Hunting

Having a keen sense of smell was convenient, but at times, it could also be a curse—like now, for Glen.

He was standing in a swamp, surrounded by the overpowering stench of rotting carcasses and animal droppings. The smell made his stomach churn.

"Seriously, these animals had to run to a place like this…" Glen muttered under his breath, but his hands didn't stop moving.

He issued a few commands through his connection with the beast, then dismounted, his feet sinking into the thick mud.

Once Glen had removed all his gear, the beast shot off like lightning, quickly disappearing into the trees.

Glen glared at the fetid ground, gritting his teeth. "All for money…" he muttered to himself as he steeled his resolve.

After gathering his thoughts, he took a deep breath and grabbed the shovel he had prepared earlier. He started digging a trap.

For someone like him, catching a few wild boars wasn't hard. However, to do so, he would need to transform, and he didn't have any spare clothes left.

The shadows of the trees stretched as the sunlight shifted, and soon Glen had dug a hole about three square meters in size and disguised it with leaves and branches.

His ears twitched—he could hear the sounds of movement.

It was the perfect timing. Glen quickly found a patch of bushes to hide behind, smearing mud all over himself to mask his scent.

Thud. Thud. The ground shook as heavy footsteps approached. Glen raised an eyebrow, surprised by the loud noise.

What kind of herd could make such a ruckus in a swamp?

The answer arrived soon enough, and it was far beyond his expectations.

The first to break into his field of view was the beast, its expression frantic, barking loudly at Glen.

What was going on?

Before Glen could process further, a massive, five-meter-tall humanoid creature charged after the beast. Its skin was gray like stone, and it was completely naked, except for one hand clutching a bundle of three shrieking black wild boars, tied together with a rough hemp rope.

"Heh heh, you're not getting away from me, you're mine now..." The giant monster laughed gruffly, its voice low and booming, clumsy and dumb.

"Jump!" Glen shouted suddenly, leaping from his hiding spot.

The beast, swift as ever, received the command and jumped in a low arc, clearing the disguised pit and landing on the other side.

The giant, not thinking much, clumsily stepped right into the trap. With a loud oof, the enormous creature fell into the hole with a crash.

"Damn it! This stupid pit, Abh hates you!" the giant cursed, his voice filled with frustration.

Glen walked over to the edge of the pit, looking down at the struggling creature. "What's going on?" he asked.

The beast, its ears drooping, whined softly, looking quite pitiful.

After a few moments of listening, Glen understood what had happened.

The plan had been going smoothly—his beast had successfully herded a few wild boars into the area—but then this giant monster had appeared, scattered the boar group, and stolen three of them before chasing after the beast.

Glen, now annoyed, walked up to the pit's edge, his voice booming. "Stop yelling! You big guy, why did you steal my prey?!"

The sudden shout drew the giant's attention. It turned its ugly head toward Glen, its eyes lighting up when it saw a soft human standing there.

"Lucky me, a snack! I'm gonna eat you!" the giant boomed, its voice rough with excitement.

Glen gave a cold laugh. "A snack? Then come and get it."

The giant, enraged by the slight, roared in fury. "You make Abh angry! I'll bite you into pieces!"

Its massive limbs flailed, trying to escape, but the more it struggled, the deeper it sank into the pit, only exhausting itself.

Glen stood there, unmoving. Once the giant had calmed down a bit, he looked down at it with a mocking smile.

"I suggest you conserve your energy, big guy. How about we talk? If you give me the three boars, I'll get you out of there."

The giant, gasping for air, immediately huddled its boars close, its voice growling with suspicion. "These are mine! No one's taking them! I'll eat you instead!"

Glen raised an eyebrow. "That's funny, you took my boars first. Why do you think you can claim them?"

"They're mine! I say so!" the giant yelled, his tone defiant. "Everything in this forest belongs to me! I'm the king here! Now you and your beast are mine too!"

Glen shook his head in disbelief. "By that logic, I'm declaring that this forest is mine today. Does that mean everything here is mine? You're one dumb brute!" he shot back, his voice dripping with scorn.

"Mine! Mine! It's mine! I'm not giving them to you!" the giant raged.

Glen's patience was wearing thin. He stepped closer to the pit and spoke coldly. "If you don't give them to me, you'll stay buried here."

As Glen's words sank in, the giant suddenly realized something—it was sinking deeper into the swamp, its body slowly getting trapped in the thick mud.

It finally understood what Glen meant by "buried here."

The giant's eyes widened in terror. It looked up and saw Glen and the beast working together, shoveling mud into the pit, covering it even more.

"Stop! Abh's scared! I don't want to be buried alive!" the giant shouted in panic.

Glen turned his back without a word, continuing to shovel mud. "Give me the boars, and I'll consider saving you."

"Impossible! You're useless! You coward!" the giant yelled, trying to insult Glen, but it only made the human laugh. Glen didn't even bother responding, his focus solely on his task.

The giant continued to scream every insult it could think of, but it was all in vain.

As the thick, black mud rose to the giant's chest, it began to panic. Its tone became less harsh, and more desperate. "Hey, maybe we can talk. I'll give you the boars! Just stop! Please!"

Glen paused, his shovel poised in the air. With a calm smile, he looked down at the giant. "Give me the boars, and I'll get you out."

"No! You get me out first!"

"You don't get to negotiate. Give me the boars, or I'll leave you to rot here."

The giant cursed under its breath, and after a long moment of inner struggle, it reluctantly relented. "Fine, fine, I'll give them to you. But you'd better keep your promise!"

The giant swung its massive arm and tossed the three wild boars onto the ground beside Glen with a wet splat, the mud splashing everywhere.

Glen walked over to inspect the boars. They seemed to be fine—no visible injuries, just unconscious from fear.

"We'll dig out the mud around you. You'll be able to climb out yourself," Glen said, still calm.

He signaled to the beast to help him dig around the pit. They worked quickly, avoiding getting too close to the giant, a precaution Glen had planned from the start. They managed to clear most of the surrounding mud, enough for the giant to use its strength to escape.

As soon as the giant was free, it started to scramble, its arms reaching for the edge of the pit. Glen and the beast stopped digging, watching silently.

"Alright, big guy. Hope we don't have another encounter like this. We'll be on our way now."

Glen wiped his hands, removing the thick mud, then turned to leave.

The giant remained sitting at the edge of the pit, staring at Glen. It didn't say a word, but for a brief moment, Glen thought he saw a glint of mockery in its eyes.

"What was that about?" Glen wondered but didn't dwell on it too much. He turned to his beast and motioned to collect the boars and head off.

Just then, a sudden loud sound broke the eerie silence of the forest, causing both Glen and the beast to flinch.