– What is happening?
He had asked himself this question a thousand times already, and still no one had given him an answer. Only silence and the forest surrounded him.
– Maybe this is a dream?
Most likely, he understood, but there were still doubts. He needed to check it, only he couldn't remember how to do it.
And then it dawned on him; the only thing that would give him a precise answer as to whether this was a dream was pain.
And at that very second after understanding this, he dug into his arm, and he felt nothing, no pain, no blood on his tongue.
A smile involuntarily began to rise on his face.
– This is a dream! Aha! It's just a dream... Now it's hard to figure out how to get out.
– You must win.
WHOOSH.
Kopii heard a voice behind him, but before he could turn around, his gaze began to fall and he saw his own body without a head.
«What?»
– Aaaaaa!
Kopii's eyes flew open and he screamed in terror; his hands were already unconsciously feeling his neck.
– My head, my head, my head.
He babbled, unable to comprehend what he had seen, but when he clearly felt his neck, and most importantly, that his head was in place, he began to gradually calm down. But even so, his whole body was covered in cold sweat, and the trembling in his hands was not about to stop.
«It was just a dream. Just a dream...» – Even understanding this, his trembling hands continued to trace his neck.
– Just a dream...
Kopii did not fall asleep again that night, and remembering what had happened to him in the dream, he decided to wait out the night by the campfire and continue his journey only in the morning.
When it began to grow light, he immediately set off; walking through the forest, he tried to somehow distract himself from this nightmare. Every rustle, every shadow made him flinch and unconsciously touch his neck and look around.
Finally, Kopii reached a clearing where the specific ingredients he needed grew. He began gathering herbs and roots, trying not to lose his vigilance even for a moment. His movements were quick and precise. At last, he gathered everything necessary. But this was only one clearing out of the four marked on the map, so confidence in tomorrow was still a distant light.
He had not liked this idea from the very beginning, and after that dream, his mood had fallen below rock bottom. He began to seriously consider turning back, but quickly chased these thoughts away.
Kopii was distracted from his reflections by a strange sound. Looking towards the source of the sound, his eyes narrowed.
«Goblins.»
Kopii threw off his backpack and headed towards them. They had not noticed him yet, so he would take full advantage of this. Kopii paused in thought and turned back, trying not to make a sound; at first, he wanted to kill them with his sword, but realized that would take too long, so the bow was better. It was one of those bows of Naaza's that he had never used in the dungeon, for she usually used a longbow. And Kopii preferred short bows because of their speed, and he did not want anything to slow his movements, like, for example, a longbow; every second he spent drawing an arrow could kill him.
SWOOSH.
«One.»
SWOOSH.
«Second.»
SWOOSH.
«Third.»
Before he knew it, all the goblins were dead, and unlike their brethren in the dungeon, they did not vanish.
It was already getting dark, and the evening shadow was gradually covering the forest. Kopii looked at the sky and looked around; not a single tree nearby. This was a very good spot.
Kopii lit a campfire, took dried fish and a piece of bread from his backpack, had supper, reflecting on the past day. Meanwhile, he prepared a place to sleep.
He tossed and turned for a long time, trying to calm his nerves, which were like taut strings. Images from the nightmare surfaced in his head again and again, making his heart beat faster. He got up, walked to the campfire, and threw a few branches into it, hoping that the fire would bring warmth and confidence. The bright flame soothed him, embracing him with its light and giving a sense of security. He sat down next to the fire, closed his eyes, and tried to fall asleep.
Kopii regretted not taking any books with him. He had simply thought that this task wouldn't take much time. And now he had nothing to do. Sleep would not come, and thoughts of the day pierced him like poison. Thus an hour or so passed as Kopii stared at the campfire, unable to sleep. No matter how he searched for a comfortable position, he still could not fall asleep.
Not knowing what to do, he got up and surveyed the area around him.
«Maybe take a walk?» – He asked himself, looking at the forest in the distance.
...
...
«Nah, not worth it.» – he thought, staring into the darkness, and his hand again found itself unconsciously on his neck.
«Definitely not.»
He lay back down on the cold ground, closing his eyes, trying to fall asleep again.
STOMP. STOMP. STOMP.
Grrrr.
Kopii jumped up sharply. He had almost fallen asleep when he suddenly heard the sound of footsteps and a strange growl.
He spun around abruptly, but saw nothing in the darkness. The gloom hid all objects and creatures around. He froze, listening to every sound, practically holding his breath. For some time, nothing happened.
«Imagined it?»
But then figures began to rise from the grass.
SCRAPE.
«What the!?» – he thought in horror, drawing his sword from its sheath.
But when they began to rapidly close the distance between them, he could clearly distinguish them.
– What, are you goblins? Got bold, have you?
He said with relief, understanding that everything was fine and they were just ordinary goblins. Who, as he understood, wanted to kill him when he fell asleep.
Grrr!
No sooner had he been surprised that the goblins here were smarter than in the dungeon, than one goblin had already leaped at him with a cry.
SWOOSH.
It took Kopii one strike to deal with him and assume a defensive stance.
He wanted to test how much they differed from their brethren in the dungeon.
But cutting one after another, he did not feel a strong difference; they were just as weak as in the dungeon.
Cutting down the last goblin, he swung his sword, wiping all the blood from the blade and sheathing it.
– Too weak.