Culinary System: Transmigrated to Game World

They heard a low growl again, like something big was coming. Kai stopped and looked behind him, but it was too dark to see anything. He took one step forward, then another, not wanting to lose sight of the girl. The forest felt darker and colder. He tightened his grip on his dagger, feeling that something was wrong. They started running, dodging trees easily. The air felt charged, like the forest was full of energy. Kai tripped, almost falling, but managed to catch himself. They kept running deeper into the forest.

Kai's breath came in quick, heavy gasps as he crouched behind a big tree, his back pressed against the rough bark. His heart pounded so loudly in his ears that it nearly blocked out the soft sound of the creature's heavy steps on the ground. It was close. Too close. Every crack of a twig or rustle of leaves made him panic even more. He could feel the creature's presence, like a shadow getting closer, and he tried hard to keep his breathing quiet.

The girl beside him, her eyes wide and frantic, peered around the tree, her breath shallow. She seemed to sense his gaze and quickly turned toward him, her eyes searching his face as if looking for some kind of answer. But all he had was confusion—and fear. His mind raced, but the language barrier was still an overwhelming wall between them. Every time he tried to say something, the words just slipped away, lost in translation. He wanted to ask her what they should do, where they should go, but all he could do was stare back, helpless.

She held up her hand, motioning for him to be quiet, and he nodded, pressing his finger to his lips. There was nothing more he could do but try to stay hidden. The creature's footsteps grew louder, the ground trembling slightly with each heavy step. Kai's grip tightened on the hilt of his dagger, his knuckles white. He wasn't sure if he could fight it, but he wasn't going down without a struggle.

Suddenly, his gaze fell on something strange on the tree they were hiding behind. Carved into the bark, barely visible in the dim light, was a single word.

Nyx.

It was scratched into the tree as if someone had etched it with a knife, the deep grooves marking the wood. The word felt… familiar. But how? He had never seen it before, yet it pulled at something inside him, like a vague memory he couldn't quite reach. His fingers brushed against the letters, tracing them instinctively.

"Nyx…" Kai whispered under his breath, the name echoing in the eerie silence of the forest.

The girl, who had been glancing nervously over her shoulder, froze. Her sharp eyes flicked to the tree, narrowing as she looked at the carved word. Without saying anything, her lips parted, and then—almost hesitantly—she repeated it, her voice a faint whisper: "Nyx."

Kai turned his head quickly to look at her. Had she…? Had she understood him? But before he could ask, her eyes locked onto his, and she gave a sharp, exasperated shake of her head, clearly trying to focus on the situation at hand.

"Great. You're mumbling to trees now," she muttered sarcastically, glancing over her shoulder again to make sure the creature hadn't picked up their scent. "Just what we need in a life-or-death situation. Mumble all you want, but we need to move or we're both done for." 

Kai blinked, his mind spinning. She... understood him? He blinked again, rubbing his temples like he was trying to clear the fog in his mind. No...no, I can understand her now. How had that happened? Just moments ago, they couldn't communicate at all. Now, she was speaking his language—or maybe he was speaking hers. Either way, something had changed.

But the girl wasn't waiting for an answer. She turned her attention back to the woods, gesturing with her hands, her face hard with determination. "We need to get to higher ground," she muttered, her voice steady now, like she was giving a command, a plan. "If we stay here, it'll find us."

Kai watched her, trying to keep his breathing under control. Higher ground… that made sense. But still, the question gnawed at him. How could he suddenly understand her? Was it the word "Nyx"? Was it just some fluke? The connection, the moment—he didn't know, but it felt real.

"Wait," he finally said, his voice hoarse. "You… you understand me?"

The girl gave him a brief, frustrated look. "Yeah. Of course, I understand you. Didn't I just say 'higher ground'?" Her eyes flicked to the distant noise in the forest, and her lips thinned. "We've been running for hours, and I don't know about you, but I'm about ready to stop playing hide-and-seek with whatever that thing is."

Kai stood up, his legs trembling, and he stepped toward the girl, still confused. "How? I—this doesn't make sense. Yesterday, we were… we were both lost in translation. But now…"

The girl rolled her eyes, but there was no real annoyance in it—just a hint of relief mixed with exhaustion, like she'd been through this kind of mess far too many times before. "Look, I don't know what you're thinking right now, but standing here, frozen, waiting for that thing to attack us isn't exactly a winning strategy." She glanced at him one more time, giving him a look that said she was done with overthinking. With a sharp sigh, she took a deep breath and shook her head. "Honestly, I couldn't care less about your grand plan. Right now, we need to focus on surviving. Unless you think *that* thing is going to politely wait for us to come up with a clever escape plan?" 

