Chapter 80

Persuading Kama was not an easy task; he clearly believed that Titus was in grave danger.

"We can't delay any longer, trust me," Cloudy urgently trailed behind Kama. This was her first time communicating alone with other hunters, and it was quite challenging. Kama didn't make it easier for her, not slowing down his speech to accommodate her. He often rambled on and gestured wildly towards her.

No matter how much Cloudy tried to persuade him, Kama was adamant about continuing to search for Titus's "body" in the area. She now faced two choices: 1. Leave Kama behind and venture deeper to find Titus on her own, risking getting lost as the surroundings were drastically changing, or 2. Continue trying to convince Kama.

Option 1 could lead to her demise halfway, as they were nearing the heart of the rainforest, where everything was unfamiliar to Cloudy. New vegetation and species could pose fatal threats.

Option 2 would take up a lot of time, but having a hunter by her side would be safer. However, she couldn't be certain that Kama would protect her like Titus did.

Cloudy frowned angrily at Kama, who was still rummaging through the bushes. She had never felt such intense hatred towards a local before. She wanted to pry open Kama's mind and understand why he was so unwilling to hold onto even a shred of hope after Titus's death. Safety? What a joke. Since her arrival, death had been a constant possibility. She decided to stop persuading Kama and started searching for weapons scattered on the ground, even wiping them clean with mud to remove any scent, ready to carry them with her.

After gathering her weapons, Cloudy cursed Kama and the other locals under her breath, and followed the clues left by Titus. She had made up her mind that if she died on this journey, at least she wouldn't regret it. Her ability to survive in the rainforest for months was all thanks to Titus's support. Without him, she knew she would crumble. If she found Titus's body, she would hang herself beside it.

If she found Titus alive, she would be overjoyed. Cloudy was determined not to give up. She left without looking back, determined. However, as she walked away resolutely, Kama unexpectedly caught up with her after a few hundred steps. In a low and rapid voice, he spoke behind Cloudy, "What are you doing? Why are you leaving...&...&*"

Cloudy could only grasp the gist of his words. Feeling irritated, she quickened her pace. "Don't follow me, I'm going to find Titus." She was starting to fear that Kama might grab her and forcefully take her back to the settlement. Fortunately, Kama didn't do that; he continued to follow Cloudy.
Behind her: "Not found, Titus's body. Keep moving forward."

"... " She felt speechless. The logic of these savages was simple yet enough to frustrate anyone. If they found Titus's body, they would stop moving forward; if not, they would keep searching until confirming Titus's death.

Karma moved swiftly, but Cloudy didn't push herself to match his pace. She searched at her own rhythm, looking for any clues in the surroundings. Clearly, a fierce struggle had occurred nearby, with plants unnaturally broken all around.

The traces were fresh. Cloudy squatted down, pulling out a clump of hair stuck with blood from the soil. It seemed like hair... The direction was definitely right, with more traces appearing.

However, as the day gradually darkened, if Titus wasn't found before nightfall, she would have to camp in the unfamiliar rainforest.

After about three kilometers, even though it wasn't completely dark yet, the dense canopy and mid-level parasitic vines made visibility almost nonexistent for Cloudy in the rainforest. She didn't want to stop; delaying the rescue would only put Titus in more danger.

Karma had long disappeared from sight, his vision not hindered by darkness, likely leaving her several hundred meters behind. Leaning against a tree trunk for a brief rest, Cloudy finally allowed her brain some downtime. She had been on high alert since entering the depths of the rainforest, now feeling a sudden sense of light-headedness.

"... " Cloudy stayed still for a few minutes before slowly rubbing the sore spot at the back of her head, her eyes adjusting to the dimming light of dusk.

Should she camp here? She observed her surroundings, leaning against a huge tree with roots protruding from the ground like a toad's back, covered in ankle-high light purple plants, possibly fungi.

The roots were relatively dry, with dense vines hanging down on both sides, resembling a mosquito net canopy on a hot day.

Feeling she could still move forward, as the night hadn't fully descended, she shook off the thought of resting. She wasn't out here to find a bed to sleep in. After enough rest, she stood up, adjusted the leaves, and continued her journey.

Her eyes had fully adapted to the dimness of the rainforest, but finding clues in such conditions would be challenging. Cloudy's goal was no longer to find clues but to catch up with Karma; only his night owl eyes could spot anything in the darkness.

Half an hour ago, she could still make out some shapes, but now moving forward was becoming difficult. Half-crouched in the grass, inching forward, was she destined to camp in place?

Or should she try calling Karma's name softly? She stared into the dark thicket in front of her. Cloudy wasn't new to being alone in the rainforest under the night sky.
In the jungle at this time, filled with various eerie sounds, but the "owners" of these sounds cannot be seen, which can gradually lead to a sense of fear.

Everything around has turned into black silhouettes, appearing to be rushing towards her. Cloudy turned back, dismissed the thought of calling for Karma, and decided to move forward a bit to see if she could find a tree root or some other plant to rest against.

