If they escaped successfully, Ariana would probably take revenge on him.

It seemed her kindness was the only plausible explanation.

This realization stirred something in Bennett.

Rarely had he encountered genuine kindness-neither from his relatives nor from anyone else.

He struggled to grasp the essence of kindness and the reasons behind its existence.

Yet, Ariana embodied it. Despite her delicate appearance, her kindness was a formidable force.

For the first time, Bennett felt an emotional awakening. Maybe he could learn from Ariana on how to genuinely care for another and how to truly love.

Meanwhile, what Ariana felt was far from comfortable. She expended all her energy sprinting and lobbing chunks of meat to sidetrack the wolves, muttering prayers to herself, “Stop following me, please. I'm running low on meat."

Yet, the wolves persisted.

After hurling the last slice of meat, her strength failed her. She staggered a few more meters before crumbling to the ground, utterly spent.

She lay there, breathless, sucking in air and straining her ears for any rustling in the bushes.

As time ticked by without a sound, it seemed she might have shaken off the wolves.

Her pulse, previously hammering in her ears, began to slow down.

Gathering some energy, she leaned on a nearby rock to sit up, removed her backpack, and took a few sips of water.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps behind her.

Her initial thought was that the wolves had caught up with her.

But the footsteps sounded distinctly human.

Ariana tensed up, wondering if it might be Bennett. They were supposed to be alone out here; could he be planning to ambush her?

The footsteps grew closer, quickening Ariana's heartbeat. Feigning a reach for her water bottle, she covertly drew a dagger from her backpack for defense.

Just as she felt a presence right behind her and spun around to strike, a force struck her, and she blacked out.