The forest was a labyrinth of green and gray shades.
Julie walked a few steps behind Daniel, keeping her breathing steady while constantly watching the bushes and the shadows cast by the dense canopy overhead.
Her head moved from side to side, alert for any strange movement among the vegetation.
Daniel, on the other hand, moved forward with the ease of someone strolling through a flower-filled park on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
The contrast between them was almost comical.
"How do you know where we're going? All these trees look the same."
"The markings." Daniel pointed to a small V-shaped notch carved near the base of a trunk.
"I always mark them at knee height or lower. Most people look for signs at eye level. Nobody looks down unless they trip."
Julie nodded, absorbing the information as she examined the tiny mark she probably never would have noticed on her own.
The two resumed walking, venturing deeper and deeper into the woods.
Eventually, Daniel stopped in a small clearing. "I think this is far enough."
Julie surveyed the area, frowning slightly as she searched for signs of hidden traps.
"I don't see any traps. And considering your last explanation, I already checked the whole area."
"There aren't any here." Daniel stepped toward her, and the amused expression vanished from his face. "We stopped because I'm going to teach you how to shoot."
"Shoot?"
"Exactly." He raised his right hand, and the matte black Glock materialized in his palm.
Julie's eyes immediately locked onto the gun. There was interest there, but also caution.
To her, the pistol represented protection and danger in equal measure.
Daniel removed the magazine and handed it to her first. "Ammunition. You need to learn how to load it before you ever need to use it."
He placed the magazine in her hand and adjusted her fingers until they found the proper angle.
"Insert it here. Feel the click?"
Julie tried. The first attempt went in crooked.
"Again."
She took a deep breath and repeated the motion. This time, the sharp click echoed clearly.
"Better." Holding the pistol by the slide, Daniel extended the grip toward her.
Julie hesitated for a moment before wrapping her hand around it.
The weight of the metal caught her off guard, forcing her to use both hands to steady the weapon.
"It's heavy," she admitted, keeping her eyes fixed on it as though she were holding a snake ready to strike.
"That's because there are eighteen rounds in there ready to ruin somebody's day." Daniel positioned himself behind her.
The closeness of his body brought a strange sense of security, and Julie noticed her shoulders relaxing almost involuntarily.
"First rule. Keep your finger off the trigger until you've decided to shoot something." His voice was calm near her ear.
He guided her index finger, keeping it extended along the side of the frame.
Then he covered her hands with his and corrected her grip.
"Put most of the weight on your left hand. The right hand guides the gun and pulls the trigger."
Julie nodded, focusing on the instructions.
"The Glock was designed to be simple," Daniel continued. "Magazine here, sights here, and don't touch this until it's time. If you remember those three things, you're already ahead of a lot of people."
Despite trying to concentrate, Julie felt a faint tingling sensation caused by his proximity. Daniel was an alarmingly effective distraction.
"Aim at that dead tree with the red fungus." He pointed toward a rotting trunk about ten meters away.
"Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly. When your lungs are almost empty, squeeze the trigger."
Julie followed every step carefully.
She inhaled the scent of damp earth and vegetation, exhaled slowly, and aligned the sights.
Her heart hammered against her throat when she finally fired.
BANG!
The shot tore through the forest's quiet.
The recoil pushed her hands upward, but Daniel had already anticipated it and absorbed part of the impact while stabilizing her arms.
The bark exploded into a spray of splinters just a few centimeters from the red fungus.
"Close your mouth before you swallow a mosquito."
Daniel's amused voice made her realize she had been staring at the target with her lips parted.
"For a first shot, you were terrible. But the tree isn't going anywhere, so try again."
The comment earned an irritated huff from her, dissipating some of the tension that had built up.
"Idiot."
"Criticism accepted. Now shoot again."
Julie adjusted her stance and took aim once more.
Over the next few minutes, the silence of the woods was interrupted by spaced-out gunshots.
With each attempt, Daniel corrected small details, adjusted her arm position, or made some sarcastic comment about her aim.
