Kopii watched as the sun dipped below the horizon. "Ouch, still hurts," he muttered, clenching his fist. He decided to ignore the pain in his leg and arm, as it wasn't important right now. He needed to keep moving and find a place to wait out the night and rest. Somewhere they wouldn't find him.
Kopii walked as quickly as he could. He couldn't find a suitable place, and visibility was worsening. He couldn't go on any longer, so he leaned against a tree. "Ah, ha… So tired. Kopii's legs are shaking. Just a little rest, then I'll go on," he told himself, unable to find the strength to move further.
"Just… a little… just a second… just sit down for a second," he said, these were his last words before he lost consciousness from exhaustion. Kopii woke up to a coolness. A light breeze played with his hair, and the first rays of sun pierced through the foliage of the trees. His body ached, but the exhaustion had subsided, leaving behind a dull pain in his limbs. He struggled to his feet, leaning on the trunk of a tree.
Kopii looked around. The forest seemed quiet and peaceful, but he knew it was a deceptive impression. Danger could lurk behind every tree, behind every bush. He listened, trying to catch any sound that might indicate the presence of enemies, but he only heard the singing of birds and the rustling of leaves.
He didn't know what to do now – the pain in his leg and arm was still present, reminding him of yesterday's incident. He was lucky that they hadn't found him when he lay unconscious all night. "Maybe they really didn't pursue him? Maybe I got lucky, they didn't find me and just left. If so, I'm very lucky."
But Kopii decided that relying on luck would be too risky. He stood up and headed back towards the lake. He didn't want to act so rashly, but he had no choice. It was foolish to keep running in an unknown direction. And going back might be the best idea, because they might not think he would come back. The biggest catch in this is that he might meet them on the way. It was risky, but also justified. A foolish decision might be the best one. Kopii decided not to waste time and start his journey.
His clothes were completely dry, which allowed him to speed up. But he was ready to meet his pursuers, so he decided to conserve his strength rather than wasting it on running. For half a day, he met no one except wild animals. But even so, he didn't relax at all. He was fully prepared for anything that might await him at every step.
Walking through the forest, he finally reached the place where he had bandaged his wounds. He decided to rest. Leaning against a tree, Kopii took out a waterproof bag from his backpack, and then took out a map from that bag. He was ready to get completely soaked. After all, when he went to collect herbs the first time, it started raining towards the end of his gathering, and everything got wet, and some of his supplies became useless, and one of them was the map.
So he prepared and bought this bag for the sake of one map. Taking out the map, he examined it. The map didn't give him anything useful, and he put it back in his backpack. "Ah," Kopii sighed. Continuing to sit and look at the sky, he remembered that there were arrows lying somewhere here that he had thrown away. Kopii jumped up, walking in the direction he had thrown them, but no matter how much he searched, he couldn't find them.
"I definitely remember throwing them here. Where are they?" Kopii wanted to examine the arrows that had been shot at him more closely. But he couldn't find them anywhere. "Maybe those who were chasing me took these arrows?" That was logical. But this news didn't please Kopii at all.
"Someone is still chasing me. Then they may be near me or they have already found me and are waiting for the right time to attack." After such thoughts, Kopii's muscles tensed with tension. He understood that he couldn't relax for a second. Every rustle of leaves, every crack of a branch seemed suspicious to him. He slowly turned, examining the surroundings, trying to discern anything that would give away the presence of pursuers.
Deciding that he had rested enough, he got up and headed towards the lake. He moved cautiously, trying not to make unnecessary noise, carefully watching every step he took. Kopii feared one thing – that he would be attacked from behind again.
Kopii was sure that these were ordinary people, not Kanao and Gedo. Kopii realized who was hunting him, and it was bandits. They fit his arguments best of all. "They probably saw him and decided to rob him. That's all," Kopii thought, getting closer and closer to the place where the lake should be.
