“The wolf king’s actions before dying were a bit off.
I suspect it was trying to attract something by howling so desperately…” Under the night sky, Haus, leading the way through the forest toward the town, spoke slowly with his back to the group, explaining why he had just urged everyone to follow him and risk returning through the night.
In Haus’s view, the wolf king’s behavior before death was completely abnormal, either seeking reinforcements or luring something over.
Staying there any longer could spell danger.
That was the first reason for leaving.
The second reason, setting aside the wolf king itself, was that just looking at the pack’s actions, Haus guessed that the corpse of the Windrider Falcon likely drew the gray wolves.
If that were the case, then after the battle with the wolf pack, the ground littered with wolf carcasses would inevitably attract more beasts or monsters.
If Haus and the others hadn’t left, by the time monsters appeared, an extremely dangerous battle would be unavoidable.
And there was a third point.
“We’re on the outskirts of the forest and gradually moving away.
Rather than passively staying put and potentially encountering monsters emerging from the forest depths, it’s better to retreat actively.
Even if we encounter monsters, they’ll likely only be low-level ones like goblins, slimes, or snakes.
Although traveling at night carries some risk, it’s far less dangerous than staying in place.” Listening to Haus’s analysis, Sylvia nodded repeatedly.
Layla beside her did the same.
Her face was pale, her eyes filled with unconcealed terror.
Having never set foot in an adventurer’s life and only heard tales of hero parties in storybooks, after personally experiencing her first adventure, Layla realized that the daily life of ordinary adventurers was nothing like the glamorous, romantic depictions in those books.
A wave of bitterness welled up in her heart, and she began to miss her distant father.
As her thoughts churned, Layla instinctively tightened her grip on Pierce’s arm, leaning her body gently against his side.
Noticing Layla’s unusual state, Pierce looked down at the trembling girl beside him, then raised a hand to wipe away the tear tracks on her cheek gently.
“Ahem, Haus, we can make it out, right?” Having drunk half a bottle of healing potion and recovered from his injuries along with some stamina, Pierce suddenly spoke softly to Haus, who was scouting ahead.
“Of course we can,” Haus replied steadily without turning his head.
“Judging by our direction, we’re at most two miles from exiting this forest.” A little behind them, Sylvia, who was covering the rear, noticed Layla’s emotional distress and immediately chimed in softly: “Yes, we’ll be home soon.” Hearing their words, Pierce raised his hand again, gently patting the arm Layla was holding, offering silent comfort.
The three continued following Haus forward.
At this moment, none of them seemed to realize that, at some point, they had subconsciously begun following Haus’s lead, treating him as the backbone of the group.
…
They walked slowly for an unknown length of time.
Tranquil night enveloped the entire forest.
Along the way, they encountered no monsters, not even ordinary wild beasts.
All around, only the soft rustle of the night wind through the leaves and the chirping of insects among the branches remained.
As they looked around, the trees gradually thinned, the dense undergrowth receded, and in some places, traces of human activity appeared.
This meant they weren’t far from leaving the forest.
Gazing at those flattened clearings trodden by people, the tension that had long gripped Layla’s heart gradually eased, and a warm sense of relief after surviving a close call slowly welled up within her.
Fear, exhaustion, and unease quietly faded away at the sight of human activity.
Not only Layla, but Pierce and Sylvia felt the same way.
Especially Sylvia, the young girl whom Layla and Pierce had persuaded to join them on this adventure.
Her very first journey had been met with one life-threatening crisis after another.
Now, knowing that the adventure was finally over, Sylvia’s sense of having narrowly escaped death was no less intense than Layla’s.
“Hah…” A soft sigh escaped quietly.
The relief of the two beside him also affected Pierce.
To be honest, he had never imagined that an adventurer’s life could be so arduous.
Fortunately, they had met Haus.
At the very front.
Haus, who was responsible for leading the way and scouting ahead, was not as distracted as the three behind him.
At this moment, his mind was highly focused, his gaze constantly sweeping the surroundings, not daring to relax in the slightest.
Not only because he bore the responsibility of leading the way.
But also because his intuition told him that the quieter a place was, the more likely accidents were to occur.
Perhaps around the next corner, a hideous monster was crouching, ready to ambush him with a sudden face-to-face attack.
Of course, although the forest path was somewhat winding, it was generally straight, with no complex, twisting terrain or severely obstructed blind spots.
If any monsters were hiding, they could only be concealed among the branches and leaves of the treetops.
As the thought flashed through his mind, Haus instinctively looked up, scanning the treetops around him.
The branches were empty, with no trace of monsters.
Hmm, no monsters; he was scaring himself.
Lowering his head, he shifted his gaze forward again.
The rapidly moving line of sight blurred the forest scenery, and a pair of faint red lights flashed by.
Haus didn’t pay much attention at first, redirecting his gaze straight ahead… “!” Realizing something was wrong, Haus shuddered and immediately shifted his gaze back to the location of the unusual red lights he had just noticed.
In the next moment, every hair on his body stood on end, goosebumps rising layer by layer, and a bone-chilling cold instantly seeped into his spine.
A pair of eyes that were unfamiliar yet familiar.
Evil!
The moment his eyes met that gaze, Haus abruptly raised his longsword, holding it horizontally in front of him.
Before the others could even react, the piercing sound of clashing metal exploded in their ears.
Ahead, Haus bent his knees, gritted his teeth, and tensed his entire body, desperately holding back the machete aimed at his forehead.
The immense force transmitted through the blade pressed down like a mountain, forcing him to crouch lower slowly.
“Gah gah gah!” A strange, raspy laugh rang out, and a foul, putrid breath wafted from the creature’s mouth, assaulting Haus’s face.
“Fall back!” Haus roared angrily, tilting his longsword slightly before using the force of the clashing blades to pivot sideways, abruptly disengaging from the confrontation with the monster.
He then retreated dozens of steps backward, reassuming a combat stance, his gaze firmly locked on the green-skinned monster before him.
Standing about 1.7 to 1.8 meters tall, it clutched a rusted, heavy machete in its hand, its body wrapped in tattered, bloodstained animal hides, and a necklace of wolf teeth strung together hanging around its neck… A Goblin Warrior?!
Why was it here?!
Before Haus could react, the suddenly emerged Goblin Warrior charged forward again with an unbelievably fast slash.