Bear Hunting

Wolfswood.

Beneath the gray-green needles of a Sentinel Tree, Garon drew his bow, the arrowhead locked steadily onto a dappled fawn grazing ahead.

"Twang!"

The bowstring vibrated, and the arrow left the string.

The fawn raised its head in alarm, but it was too late—

The sharp arrow pierced the deer's neck with precision.

The dappled fawn stumbled a few steps through the dappled shadows of the trees before finally collapsing to the ground, lifeless.

"Great shot!"

Jon cheered immediately from the side. Garon smiled and shook his head, "Just a fawn, nothing special."

"However..."

Garon lowered his bow and looked around, feeling frustrated, "Usually the Wolfswood is teeming with animals, so why have we only found one fawn after wandering for so long?"

"Could it be that the King and Prince Joffrey have hunted them all?" Jon wondered aloud, "Garon, should we head deeper inside?"

Garon peered toward the depths of the Wolfswood, where the shadows of the trees were thick, hiding countless dangers.

The Glover family had lived in the Wolfswood for generations, so he naturally understood the complexity of this forest that had existed for ten thousand years.

If they continued to push deeper, they would certainly encounter large beasts like Direbears.

Therefore, he shook his head slightly and said, "It's still early, let's just look around the vicinity."

"The Wolfswood is so vast, I refuse to believe our luck will stay this bad forever!"

Garon turned his head to look at Roger, "Take that fawn, let's go!"

Roger nodded and ordered his men to carry the deer from the distance.

Jon had no objections, and the group continued their hunt.

But unexpectedly, after another half hour of searching, they still came up empty-handed.

It was as if this entire area had been claimed as territory by some massive beast.

Just as Garon was planning to head back to the camp to check things out, a shrill, piercing scream tore through the silence of the forest.

"What was that sound?"

Jon froze.

Roger had already pressed his body to the ground, his pupils shrinking as he felt the vibrations through his palms.

"Lord Garon, it's the stampede of a large beast," he said, looking up abruptly and pointing toward the depths of the Wolfswood, "The commotion is coming from the north!"

"Could it be that the King and Lord Ned disturbed something up ahead?"

A Deepwood Motte soldier nearby couldn't help but whisper his guess.

Garon and Jon exchanged glances, their expressions darkening simultaneously.

"Move! Let's go see!"

Garon ordered in a low voice; if the King and Ned were to die in the Wolfswood, the consequences would be catastrophic.

The group did not dare to delay.

Led by Roger, they moved quickly through the shadows of the trees.

Soon, Garon spotted three fleeing Lannister knights and a golden-haired youth—Joffrey!

"It's Prince Joffrey!"

Jon whispered in shock, instinctively wanting to call them over, but the beast that burst from the forest mist made his blood run cold.

A nightmarish giant bear was charging forward, knocking down trees and swatting one of the trailing Lannister knights aside with a single claw.

"Thud!"

The Lannister knight's chest caved in instantly, killing him on the spot.

The remaining two knights, feeling the sorrow of their fallen comrade and knowing they couldn't outrun the giant bear, shouted, "Prince Joffrey, run! We'll stay behind to cover you!"

A terrified Joffrey didn't even dare to look back, running for his life.

But the two screams that rang out behind him made his entire body tremble.

His running feet suddenly twisted uncontrollably, and he fell hard to the ground.

"Ah—"

Joffrey screamed in terror, scrambling forward on his hands and knees.

At this moment, Jon, not far away, began to grow anxious.

"Garon, what should we do now?"

"If Joffrey dies here, Lord Ned won't be able to answer to the King!"

Garon's eyes were dim; for a fleeting moment, he felt the urge to stand by and watch, but his reason told him he could not abandon Joffrey.

His mind raced, and in the blink of an eye, he made his decision.

"Jon, Master Roger, go find people nearby to support us immediately!"

"I will go and lure that giant bear away!"

"What!" Roger said in shock, "Lord Garon, that is a giant bear!"

