A shiver passed through Tejasv. Startled, he swiveled around, rolling his eyes here and there as if searching for something nervously. Watching his weird behavior, Daemon tilted his head, worried, and asked him, "What now? Looking for something?" Tejasv narrowed his eyes and swallowed. In a momentary pause, he replied, "Just felt a hostile gaze towards us." Pointing his hand in a certain direction, he continued, "From those bushes, I guess!" Daemon turned and frowned while clenching his fists. He stepped forward to inspect while others were ready with their weapons, trembling at the thought of another ambush. Taking a deep breath, Daemon hesitantly peeked behind the bushes. He flinched as his eyes widened and let out a loud shriek. His scream echoed in the eerie darkness. Others freaked out by how Daemon yelled and got goosebumps. Sweat rolled down their spines as a chill ran through them. |What in the world could scare a freak like a Daemon?| Daemon leaped back to his companio
Moments ago, when the wolves appeared, Catherine and Salina had their breath stuck in their throats. Cowering in fear, Salina squirmed behind Catherine, squeezing her gear. As Tejasv commanded, Catherine drew her katana to defend Salina. Although her hands trembled, she was determined to protect Salina with her life. She followed each move of Tejasv and Daemon, who were fighting the wolves, and imprinted them in her head. The fear that seeped into her bones transformed into awe and conviction. The blood-soaked, robust figure of the warriors inspired her, lighting a fire in her eyes. Soon as she laid her eyes on Salina, two beasts were peering at her. The wolves' slithering tongue and drooling sent chills down her spine, indicating they had painted both girls as their targets. Similarly, she noticed Tejasv and Daemon standing firmly between them, and a sigh of relief left her mouth. Her belief in companions shone brightly like a fire. Both wolves sprinted toward the girls, growlin
The first rays of sunlight lit up the sky. The rising sun cast a rosy hue across the morning sky while golden fingers of sunlight lit up the scene. The rumbling noises gradually faded as Tejasv and others basked in the warmth of the sunlight crown, tears flowing down their cheeks, and a bright smile appeared on their faces. It came as strands of light, free and united, flowing into a day. It reveals and unites, transforming the blackness of the night into something so beautiful. Each ray brought joy to their skin, and the creative self translated their emotions into lyrics and beats. The howling and growling of wolves muted as the first light penetrated the darkness. Eventually, Tejasv and others' hearts calmed from agitation. With a smooth radiant smile, Tejasv and his crew glanced at each other as they witnessed the sunrise, bringing hope and relief. Phew! Everyone fell to the ground and lay down while their flight and fight hormones settled back to normal. |We're saved!| Ad
This notification served as an admonition to Tejasv and his party. They had only four days remaining from five, which was concerning for their situation.Day 1 was already a hammer blow to them. The thought of the rest of the days made them shiver. Nonetheless, they had to survive somehow by hook or crook..However, time wasn’t the only tedious subject; it was the remaining teams' count that blew their heads.At least one team, mostly those moronic thugs, should have been eliminated by now. Moreover, after last night's chase, there should be even more eliminations.But none! Not even a single team faced annihilation.|How can this be possible? Not even the thug team, after whom the wolves must have departed, survived unscathed! Were the wolves only after us?|The more time passed, the more their thoughts grew louder in their heads. Their eyes were wide open and their minds almost blank.A clear voice pierced its way through the ghostly reticence, "Do not panic! This information is just
"We checked, there's no one around!" A voice tickled Tejasv's eardrums. He swiveled his head and found Salina behind him.She stared as her gaze fell on the girl lying beside Tejasv. Like Salina, the girl seemed to be the youngest of her group, so she must be curious about her.Tejasv held the girl in his arms and then laid her down in a comforting spot. Crimson blood on her body slowly turned black, indicating that it had been some time since her wounds had not been treated, accumulating toxins.The blood in our bodies turns black after a certain period if left alone. The wounds were now closing by themselves, while some were getting worse due to negligence in rinsing them.Furthermore, her hunger could be seen in her weak facial features.|They mustn’t have found something to eat all this time!|Tejasv instructed Catherine to take care of her wounds and clean them. Meanwhile, the men turned their gaze away from the girls and left them alone.Catherine removed her tattered gear and fe
(Mostly from Sally's perspective.)Sally swallowed and continued narrating her experience," as my vision adjusted to the bright flames shrouded in darkness, I noticed my sister and brothers in a defensive stance, pointing their weapons at someone.While cowering in fear of someone, their brows wettened when an animal growled from the shadows.To get a closer look at the being hidden in the darkness, I stood up and squinted my eyes. Although the figure was hazy, I could infer it resembled a beast with four legs.Gradually, the beast stepped out of the shadows, revealing a white-furred wolf-like figure. Its menacing appearance, sharp claws, and pointy canines were intimidating.Their eyes shone, reflecting the yellow gleam of flames, peering at us.We shivered when more and more of them surrounded us. Our immediate surroundings were filled with howling and growling beasts.Our minds turned blank as nothing passed through them. What to do? How to escape our predicament? These thoughts dis