The closer he got to the lake, the more his paranoia grew. He knew that wherever he went, there would be an equal chance of meeting pursuers. Closer and closer. It occurred to Kopii, while he was walking here, that he had never met rivers or other sources of drinking water. This lake was possibly the only source in these places. Kopii stopped, pondering his next actions. The chances of meeting them increased.
He decided not to rush, climbed a tree and decided to look around. After all, the chance that they could set up camp near the lake was high. "How could I not think about this right away? It's so logical!" - He didn't understand how he could have missed such a hypothesis. He thought, climbing higher and higher into the tree.
Kopii climbed to the very top of the tree, as far as the branches allowed. From here, there was a good view of the surroundings, and he could see part of the lake, gleaming through the foliage. He carefully examined the shore, trying to discern any signs of human presence.
Kopii watched for quite a long time, but he didn't notice anything unusual. "Need to act," - He began to descend. Stepping onto solid ground, he immediately headed towards the lake.
"Maybe they filled their flasks and went on. If so, it plays to his advantage." Finally, the lake began to appear. Hurrying, approaching the lake, Kopii looked around and, after making sure that it was quite quiet here, washed himself in the lake and rinsed his wounds. After the water procedures, Kopii began to think about his next stage of the plan. He was able to reach the lake - this was the easiest part of his plan. Now all that remained was to climb back. This is his most difficult part. Not because he has little climbing experience, but because when he climbs up, he will be vulnerable. And if he is unlucky, his pursuers can take advantage of this. He wanted to avoid this.
He came up with a risky but best plan that he could only come up with at the moment, and that is to climb at night when the view will be minimal. He understood that it would take a very long time than if he climbed during the day. It was risky, but at the same time safe - he didn't see enemies, and the enemies didn't see him.
All he had to do was wait for the night. The sun began to slowly decline towards sunset, painting the sky in crimson and orange tones. Kopii, watching this sight, felt the tension in him grow. Waiting was agonizing. He sat leaning his back against a tree and tried not to think about the coming night.
"Very soon, there's only a little bit left," - Kopii looked at the sky and whispered to himself. He hoped that his wounded leg and arm would not let him down at an unexpected moment. This is all he could hope for. Time later.
He watched as night entered its dominion. As it envelops the forest in impenetrable darkness. Only rare stars pierced through the thick foliage, creating bizarre shadows. Kopii felt the cold penetrate him to the bone. He shivered and got to his feet, preparing for the upcoming climb.
He approached the rock, carefully feeling its surface with his hands in search of reliable ledges. The stone was…
The sky was finally covered in darkness, only rare stars twinkled weakly through the foliage. Kopii got up, stretching his numb limbs. The night chill pierced him to the bone, but he knew that now was not the time to pay attention to discomfort. He had to carry out what he had planned.
He carefully checked his backpack, making sure that everything he needed was at hand. "Auu," he exhaled, starting to climb. The higher he climbed, the more he was sure that he was lucky. Kopii smiled at his thoughts, thanking luck that at least today she is on his side.
Kopii had already climbed a quarter of his way. "Vssss." He immediately jumped aside, grabbing onto a ledge on the ascent, and an arrow pierced there a second later. Kopii was so angry at this mistake - he won't get caught anymore. But suddenly he hears this sound again. He had no choice but to let go. He flew down like a stone, but took pity and was able to do a somersault to cushion the fall.
But Kopii didn't have time to stand up when a blow flew into his face. But even so, he still remains conscious. Kopii jumped aside, looking in the direction from where the blow came. But Kopii didn't have time to take out his sword when he heard footsteps in the distance and a whistle again. He dodged the arrow, but couldn't dodge the blow of the unknown. Kopii staggered, his pursuers took advantage of this state and surrounded him. Blows began to fly from all sides. He defended himself as best he could, but even he felt his consciousness fading - someone hit him on the back of the head. Then he repeated his attack. Kopii's consciousness completely left him. Kopii fell to the cold ground like a doll with its strings cut.