Chapter 5: Footprints

Demon Shadow Forest was a massive primeval forest. The lush foliage of towering Ancient Trees intertwined in the sky, forming a lofty, verdant canopy. Sunlight could only filter through the gaps in the leaves, casting irregular dappled shadows on the grassy ground.

Raine pulled his thin burlap coat tightly around himself, treading cautiously beneath the damp, cold shadows of the trees. When passing through areas covered only in moss and dirt, he resumed a normal walking pace to conserve his Physical. However, the moment he entered zones littered with fallen leaves and dead twigs, or areas with dense grass, he instantly activated Stealth Step. This alternating method of travel allowed him to maintain maximum concealment while simultaneously increasing his proficiency with the Stealth Step Skill.

Additionally, he frequently checked the map in his mind. On the fog-covered, two-dimensional map of the forest, a single, slender bright line stretched from the edge right to where he stood—those were his footprints. Even without heading to core landmarks to uncover the map, the fog would still lift along any path he had walked. This solved a critically important problem: he no longer had to worry about getting lost in the woods.

Compared to the sparsely distributed low-level Demons on the forest's outskirts, this was perhaps the greatest danger Newbie Adventurers faced. And it was true—Newbie Adventurers losing their way in the forest was a common occurrence. When their bodies were eventually found, the fatal cause wasn't typically an attack; most died of hypothermia and infection. The trees here looked identical, their trunks all wrapped in thick moss, creating a giant maze that could easily destroy a person's sense of direction. Even a Reconnoitre Type Adventurer with some wilderness survival experience, like Raine's predecessor, couldn't guarantee finding the right path every time and often had to carve intersecting marks on tree trunks as guideposts.

"Good lord, the outskirts of this forest are vastly larger than I imagined," Raine murmured, swallowing hard as he checked the map in his mind. He had been walking for nearly two hours, yet on the forest map in the Exploration Chapter, he could still only see the nearest core landmark: Burial Creek. It was located at the very edge of the map, and just hearing the name was enough to let one's imagination run wild.

However, Raine immediately suppressed the urge to head there and uncover the map. For one thing, reaching it would take at least a full day and night of walking. For another, if his estimation was correct, the location where his predecessor had been attacked wasn't even halfway to that creek. This undoubtedly meant that this area alone was already deadly enough for him.

He gripped his Short Sword tightly and thought, "This time, I only have one goal. I just need to kill a lone Demon and complete the first entry of the Hunting Chapter."

Drawing on the Tracking Skills in his mind, he carefully scrutinized the ground and tree trunks for any potential Demon traces. This tracking ability, along with his foundational Archery and Swordsmanship, were all learned back in his hometown from a scruffy middle-aged man who claimed to be a Ranger Professional. At the time, the man had been recuperating from injuries in the village, renting a drafty shack from Raine's family as a residence.

Among the family's three sons, the eldest spent all day scheming about how to take over the mill, and the second son's mind was entirely fixated on the skirt of a sturdy girl from the neighboring village. Only Raine's predecessor had his eyes shining at the scruffy middle-aged man's Short Sword and Longbow. Thus, he begged his stingy miller father to offer "free room and board" as a bargaining chip. Through sheer persistence, he finally convinced the crutch-using man to take him on as a Ranger Apprentice, studying under him for a full year. Just like that, while his two older brothers were busy fighting over the family inheritance and chasing romance, the miller's youngest son learned some Ranger abilities through rote memorization. This ultimately became the foundation of his confidence to step onto the path of an Adventurer.

Soon, several striking and unfamiliar footprints caught Raine's eye. His breathing instantly softened, and his fingertips hovered over the impressions in the mud. The footprints were a size larger than his palm, with four distinct toes and deep claw marks gouged into the dirt at the front. They closely resembled a wolf's but were visibly larger and far more powerful. The spacing between the prints revealed the unhurried, measured gait unique to a large beast of prey.

Further ahead, a dense bush had been completely smashed open, as if some massive creature had forcibly squeezed through it. A few tufts of dark gray fur were still snagged on the branches. He plucked a tuft and gently rolled it between his fingers, immediately feeling its coarse, stiff texture. Then, he brought it to his nose and took a careful sniff. A strong, rank odor slammed into his nasal cavity, making him nearly choke and cough. Forcing down the churning in his stomach, Raine twitched his nose toward the direction the footprints led, catching a faint waft of blood in the air.

Beneath a giant tree twenty to thirty meters ahead, a beast's carcass—gnawed down to a bare skeleton—lay scattered across the ground. Strewn around it were several bone rods still clinging to scraps of meat, likely limbs that had been torn off. Judging by the skeletal structure, it looked like a large wild boar, though Raine couldn't be entirely sure from this distance. However, he had already figured out the true identity of the predators. The dense cluster of footprints around the dead prey indicated that these predators moved in packs. Combined with the fur and paw prints from earlier, the answer was glaringly obvious.

Raine wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his heart going THUMP-THUMP in his chest as he thought, "Warg Mounts. At least four of them. This area must be their hunting ground; there might even be a den nearby."

Judging by the bloodstains that hadn't completely dried yet, this pack of Warg Mounts had clearly finished feeding not too long ago. However, he wasn't sure if they were full, nor did he know if they had a habit of enjoying "dessert." Forcing down the terror in his heart, he dragged his somewhat stiff body into a decisive retreat. These were absolutely not foes he could handle. Taking a step back—even if there was only one Warg Mount, he wouldn't risk his life in close combat with such a large Magical Beast. He only had one life, and caution was a part of bravery.

Magical Beasts were highly territorial; as long as he didn't step into their domain, the likelihood of being attacked dropped significantly. After successfully withdrawing from that bloody and dangerous area, Raine maintained his Stealth Step and took a wide detour at a relatively safe distance. Only then did he deactivate the Skill, leaning against a tree to take a brief rest. Yet, his nerves remained taut without the slightest relaxation as his gaze combed through his surroundings like a fine-toothed comb.

This time, it didn't take him long to notice an entirely different kind of track. Raine's spirits lifted. He walked over to the trace, crouched down, and began to observe it closely. It was a series of footprints resembling those of the Human Race, imprinted in the soft, wet mud. The size was significantly smaller than his own feet, and without the covering of boots, five toes were clearly discernible. However, the soles were broad and flat, and the tread patterns looked like tangled hemp rope, exuding an indescribable strangeness.

Upon observing this, Raine's heart began to race wildly once more, and his hand felt clammy against the hilt of his Short Sword. A nightmare-like word surfaced in his mind.

Goblins!