Chương 13: Falling Leaves

Kal took a step back as soon as he glanced down the mountain. He didn't particularly like heights and preferred to stay far away from them. A soft wind caressed his hand, confirming his theory. The cave wasn't natural, and it had something magical within. His hand stood outside while his body was inside the cave. And the wind only managed to reach his hand. After a few moments, Kal left the cave. The sun had risen a short while ago, leaving him a whole day of sunlight.

He still wasn't certain if traveling during the day was the right choice, but he didn't see any other option. Perhaps if he somehow recovered his bag, he could wait for rescue to arrive, but he didn't think it would be that easy. A short distance away was the narrow ledge that he'd somehow made his way across while barely alive. Dried blood still marked his trail. At least he'd left himself a trail to follow. Kal moved next to the ledge, making sure to keep his gaze high.

There was no need to see how deep the fall was. He took a deep breath and slid his hand along the wall, searching for a handhold. As soon as he found it, he slowly slid his leg around the spot where his next step should go. As soon as he made sure that the ground was stable, he took his first step. He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but he finally made it to the platform the narrow trail led to. It was barely a platform at all; it was more of a wide ledge jutting out of the mountain, only a few meters across.

There was barely any room to move comfortably. A few feet from where he stood was a whole figure of dried blood on the ground, with a larger pool of blood on one side—the side where his shoulder had been injured. Well, if nothing else, he found the spot where he'd taken a break, judging by the amount of blood. Just above it stood a similar platform, a little over a meter higher. It seemed that he'd fallen from there before falling unconscious on the bloodstain below. Then he'd somehow made his way into the cave.

How he made it inside, he had no idea. Not to mention how he was even still alive. The symbols had mentioned interference. Perhaps someone or something had helped him? It wasn't the time to think about that, so he pushed the thought to the back of his mind. He would have enough time to go through everything that had happened after he got back to a safe place. The only way to get onto the platform above him was to climb.

The mountain's wall was mostly smooth rock with sharp edges, leaving barely any cracks he could use as handholds. There were still a few, but they were barely enough to get him onto the platform. Another platform stood a few meters away, but there was no trail connecting them. The only way was to climb along the mountain wall, moving sideways. Or perhaps a long jump would be enough to reach it. He was sure that not even prayers would get him there safely.

Even if he somehow reached it, he wasn't certain there would be a better way to reach the top. Kal hated it. Both options were bad, but at least the climb wasn't too far. If he avoided looking down, he would probably make it safely. With a deep breath, he grabbed the first crack that seemed safe enough to hold his weight and started his climb. Every step took him a dozen seconds. He wasn't taking any chances, testing every crack thoroughly before trusting it with his life. Slowly, he made progress.

The increased stamina and strength from the awakening made the climb much easier than he'd expected. The hours of exercising with his new strength proved justified as he took another step. In total, he'd worked out for more than four hours before he'd gone to sleep. And he was glad he did. In just a few tense minutes, he managed to climb up to the upper platform. His hand grabbed a crack on it before he pushed his whole body up. Kal stared at the sky for a few moments as he breathed heavily.

From where he lay, he saw that he had another climb, or two, before he would reach the top of the mountain road. After a short rest, he stood up. Without wasting time, his second climb of the day began. This one was longer, which made him question how he had even survived the fall. A few minutes later, Kal was already on the last cliff. The area had some dried blood on it as well, but not as much as the lower one, meaning he hadn't spent too much time there.

Looking up at the edge of the mountain road, he almost let out a chuckle. It was less than a meter of a fall, and at the time, he'd thought that he would fall to his death. Thankfully, he'd been conscious enough to keep moving before the other demons arrived. If he hadn't, then he would have certainly been found out. He leaned against the wall of the mountain, listening for anything from above. But nothing came. The only sound was the wind stirring up the loose pebbles. Still, he wasn't in a hurry and waited.

His stomach grumbled, but he ignored it. This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Rushing was only going to get him killed. He was going to take it slow and easy, only moving when he was certain it was safe. Getting used to the new strength was both straightforward and hard. Kal found it odd, as he felt as if he'd always had the same strength, but at the same time, it was new to him.

The beginning was the hardest part, but the more active he became, the faster he was getting accustomed to it. It would still take him a few weeks to relearn the stances and techniques and become comfortable with them again, but overall, he still felt much more powerful than before. His physical strength had at least doubled, and his body was reacting much faster. His balance was better when he trained with his most familiar stance, but overall, it was worse.

