Everyone was stunned by Pin's action. Hearing this, Ryan grinned with anger and said, "Turn back? We came here to find food. If we go back now, everyone on the platform will laugh at us and call us cowards."
Ryan was a boy who cared deeply about his reputation in the family. His status was usually very good, second only to Lilian.
Pin was left speechless after hearing Ryan's words. He knew very well that Ryan was obsessed with his reputation. He would not allow it to drop even a little.
Still, Pin tried to convince him. "But if you continue this, we will waste time. Didn't Lilian say that no matter whether we find food or not, we must go back before night comes?"
Everyone quickly nodded in agreement with Pin's words. Seeing that everyone supported Pin, Ryan had no choice but to release Marcus.
Marcus could not do anything against Ryan. Even if he wanted to fight back, he would lose since he was the weakest among them.
After letting Marcus go, Ryan shot him a cold glance and said, "If not for your knowledge, you would already be back at the camp, staying with that weak girl."
Everyone relaxed when they saw that Ryan had stopped. Pin let out a quiet breath and quickly helped Marcus stand up.
Marcus stood up slowly and brushed the dust off his trousers. With a faint smile, he thanked Pin. "Thank you for helping me."
"It's alright. As members of the same family, we should help each other," Pin replied.
With the situation calming down, everyone relaxed.
Without wasting any time, they quickly began searching for food.
Even though Ryan hated Marcus, he managed to suppress it and allowed Marcus to stay with the group.
They searched the nearby area for a long time but still found nothing edible.
Aside from withered leaves and lifeless vines, there was nothing worth noticing.
Seeing that they still had not found anything, Marcus thought of something and spoke up. "Everyone, I have an idea."
Hearing Marcus's words, everyone focused on him.
Ryan couldn't help but chuckle. "An idea? Don't tell me it's something important that you forgot and only remembered now."
Marcus trembled slightly and quickly denied it. "No, it's not like that. My idea is for us to split into two groups, head in different directions, and gather back here at a fixed time."
After hearing this, everyone thought for a moment before turning to Ryan. As the leader, he had the right to agree or disagree. If he disagreed, he must had a clear reason.
Feeling everyone's gaze, Ryan thought for a moment before saying with a frown, "What if there are monsters here, not just big trees and lifeless vines?"
He paused before adding, "Your idea is good, but we can't be sure this forest is safe. Wouldn't it be better to stay together so we can help each other if something dangerous happens?"
Although their journey so far had been calm, they could not be sure that this forest is completely safe either.
Marcus nodded in agreement. He also couldn't be sure that the forest was completely safe.
They quickly end their conversation and continue venturing around the Area to continue finding.
During their search, Marcus couldn't help but think quietly in his mind.
Even though the idea from the night hideout was useful, we couldn't use it in this forest, where the dangers were unknown. We didn't know whether there were any dangers lurking around the area.
This was the difference between novels and reality. While in novels everything was possible, in reality not everything could work.
Marcus had to accept this, not everything from a novel could be applied in reality.
He quickly shook his head slightly before gathering his thoughts about the situation in front of him.
They continued searching, but all they saw were large trees and lifeless vines. Aside from these, nothing else could be seen.
Without knowing how much time had passed in the forest, night was about to arrive. Noticing this, everyone quickly stopped searching and hurried back the way they had come.
Along the way, they didn't encounter any danger. After running for a while, they finally saw the entrance. After passing through it, they managed to catch their breath
Their entire bodies were soaked with sweat, as though they had just come out of a shower or a swim.
Suddenly, they seemed to sense something and quickly turned, only to see an orange light enter their vision. Above the light, smoke rose toward the sky.
Surrounding the light was a group of six people sitting around it. Only one person was standing, and his actions were very strange. A murmur could be heard from him.
It seemed as though he was saying something, but because Ryan's team was far away, they could only hear a sound like whispering.
Noticing the sound, the man who stood up quickly turned around. When he turned, Ryan recognized him, it was none other than James.
Seeing that Ryan had returned, Lilian, who was sitting beside James, quickly stood up and waved her hand toward Ryan's team.