Gradually, her shots moved closer to the center of the improvised target, and her initial insecurity gave way to growing confidence.
When they finally finished, the side of the trunk was covered in impacts and chunks of torn wood.
"Not bad for a city girl," Daniel said as he retrieved the Glock. "Now let's find out whether the traps caught anything."
They resumed walking, pushing even deeper into the dense vegetation.
The sound of leaves crunching beneath their feet and the constant whisper of wind through the branches were practically the only noises around them.
Then a sharp, desperate squeal cut through the forest.
"Oink! Oink! Oiiink!"
Daniel's lips curled into a small smile. "Sounds like something tripped over the wrong wire. You got lucky today, shorty."
They quickened their pace and soon reached a narrow clearing.
At its center, a large pig covered in patches of dried mud struggled violently.
One of its hind legs had been caught in one of the traps, leaving the animal partially suspended as it desperately tried to free itself.
The sight hit Julie immediately.
All the excitement from the shooting lesson vanished.
She folded her arms close to her body and looked away for a moment, unable to ignore the animal's suffering.
"It looks like it's in a lot of pain."
Daniel watched the pig for a few seconds before drawing his knife. "It'll be quick."
The answer carried no cruelty, but no hesitation either. It was simply a fact.
"Do you really have to kill it?" The question slipped out before Julie could reconsider.
"You already killed that bull today. We..." She paused briefly, searching for the right words. "I mean... we have enough food, don't we?"
Daniel stopped moving and partially turned his head toward her.
Her expression was sincere. There was no judgment in it. Only discomfort.
For a moment, he could have simply made up a convenient excuse. It would have been easy.
But lying to Julie had never seemed as simple as lying to the rest of the world.
"I do." His voice was firm. "And afterward, I promise I'll explain why."
Julie maintained eye contact. She still didn't understand.
Even so, after everything they had been through together, the trust she felt in him outweighed her doubts.
Eventually, she nodded reluctantly.
Without prolonging the animal's suffering, Daniel stepped forward. It was over in an instant.
Little by little, the sounds of the forest returned to fill the void left behind by the pig's squeals.
He sheathed the knife and pulled a canvas bag from his Inventory. "Help me with this."
A bundle of fiberglass poles dropped at Julie's feet.
She blinked several times. "Why are we pitching a tent over a dead pig?"
"Privacy." The dry answer came while he was already fitting the poles together.
Julie stared at him for a moment longer. The explanation clarified absolutely nothing.
Still, she remembered the promise he had made only minutes ago and decided not to press the issue.
Together, they finished assembling the small tent.
Once the fabric was fully stretched and the carcass disappeared beneath the waterproof cover, Daniel entered alone and immediately zipped it shut behind him.
Then he hung the talisman.
As soon as he was isolated, thick black mist erupted from his left forearm, spreading through the interior of the tent like a living creature.
Within seconds, the dark mass completely engulfed the carcass.
[Reward: 500 Silver Coins. 2 Attribute Points. 3 Skill Points.]
Daniel checked his current balance. 4,910 Silver Coins. Almost there.
A feeling of satisfaction spread through his chest.
The five thousand coins he needed were practically within reach.
A short while later, the zipper opened again.
"We can take it down."
Julie began removing the poles. When the tent was finally dismantled and revealed the clean ground beneath, she wasn't surprised.
She assumed Daniel had simply placed the body into his Inventory, but that only made her even more curious.
After all, he had no problem making the Glock appear and disappear right in front of her.
So why had he needed to hide whatever happened to the pig?
She hoped she would get her answers soon.
The journey back turned into a second lesson.
As they moved through the forest, Daniel began teaching her the basics of tracking and stealth.
"Whenever you're approaching an animal, place the front of your foot down first and shift your weight gradually," he explained quietly, demonstrating the technique. "If you lead with your heel, you'll snap twigs and announce your presence to anything nearby."
Julie repeated the motion with complete focus.
