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I ran non-stop to the hunting ground.
Despite the twenty-minute run, I wasn't gasping for breath as if I would die.
Had my cardio endurance improved as well?
As I tapped my chest area to take a break, three familiar figures approached me from behind.
"Out hunting early in the morning, I see."
"Do you want to see blood?"
"Bl-Blood? No, it's not like that-!"
Were they doing this on purpose?
Or did they really not understand?
Whatever the case, they were definitely not normal.
I decided to ignore them and focus on hunting horned rabbits.
Just as I fiddled with the slingshot in my pocket, the wolf woman handed me a bow from her back.
"Lord Gyeoul, use this. It's a bow adjusted for your young physique."
"Th-this one?"
"Yes. The slingshot is a fine weapon, but it's too light. It can't compare to the destructive power of a bow."
A bow.
I didn't want to accept anything from them, but I couldn't easily refuse either.
I didn't want to miss the opportunity to handle a proper weapon.
"Then, shall I try shooting it just once...?"
I nodded, unable to refuse their offer.
The wolf woman then handed me the bow.
"Is this your first time using a bow?"
"Yes..."
"Then, I'll show you how to position yourself."
The wolf woman came closer to me.
To teach me, physical contact was necessary.
She held my hand to help me notch the arrow and stroked my back and stomach to fix my posture.
It was just that, but my heart started to pound.
A strange feeling of disliking it yet enjoying it.
I forcibly suppressed a smile and noticed a horned rabbit hopping in the distant meadow.
"Can I shoot that one over there...?"
"Yes. If you follow what I taught you, you'll definitely hit it."
That's unlikely.
It was my first time shooting a bow; there was no way I could hit it.
With no expectations, I shot the bow as the wolf woman had instructed.
Twang!
The arrow was released with the tension of the string.
Despite its incredible speed, my enhanced vision allowed me to follow the arrow's trajectory.
The quivering arrow shaft pierced through a fluttering leaf.
Beyond the split leaf, a horned rabbit pricked up its ears.
Wait.
It's going to hit.
Just as I thought that.
Thump!
The arrow pierced through the rabbit's head and shot out the other side.
"Hm?"
Did I really hit that?
It was my first time shooting a bow.
As I stood bewildered, looking at the fallen rabbit, someone placed a hand on my head.
"Gyeoul! That's amazing!"
"Ye-Yes...?"
It was a gentle touch, like soothing a child.
Though it felt nice, I knew she was just putting on an act.
She knew I lived alone and was probably trying to manipulate my emotions this way.
The more I experienced her manipulative attitude, the deeper my disappointment grew.
With my head hung low, I cautiously started to back away.
Then the girl hastily lowered her hand.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Was I too intrusive?"
Intrusive, she says.
Was she aware of what she was doing while saying that?
Annoyed, I kicked at the pebbles on the ground.
"That's really too much..."
"What, what is? Did I do something wrong...?"
The girl blinked, looking genuinely clueless.
Her sly appearance made me tremble with anger.
After all I had endured.
I decided to vent just a little, really just a tiny bit, of my pent-up frustration.
"You keep tormenting me..."
I bit my lip after blurting out that complaint.
I knew it was presumptuous to say, but it felt relieving.
What would the girl's reaction be?
Looking at the ground and only lifting my eyes upward, the girl's response was completely unexpected.
"I tormented Gyeoul... I see..."
"Yes?"
She looked genuinely confused.
I couldn't tell if it was an act or sincere.
"Oh, of course, I know Gyeoul suffered because of me. I really wanted to beat myself up for it."
"Beat, beat up is too much..."
Was this a strategy to pressure me so I wouldn't dare speak up again?
Confused by the situation, I looked down, and the girl bent her knees to match my height.
"Listen, Gyeoul. Can you give me one more chance? I'll show you I can be better."
"That, that is..."
Be better.
I had no clue what her intentions were with such a statement.
"I really regret what I did to Gyeoul. Can't I have just one more chance?"
She was pressuring me into giving her a chance, making it hard to refuse.
Feeling suffocated by the situation, I instinctively ran away, shouting.
"You didn't even apologize!"
✱✱✱
"An apology...?"
Yeoreum, unable to follow the fleeing Gyeoul, stood still on the spot, frozen by her last shout.
