The tiger was nowhere in sight, and its growl could no longer be heard.
And now, he set off towards a new direction.
With each step he took, his journey throughout the unfamiliar betrayed not a sliver of doubt. With each step he took, he continued to run with purpose.
"Tch... (I'm close). "
As he continued running, his movements slightly veered to the right, as if he were sprinting within a curved track.
Maybe he was avoiding all those rat-like monsters he saw in the corner of his eye. Or the stench of death from the many trees that violated his synapses. Maybe he was going out of his way to stomp out those vile bug-like monsters before they caused any trouble.
"Cough... Cough... this place is terrible..."
He knew his words were an understatement, but he found no point in correcting himself.
After all, he was almost there.
"Come home to— Ah~ shit...."
It was going to take a bit longer than that.
*****
"Heh..."
Regardless, it was no time for him to be laughing.
He couldn't help but halt his steps when all his focus fell on the bush up ahead.
Grrr...
Even when he had taken such a detour, the darn tiger still found its way towards him. Just when he was so close, the tiger stood in his way once more.
Grrr...
He was fozen in place, yet the tiger slowly advanced towards him.
As he took a huge gulp of nothing and let a puddle of sweat collect on his bloody forehead, he shuffled his feet, unsure of what stance to take.
(Damn it, am I gonna keep him running from this furball forever?!!!)
He was getting tired of the endless running.
Sure, he managed to survive an onslaught of violence from 5 vile monsters, but he wasn't on an equal level as the tiger before him. He was a mere human, after all.
In this moment where outside variables were stripped off of the standoff between them, his physical prowess held no value to him.
Not even the items in his funny pack could help him.
He was out of options.
(Im tired of running. I'm low on stamina.)
He truly had no more options.
(Im tired of running!)
So he gritted his teeth.
And the tiger bared its fangs.
And they both made a choice.
*****
As the tiger pushed against the ground, it dashed towards Yohan.
Even if its vision were dyed red, it could see its prey as clear as day, and it was not willing to let it go.
Even if it meant tearing its legs in pursuit of him, the tiger wouldn't dare falter.
So it sprinted, like an arrow hugging the ground.
This time, it was sure of it.
That boy would never outrun it EVER AGAIN.
"..."
That boy was good as dead now...
... THUD!
As the tiger approached the boy, the sound of something being planted on the ground sounded throughout.
And soon more, and more, in fine rhythm, echoed the forest. With each thud, they got closer and closer.
No.
Rather...
" ...haaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!"
That boy was approaching the tiger without a hint of hesitation hesitation.
Skr...
That was the roar of the tigers claws scratching against the dirt. After being flustered by this new sight, it moved to dampen its momentum.
The tiger had been attacked a few times by the boy, but this was a new thing for it.
Was its prey fighting back for once?
Were the tables finally turned?
Grrr....
The tiger felt it in its gut.
That it should deny this foolish boys notion.
For as long as hunger remained in this tigers soul...
"GRAWR!"
...It wouldn't stop hunting its prey.
*****
...Vwoosh...
Only the sound of the air being sliced echoed in that moment.
Not a groan.
Not a splat.
All that remained was the tiger.
And Yohan, who stood centimeters away from those deadly claws. Yet he remained calm, never slowing his momentum.
"...I should've known you'd keep missing."
And that's why he did the unthinkable.
"Woooh!"
He jumped onto the tigers head.
"—Grawr!!"
And then... he used it as a foothold to jump even higher¿
Towards what?
"...Gotcha!!!"
Onto the edge of a trees bark, he grasped it tightly with his one hand. He could feel the slightly rough texture and its short length. He could feel how cold it got since the last time he held it. And even though it was partly, his eyes could not fail to discern the silver luster it had.
And even after so long, his grip on it hadn't faltered.
"Let's go, my beloved... Huh?"
His grip had faltered.
From the tug of his hand, he still hadn't pulled it out from within the wound of the tree.
Scratch Scratch.
Even when he pulled with the strength of his legs, it wouldn't budge.
But he had to keep pulling. He had to hope it would eventually come out. He needed it to come out. He needed to help him one more time. Like always.
Drip. Drip.
(Fucking hell...)
As he felt a liquid fall onto his shoe, he looked along the trail it left behind, and back to the wound, where he found—
"Fucking glue?!"
Something white and sticky that leaked out from the wound of the tree. This liquid didn't smell like your average glue, but it seemed to be stuck to his—
"Oh my word, I'm cooked!"
He acknowledged the peculiarity of the plants and the animals of this world, but he had never prepared for this. And that's why no solution came to mind.
So all he did was pull and pull. He put all of his body into pulling it out, yet it was to no avail.
"... grrrrrr..."
Yet he still continued to pull.
Had he not considered how much he might have?
Had he not considered to see if the coast was clear?
Was he so blinded by the hope his—
"GRAWWWWR!"
*****
One more leap.
After the tiger had starved for so long, it took one more leap.
Its prey was finally vulnerable.
Its prey had finally surrendered himself to it.
The tigers excitement was not meer.
It didn't hesitate to jump.
Finally, after this long game of cat and mouse...
After falling over with him.
After waking up in a familiar yet unknown place.
And after searching for so long.
Finally, it was over.
And for that tiger, itadakima—
"Hrrk!"
For some reason, the tigers vision tilted sideways.
Next, it saw the grass.
It laid down after something brought it there.
It only recalled a blur.
A blur of brown.
A blur of brown that carried a musty odor.
It had knocked the tiger down.
"Grrrr..."
The tiger was utterly confused.
It was sure it had the boy in its grasp.
Maybe it could try again.
It surely could stand up again?
"Finally."
It heard a soft woosh that cut through the air.
But it still stood again.
The tiger could still reach the boy and devour him once and for all.
"Let's go..."
It saw the glint in his eyes.
And it saw the silver shine of...
"... my beloved knife!"
There went the tigers' chance.
*****
Thud.
Not a sound of blood splattering could be heard. Not a drop of blood flew in the air. The sound of its skull cracking fell on deaf ears.
One clean cut. That was all it took to put that tiger to rest. Permanently.
"Pa... hah... hah..."
Which each breath he exhaled, the pull of his fatigue crept onto him.
He was weak. He had only one hand to his use. Yet he managed to put all his strength into a single lethal strike. How he did was a mystery, but his survival mattered more than some trivial physics.
Splat!
Even when he pulled out his knife, that blood did not come from the tiger.
That was his own, which had slightly sprayed out of his huge wound. That wound was evidence of his own weakness.
Proof that he could die at any moment.
"Cough! Cough!"
Even so, though he was severely weaker since their last encounter, he had still managed to turn his situation around and overpower the hungry tiger.
Perhaps he was lucky.
No, he didn't believe that. If he was truly lucky, he wouldn't have ended up here in the first place.
So what could he believe in? His own strength?
Obviously not.
"... Na'ish!"
"....."
(What was that?)
He wished that he had been hearing things.
But when he saw someone at the edge of his vision, he shuddered with an even greater panic.
That's when he saw it.
That's when he smelled it.
That's when he heard it.
The ominously brown fur, that musty scent, that weird tone.
"Na'ish!"
That was a monster.
(Not again!)
"... Nice!!"