(Sally pov continued)To our surprise, before us stood the glasses guy with his group of delinquents. In some other situations, we would be wary of them, but their appearance at that moment was no less than a miracle.I longed to meet some other humans and prayed they would help us. Fortunately, my wish was fulfilled, as we found a pretty strong team.Their neat conditions were also a source of relief and envy. There were almost no signs of fatigue or drooping as if they had enjoyed themselves in the jungle.|They can help us in that state!|While we were out there, facing wolves and looking for food, they had everything under control, as if someone had given them a map in advance.For a brief moment, we doubted and mulled over many facts. However, for the time being, we needed someone to save us. And if they had a way to evade danger, that could be a garnish on the dish for us.Before we could say anything, their leader, the glasses guy, hurriedly inquired, "What are you doing around
Sniff! Sniff!Sally wept again while narrating her experience. She felt betrayed, her heart torn apart by the denial that she would never believe in humans again.She said, "I felt hopeless and useless, to be specific. From the beginning, I had no talent like my siblings. They excelled in every field, whether it was archery, martial arts, or studying. In reality, I was at the bottom of the barrel, as if God had sent me to my family at last like trash. This was because I had nothing worthwhile to offer my parents.Moreover, my parents were called upon to the gods moments after my birth, offering my siblings the gift of grief and the responsibility of a younger sister.They had to live through those forced responsibilities while their peers enjoyed ordinary daily lives. Even through those times, I never saw their heads bent due to hardships. Although they suffered, their light shone brighter, and they never blamed me for anything.The love I received was greater than anything my parents
Tejasv and Daemon both had aloof and nonchalant expressions on their faces as if nothing of concern happened in those few fractions of seconds when some arrows took out those fearsome monsters with ease.Noticing the piercing gazes of the robed duo, Tejasv waved his hands to them smoothly with a soft yet incomprehensible smile. He steps forward towards the duo with his arms relaxed, to drop the tensions in the ambience.The robed duo unaware of the situation cautiously took a stance and firmly fixed their weapons to strike back if necessary to which Tejasv didn't respond either positively or rebelled. He knew his team may seem suspicious to an outsider in such a bloody and ruthless world.On the other hand, Tejasv considered the behaviour and comeback of the duo normal and even better than some blinded people, who would regard others as a saviour after only first glance. To be prepared and counter, these are the basics to survive in most circumstances.Tejasv reigned his steps a few
The robed duo kept an eye on Tejasv to see which direction he was pointing at the snipers. They had their eyes widening at Tejasv’s figure, who was standing still and peering at the robed duo themselves.His eyes weren’t wavering or watching somewhere else, as if his men were around everywhere, prepared to trample them at any moment. The robed duo were shocked by what was happening in front of them.When the robed duo couldn't notice any changes in the area and no one came out from anywhere, they began to be perplexed, and their inner turmoil heightened even more as the seconds passed.Suddenly, when the robed duo rolled their eyes to scrutinise their surroundings, they noticed two silhouettes walking toward them from afar. For starters, they mistook those two for members of another party rather than Tejasv and Daemon's snipers.The only reason for that could be the number of people approaching them and the distance they were from them. It was difficult for the robed duo to imagine th
Tejasv, after a momentary contemplation in his head, blurted out while scrutinising the robed duo. He said, "What is it, now, about that strange behaviour of the spider?"The robed duo stood silently and shook their heads without any word from their mouth. The one with the manly voice stepped up and conversed, "Not here!" He hinted about the surroundings and resumed, "This place is too open for us to talk about anything!"Tejasv’s eyes widen, and a taunting smirk gradually creeps onto his face. He realised the robed duo were wary of the snipers, whom they presumed to be guarding the safety of Tejasv and Daemon from somewhere hidden around the area.Tejasv, on the other hand, remained silent and only glanced at Daemon; both of them understood the robed duo's intentions and concerns. Because Tejasv and Daemon might kill both of the robed men once they have the information they require, they wanted to relocate to a safe and well-known location.Aside from these concerns, Tejasv also saw t
