In a makeshift camp, the people who had survived the "Starting Point" were seated in groups of five, and in the middle of each group was a small fire to keep them warm.
The atmosphere of the small groups was somber; everyone had an expression of terror and fear on their faces, and none of them who had survived the man-eating monsters said a word.
Even in the distance, in some trees where the campfire's light does not reach, some silhouettes could be seen hanging completely motionless. Those silhouettes belonged to people who had left the "Starting Point" alive but could not withstand the pressure and trauma of seeing so much death in front of their eyes and many other factors that would lead a human to make such a decision.
They decided to take their own lives, hanging themselves from the trees, to end their physical and mental suffering. Those who had not made that decision, for lack of courage or fear of death, did not dare to look at the lifeless bodies hanging there.
While their bodies shuddered with fear and terror.
"R-really all this is real...? T-that... M-monsters devouring man m-killed... many people."
"I don't think it's real what I saw, how that monster devoured a woman in front of my eyes. It's a dream. Tell me it's a dream."
"You didn't see it with your own eyes; none of it is fake! It's genuine! Didn't you see how that big man's head exploded like a watermelon?"
When a man at the campfire recalled the death of the burly man, everyone felt their guts churning and felt like throwing up. Everyone had a vivid image of the death of the burly man who acted like a hero.
"Shit, why did you have to bring that up now?"
"Can't you be a little more sensible on that subject?"
"Right, we're alive by a miracle, and why remember those now?"
"It's for them to accept fucking reality. If they don't want to accept reality, why don't they take the easy way out like those guys over there."
It was said the man had a severe expression, pointing to the lifeless bodies hanging in the trees, which were not very visible due to the night.
None dared to look where the man pointed, and their expressions became rigid. And they continued chatting about what their lives were like on Earth before they were transported to this strange place.
A little removed from the groups that were beginning to speak confidently among themselves, a woman leaning against a tree was looking at the place with a cold expression. The woman appeared with grayish silver hair pulled back in a ponytail and blue eyes deep as the ocean.
The clothing was very different from the people she had summoned with her as if she had prepared a long-sleeved black shirt that fit her figure beforehand. A pair of leather gloves wrapped her hands gracefully.
She wears dark green pants that fit her curves perfectly, revealing a slender and athletic silhouette. A pair of leather boots. At her waist, the woman wears two crossed iron swords.
It seems that there are no more people who want to take their own lives... Alice thought calmly, looking at the lifeless bodies hanging from the trees.
She turned her gaze to the people in small groups surrounding the campfires, noticing that the heavy atmosphere was lightening a little.
Phew. With a sigh, Alice looked at the dark, starless, moonless sky.
At that moment, the loud sounds of man-eating monsters are heard, accompanied by loud, piercing screams echoing throughout the forest.
This is... With a serious expression, Alice looked startled at the source of the sound, then looked at the people in the camp and said hurriedly, "Put out the campfires and hide in the cave until I return!"
Hearing Alice's voice, they all quickly extinguished the campfires and went to the cave near the makeshift camp. None dared to object to Alice's words, for she saved their lives from those man-eating monsters.
Alice gripped the two swords tightly as she watched everyone enter the cave; with a severe expression, she quickly headed towards the source of the sound where the man-eating monsters were heading.
She ran through the dark forest at a supernatural speed that no human could reach, not even the fastest man in the world, "Bolt."
Damn, what caused this stampede of monsters, did those guys start already...? Alice thought as she quickly passed through the trees and quickened her pace.
A little further ahead, she could see some man-eating monsters frantically running towards where she was headed. She stopped for a moment and grabbed the two swords at his waist.
She gathered much of her strength in her legs, which began to show some veins protruding from her green pants. She let go with force and flew off like an arrow.
The man-eating monsters seemed to have noticed something and turned around, where they saw a woman approaching quickly towards them. They tried to do something, but it was too late.
Alice, who saw the man-eating monsters turn around, swiftly and accurately swung the two swords, decapitating the monsters in front of her, having the air with a thin line of black blood.
Ignoring the lifeless bodies of the man-eating monsters, she continued running, nimbly dodging all the trees with incredible agility. As she ran, she saw out of her eye a group of six people running opposite where the man-eating monsters were headed.
Alice didn't pay much attention to that group and picked up the pace even more. After dodging some trees, she saw a group of man-eating monsters in one spot.
What's going on in that place for those monsters to gather at that point... Alice quickly approached, decapitating with elegance and incredible dexterity all the monsters blocking her view.
The man-eating monsters began to fall headless to the ground, and the others realized they were under attack, focused their attention on Alice, and lunged at her from different directions simultaneously.
Alice takes a few steps back, elegantly dodging the monsters' attacks as if she were predicting the attacks. Besides, she had the environment in her favor because the man-eating monsters were giant.
Whew... Alice took a deep breath and exhaled calmly, took a stance holding the two swords, and lunged towards the monsters.
The man-eating monsters attacked at the same time with their sharp claws. Moreover, it was the most effective method, as their bodies were too large to throw darts at each other.
Up, right, front, and sideways... Alice quickly looked at where the monsters' attacks were coming from.
Having located where the attacks were coming from, I swung the two swords, slashing the monsters' claws without much difficulty. The monsters scream in pain after being slashed.
"Screech…!!!"
"Screech…!!!"
"Whew..." Alice stood on a tree branch, taking a breath; she jumped again towards the monsters without giving them time to react.
The man-eating monsters, who were helpless and defenseless, could not escape from Alice's blades and could only watch as they were beheaded beautifully.
Alice swung the swords, removing the blood from the blades, while a bead of sweat ran down her forehead, making her frown in annoyance: Tsk. I only made a few moves, and I'm this tired.
She looked straight ahead and saw that there were still monsters left, that it had something in its claw as it opened its large mouth full of pointed teeth. She focused her attention on the claw and saw the silhouette of a person still breathing.
Seeing that, he threw one of his swords with force, flying straight at the head of the man-eating monster about to feast.
Stab.
The iron sword drove perfectly into the monster's head, and black blood began to spurt out like a fountain as it slowly fell.
Thud.
The lifeless body fell imposingly to the ground without letting go of the body in its clutches.
Alice, with a sigh, approached the monster very calmly. She grabbed her sword stuck in the monster's head, swung the sword lightly, and cut into several parts of the monster's claw without touching the person's body.
He's still alive... But he's badly injured, plus it looks like they cut the tendons in his foot so he wouldn't run and be used as bait to escape from the monsters...
So, could the group I saw before be the one who used this person as bait? Yes, that could be most likely, and it's a miracle he's still alive.
Alice deduced, after checking the body's pulse. With a sigh, she took out an emerald green potion and sprinkled it on the body of the person she had just saved.
And the wounds that the person had slowly began to close miraculously.
Sigh, I hope I'm not wrong to waste this on this person... Sighing again, Alice grabs the unconscious body, puts it on the man like a potato sack, and heads back towards the makeshift camp.
...