[Author’s Note] It’s getting really hot and humid lately. Nights are cooler than days now. #90
30. Magical Beasts and Rising Difficulty
089 – Magical Beasts and Rising Difficulty #2
“Come on already!”
Leaf was bouncing around, waving at me like a hyperactive kid. I followed the little rascal, climbing up the cliff face while squinting against the blazing sun.
Thud, thud, thud.
Rocks and sand tumbled away beneath my feet.
We had already been climbing for half the day.
Tree climbing was a breeze thanks to my claws, but climbing this precarious cliff required a whole different level of muscle and skill.
I dug my claws into the wall, and the earth crumbled along with it. Who knew if the whole thing would give out at any moment?
Whoosh! A gust of wind ruffled my fur.
“Ugh, climbing’s such a pain.”
I rolled my eyes and peered down.
We were already dozens of meters up, and the ground looked absurdly tiny. I tightened my grip with my front paws on the cliff.
Feeling a bit dizzy, I realized that one more slip could send me tumbling to my doom!
I glanced up at the top. Leaf was already reaching out and scrambling up the rock face like a pro.
That little critter had impressive grip strength, making it look way easier than it actually was.
“If that punk can do it, so can I!”
I pumped myself up and used the protruding stones to hoist myself up.
“Is there really a guide up here?”
Man, I wished there was an elevator or a cable car or something.
“Almost there! Just a little more effort!”
Leaf shouted something from above. I gritted my teeth and heaved my heavy body up.
Finally, I made it to the top, where Leaf grabbed my front paw and pulled me in a dramatic rescue.
“Whoa, you actually made it!”
I hung there, catching my breath and trying to calm my racing heart.
“Huff.”
Exhaling like I just ran a marathon helped me chill out a bit.
It was then that I noticed the view before me.
On this cliff I had finally conquered, there were several piles that looked like they were stacked with branches.
“Wow, it’s like a space surrounded by cliffs.”
I thought it felt like a rooftop garden from a high-rise building or something.
Seeing small trees and flowers growing next to the log piles made me wonder if this was what a hidden oasis might look like.
“So there’s a guide here?”
I glanced around but didn’t see anything moving.
No giant eagle or pterodactyl lived up here, right?
“They’ve got to be around here somewhere.”
Leaf was rummaging around on the ground like he was on a scavenger hunt.
After a bit of digging through the logs and flowers, Leaf squealed, “I found it!”
“What did you find?”
In his tiny paw was just a regular old rock.
“What’s that?”
“Don’t you remember? It’s a stone that makes chicken sounds!”
“Oh, that thing.”
That brought back memories of the time I had to battle Belger, the hedgehog, to get that stone for El-Gasa’s egg.
Leaf began tapping the stone on the ground. The sound went “bloop, bloop,” echoing off the cliff.
“Yep, that’s definitely a chicken sound. Nice find!”
Leaf looked quite proud about his little discovery. But I still couldn’t wrap my head around how that stone sounded like a chicken.
“What kind of chickens are there in this world, anyway?”
Just as I was pondering that, something wiggled beneath my feet.
“What the heck?”
I jumped back a step, watching as the ground shifted. Suddenly, a wooden door popped open.
“Secret passageway?”
“It opened! Let’s go in!” Leaf shouted with delight. Feeling curious, I nodded slowly at the unexpected door on the cliff’s top.
“What a strange place.”
The secret door led down a set of stairs.
Crawling through the narrow passageway felt like I was in some spy movie, sneaking through an air vent.
“I thought this was just a simple cliff, but it has all this stuff hidden away.”
I figured this ‘guide’ was likely more extraordinary than I thought.
I moved forward, keeping an eye on Leaf’s chubby little behind as we crawled through the secret underground tunnel.
“Looks like a long-tailed Welsh Corgi.”
But just as my curiosity began to wane about Leaf’s ample backside, I opened my mouth to ask a question.
“How much longer do we have to crawl?”
“Almost there! Look, there’s a way down!”
With that comment, there was a clank, and something sounded like it was unlocking. Leaf slipped down through the opening on the floor.
“Come on down!”
I shoved myself through the opening, and suddenly found myself in a much wider space, drastically different from the cramped, dark tunnel.
“Whoa, what is all this?”
I thought there might just be some caves in there, but instead, there were trees, flowers, and butterflies fluttering about.
Glowing stones hung from the ceiling, brightening up the interior like fluorescent lights.
“It’s like a botanical garden indoors.”
This place turned out to be way more than just a simple cliff; I started to wonder if it might not be a secret base of some sort.
Who would have thought a sanctuary like this existed inside a cliff?
I shifted my gaze from the flowers and trees to a small, round brown fluff over in a corner that was twitching.
Leaf and I cautiously approached it.
That little ball of fluff had brown fur, paw-like front feet, black spots like bruises around its eyes, and perky ears, with a particularly plump tail. I whispered softly.
“Looks just like Leaf! Is this one a raccoon too?”
“I’m a raccoon, you idiot!”
I jumped back, startled by its growl.
“Whoa, first meeting and you’re already using insults. Is this how you greet new friends? Will you be nicer if I end up in your belly?”
I pulled out my front claw and pondered how I could turn it into a meal. But then Leaf jumped in front of me, awkwardly smiling.