In the end, Daemon finally ended the misery of the spider with his wild and broad muscles. He gradually stood back on his feet and relaxed his breathing while calming his drained state from this sudden, extensive labour.Then he looked to the front and saw Tejasv standing there with a slight distance and a wide gaze fixed on him. Tejasv was peering at him, while the former responded similarly and paused in those moments.Tejasv even had his eyes slightly wet from the last state he remembered Daemon lying before him. He appeared to be dying at any moment because the spider was about to go into a complete frenzy to eliminate him.However, his friend appeared in front of him after counter-eliminating the monster in a frenzy for him. Daemon also had similar feelings leaking from his eyes because he knew what he experienced, and Tejasv just saved him in the nick of time.Both had enough to say, but not even a word was coming out of their mouths. Tejasv and Daemon both nod and step towards
As the battle between Tejasv and the spider continued with Salina’s backing of arrows, the pressure on the monster intensified from the number game played by Team Tejasv with their vigorous strength.Gradually, Tejasv and Salina’s attacks withered the exoskeleton of the spider. It even fell to the floor with no chance to retaliate against those two. When the spider realises it has no choice but to overthrow this situation, it lashes out in a frenzy.The spider swings the rest of its limbs with ferocity and abruptness while thrashing them all over. Its intentions were clear: to land some heavy blows on Tejasv since it had no other plan but to dash away from this situation.Another cause behind such trancelike behaviour could be defending itself from the incoming barrage of arrows. The spider must have thought that by moving around in unpredictable ways, it could avoid the arrows and prevent the archer from marking the spider.However, the spider had no clue about the skill of the arche
Tejasv and Salina had a short conversation when Salina enhanced her skill to a better one, which was able to use the features of both [search] and [chaser strike].That was the moment to mechanise the way Salina may use the skill, which should handle the use of this skill more appropriately and better than Sally. As a result, Tejasv and Salina talked things out, and Tejasv then suggested a method to her, which elevated her talent as a sniper to new heights.Tejasv suggested to Salina that she may aim for a target and mark him with her skills. Then he asked her to act differently than Sally. Tejasv instructed her to strike her arrow in a different direction rather than releasing it to the target she had targeted with her skills.Because her ability would direct and hover the arrow on its own, it will take a curve and strike the target with a different path after releasing the arrow. Even if someone tried to find the location of Salina, these events would lead to a different origin poin
As the spider began to repeatedly attack Tejasv, Catherine and Salina were rather a in relief since Daemon was now out of danger for a few moments, but when they realised Tejasv had no weapons in his arms, they were frightened.Whether the spider was in his straight head or not, its attacks were enough to paste a human with a single blow on the right mark. Tejasv was in definite danger because he had nothing to fend off the strikes of the spider.Not only that the spider was somewhat in a hurry to end Tejasv, and because of these reasons, it used every ounce of strength within him to stomp him on the floor when facing no resistance from him.The spider gradually realised that Tejasv had nothing with him that could threaten or halt its aggression toward him; therefore, the spider was now on a killing spree for Tejasv. It cackled in rage and resumed attacking Tejasv.However here, Catherine, and Salina, along with the robed men, could see Tejasv wisely moving in Daemon's opposite direct
Salina, when she got a permit from Catherine, aimed for the spider’s front legs since its head and the rest of its body was covered by a tough armoured exoskeleton. She intended to put an end to the spider's frenzy of pursuing Daemon.She shot another arrow for the next limb of the spider as soon as she marked it and invoked her skill while releasing the arrow to definitely stop it in that position and give Tejasv more time in that strenuous task.When those arrows struck the spider, it became stuck in that position because two of its limbs, which had previously allowed it to crawl toward the Daemon, were rendered useless by the arrows, which appeared out of nowhere and attached to the floor.Tejasv sighed with relief and smirked slightly. He was drenched in sweat from the intense and laborious task he had taken over. He had to pull a monster whose mouth had been salivating over a certain target.Tejasv tensed every muscle in his body in an attempt to stop the spider from moving any f
The agitated and perplexed ones were not only team Tejasv but also the robed duo. Though they had no dismay for the spider’s strange actions, they had more concern for Tejasv and his companion, Daemon, who was in a hopeless state.When Dameon fell and faced a sudden attack from the spider, they lost all hope of him surviving, regardless of whether Tejasv intervened or someone else struck the spider, because the monster was intent on eating Daemon whether anyone approached him or not.When they least expected it, Tejasv not only disturbed the spider’s balance but also leapt before it to rescue his friend from the spider’s clutches. Tejasv threw Daemon back and stood in his position in these circumstances.Anyone with such a trained body and mind could assess the situation and its severity. The robed duo agreed that the spider's fangs on Daemon would inevitably bite Tejasv instead and that Tejasv could've known about it before jumbling into the fray.Even then, Tejasv leapt to rescue hi