Yuji, who was ready to leave this place, relaxed with a sigh of relief. "Damn, that was intense. What were they fighting?"

As he slowly sat down and started chewing on the stored food, reflecting on the close call, Before he could even gulp down his food, a rustling sound broke the silence.

Rustle, rustle.

He shifted his gaze and looked toward the direction that sound came from. At first, he was confused about what made the sounds. Initially, it was the sound of a single being. Then the rustling increased to three and then more.

Yuji realized what was happening: coyotes were attempting to get inside. His suspicions were confirmed when the vines, the natural protective shield of this place, began to move with a mix of low growls.

 

“Fuuuck.” The vine moved, and a growling sound spread. Yuji felt anger and hunger in their voice.

 

Yuji stood up and immediately started searching for a way out. But realized it was too late. He was already surrounded from all sides.

 

“When did they surround me!” it was just a few seconds when he heard the coyote stop fighting, and there should have been a big distance between him and the place the coyote was.

 

He should have left when he heard the cry earlier. Today, he learned something. If there’s a next time, he would put this experience to good use.

 

But it’s not the time to think how this happened so fast.

 

Coyotes from all sides surround him, leaving him with only two options. Wait here to be eaten alive by the coyote or run inside the cave.

 

The first options give him guaranteed death, as for the second option also has a 99.9% chance of death but 0.1% unknown.

 

Since there was still a chance of survival, he chose the second option. Without wasting time, he ran toward the unknown. He kept running without looking back. He needs to get as far as possible before the coyotes break inside. He kept running, the growl coming from the back telling him not to stop, not to waste time looking back, but his little legs were too slow.

 

As he kept running, he felt his surroundings becoming foggy, but this didn't stop Yuji. As he delved deeper, he felt the fog thickening and a strange feeling of danger ahead. But he doesn't have a choice.

 

Yuji pushed through the thickening fog, his heart pounding with fear and determination. Despite the ominous feeling of danger ahead, he knew he had to keep moving forward to have any chance of survival.

 

For a moment, he considered using his language ability to attempt communication with the coyote. But would they understand him? Unlike goats, coyotes are different creatures. Perhaps coyotes wouldn't even care if their prey could talk or not.

 

After running for a few more seconds, he stopped and turned around. Surprisingly, there were no sounds of footsteps following behind him.

 

"Did they stop following me?" Yuji thought, but he didn't want to risk his life by going out. So he decided to walk a little further. In case the coyotes returned, he would have some extra time to reflect on his life. After all, with his current speed, he didn't want to overestimate himself by thinking he could outrun a coyote. So it's best if he can create as much distance as possible between him and the coyote.

 

As he delved deeper, he noticed the fog becoming denser. At one point in his journey, it became so thick he couldn’t see what lay ahead. So, he had to slow down and walk carefully to avoid bumping his head into something because the pain was still there.

 

Plink.

As he kept walking, a sound reached his ears: the gentle *plink* of water droplets falling into a pool nearby.

 

Hearing the sounds, he walked even more carefully. He thought about turning back, but since he had come this far, he wanted to check a little further.

 

At that moment, as he took another step, something magical happened: the fog that had completely blocked his view disappeared.

 

With the fog gone, Yuji was able to see his surroundings clearly. In front of him lay a small water pond, with droplets falling from the cave ceiling. But that's not what caught his eyes; what caught his attention was what lay beyond the small pond.

 

A crack in the space.

 

[ Congratulations, the user has found an unexplored rift]

[Reward- 20 essence ]

 

The system notification confirmed Yuji's guess. It’s indeed a rift—a rift where he can probably find monster to hunt. But the question is, can he hunt those monsters?

 

But still, Yuji become a little happy over the fact he received 20 essences and he need another 20 for a level up.

He currently has three options: go back and see if the coyotes have gone away, wait here, or delve inside the rift, which may provide him with the essence he desires.

 

He slowly and carefully walks up to the rift to see if it suddenly sucks him inside, but nothing of the sort happens. However, that doesn’t make the rift safe, so he kicks a pebble toward it. The pebble passes through without any problem.

 

Seeing this, he approached the rift cautiously. But a notification appeared before him. He looked at the notification and noticed it warned that he was too weak to enter the rift and suggested alternatives:

 

- Reach level one and then try entering a rift for a better chance of survival.

- Make a hunting party for a better chance of survival.

- Wear strong suited gear to increase defense.

- Or just stay away from the rift for a better chance of survival.

 

Given these options, Yuji may want to consider leveling up, gathering allies, obtaining stronger gear, or simply avoiding the rift altogether. But that doesn’t mean he can’t enter. It’s just his chance of survival inside the rift is too small.

 

So, Yuji decided to take a break and make up his mind about what to do. He slowly walked close to the pond and sat down.

 

As he sat down close to the small hole made by the droplets, he pondered over what had happened earlier. There was a strange feeling, a question nagging in his mind: Why didn't he sense the coyotes? He didn't feel them until they were only a few meters away from him.

 

For some reason, he felt his thoughts weren't clear; he couldn't think properly. Usually, he could sense danger or a hostile presence from almost 5 meters away. But today, he didn't sense anything at all, as if something were blocking his senses. Before he knew it, he was surrounded from all sides.

 

As Yuji remained in a dilemma, he heard the sound of footsteps. Without wasting a single second, he jumped into the rift, and a notification rang in his ears:

 

[ You have entered a rift ]

[ Warning: User is too weak. It’s advised you don’t venture too deep. ]

[ User will receive a one-time 100% buff in all skills and stats ]

Duration: Until the user leaves the rift.