredom gnawed at him, but he forced himself to stay focused, resisting every distraction as he waited. An hour and a half dragged by before the monster finally revealed itself.
What emerged from the cave took him by surprise. Standing at the entrance was an impressively large boar, its sturdy body supported by two powerful pairs of legs. A thick brown hide covered its frame, with a strip of black fur running down its back like a mohawk. However, the most striking feature was the trio of horns on its head—two massive white tusks jutting forward like an elephant's, and a single smaller brown horn growing between its eyes.
He focused on concealing himself even further to avoid detection as the giant boar scanned its surroundings. Then, without hesitation, the beast dashed forward. Thankfully, it wasn't heading toward Zamel. It shot ahead like an arrow released from a crossbow, kicking up dust in its wake.
As the dust settled, Zamel finally saw the result of the boar's charge. It lifted its head, revealing a bear impaled on its massive tusks—its size dwarfed in comparison to the boar. The bear roared in desperation, thrashing violently, its claws swiping in a futile attempt to wound its attacker.
The boar—annoyed by the bear's resistance and clearly displeased that its prey was still alive—charged toward the cave, slamming the struggling beast against the stone wall with a thunderous boom that shook the surroundings.
As the impact settled, the bear hung limply from its tusks, and Zamel knew it was dead.
He took a deep breath after witnessing the scene unfold before him. Once again, fear struck him—knowing that he must fight this beast if he ever wants to leave this place.
Thankfully, the giant boar didn't notice him as it calmly walked toward its cave, carrying the bear's corpse with its tusks.
Zamel breathed a sigh of relief, yet he didn't allow himself to relax. Instead, he focused his mind on forming a plan. At first, he considered creating a trap at the entrance of the cave, but after recalling what had just happened, he dismissed the idea. He suspected that the giant boar had a detection skill that allowed it to sense trespassers in its territory, and he didn't want to find out whether his stealth skill was enough to avoid its detection.
He ran countless strategies through his mind, scrutinizing each one to determine if it had a low enough risk of death.
Time passed before he finally settled on a plan—one he wasn't entirely sure would work. His idea was to exhaust the giant boar by luring weaker beasts into fighting it. Additionally, he planned to craft multiple wooden spears coated with Ulfram's venom. Lastly, he wanted to familiarize himself with the skills that would be crucial before and during the fight—his two perception skills, his only stealth skill, and, most importantly, his lone attack skill.
During the preparations, he also intended to train himself in spear throwing, hoping it would eventually become his first ranged skill. He deeply regretted that he hadn't even considered training himself deeply in the art of throwing his weapon during the time he was in his home. Although he had a vague idea of how to throw a spear, he didn't have any experience, let alone mastery in it, as he solely focused himself on how to properly wield the three weapons he preferred.
Though his plan had potential flaws—holes he likely hadn't noticed—it was the best option he could think of for now. Perhaps, during his preparations, he could refine it further and improve his chances of success.
Without hesitation he stepped out of his hiding spot to do his initial preparations
But he focused himself on the most important thing in his plan.
His first task was to find a safe place to serve as his base of operations—a shelter where he could process and cook his hunted prey, craft the wooden spears he needed for both training and battle, and, most importantly, a place where he could rest and recover.
With his initial task set in his mind, he moved forward, determination burning brightly in his eyes as his heart pounded wildly in his chest.