At dawn on the second day, Art got up early alone, walked out of the tent and planned to wash up at the river not far to the right of the camp.
The closer to the river, the sound of the gurgling water hitting the stones on both sides became louder. From time to time, a cool breeze blew from the river bank, making Art feel refreshed. Art carried his dagger and shuttled through a low bush, fiddling with the weeds and vines on both sides from time to time. This path leading to both sides of the river was cut by workers working nearby. If there are many people walking, the entrance can be easily seen in the open space not far away.
If you look carefully, you can occasionally find the footprints of larger prey such as wild boars or foxes on the ground. Since this canyon has been uninhabited and deserted for hundreds of years, it has long become a kingdom of freedom for animals. A few days ago, a few stout men carried farm tools and wooden buckets to the stream to fetch water for cooking. Suddenly, a dark-colored wild boar, weighing about 120 pounds, jumped out of the grass on one side, roaring and leaping over. Although these guys can eat meat every three days on weekdays, working requires a lot of physical strength, and that little meat can only satisfy their cravings. Naturally, they can't let it go easily when they meet someone who brings it to their lips.
The guy walking in the front was frightened by the frightened wild boar and was so frightened that he stepped back and fell into the weeds nearby. The strong man following this unlucky guy looked at the wild boar's figure, a smirk appeared on his face, he shouted, and then he waved a few other guys to catch up with his hoe. After chasing the wild boar for half a day, everyone finally drove the wild boar into a pit, and then they lifted up a large stone and threw it at the wild boar...
In the evening, a group of people gathered around a campfire and enjoyed the delicious wild boar meat with its head smashed into meat paste.
After a while, Art, who was brisk in his footsteps, arrived at the shore. The blackened pig blood stained on the stones by the strong men who slaughtered wild boars a few days ago can be seen vaguely on the stones on the river bank. The corners of Art's lips curled up slightly. As he walked towards the largest stone, he took off the dagger from his waist and threw it onto the grass next to him.
A few days ago, Scott, who participated in the campfire banquet, cut off one of the hind legs of the wild boar and sent someone to the wooden castle in the valley to present it to Art. The earl's family, who had not tasted game for many days, were very happy. Afterwards, Art specially sent some money to reward the few people who caught the wild boar.
Standing on the bank of the river, Art took a deep breath, then squatted down, picked up the river water and poured it on his face. Waves of excitement spread throughout his body, and the scattered river water wet his chest and trouser legs.
"Comfortable!" Art shouted, feeling refreshed and energetic. He then took out the silk scarf in his pocket and wiped his face, then stuffed it back carelessly.
At stood up and stretched, then turned his head and looked upstream of the river bank.
It is now midsummer, the climate is hot, but there is not much rain, and it is even a little dry. The water level on both sides of the river has moved down by half due to the reduction in water flow, leaving the rocks on both sides exposed. The trees on both sides of the river are full of vitality, with lush branches and leaves, swaying slightly in the morning breeze.
The large and small spider webs among the branches are extremely eye-catching under the slowly rising red sun in the east, and the condensed dewdrops sparkle in the morning light. The owner coiled in the middle of the spider web crawled back and forth on it, sucking the condensed water droplets, and constantly rubbing the tiny limbs.
On the pine tree not far away, a few squirrels jumping between the tree trunks made a few rustling sounds from time to time, whispering to each other, jumping around, and started a new day of life.
Following the river, passing through a bend, there is a shoal formed by the river water all year round. Pebbles of various sizes were piled up on the shore and scattered along the river bank. Opposite the shoal, due to year-round erosion by the river, a high ridge has been formed, covered with weeds.
Further down the bend, the water flow becomes gentler and the river becomes wider. Several large flat rocks were arranged one after another, emerging from the water and extending towards the other side of the river. There are vaguely messy footprints on the other side, which lead to the wasteland on the other side...
Looking at the beautiful scenery in front of him and breathing in the fresh air, Art felt refreshed. He knew that soon, the people who would open up wasteland would turn the surrounding desolate and inhabited land into pieces of fertile land. Villages and towns for people to live will also rise from the ground. By then, this place will definitely be a paradise.
Matt walked slowly to the shore, took off the water bag from his waist, and pressed the mouth of the bag into the water. After a while, the water bladder became bulging. Immediately, Art slowly stood up and carefully inserted the gag into the mouth of the bag. The moment he turned around to leave, Art suddenly stopped turning his body out of the corner of his eye...
Art concentrated on him and twisted his neck carefully. His intuition told him that there must be something more next to the dark gray boulder downstream of the river.
turn around, turn around again. The movement was so subtle that Art felt like his body position had not changed at all. The heartbeat was also much faster than a moment ago.
Pha~
A sharp sound of branches breaking came from not far behind. Having lived in the mountains for many years, Art knew that this sound definitely did not come from a natural break.
Years ago, Art, who made a living as a hunter, often wandered around the mountains looking for prey to fill his stomach. There are dead branches and fallen leaves everywhere in the mountains. If you are not careful, you will step on the dry branches buried under the fallen leaves and scare away the prey that are looking for food nearby. Even more terrifying is encountering those dangerous carnivorous prey. If you are not careful, the hunter will become the prey and become the lunch of those guys.
Matt tried to adjust his breathing, cold sweat began to break out on his forehead, and his heartbeat continued to accelerate.
"Could it be~" Art thought silently in his mind, seeming to already have the answer.
Matt tried to adjust his breathing, but his already sore feet became less responsive.
Turn your head, turn your head again.
Slowly, from the corner of Art's eye, he could already see the dark gray boulder on the other side of the river not far to the right of his body. In addition to the boulder, something that looked like a human figure also entered Art's sight.
A drop of cold sweat fell on the leather boots under my feet, spreading in all directions, leaving a mark on the surface of the boots.
"Who cares about the monster!" Art was heartbroken, and immediately turned his head, his eyes falling on the tall guy next to the boulder.
I don’t know whether it was due to excessive nervousness or fear, but Art suddenly felt dizzy and his vision went dark. The bottom plate shook and he almost fell to the ground.
At this moment, the guy next to the boulder suddenly roared in a low voice, startling the somewhat confused Art.
"This..."
Matt came back to his senses, shook his head, and took a closer look, and he happened to be eye-to-eye with the huge creature on the other side.
The sight before him horrified him...