'I didn't apologize...?'
Yeoreum thought back to the day Gyeoul woke up.
She had intended to apologize right away, but Gyeoul ran off, missing the opportunity.
Even afterwards, she kept looking for a chance, but Gyeoul's life was so shocking that she just blanked out.
Yeoreum finally realized as she retraced her memories.
She had neither apologized nor explained anything to Gyeoul.
"Oh no-!"
Damn it!
How could she forget the most important part!
Yeoreum slapped her cheeks, hitting herself.
Although she hit herself hard enough to make her cheeks burn, Yeoreum paid no attention to her own pain.
Since she hadn't apologized or explained, Gyeoul must have continued to harbor doubts.
Gyeoul must have harbored doubts about the sudden changes in her body but was too scared of the adults to ask.
It was all her fault.
She stood in shock, her mouth agape.
"Um, Yeoreum...?"
"Ah?! Yes!"
"Why did Gyeoul suddenly act like that...?"
"The leader is angry!"
Yeoreum snapped back to reality upon hearing the beast-kin speak to her.
She could blame herself later, but the opportunity to apologize wouldn't come again if missed.
It was crucial to chase after Gyeoul and offer a heartfelt apology.
"Could you two wait here for a moment?"
"Will Lord Gyeoul be alright?"
"Yes. I swear on my life that nothing will happen to her."
A life-sworn promise was one of the biggest vows a beast-kin could make.
Encia and Argo nodded in understanding.
Yeoreum then ran towards the direction Gyeoul had fled to.
It was a slightly dangerous part of the beginners' hunting ground, a forest where goblins appeared.
Of course, with Gyeoul's current state, she wouldn't even get a scratch, so Yeoreum didn't worry about that.
✱✱✱
'I really hate her.'
Thump Thump-
I stabbed the dirt with a branch as if it were the girl.
I vented my frustration on the dirt, imagining it was her.
"Tch."
Looking at the torn ground, my anger subsided.
It was best to stop the venting here.
I stood up and looked around.
I had run deeper than the forest where I had escaped from the middle-aged woman before.
Due to my improved cardio and running speed, I had ended up in a pretty deep area.
'This is...'
The forest where goblins appear.
It was a place I never entered because it was dangerous.
Lost in my emotions, I had run to a place where I thought I wouldn't be seen.
"Cough."
I clutched the bow for vigilance, but the arrows were with the wolf woman.
As I lowered the seemingly useless bow, a rustling sound came from the lush greenery of the forest.
"!"
Had the girl followed me?
I listened intently, but all I heard was the grotesque sound of a beast.
That's the sound goblins make when they cry.
Frozen with fear against a tree, three goblins started emerging from the bushes, heading my way.
Gasp
I had lost my mind.
Why would I fled to a goblin forest?
I quickly hid myself in the bushes.
Did they come looking for me because of the sound of digging?
A goblin appeared where I had been, looking around.
It perked up its long ears and sniffed the branch I used for digging.
'They have a good sense of smell-!'
I wasn't sure how good, but seeing them track by scent meant they were somewhat confident in it.
I quickly sprinkled the dirt on the ground all over my body.
To properly mask my scent, I should have rubbed it in, but the goblins were already too close.
Fearing that rubbing would give away my position, I settled for just sprinkling the dirt.
"Kerk?"
"Kiruk?"
The goblins, conversing in their unintelligible language, began to retreat back the way they came.
They appeared to be fishing for me, hiding briefly behind the forest, but eventually moved on when I didn't show up.
I would have been fooled if not for my enhanced hearing.
"Phew."
Goblins.
They were far stronger and more cunning than the horned rabbits.
As I sighed and stepped out of my hiding place.
Crunch-
Someone else was making their way through the forest towards me, running incredibly fast, as if they knew I was there.
Gasp
A familiar voice from behind called out.
"Gyeoul?"
It was too late to hide fully; only my face was buried in the bushes, leaving the rest of my body exposed.
I felt like a chicken that hides its head in the straw, thinking its whole body is concealed.
Those fools think they're hidden if they cover their faces.
But now, I was doing the same foolish thing.
Feeling like a stupid chicken, I didn't dare show my face, just lying there.
Only my tail was limply hanging out.