The boy left the town before sunrise.
He didn't look back.
Towns were noisy. People stared too much. And lately, strong strangers kept appearing.
So he chose the forest.
Forests don't ask questions.
At first, it was peaceful.
Birds. Wind. Leaves moving in soft waves.
He ran lightly between trees. No roads. No tracks. Just wild land.
Better.
Safer.
Or so he thought.
An hour later, he noticed something strange.
The forest was too quiet.
No birds.
No insects.
Even the wind felt… careful.
He slowed down.
His legs didn't like slowing down. But something felt wrong.
Then—
A tree fell.
Right in front of him.
He jumped back fast. The ground shook.
That wasn't normal wind.
He looked around.
Nothing.
But the silence was heavy.
He stepped to the side.
The ground collapsed.
A deep pit, covered with leaves, opened under his feet. If he had taken one more step, he would have fallen straight in.
He stared at it.
"This isn't random," he whispered.
Someone had set this.
A sharp sound cut through the air.
An arrow hit the tree beside his head.
He moved without thinking.
Another arrow.
Then another.
They came from different sides.
Not one person.
Many.
He ran.
Fast.
Trees blurred past him. Arrows chased him. One sliced his sleeve. Another scratched his arm.
They were prepared.
They knew he would run.
He changed direction suddenly.
Hard left.
Then right.
Then straight through thick bushes no normal runner would try.
The arrows stopped.
He didn't.
He kept running until his lungs burned and the forest changed.
Different trees. Different smell.
He finally slowed.
He leaned against a rock, breathing hard.
Bandits?
Hunters?
Or something else?
He didn't know.
But one thing was clear.
This was not luck.
This was planned.
Far behind him, hidden in the trees, a masked man lowered his bow.
"He escaped again," he said.
Another voice replied calmly,
"Good."
A small whistle echoed through the forest.
"Release the second group."
The boy felt it again.
That feeling.
Like the forest itself was watching him.
And this time…
It was getting closer.
End of Chapter 9