Neo felt like he had been in this forest far too often in recent days.
What was wrong with him? Why did he always find an excuse to return here? Couldn't he just stay in the safe confines of his treehouse, plucking juicy pink fruits and bathing in the blue pond?
Why did he have to put himself in harm's way?
Was he like those maniacs who loved and craved danger?
Was he really built like those foolish relic main characters with their crazy and utterly irrational love for peril?
For what?
To push the story forward?
Pfft! What a joke!
After pondering for a bit, Neo realised that wasn't it. His story wasn't that dull just yet. He was doing this for the treasures.
His motivation was treasures and not some absurd desire to die an untimely death that some funny authors bestow upon their pitiful characters.
Yes, he was in it solely for the riches!
Neo desperately needed to find his own heaven-defying treasure and ascend to greatness in a single leap!
No love for danger could compel an unawakened mortal like him to venture repeatedly into a forest teeming with hundreds of common-grade beasts.
It was a risk far too great for someone like him to take.
Even if he had only ever stayed on the outskirts of the forest and dared not venture deeper...
'So chilly...'
A cold wind brushed against Neo's skin, making him tingle. He clutched the satchel over his shoulder tightly. Goosebumps covered his arms, and his feet and palms felt icy.
But it wasn't from the cold. It was from a deep, instinctual fear that gripped his heart.
The moment Neo stepped foot into the forest that night, he had felt that dreadful sensation of being watched.
He immediately knew who—or rather, what—it was.
'Damn you, red-eyed demon! Why do you keep scaring me like this?!' Neo lamented.
Neo knew he was currently being stalked by the red eyed demon because the instinctual fear was the same as whenever he locked eyes with the red-eyed beast during the night.
And tonight, he had chosen to enter the beast's den voluntarily.
What was this if not madness? It was like courting death! But Neo still pressed on—for the treasures.
'It better be worth it.'
With his ears alert to the slightest sound and his eyes scanning his surroundings every few seconds, Neo did his best to stay vigilant.
If the beast did pounce, then Neo would put up one hell of a fight.
Or make one hell of a run...
Fortunately, nothing of the sort happened, and shortly after, Neo arrived at the gorilla settlement once again.
The settlement was disturbingly silent and calm tonight. No overexcited gorilla babies playing around, no overexcited gorilla adults 'playing' around...
Just complete silence.
It was quite eery. Neo even considered turning back and calling it a night.
The awkward silence of the settlement actually made Neo feel as if he were walking into a trap...
Slowly and cautiously, Neo approached the settlement, his black spear clasped tightly in his hands, ready for his usual bout of bad luck.
But as he neared the settlement, nothing unusual happened.
What was goi—
'Fuck me!'
Thud!!
The ground suddenly gave way beneath Neo's feet, and he plummeted downwards.
At first, he thought he had fallen into a trap set by the gorillas and was about to get into the most intense fight of his life, but after examining the hole and finding nothing of the sort, he made a final conclusion...
'A tunnel?'
The hole was suspiciously narrow, stretching downwards and extending far into the distance. It appeared to be burrowed by a small but absurdly tall creature.
Neo's mind raced. His first thought was to climb back up and forget he ever saw the hole. What if it led to the lair of a terrifying, extra-powerful beast?
Wouldn't it kill Neo and have him for midnight snacks?
But then, a memory flashed in his mind, and his plans changed.
Indeed, wasn't this the spot where that demonic rabbit always disappeared whenever it reached the settlement?
Neo had chased the rabbit several times, and each time, it had miraculously vanished right here.
Didn't that mean...
Neo smiled coldly. He morphed his spear back into its original stone form and began to crawl down the hole.
It was barely high enough for him to squeeze through, and it didn't smell pleasant, but Neo's grin remained.
'It appears we're fated, you demonic rabbit! I am destined to take your life!'
With shocking diligence and patience, Neo crawled down the tunnel for hours.
He had crawled for so long that his back ached and his palms began to peel.
He was lucky he wasn't claustrophobic, or the time spent in such an enclosed space would have driven him mad!
After some time, the muddy, wet floor transitioned into hard, rocky ground. Neo also noticed that the tunnel was now sloping upwards, making crawling even more difficult. The space was too narrow to climb, but Neo's pace didn't falter.
He kept crawling at the same steady rhythm.
After what felt like another hour, Neo finally approached the tunnel's end.
From a distance, he could see a pink glow reflecting into the passage.
Whatever lay at the tunnel's end had a light source eerily similar to... the pink fruit tree?
Neo silently morphed the void stone back into its spear form and cautiously advanced.
He couldn't be sure what kind of adversary awaited him, so he maintained his caution, not neglecting his safety for even a moment.
Finally, Neo reached the tunnel's end and came to a stop.
He steadied his breathing and calmed his racing mind.
He listened carefully for any sound but heard none. That could either mean the beast wasn't home, or it was deathly silent.
Or worse, it had already noticed Neo and was waiting...
Steeling his resolve, Neo carefully peeked out beyond the tunnel walls.
His gaze swept the surroundings, and what he saw made him grin his most wicked smile.