The girl looked up and saw the figure riding the wyvern gradually recede. The sound of wings and the figure disappeared from Lualia's view behind the tree branches.
Looking down, the girl sighed. The half-elf's last words made her wonder who this wanderer Rikua was.
Scanning the forest, she tried to find traces of the hunters who had gone this way. During her time in the city, there were practically no traces left that she could follow.
Deciding to move on, Lualia carefully scrutinized the trees and ground. She could see the tracks of the forest dwellers.
She had no time for hunting or tracking prey for the city right now. Gripping her spear more comfortably and scanning for possible traces of other hunters, she occasionally came across spots where two hunters' tracks were visible.
Occasionally, she heard the forest dwellers nearby, but they didn't attack her. Heading toward the tree house, she didn't know what to expect.
The feeling that something had happened to this pair of hunters didn't leave her, but grew stronger.
Moving toward the tree house, she checked places where the hunters might have left their prey if they hadn't been able to carry it to the storage room in the house. She checked several places and, finding them empty, began moving even more cautiously.
The forest continued to live its life, ignoring Lualia. At that moment, she was glad that none of the forest's inhabitants decided to attack her.
On the way to the tree, thoughts of asking the half-elf for help crossed her mind, but Lualia pushed them away as soon as they appeared.
She didn't want to depend on the wishes of a half-elf she barely knew; she still remembered his words about Rikua being ready to spill the blood of the inhabitants of the city where she lived.
Approaching the tree, tormented by thoughts about the wisdom of her choice not to ask the half-elf for help, Lualia glanced at the tree that housed the hunters who hunted in this part of the forest.
The tree, like the one she had led the half-elf to, was tall and voluminous, concealing a house above behind its leaves.
Examining the tree for tracks, Lualia found only traces of the forest's inhabitants. After confirming that no one was near her, Lualia placed her spear against the tree and began climbing.
Once at the top, she carefully approached the house, listening carefully. No sounds reached her ears except the tree she was climbing.
After confirming that there were no sounds inside the house, she drew her dagger and slowly opened the door, prepared for a possible attack.
After opening the door fully and confirming that the shelter was empty, Lualia allowed herself to relax slightly, her gaze moving across the floor and storage room.
It was clear that no one had entered or used the house in a long time. Looking up at the sky and confirming that the day was still open, she descended.
As a hunter, she knew where other hunters preferred to hunt and who they hunted. Raising her spear and heading toward one of the spots, she continued to peer into the grass and trees, hoping to find any trace of other hunters.
Her thoughts returned to the house and the fact that there was no sign of the hunters who had returned there after the first day of hunting with their prey. Had something happened to them once they had gone their separate ways?
If they hadn't dealt with the forest's inhabitants, why hadn't the other groups returned? They were all experienced hunters, except for Philo, who had recently joined them.
Heading away from the area where two hunters might be hunting in this part of the forest, Lualia felt a tension rise within her, not knowing what had happened to the hunters.
Clutching the spear in her fingers and feeling the wood dig into her hands, the girl felt herself calming down.
She remembered Namil's instructions about not letting oneself slip when hunting. Smiling at the memory of her mentor, the girl glanced at one of the trees that lay along the path to the hunting spot where two hunters who were heading into this part of the forest might be hunting, and saw a small cut running along the tree.
Putting aside the memory of her mentor, Lualia listened warily to the forest, trying to peer into the trees for the possibility of animals or monsters.
Crouching down and scanning the bushes, her gaze fell on the grass that stretched toward the girl's tree; it was clear that someone had stepped on it.
Squinting and looking at other grass nearby, she saw that it was also flattened. Looking back and forth between the unflattened grass, she noticed the difference. Running her hand over the flattened grass, she saw that it was not a forest dweller who had stepped on the ground.
Looking at another patch of ground where the grass was also flattened, the girl shifted her gaze from one spot to another. Examining the nearby bushes, she saw small branches pressed more closely against the bush than the others.
Looking up, trying to make sure no one was nearby, the girl stood up, hunched her shoulders, and leaned forward, stepping on the flattened grass.
Looking at the distance between her feet, she concluded that hunters had indeed passed here. Cautiously approaching the tree, occasionally stopping and listening to the nearby bushes and trees, wary of the appearance of forest dwellers, Lualia examined the cut on the tree that extended from the middle of the tree upwards.
Placing her hand on the cut, tilting her head and running her fingers over it, her expression became wary and apprehensive.
She could tell the cut had been made by some kind of weapon, definitely not by the claws and teeth of forest dwellers.
She felt a rising sense of anxiety, but ignoring it, she began examining the tree and the grass nearby, hoping to find some tracks. Just when she thought she'd find nothing, she spotted a small red drop on the ground.
Examining it and running her finger near it, she realized it had fallen there a long time ago. Concern began to creep in, and casting quick glances away from the drop, she saw other tracks that were different from the first ones she'd seen.
Turning back and glancing at the tracks, she concluded that the hunters were fleeing from someone since they hadn't tried to cover their tracks.
Continuing to follow the tracks and the increasingly numerous drops of blood, the girl saw more obvious traces: some trees were missing branches or parts of their leaves. Reaching a small clearing, she saw the tracks diverging, one leading left and the other right.
Looking at the ground nearby, Lualia saw tracks following those running. She was at a loss to guess whether the hunters were pursuing whom, or vice versa.
Wondering which trail to follow first, the girl felt her anxiety rising. Clutching her spear and trying to move cautiously, she followed the tracks to the right.
Looking at the tracks and the blood, she saw that the one fleeing was seriously wounded, and she doubted that whoever it was had escaped far from their pursuers.
She could see the first tracks were beginning to lead back into the forest. Blood was visible on some leaves.
As she approached them, she saw that the blood had stopped flowing and had become dark, confirming that what had happened had not happened just now. Looking at the other tracks, she saw that they followed the first.
Continuing on, Lualia saw further, heavily trampled grass. Trying to push away the thoughts that had begun to form in her head and not get lost in them, she began to approach the place where the grass was more heavily trampled.
As she approached, she smelled something rotting and decaying. Looking in different directions, wanting to make sure no one was nearby, she cautiously approached the trampled grass.
Before her eyes lay a torn body, parts of arms and legs missing, as was the skin on the dead man's face. Fighting the urge to leave the corpse and ignoring her sweating hands, the girl crouched down next to the body, examining its clothes.
Looking at the clothes, the body, and the wounds on it, she realized that before her lay one of the hunters who had gone hunting with her.
She could see that the forest dwellers had already worked on the hunter's body. Examining the wounds, she could see cuts and weapon marks running across the body.
Rising from the ground and glancing at the body, the girl headed toward the other tracks. Heading back, she hoped the other hunter had been lucky enough to escape the bandits pursuing them.
She was tormented by the incomprehension of how the bandits knew when the hunters would be here.
Were they watching the city and waiting for them to emerge? Why then didn't they attack her when she entered the forest, catching herself doing so?