Sothoryos VI
Jon was not happy at the moment. His eyes kept moving as he walked, trying to listen and spot any danger around him. In his right hand, he held his sword, while in his left hand, he had his shield. He learned that it was better to have his shield. He could protect himself better and, in case he lost his sword in any fight, he could use the shield as a weapon, if necessary. But, all this about his weapons, had nothing to do with his discontent. No, his bad mood was due to the dangerous things he had come close to.
About two weeks ago, he had gone through his first life and death battle. And he was also able to choose his adventurer path and advance in rank in the system. He had felt a little more secure at that time. However, according to his map and the book that detailed many things about the continent, he had entered what was called the Green Hell: an extremely dangerous place, with white vampire bats capable of draining a man's blood in minutes, tattooed lizards that run towards their prey and tear it apart with long, curved claws on their hind legs, fifteen-meter-long snakes, spotted spiders, and terrible, terrifying Wyverns.
It had been hours since he entered the Green Hell, and he had found no danger. He could hear the leaves of the trees and bushes moving. He could hear a roar in the distance, even a few hisses. He knew that death could be surrounding him at that very moment. That was why he was in a bad mood, as he wanted and needed to rest. The two weeks of travel, although with few attacks on his person (by animals), had left him little rest. He wanted to pass the most dangerous part of Sothoryos, in the shortest time possible.
As he walked carefully, measuring each step he took, Jon frowned a little. He stopped and listened carefully. It was a somewhat loud noise, almost like a continuous rumble.
He decided to follow that sound. He understood that it could be risky but, among all the jungle, hearing such a loud noise should not be usual. His time in Sothoryos, although still short, had already given him some experience. And what he heard, was not like a roar of some beast, nor the hiss of a snake, much less footsteps. It was as if something was hitting something else.
After about fifteen minutes, the trees slowly began to open up. It was not too much, but enough to notice that beyond, in a portion of land, there were no trees. Jon inhaled sharply at that, inhaling fresher air. He felt a little less tired by doing so.
Then, he moved faster, until he began to run.
The noise grew louder and louder. The roar had begun to pound on his ears.
When he finally arrived, all the bad mood vanished. His dark grey eyes opened wide, while his lips stretched into an excited smile. In front of him, there was a clear lake, while to his right, a waterfall descended from a large rock wall, which rose to the top. For a minute, Jon stood admiring and feeling the freshness that the waterfall brought.
Happiness had hit hard, to the point that he felt the need to laugh with all his might. Although he didn't. Instead, he approached with quick steps towards the waterfall, on the edge of the river that formed the water. He put the sword in its sheath, and extended his hand.
"Cold...", he murmured, feeling the coldness of the water. He stood there for a few seconds, soaking his hand, and also part of his forearm. And when he moved, he did so to pass his wet hand over one of his cheeks. That refreshing feeling had flooded his body again, though only for a few seconds. Jon looked down at his hand, flexing his fingers a little, only to smile even harder.
He had decided at that very moment that he would use the place for a few days.
Although, for that, he needed to check things out a bit. He had already learned that this was a place full of dangers. Because of that, his smile faded and he walked along one of the banks, looking for anything that could endanger his life. He even used the flask where he had kept his water, to take some of the water from the river, since he wanted to check it out a bit. Maybe putting some water in one of the empty food cans and boiling it would be a good idea, was what he thought.
Jon also looked closely at the river, in case there were those fish that could eat an animal in minutes. When he didn't see any of that, he calmed down a bit. So he decided to set up his little camp.
It took him several minutes to do that, but when he did, he took off his clothes and jumped into the lake. The water jumped when he entered suddenly. He closed his eyes when he felt the cold, clean water touching his body. He stood still for a few seconds, until he opened his eyes and moved to the surface, looking at the sky as he floated.
It felt like a reward.
The system had given him amazing things, like the potions and his camp, even the weapons. But this was a different reward. It was the safe place he had needed all this time. It was the moment of relaxation he so desperately needed.
Jon smiled and moved to swim down, further into the bottom of the lake. And since it wasn't too big, it didn't take long for him to get there. And there, he turned to look up, seeing the sky from the bottom.
He had been surrounded by danger.
Death had lurked behind him at every moment. With every step he took, he felt like he could die.
But, at that moment, as his body was cleansed of all the accumulated dirt, he also felt like nothing could worry him. It was as if his own soul had been purified by nature.
And as he moved to the surface, only to float once more, he smiled. He thought of his family, but no longer with sadness or anger. The memories he spent with them, whether good or bad, appeared in his mind for an instant. The doubts about the lies and his identity began to cease to be a problem.
He had needed a moment of rest like the one he was having. Both his body and his mind had craved it. And in that moment where nothing and no one could hurt him, he understood that this was his life.
What did it matter if his birth name was Jaehaerys? He was also Jon. All the things he lived as Jon, he would not throw them aside so he could use the name Jaehaerys.
What did it matter what trouble his identity would bring? He was in Sothoryos! His life was now that of an adventurer, living in the dangerous jungle and trying to reach places never discovered by the people of Westeros or Essos. Even Yi-Ti or Asshai didn't know what lay beyond the first part of Sothoryos.
His life, right now, wasn't in Westeros. Not in Winterfell or King's Landing. His life was here. Anything beyond Sothoryos wasn't important to him right now.
The doubts that had still lingered in Jon's mind were processed and crushed by his current resolve. The clear water of the lake had refreshed his tired body and mind. And the smile on his face didn't seem to disappear.
When he finally emerged from the lake, Jon felt stronger and freer than ever. He sat at the entrance to his tent and stayed there to dry himself off little by little. He took out his map some time later, memorizing the place where the mark that positioned him on the world map was. That way, if the need arose, he would know where to move.
After a few minutes, he took out the book that described certain things about the continent. Now more than ever, he wanted to continue. And he would do it in the best way possible, so he would draw a definitive route with his map, as well as read the entire book and try to memorize all the drawings of the beasts and plants.
He would move forward. He was determined to do that. He would travel to the end of Sothoryos, to move on to Ulthos and continue moving forward. He didn't know how long it would take him, but he would do it.
He would definitely continue to live until the end.
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