Making up his mind, Eric decided to run to the Village Patriarch’s residence.
But first he needed to be careful not to get noticed by the hound or the guard when he made a run for it.
Pressing against the boulder, Eric tried to make as little movent as possible, trying to get a final look at the hound and the guard’s position.
The wooden torch they carried was a dead giveaway of their position.
’They are roughly four hundred ters away from . I have a better shot at getting away unnoticed right now.’
He moved slowly, sliding around the boulder carefully. He wanted to get behind the boulder first before running in earnest.
Rustle-Rustle!
A small rustle of shrubs resounded lightly in his ears as his body nudged so greenery aside. The sound was enough to make his heart pound wildly in his chest.
He glanced briefly in the direction of the guard, confirming that he didn’t notice him or heard the rustling of shrubs. Only then did he resu his slow traversing, sliding his body while staying as close to the boulder as possible. Its shade was necessary to keep his body unnoticeable from the crimson, dark eyes of the hound.
’If I make it out of this alive, I’ll first go and kick that hound in the face! Who told it to be this scary?’
Gritting his teeth, he slid one last ti before he could take a sigh of relief. He was finally behind the boulder, the narrow path in front of his eyes.
He just needed to make a run for it now, however, he couldn’t be careless. Thanks to the darkness, the guard might not be able to see him; however, his footsteps would make a sound.
Moreover, the hound could see in the dark, so that was another thing to worry about.
’Patience... That’s the key here.’
He thought to himself, preparing to take action.
’Okay, here goes nothing!’
Gradually, he rose up, still hidden by the four-ter boulder.
Then—
He ran!
He ran like crazy!
"Gwaaf! Gwaaf!" The hound’s terrifying barks ca from the distance; however, Eric didn’t stop.
Keeping his gaze fixed on the narrow path, illuminated solely by the blue moonlight, he sprinted.
Thush! Thush!
His steps struck against the wet grass, giving rise to loud, heavy footfalls. Chilly gusts of wind stuck against his half-bare chest, making him shiver from cold.
’It’s just ahead. I can feel it.’
The dirty, wet, and narrow path he had been running on was finally coming to an end, the never-ending fauna on both the left and right sides diverging into an inner arc.
In his view, finally ca the middle circle of the tribe, trees diverging to reveal a wider path. There was a crude entrance, made with only two bamboos plunged vertically into the ground, parallel to each other; however, no guard was present to keep watch.
Eric knew from Buan’s mories why it was like that, however, he didn’t have the ti to care.
There was too much to worry about, too much to fear, and too much to account for.
Rokan and his goons must have realized by now that he was hiding sowhere. That was why they sent the guards looking for him.
They might even be waiting for him inside the middle circle. He needed to be careful.
In the darkness, he moved beside a bamboo, peeking inside to assess the danger.
’Alright, it’s safe.’
He carefully entered inside, welcod by the sight of an enormous tribe, designed in a circular fashion. Multiple clay and wooden houses were built close to each other, divided by wooden barricades.
Fire torches were burning, attached to these barricades and so crude statues. These statues were recognized as honorable but dead warriors of the tribe from Buan’s mories.
Feeling the cold breeze against his skin, Eric had a sudden thought.
’What if I wake the tribe mbers sleeping in their houses? Rokan will not be able to harm so openly in front of them, right?’
However, Buan’s mories dismissed this thought as wishful thinking.
’Nah. They are all low in status compared to the Vice-Patriarch and Rokan. They will even help him to capture if it ant benefit for them.’
This truly was a ruthless tribe, and Eric needed to survive in it.
’The only individuals who can help are in the inner circle of the tribe.’
His eyes shone with determination in the darkness of the night.
He took the first step onto the stone path in front of him. Inside the middle circle, roads were created from carving a stone into rectangular slabs and then laying them on the ground to create paths.
"Gwaaf! Gwaaf!"
Eric’s ears picked up on the distant barks of the hound, and they were getting louder. He understood the hound was chasing after him.
’I will kill that mutt, I promise!’
He cursed internally with gritted teeth before sprinting towards the inner circle of the tribe, his leather shoes triggering sharp footsteps to reverberate in the area.
On both sides of the stone path, houses stretched, barred by wooden barricades for safety.
From Buan’s mories, Eric knew that this stone path stretched more than a kiloter before ending at the entrance of the inner circle of the tribe.
He remained extra cautious on his way, keeping an eye out for any movent in the darkness.
However, to his surprise, he didn’t encounter any of the goons or guards in his sprinting journey as he arrived at the entrance of the inner circle without any problems.
However, this made him even more uneasy. If Rokan and his goons weren’t here, then where had they disappeared off to?.
Moreover, the entrance of the inner circle didn’t have any guards protecting it, unlike usual. It looked... abandoned.
’Why do I have this feeling as if I’m walking into a trap?’
Just as he had this thought, he heard the barks of the hound, closer than ever. "Gwaaf! Gwaaf!"
’Fuck it! Staying here will only get caught by that hound anyway. Let’s just rush to the village patriarch’s residence.’
He sprinted inside the inner circle of the tribe.
However.
As soon as he moved past the entrance, Rokan and his goons appeared from their hiding spots, surrounding him from all sides. It appeared as if they had been lying in ambush here, waiting for their prey to appear.
Eric’s blood turned cold, his face turned pale, and his soul left his body.
"You are finally here, my dear brother-in-law."
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