“Hey! He’s just like that! Please, Whitey, try to understand!”
He rambled, quickly whispering something to the raccoon.
“That dude can be scary, so it’s best to calm him down a bit. He’s a real lunatic! You might end up as his lunch!”
“Hey! I can hear you!”
I growled at Leaf and the raccoon. The raccoon narrowed its slender eyes at me and asked in a cold voice,
“White fur, huh? What kind of beast are you? With those front paws and claws, you look like a ratel, but the spikes tell me you’re a hedgehog. But that long, fluffy tail? I’m not sure what to make of you. Some giant white squirrel?”
It trotted over and began inspecting my fur and tail.
“Your fur is way too white, though. You’ll stick out like a sore thumb in the night forest. Every predator will be drooling for you. That’s a stupid color for fur.”
The raccoon snickered, and I felt my temper rising at the insults and jabs I’d received on our first meeting, lifting my paw in anger.
“Hey, no! Rita is like a big sister to me! She’s too frail for you to hit! If she’s gone, no one will guide me through the night forest!”
Leaf clung to my front paw, begging.
I lowered my paw and took a deep breath to regain my cool.
“Your name is Rita? And you were the one supposed to guide through the night forest, huh?”
“Yeah, I was the best guide around. The absolute best.”
Rita had quite the attitude, unlike Leaf, being all haughty and rude.
I wondered if that was just a raccoon vs. possum thing, or if it was simply Rita’s personality compared to Leaf’s.
“But I quit. I’m not guiding anyone anymore.”
Raccoon Rita shook her head.
I turned to Leaf and muttered softly, “You told me everything would be fine once I got here!”
“I-I’ll figure something out!” Leaf cleared his throat dramatically before inching closer to Raccoon Rita.
“Hey, sis, don’t be like that. I’m offering you a good reward, okay? You like growing flowers, right? I brought some excellent tree seeds!”
“Tree seeds?”
Rita’s ears perked up with curiosity. Despite their contrasting personalities, the resemblance in their looks and mannerisms made it hard to doubt they were sisters.
I pulled out a small, solid seed from the vine bag tied to my waist and placed it on my front paw.
Raccoon Rita sniffed the seed in curiosity.
“What kind of seed is this?”
Leaf answered before I could.
“It’s a dogwood seed!”
“This is a dogwood seed? Really?”
Rita’s eyes widened as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
As she reached for the seed in my paw, I quickly clenched my paw into a fist to hide it.
Raccoon Rita looked into my eyes and cleared her throat awkwardly.
“Interesting item, but still, I can’t. I’m done with the night forest.”
She stated firmly, her tone much milder than before.
Leaf stood next to her, looking confused.
“Why not? That’s the seed you’ve always wanted. This chance doesn’t come around often!”
“It’s too dangerous.”
“That’s why we need you to guide us!”
“No, I’m telling you, the night forest is dangerous for me too.”
Raccoon Rita pointed to her left hind leg. A dry stick was tied to her leg like a prosthetic.
Leaf gasped, mouth agape.
“What happened?!”
“Almost died not long ago. The secret paths I knew are different now. The news of El-Gasa’s d*ath spread through the forest after Yan-Mite got injured, and it’s been brutal ever since. Everyone’s restless, trying to seize the owner of the forest’s absence as an opportunity.”
Rita hobbled over, dragging her makeshift leg, and plopped down near a bent tree like it was a chair.
“Still, the south isn’t so bad. I heard the west is completely trashed and chaotic. The position of the forest’s owner is wide open, and fights break out at all hours. Can you believe it? That prosperous west has turned into a nightmare.”
Rita spoke like a middle-aged man discussing politics over drinks.
She then casually plucked a yellow flower at her feet, popped it into her mouth, and chewed away.
“Sweet taste.”
“Any news about the west?”
I asked, and Rita raised an eyebrow.
“Shouldn’t you be worrying about the south instead of the west?”
“True, but I’ve got friends over there.”
“You have friends in the west? Poor them. They’re probably dead by now. I heard there’s a black lion over there. He’s especially vicious! He’s rumored to eat everything in sight!”
“Black lion.”
I remembered Suka, who had turned into a Duoksini. A black lion isn’t exactly the most common beast, so if I’m right, Suka might be the one.
“Is he still alive? Managed to survive after that root attack?”
“Have you heard anything about giant cats or harpies?”
“Not my job to know—I’m a guide, not a news network. So, did you hear what I said? Now you know why you shouldn’t venture into the night forest? It’s too dangerous. You only have one life! I’m saying this because I care about you. Head into the night forest now, and your beautiful white fur might end up as someone else’s tablecloth!”
As Rita wrapped up her speech, I slammed my tail on the ground.
“Ugh!”
The air filled with the sound of a crack as Leaf and Rita’s eyes widened.
“Right, I get it. You’re worried that some scary beast is gonna sink its teeth into my neck. A big and terrifying monster is gonna shred my hide to pieces, huh? You may be a little rough around the edges, but you’ve got a heart, don’t ya?”
I bared my teeth and growled menacingly.
“But you’re wrong. Who’s gonna bite my neck? Use my hide as a tablecloth? Nah, I’m the beast who tears them apart! I’m the one who’ll spread their hides across the ground!”
Leaf and Rita blinked, staring blankly at me.
