As the wolf moved toward me, I started to call all of the saints. Is this my end? My journey isn't starting yet I can feel death nearing. Shifting my gaze back to the giant wolf. I gulped. Closing my eyes, slowly accepting my fate.
But when my grandma's image inside my head flashes, and the reason why I am here. I pulled myself up and glared at the giant wolf who was just a distance from me. I can't just surrender and let my grandma's soul suffer wherever it is now.
Forming a firm fist, I can't fight my last hope was to run as fast as I could. Maybe I could climb a tree. But how am I gonna do that if he's just right behind my back? I run for my life, until I'm chasing my breath, as I heard his growls from behind.
Hope fills me when I saw a tree that was easy to climb but before I could reach it, I felt hard claws putting weight on my back as I slump my face in the mud.
I glared at the giant wolf who's towering over me now, his saliva slowly falls onto my face, that's freaking gross.
He cornered me which made me stuck and wasn't able to move. I'm dead. I closed my eyes, waiting for his fangs to bite me onto my neck.
But a couple of seconds passed, and I wasn't feeling any hard fangs tearing me apart. Instead, a loud sound of growling instantly fills the forest.
When I opened my eyes, the giant wolf isn't on top of me anymore and was running away from me with an arrow piercing his back
What happened?
"You should thank me, then."
Quickly flinching to my back, I saw a man wearing a loincloth with a part pulled between his thighs, he was also holding a large bow and arrow in his right hand. He seemed like a member of a tribe, back to the real world, though they're treated as indigenous people and leaving in the mountains, I barely see one.
"Are you gonna stare at me and wait for that werewolf to go back with his comrades? Then you'll probably be their feast tonight."
My eyes slowly widened and stands up immediately.
"Quick." He motioned and started to walk.
I didn't ask anymore and followed him.
"T-thank you," I mumbled. He saved my life.
"You shouldn't be thanking me yet." He shot back.
My forehead creased.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
He didn't respond, instead, I heard a loud of growls coming from behind. My eyes instantly widened, as my chest started to pump so fast again. Tell me I'm wrong, but when I shift my glance back at where the giant wolf ran, a bunch of ravenous giant wolves was running towards us, growling, and doesn't seem to have a plan to keep us alive.
"Run." Taken aback by the stranger's voice. I was stunned when he pulled an arrow and quickly assembled it on the bow.
"I said run!" He exclaimed which made me back to my senses and run for my life.
My adrenaline was rushing down my spine and anxiousness fills me regarding the stranger behind fighting them. He can survive, right? But my conscience slowly eats me so I stop running. I quickly grab a wood good enough to be carried and long enough to hit these monsters.
"What the hell are you doing?" The stranger snarled when he finally neared me.
"I can't let you die saving my life." I shot back. My conscience won't let me sleep at night if that happens.
"How stupid, if you'll let your conscience reign, then we'll both die here!" He exclaimed.
I ignored him and motioned the wood I got as my sword against the giant wolves. I can feel my sweats slowly dripping down to my face and neck, as the wolves were slowly pacing toward as. How many are they? Eight? Against us two mortals.
"You're a pain in the ass." The stranger murmured.
"You need my help." I insisted.
Seeing him roll his eyes at the corner of my eyes, what's his problem? We should focus on these monsters or we will be their feist as they ripped our flesh into tiny pieces.
"You just made everything complicated." He whispered before pulling out another arrow and assembling it onto his bow while I prepared my wood in the case of their attempt of attack.
"Stay behind and once I got them distracted, run." He whispered.
I shook my head.
"No, I won't leave you here."
Leaving someone behind is the last thing I'll do. My blood instantly boiled remembering that old man.
"If you didn't run, we'll really both die here." He warned. Gripping the wood tightly, I sighed in defeat.
"Promise me you'll follow me." I shot back.
"I will."
I nodded.
When the first werewolf jump-off, he quickly shot him with his arrow.
"Now!" He exclaimed and that was my signal to run. After a couple of seconds, I can feel his presence closer to me as we both run inside the forest, entering the tall grasses and woods, I can hear my heart thud loudly.
"Faster woman." The stranger snarled.
He was now dragging me with him while I'm chasing for my breath. Setting aside my thoughts of being tired, I maximized my speed trying to cope with the stranger's pace, yet he seemed skilled on this and doing this in his whole life.
Seeing a light at the end of the way gives me hope. My eyes widened when we be able to get off from the woods yet a cliff welcomed us.
"We're doomed," I whispered.
"No, we're not." He shot back. Just when I realized that there were falls and a river down the cliff.
"Don't tell me we'll gonna jump?" I asked unbelievably.
"Do we have a choice? Even if we run inside the forest, they'll chase us until we got caught. This is the only hope, werewolves were afraid of water." He continuously explained. My heartbeats tripled seeing the height of the cliff from the river below. This is insane, I've never imagined myself jumping to this high.
