BYUN BAEKHYUN: BEYOND DETECTIVE ▷ EXO GAMEBOOK

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DAY OF THE HUNTER

 

If you’re stranded on a strange planet, would you dare to chase an alien? A pair of EXO-Ls, Baekhyun and Chen, steeled themselves to run after the unknown creature. First, they enveloped themselves in silence, breathing slowly and keeping themselves rigid.

The creature noticed that two pairs of eyes were stabbing it. Perhaps, their evil thoughts had floated through the distance to reach the all-sensitive creature. Aware of its vulnerability, the creature in white sprinted away.

“Wait! Come back here!” Baekhyun and Chen followed close behind. The creature was remarkably faster than them because it was used to its surroundings. A forest sprite (was it?) had outperformed two space goofs. The forest was indeed its home, the place where it belonged. Its escape was natural, as true as an animal’s instinct.

The two didn’t give up just yet. Today was the day of the hunter.

And Fate had chosen this path.

Baekhyun and Chen leapt over fallen logs, random mushrooms, random creatures and sharp rocks. Sometimes, they pushed away the branches and spiderwebs that got in their way. None of the three had shown any signs of giving up. The pursuer didn’t lose focus and the pursued didn’t lose energy. They were amazed by how lithe it was. The faster they ran, the air friction rang louder in their ears. The ringing sound reminded them of the strong winds on EXO Planet. Now, they too, feel like home.

But not exactly. Here, the air was lighter, and they felt that they had never ran any faster in their life. Had they ran like this on their home planet, they would’ve broken the speed record. They felt even more energised. Oxygen were a plenty on Earth, and they gobbled the air hungrily as their legs began to ache.

Unfortunately, their legs weren’t accustomed to long-distance running. They had spent their lives reading and making calculations, and during trainee days they didn’t even have time to maintain a healthy lifestyle (hello, fast foods!). Halfway through their chase, the two collapsed. They couldn’t go on any further, not anymore.

Earthlings one, Space Goofs zero.

They lay over a spread of lush green grass, heaving. The creature in white had since long left their sight. All they could see was the green vegetation of an alien world. They felt foolish and powerless to challenge a force they had never encountered: their Adoptive Mother Nature.

“At least it was fun.” Chen breathed.

“Yah, stop breathing like that. You start to sound like Kris.” Baekhyun jested.

“Ahahaha~” Chen let out a world-splitting laugh. “I bet we both are!”

After regaining their lost energy, the duo sat upright and scrutinised their surroundings. “So, where should we go?” asked Baekhyun.

Chen gladly opened his mouth to suggest before Baekhyun crossed his arms. “Not another of your ideas!” he barked. “Look at this!” the EXO-K scientist pointed at the uneven grassy surface to his left. “Trampled grass! The marks are still new—which means, the creature must have gone this way!”

Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.

Rapid, heavy footsteps were heard from their right. Something had made its way there. It was another sign of foreign motion. The two had even adapted their senses to them: rustling leaves, snapping branches, crunched heavy footsteps, low grunts.

“It’s there.” Chen whispered. “I heard someone shouting, pleading.”

“Maybe it’s too far away.” said Baekhyun. “We must follow down the trail to be sure.”

“What if—“ Chen gasped. “The creature we’d hunted just now… was human all along?”

“Yes, that possibility is undeniable.” Baekhyun shrugged. "But I’m surer about a concrete evidence compared to vague ones.”

They compared one evidence to another. They watched. They listened. The pained scream filled the air for a while. Then it stopped. Followed by a short laugh.

A strange chain of events.

“The trail will lead us to the creature.” confirmed Baekhyun.

“The noise will lead us to the source.” added Chen. “I need to know what happened.”

“Ah, Chen Chen.” Baekhyun sighed and ran his fingers down his hair. “What are we running for?”

If you choose to follow the source of the noise, go to 6. If you choose to follow the path of trampled grass, go to 7.

A/N: Happy 1 month anniversary, Chasers~ Thanks for supporting this story *bows* ! I don't expect this gamebook to have 2k reads, 200 votes and 500 comments in a month! ^^ Here's a challenge for you guys to celebrate with~ Tee-hee!