The bipedal flying dragons whistled through the treetops, sweeping up air currents that could be felt in the tree cavities. These huge flying creatures held absolute dominion over the swampy night, including in their repertoire any animal that gave off body heat, even brutes about their size among them.

  A scent very similar to that of lizards came from the air currents, which was repulsive to the chaser. He didn't care if there was a connection between the two creatures, he just found it annoying. It would have taken him only a day and a night to make his prey collapse in the midst of sleeplessness if these nightly infestations hadn't forced him to wait for dawn in a tree hole equal to that of his prey. If it weren't for the stench that made his sense of smell almost fail him, he wouldn't have been delayed by the ruse that had almost eluded him, wouldn't be here looking at the fire in the distance in confusion.

  What was the campfire for? Eating to replenish your strength? Knowing that I've seen through your trap? Or is this another trap?

  Are you provoking me? The hunter rages on Si. You tell me: you're right there, come on over here and let me rip your heart out?

  But the hunter immediately admonished himself not to lose his cool. To lose his cool in the face of such a cunning prey was to put himself in a trap. There was no doubt that this was definitely a trap, or a follow up to the one during the day.

  The river wasn't far away, and early tomorrow morning it was going to be tracked with a full run, and then the hunt would end in a very addictive way. The chaser snorted in excitement and gripped the killing weapon in his hand. The brains and blood caked on it formed a thin crust that congealed into a part of the weapon.

  Can't get too excited, can't get too excited, stay calm, stay calm. The Chaser admonished himself once more. All tracks seen tomorrow must be carefully observed, carefully considered, and not be fooled by any more falsehoods. Remember to watch out for falsehoods, beware of falsehoods.

  Do you think I can be fooled easily? Are you still proud of that mind that is about to be twisted off and slowly savored by me?

  The Chaser cheered up at his calm thoughts and snorted again.

  Then the bright red blood flowed out of the woman's body with passion and exuberance, allowing Asa to suck on it with love.

  A few strands of black hair clung to her thin lips, which were pursed up in a slightly constricted curve, and her downcast eyes were narrowed, a hazy smile encased within her long lashes. It was only when he got close that he realized that this was an extremely beautiful woman.

  Asa suddenly felt very afraid. Afraid of that narrowed eyes contain tenderness, thin lips pursed stubbornness. The woman still had the same expression, but Asa was completely caught up in the fear created by this sudden realization of tenderness and beauty.

  Then he realized it wasn't just the woman's throat that had just been slashed, but his own as well. Caressing the wound in his neck, the clear and distinct feeling of the cut echoing in his chest, trying to fill the wound back up with that feeling, but unable to do anything about it, Asa groaned in immense pain.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Looking at the woman's beautiful, gentle face and the harrowing wound in her neck, she felt her own wound with her hand. Grief and sorrow and fear and pain tightened around Asa like the darkness around him, and Asa awoke with a jolt.

  The fish-belly whites of morning were already surfacing in the east, and the trumpeting of the bipedal flying dragons was fading into the distance. The creatures had begun circling from the edge of the swamp and were flying back to their nests deep in the swamp. The chasers were positioned close to the depths of the swamp, so this would give Asa the advantage of a relatively early start.

  But Asa didn't show much interest in this precious time, instead squatting by the extinguished campfire and watching woodenly as the woman crushed watermint and pyrethrum with a stone and applied it to her clothes and skin. Until now, the feeling left by the nightmare still echoed in his thoughts, like he couldn't shake the sticky snot out of his nose even if he wanted to, and his brain was still in a daze. Luckily, though, he could also really feel that his strength was almost fully restored.

  The woman, however, seemed to have slept well, and after applying it, she began to clean up her things with her hands and feet, and at the same time, she did not forget to make small talk with him, "You had a bad nightmare last night, and it woke me up. I was going to say wake you up."

  Asa stared blankly at the woman's glowing face. Those beautiful hazel eyes, straight nose, thin lips, thin white neck hidden in the dress. Asa suddenly had the illusion that there was bleeding miserably there, and winced violently.

  The woman had already packed her bags and bid him farewell, "Farewell, if you have the chance in the future you can come and find me at Duke Mrak's mansion in the king's capital." A smile that made the early morning mist infected with softness bloomed. "My name is Yi."

  Not a chance. It was either you or me. Completely afraid to face the smile, Asa stared down at the ground and gave a gracious sigh.

  After watching the woman's back disappear into the early morning misty amiability, Asa ran up the river.

  He didn't jump into the river to hide his scent, and he didn't mind the loose muddy ground leaving footprints that even a rat with poor eyesight could make out. He wasn't running fast either, a pace that allowed for efficient use of his physical strength. He knew very well that any kind of cover was a cover for the eyes of the hunter, and such a clear trail would confuse him instead.

  Of course, there was still the possibility that the pursuer would follow this one true trail, but after passing the last trap he would have concerns, and that should be less likely. Asa suddenly found himself expecting the pursuer's footsteps to ring out behind himself.

  But confusion was useless. It was indeed an efficient way, and once the pursuer had spent his energy and time on the road chasing the woman, the chances of escaping on his own were high. Even if he re-tracked himself after killing the woman, his own physical strength had the upper hand and his chances of winning were improved. Asa shook off his head, amounting to put all his energy into running one step at a time.

  But after running for less than half an hour, he saw a large river across his eyes. Surprisingly, he had a feeling of crying and laughing. Everyone's estimation even including the chaser was wrong. Probably because of the rainy season, the river had actually diverged from the lowlands of the swamp and went straight through the swamp.

  It was at this time that a scream, if any, rang out from the depths of the swamp.

  After such a long distance, the sound was already very faint, but it was like a huge hammer hitting Asa's heart. Last night's dream immediately appeared in front of his eyes, and the gruesome wound between the woman's throat was unmistakable. He stood still, unable to move.