But my terror completely filled when the werewolves were now surrounding us as we step back at the edge of a cliff, reaching its limit.
"At a count of three, we'll jump." He whispered.
I shook my head.
"I can't do this." I reminded him. I might die of a heart attack instead of these monsters.
But before I could trace back my courage to jump, my eyes widened when he pulled me with him as we let our body collapses down the cliff.
As we fall onto the cold water of the river, I glared at him.
"What the hell did you do?!" I exclaimed in rage.
He started to swim to the corner of the river completely ignoring me.
"What if we die!?" I growled, following him as I climb to the stone still glaring at him.
The moment we fell from the cliff, I thought it was the end of me.
"You'll really die if I didn't drag you with me. You seemed like you would choose to eat by those werewolves rather than to jump." He snarled.
"Look at them! Even in the distance I can still see their willingness to kill and eat your flesh." He added which made me shift my gaze at the werewolves at the cliff where we jump off, they were glaring at us.
"But still, I won't thank you. I almost die!" I shot back, not putting down my pride, not on him.
"Who cares?" Rolling his eyes on me, he started to walk sideways, and climb the big stones beside the rivers.
"H-hey wait for me!" I exclaimed. I have to follow him, I don't know this place and I'm not sure what awaits me there.
Chasing my breath, I finally cope with his pace.
"Can you please slow down?" I asked sarcastically.
"It's getting dark, we must walk fast before the sun sets or we'll die here." He threatened.
"Then where are we going?" I asked.
"To the City of Azera." He replied plainly.
"So there is a city here. Where do humans live?" I asked again. My feet started to get numb because I'd been walking and running for how many hours, since the moment I entered this world.
"Yes."
I didn't ask any more questions, he doesn't seem to be fond of talking. When I saw a natural spring nearby -
"Wait let me just drink," I uttered and didn't wait for him to respond as I quickly walk towards the spring.
I should've brought a tumbler instead, water is the only thing I will be needing to survive right? How stupid I am.
I put my palms closed together, enough to fetch an amount of water and slowly dig into it, and started drinking.
When I felt satisfied, I took a glance at the stranger since he didn't take a drink, or maybe he was not just thirsty at all.
"H-hey where are you going?" I asked when he started to move. Yet he doesn't seem to hear me and keeps on walking. I quickly left the spring and run towards him just to notice that he was caught by something.
What's that?
"Beautiful." The stranger whispered yet good enough for me to hear, and still not removing their gaze at them, my forehead creased. What does he mean by beauty? Is he f*cking blind?
My eyes slowly stretched to recognize what they are. But why are they look like that?
"H-hey don't go," I whispered, but still, he didn't listen, he seemed hooked by a beauty he mentioned which I cannot see in any way. I also thought that they were beautiful based on the books I read, but pretty much the opposite in real life.
"Where are you going? Hey?!" My eyes slowly widened when I realized how loud I was and get the attention of the Nymphs. Feeling the sweat slowly cascading on my forehead when I saw how they glares at me.
"They're so beautiful." The stranger speaks again.
What the f*ck? Is he hallucinating or what?
"Can't you see how monster-looking they were?" I asked frankly, we were nearing them already because this stranger keeps on walking towards them and I kept following him because he seemed under a strong spell.
He didn't respond, I noticed how stiff his body was when he walks, and his eyes were all focused on them. This doesn't seem good so I stop following him and walk backward.
I watched him slowly fill the gaps that kept them apart until he slowly wets his body and dipped into the water, and my eyes widened when his head vanished as well as he continuously walk to the deep part of the river nearing them.
My heart fasten its pace when they flashed a wide grin at me and submerged into the water, heading their way towards me. F*ck Penelope, what hell are you doing, run!
And that's what I did, I run as fast as I can, trying my best to avoid the river on my right side as they were following me.
When I saw a hole in the left area I quickly plunge inside and start to crawl when I notice how cramped it is. Hearing my own heartbeats, I didn't go on all fours until I reached the radiance at the end of the hole. I sighed in solace while chasing my breath, a green forest greeted me.
Setting aside the hesitance that reigns on me with the thought of what awaits me this time in this forest, I started to walk again.
After a couple of minutes, I frowned when I felt something strange. What is it this time? I'm still recovering from what happened to me from that river, and to that stranger that keeps on bothering my conscience, is he fine? Or he's dead now? There's no way he can breathe under the river right, he's a human.
I ceased walking, letting my fear subdue again. Was it a giant wolf again? I'm sure I can't run as fast as I was earlier because I'm physically drained already.
Slowly tilted my head at the back just to see no one which heighten my terror more.
"You seemed lost!"
A small voice echoed, as my eyes dilated to see a small thing flying.
Is that a fairy?