At any other point in her life, learning how to move silently through the forest like an assassin would have seemed completely absurd.
But because it was Daniel teaching her, she absorbed every detail seriously.
"Let's pick up the pace a little." He glanced upward through the gaps in the canopy.
The blue sky was already giving way to increasingly darker shades of orange.
"It'll be dark soon. If you take too long, your parents are going to come into the forest carrying torches and pitchforks looking for you."
"They wouldn't do that."
Daniel merely gave her a meaningful look.
"Okay. They would absolutely do that." Julie grimaced.
When they finally emerged from the woods, Tabitha was already pacing back and forth behind Colony House.
The moment she spotted them, her shoulders relaxed and she released the breath trapped in her lungs.
"Not a single scratch," Daniel announced, making an overly theatrical presenting gesture.
"Thank God..." The whisper escaped Tabitha's lips as she carefully examined her daughter.
They headed toward the front of the house.
The wooden structure Jim had designed was finally complete.
Near its base, Jim was talking with two residents while others were still gathering tools scattered across the lawn.
As soon as he noticed them approaching, he raised a hand in a brief wave.
"Alright, everyone, we're done for today," he announced loudly to those still working. "Tomorrow we'll put it on top of the house."
A murmur of satisfaction spread through the group.
Some smiled. Others exchanged hopeful looks.
For people trapped in that place for months or years, any possibility of contacting the outside world was worth more than gold.
Daniel watched the scene for a few seconds. Hope was expensive fuel.
And those people were burning their entire supply on a tower that didn't even have a guaranteed power source yet.
Regardless, he said nothing.
A little later, he gave the Matthews family a ride back to town.
When they arrived, Daniel parked the motorhome beside the house Boyd had assigned to them.
Just like the day before, everyone took the opportunity to shower inside the vehicle.
They only returned to the house after Daniel assured them he had no intention of going out to hunt any creatures that night.
…
Later, Jim sat at the kitchen table with a cup of cold tea forgotten between his hands.
He couldn't even remember when he had stopped drinking it.
His brow was furrowed in that familiar way that always appeared whenever he was trying to process something he would rather not process.
Tabitha stepped out of the room where Ethan was playing the video game Daniel had lent him.
One quick glance was enough to tell that something was weighing on her husband's mind. "Something wrong?"
Jim let out a slow sigh. "Have you talked to Julie?" The question came with unusual hesitation. "About her and Daniel... if they've already..."
The words died in his throat.
Jim wasn't an idiot. He had noticed the change in his daughter's behavior.
And above all, he wasn't blind.
The purplish mark on the right side of Daniel's neck was practically a walking confession, made even worse by the fact that the kid wasn't even trying to hide it.
Tabitha sat down at the table. She had been expecting this conversation since the day before.
"Yes," she answered directly. "I talked to her."
Jim nodded slowly. The confirmation wasn't exactly a surprise.
Even so, hearing it out loud made everything feel more real.
"Did they use protection?" The question was almost inaudible.
It was the kind of thing a father needed to know, even when he would rather not imagine the answer.
"They did." Tabitha rested her arms on the table. "And I also made it clear that if she ever felt pressured into doing something she didn't want to do, she should tell us immediately."
Jim remained silent for a few seconds. His gaze drifted toward the ceiling.
The concern was still there. But slowly, the tension eased.
Eventually, he released a long sigh and let the subject die.
Not because he was completely comfortable with the situation.
Only because he knew there wasn't much else he could do.
...
"You're sure you're going through with this?" Donna watched Boyd, who had just finished checking on Ellis.
"Absolutely. Everything's already prepared."
"And the body?" She crossed her arms. "What's left of that burned bastard?"
"I buried it right after lunch."
Donna was silent for a moment.
"Be careful, Boyd."
The sheriff simply nodded.
A short while later, he left Colony House behind and started walking through the center of town.
As he made his way down the main street, he rang the bell announcing curfew.
