Chapter 5: Still Running
Sollivan’s face froze for several minutes. His heart tightened, and his mind went blank, unable to think of anything.
He wasn’t angry or sad, but he couldn’t simply accept the situation. Although everything he thought of remained mere theories that couldn’t be confirmed, it turned his usually calm demeanor into chaos.
Despite being disabled and ostracized, living a bleak life in his world, that life had been earned through the sacrifices of many people, and he had come to accept it long ago. He had even clung to hope, believing that one day he might heal himself—or even find his family’s killer and take revenge.
Deep down, he knew his hopes and dreams were just fantasies that would never come true, but at this moment, he felt a profound sense of guilt.
He had regained his legs and physical health, but in exchange, he had been transported to a place far from his homeland, surrounded by wilderness and beasts that could kill him at any moment.
The feeling of emptiness lingered in his mind and heart for a long time, making him oblivious to his surroundings and the blood trickling from the wound on his forehead, flowing into his right eye.
The dark blood entered his eye, causing his blank face to twitch. He tilted his head in discomfort and raised his hand to rub his eye, which now had a faint burning sensation.
He shook his head in anger and looked up at the sky with bloodshot eyes, then let out a long sigh that carried all the negative emotions that had built up inside him.
His heart calmed, and his mind regained clarity. He lowered his head, but then froze for a moment, his eyes widening in suspicion. He gently rubbed his blood-filled eye, cleaned it, and looked again in a specific direction.
There, he saw a column of black smoke rising into the sky. Due to the pitch-black night and the distance, the smoke wasn’t entirely clear, but Sollivan wasn’t foolish enough not to recognize what it was.
"Campfires?! The shape and size of the smoke can’t be anything else. It’s clear there are people nearby." His sadness and confusion disappeared, replaced by caution and wariness.
Gulp!