Chapter 15: Run for Your Life

In the forest.

Slowly, Ethan turned.

There, he saw it. A massive bull-like beast stood just behind him, its piercing eyes locking onto his.

It was smaller than a typical bull, but its presence was far more terrifying. Muscles rippled beneath its dark, scarred hide, its two thick tails snapping the air like whips, each strike sending dirt flying. Four jagged horns jutted from its head, gleaming under the dim light filtering through the trees.

“What the hell is that?” Mary’s voice wavered, uncharacteristically shaken.

“A Twin-Tailed Gorebull,” Ethan muttered, his eyes fixed on the beast as he took a careful step back. “One of the strongest C-class monsters in the Den. Doesn’t have much intelligence, but who needs brains with that kind of raw power in store?”

"Is it friendly?" Mary asked hesitantly, though she already knew the answer.

Ethan shot her a look. "You think?"

“Then what the hell are you waiting for? An invitation? RUN!!”

As soon as the words left Mary's mouth, Ethan bolted in the opposite direction.

The beast followed, It's step making thunderous sparks.

Ethan's lungs burned. His legs screamed in protest. Every breath he took felt like fire clawing down his throat, but he couldn’t stop. Not if he wanted to live.

Behind him, the Gorebull gave chase.

It was fast. Too fast.

The monster charged forward, its hooves thundering against the ground. Each step made the earth tremble, shaking the trees and scattering leaves and dirt everywhere. The air was filled with the sound of wood snapping as it tore through anything in its way.

Ethan intentionally raced through the thick underbrush, ducking under branches and jumping over roots, hoping the trees would slow the beast down.

It didn’t.

The Gorebull tore through the trees like they were paper, leaving chaos behind. Each broken trunk sent sharp splinters flying, stinging his skin. His heart pounded in his chest. Not only did the plan not work, it had the opposite effect.

He was slowing down, and the beast was closing in.

The beast was too fast. Too strong. And now, too close.

“Damn it,” Ethan hissed through ragged breaths. “That was a dumb move."

"You think?" Mary retorted, floating beside him, her ghostly form flickering with concern. "It's getting too close. Got any more genius plan?"

Ethan clenched his fists. "I do."

He didn’t want to use it. Not yet. But he had no choice.

Without warning, he skidded to a stop, facing the monster head-on.

Mary’s eyes went wide with panic. "What are you doing?! KEEP RUNNING! GO, GO, GO!"

"Shut up," Ethan growled, gritting his teeth.

Ethan’s hand went straight into his storage ring, grabbing three vials—red, green, and purple. In one swift motion, he mixed their contents into a single vial, watching the liquids swirl into a murky, unstable mix.

He shook it violently as the vial content slowly changed color and turned dazzling white. His heart was racing as the Gorebull charged toward him.

"Hope this doesn’t bring even worse trouble," he muttered.

As the beast came near his shooting zone, Ethan threw the vial at it. The gorebull, as always just kept running, ignoring the vial.

The vial shattered against the Gorebull’s thick hide, releasing a burst of smoke and sharp fumes. The air burned with a stinging scent as the monster recoiled, shuddering as the chemicals attacked its senses.

It snorted and sneezed, stamping its hooves. Its eyes now containing tear. For a moment, it stopped moving.

That brief moment was all Ethan needed.

With a flick of his fingers, a small flame sparked to life, flickering like an ember. He aimed, then snapped his wrist, sending it straight into the gas cloud.

Boom.

A huge explosion occured. It was strong enough to destroy the trees within a certain radius and send a shockwave rippling through the forest. Smoke enveloped the Gorebull, thick and swirling. Ethan braced himself, feeling the tremor beneath his feet.

Slowly, the tremor stopped, but the smoke was still not cleared.

"Did that do it?" Mary asked, putting her hands together as if praying.

"I should hope so." Ethan replied calmly, his gaze never leaving the smoke.

"That was a huge loss," he muttered. "Still, if I finish it off, I can make up for the cost."

