If only time would go by faster, and the villagers would tire, returning home to sleep sooner. The more Rachel Wood hoped for those things to happen, the slower time seemed to pass.

Every minute felt like a century until dawn finally arrived.

Sounds of roosters crowing around the mountainous village were like beacons of light in the darkness that gave her hope.

The entire village had grown quiet. The loud footsteps had also ceased.

Rachel knew that those people had probably grown weary, with most of them already returned home.

However, she was weak, cold, and hungry after lacking food and water for a long time.

Her tongue felt dry, and she felt as if there were needles in her stomach.

She reached for a handful of straw and began to eat to avoid collapsing from exhaustion and hindering her escape.

The straw was tasteless and difficult to chew, which made it hard to swallow.

Rachel didn’t care, however.

With strong willpower, she believed that she could overcome any obstacle.