Entering the Death Zone as he slowly made his way toward the summit of the Uriel Mountains, Ryan couldn't help but frown.
Because of this place's terrible reputation, he had expected a frozen hell. With bears everywhere devouring each other and soon coming after them. But what he found was very different.
It was silence.
Supernatural, bone-chilling silence.
Not a single living shadow in sight for thousands of meters.
Once again, Ryan knew something was wrong. He knew a place like this couldn't be as empty as it seemed. So the only conclusion he could reach was that making noise was so fatal that everything living here had learned to exist in such absolute silence that it resembled the vacuum of space.
Suddenly, an intense chill ran through his entire body. Every single hair stood on end as his body entered combat mode before he even understood there was an enemy.
Ryan looked around in pure frenzy, but there was nothing, no one. For a few moments he thought he was under another mental attack, but no matter how long he waited for a system message, there was no debuff.
He looked from side to side, every corner among the trees, among the rocks. There was nothing but the soft icy breeze. For the first time, Ryan dismissed his primitive instincts as a mistake.
Once again, he focused on pulling the sled with his supplies up the mountain.
However…
As soon as he tried to pull it, he noticed the weight had increased. The sled was twice as heavy as it should be. Slowly, his gaze shifted behind him. The slave was trembling, trembling so violently it looked like a seizure, unable to take even a single step.
His instincts were screaming that he was about to die.
Ryan's eyes widened, and before he could understand what was happening, he shouted.
"Faster! We need to reach the mountain slope!" He gripped the rope tightly and, without waiting for a response, bolted forward with everything he had. The slave quickly clenched his teeth, steadied himself, and began running alongside him.
Only the sound of the sled sliding across the snow could be heard, and even so, their hearts pounded harder and harder from effort and fear. Pure terror coursed through their veins, knowing there was something there, but not what it was or where it would come from.
Ryan couldn't believe what was happening, and yet he accepted the absurd and kept running, soon reaching the narrow ascent toward the cave he had spotted from afar. His breathing grew increasingly ragged as he climbed as fast as he could.
His eyes briefly caught something in the snow, so faint he doubted his own sight.
He kept climbing as dozens of shapes crossed the forest at every moment, and soon those dozens grew into almost a hundred. Ryan cursed at the absurd notion as irrational fear took hold of his reason.
Even he accepted the situation as desperate.
Amid the shining white, creatures with fur like the purest snow blended into the landscape so perfectly it made you doubt yourself. Their paws made not a single sound, while their group coordination defied all common sense.
"Wolves!" Ryan gave up counting the pairs of ears pointed at him as they became clearer and clearer. His mind quickly shifted to forming a plan to save their lives from what seemed like certain death.
Midway up the slope, he abruptly stopped and signaled for the slave to do the same. "This is good. Get ready for combat…" Ryan's voice trailed off as the wolves advanced toward them.
Suddenly, Ryan's eyes were drawn elsewhere, to behind a tree in the forest. A figure watched him in disturbing silence, a shadow the size of a child with eyes that resembled two pools of mercury and a disturbing smile stretching from ear to ear.
Time seemed to stop for Ryan as he stared into the depths of that shadow's eyes. Instinctively, he knew who that creature was.
"Silent Stalker…"
The creature smiled even wider before saying:
"Try not to scream."
Ryan's eyes slowly widened as he brought his hand to his mouth, covering it. His head shook from side to side in denial as his body trembled uncontrollably, making him stumble and fall.
Ryan clenched his teeth, trying to suffocate the loud scream.
[ Debuff: Terror is in effect. ]
"Hey! Partner!" the slave shouted as the wolves rushed toward them with bared teeth, eager to sink them into their soft flesh. "Partner!" The slave knelt and grabbed Ryan, who couldn't respond at all, lost in chaotic illusions targeting his worst traumas.
Ryan's mind seemed to have been devoured, leaving only an empty shell.
"Wake up!" the slave said, tears in his eyes. "We're going to die! Wake up! Please!" He shook him as hard as he could. "I can't do this without you! I need you! Please! Wake up!"
Whispers and murmurs reached him as he restrained the urge to scream as much as he could. He had forgotten where he was and what he was doing. He could only focus on the nightmare before him.