As the smoke began to clear, Ethan’s heart shaked violently.

The Gore bull was still standing—barely. Its fur completely destroyed. Its legs trembled, its body struggling to breath, but its eyes burned with a furious light. The explosion had damaged it, but it wasn’t done yet. It was still alive, still dangerous.

Ethan exhaled sharply, trying to steady his breath. His fingers tightened around the hilt of his sword.

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"Looks like I have a chance to make up the cost after all." Ethan remarked, his gaze fixed on the beast.

“No!” Mary’s voice cracked with frustration, her translucent form flickering in the air beside him. “You can make up for it by staying alive! Not by going straight towards death.”

But Ethan didn’t listen. His focus was on the Gorebull, and everything else faded away. He took another step toward it, ready to end it for good.

Then, he heard it.

A deep, guttural growl echoed through the trees. The sound was followed by more growls, then by a series of horrifying, bone-chilling howls that sent ice crawling chill up his spine.

The explosion had drawn attention. And not from one beast.

"Damn it," Ethan hissed under his breath, teeth grinding together. His pulse raced as his brain processed the growing danger.

He wanted the kill, but at that moment, survival was all that mattered. He glanced over his shoulder at the sound, his eyes wide. Whatever was coming wasn’t going to wait around.

Without wasting another second, he turned and ran.

He pushed himself harder than before, fighting against the exhaustion that weighed him down. His bod, just slightly stronger than average, was unable to handle all this pressure. So every step he took felt like hell. It was as if the ground itself was trying to pull him under.

The branches and underbrush seemed thicker now, harder to push through, but there was no time to slow down. He was being hunted.

And he couldn’t let them catch him.

Behind him, the sounds of the Gorebull's pained growls mixed with the new, terrifying growls of something else came. Something bigger, more vicious.

He had no idea how many were out there, but the growing sound made it clear that the forest was no longer a place of safety.

He needed to put as much distance as possible between himself and whatever else was coming. Fast.

Because if he didn’t make it there, he wasn’t going to make it out of here alive.

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Night fell.

Ethan sat by a small fire, the crackling flames flickering in the quiet. He tore off a piece of dried meat and chewed it slowly, savoring the bite.

The warmth from the fire felt good against the cold air of the Ravager’s Den. After hours of running, dodging dangers, and barely scraping by, he finally made it.

He was in the outer area now.

How did he know? Simple.

There were signs left behind by those who had been here before. Carved markings on tree trunks, scattered supply caches, and other small clues.

These were things explorers had left behind when they were here before. Ethan had seen these signs often enough in his previous life to recognize them right away.

But judging by the small amount of signs and markings, it was clear that this was not much explored. Even Ethan, with his past lives experience did not come here before, making it an unknown territory. Though that was nothing new, as the outer zone was the biggest part of the jungle with many parts not being explored even in the future.

Mary hovered across from Ethan, floating silently in the air. The fire crackled between them, its warmth pushing back the cold of the night.

"Crazy day, huh?" Ethan asked casually, taking another bite of dried meat. He wasn’t expecting much of a response, but he wanted to make some small talk to take his mind of the exhaustion of the day.

However, the response never came.

Mary didn’t answer.

Ethan raised an eyebrow. "You’re awfully quiet."

Still, no response.

The silence felt heavier now. The only sound was the soft crackling of the fire.

Ethan shifted uncomfortably, his eyes flicking to Mary’s ghostly form. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

"Are you being quiet on purpose so I know you’re mad without you actually saying anything—like some kind of mental torture?" he asked, half-joking, half-serious.

This time, however, he got his response.

Mary’s eyes flickered with annoyance. “What do you think?”

Ethan sighed, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "Alright, alright. I was reckless. I’ll try to be more careful next time. Can we just leave it at that and move on?"

“No, we can’t leave it at that,” Mary snapped. She floated closer to him, her translucent form flickering with tension.

