"So this is the den?" Ken focuses his gaze on the several holes in the earth and snow. They're obvious unnatural formations dug by the wolves for shelter.

"Hnn." Goro nods from his spot on the tree. Like the boy, he's examining the place.

"I don't see any wolves." Ken comments.

"They have no reason to stay." Goro explains. "Wolves give birth sometime in the summer. By the time winter comes around the cubs are ready to follow the pack and learn how to hunt… usually you don't see them since they stay hidden" From one of the satchels the man brings out a couple of clunky looking smoke bombs personally made by him.

They're filled to the brim with, interestingly enough, the poisonous plant named wolfsbane. They're slow acting, made to burn out over the course of hours instead of over the course of minutes. At that point it's more accurate to call them incense sticks and not smoke bombs.

The toxic fumes produced by the smoke bombs will make the den completely unlivable. Any wolf that tries to spend the night there will inevitably succumb to the poison.

It's a situation where they're damned if they do and damned if they don't. Will they spend the night in the freezing winter weather with their already weakened bodies or will they choose to die in their warm but poisoned home?

Using a flint and steel Goro lights up the smoke bombs one by one. He throws them inside the den, careful not to breathe in the toxic fumes.

Ken keeps watch all the while, ready to shout for Goro to run the moment he spots the pack. Luckily, he doesn't have to. Goro manages to finish his work quickly enough.

"This won't be enough to finish off the whole pack, but most of them won't survive the night. I expect three or four to live at most." Goro focuses his sight on the encroaching dark clouds as he speaks. They hadn't been present a couple of hours ago and the speed at which the clouds are moving towards them has alarmed the experienced hunter.

'As if the weather wasn't bad enough already. If we travel through the night we can reach the village before the storm catches us, but there's the pack we need to be careful of.' Goro shakes his head.

We'll sleep on the trees tonight, no other way around it. Worst case scenario we'll have to make a shelter out of the snow and wait out the next couple days.

"Come on" he orders. "I hope you're good at running. We need to put as much distance as possible between us and the den before the last light."

===========================

"This place should be good enough." Goro says through labored breaths. The duo had been jogging for half an hour already and his body isn't what it used to be.

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He examines their surroundings a little bit more. He'd chosen a small hill for them to rest on, it has plenty of thick trees around to block the oncoming winds and the place he'd chosen is right next to a cliff. The elevation would have allowed them to spot the pack early if it wasn't for the rapidly encroaching night. They have maybe ten or twenty minutes before the last light darkens their world.

Goro takes a scoop of snow and throws it in his mouth, letting it melt inside. The long run had left his throat burning so he needs something to relieve it a bit.

Throwing the bag of supplies to the side he cleans off the snow that had accumulated on one of the fallen trees. Using it as a chair he takes a moment to rest.

"Meal time?" The brat pops out from nowhere, scaring the light out of him.

"Don't sneak up on me like that!" Goro kicks snow in the kid's face, but the brat doesn't even register it. Going straight for the bag he takes out one of the ration sticks.

Goro honestly doesn't know what to think of him. The stamina that he's demonstrated is inhuman. He'd been part of Themten's mortal military force at one point so he knows exactly what kids his age should be capable of. He'd personally trained a couple of the young recruits and even the best and brightest don't come anywhere near him. He's tired while the kid is still seemingly brimming with energy.

It's just a simple fact. Small bodies can store less energy. The cultivator has done something with him.

"So…" The kid says as he sits next to him. "...I guess this is it." He bites into the bar as he speaks.

"Don't celebrate too early. Such a mindset will lead you to an early death, we still have to survive the night and make our way back through what appears to be an approaching blizzard." He points to the black clouds in the sky. Their position on the cliff provides them with a great view of the encroaching disaster. "At least your clothes are thick. I don't have to worry about you freezing to death."

"Well, my family herds sheep for a living after all." Kenki replies after gulping down his food. He focuses his large eyes on Goro.

"Say what. You're still technically working for me so I hope you wouldn't mind telling me a bit more about the dangers of the surrounding forests, right? I doubt this is going to be the last time I will be presented with such a task. It wouldn't hurt to know more~" Kenki annoyingly drags out the last word.

Turan snorts.

"Everything can be dangerous around these parts. Any creature in this forest can potentially kill you if they turn into a spirit beast, it doesn't matter if it's the ants, the snakes or the birds. What matters is recognising the signs of their passing."

Kenki makes a complicated expression.

"That doesn't really answer anything though, and we already passed by some spiritual beasts that seemed quite peaceful. I'm talking about bears, wolves… you know, stuff like that. You said something about Ents didn't you?"

Goro shakes his head. Better get this over with quickly so he'll be left alone.

"...considering some other places in the world the area around the village is quite safe. You already know about the wolves and how to deal with them should they attack you so I will move onto something else." Goro cups his chin as he speaks.

"Perhaps the most dangerous animals are those that you wouldn't suspect. Have you heard of Emerald netted cobras and silk-haired caterpillars?"

"I've heard that the village guardian from thirty years ago was killed by an emerald netted cobra." Ken replies.

Turan nods. "That was just a cobra that had turned into a spiritual beast. Although rare, you can sometimes find them hiding in trees. They feed on birds and their eggs. Their poison is incredibly deadly and just a single bite is enough to kill you… we don't have to worry about running into any during the winter since they're hibernating."

"And then there's the silk-haired caterpillars. Very poisonous and just as deadly, just don't ever touch them and you'll be fine. You'll know when you see them."

"What about the ents?" Kenki asks.

"Ents are ents, walking trees that can control the plants around them. Can't tell you anything more than that, I just know that they're very dangerous."

"Other than that I can't tell you much. Stay far away from anything that isn't a deer. It doesn't matter if it's boars or bears or wolves or whatever the hells else. All of them can kill you… oh and bears can climb trees." Goro stands up and walks over to the supply bag. He pulls some jerky to chow down on.

Kenki and the man eat in silence for a while, until it becomes so dark that they are barely able to see their hands in front of them.

Not exchanging any more words Kenki climbs onto a tree nearby he'd picked for himself. Pulling out a rope he ties it around the tree and his waist, securing himself. The two of them had already discussed how they would spend the night.

Goro follows suit, also securing himself to a tree.

They embrace sleep while listening to the howls of the winter wind.