Yarai eventually looked away from the cliff and toward another stretch of forest running beside the higher ground.
“There’s still another route,” he said.
Akira followed his gaze.
“You mean through that forest?”
Yarai nodded once.
“We’ll have to leave the river for now.”
Akira stared toward the darker environment ahead and frowned.
“That place looks worse than this one.”
After resting briefly near the cliff, the group checked their bamboo spears before standing.
Yarai moved to the front of the group with his spear in one hand and a hatchet hanging at his side.
“We should stay close together,” he said calmly.
“Avoid the tall grass unless there’s no other choice.”
Rion looked uneasily toward the dense vegetation spreading between the roots.
“…You really can’t see anything in there.”
The group began moving again.
The terrain sloped downward beside the cliffside while the river gradually disappeared behind the trees.
Massive roots pushed up through the ground in tangled layers, forcing everyone to climb over them repeatedly instead of walking normally.
This part of the forest felt completely different from the areas they had seen before.
The trees were larger and more tightly packed, with thick vines hanging through the canopy overhead.
Tall grass spread between the roots in dense patches high enough to hide an animal completely, while the heavy canopy blocked most of the sunlight from reaching the ground.
The farther they moved in, the darker the forest became.
Yarai occasionally used the hatchet to clear vines blocking the path while Akira and Itou stayed close behind him with their spears raised slightly.
Further back, Towa quietly helped Kanako across the uneven roots while Kurusu and Rion kept watching the surrounding grass.
At the rear, Mikoshiba slowed slightly as he glanced toward the vegetation behind them.
The grass behind him moved slightly, but enough to make him stop.
A cold feeling crept up the back of his neck.
“…Wait.”
Mikoshiba tightened his grip around the spear.
“Something’s behind us.”
Everyone looked toward the direction they had come from.
The jungle had become strangely quiet.
Even Akira stopped moving as he stared into the tall grass, but nothing appeared.
Only distant insect sounds echoed through the trees.
Mikoshiba continued watching the vegetation.
“…I swear something moved.”
Yarai slowly stepped toward the rear while scanning the area carefully.
The grass shifted softly again, but there was still no clear shape inside it.
After several long seconds, Mariya finally spoke.
“It could be a smaller animal.”
Mikoshiba frowned slightly.
“…Maybe.”
Yarai kept watching the grass a little longer before speaking.
“We should stay alert anyway.”
Everybody nodded before resuming their movement, but the tension remained.
Several more minutes passed as the slope continued downward beside the cliffside.
Mikoshiba glanced behind them again.
The feeling still had not disappeared.
Something was following them.
He was sure of it now.
As the group continued through the forest, Mikoshiba kept looking over his shoulder whenever they passed through another patch of tall grass.
“…It’s still there,” he muttered quietly.
Akira stepped over one of the exposed roots and looked back at him.
“You’re still thinking about that?”
“It doesn’t feel random,” Mikoshiba replied.
“Something’s following us.”
Rion frowned from the middle of the group.
“Can you stop saying that already? You’re making everyone nervous.”
Mariya carefully stepped around a cluster of roots before speaking.
“If something wanted to attack us directly, it probably would have already done it,” he said calmly.
Mikoshiba did not answer, but his grip around the spear tightened slightly.
Yarai stayed silent while watching the vegetation around them.
After a moment, he slowed his pace slightly.
“Akira, stay closer to the front with me,” he said.
“Itou, keep left. Ono, stay near Mikoshiba.”
The others nodded immediately.
The girls and Mariya naturally shifted closer toward the center while the others spread around them with their spears angled outward.
The deeper they moved into the forest, the harder it became to see far ahead.
The trees blocked most of the sunlight overhead, while the roots and tall grass created too many places for something to hide.
Then a heavy step sounded behind them, causing everyone to stop.
Akira slowly turned his head.
“…Did anyone hear that?”
Yarai raised one hand slightly without taking his eyes off the vegetation behind them.
This time, everyone saw the tall grass shift again, and it was clear that something large was moving through it.
Kanako immediately grabbed Towa’s sleeve.
“…S-Something’s there…”
Towa’s expression stiffened as she instinctively stepped backward.
The grass slowly parted, revealing a massive animal as it stepped out between the roots.
The creature was heavily built, with a large head and powerful jaws.
Coarse, dark fur covered its body, while several long teeth remained visible even with its mouth closed.
The animal watched the group carefully and lowered its head slightly.
Mikoshiba’s expression stiffened.
“…That’s what was following us.”
Mariya stared at it for another second before his expression tightened.
“…Hyaenodon.”
Akira frowned without taking his eyes off the creature.
“What exactly is that?”
“An extinct predatory mammal,” Mariya answered quietly.
“It belongs to a group called hyaenodonts. They were large predators that lived long before modern wolves and hyenas appeared.”
Yarai kept watching the animal carefully.
“Mariya,” he said without looking away from it, “once we get somewhere safe, let me read the encyclopedia on your laptop.”
Mariya glanced toward him briefly.
“…Fine.”
The Hyaenodon took another slow step forward while studying the group.
