Luke stood at the edge of the forest for a while and appreciated the scenery. This grassy field, decorated with numerous hills, gave him a comforting feeling, one he could not find in the thick and dangerous forest he had been residing in for a few days.
At this moment, he wanted nothing more than to venture into the grassy fields, but the sun was setting, and the world was turning dark. Even if the grassy field looked so peaceful from a distance, Luke believed it came with its own dangers at night.
Because of this, he decided it would be best to end his journey for the day.
"It won't be a wise decision to keep moving," He said with a tinge of sadness in his voice.
Although he would have loved to get as far away as he could from the forest, Luke knew being in the open field at night was even more dangerous, as beasts wandering both in the open field and in the forest would be able to see him.
"But that brings up another problem," Luke said with a frown as he pondered. "Wouldn't it be worse to go out in the open during the daytime?" he mumbled to himself.
Although most beasts weren't active during the daytime, it didn't mean it was totally safe. If his luck was bad, and he came in contact with a beast, he would have nowhere to hide or run to.
If the beast was as heavy and powerful as the Anterlaur or the grizzly bear beast he succeeded in killing due to the element of surprise being on his side, he would end up dying a gruesome death at its hands.
With such an important question fresh in his mind, Luke moved to the edge of the forest to study the environment before deciding on what to do next.
"Just like I feared," Luke let out a helpless sigh as he leaned over the edge of the forest and looked to the right.
What he saw was an endless stretch of trees, demarcating the forest from the hilly field. He shifted his gaze to the left and was greeted with a similar sight. Luke then looked at the hilly field ahead and frowned as he saw nothing but boulders lying around the hill.
Luke had hoped that the forest would encircle the hilly field, that way he would make a round trip even if it meant wasting a few extra days in exchange for his safety.
Even though he wanted to get out of this forest as soon as possible, he had to admit that the forest was much safer than the plain field. His earlier excitement about leaving the forest had vanished without him noticing.
Right now, all that was left for him was to pick the lesser devil among the two choices he had. However, the question now was which was the lesser devil?
"One problem at a time," Luke mumbled to himself.
He knew staying in the open for so long at such a time was a death wish, so he went back into the forest and climbed a tree.
Luke sat on a branch with his hands folded across his chest as he pondered on the options laid out before him.
"Come to think of it, does the time actually matter?" Luke questioned with a pensive look on his face.
"Most of the beasts I have come across can see at night, or at least to a certain extent," Luke said thoughtfully. "So being in the open during the day or night doesn't change much. However, I should consider certain factors…" he added.
Although he knew how the beasts in the forest operated as well as their working hours, Luke suspected it would not be the same for those on the hill.
Yes, the hill.
One might wonder what beasts were on the hill since Luke hadn't seen anything apart from the boulders.
Well, that was exactly the point!
The fact that he hadn't seen anything moving on the hill or around the boulders meant something was definitely wrong there. Such an area was perfect for critters, since the open field informed them of the presence of predators. However, he hadn't seen a living thing around the area.
After pondering about this for a while in silence, Luke finally made a decision.
"I will move out first thing in the morning," He said.
Although the fear of the unknown was the worst, and he knew nothing about what could be on the hill, he decided it was best to make plans against the creatures of the forest that may spot him during his journey tomorrow. Since he was already familiar with them, the least he could do was prepare countermeasures just in case he was attacked.
He spent more time in silence as he played out multiple scenarios that may occur in his head and came up with numerous countermeasures for all of them.
Having concluded on his next course of action, Luke stayed up for a few more hours before sleeping. The next day, Luke woke up, surveyed the area, and then proceeded to climb down the tree.
He yawned and stretched while he walked to the edge of the forest. Upon arrival, he was greeted with the breathtaking scenery once again, but he remained and he revealed a bitter smile.
The first time he saw this, he was very excited, but now he was aware of the dangers that lurked somewhere on the hill. Regardless, he felt positive since the change of terrain meant he was getting closer to the Arcanoria empire.
As long as he could hold on and keep moving, he was certain he would be able to reach his destination, regardless of how long it took.
Huff.
Luke inhaled deeply and exhaled loudly. He stood at the edge of the forest and surveyed the hills one last time.
"Here goes nothing!" Luke said as he walked past the final tree and stepped foot on the grassy field.