As I continue my hunt, the sweet scent of prey grows more intense. As it becomes apparent that I’m getting close, I hold my body even closer to the ground, attempting to stay as quiet as possible. Finally, I catch a glimpse of the creature I’m tailing. It seems my first guess was correct then. This should be fairly easy.

  It’s a small white animal covered in fur that moves almost solely through jumping, as I had predicted before. It is strange, however, in that it has small, sharp-looking antlers protruding from its head. Why does such a small thing even need antlers? If I tackled it, it would surely collapse, but I would have to watch out for those antlers.

  Actually, why am I even worrying about jumping at it? I have enough energy to use Plant Control, and I can probably find something long enough to just grab and crush it. A quick activation of the skill has the display of options laid out before me. A long looking root grabs my attention and I select it, taking control and preparing to attack.

  Mere seconds after the root falls under my power, the creature lands on the ground right on top of it. Right before it’s about to jump again it pauses, head turning slowly as it scans the area around it. That’s quite lucky. Now I have an even easier time! The creature seems to feel the danger it’s in, maybe through a danger sense of its own, and attempts to leap to the right. It’s too little, too late, however.

  The root bursts out of the ground and winds around the animal, binding it in place. The creature attempts to kick its way out of the root, using the powerful muscles in its legs that enable it to jump, but I’m not letting my meal get away. I slowly increase the pressure of the root, trying to make sure it has no chance of escaping. Then, I lunge out of the bush with claws extended and tear through its neck, just to expedite the process.

  Defeated [White Jackalope - lvl 4]. Less experience is awarded for defeating a creature one evolution below yourself.

  The creature, a jackalope I suppose, falls limp. I cancel Plant Control and the root quickly breaks into pieces. There. That was nice and quick. Although I do wonder when I’ll level again? The penalty for killing a weaker creature might be larger than I thought, which kinda sucks. And it would be nice if I had a few more stats, as I do think they’ll help me fly for longer.

  I begin to dig into the jackalope, replenishing my energy and putting the thoughts out of my mind. Just when I’m almost done, though, I stop. Heightened Danger Sense is giving a quiet warning. I’m sure that the jackalope didn’t have a chance to summon reinforcements, so what could that possibly be? I prepare to move, making sure to be ready if the situation devolves quickly.

  Then, I scan the clearing for abnormalities. A quick observation of my surroundings doesn’t show anything wrong and Heightened Danger Sense only gives a low hum, irrespective of where I look. Nothing smells amiss, and unlike with that strange stretch of forest from before, nothing sounds wrong either. The birds are chirping, the grass is swaying as normal, and the leaves are moving in the breeze as they tend to.

  I continue scanning the area immediately around me, muscles tense and prepared to spring at a moment’s notice. Slowly, I begin to walk away from the bits of the corpse left and towards the bush I ambushed the jackalope from. If I can get out of here before whatever Heightened Dange Sense is worried about arrives, then I should be fi—Heightened Danger Sense suddenly lets out a loud warning and I leap backwards. Some sort of projectile whizzes past my face, narrowly missing my skull.

  I scramble into the nearest bush, then quietly crawl a bit deeper inside. To be extra safe, I even activate Flora Camouflage, using up some of my newly replenished energy.

  What was that?! Ever-so-slowly, I turn back around to figure out what just happened. Where I was standing a mere moment ago, there is now an object with a wooden haft and strangely shaped tip sticking out of the ground. Nothing else has changed in the surroundings. There isn’t even a hint of what attacked me. That could’ve gone really poorly. I’m quite lucky to have dodged that, but that doesn’t answer the question.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  What attacked me? And where is it? Does it know where I am right now? The spot that had felt hidden just a few seconds before now feels obvious as the gravity of the situation starts to sink in. Slowly, carefully, I creep backwards, going deeper into the bush. Each breath feels like it has the chance of revealing me, and each heart beat feels incredibly loud. Finally, after what feels like an eternity, I reach the deepest and most hidden part of the bush.