Yarai adjusted his grip around the spear.
“It’s alone,” he said while observing the animal carefully.
“Probably separated from its group.”
Kurusu’s hands were visibly shaking now.
“…C-Can we scare it away somehow?”
“It might leave if it thinks we’re dangerous enough,” Yarai answered carefully.
“But if it’s been stalking us this long, it’s probably already desperate or confident.”
Before anyone could say anything, the Hyaenodon suddenly lunged forward.
Its speed shocked everyone as it crossed the distance almost instantly.
“Akira!”
Akira reacted on instinct and thrust the spear forward with both hands.
The Hyaenodon slammed into the bamboo shaft hard enough to force him backward several steps.
“Damn it!”
The spear bent violently as the predator twisted its body and snapped toward him.
Rion’s face turned pale.
“Akira-kun!”
Akira nearly lost his footing as the animal tried to force its way past the spearpoint.
Yarai moved immediately.
Rather than rushing straight toward the predator, he stepped around its side while its balance was shifted and drove his spear toward its shoulder.
The knife attached to the bamboo pierced through the thick fur, but the impact cracked part of the shaft near the middle.
Yarai reached for the hatchet at his waist, but the Hyaenodon suddenly turned toward him and snapped its jaws in his direction.
He immediately released the damaged spear and stepped back before its jaws could reach his arm.
“Itou!”
Itou moved a second too late but still forced himself forward from the left side
He thrust his spear toward the animal’s flank, and the attached knife pierced through its fur.
However, the impact cracked the bamboo shaft near the middle.
The Hyaenodon twisted violently toward him.
“…Damn it!” Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
Itou stumbled backward while yanking the spear away before the jaws snapped shut around the knife attachment.
“…That thing’s insane.”
Ono reacted next, though less cleanly than Yarai.
He rushed in from the side and slammed his spear into the Hyaenodon, using the weapon more to force it away than to stab it properly.
The strike pushed the predator sideways but failed to pierce deeply.
“Watch the distance!” Yarai warned.
The Hyaenodon snapped toward them while shifting its body from side to side, trying to break through their formation.
Kurusu and Kanako had both gone pale behind the others while Towa instinctively pulled them farther back.
Even Rion tightened her grip around her spear hard enough for her knuckles to pale.
But they didn’t ran.
The Hyaenodon suddenly lunged toward Akira again.
This time, Akira held his ground.
He lowered the spear and thrust forward with his full weight, driving the knife-tip into the creature’s chest.
The Hyaenodon jerked backward violently with another roar.
“Now!” Yarai shouted.
Unlike the others, Yarai did not hesitate once he committed to the attack.
He stepped toward the side where the predator had lost its balance and swung the hatchet downward with force.
The blade struck near the neck, and blood quickly spread across the dark fur.
The Hyaenodon thrashed violently before turning and trying to retreat deeper into the grass.
“It’s trying to escape!” Ono shouted.
“Don’t let it disappear into the vegetation,” Yarai replied.
“If it escapes injured, it may keep stalking us.”
Mikoshiba understood that too.
Even though his hands were shaking, he stepped forward before the opening disappeared.
“I’ve got it!”
He drove the spear into the exposed side with both hands.
The bamboo shaft pierced deep enough to stop the animal’s retreat, but the impact split part of the spear near the lower grip.
The Hyaenodon roared and slammed sideways into Mikoshiba hard enough to throw him backward into the roots.
“Mikoshiba!” Ono shouted.
Before the predator could recover again, Akira forced his spear forward once more and pinned it in place.
Yarai stepped in immediately afterward.
The hatchet rose one final time before crashing down near the base of the neck.
The Hyaenodon collapsed heavily into the grass.
It twitched weakly once before finally becoming still.
Everyone stood there breathing heavily.
Akira was the first to lower his spear.
“…Did we kill it?”
“Seems like it,” Ono said breathlessly.
Mikoshiba slowly pushed himself upright while wincing from the impact against the roots.
“I told you something was following us.”
Yarai crouched briefly beside the dead predator before pulling the hatchet free.
“It was probably waiting for someone to fall behind.”
Mariya adjusted his glasses, though his expression remained tense.
“A lone predator avoids unnecessary risks. It waits for weakness.”
Akira looked down at the blood covering his spear.
“…I seriously hate this island.”
“Same here,” Ono muttered.
Yarai stood again and looked deeper into the dark vegetation ahead.
Blood had already started soaking into the ground around them, and the smell would not stay unnoticed for long.
Yarai stood again and looked deeper into the vegetation ahead.
“We should keep moving,” he said quietly.
“Something else may eventually come checking this area.”
The group tightened their formation before continuing deeper into the forest.
The earlier tension had not disappeared with the Hyaenodon’s death.
If anything, it had only become more real now that blood stained their weapons and clothes.
Akira kept glancing toward the surrounding grass while adjusting his grip on the damaged spear.
Mikoshiba walked more carefully after the impact, one hand pressed briefly against his side whenever the pain flared.
Even the others who had not fought directly stayed close together now.
The jungle around them felt dangerous than before.