There were other differences as well, but he would need more time to experience them. The feeling was certainly magical. He climbed up slowly and stopped just as he was about to go over the edge. A lone green plant stood at the edge of the mountain, so he put his hand there, using the plant to hide it, and pushed his head slightly over the edge. His bloody trail was a few feet to his right, marking the place where he'd pushed himself off.

The trail led toward the place where he'd fought the demon, ending in a circle of dried blood where the battle had taken place. The body was gone, but the signs of their battle remained, as if the demons had left in a hurry. After confirming that there was no one nearby, he pushed himself over the edge, quickly rolling away from the cliff. He didn't want to fall off after making it all the way to the top. Kal wasn't certain of his safety while exposed on the open ground.

He stood up as quickly as he could and darted across the road. He hid behind the first tree that was large enough to conceal him before diving behind it. Once he was sure that no one was approaching, he raised his head and studied the area. The area where he'd fought the demon was close by, only a few feet away from where the demon's life had ended. There were only two different sets of footprints in the area other than Kal's and the demon's.

They had walked over every spot where the fight had taken place, ending at the edge. Afterward, there were footprints going down the mountain, but they didn't last too long. The only reason he was able to track them was because they had bloodied their feet, leaving traces everywhere. Kal stayed in the area for a few minutes, then, after he was certain that he'd learned everything he could, he started moving down the mountain.

He used every bit of cover he could find, moving slowly, avoiding making more noise than necessary. He traveled for about fifteen minutes while covering very little ground. If he had to guess, he hadn't made it more than two hundred meters before he stopped. A small area had been cut into the forest, leading into a path that went up the mountain. He stood at the edge of the area, making sure not to make any noise as he listened for anything.

If he tried to cross it, he would be exposed without any cover for at least three seconds. It would probably still be fine, but he didn't plan on taking any chances. He hid between a tree with a thick trunk and a bush that was filled with some kind of berries. They were yellow, with red dots all around. They looked like the Vielberry that one of the villages under his family's care farmed, but instead of red dots, they had white ones. His stomach grumbled, but he didn't take any, as he didn't trust the plant.

The mountain was extremely dangerous because of magical beasts and bandits, but the second danger came from poisonous plants. He knew what most of them looked like, as Carcian had shown him many of them during their previous treks on the mountain. And these berries had more in common with poisonous plants than with the berries he was familiar with. Time passed slowly, but there was no sound or movement that would suggest anyone was watching the passage.

But from his earlier experience with the demons, he decided not to risk it and stayed still. He had gotten lucky back then, as the only reason he had even noticed the three demons was pure luck. The bastards hadn't made a sound, and if he had stepped on something he shouldn't have, he could have easily been discovered. A bright light exploded above him, followed by a deafening boom. Before Kal even realized what was happening, the ground beneath him violently shook.

He tried to keep himself on his feet, using the tree as a support, but his whole body felt wobbly, and he had to sit on the ground to keep himself from falling. A dusty mist rose from the ground in moments, while leaves from the trees fell from above. The whole area around him seemed to change in an instant. A crushing noise came from his side. Kal turned just in time to see rocks tumbling down the mountain.

His heart raced as he managed to rise to his feet, still barely keeping himself upright before he ran away, using every tree he could grab for support. The crushing noise grew louder and louder. The rockslide was coming straight toward him. Fucck. He kept cursing inwardly as he left the cover of the trees and stepped into the open. He glanced to the side and noticed a demon folk running from the rockslide as well. He barely managed to catch a glimpse of him before he had to focus on his footing.

A few smaller rocks pummeled his back. The quaking stopped as soon as he crossed the road and scrambled over the edge of the mountain. He dove to the ground behind some green vegetation, barely concealing his body. The demon a few meters away from him did the same. Kal managed to take a better look at the demon. It was much smaller than the ones he'd met before, and it didn't look like it had much carapace covering its body. He froze as soon as he hit the ground, hoping that somehow the demon hadn't noticed him.

The rumbling continued, but not at the same intensity as before, beside him, and he managed to steal a glance toward it. The place where he'd stood a few moments ago was covered in rocks and boulders. Some of the trees had collapsed onto the ground. If he'd remained there, he was sure he would be dead already. The rockslide was still moving, but it wasn't going to reach him. Most of the nasty boulders had stopped just before the road, wedged between the trees. The air was filled with dust, scratching at his throat.

He fought the urge to cough. What the hell had happened? The light or explosion, whatever it was, had come from the direction of the Moonweaver's cave. The demon in front of him wasn't moving, and the rocks were sliding closer and closer toward him. Kal froze. He didn't know what the right call was. Should he run back the way he had come, or stay hidden and hope that the demon hadn't noticed him? A tumbling rock hit his leg before coming to a stop.