Chapter 8 - Chapter 8 - This time, I'd know for sure.

Scratch! Scratch!

Day 7.

I carved another mark on the tree - roman numerals, because apparently I was feeling fancy even while stranded in a death forest. Seven days since falling through that hole. Seven days of questioning every life choice that led me here.

"Shouldn't have played that damn game!"

The resentment was directed at no-one but me.

"I need to get out of here…"

The words came out raw, broken. This place was changing, or maybe I was. Last night made that crystal clear when something massive slammed into my silver tree. 

The impact had jolted me awake, sent my heart trying to escape through my throat.

'This is it. This is how I die.'

I thought my fate was sealed. 

But when I checked my phone - huh? No danger-bars? 

That stopped me cold. In seven days, everything - literally everything - had spiked those bars. 

Until now.

"...?"

The screen's dim glow revealed a silhouette that looked almost deer-like, if deer were wrong in ways I couldn't quite explain.

My finger hovered on .

'No. Can't waste it.'

Battery at 27%. 

Gulp…

Each percent now felt like a lifeline I couldn't afford to waste. I'd been too careless before, treating my phone like it was still connected to a charger back home instead of my only chance at survival.

"No other choice but to take the gamble…"

The words tasted wrong in my mouth. I wasn't a gambler. Far from it. Hell, I was the type who triple-checked locked doors before bed, then got up to check them again just to be sure.

But seven days in this place had a way of changing priorities.

I opened , the app I had tried and experimented with, on day four.

'Whoah!'

The list had grown longer than I'd like to admit:

[Unsaved Contacts]:

⟨⟨-342⟩⟩ 

⟨⟨-289⟩⟩ 

⟨⟨-156⟩⟩ 

⟨⟨-103⟩⟩ 

⟨⟨-234⟩⟩ 

(NEW!) ⟨⟨+43⟩⟩

'My very own monster social network.'

Each profile picture was a hindsight reel of near-death experiences. 

The that I encountered on day one. The I'd spotted on day three, all eight legs and too many eyes, like something out of a budget horror film.

The that had nearly found my tree on day four, its eyes reflecting my phone's light in the darkness.

Even the , small enough to almost look normal, had tried to bite my foot when I was gathering water.

'At least the had the decency to just hiss and slither away.'

was convenient, sure - a monster catalog of everything I had encountered so far. But it couldn't tell me what had left those massive footprints on day two.

The ones that made my heart stop - the first time I encountered them.

'Should have photographed them when I had the chance.'

The would have analysed them, told me what new nightmares to expect. But by the time I'd thought of it, nature had already erased the evidence.

'Urgh!'

I shook my head. Self-blame was a luxury I couldn't afford right now. What happened, happened.

And what had happened - can't be changed.

A motto to live by.

"Haha…"

Even to me that sounded a bit cool. Like something from those motivational posters that tried too hard.

"I need to stop being ridiculous."

My attention returned to the screen - somewhere during my philosophical moment, I'd clicked on the newest profile.

The .

[Moongrazer (Contact Unsaved): ⟨⟨+43⟩⟩ [Relationship value: Stranger]

[Status: Unprovoked]

'+43?'

A positive value. That was new.

I didn't know exactly what these numbers meant, but seven days of negative values had taught one thing - being in the minus usually meant something wanted to eat me.

⟨Save contact: Yes/No⟩

I clicked on 'Yes'.

Loading…

'Hoh?'

My interest peaked. Usually, the app just spat out and called it a day. No context, no explanation, just digital rejection at its finest.

'Oh!'

Something actually loaded this time. My anticipation rose–

Then plummeted.

'Really now…?'

Again, I felt a need to sigh. It has failed. Albeit with some context this time.

⟨Note: To add a Contact as Saved, Relationship Value should be Friendly or high.⟩

At least it gave me a chart this time:

[Relationship Value]

∟Nemesis : ⟪-999 to -700⟫ 

∟Hostile : ⟪-699 to -400⟫ 

∟Unfriendly : ⟪-399 to -100⟫ 

∟Stranger : ⟪-99 to +99⟫ ∟Acquaintance: ⟪+100 to +299⟫ ∟Friendly : ⟪+300 to +499⟫ 

∟Trusted : ⟪+500 to +699⟫ 

∟Bond : ⟪+700 to +899⟫ 

∟Soulbound : ⟪+900 to +999⟫

*Values can fluctuate based on interactions

'I see.'

I nodded and clicked off.

The information wasn't helpful. If anything, it just added new anxieties to my growing collection.

Pocketing my phone, I grabbed my new leaf bowl - the old one had finally given up the ghost.

'Time for the daily water run.'

* * *

I'd gotten so used to this trail that I barely needed the marks anymore. My feet knew the way, each root and dip like old friends I didn't particularly want to have.

Sometimes I even caught myself humming - internally, of course. I wasn't that stupid.

'Maybe I am changing.'

Seven days had promoted me from regular coward to situational coward. Whatever that meant.

Still, I never took safety for granted. My eyes constantly flicked to the phone screen, checking for those telltale bars.

'Look at that!'

A danger-bar. Just one, but enough to make my pulse quicken.

I scanned the surroundings. No immediate treat. The forest breathed its usual morning sounds.

'Is it coming from the clearing?'

The thought was ridiculous. I was still fifty meters out, at least.

'Haha. Rubbish.'

But those giant footprints from day two flashed in my mind. The ones that made every water run like Russian roulette.

And then-

Grrraaaahhh!

Thwark!

Ssssss!

The sounds hit me like a physical force. Something was fighting. Something big. 

'Huu…'

My brain screamed retreat. My legs had other ideas, rooted to the spot like they'd discovered a new survival strategy - becoming a tree.

Perhaps they knew. This was the gamble I'd been talking about.

'This is my chance. Might never get another.'

Sometimes survival meant walking toward danger, not away from it. Today, that meant my feet moving forward, one terrifying step at a time.

The sounds grew closer. Slamming, shrieking. The kind of noises that should have sent me running in the opposite direction.

'One bar… two bar… three bar…'

The danger-bars cIimbed every few steps. For once, I didn't turn back.

[Beep]

[Status Effect: Fear Conqueror]

[Survival Instinct: Temporary Suppressed]

My watch beeped its warning, but I was beyond caring.

And then I saw them.

'Holy shit!'

A massive gray wolf, two metres at the shoulder, its fur standing like steel needles. Facing off against it - a serpent that made my previous encounter look like a garden hose.

'I don't have time for this!'

My fingers fumbled with the phone, opening . The same desperate question: Where am I?

Loading…

This time I would know for sure.