The blue sea and clear sky stretched above.
Since the few spring showers earlier in the season, not a single drop of rain had fallen, and now it was already May.
The snowmelt collected over the winter had long been used up during spring planting. Now, the ponds and rivers had completely dried up. All that remained were holes of various sizes dug by the villagers to try and store what little water they could.
The once lush, green rice plants that hadn't yet reached maturity were already turning yellow. Anyone who understood farming would know that this was clearly caused by a lack of water.
The mountain range stretched endlessly. Thankfully, the mountains still gave the local people a slim chance of survival.
Men and women, young and old, traveled together into the mountains, carrying baskets, searching for anything edible, just to survive.
The braver young men had formed small teams, armed with knives, guns, and sticks, heading deeper into the forest to try their luck hunting large animals.
Occasionally, gunshots echoed through the mountains, followed by excited voices.
A wolf's howl came from not far away.
The group of young hunters who had just caught a wild boar instantly tensed. Their faces changed, and they all looked toward the direction of the sound.
Wolves were smart and dangerous, especially when hunting in packs. Once they had locked onto prey, it was almost impossible to escape.
Some of the younger men turned pale, their legs shaking uncontrollably.
One of them, a sturdy young man, gripped his hunting knife tightly. He looked at another man with a serious face and called out.
Aaron frowned slightly. He hadn't expected the wolf pack to be so close. If the wolves came near, he wouldn't be able to protect everyone. If something happened, he wouldn't be able to explain it to their families.
"You take the prey and leave first. I'll cover the back," Aaron said.
"Big brother, I'll stay and help. The rest of you take the boar and go."
"I said go. Don't argue. The more who stay, the more danger there is. I'll have to protect you too. Leave now," Aaron said coldly.
Jacob looked at Aaron, bit his lip, and nodded hard. He understood that hesitation would only bring more danger.
He knew what Aaron was capable of. When they were kids, Aaron could take down over ten boys his size in a fight.
And since returning from the army this spring, when the village upstream blocked the river, Aaron stood there alone and held them off. If things had escalated, someone would've been seriously hurt, if not worse.
"Big brother, be careful," Jacob said.
Aaron nodded without expression.
The group of young men exchanged glances, lifted the wild boar, and rushed down the mountain as fast as they could.
Aaron slung the hunting rifle over his back, gripped his knife, and his whole presence changed. He looked like someone who had climbed out from hell.
He swung his knife a few times in the air. Instead of waiting for the wolves, he prepared to attack first.
Because in his world, there was no such thing as passive defense.
Judging by the sounds, Aaron guessed there were about thirteen or fourteen wolves.
Now that they had killed a wild boar, if he didn't take the initiative, the wolves would follow the scent of blood and catch up with Jacob and the others. No matter how well he protected them, at least one or two people would die, and the rest would definitely be injured.
He had no choice but to hold the wolves back.
Listening carefully to the direction of the howls, Aaron dashed forward quickly.
Stella let out a long breath. Her face was pale, and her body was covered in blood. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. There was a large hole in her chest, and her heart was clearly gone.
Strangely though, the flesh around her wound was slowly healing.
She looked up at the blue sky, completely ignoring the wolves surrounding her. Her eyes were full of memories.
"Am I dead?" Stella murmured.
She looked down at the wolves crouched nearby, ready to pounce. She smiled faintly. How nice. This must be death. Otherwise, how could she be seeing regular wolves, not mutated ones?
She breathed in deeply, taking in the fresh scent of grass and trees. It was just like she remembered. So peaceful.
She leaned against a tree, resting her head on the trunk. She closed her eyes with a smile, as if ready to die.
"Mom, Dad. I've always listened to you. I've always tried to live well. But this time, I'm going to break that promise. I'm coming to you," she whispered.
"Move!" Aaron shouted.
He raised his rifle and fired at three wolves leaping toward Stella.
The wolves howled in pain.
The wolf leader growled loudly in anger.
Four more wolves charged at Aaron.
Two wolves bit Stella's arm with all their strength. But then their eyes filled with confusion. They let go and yelped in
This wasn't heaven.
She was still alive.
The man in front of her was just an ordinary man.
Stella's lips curved into a bitter smile. People who don't want to die usually don't live long, yet someone like her who wanted to die couldn't seem to die. It was ironic. She looked around and took a deep breath.
She understood where she was now.
She had heard that in the capital, there were still unevolved people being raised like animals in the mountains by spoiled rich kids. When they were bored, they would throw people into the mountain and let those unevolved creatures hunt them for fun.
The man in front of her was wearing coarse linen clothes and straw sandals. He was clearly not one of the rich. He was probably a captive left in this mountain. Otherwise, why would he be dressed like that?
Not everyone could evolve. Even in powerful families, there were always children who couldn't evolve.
Those children often grew up with twisted minds.
"I told you to get up in the tree. Didn't you hear me? I can't protect you alone," Aaron shouted coldly.
Stella looked at him and smiled faintly. In all the years she had lived, she had seen countless people and all kinds of filth in humanity.
But she didn't expect that here, in a person caged like an animal, someone who could become prey at any time, she would see real humanity.
She lowered her head and looked at her clothes. Her armor was torn and falling apart.
He must have mistaken her for another victim thrown into this place.
A wolf howled in the distance.
Four wild wolves suddenly rushed at Aaron.
One man fighting four wolves. He was quickly surrounded.
The man moved swiftly, clearly used to situations like this. He grabbed a thick branch and swung it hard. One wolf was hit in the head and whimpered in pain. The other three leapt at him. He dodged one, kicked another, and blocked the third with the branch.
But there were too many of them.
His movements slowed down, and a wolf bit his leg.
He groaned and hit the wolf's head again. Blood flowed down his leg, but he didn't stop. He turned, pushed one wolf aside, and grabbed another branch from the ground.
The wolves were too fast and too many.
Stella stood on the tree, her eyes cold. If she helped, she would reveal her abilities. But watching someone like this die without doing anything made her feel disgusted.
She jumped down without hesitation.
The moment her feet touched the ground, a wolf charged at her. Her hand moved fast, and she grabbed its neck. With a quick twist, the wolf's neck snapped.
The remaining wolves turned toward her.
She moved like a shadow. Her hands struck fast and accurately. She didn't have a weapon, but her body was a weapon.
Aaron looked at her in shock.
Her movements were too fast, too clean. Not like a helpless victim at all.
In less than a minute, all four wolves were lying on the ground, either dead or unable to move.
She turned to look at Aaron. "You're injured."
Aaron was still breathing heavily. "Who... who are you?"
Stella didn't answer. She walked toward him and tore a piece of her sleeve to wrap his bleeding leg.
"You're not one of us," he said.
Stella looked into the forest. More howls came from deep inside.
"I'm not," she said.
Aaron looked at her again. "Then why are you here?"
She didn't speak.
Aaron didn't ask again.
They both knew they didn't have time to talk.
The forest was too quiet now.
It was the kind of quiet that meant more danger was coming.
Aaron leaned against the tree. "Thank you."
Stella didn't respond. She sat on a rock and looked at the wolves on the ground.
The fight had awakened something inside her.
She was still alive.
She could still fight.
She wasn't going to die here. Not now.