Chapter 13: Chapter 13: The Unavoidable Choice

Over Etveya's extensive woodland, the morning sun rose once more. Birds chirping, wild boar squeals and snorts, and even the squishy sounds of Green Slime herds leaping around were among the sounds the local monsters made to welcome the new morning.

As the gentle touch of the morning sun caressed his white but dirty and dry skin, Gideon slowly opened his eyes, but the dryness made it difficult. When he was finally able to open his eyes, he slowly moved his gaze around the place. He exhaled when he noticed that the wooden branch on his lap was still in the same position. However, his attention was diverted when he placed his right hand directly on his temple.

"I think I have a hangover," he said, licking his dry, cracked lips.

Despite his blurred vision, he attempted to stand up and check the markings he had left the night before. The first thing he noticed were the markings on the branch beneath him. There were scratches on the wooden branch. He shifted his swaying head toward the leaf he had cut in half and discovered it was still there. He was still in the same spot he had been the night before.

Gideon did not say anything about his findings and simply rubbed his palm against his brow. His body was swaying and eventually losing strength, the toll of dehydration finally kicking in. The thirst that no amount of Ilagina fruit could ever quench. His body finally spoke up, telling him that if he didn't drink water, he wouldn't live long.

As he climbed down, Gideon fought the heavy sensation in his body and smiled optimistically. When the Garavons nearby noticed Gideon's movement, they began to cackle and whoop. Their deafening war cries reverberated throughout the area.

Gideon simply waved his hand. "Yeah, good morning too," he murmured before coming to a halt in front of the campfire he had built the night before. His eyes narrowed as he placed his left hand on his hip and his right hand on the wooden branch. He remained staring at the campfire for a few seconds, his pupils moving to have a deep thought within him. But he didn't say anything, instead continuing his journey and walking away. "I'm thirsty; does anyone have orange juice?"

But all he got were synchronized chuckles from the Garavons on top of trees.

"Oh, right. I apologize for asking."

Gideon roamed the area, completely aware of what was happening to his body, with one goal in mind. He was fighting the dizziness and headache that were attacking him as he traveled through the dense trees and tall grasses. His body and mind were beginning to malfunction, impairing his focus and rationality.

His expression was unfazed by the evident difficulty he was in, or at least he pretended to be unfazed. He searched the long grasses with his wooden branch for any indications of danger. Finding a water supply, meanwhile, was not the primary problem; standing on top of a tree, he peered about and found a river nearby. It was because he was concerned about the river and the monsters that lived in it. The reason he was so hesitant to approach a body of water despite passing through several on his journey.

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"It appears it's clear," he assured himself, his gaze fixed on the nearby river. His hand was on his brow, covering his shaking eyes. Fear crept through his body as he put his hand down, tightening his grip on the wooden branch he was holding. "Yep, the choice is mine; either let myself die of dehydration or risk the possibility of dangerous creatures in that river." He remained silent as he watched the blue water flowing in the river; it was still too far away to hear the sound of the water flowing, but the reflecting ray of light was more than enough to entice any thirsty person to go in.

He nodded after resolving himself. "As quickly as possible."

He descended from the tree he was in and headed toward the river. As he approached the location, the sounds of the water became clearer and clearer, as did the sound of birds chirping hidden among the tree leaves. Gideon hugged himself as the gentle wind blew, looking around for danger. His grip on the wooden branch he was holding was as firm as it had ever been. Behind his calm exterior was great fear, as well as suppressed inner screams.

He poked his head out from the shade of the tree and followed the riverbank with his dizzy eyes, revealing his dry and dirty face, devoid of any traces of what it once was. The only thing visible in the area were short grasses and white stones scattered throughout. Except for the sound of water and birds nearby, the environment was serene. He exhaled several times before crouching and moving quickly and stealthily toward the river. Trying not to make any noise and completing his task as quickly as possible.

Rushing boulder by boulder, he checked his surroundings repeatedly until he reached the river bank. And he was greeted by familiar creatures, the almost transparent Slimes that inhabit the habitat. Gideon only looked at them briefly to confirm that the Slimes were the only creatures present, then approached the river with extreme caution, raising his guard to its highest level.

When he saw the water up close, his body finally let go and told Gideon about its condition. His shoulder gave way, and his vision became blurry. revealing that his body had been on the verge of collapsing all those times. He had almost lost his life, but was about to get the critical component he was missing.

He lowered his head and approached the water with his mouth, but his eyes were still wandering. His heart was racing and his instincts were raging, and he had forgotten to appreciate the burst of new strength that the river water had given him, replenishing his strength and intuition. He didn't have time to enjoy the water because his intuition was acting up.

And it was not incorrect...

The source of Gideon's apprehension about this body of water had decided to approach. Gideon couldn't see it because its scales gave it the ability to become invisible when submerged in water, a skill known as Crystalline Scale. This creature was a dangerous ambush predator that lived in bodies of water like rivers and ponds. The creature lunged at its prey, revealing massive fangs the size of a human hand that could easily kill a human in one strike. Gideon, however, saw the incoming sudden attack thanks to a long enough moment of visibility once removed from the water and its slow movement due to its massive body, and he managed to dodge the slow but forceful initial attack by simply letting his body fall to the stones on the river bank.

Gideon screamed in surprise at what had just appeared in front of him. Even in the midst of his distress, his movement was calculated, and he recovered from the shock and smashed his adversary's massive nose with his wooden branch, causing it to flinch for a brief moment, giving him much needed time to flee in the opposite direction.

The serpent, on the other hand, emerged from the river to pursue him, moving slowly but relentlessly. With a total length of six meters. It was covered in black, thick scales that could protect it from various attacks. Its black, massive, arrow-shaped head, which made up ten percent of its body, opened as it screeched, revealing its large, sharp upper fangs once more. Above its menacing green eyes were two long, red horns that reached the back of its head. One of the most prominent Etveya forest dwellers. The Black Ahaz.

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