"Kill yourself and it will all end." A voice whispered in his ear as he saw the edge of the mountain. "Jump, and your nightmares will end." The voice murmured again as Ryan remained immersed in those scenarios, one worse than the other. "Life is hell, isn't it? Then just jump."
Ryan slowly… nodded in agreement.
In a trance, he stood up, startling the slave, who stepped back in confusion. Slowly, Ryan walked toward the precipice, staggering, in total silence. The shadow smiled as it watched him walk toward certain death.
Ryan's foot lifted into the air.
That was the final step.
He was going to die.
However…
Suddenly, Ryan remembered a distant past.
And a single line.
"Maybe life is hell, full of fear, pain, and sadness. But it is also our only chance to experience joy and beauty before returning to nothingness. Think about it: if all the pain you've ever felt is the price for every joy you will have, isn't that a fair price?"
Ryan froze.
Immediately, Silent Stalker stopped smiling.
Ryan then murmured, "Then maybe I'm suffering this much now because I'm on the verge of the greatest joy." He smiled in the face of the nightmares, stepping back and taking a deep breath.
[ Debuff: Terror has been neutralized. ]
Wolves, nearly a hundred of them, were climbing toward him, ready to tear him into pieces.
In an instant, Ryan already knew what he had to do. After all, he had had a plan from before.
With a swift motion, he ran to the large sled filled with clay pots, abundant firewood, and all kinds of supplies. He flipped it, throwing it against the mass rushing toward him. Letting gravity do its job.
The pots collided with the beasts, cutting their faces, and the impact sent them rolling down the mountain. The large amount of wood knocked them down toward the precipice, while every metal utensil rattled their brains.
Meanwhile, the sled itself blocked their path, creating a barricade along with the many fallen wolves that would soon recover. A distinct smell of oil spread from it.
Quickly, Ryan grabbed the slave's sword and, using a metal belt, approached the barricade and immediately struck sparks against the wolves. Within moments, the fire ignited, consuming the sled along with the wolves, who ran in panic.
Ryan leaped over the flames without them noticing, the sunlight blinding them. His axe came down furiously against the heads of the beasts, which were increasingly giving in to despair.
Even so, they did not give up. As Ryan swung his axe, one of them leaped over the others and bit deeply into his arm, forcing a muffled scream out of him.
The others saw this and immediately advanced on him. Dozens of jaws came down on Ryan, who simply clenched his teeth before swinging his arm along with the wolf, using its body as a weapon against the others, knocking them down and throwing it off the precipice.
Ryan roared like a beast, charging forward with his axe, and now the wolves could no longer hide their fear. Their tails tucked between their legs as their heads lowered in terror.
Ryan then swung his axe in circles, shouting at the top of his lungs as he advanced step by step toward them. The beasts retreated one step for each step he took.
One last brave beast dared to growl at him and was immediately struck down with a vertical slash, dying instantly.
Panic took over the rest, and they fled in absolute terror.
Ryan shouted even louder.
"Next time…" Ryan said in a hoarse voice. "Think more carefully about whether you are the hunters…"His eyes locked onto a shadow in the forest."... or the prey."
Deep fear took over its expression before it disappeared.
Ryan sighed, tossing the sword back to the slave. "Check what's left of the resources and keep climbing. The cave isn't far."
The slave nodded, admiration in his eyes.
Meanwhile, Ryan brought a hand to his head. His injuries were piling up, and he was increasingly worried about what this would cause by the end of the transfer. But in the end, all he could do was sigh and hope for the best.
Swallowing hard, he did what he had to do before resuming the journey. Soon, the sun began to set on the horizon.
"Three days already…" Ryan murmured. "Just two more." He sighed as his eyes fell upon a cave, a faint smile forming on his face… but then…
His nose rose and fell, catching a strong metallic scent. The slave beside him dropped to his knees, vomiting, while Ryan himself struggled to hold it in, covering his mouth.
"Blood…" Ryan said, alarmed. "A lot of blood… shit!" He shouted, realizing the smell was coming from the cave, and immediately turned to flee as fast as possible.
But then…
His eyes widened as he saw smoke rising into the sky.
The slavers were at the base of the mountain.
"Shit…"
That was the end of the Third Day.