The carriage shook and came to a halt.
Warrior stood up from his seat and looked out the window as he spoke.
"What's wrong?"
The carriage driver was trying to pull the wheel out of the mudhole. He stooped and looked at Warrior with a frown as he spoke in a guilty tone.
"It's stuck."
Warrior furrowed his brows and turned towards Ruddy.
"Go check it." He said as he sat back.
"HUH?! M-Me?" Ruddy pointed at himself and questioned in a shaky tone.
"Who else?" Warrior replied with an annoyed tone.
"B-But-" Ruddy wanted to continue his words, but Warrior interjected.
"Go. Check. It." He spoke as he tightened the grip around the gunto's handle.
Ruddy shuddered. He hurriedly stood up and spoke as he stepped out of the carriage.
"Y-Yes, Sir."
Ruddy walked towards the carriage driver with a grumpy look on his face.
'Just you wait.' Ruddy resolved in his mind to make the Warrior pay after he left the area.
Ruddy shifted his gaze towards the forest, which covered them from both sides. As soon as he did so, his heart tightened as fear gripped him.
"W-What was that?!" Ruddy exclaimed with wide eyes as he looked away from the forest.
"You shouldn't look at the forest for too long… It's filled with hexborns…" the carriage driver said as he shuddered and looked away from the forest.
'Hexborns… I wonder if I have to kill one of them to complete my trial…' Ruddy thought as he touched the stuck wheel and tried to take it out.
'I hope it's at most a fiend…' Ruddy continued his thoughts when he suddenly heard a rustle. Yes, he just raised a flag.
His brows ceased as he looked up at the driver and questioned.
"What was it?"
"What?" the driver frowned and questioned back.
Hearing the driver, Ruddy shook his head and spoke in a low voice.
"Nothing…"
Ruddy took a few more seconds before taking out the wheel. He clapped his hands together and looked at the driver, and spoke.
"It's out, let's continue."
The driver nodded at his words and moved towards the driver's seat of the carriage.
Ruddy turned back and started to walk towards the door of the carriage, but he halted in his steps as he once again heard the rustle.
Ruddy's brow ceased as his expressions turned dark. He turned towards the sound of rustling and looked at it for some time.
"Hey! What are you wasting our time for?" The warrior yelled at him with an annoyed expression, and a vein popped out of his head.
Ruddy shook his head and stepped inside the carriage and took a seat.
"I'm just feeling a bit unwell." Ruddy lied through his teeth as he closed his eyes.
Warrior stared at him with a frown, but soon shook his head.
"Let's go."
Warrior commanded the driver, but no reply came. He waited for a few moments. But still nothing.
"Driver?" Warrior called out to him again, but it was still the same.
Warrior's face turned grim as he picked up his gunto and nudged at Ruddy.
"What?!" Ruddy, who was looking at his runes, was brought out of his thoughts by Warrior.
"The driver… He isn't answering." Warrior said as he stood up.
Ruddy's face turned grim as he finally noticed they were still standing there.
"Follow me," Warrior commanded as he stepped out of the carriage.
Ruddy calmed his beating heart and followed behind him without a word.
Warrior walked in front of the carriage and looked at the driver, who sat holding the reins. Warrior shifted his eyes and looked at his face, and his face turned dark.
"A demon…" Warrior mumbled.
Ruddy too looked at the driver's face and shuddered after seeing his hollow eyes. His face was an example of life getting stuffed out.
'Shit! Did he just say a demon?' Ruddy froze in his place as his thoughts ran wild.
'Why is there a god damn demon in my trial?' He questioned the gods, but had to be disappointed after all the gods were already dead.
'Calm down… Calm down…'
Ruddy calmed himself and looked at Warrior.
"What now?" He questioned with a frightened expression.
Warrior looked at him for some time and nodded his head.
"We will continue to move," Warrior said as he walked towards the carriage door.
"But…" Ruddy called out in an embarrassed tone.
"What?" Warrior questioned.
"I don't know how to drive a carriage…" Ruddy said as he lowered his head.
Warrior stared at Ruddy with a deadpan look and heaved a long sigh.
"Okay… I'll drive," Warrior said as he stepped towards the driver's seat.
*Pss*
An arrow came flying. It flew towards Warrior. Warrior simply blocked the arrow by unsheathing his gunto. The arrow bounced from the blade and fell.
Warrior looked at the arrow with a frown and turned towards the direction it came from with vigilance.
"Wait here…" Warrior said as he jumped towards the forest.
Ruddy was too stunned by what had happened that he couldn't even voice his disagreement.
Suddenly, his heart turned cold as a sense of dread filled him. He hurriedly turned back and saw the shadows wiggling like calling out to him, but he didn't fall for it and turned around and began running.
"Shit. Shit. Shit…" He cursed under his breath as he ran for his life.
Right then, a humonied figure stepped out of the shadows, its ominous eyes were focused on Ruddy as they glowed with Malice. A black, paste-like substance dripped out of its maw as it opened it, letting out a loud shriek full of malice.
Ruddy turned back and looked at the hexbone with a horrified look on his face.
'It can't be a demon, right?' Ruddy thought as he continued running.
The demon bent down and fell on all four as it began to run behind its prey.
Ruddy continued to run as fast as he could, and soon his eyes fell on a cave covered by the forest.
'There… I can survive if I reach there.
Ruddy gritted his teeth and ran towards the cave with all his might. His legs were already in pain due to the rough path, but he didn't stop and entered the forest.