Shun's group—now including the injured heroes, Willin, Reina, and himself—moved deeper into the forest in search of survivors.
Willin was at the front, calm but fully alert. His eyes scanned every shadow between the trees, and though his focus never wavered, he still found moments to check on the others. Every step he took seemed deliberate—and deadly.
Thwip! Thwip! Thwip! Thwip! Thwip!-
With a single fluid movement, Willin loosed five arrows in rapid succession. Each one found its mark—piercing a rabbit-shaped blur that had been darting through the undergrowth at impossible speed.
The injured heroes, though weakened, pushed themselves to assist—covering Willin's flanks, intercepting any that got too close, and casting quick support spells to keep him at peak condition.
Shun followed behind, his eyes fixed on his older brother. Willin seemed to dominate every moment of the battle, his calm precision making it feel like the forest itself obeyed him.
But Shun's hands clenched. He didn't want to just watch.
Reaching for the small dagger at his belt, Shun broke away from the main group. His boots pounded over roots and fallen leaves as he searched. Before long, he found them—seven or eight survivors, all severely injured, slumped against rocks and tree trunks.
Without hesitation, Shun slid his dagger back into its sheath. He crouched, pulling one man's arm over his shoulder, then another's over the other. Bending forward, he let a third cling to his back.
His legs trembled under the weight—but he kept moving. Step by step, the forest began to thin, and at last… the village gates came into view.
There, a large crowd of townsfolk had gathered, their cries and murmurs mixing with the grim sight of countless lifeless bodies—villagers who hadn't been as lucky.
Shun's breath burned in his lungs, but he pushed through, delivering the three gravely injured survivors to the village doctor.
-"Take care of them—please!" he said quickly, then turned without resting.
Mr. Thomas was already at the edge of the village, gripping his weapon. Shun joined him without a word, the two of them heading back into the forest.
Somewhere out there, people were still trapped—and Shun wasn't going to let them die.
Shun and Old Thomas rushed back into the forest, their boots crunching through dry leaves, the sound sharp in the air that hung heavy like a drawn bowstring. It didn't take long before they spotted two survivors, pressed helplessly against the base of a massive tree. Three twisted rabbits, their eyes burning red like embers, clawed furiously at the rotting earth around them.
Without a shred of hesitation, Old Thomas raised his hunting rifle and pulled the trigger.
BANG! BANG! BANG!-
The shots echoed through the forest, scattering flocks of birds into the sky. The three rabbits collapsed, twitching briefly before falling still, black blood seeping into the damp soil.
-"Go! Get out of here now!" Thomas barked, his gaze never leaving the shadowy depths of the forest, as though he sensed something else lurking beyond.
Shun hauled the two wounded onto their feet, and the four of them sprinted toward the village. Only when their boots touched the familiar dirt road did they dare to breathe again, handing the last survivors over to the village doctor.
But there was no time to rest. Shun and Thomas set off once more—this time, to find Willin's group.
The sound of pounding footsteps reached them from ahead. Moments later, the battered figures of the hero party burst into view—running toward them, faces pale with terror. But it wasn't them that made Shun freeze… it was the shape moving in the shadows behind.
It was… a rabbit.
But not an ordinary one.
It towered like an ancient banyan tree, its massive form shrouded in a dull, ashen hue, eyes glowing red like smoldering coals. Each step shook the ground—yet its enormous body seemed to pass effortlessly through thick tree trunks without breaking them, as though it didn't truly belong to the physical world.
Willin was firing nonstop as he ran. Thwip! Thwip! Thwip!—arrows sliced through the air, piercing the creature's body, but they passed through as if striking mist. No blood. No wound.
Behind him, the Support mages unleashed everything they had—fire, ice, lightning—but every spell slipped through harmlessly, leaving the creature untouched.
-"It's… not hitting it?!" one mage choked out, his voice trembling with panic.
The monster tilted its head, its red eyes sweeping over the group as if studying prey.
Willin charged forward, face hard as steel. One hand seized Shun's collar, the other grabbing Thomas.
-"No time! Run—now!"
Shun didn't even get a chance to ask before he was being dragged away.
Behind them, a deep rumble echoed from the earth itself, followed by a chilling sound—the heavy footsteps gliding through the forest canopy, not smashing through obstacles, but passing through them.
A cold shiver crawled down Shun's spine. He knew, without a doubt, this thing was unlike any creature he had ever seen.
Willin immediately took the lead, pulling everyone along as he steered the massive creature away from the village, determined to avoid a catastrophic loss of life. His boots pounded against the forest floor, but his mind was racing even faster—running through possibilities, searching for any opening.
Then an idea struck.
As they sprinted past the corpse of a slain rabbit, Willin lunged sideways, snatching it up in one swift motion. Without breaking stride, he hurled it straight into the towering monstrosity's chest.
The effect was instant.
The giant rabbit's form shuddered—and shrank, just slightly. At the same time, the dead rabbit in Willin's hands sprang back to life, its eyes losing that blood-red glow. It simply turned and hopped away, passing clean through the massive creature's legs as if through air.
Willin's eyes widened.
-"That's it!" he shouted.
-"Any dead rabbits you see—grab them and throw them into the big one! Don't hesitate!"
Without waiting for a reply, he gestured sharply for everyone to split up, scattering through the battlefield in search of fallen prey.