  Another activation of Flora Camouflage has me confident enough to at least try to figure out what’s happening. I peek through a small hole in the dense cover of leaves, searching again for even a hint of what, or who, had just attacked me. That search quickly ends when a loud shout comes from the edge of the clearing, then the clomping of boots on soil.

  It’s a bit difficult to tell from my low vantage point, but I can barely make out a muscled, hunched humanoid clad in a patchwork of different pieces of armor. In its gloved hand is a massive blade that looks incredibly sharp.

  Before I have the chance to even process the sudden change, the creature walks right past me, shouting another line that I can’t decipher. This time, the humanoid gets a response. Looking up as far as I can, I catch a glimpse of another humanoid creature, clad completely in black, standing on a branch and holding a bow and arrow. That must be what shot at me. And this thing on the ground is its ally I’m assuming? A warrior and an archer?

  I silently watch the two creatures shout at each other, either engaging in a conversation or a shouting match. Without knowing the language, it’s impossible to tell. I wonder if they’re two different genders? The pitches of their voices are completely different.

  Suddenly, they go quiet and I see the warrior turn to face a new direction. Assumedly, the one on the branch does as well. A moment later, I can make out the sound of something stomping through the undergrowth.

  The new creature making all the noise soon comes into view. Its quadrupedal form is covered in a brown pelt with the only break being a white V emblazoned across its chest. Even from here I can smell the intense scent of blood radiating off of it. Wait… Is that the bear from before?! And that smell, is that the blood of the boars? My thoughts are interrupted as the bear lets out an incredibly loud roar.

  The humanoid on the ground hefts their blade, clearly prepared to fight. When I look up to where the archer last was, however, I find nothing. Not even a trace that it was ever there. Where did it go? My question is soon answered as an arrow streaks from a nearby, but different branch, going straight through the bear’s left eye. I turn my head and see the archer standing there, bow in hand.

  The bear lets out another roar, this one of pain. The bear searches the branches for whatever had just harmed it, clearly enraged. It becomes quite clear that this is a mistake when the warrior lifts their sword high and brings it down in a powerful cleave. The bear isn’t able to respond, as its back is facing the warrior. Thus, it almost loses a leg from overconfidence.

  And yet, it barely even looks hampered. This bear is so durable! Anything else would definitely have succumbed by now, if not from the first strike than certainly from the second!

  The bear twirls around and swats at the warrior with a massive paw, clearly trying to make some distance. The armored creature brings its blade up in what is clearly a blocking maneuver, and is predictably shoved back by the hit. And yet the warrior doesn’t stumble, their foundations still undisturbed. The only sign that they even moved is a track in the dirt made by its two feet.

  The bear, seemingly unaffected by the copious amounts of blood leaking from it, charges forward. Another arrow streaks from yet a different spot, aimed at the back of its head, as the archer acts as a guardian angel for the warrior.

  The arrow pierces and goes straight through the bear’s head, likely aimed at a weak point in the pelt. The bear falls to the ground dead, but still has some momentum left to it. The warrior just steps to the side and avoids the still-moving corpse, seemingly unconcerned.

  What just happened? My body is completely frozen and my mind is in turmoil as what would’ve been an insurmountable foe for me dies in no time at all. My focus is so scrambled that I barely even notice the archer reappearing and the warrior pulling out a large knife.

  That bear must’ve been what killed the boars, too. And now it’s dead, just like that. The archer scans the clearing and the warrior begins to carve the pelt off of the bear as I stand stock still. I need to get out of here, I can’t risk being found by these things! But I can’t just run, since that archer is on overwatch.

  I desperately rack my mind for some solution, some miracle that can help me get out of this impossibly dangerous situation. All this time, Heightened Danger Sense has been fairly quiet. There’s nothing I can do… Although Heightened Danger Sense isn’t going off so maybe I’m fine where I am now? Waiting here until they leave might be my only option. If they leave quickly, I might even be able to still do things today.

  I hold my body completely still, aside from breathing, hoping that I’m not detected by these incredibly dangerous humanoids. All I can do is hope they leave soon.