Jin just smiled, a slow, infuriating smile. "Oh, am I trespassing?" He took a slow step toward Marcus, his relaxed posture not changing in the slightest. "And what can you do about it?"
"You really want to see what I can do, huh?" Marcus growled, his patience gone.
He didn't hesitate. He swung his heavy branch with all his might, aiming to smash Jin's head in. The weapon whistled through the air.
But Jin simply took one easy step back. The attack, which should have been devastating, looked comically slow. As Marcus's momentum carried him forward, throwing him slightly off balance, Jin's hand shot out. He didn't punch. He just placed his palm on Marcus's shoulder and gave him a light push.
Marcus stumbled forward, catching himself just before he fell.
"Oh," Jin said, his voice laced with mock surprise. "You have great balance."
Then, he moved.
It was an explosion of inhuman speed. One moment he was a few feet away, the next he was right beside Marcus, his mouth next to his ear. The other members of the group barely saw a blur.
Jin's voice was a low, dangerous whisper that only Marcus could hear.
"Listen," Jin said. "You look strong. Those people look up to you. Don't let me embarrass you here. Even if you win against me, you'd be badly injured, and you'd have to be eliminated. Give me some food, and I'll go."
A cold sweat broke out on Marcus's brow. He could feel the immense, coiled power radiating from the person beside him. This wasn't a fight he could win.
Marcus slowly lowered his branch. He took a step back from Jin, creating space, his face a mask of controlled anger. He felt that it was much, much better to not mess with Jin.
"Orion," Marcus barked, not looking at Jin. "You know this asshole? Serve him some food. I don't want to see him here any longer."
The other members of the group looked at each other, confused by the sudden de-escalation. Jin, seeing their confusion, decided to give them a story.
"Well, guys," Jin said with a sigh, acting as if he was the one backing down. "Commander Valerius sent me to the forest. I'm not exactly allowed to fight with his students."
He got a piece of grilled dog beast meat from a wide-eyed Orion, took a bite, and walked away into the darkness as casually as he had arrived.
"What a weirdo," David said, lowering his weapon. "He's just walking around the forest without any food or equipment."
"A weirdo, right?" Orion said, letting out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. "That's what I thought when I first met him."
"And where did you meet him?" Lucinda asked, her curiosity piqued.
"In this cave," Orion explained. "When me and Ivan first came here, he was already inside, eating some fish he'd caught."
---
The next morning was just like the previous night. The rain was still pouring down, and the sky was depressing dark gray.
Ivan woke up to the quiet murmur of voices. The other three were already awake, huddled near the small fire.
"Yo guys, good morning," Ivan said, his voice a little rough. "Did you sleep well?"
"Oh, Ivan. Good morning," Leonardo replied, managing a small smile.
"Any food?"
"Yeah, there's some berries," Lyraena said, pushing a handful toward him. "How do you feel?"
"Oh, my head is completely fine now," Ivan lied, taking the berries. The dull throb was still there, but it was manageable.
He ate the berries while thinking. Time was passing. They couldn't just sit here forever. He needed to do something useful, to take back control of the situation and his own spiraling thoughts.
"The rain has washed away old tracks," Ivan announced, standing up. "And it will make new ones easy to spot. We should do a quick patrol of the area."
Lyraena looked up, surprised. "Hm? Not bad. It's surprising that you came up with a good idea, actually."
"Yes," Ivan said, ignoring her jab. "I'll go with Lyraena this way. Leo and Jomana, you guys go that way. We don't wander too far, just look for anything useful."
"Actually," Leonardo said, standing up quickly. "I wanna go with you, Ivan. There's something I want to talk to you about. In private."
Ivan was instantly annoyed. He had wanted to be alone with Lyraena. 'What the hell does he want?'
"It's okay," Ivan said, forcing a smile. "There are no secrets in a team. You can talk here"
Leonardo leaned in, his expression serious. "It's... something manly," he said. "I can't talk about it here."
Ivan sighed, his annoyance giving way to curiosity. "Alright, fine. Let's go."
As they walked away from the camp together, into the dripping forest, Ivan's patience wore thin. "What the fuck did you want to talk about that was so 'manly'?"
Leonardo looked around to make sure the girls were out of earshot. "It's about... that bear, you know," he whispered. "We didn't talk about it to the girls. I wasn't sure if I should tell them or not."
Ivan stopped and stared at him. "Well, at some point we have to tell them. But you could have just told me that back at the camp. You didn't have to come with me just for that."
Leonardo shuffled his feet, looking guilty. "Yeah, actually... Jomana is kinda scary. So I thought about coming with you."
"You bastard," Ivan said , but with a smile , he wasn't mad.
Leonardo laughed, relieved. "You aren't even trying to hide your feelings toward Lyraena, huh? You looked so disappointed."
Ivan's cheeks started burning again. "I don't know what you are talking abouuuuuu—"
His denial was cut short as his foot slipped on a wet, mossy rock. He yelped as he tumbled over the edge of a small, hidden cliff, landing with a grunt in the wet leaves below.
"Ivan!" Leonardo shouted, immediately jumping down after him. "Hey, are you alright there?"
"Yes... I'm fine," Ivan said, pushing himself up. He wasn't looking at Leonardo. He was staring straight ahead, his eyes wide.
Leonardo followed his gaze.
In front of them was another campsite. Or what was left of it. A tent was slashed and broken. Gear was scattered everywhere. And the mud was churned up with the marks of many, many panicked footsteps.
"What the fuck," Leonardo whispered, his earlier good mood vanishing instantly. "What happened here?"