Silent Battlefield

'I can move... So much faster!!' The Venomous Snake thought as it slithered through the sand.

In front of it, a digital timer had appeared and counted down from 30.

'Faster... Faster...!'

The pit that the Venomous Snake had entered and emptied was halfway between the waters and the forest.

The Island was large, and that wasn't simply relative to the Venomous Snake's size.

The distance separating the waters from the forest was about four hundred meters.

The Venomous Snake, being fourty centimeters long, wouldn't need too much time crossing the distance.

Two hundred meters separated him from the forest. 

Twenty minutes to cross one hundred meters meant that a speed of 0.6 kilometers per hour would suffice. 

This made it obvious that speed wasn't the issue here.

15... 8... 3...

'Accept!' The Venomous Snake shouted internally as it stopped moving.

[You have accepted the Quest #1 (CHALLENGER MODE)!]

[You have twenty minutes.]

A different timer appeared where the previous one floated earlier.

The Venomous Snake lowered its head and slowly moved forward, sinking its body into the sand.

'Twenty minutes... Entering isn't the heart of the Quest, but crossing, I assume. There might be more Nests around and this time with the Snake that laid the eggs. There might also be other things hiding in the sand. And of course...'

The Venomous Snake raised its gaze above.

'I'll have to move carefully from now on.'

The Raptors circling above the Forest were, as one might expect, still there.

'Mmm...'

The Venomous Snake studied the distance and area to cross without moving.

'I can't see anything. No snakes, no... But I couldn't see that pit until I got close. Yes, it's obvious. They're all...'

Excitement.

'Doing the same as me. Hiding in the sand. None want to be seen. Especially not by the Hawks and Eagles. Tsk... If I keep looking up at those, I might miss those around me. If I keep looking around me, I'll miss those coming from above. Even if I can't see any of them... Even if they can't see me... This...'

The Venomous Snake's eyes shone with excitement.

'Is a battle!'

During the thirty seconds that the Venomous Snake had to decide whether or not to accept the Quest, it had decided to cross as much of the distance as possible.

About fifty meters had been crossed in thirty seconds.

Keeping that speed for 20 minutes would allow it to cross 2000 meters.

Ten times more than necessary.

'Huh...'

A quiet and lifeless beach.

'Nothing is moving. Not even sand being pushed around. I can't notice anything...'

The Venomous Snake slowly started moving forward while trying its best to keep its body burrowed in the sand.

'If I move slow enough then-'

PFOO-

Sand rose as if an explosion had taken place.

It was only a handful of meters away from the Venomous Snake.

Its mind and body froze.

Only its eyes peeked and remained out of the sand.

CROACK-

PIERCE-

A Scorpion's venomous stinger pierced a Toad's belly.

In that Toad's mouth, the Scorpion's front leg.

Both fought, struggled, and wrestled against the other.

'That... When did they...?'

The Toad, using its superior strength, rotated its head and moved the Scorpion's body with it.

The Scorpion was turned upside down and the Toad pressed its body against it.

'It won't pull the stinger out...!'

The Toad seemed to lose strength. No doubt because of the Venom that was entering its body. It rotated its head, tearing the Scorpion's front leg off, before jumping back.

The stinger, which remained firmly placed in the Toad's body, pulled the Scorpion off the ground, allowing it to get back on its feet, before being pulled back.

The Toad, feeling strength leaving its body, jumped back once more.

The Scorpion wouldn't allow retreat, and pursued.

Both stopped moving and stared at one another.

CROACK-

The Scorpion moved its body and legs to the side, trying to look bigger and more menacing.

The Toad opened its mouth. But before its tongue could do a thing, the light in its eyes faded.

The Toad stumbled, and fell.

'It's... Unconcious...' The Venomous Snake thought to itself.

It had watched silently, without moving one bit.

Currently, the Toad lay unmoving, a handful of centimeters away.

The Scorpion quickly moved towards the unconscious prey.

The Venom had worked. Now was time for the feast!

Suddenly, a second Scorpion exited the sand and stood in the first's way.

The two fought with their legs, heads, and stingers.

Meanwhile,

[You have defeated 1 Common Toad !]

[You have gained 5 Experience Points!]

A bite had been enough.

The Venomous Snake burrowed its head back into the sand.

'They're fighting for food. I'll let them all show themselves first. Experience Points is good enough for now. Eating it would make me visible. Let's wait some more...'

A Scorpion lay unmoving. Only its legs twitched from time to time.

The victor moved towards the feast it had fought for, and what resembled a Camel Spider attacked from behind!

'Good... This is good... Perfect.'

The more they fought, the larger the feast grew.

The larger the feast grew, the greedier those watching became.

One by one, those hiding showed themselves.

Only the Venomous Snake wasn't worried.

'Unlike me, they can't eat it all at once. Worst case scenario, a couple of bites will be missing. I'll patiently wait... Until they have all shown themselves.'

Five minutes passed.

The floating counter showed that thirteen minutes were left.

On the sand were: three Common Toads, one Poisonous Toad, four Common Scorpions, three Sand Spiders, and two Paralyzing Snakes.

Presently, only the Poisonous Toad was alive.

The Venomous Snake debated whether or not to attack.

Thirty seconds passed, and the Toad fell unconscious.

'Phew... I feared that it would be resistant to Venom. Good. I'll wait a bit more and...'

Another thirty seconds passed.

The Venomous Snake slowly moved through the battlefield.

It took its time, making sure that no more of its body was above the sand than was absolutely necessary.

And one by one,

[You have Consumed 1 Common Toad.]

[You have Consumed 1 Common Scorpion.]

[You have Consumed 1 Common Scorpion.]

[You have Consumed 1 Sand Spider.]

[You have Consumed 1 Paralyzing Snake.]

[You have Consumed 1 Common Toad.]

[You have Consumed 1 Common Scorpion.]

[You have Consumed 1 Common Toad.]

[You have Consumed 1 Sand Spider.]

[You have Consumed 1 Common Scorpion.]

[You have Consumed 1 Sand Spider.]

[You have Consumed 1 Paralyzing Snake.]

'Should be safe enough... Since I didn't take part in the fighting, I won't be disadvantaged like the others. Even if another Toad or Scorpion rises, I'll deal with it easily.'

[You have defeated 1 Poisonous Toad !]

[You have gained 10 Experience Points!]

[You have Leveled Up!]

[Every Stat increases by 0.2 Stat Points!]

[New Bodily Alterations are now available!]