What they didn't expect was that their opponents didn't follow the script they had prepared at all. Instead, they used overwhelming military force to brutally slaughter them, not giving them any chance to turn defeat into victory, even during the chase.
Realizing this, the Hunting Lord stopped trying in vain and sprinted at full speed towards a certain point in the forest.
This was a clearing in the woods, not the natural kind, but one that had just been cleared, with tree stumps thick enough for a person to embrace everywhere, and in the middle there was a huge bonfire pile, filled with ancient trees that had not yet burned completely, twisted and lying there, as if emitting angry accusations.
Bodies of various animals, humanoid creatures, were visible everywhere, on the ground, on the stumps, on the trunks, everywhere were traces smeared with sprayed blood.
