The man faltered as he tried to keep up his speed. His already disheveled appearance had grown even shabbier. The superficial cuts from his battle with the horned creatures had already healed, but new, deeper wounds had taken their place, the largest of which was a gash that ran from his left shoulder to his chest. His armor had protected him well, but he was not unscathed.

He anticipated a battle for the fallen rabbits, but he was not prepared for the chaos that ensued. It was the first time he had witnessed such an early chain reaction in the cycle. The dead rabbits drew in scavengers, and the remains of the scavengers who had fallen in the struggle attracted local predators in turn, causing the area to rapidly devolve into a frenzied free-for-all. The beasts grew stronger as they fed on the blood, and with no dominant beast claiming the rabbits, this was a prime opportunity for them jump on higher on the food chain.

Had it been later in the cycle, the man would have considered the event as lucky. Now, however, even with the beasts more focused on each other than on him, he had more brushes with the reset button than he'd like. And in this point in the cycle his desire to avoid a reset were higher and higher as he did not fancy going through everything all over again.

The man rested his hand on an unusually large, dark tree. It was so well-camouflaged against the background that he couldn't even sense its presence. It was only by luck he discovered it during his cycles. The tree was important enough, and with burrow dug amidst its roots it served as a perfect last checkpoint before he reached his destination.

The man made his way inside, lowering his head slightly to fit. Whatever created this place was likely as huge as any of the creatures in the forest, but now it too had perished. The man knew that there was only one reason why a creature wouldn't return to a good hiding place like this one.

This tree had the unique characteristic of blocking out sound and smell from the outside, which was the only reason the man still had a chance this run. But he was still was in dire straits. Injured and low on time, but not out just quite yet.

The man took the red streak out of his bag. He had to throw away his food as a distraction in order save this but it was worth it. He placed his hand on one of the fallen beast's many gashes. Streaks of black liquid started traveling up his hand. He called this technique hand of absorption, or at least that is what ringed in his mind whenever he used it. It helped him maximize his yield and make less of a mess. He usually was only able to use it later in the cycle, but all the extra trouble he went through so far had not come without benefits.

As the ichor was quickly absorbed into his body, his wounds started to close. Strengthening was not the only benefit the liquid had to offer, but this meager amount was not enough to fully heal him. The large gash remained, although its bleeding had stopped.

It would have to do. The man twitched in pain and raised to his feet. There was no time to fully recoup; he needed to get chopping.

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Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

The light of the half-moon shone against the numerous branches on the man's back. It would be quite the sight if the man did not know what it meant. The pressure of the moon's menacing gaze was only alleviated by the fact that he had finally arrived. A cave entrance stood before him, an uncommon sight around these woods. He entered the cave and got to work.

The tall branches were barely enough to seal up the entrance, but the man breathed a sigh of relief knowing he had calculated correctly. However, there was no time to celebrate. The cave was thrown into complete darkness, yet the man knew what awaited him inside. He could already hear its slow breathing.

His eyes adjusted now but he could only see it's silhouette. Nearly everything in this place was camouflaged against the darkness and it was no exception. At least he could somewhat make out its head. The man raised his spear, but he hesitated. He always did at his point. This creature had done him no wrong. Unlike the others it didn't try to eat him, and being ended over and over again without even realizing it... the man knew how that felt. But the man pushed the thoughts aside. It had not tried to eat him because was hibernating, if it was awake the man would have long been demoted from a living being to a splat on the wall. The man steeled his conviction, but he still stopped. This time it was not morals, but fear that had stalled him. The beasts breathing was speeding up and his muscles started softly twitching. It was waking up, right now. There was no more time for hesitation - the man aimed straight for its neck. It would have hit through, but the chain of bad luck he had in this cycle wouldn't break easily.

The beast had moved it's head. Just even so slightly, just enough to luckily avoid instant death. The tip of the spear backed by the strength of the man bit through the bears thick skin, speeding up the beasts waking process significantly.

The next thing the man felt was not annoyance, but a heavy paw slamming into his chest. He heard his ribs break as he was sent flying to the other side of the cave. The silent cave suddenly erupted in a cacophony of noise as the bear was desperately struggling against the weight in his neck.

The man could feel his body going limp. He felt no pain, but he had no control. Still, while the bear was struggling, he dragged himself with every bid of strength he had left in his body. Liquid splashed against his back as the beast attempted, unsuccessfully to roar.

It was now realizing it's fate. Its struggle began to calm as it focused its blurry vision on the perpetrator. It always knew its time would come, but at least it could drag its killer with it.

The noise was coming to an end, yet the man's nerves only became more agitated. He felt a chill run down his spine before he threw himself inside a little crevice in the rocks, just big enough to fit him and nothing else.

As soon as he entered, he felt a terrifying force smash into his safe haven, followed by a loud bang. The cave walls shook, and the man thought they would collapse, but they held firm in the end.

It was over. As the sensation of pain finally started to make its way into his adrenaline-filled broken body, he dragged himself out of his hiding place and collapsed against the wall.

An erratic laugh escaped his lips, yet when he glanced at the creature next to him, only one word came to mind.

Sorry.