She raised an eyebrow, the sarcasm dripping from her words as she kept her eyes on the dark woods around them. Kai opened his mouth to respond, but she cut him off with a glance that was both challenging and exhausted. "Trust me, we're not going to outsmart whatever that is. We're just going to have to keep moving." She adjusted her grip on the weapon in her hand, glancing around nervously. "Unless you have some magical plan that involves us not getting eaten, I suggest you stop thinking so hard and start running." 

She let out a breath and gave him a half-smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Because, spoiler alert: standing here debating our fate is exactly what's going to get us killed."

For the first time in two days, something in her eyes softened, and Kai couldn't help but feel a flicker of understanding. It wasn't just the language barrier anymore. They were both fighting the same battle. They had been on their own for so long, relying on nothing but instinct and desperation to survive. But now, somehow, a thread of connection had appeared between them—a tiny crack in the wall of silence that had kept them apart.

She looked at him, her expression a mix of weariness and something like trust, and for a brief moment, the world seemed a little less hostile.

Kai nodded slowly, meeting her gaze. "Alright," he said, his voice steady. "Higher ground. We move now."

She gave him a sharp, approving nod, and without another word, they both sprinted through the thick underbrush, heading for the distant hills. The silence between them was different now. It wasn't the same as before, heavy and cold. This time, it felt like they were connected, like they were in this together, even if neither of them fully understood why.

As they ran, Kai's mind raced, the word "Nyx" echoing in his thoughts. It wasn't just a coincidence. He could feel it deep inside him. Something about this place, this world, was changing. And somehow, that word was important—a key to something neither of them could see yet, but they both knew it would lead them somewhere.

The forest stretched on endlessly, the trees towering over them like silent guardians. The air was thick with the smell of damp earth and rotting leaves, and the distant cry of an animal sent a shiver down Kai's spine. But he didn't slow down. The creature was still out there, its heavy footsteps faintly echoing behind them.

The girl moved with purpose, her steps light and quick as she navigated the uneven ground. She glanced back at him now and then, her eyes sharp and watchful, as if making sure he was keeping up. Kai pushed himself to match her pace, his legs burning with the effort, but he refused to fall behind. Not now. Not when they were so close to escaping.

As they climbed higher, the trees started to thin, and the ground became steeper. Kai's breath came in short, labored gasps, but he forced himself to keep going. Survival was all that mattered.

Suddenly, the girl stopped, crouching behind a large rock and motioning for him to do the same. He obeyed without hesitation, his heart pounding as he peered over the edge.

Below them, the forest seemed like a dark, endless sea. The creature was nowhere to be seen, but Kai could feel it lurking, waiting in the shadows. He turned to the girl, speaking in a hushed voice. "Do you think we lost it?"

She shook her head, her expression serious. "Not yet. But we've bought ourselves some time." She eyed him carefully, then asked, "You okay?"

Kai nodded, though his body ached and his mind was still trying to catch up with everything that had happened. "Yeah. Just… trying to figure out what's going on."

She leaned back against the rock with a tired sigh. "Me too. But right now, we need to keep moving. We're not safe here."

Kai didn't argue. She was right. They couldn't afford to stop—not with the creature still hunting them. As they prepared to move again, a strange sound reached their ears. A low hum, almost imperceptible, but it seemed to come from the depths of the forest itself. It wasn't like any animal or wind. The ground beneath their feet vibrated ever so slightly, and the trees around them swayed, though there was no breeze.

The girl's eyes flickered to Kai, her expression unreadable. She took a slow, careful step forward, her hand resting on the hilt of her weapon. "We're not alone," she muttered, her voice barely above a whisper.

Kai felt a chill crawl up his spine, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end. Whatever it was, it wasn't the creature they were running from. This was something else, something older, and it was watching them.

Suddenly, the hum stopped. The forest went eerily silent, as if holding its breath. Then, a flicker of movement—too quick to catch—flashed between the trees in the distance. Something was there, hidden in the shadows.

Kai swallowed hard, trying to steady his racing heart. "What was that?"

The girl didn't answer. She was already moving again, her eyes scanning the shadows. "Keep up," she ordered softly. "And don't make a sound."