As the new sun rose over Etveya's vast forest, it breathed life into all its inhabitants and trees. A burst of high-pitched howling echoed throughout the forest as a massive swarm of Garavons whooped and jumped to bid farewell to their brief companion. Gideon, on the other hand, was slowly waving his hand at them as he walked away from the Garavons' territory.
His warmly welcomed stay was finally over, and he was moving to the other side of the forest, heading northwest.
"Goodbye brothers and sisters!" he yelled as he walked away.
While watching Gideon move away, the Garavons screeched and shook the wood branches they were standing on.
Slowly, as Gideon moved away from the Garavons' territory, their high-pitched war cries faded from his surroundings, and complete silence dominated. Gideon looked around, a smile on his face, his wooden branch on his shoulder. Optimism was the only emotion visible in his eyes, at least that's what he was trying to portray.
Gideon exhaled and returned his gaze to the territory he was in for the final time. "This is the beginning... my quest to finally return home," he said as he walked deeper into the forest.
Traveling at a pace that was neither fast nor slow, checking every turn and always ready to flee any danger that came his way. Gideon traveled through the forest without the Garavons' protection in this manner. Unicorn wolves and Bristle Boars were some of the common creatures lurking around the great forest of Etveya; they were fewer in number during the day than at night, but the danger was still great. When Gideon encountered one or more of them lurking nearby, he would climb up to trees or crawl into boulders or holes and watch them from a safe distance; this was the reason why his entire body was covered in mud and dirt. And once he was certain that the predators were gone, he would continue his journey, though it could take some time for the creatures to leave, causing his journey to be halted.
Even the silent Vile Devourers couldn't catch him because he would check every corner with his wooden branch and flee if a vine tried to grab him. Furthermore, he never approached a deep river to drink, preferring to find shallow running water as he traveled. Those were extremely rare where he was traveling, but finding at least one per day was more than sufficient.
When he found shallow running water, he would look around for any signs of danger before slowly dipping his lips into the water while his eyes were still attentively guarding his surroundings, then leave immediately once his purpose was completed.
His entire day was spent in this manner, and as night fell, he would climb to the top of the tree to avoid the creatures who were out hunting in the darkness of the night. There were numerous Unicorn Wolves that were active at night, as well as adult Bristle Boars that were far more vicious and far larger and muscular than the young boar Gideon encountered. These two monster species ruled this section of the forest.
When Gideon heard a familiar squealing on the ground, he looked down. The adult Bristle Boar's spiky back greeted him, and it was so massive that the Unicorn Wolves, who were also massive, looked small in comparison. The boar's tusks were as prominent as the spikes on its back. These monsters would eat anything, from common wolves to Unicorn wolves to one of their own, particularly young Bristle Boars wandering alone.
"If I had trouble dealing with the small ones, I don't want to come across one of these things on the ground," Gideon said before biting into the Ilagina fruit he was holding.
Gideon stood up and stretched his hand in the air as the colossal boar finally left his sight. He reached for the nearest tree leaf and cut it in half, as he had recently done. He then struck the branch he was standing on, leaving traces that he could use to determine if anything changed in his surroundings. As he yawned, he sat down and placed the wooden branch on his lap in a position he would remember. He groaned as he leaned his back against the tree's trunk and promptly fell asleep.
Gideon, on the other hand, had made a mistake. That the marks and indications he placed were somehow meaningless because the other personality living within him was not even attempting to conceal his existence, but rather had chosen not to make a move. He took over once more and wandered his gaze around the place. Unlike their first night in Eteria, when the forest was illuminated by the bright moonlight, the forest was completely dark, with nothing visible but the bright eyes of the vicious monsters lurking nearby.
Although he was fast enough to outrun some of the lurking monsters, traveling through a dark forest while being pursued by vicious monsters and risking their lives with nothing to fend for himself was not an option. But the most important reason he decided not to act was... Gideon did not issue an order to him. Just as he had done in the previous few nights, when the surroundings were dark, he was content to look around and watch for any sign of danger. Guarding while Gideon rested, acting like the person Gideon modeled him after when he created him.
Hunter leaned against the tree trunk. "Let us be the hero that this world needs and complete our mission... then... let's go home," he said, his voice rough but tender.
He would stay awake the entire night, allowing Gideon to overtake him when the sun finally rose again. Allowing Gideon to struggle and grow for his own good, in order to make him stronger than he was before. Because he could only come out when Gideon was sleeping, he could only observe as Gideon struggled. Hunter was compelled by an overpowering desire to take over and do everything on Gideon's behalf.
He did, however, persuade himself to leave Gideon alone so that Gideon could learn and grasp how everything in the world Eteria worked. Although Hunter represented their physical abilities and was significantly stronger, Gideon, the rightful owner of the body they were sharing, was the one who could make both of them grow. Knowing what kind of danger they would face in the near future in order to complete their task and finally return home... Hunter, for that matter, had to put his faith in Gideon.
"Knowing you, I'm confident you'll find a way... but for the time being, rest, because I'm sure you'll face more challenges tomorrow."