In the jungle at night, the smells become different from during the day. The scents from the soil and the leaves seem to be forcibly amplified at night, the smell of grass and wood, the earthy smell, and the sudden appearance of a bloody stench.

Cloudy stopped in her tracks, the sudden smell was very fresh. Having gutted prey several times, she knew the scent that emanated when gutting the prey... it was the fresh smell of blood.

Something had died ahead, but what? Cloudy listened intently to the sounds around her. If it was a recently deceased prey, and its body had been opened, why hadn't she heard the animal's cries of pain or whimpering earlier?

After the prey's death, she didn't hear the sounds of a predator chewing on flesh. Did she encounter a predator like a python? But pythons don't have the ability to gut their prey, do they? A python with claws?

Cloudy planned to slowly move behind the large tree to her left. Intuitively, she felt the corpse should be to the right in front of her, by hiding to the left, she should be able to block the predator's line of sight. While moving, Cloudy felt she stepped on something soft, the sensation was very subtle, as she was barefoot, that thing almost perfectly adhered to the sole of her foot.

Sticky, slimy mucus, a slippery sensation... without looking down, she knew she had stepped on some piece of flesh. Without fur, it had the texture of skin, the piece of flesh under her foot should be from a human body.

Karma.

That was Cloudy's first reaction, and thinking about it made her feel prickles all over her skin. She didn't even dare lift her foot, the wet soft sensation felt like it was sprouting on the sole of her foot, growing finely along her veins to her back, anchoring her in place.

No, no, no, what if it's not? Is she just overthinking? If Karma could die so easily, why would she come out looking for Titus on her own? Cloudy was sweating profusely, finally psyching herself up, she lifted her foot and started moving forward again.

But after a few steps, the wet soft feeling under her foot increased. It was then that Cloudy realized she had made two huge mistakes - she was moving towards where the body was, not away from it.

The strong humidity and the strange swirling wind in the jungle at night had disturbed her sense of smell, making her mistakenly believe the body was to her right. It was too late when she realized, judging by the intensity of the smell, she was already very close...

Caught between a rock and a hard place, but thinking positively, such a strong stench would surely mask her own scent, she wouldn't be discovered by predators for the time being. Now she had to carefully identify the direction to escape, she couldn't afford to make another mistake.
Cloudy swallowed nervously, preparing to retreat from the settlement.

In the darkness, she tensed her whole body, every movement controlled by core strength. She kept her arms close to her upper body to avoid making any noise by touching extra branches, ensuring her shoulders and head remained still. The muscles in her thighs controlled her steps, moving slowly whether lifting or setting them down, keeping her speed to a minimum and her voice at a whisper.

One step, two steps, three steps... Cloudy stopped not because she had reached her hiding place, but because her right heel touched something hard and warm.

She knew it wasn't an inanimate object. It was someone's foot she had stepped on, a living person's foot. Perhaps from the very beginning, the "predator" had been standing behind her, observing her every move.

Almost instantly, like a wild animal, Cloudy leaped in place, her hands reaching forward like an animal's forelegs, lunging and rolling. She steadied herself in a split second after rolling, stood up, and ran forward without looking back, as long as she didn't hit a dead end, she just ran forward!

Unfortunately, most of Cloudy's escape plans ended in failure, and this time was no exception. Her burst of speed was nothing but a mere hop in front of the "predator." Before she could run a hundred meters, Cloudy's arm was grabbed, forcibly stopping her.

"Don't kill me, don't kill me!" she started screaming in the local dialect, but before she could finish, her mouth was forcefully covered.

The rough, smelly hand covering her mouth was familiar, too familiar. Without needing to see, Cloudy immediately recognized that the "predator" who had captured her in the dark was Titus.

"Titus!!" she cried out his name, muffled by the hand covering her mouth, which loosened slightly upon hearing her name.

The next moment, she felt a wet, soft nose nuzzle her forehead, sniffing desperately. First her forehead, then her hair, then her neck.

"Stop smelling me, I stink right now...!" Cloudy tried to push Titus away, but he kept sniffing, making very puzzled sounds.

"I remember..." he finally said the first thing Cloudy could understand. Hearing the familiar voice, Cloudy finally relaxed and rushed to hug Titus. "You're okay! I've been looking for you for so long!"

"Cloudy?" Titus wrinkled his nose, sniffing "Cloudy?"

"Yes, yes! It's me! Cloudy!" Titus also smelled bad, but she ignored it. "Besides me, others have been looking for you too. As long as you're okay."

"But... I seem to have seen..."
"Cloudy is dead," Titus' voice sounded strange, muffled, and dull. "Why is Cloudy here? I remember seeing her."

Even though Titus' words left her confused, sensing something off in his tone, she tried to reassure him first, "I'm not dead, you just smelled something. I am Cloudy. You said it yourself, I am Cloudy." She patted Titus on the arm, feeling the stickiness on him, but Cloudy didn't dare to dwell on what that stickiness might be.

"Really?"

"Really!"

However, this response seemed ineffective. Titus chose to trust his own nose, continuing to lower his head to sniff her vigorously. Cloudy could only give up resistance and endure the stinky Titus poking around.