With a sudden motion, she poked a finger into his forehead. “You recklessly risked your life today. You didn’t listen to a single word I said! If you keep acting like that, you might not even have a future to be careful about!”

Ethan just kept chewing, unbothered by the remarks.

“I get that you want to get stronger, that you want revenge, that you want to protect your sister,” she continued, her voice rising with every word. “But how do you think that’s going to work if you’re dead?!" Her voice sharpened, frustration clear in her tone.

Ethan didn’t say anything. He just quietly chewed on the dried meat, his gaze never leaving the fire. It was as if he did not want to meet her gaze.

Mary’s eye twitched. She was growing more impatient. “Are you even listening to me?!” she asked, floating right in front of him.

In a flash, she snatched the piece of meat right out of his hand.

“Hey, that’s—” Ethan started, but she cut him off with a sharp glare.

“Shut up and listen to me. I am trying to give you a lecture here,” she scolded, biting into the meat.

Ethan leaned back, rubbing his temple. “Here we go,” he muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes.

Mary chewing slowed down, her expression going from angry to questioning to stunned. Her eyes widened, her mouth dropping open slightly.

Mary’s eyes widened in shock. “DELICIOUS!”

Her sudden exclamation nearly made Ethan drop back. It was like a scream that could shatter glass.

“What is this? Where did you get this? Why is it so good?!” Mary frantically asked, devouring the rest of the skewer like a hungry animal.

The skewer vanished in mere seconds, and she stared at her empty hands, her expression a mix of disbelief and frustration. “That’s it?”

Ethan, bringing out some more dried meat from a highly decorated box, couldn’t help but chuckle at her reaction. It was like watching a baby who finished her dessert too quickly.

Mary’s eyes immediately locked onto his hand, where he still held the rest of the meat. Without warning, she lunged toward him, her movements quick and desperate.

Ethan raised both hands, holding the jerky high. “You’ve had enough. No more.”

"Come on. You have so many. Just one more."

"No."

“Don’t be stingy! Sharing is caring!” Mary protested, trying to wriggle past his hands, her eyes fixed on the food like it was the most important thing in the world.

“Sharing is only caring when both people share, not when one person gives and the other just takes,” Ethan shot back, his tone half-amused and half-annoyed. “And right now, you’re practically trying to steal it. Nothing about this screams ‘sharing.’”

Mary paused for a moment, a mischievous grin spreading across her face. “Alright, how about this? If I have a kid one day, I’ll name him Ethan. In your honor. Happy now?” She kept reaching for the jerky.

“Get lost,” Ethan growled, lifting the skewers higher.

A brief, chaotic struggle followed. Mary’s hands flung towards the food, Ethan pulling it away just in time, and neither of them willing to back down. The whole scene was a blur of arms and food.

Finally, after a few moments of back-and-forth, Ethan sighed, raising his hands in defeat. “Alright, alright! I’ll give you some. But no more! You try to take any more, and I’ll make you regret it. Got it?” he said, reluctantly offering her some jerky.

“Yes, yes! Now give it to me!” Mary practically lunged at him, grabbing the skewer without hesitation and taking a massive bite.

“Mmm... so good...” she mumbled, her eyes practically sparkling with joy. “What is this?”

Ethan rolled his eyes. “It’s Crystalvine Jerky. Of course, it’s good. Now, back off. No more questions. You’re ruining the moment.”

Mary didn’t seem to hear him. She was too busy savoring the jerky, her expression pure bliss. “Hmph. I guess I can forgive your reckless behavior this time... but only because of this jerky. Next time, you better be more careful.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Ethan muttered, shaking his head but smiling a little despite himself.

The fire crackled softly between them, sending flickering shadows across their faces. The weight of the day’s exhaustion pressed heavily on Ethan’s shoulders, but for this moment, things felt normal again. He watched Mary happily chewing away, her satisfaction clear.

He couldn’t help but smile.

{Huh. Food really can end wars. Maybe we should try this instead of fighting.}