The moment the two hit the ground, a branch sprang from the nearby tree, passing horizontally just above Demba’s head.
The thick branch struck the tree behind them with a loud thud.
Emariya screamed.
“Big sister!”
“Don’t move!”
Kanga grabbed Emariya’s arm, stopping her from running. Emariya froze in place.
Demba, still pinning Irika down, cautiously lifted his head.
A sharp stake was tied horizontally to the thick branch that had swung over their heads, and it was now deeply embedded in the trunk of a nearby tree.
It was at chest height.
Irika looked up fearfully. “Was this a trap?”
Demba answered affirmatively as he got up, helping Irika to her feet.
They carefully approached the deer. It was lying motionless.
Around the short, newly grown antlers of about one foot, thin branches of crooked bamboo were wrapped. A knot was visible at the base of the antlers. Demba examined the deer’s feet.
The tendon in its right hind leg had been cut, and the blood had coagulated.
Demba’s brow furrowed.
Irika approached cautiously and peered at the scene, her green eyes wide open.
“Could this deer also be part of the trap?”
“Yes. Our enemy is quite formidable. They anticipated we would soon be hungry and lured us with an easy target. A truly terrifying opponent.”
Demba spoke calmly. Irika covered her mouth with her hand.
Kanga and Emariya approached.
“Could the meat be tampered with as well?” Kanga lifted the deer’s head, scrutinizing it.
“The deer was definitely alive, so probably not. It’s unlikely they could poison fresh meat.”
“But,” Emariya said, looking skeptically at the stake embedded in the tree, “doesn’t it seem like an overly elaborate trap? This stake could only injure one person at most.”
“Maybe it was enough if they could kill even one of us,” Kanga muttered.
Demba seemed deep in thought.
Irika pulled out her hunting knife and sliced through the deer’s neck. “Anyway, we have some food now. We can’t butcher it here, but let’s find a place. Preferably where we can cook it.”
She wiped the blood from her hands onto the deer’s fur as she spoke.
Kanga stood and looked upstream. “There’s a hut over there.”
He pointed, and Demba also stood and looked.
A shadow resembling a hut could be seen in the lowlands near the river. There were no signs of other houses nearby. The area around the hut was devoid of tall trees, making it conspicuously visible.
“Why is there a hut in such a place?” Irika stood up.
“Maybe it’s a shelter for hunters to avoid snowstorms. Hunting in winter here is harsh.”
Kanga carried the deer, and the four of them headed towards the distant hut.
From the outside, the hut seemed about four and a half tatami mats in size. The roof and walls were thickly thatched with dried yellow grass, and there were no windows. The surroundings were overgrown with low weeds, avoiding areas with tall trees.
Demba cautiously circled the hut, examining the ground.
He determined that nothing seemed to be set up around the hut for now.
He lifted the shutter door and peered inside. It was dark, as there were no windows. Only faint light filtered through the gaps in the grass-thatch walls.
Demba looked down. The floor felt like it was still bare earth.
“It’s empty. It doesn’t seem like it’s meant to be lived in.”
Irika followed, and the other two entered as well.
“Wait, I’ll get a light—”
There was a sudden popping sound from somewhere.
Something fell heavily on the four of them.
“Ahh!”
Emariya screamed.
“Ouch! What is this!?”
Irika’s voice was heard but it was too dark to see. Demba tried to brush off whatever had fallen on them, but thorny vines dug into his clothes and skin, immobilizing him. Trying to remove them by force only left the thorns embedded, pricking his skin and fraying his nerves.
The sensation of being pricked in the dark reminded Demba of the slave ship for a moment. A bitter taste rose faintly in his mouth.
“Ouch! Damn it, what is this!?” Kanga shouted.
“It’s a net. We’ve been caught.”
The net had large five-inch gaps and was rigged to the ceiling.
“Ouch! Don’t pull!” Emariya screamed.
The net was entwined with thorny vines, catching in their hair and piercing their skin and clothes. The more they struggled, the more entangled they became.
Demba looked towards the wall, alarmed.
There was a crackling sound coming from the other side of the wall. Red flames were visible through the gaps.
“Damn it… we’ve been tricked.”
“They set it on fire! Did they plan this from the beginning?”
Irika looked around. Their eyes were slowly adjusting to the light from the flames.
“Yes,” Demba spat out. “The deer was bait. The enemy intended to finish us all here from the start. Seeing their comrades’ failure, they used this method.”
“What a vile enemy!”
Smoke quickly filled the room. Emariya coughed violently.
“Damn it! We have to do something!” Kanga struggled, but the net only entangled him further.
“Calm down! Irika, use your knife to cut the net!”
Irika, struggling to free her hair from the net, lifted her head.
She stopped for a moment, then looked at Demba.
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
“You called me by my name for the first time.”
“Is this the time for jokes?” Demba’s expression remained unchanged, but he averted his eyes slightly.
Irika drew her hunting knife. She began to cut the net, thread by thread.
“It’s tough… The net is wet. They soaked it to make it harder to cut. What a crafty enemy.”
Irika grimaced. The smoke was becoming denser. Demba coughed.
“This is bad… We’ll be roasted alive before we can cut through.”
“Damn it! Everyone, bear with it for a moment!” Kanga shouted, grabbing the net above his head and crouching.
He yelled and pulled the net with all his strength. The net tore with a ripping sound and split into two. The four of them tumbled out of the net.
Brushing off the remaining net, Demba grabbed his spear, and Irika picked up her bow.
Coughing from the smoke, Kanga moved towards the entrance.
“Be careful! The next thing coming at us will be poisoned arrows for sure.”
“I know!”
Kanga unlatched the shutter door and used it as a shield as he stepped outside.
An arrow immediately struck the shutter.
“Follow me closely!” Kanga ordered. Irika, Emariya, and Demba followed in that order.
They emerged outside. The hut was already engulfed in flames, with smoke billowing into the cloudy sky.
Irika peeked out from behind Kanga, licking the scratches on her hands.
“Where’s the enemy?”
Demba also peeked out above her. “They shouldn’t be far.”
An arrow flew from a thicket about ten yards away. Kanga quickly blocked it with the shutter.
“Over there,” he said. Irika squinted.
“I can’t see them.”
“Look closely. They’re camouflaged with grass. They’re highly skilled.”
Demba readied his spear.
“We’re going. Are you coming?”
He said without turning around.
Irika smiled faintly. “You’re not telling me to stay here this time.”
“You can stay if you want.”
“You’re mean. I’m coming.”
“Follow me.”
Demba held his spear in front of him and lowered his posture. He darted out from behind the shield, and Irika followed swiftly.
The two of them ran like lightning.