Kenny stepped out of the diner and approached him. "I'm coming with you."
"You don't need to." Boyd kept walking.
"You can't do this alone—"
"Khatri's coming with me." The sheriff cut him off and finally turned around. "Your parents need you here."
The mention of his parents was enough. Kenny closed his mouth.
Even though he didn't like the decision, he knew Boyd was right.
After a few seconds, he reluctantly agreed and stayed behind, watching the sheriff continue on his way.
Father Khatri's house was lit when Boyd passed by. The door opened before he even had the chance to knock.
As if the ringing bell had already served as a warning.
Khatri emerged wearing a heavy coat and carrying a lantern.
Without wasting unnecessary words, he joined Boyd on the sidewalk.
The two continued onward.
When they finally entered the shed, they closed the door behind them.
The cracks in the wooden walls allowed only thin beams of orange evening light to filter inside.
There, protected from curious eyes, they reviewed the plan one last time.
Boyd explained positions, escape routes, and the exact sequence he intended to follow once night fell.
Khatri listened attentively.
When the full moon had fully claimed the sky, Boyd approached the wall and peeked through one of the gaps.
"Ready?" he asked, keeping one hand on the door.
Beside him, Father Khatri took a deep breath and grabbed one of the bottles. "May God protect us."
Boyd didn't answer. With a sharp movement, he unlocked the door and pulled it open.
"Hey! You bastards! Get over here!"
Then he snatched one of the bottles from Khatri's hands and stood, waiting.
The response was swift. First, there was movement in the darkness. Then came the silhouettes.
Figures slowly emerged from the shadows beyond the tree line, walking without the slightest sense of urgency.
Boyd and Khatri split their attention between the front and the sides of the shed.
Neither intended to be caught off guard by a flanking approach.
As the creatures drew closer, the moonlight began to reveal their faces.
"That's right..." Boyd taunted as he pulled a lighter from his pocket. "Come over here."
A small flame illuminated his fingers for a brief moment.
The instant he touched the fire to the bottle's rag fuse, something immediately changed in the creatures' posture.
Every single one of them stopped. There was no hesitation. No confusion.
None of them looked surprised by the sight of fire.
On the contrary.
The reaction was so fast and coordinated that Boyd felt an unpleasant knot form in his stomach.
The creatures began to spread out.
Slowly, they moved sideways until they formed a wide semicircle in front of the shed.
They maintained a careful, calculated distance.
Close enough to keep applying pressure. Far enough to avoid any risk.
As they did so, their smiles remained exactly the same, as though they were watching a particularly entertaining performance.
"Damn it." The word slipped through Boyd's clenched teeth.
Without waiting any longer, he twisted his body and hurled the bottle with all his strength.
The Molotov sailed across the grass in an unstable arc, but the distance was too great.
The weight of the liquid dragged the trajectory downward, and the bottle shattered on the ground nearly two meters short of the nearest creature.
Flames erupted outward, spreading orange light and creating a wall of fire that ultimately hit none of the monsters.
And that was when Boyd realized something even worse.
While the creatures positioned in the center continued watching the fire, those standing at the edges of the semicircle began advancing.
Boyd grabbed another bottle.
Before he could even light it, the monsters that were moving forward stopped at the same moment.
Then, just as suddenly, they retreated a few meters and resumed their original positions.
The coordination was so perfect that Boyd and Khatri froze.
Then one figure stepped forward.
Smiley.
Under the silver moonlight, his grin looked even more disturbing than usual.
He tilted his head slightly, studying Boyd the same way someone might watch a person struggling to solve a simple puzzle.
"I like this game, Boyd."
At that moment, the sheriff understood exactly what had happened.
The trap hadn't failed because the creatures were afraid of fire.
It had failed because they immediately understood how the plan worked.
And the worst part was that, looking at those smiling faces beneath the moonlight, Boyd had the unmistakable feeling that the monsters weren't merely reacting to humanity's attempt to fight back.
They were having fun.
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