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He had stumbled onward for some time and barely made it down the mountain, but the forest stretched on, and leaving this area was no easy task. To make matters worse, darkness was falling ever more quickly. At this rate, an impenetrable gloom where not even an inch ahead was visible might descend.
In the end, Jian decided to hide until dawn. Of course, it could not be called safe. It would obviously be dangerous. There was no telling when, where, or what might appear. Still, the thought occurred to him that it might be better than wandering blindly through the pitch-black forest.
Jian arrived at the bank of a small stream. It was a place he had stopped by once before ascending the mountain. He remembered filling his canteen here. It looked relatively safe, but that safety was only possible because it was still daytime. Once night fell, even places that had seemed secure could no longer guarantee any such thing.
The river's current was not particularly swift, but it flowed downward rather than being stagnant, and at a glance, the water looked fairly clear. Even so, under normal circumstances he would have boiled it vigorously before drinking, but now he hesitated even to light a fire.
After filling his water bottle to the brim, he submerged his swollen foot—so engorged it had turned dark—into the flowing water.
Aah! Pain surged up from his ankle, intense enough to make his back bend reflexively. At the sudden agony, a hollow gasp caught in his throat, and he had to force down a scream desperate to burst free. "Huuuh..." A sound like air leaking from his lungs escaped. He squeezed his eyes shut and suppressed the pain.
His ankle felt as though it would tear right off. And the water—goodness, how cold it was. The chill was enough to make his breath hitch sharply in his throat. Still, it might have had some effect as a cold compress. Or perhaps the water was simply so frigid that his nerves were freezing numb; either way, the pain seemed to subside slightly, and the swelling appeared to go down.
'Please, let it be nothing more than a strained ligament...'
He worried something might be seriously wrong. Especially in a world like this, losing the ability to walk would be more fatal than any other injury. There would be absolutely no surviving that. So please, let the ankle bone not be broken. He already had a long way to go to reach the shelter as it was.
Jian squeezed his eyes shut, exhaled deeply, and continued soaking his foot in the running water, keeping up the cold compress.
That was when it happened. Rustle... rustle... A strange presence was detected from somewhere. It was not merely the sound of leaves brushing in the wind. Something was passing through the undergrowth. But that was not all. In an instant, the atmosphere of the entire area seemed to shift. The very air itself felt as though it had grown denser.
A chill ran down his spine. Jian moved at once. Without even the time to put his shoes on properly, he gathered his things and shoved himself into a small hollow near the riverbank. It looked like a cave that beasts might have used once. He crouched inside, barricaded the entrance with branches he had prepared beforehand, and held his breath.
The uneasy sound of the forest holding its breath in fear began to reach his ears.
There was definitely something out there. And it was nearby. There was surely something terrifying enough to make the forest freeze in terror. Before long—Kuoong... crunch... Kuoong...—heavy footfalls rang out from a short distance away. Thud, thud! Along with a ponderous presence came the sounds of branches snapping and the ground caving in deeply. The earth shook.
The trees trembled in fear, rustling... rustling... The ground groaned.
It was drawing closer. Thud... thud... thud... The horrifying heaviness grew clearer. The vibrations transmitted through the earth were unmistakably extraordinary. Before long, a low growl echoed forth—like a beast's, yet clearly no beast's. There was no way any beast could be here now.
Animals capable of sensing danger far faster than humans would have fled long ago.
Jian's complexion turned deathly pale. His heart pounded violently. Kuoong! The heavy presence drew even closer, now coming from directly behind him. It seemed that thing had come to the riverbank.
Crack... A sound like something breaking echoed nearby. A tree groaned in agony before crashing down with a thunderous snap. The ground heaved violently, and clumps of dirt rained down from the ceiling of the cave where Jian hid.
Jian squeezed his eyes shut and covered his mouth with both hands. Not even the faintest sound could be allowed to escape.
Huuuk... huuuk... Soon, rough breathing reached his ears. Similar to a beast's, yet he knew it was no beast. Now that breathing had drawn so near it seemed to come from directly overhead. It was definitely right above him. Jian prayed desperately. He desperately hoped that it had come to the riverbank merely out of thirst, that it would leave this place once its thirst was slaked.
