For Michael to execute his plan properly, the lizards in the cave couldn't be too weak. Being Low Tier-1 Monsters wouldn't have been enough.
Fortunately, luck was on his side…or would it be better to call it 'misfortune', right now?
A huge lizard the size of a shuttle was growling at him menacingly. It was standing at less than five meters separating them. It had green scales and large reptilian eyes that stared at him in hatred – or so Michael thought.
His hair stood up on its end and he felt like someone was squeezing his throat tightly. The pressure weighing down on him made it hard to breathe.
'Is that the pressure of a Peak Tier-1 Monster, or is it already at the 2nd Tier?' Michael wondered while his body remained frozen.
He didn't move a single inch, hoping that the Lizard would redirect its attention elsewhere. Still, the reptilian eyes kept staring at him, crushing his little hope slowly.
The Lizard didn't seem happy about the intruder, but the overflowing pressure decreased slightly when it glanced over to its eggs and saw that they were unharmed.
'Now!'
Michael used the opportunity to kick his feet off the ground. He manifested the Boots of Taran and empowered the artifact's Swiftness enchantment.
His acceleration skyrocketed, and he reached full speed within seconds. He headed to the cavern entrance without looking back even once. That was not needed. Michael could hear the lizard mother's roar and feel the tremors in the ground as the monster began its pursuit.
Despite sprinting as fast as he could and crossing close to 20 meters a second, Michael could tell that he was not fast enough. The lizard mother closed the distance between them rapidly.
'Fuck…I shouldn't have underestimated my opponents…'
Michael knew that the rainforest was dangerous from the beginning. However, he had been foolish enough to enter the lizard cave without ample preparations despite knowing that. Blaire had even told him that the cave was eerie and more dangerous than the dense rainforest, yet he had somehow believed he could return unharmed.
'That's a really dumb way to die—...no…just think less and run more!'
Michael cursed himself, but he couldn't switch off his mind. Too many thoughts flashed through his mind to survive while the shuttle-sized lizard was getting closer.
The tremors spreading through the ground began to affect Michael's mind. His breathing got ragged, and he felt anxiety rising from the deepest pits of his body. Michael broke into a sweat, and he vividly imagined the lizard swallowing him whole.
It was at that moment when a memory flashed through his mind- the reason he entered the lizard cave, in the first place.
'Some reptiles are invested in caring for their young!'
The lizard mother's overflowing pressure receded when her eggs began to shake. She had looked over to her eggs worriedly which Michael had used as an opportunity to run for his life.
The moment Michael recalled this; his body began to move of its own accord.
He twisted his body and turned back while unleashing the Eagle Eyes Soultrait to the full extent. Simultaneously, the Antler Bow and an arrow emerged from within the War Rune.
Michael's hands moved instinctively. His left hand reached out for the Antler Bow's frame while his right hand was already holding the arrow nocked on the bowstring.
He inserted energy in the Antler Bow, pulled back the bowstring, and let go the moment the bow was drawn out fully.
The arrow soared through the air at full speed in the following instance.
Michael turned back while the Antler Bow turned into a white wisp that shot back into the War Rune. He stumbled for a moment but quickly regained balance. Michael reached top speed once again and kept running without caring to see what was going on behind him.
When he released the arrow, his Eagle Eyes were fully focused on the lizard mother's eggs. Michael had never intended to shoot at the lizard mother. Killing her was out of options with a Tierless 1-Star Artifact as well. He knew that he would just enrage her and that his chances of survival would decrease even further.
Being fairly intelligent, the lizard realized what was about to happen when an arrow shot past her. The beast reacted instinctively, swiping its tail at the arrow with tremendous force. Yet, despite its quick and instinctive reaction, the tail missed the arrow by a hair's breadth.
In the next second, the arrow disappeared inside the cavity.
A multitude of sounds rang out from the cavern, and the lizard mother came to a halt at last. she stared back at the small cavern tunnel, only to turn back to Michael the next second.
She opened her mouth widely, revealing a dark-greenish substance that had accumulated inside. The lizard mother took aim and released the dark-greenish substance in Michael's direction. Afterward, she turned around to rush back into the tunnel. If even one of her eggs had been damaged, she would hunt down Michael and torture him until he died miserably.
Michael was already close to the cavern entrance that shone brightly in the midday sun when his hair suddenly stood on its end.
'Hmm?'
He knew that the lizard mother wasn't behind him anymore. The tremors in the ground were fewer than before, but something seemed fishy
His highly enhanced perception was telling him that something was wrong and that he was standing at death's door. The Grim Reaper's scythe was pressed against his neck, cold and merciless.
However, the only thing Michael could think about at this moment was the weird sound the lizard mother had released before turning away.
'...Almost like the sound of a human spitti–...WA-...'
Michael used his full force to dive left all of a sudden. His ankles felt like they were about to burst from the sudden change of trajectory, but Michael endured the pain as he smashed hard into the ground.
In the next instance, something splashed on the exact spot he had been standing just a moment before.
Michael took a second to realize what had happened. He got up from the ground and looked at the dark-greenish substance corroding through the hard stone ground.
"Oh my…" Michael blurted out.
'Acidic spit, for real?!'
The thought of nearly being hit by this much acid caused chills to run down his spine.
Michael instinctively looked back into the cavern tunnel, but the lizard mother was not there anymore, fortunately.
"Good thing that I didn't aim at the eggs," He mumbled before he got up to leave the lizard cave.
Michael didn't think twice and rushed to his territory without delay. His mission inside the cave had been completed successfully even if it may not look like it.
It had been a hassle and a near brush with the Grim Reaper's scythe, but he escaped death by a hair's breadth and was able to find out everything he needed to know while staying alive and relatively unharmed.
Back in his territory, Michael handed the Scholar the materials he procured in the lizard cave.
Afterward, he used the information he procured to finalize his plan and make ample preparations for his next move.
The next day, when the first ray of sunlight reached the rainforest, Michael left his territory once again.
However, this time it was not to gather information.
This time Michael left for war.
[End of Volume 1: Lord of the Untamed Jungle]