Without any hesitation, Ryan's team quickly walked toward Lilian's group. Seeing that Ryan's team had not been injured or lost anyone, Lilian relaxed slightly.
James didn't care about Ryan or the others. All he cared about was Marcus, who was walking slowly behind them. He quickly ran toward Marcus and checked if he had any injuries.
He asked worriedly, "Are you alright? Are you hurt in any way?"
Seeing James question him, Marcus seemed at a loss for words. Since they knew each other, this was the first time Marcus had seen James truly worried about him.
"Yes, I'm alright," he replied lightly.
Upon hearing this, James relaxed slightly.
But he still asking again trying to confirm that Marcus was really okay , "Are you really not injured?"
Marcus didn't answer with words but nodded slightly. After confirming that Marcus was really okay, James exhaled slightly.
"Are you guys alright?" Lilian inquired.
Ryan's team nodded in unison. After confirming that everyone was alright, Lilian continued, "Did you find any food or anything that we can eat?"
Hearing her question, Ryan's team's emotions were filled with anticipation.
Seeing this, Lilian was disappointed but still inquired, "Did you encounter anything strange along the way?"
"No, we haven't encountered anything strange besides the lifeless vines and large trees," Ryan answered furiously.
Suddenly, he turned around, pointed at Marcus, and shouted, "It's his fault! If he hadn't been careless, we might have already explored other areas!"
The goal of their exploration was to search the surrounding area. The forest formed a wide circle, and at the center stood a platform, which seemed to be the core of the region. So far, they had explored only one-tenth of the surrounding area.
The entire forest was enormous, almost larger than their entire family's territory. So far, they had only explored nearby areas. They couldn't even imagine what dangers might be lurking if they ventured deeper.
Seeing Ryan point at Marcus, others also looked at him. In this awkward situation, Marcus was left speechless. He knew very well that it was actually his fault for not telling them earlier.
Seeing someone insult his friend, James couldn't stay silent and quickly stepped forward to defend Marcus.
But he was stopped by Marcus himself. Without explaining anything, Marcus quickly bowed and apologized to everyone. "Uh… sorry everyone for my carelessness. If not for me, we might have explored other areas. But I forgot to tell you guys about…"
He then explained to everyone what he had forgotten to tell. Hearing his explanation, everyone was also furious, but they couldn't do anything.
"Yes, this idea was very critical, and you should have told everyone about it earlier. But since it already happened and you guys returned safely, we should be thankful," Lilian said seriously.
After the situation finally calmed down, Lilian wasted no time and invited Ryan's team to join the bonfire.
Ryan was still furious, but he had to suppress it. He gave Marcus a sharp glance before turning toward the bonfire.
Marcus didn't retaliate or care about it, since this was really his fault. With a smile, he said to James, "Don't argue with him. It's my fault."
"Tsk… I really hate that Ryan. Don't worry, I won't defend you for your foolishness, but if he suddenly starts bullying you, I won't let him go." Even though James and Marcus were best friends, James wouldn't defend Marcus blindly if it was Marcus' fault.
Before he thought of defend Marcus, but then he heard Marcus explain, and he quickly shut his mouth and just listened.
The two of them quickly walked toward the bonfire and joined the others.
Upon seeing the bonfire, Ryan couldn't help but ask in puzzlement, "How did you guys make this?"
"Bonfire? Yes, it was James who made this," Lilian answered with an amazed expression.
She was very excited when seeing something new, especially the method James had used to make the bonfire.
Marcus wasn't puzzled at all when seeing the bonfire, because he knew very well that this must be James' doing.
Since the two of them always read novels, they knew that in the night hideout novel, there was a way to create a bonfire.
They had even tested it in reality, and the method actually worked.
Seeing Ryan puzzled, James quickly said proudly, "Yes, I made it. Impressed, huh?"
Faced with James mocking him, Ryan was left speechless, since he couldn't have made it himself.
With that, he sat down with an ugly expression. Marcus and James also sat down, sitting close to each other.
After everyone gathered around the bonfire, Lilian quickly said to James, "Now let's return to our storytelling. James, quickly continue, I want to know how to make that bonfire."
Now it was clear why James had stood up and acted strangely earlier: he was telling the story of the night hideout.