Jared and Eleisa spent most of the day gathering the dead and searching the surroundings for any survivors that might have escaped the attack. They didn’t find anything other than death, destruction, and the occasional clawed footprint.

We should have been here. If we had moved faster, we could have stopped this. All these people are dead because we didn’t treat this monster like the threat it is.

I’m never going to let something like this happen again, if I can do anything to prevent it. Never again.

Jared’s resolve hardened.

The system says I’m a Big Game Sniper, someone who takes out the biggest threats before they can do something like this. It’s time I start acting like one.

His resolution and the morbid scene spurred them on, so instead of giving the townspeople a proper burial, they erected a makeshift pyre. After lighting it and doing what they could to make sure the flames wouldn’t spread, they set off again, following the beast’s trail into the trees.

They followed it without issue for several miles, their previous conversation forgotten.

Naomi reverted to her rifle form, taking her usual place on Jared’s back. They moved as quickly as they could, while keeping as quiet as possible; they didn’t know how far the skorvok had gotten, and didn’t want to be ambushed. Some of the bodies had still been slightly warm, indicating that they had died sometime in the last twelve hours or so, so the monster couldn’t be too far ahead.

Their progress was halted a short while later, when the tracks they had been following abruptly vanished.

“What happened? It couldn’t have just… disappeared, right?”

Eleisa’s wings twitched in annoyance. “No, it could not. Let us search the surroundings for any other traces.”

Jared agreed, and they spread out, looking for indications of a large creature’s passing. They were about to give up the search due to the fading light when Jared felt a tug from Naomi. When he focused on her, she created a pseudopod pointing up into the trees. He looked at where she pointed and saw a large gash in the side of one of the trees.

Skill Big Game Tracking has been upgraded from (Unskilled II) to (Unskilled III)

“Hey El, I don’t think the information Theresa gave us mentioned if skorvoks climb trees. Is that something they can do?”

“Yes, I do believe some species often climb trees and use them as a point… of… ambush…” She trailed off, eyes going wide at the implication. They hastily scanned the canopy, but found no monsters waiting to pounce. They did, however, see several more gouges in the trees, leading in a different direction than the one the monster was initially going in.

Jared’s blood froze. “This isn’t a mindless beast that only acts on instinct. It’s smart enough to know how to throw off potential pursuers.”

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Eleisa nodded. “If that is the case, we should retreat some distance and set up camp for the night. Trying to hunt a smart creature that is higher level than us and is almost certainly preparing an ambush is a dangerous prospect under the best conditions. Factoring in the darkness, which will not affect it, and we will surely end up like the people of Carrow’s Heath.”

Jared agreed. He didn’t like it, but he saw the truth in Eleisa’s statement. They backtracked until it was too dark to continue safely, then found a spot to set up camp. They eschewed the use of a fire, not wanting to draw the attention of any nocturnal creatures, and settled in for the night. One of them was awake at all times to keep watch, along with Mimi, who didn’t seem to need sleep.

The night passed uneventfully, and they set off again as soon as it was light enough to travel safely. Eleisa flew above and ahead, her butterfly-like wings making less noise than Jared, even with his stealth Skill. It also allowed her to get a better vantage point, so she might have a better chance of spotting it sooner.

The trail changed directions multiple times as they followed it, the skorvok obviously still trying to lose its pursuers. Jared was rewarded with a couple more Skill levels for his efforts.

Skill Big Game Tracking has been upgraded from (Unskilled III) to (Unskilled IV)

Skill Big Game Tracking has been upgraded from (Unskilled IV) to (Unskilled V)

Around midafternoon, Eleisa landed for a small break, and to consult with Jared.

“If I am not mistaken, if the skorvok continues its general trajectory, we will soon enter the territory of ghost wolves.”

Jared consulted the map they had purchased and found that Eleisa was correct, the wolves’ territory outlined distinctly on the map. Considering their route and speed, it was only a couple miles away, depending on how accurate the map was. Not for the first time, Jared wished he had a GPS.

Could I use Skills to get the same effect? It was likely possible, he just had to find the right combination of Skills.

Pushing those thoughts out of his head, he refocused on the situation at hand.

“You’re right. I bet the skorvok is going there on purpose, hoping the wolves will kill us. What do you think? Should we continue?”

Eleisa considered, then shook her head. “I believe it is becoming too dangerous to continue at our current level. If we get caught up in a fight with the wolves and the skorvok ambushes us, it is unlikely we would be able to survive.”

Jared nodded, still studying the map. “I agree. But look at this.” He pointed to a spot on the map, on the other side of the ghost wolves’ territory. “This town, Fangsguard, is in the same general direction that the skorvok’s been heading.”

Eleisa followed his gesture, coming to the same conclusion he had. “You think that...”

Jared nodded. “It’s going there next. And unless they’ve got much higher level people there than Carrow’s Heath…”

“It will meet the same fate,” Eleisa finished.

“Unless we can do something about it. Now, I’m not saying we go charging in as fast as we can without a plan; that would be suicide. But look. The skorvok has been zigzagging, right? So if we stop following it and cut straight through to Fangsguard, we should be able to make it by tonight, barring any delays. There, if the town isn’t already under attack, we can alert them to the danger and help marshal their forces. If they are under attack, we can join in, and hopefully turn the tides of battle.”

Eleisa frowned. “I do not like the idea of entering such a dangerous situation. But you are correct that if we do nothing, Fangsguard will almost certainly fall.”

She gave him a measuring look, as if judging his resolve. She must have found it satisfactory, because she nodded after a moment. “I will fly ahead so we might avoid running into larger groups of wolves.”

Jared agreed and she took off, flying ahead to scout the area. Jared set off, following her path, and readying himself to enter the territory of the ghost wolves.