Garon took out his bow and arrow, reassuring the group, "Don't worry, I am familiar with the terrain and I am fast."

"That bear won't be able to catch me for a while, just go and call for help as quickly as you can!"

Garon acted decisively, and Jon and Roger had no choice but to scatter to search for other hunting parties.

At this moment, Joffrey, whose body was limp and unable to crawl, had already been caught up to by the giant bear.

But the giant bear did not bite him to death immediately; instead, it moved its limbs forward unhurriedly, as if toying with its prey.

It stood nearly a zhang tall at the shoulder, its brown-black fur matted with blood and mud, its amber beast eyes locked onto Joffrey, and its massive paw was about to descend.

No sooner said than done!

Garon focused his mind and drew his bow.

In an instant!

The bowstring vibrated, and the arrow struck the giant bear squarely in the right eye.

Roar—

The giant bear felt the pain and swiped at its eye with its forelimb, snapping the arrow, while blood instantly obscured its vision.

It whipped its head around, its violent left eye staring fixedly at Garon.

"Roar!"

The giant bear let out a roar, dropped to all fours, and abandoned Joffrey to charge at Garon!

The ground shook, and dead branches were crushed to powder.

Garon retreated rapidly, firing arrows from his bow in quick succession, but unfortunately, they were all blocked by the giant bear's thick fur.

Seeing that his bow was useless and the bear was now within arm's reach, he simply threw the bow away, drew the greatsword at his waist, and waited for the bear to pounce.

A foul stench rushed toward him as the enraged giant bear lunged to bite Garon!

At the critical moment, he dove and rolled to the side.

"Bang!"

The earth trembled, and the impact of the giant bear knocked him to the ground, covering him in mud and leaves.

Before Garon could get up, the giant bear turned its head violently, opened its bloody maw, and lunged again!

Garon could only roll away in a sorry state to dodge, his greatsword tentatively slashing at the bear's thick hide and fat, but leaving only shallow marks.

Not only did it fail to draw blood, but it also provoked the giant bear into an even greater frenzy.

A split-second delay in his dodge caused a bear paw to graze Garon's left arm, instantly tearing his vambrace and leaving a deep, bloody claw mark on his arm.

No, I have to find a way to restrict its movement!

After dodging once more, Garon's back hit an ancient oak tree, and he scanned his surroundings.

Suddenly.

Following the giant bear's previous pounce, a rotten, hollow Sentinel Tree not far away had crashed down at an angle, forming a narrow V-shaped gap with another living tree, the height of which was only just enough for the giant bear to squeeze through.

"That's it!"

At this moment, the giant bear roared and lunged again.

A look of determination flashed in Garon's eyes; he performed a sliding tackle, sliding from beneath the bear's belly to its rear.

Then he quickly scrambled to his feet and sprinted for his life toward the natural cage formed by the dead tree.

Seeing its "prey" fleeing, the giant bear roared and followed, crashing into the V-shaped gap.

The rotten wood groaned, and splinters flew.

The giant bear's front half squeezed through the gap, but its waist was wedged tight by the narrow space, and its movements became instantly sluggish and clumsy!

Garon seized the opportunity, gripped his greatsword with both hands, and aimed the tip at the spot exposed by its roar—the vital point at the base of the neck, the connection between the heart and the skull!

"Puchi!"

The sharp tip of the sword pierced through fur and flesh, sinking in up to the hilt!

Garon threw his entire weight into a fierce downward press, ignoring the scalding, iron-scented bear blood that sprayed out and soaked his entire body.

The giant bear's roar turned into a wheezing hiss, its sound replaced by agony and a hollow void.

Its massive body convulsed violently, and the combination of being wedged tight and the piercing wound to its heart caused its strength to drain rapidly.

Garon braced his sword against the dead tree, enduring the bear's final struggle.

Until the giant bear's head drooped and it went limp, wedged in the gap, as blood gushed out to stain the rotting leaves.

The forest was left with nothing but Garon's bellows-like panting and the sobbing of Joffrey in the distance, who had survived the ordeal.