Long Island

Chapter 32: Fate

Please Note: Statements between % something in italics % are game system messages.

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Deep in the forest, an animal carefully looks around and cautiously comes out from the trees. It looks greedily towards the clearing in front, at the clumps of green grass, the kind it liked. But then it perked its ears again and widened its eyes, observing once more the surrounding. The most danger it had in the forest came from the wolves.

Ordinarily, it could outrun those wolves easily. They were so slow and it could run like the wind. But the wolves were cunning. Sometimes they would approach only after surrounding it completely. And so the animal stared around once again. Finding no sign of those wretched wolves it stepped forward, pleasure and hunger obvious in its eyes.

How could it have known that today there was another kind of predator waiting for it!

Suzaku watched with bated breath as the stag slowly moved towards the trap he had laid. He was hiding quite far away and if the stag avoided his trap, he knew he wouldn't be able to match its speed.

'This time...I will succeed!'

Suzaku had been trying to catch this stag for the last three days. He had forgone sleep in his attempt to catch the 'most difficult animal to catch' in this forest. He had tracked it, learned its habits and prepared many plans.

'I was lucky to find a stag in the first place, there is no way I am letting this one go!' It was true that stags were exceedingly rare. So rare that even the people of the island, who were far more capable, were also not able to find it, let alone catch it. If he could do that, then he would no doubt become famous. Who knows how much money and prestige he might gain. He may even get some contribution points.

As the stag approached closer and closer to the trap, Suzaku almost forgot to breathe. And then,

SNAP!

The ground gave way underneath the stag and it fell down in a large deep hole bleating furiously.

"Yes!" Suzaku shouted and ran towards the hole. He could not make it so deep in his limited time, but he had made the walls steep. Animals with toes should not be able to climb up like that. Or that's what he hoped.

But his hopes were dashed. An amazing jump and the stag clearly came out of the hole.

"What!" Suzaku stared wide eyed at this sight. Three days of following this beast, several stupid bug bites, losing sleep and the animal just jumped! 'Shit! It's a waste now!' Suzaku stopped running and stared at the animal which at any moment now, would dash away.

But it didn't.

'What's going on?' Suzaku narrowed his eyes as he inspected the stag, which was now looking at him with it's horns lowered, like waiting for an attack.

'It injured it's leg!' His lips curved upwards. 'Heaven has given me another chance!'

Suzaku took out his sword and moved forward deliberately. The stag won't go down easy but atleast it was not going to run away.

'I just need to be careful of its horns...' A stag's horns were big and pointed. It was also joined like a shovel. And one thing was sure. His whole Life would be insufficient if he gets hit by them. These horns were far more dangerous than bug bites. Somehow in this situation, Suzaku's smile became even wider.

He carefully stepped forward and reached closer. The stag followed his smallest movements, cautiously assessing the new danger. It had never encountered two-legged before, but others in it's herd had. They always made fun of the two-legged calling them slow and blundering idiots. A stag's speed was its pride and the two-legged were far too slow. But they had also warned that perhaps the two-legged were also the most dangerous things in this forest. Anyways, injured as it was, it had no choice but to face this most dangerous predator.