Just as I predicted, sticking to the treetops made it easy to traverse the forest, riding the edge of the spider's territory. It may have been growing quickly, but it certainly wasn't covering the whole forest. The territorial dispute between the Wargs and spiders was a perfect example of that.
I was still on guard, but all the spiders I saw were soldiers. Much larger variations that didn't have webbing, and instead had hard chitin coverings that made them tough to fight. They were sent out on foot, covering the forest floor as scouts. Luckily, they weren't great climbers, in comparison, and didn’t concern themselves with the treetops, so avoiding them wasn't a problem.
I made it to the minotaur's cave. To my surprise though, it was completely absent. I was weary of going inside, so instead I took the opportunity to start laying down traps set with magic. Three pressure-activated lightning runes. I couldn't make them strong enough to completely stun the monster, but they would still give me that little bit of an edge.
After that, I waited in a nearby tree, with one of the traps right underneath me just in case. I was a light sleeper, and this particular monster wasn't exactly the quiet type, so I went ahead and did my best to get some rest.
If somehow I happened to be wrong, and the beast wasn't living in the cave, I would just grab the herbs after a while and leave. If I rushed into the cave though, and it returned before I got out, it was game over. No matter how long I waited it was a gamble, so it was better to just forget about it. Besides, I had a double promotion resting on whether or not I killed it.
My heart pounded through my body with anticipation, even with my eyes closed it was the only thing I could hear. My mouth had become dry and every muscle in my body felt the need to contract. ‘Well… Resting is out.’ Eventually I just sat up again, choosing instead to just wait, watching my surroundings closely.
A few hours passed and my nerves started to get to me. My mana had filled back to full, so I laid a couple more traps and that put me more at ease. ‘With this many, I might not even have to fight it.’ It was wishful thinking, I knew that. But in a perfect world, the minotaur would just die from spider venom, trudging back and succumbing to wounds from the other monsters… Of course that was even more unlikely.
I took another swig of the special brew and climbed back into the tree, once again waiting. Eventually even my nerves died down as I started to think back to when I was 8, hunting dear with my dad for the first time. I could practically hear his voice as the memory played through my mind.
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“Good things come to those who wait.” He said.
“But dad, moma always says the early bird gets the worm.”
“In this case though, we don’t want to catch the worm, we want to catch the bird, so we have to wait for the bird to catch the worm.”
“Dad… Were hunting dear.”
A loud stomp shook the trees snapping me from my almost trance-like state. ‘It’s here.’ Finally, the minotaur showed its face. Shaking trees made it easy to find while it dragged a giant spider and a Warg behind it in one hand.
‘Guess it caught dinner… No signs it got hurt doing so…’
As it walked it triggered one of my traps, and while the jolt put it on edge, I didn't leap into action. Perhaps it was because of how long I waited for the fight, but once the beast was in my sight my head went completely blank. All of my nerves were gone, and my anxiousness along with it. ‘Back then you guided my hands as I shot arrows because you said they were safer. I wonder what you’d say about the way I fight now?’
I turned to look at the second trap that I was hoping it would walk over. The more the better, and if I could get it to hit all three, that would be when I struck. At least, that was my plan when I set them up. The other two traps I laid were mostly backup, or there to make sure I had an escape plan.
It finished making its way to the cave, dropping its prey just outside, but as it came into the clearing and became more easily visible I noticed something that wasn't originally a part of my plan... ‘It’s got a freaking greatsword!’
‘That's… not great…’ The irony of my thought was completely lost on me as I quickly tried to think of what that would change. Ultimately, It was too late to change the plan, in fact, my advantage was only dissipating.
The sharp electrical shock it received weakened it, but its sheer size meant it would quickly recover. ‘I'll just have to make do. Still, it's a lot easier to not get hit when your opponent's reach isn't three times longer than normal. No retreating and I'll be fine.’ In the heat of the moment, I completely threw away the very concept of running if things went south. I didn’t even realize it at the time, but that was when I decided I was going to win.
I took one last look, observing it, just to make sure I knew what I was getting into. It was easily 9 feet tall, had brown leathery skin, and was covered in long bushy hair that was so prickly it could puncture your skin, although admittedly it wasn't all that likely. Its horns were barbed and bladed, and its sword long and sharp. It was a monster that could kill with any part of its body.
I took another deep breath in and then let it out slowly, rolling my shoulders to make sure I was ready to throw accurately. ‘I didn’t get as much practice as I would have liked, but my target’s pretty big at least.’
At that moment I could have still turned back. I could have walked away. Lola had even told me that I was welcome to stay with her until the infestation had been dealt with and the forest became a safer palace. I never thought my decisions would have led me there, face to face with a bull that could easily be made a metaphor for death, but there I was.
I didn’t even give running away a single thought, much less a second one as I pulled out my spear and took aim. ‘No… Dad would have hated this.’