I stayed awake that night, my eyes large and wide as I stared out into the night, while my body was tense as I sat there hugging myself into a tight ball. Every little sound that came my way, I'd react in defense, which was very exhausting when doing it for six to seven long hours straight. By the time dawn came—which was when the light around my surroundings turned from a tinted gray to orangey, indicating that the sun was rising—I felt half dead.
Moving like a zombie and sporting a pair of panda eyes along with a pale complexion, I started packing up, putting the picnic blanket away, along with the purple crystal. I didn't think I'd need to display it toward the sky to indicate where my position was anymore, since it was now daylight.
Once done, I strapped Aria's magic bag over my shoulder and headed out of my shelter. Outside, I inhaled some fresh morning air into my lungs, closed my eyes, and did a few positive affirmations.
One, Felix and the team will safely and successfully rescue Aria and everyone else. Two, I will be found and taken back to camp safely. Three, my spirit must be high and my mind and body alert. With that, I opened my eyes again and nodded with determination.
After stretching my arms and legs to ease some of the tension from my body, which was very sore from the cramped position I had been in, I headed out.
I wandered around for bit, deliberating what I should do. Felix had told me last night that a team was on the way to get me, but was I supposed to stay put while I waited for them? I would assume that it'd take at least a couple of hours until they reached me, if they were to set off at the crack of dawn. That meant that I had a bit of time before they arrived. Hence, I decided to hunt around for a stream or river because I was thirsty as hell. After all, I had been dehydrated since last night, having finished drinking the last drop of the leftover juice from lunch.
Sometime later, I found myself trekking along a difficult path, and it wasn't long until I heard the trickling of water running in the distance. It had to be either a stream or a river, all right, which pleased me because it wasn't that far off from where I was supposed to be when the team arrived.
Glad that I found water to satisfy my thirst, I rushed along, trotting down the sloping hill and moving between trees and bushes. Then, just when I was about to reach the clearing, I came to a sudden halt, nearly falling flat on my face in the process. Once I managed to steady myself, I scurried over and hid behind a tree. With my heart racing, I peeked, and there in the distance by the river, I saw a vision in white saddling a beast of a tiger.
I sucked in my breath as my heart and mind raced.
Who is this person? Obviously, he wasn't that bastard of a prince who was hunting for me. But who was this man? And why was he here amidst the woods? Could he be one of the enemy? A comrade of that prince? And hounding after me?
Shit!
Fearing the worst possible scenario, I lowered myself so that I was even more hidden amongst the bushes. I pressed myself closer against the tree as I studied the man, using my lenses to zoom in on his person. After all, I needed to know what he looked like so that I could avoid any sort of confrontation with him if I happened upon him in the future.
Up close, I noticed the man had long, pale-blond hair that reached down to his back. He had it neatly tied at the nape of his long neck with an intricately designed hair ornament. Unfortunately, he had his face away from me so I couldn't see what he looked like. Though, I must admit that his tall, well-built body signified that he was a warrior like Felix and Caleb.
Unlike Felix and Caleb, who wore dark warrior garments, this man wore white with blue trimming. With such pale clothing, wouldn't he stand out and attract attention? Especially in the woods?
I shifted my gaze to the beast of a tiger and shivered in trepidation. It was massive, all right, and it had a pair of wings, too. Then I wondered if it was common to have winged beasts in this realm.
I shifted my attention back to the man, and instantly, I gasped and crouched even lower amongst the bushes. Oh God! He had shifted his attention toward my direction.
Shit! Did he catch sight of me?
"Who's there?" he commanded loudly, his voice deep.
Double shit! He did see me.
I silently screamed inside my head as I started crawling away using my hands and knees while my heart was racing. Suddenly, I heard the slight rustling of leaves, and I knew instinctively that the man and his beast were coming after me.
Shit! I hadn't been in this realm for three days yet, and I'd been chased three times already.
Sensing that the man was close by, I abandoned my slow, inconvenient crawling and hastily got on my feet. Then I started running like the devil was chasing after me. By this point, I must admit that I had gotten good with my sprinting, having been constantly chased, and I found that I was quite fast.
Thus, I zigzagged over the rough terrain of the woods like a pro, even though I was so exhausted and dehydrated. A few moments later, when I couldn't hear any rustling sound behind me, I thought I had lost the man and his beast, so I slowed down. But of course, I realized I'd made a mistake when I saw the man elegantly leaping from one tree branch to another, half flying in midair like a bloody hero in a Wuxia movie. And where is the beast tiger? It was nowhere to be found, but of course, I knew better.
Instantly, I heard a loud roar echoing across the woods, and I realized that it was right in front of me, intercepting my escape.
I racked my brain fast and decided to change direction. Thus, I switched my route to confuse both man and beast. But of course, they were smart-ass beings and altered their paths as well, coming right after me.
Suddenly, I heard a loud whistle. The winged tiger responded by spreading its wings and ascending toward the sky. A moment later, it came toward its master, and I saw the man gracefully and effortlessly leap high like he was flying and then straddle the beast in one swift move. In an instant, both master and beast were hovering right above me, and it wasn't long until I felt a strong arm wrap firmly about my middle.