For roughly one more hour, Riven continued walking at a desperate pace, as although every muscle in his body begged for rest, he did not dare stop for two main reasons.
The first reason was simple, because he still hoped that if he pushed himself hard enough, he might somehow catch up to Garron and the others before sunrise.
While the second reason was that nowhere inside the forest felt safe enough to rest, as every shadow between the trees seemed capable of hiding something that could kill him.
And so, Riven kept walking until eventually the narrow forest trail opened into a hillside pass, where a tall rocky wall rose behind the path while a steep cliff dropped away on the opposite side.
Moonlight spilled freely across that section of the trail, as the absence of thick branches overhead made the pass feel far less suffocating than the forest behind him.
Riven stopped near the rock wall and carefully surveyed the surrounding terrain, because for the first time in hours, he felt as though he had finally found a place where he could lower his guard, if only for a few minutes.
With the cliff protecting one side and the towering rock face covering the other, he reasoned that anything approaching him would have to come from either end of the narrow pass, making it far easier to notice than if he rested beneath the dense forest canopy.
Only after convincing himself that this was about as safe as the wilderness was ever going to get did he finally lower his satchel and put his sword back within it, as his aching shoulders shuddered with relief the moment the weight left them.
’Five minutes....’
Riven thought, as he sat down with his back against the cool stone before opening his water pouch with trembling fingers.
*Sip* *Sip*
He drank only a few careful mouthfuls despite his thirst, because he knew that wasting water now could easily become a mistake he regretted later.
As only after quenching the worst of his thirst did Riven finally reach inside the satchel once more, as he pulled out a strip of dried meat and slowly began chewing while his exhausted jaw worked through the tough food and his eyes remained fixed upon the forest path ahead.
From where he sat, he could see the trees below the cliff stretching for miles beneath the silver light of the full moon.
For several moments, he searched that darkness for lantern light, as even the smallest distant glow would have been enough to suggest that Garron and the others were nearby.
However, no such light appeared.
There were no voices.
No campfire.
No sign of the group he was trying so desperately to reach.
As the more he looked, the more disappointed he felt, as the possibility that he might have truly fallen too far behind became harder to push away.
’Just need to keep moving.... Eventually I will find them.’
Riven told himself, as he closed his eyes for a brief moment and allowed the tension inside his body to loosen.
However, unbeknownst to him, high above the hillside pass, the Night Panther had finally begun to move, as after patiently following him throughout the forest, the beast instinctively recognized that its exhausted prey had finally lowered its guard.
The predator silently climbed across the uneven cliff face, as its powerful claws found purchase within cracks too small for any ordinary human to notice.
As from his vantage point above, it watched Riven inspect the terrain, watched him lower his satchel, before finally closing his eyes, as only then did the beast arrive at the conclusion that the moment to strike had arrived.
*Crouch*
Slowly, the Night Panther lowered its body against the stone, as every muscle beneath its pitch-black fur tightened before releasing all at once with terrifying force.
Riven noticed nothing, as it was not until the beast had already left the rock face that a strange shift in the moonlight suddenly caught the corner of his eye.
’What—’
A thought entered Riven’s mind, however, it never finished, as the Night Panther crashed into him with overwhelming force before he could even begin reacting.
*BOOM!*
The impact launched Riven several meters across the hillside pass, as his body slammed violently against the rocky ground before rolling uncontrollably toward the edge of the cliff.
*GASP*
Every bit of air escaped his lungs at once, as pain exploded throughout his entire body before his vision blurred from the sheer force of the collision.
The Night Panther landed almost immediately afterwards, as the instant all four paws touched the ground, the beast launched itself forward once again without wasting even the smallest fraction of a second.
Riven barely managed to roll aside, as the panther’s jaws snapped shut exactly where his throat had been only a heartbeat earlier before its momentum carried it past him.
With the cliff restricting its movement, the beast was forced to twist sideways instead of continuing straight ahead, as that tiny adjustment gave Riven barely enough time to scramble onto one knee.
However, unfortunately for him, it proved to be nowhere near enough.
*SLASH!*
The Night Panther spun around with frightening agility before driving one enormous paw across Riven’s chest, as four razor-sharp claws tore through his coat and carved deep into the flesh beneath.
"AAGHH!"
Riven screamed, as warm blood immediately soaked through the front of his clothes while the force of the blow hurled him backwards across the rocky ground once again.
His satchel burst open upon impact, as its contents scattered across the moonlit pass before sliding in every direction.
His diary skidded toward the rock wall.
The water pouch bounced away into the darkness.
Several strips of dried meat scattered between loose stones.
While only a few feet away, his wooden sword finally came to rest.
Riven’s eyes immediately locked onto the weapon, as every instinct inside him screamed that reaching it represented the only chance he had left to survive.
And so, ignoring the burning pain spreading through his chest, he desperately threw himself toward the sword, as his bloodied fingers clawed across the rough stone while every movement threatened to tear his wounds open even further.
Meanwhile behind him, the Night Panther had already recovered.
The beast never slowed its assault, as the moment it turned around, it immediately charged once more with the clear intention of ending the hunt before its prey could recover.
Hearing the soft footsteps closing behind him, Riven stretched his arm as far as it could possibly reach, as his fingertips finally brushed against the wooden hilt just moments before the beast arrived.
*Clutch*
His hand closed around the sword, and at that exact same instant, the Night Panther lunged.