Under the tangled web of branches, Ione's shadowy form inched forward, her muscles rippling beneath rust-colored bristles. Her cold gaze locked onto the unsuspecting boar rooting through the undergrowth ahead, oblivious to the predator watching from the shadows.
The creature grazed peacefully in a small clearing, its snout buried in a patch of wild grass. Rust-colored bristles caught the filtered sunlight that managed to pierce through the canopy above. It was large. Well-fed. Completely unaware.
Ione's fingers brushed the hilt of her sword. Her breathing had already slowed to near silence, each inhale measured .
The boar's ears pricked back suddenly
"?!"
its neck hairs bristling as it arched into a tense curve. Ione's breath caught in her throat, her muscles locking into stillness.
The boar's head swiveled, its gaze sweeping the surroundings searching for the source of whatever instinct had triggered its alarm. For a heartbeat, the boar was still, every muscle in its body coiled tight. Then its snout dipped back down, disappearing into the grass once more. The tension in its shoulders eased. It resumed grazing, though its ears remained slightly elevated still listening, still cautious.
Ione eased upward, the tree's rough bark scraping her back as she rose into a crouch. A measured breath escaped her lips as she peeked around the trunk, her gaze locking onto the boar's oblivious form. Still hidden behind the ancient oak, she shifted her weight carefully, her thumb slipping into the scabbard's mouth, ready to unleash the blade in one fluid motion.
As she inched forward, placing each foot softly against ground " Just a little closer...*
Her foot came down
SNAP.
The twig cracked beneath her foot like a gunshot in the still forest " Shit."
The word slipped out before she could stop it, her expression remaining blank even as frustration flared in her chest.
The boar's head snapped up, eyes flashing with animal panic. Its body exploded into motion—a blur of rust-colored fur that crashed through the underbrush and vanished into the deeper woods in seconds.
Tch.
Ione pressed her hand over her face, fingers covering her eyes as she let out a slow, controlled breath. "Ahh... another failure."
Her voice carried the weight of genuine frustration. Not at the lost hunt she didn't care about that. But at her own sloppiness. At the lack of control. At this body that still felt weak after nine years, still responded a fraction too slow, still lacked the muscle memory her mind insisted it should have.
She lowered her hand and stared at the spot where the boar had been. "Maybe I should just head back."
As Ione headed back through the forest, leaves brushed her hair and body as she continued walking along the familiar path. The afternoon light filtered through the canopy in golden shafts, painting the forest floor in patches of amber and shadow. She paused mid-step and stood still, something prickling at the edge of her awareness. Turning her body slowly, her eyes darted left to right and right to left, scanning the trees and undergrowth. *Hm.* Nothing visible, but the feeling persisted that uncanny sensation of being watched.
She continued on her path, though her hand drifted closer to her sword's hilt.
Behind Ione, perhaps twenty paces back, a foot appeared, softly crunching the leaves. Then another. And another.
Ione immediately whirled back, simultaneously unsheathing her sword in a silver arc of steel. Before her, spread in a loose semicircle, stood a pack of hyenas
seven in total, their spotted coats mottled brown and grey in the dappled light. They had been following her, waiting for the right moment.
Grrrr..
They sounded their warning in a rumbling chorus, saliva dripping from their mouths as they bared yellowed fangs. The largest one, scarred across its muzzle, stood at the center, clearly the pack leader.
Ione's eyes darted from right to left, scanning the area and counting her opponents as she chuckled softly. A pack this size was dangerous coordinated predators that worked together to bring down prey much larger than themselves. But the sound that escaped her lips wasn't fear. It was anticipation.
"This is quite dangerous "
She walked toward the hyenas with a slight grin on her face, each deliberate step making them back up as she advanced, their confident posture faltering. "I've never really had a real fight with this body," she said, almost conversationally, though her voice carried an edge of excitement. Since arriving in this world, every encounter had been either trivial or cut short. She slowly transitioned from walking to running, her speed building with each stride until she was at full sprint toward the hyenas, the grin widening on her face. "Shall I test it?"
The hyenas scattered and then converged, their hunting instincts kicking in as they moved to surround her from multiple angles