Before he knew it, cold sweat dripping from his forehead reached the corners of his eyes, stinging sharply.
Kuoong... The heavy vibrations continued, and then he saw one long leg appear before the small cave where Jian hid. The leg was so long he could not see where it ended. It made a sound like a beast scratching its throat, huffing its breath, huff, huff! Then, "Keo-eong! Keo-eong!" It began to emit bizarre cries. And then it took another step forward.
Another slender, long leg arrived with a heavy thud. One stood before the cave entrance, and another pair rested slightly farther away. From their length alone, he could tell it was a being of monstrous height. And still, its body remained unseen.
"Keo-eong! Keo-eong!" It cried out once more. It was a cry of territorial warning. Jian knew the meaning of that cry. It was a declaration that it was here. As if proclaiming this place as its domain. It was also a threatening cry warning anyone not to approach.
In other words, it was a warning that since it was here now, no one else should come.
It huffed, huffed! its breath again, and just as it seemed to make that scratching sound in its throat, it took another step forward. Splash! With a heavy sound, its long leg touched the riverbank. Then it lowered a neck as long as its legs toward the flowing water and began to drink.
It had a neck as long as a giraffe's. Though thick, its face was bizarrely human. Like a human-faced dog or a human-faced fish. It lowered its face and then extended a long tongue like a tentacle, stretching it out.
It lapped continuously at the flowing water. Jian watched, holding his breath. He desperately hoped that it would simply drink quietly and leave. That was when something fell from the ceiling of the small cave where Jian was hiding—tok!—and touched his cheek. It squirmed.
It had many legs, and its entire body was long and black. Damn it! It was a centipede. A centipede larger than he had expected had fallen right on his cheek. Jian's eyes began to shake violently. And to make matters worse, the centipede was squirming, trying to crawl inside toward his throat.
'Shit... shit... shit... Get lost...'
He barely suppressed the curse that tried to escape on its own. His body trembled, and every time the centipede's horrifying movements were conveyed so vividly, gooseflesh broke out. If he even thought about that thing crawling inside his body—Aah! Nothing could be more terrible than that.
Jian's breathing grew increasingly rapid. His body shook with uncontrollable shivers.
'I really am cursed with bad luck...'
Yes, today was truly a luckless day. He had thought finding a factory full of useful abandoned items for the first time in a while was fortunate. Who would have imagined he would encounter that thing there? And now, to end up in such a state—he had never imagined it even in his worst dreams.
It truly could not be anything other than an ill-fated day.
That was when it happened. Sharp pain flared in his shoulder. Heuk! He gasped, nearly swallowing empty air. His body jerked uncontrollably. And before he knew it, a groan—"Ah..."—slipped out. At the same moment, that thing which had been drinking water jolted! and froze.
And then...
A low growl... It made a sound as if on guard. It came lower, more thickly and menacingly. Soon, it slowly turned its head to look. Ah! Their eyes met. Those wide eyes could not possibly belong to a human. Though a human face sat atop that long neck, the eyes visible between deeply hollowed sockets were horrifyingly slit, like those of a beast.
Grrrrr... It let out another steely, chilling cry. It slowly lifted its head. And... "Keo-eong! Keo-eong!" It cried out threateningly. A voice sharper than before. And thud... thud... it drew closer. Jian's body trembled violently.
And the centipede that had bitten his shoulder was now climbing back up his collar and leisurely making its way outside...
'Aah... today is truly a cursed day.'
Jian carefully moved his hand. Breathing raggedly, he slowly lowered his hand to his waist. A low growl... Soon it arrived right before him. Only two long legs were visible before his eyes. It seemed that thing had realized he was hiding here.
He habitually ran his tongue over his parched, cracking lips. He soon opened a small bag hanging at his waist and slipped his hand inside. Just then, that thing cried out again before him. Along with it, a hot, foul stench seemed to waft toward him, carried on its breath.
Was that its smell? Kuoong! Soon, an enormous vibration was transmitted from directly above.