Gentle Beast 6
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The full grown leopard had a muscular physic, and all four limbs were strong and especially pronounced.
Jว Xiวo ลu was being crushed into the ground by the leopard called Rhode, and she was almost out of breath.
. . . He was too heavy!
Her chest tightened, and she subconsciously moved her arm but it was immediately caught by the other and fastened to the ground.
The beastman’s gaze became vicious as he stared imploringly at her, demanding, “Where did you hide Ryan?”
Unfortunately, the reindeer race had learned a di ttps://betwixtedtranslations.blogspot.com/2018/02/gentle-beast fferent form of language that was still close to the human race’s.
During the evolution process, the leopard race developed certain differences in their imitation of the human language.
In addition to the beastman’s very pressured tone, Jว Xiวo ลu could only understand the word “Ryan”, and she quickly answered, “I don’t know him.”
Jว Xiวo ลu was unable to make sense of what she was hearing, but Rhode listened to her language.
He remained motionless, his eyebrow wrinkling, evidently pondering about the validity of Jว Xiวo ลu’s dialect.
No matter what she said, she smelled of Ryan, therefore she must have seen Ryan.
Rhode pulled back on her wrist with force, resting his other hand on her chest. His expression was particularly cruel, “Tell the truth.”
Even if the beasts had evolved into human form, they retained their sharp claws, and those were pressed against Jว Xiวo ลu’s stomach. If he used even a little bit of strength, he could gut her.
Jว Xiวo ลu felt her heart go cold. She looked up towards Eric in the cornfield, opening her mouth to cry, “Help. . .”
She only spoke the word “help” before it was caught in her throat.
Yesterday, Eric had also evaded the leopard race when they had meet. Despite the large size of the reindeer, their innate differences in race made them reduced to prey before the leopards.
Was her asking Eric for help this time not tantamount to dragging him into danger?
Jว Xiวo ลu ground her teeth. Even if she was killed, she was unwilling to do that.
Her finger inadvertently touched the small bag at her waist, and she stilled as she suddenly remembered it. She pulled it off her waist without hesitation to observe the beastmen’s reaction.
Rhodes stared at her with contempt, looking down at her condescendingly.
The other beastman stood a few paces away, without any intention to help or to stop what was going on.
She could only rescue herself.
Jว Xiวo ลu steeled herself and sucked in a deep breath. Holding the mint pouch tightly in her hand, she reached up and held it across Rhode’s noseโโ
Every time she coated her cat’s toys in catnip, it would become excited to the point of delirium. It would often hold it tight and rub and bite, rolling around. It was like a drug addiction.
They were also cats, but would it work for leopards?
The result disappointed her.
“Stupid woman,” Rhode leaned his head away from the catnip sachet, disdain coloring his tone, “Do you think we would leave such a weakness? Hundreds of years ago, cat mint no longer effects us.”
Jว Xiวo ลu saw the the mint not only had no effect, but it only angered the beastman even further. Her heart thumped heavily in her chest. She knew that was not good.
Rhode pressed his sharp claws against her belly, leaning down to get to the bottom of the matter, “Where is Ryan?”
The claws tore through Jว Xiวo ลu’s baseball jacket with no difficulty. She had not brought too many clothes, so if he damaged them, she would no clothes to replace it later.
Jว Xiวo ลu struggled desperately. She could tell they were looking for a beastman called Ryan. “I really do not know. . .”
Rhode frowned impatiently as the girl squirmed under his grip, claiming she didn’t know the whereabouts of Ryan.
He decided to take her away. One hand gripping Jว Xiวo ลu’s wrist, the other her slender waist, he tossed her onto his shoulder without care for the fairer gender and said to Dole, the companion behind him, as he walked towards the forest, “Back to the race.”
Her stomach was held right on the beastman’s shoulders, and Jว Xiวo ลu was in too much pain to even cry out.
Eric said the leopard race was a cruel one, and they could not learn anything from her mouth. Were they taking her back to eat her?
Jว Xiวo ลu’s soul was dead with despair. She was coming to accept her misfortunes as being decreed by fate, when suddenly beastman carrying her grunted in pain.
It was accompanied by a damning curse, “What the hell was that?!”
Jว Xiวo ลu did not understand how it happened, but the beastmen were suddenly thrown to the ground.
She suffered the pain in silence and refused to rub at the aching regions of her body. Instead, she quicly looked up and saw a small leopard sitting on Rhode’s shoulders, sharp teeth pierced mercilessly in his flesh.
Rhode reached for the leopard cub and pulled him down from his shoulder, thinking to teach it a ruthless lesson. Dark blue eyes met his with an unfathomable ferocity, and he petrified, “Ry. . .”
Ry, Ryan?!
He was interrupted by the cub’s foot planting itself on his face.
Rhode admired him and loosened his grip. The small leopard leaped out of his hand.
Seeing the small leopard running toward her side, Jว Xiวo ลu worried that the beastmen were looking for trouble and hurriedly stooped to hold him. When the two beastmen were still recovering, she turned and bolted.
“Wait!. . . “
Rhode and Dole wanted to catch up but had not taken even two steps when the leopard cub clutched to Jว Xiวo ลu’s chest poked its head out.
Jว Xiวo ลu was only looking forward as she ran, so she did not see the little leopard’s eyes, the expression within powerful, threatening and conveying a command.
Rhode and Dole were distracted for a moment and stopped, watching as Jว Xiวo ลu and the cub ran further and further away.
*
Finally fleeing to a safe place, Jว Xiวo ลu lifted the cub in her arms and considered him with surprise, “How did you get here?”
The little leopard’s throat rumbled with a whimper, then he continued in a softer voice, moving his hind legs.
As expected, Jว Xiวo ลu’s attention was drawn to see the gauze on his hind leg was blotched with blood.
It must have been split open when he was fighting the two beastmen just now.
Jว Xiวo ลu was grateful he had dashed on with no thought of his own safety, and she quickly set down her backpack and took the medicine kit from her space to disinfect the cut.
Wrapping it up again, Jว Xiวo ลu was moved to ask, “You appeared to save me?”
The little leopard hung his head to obstruct the view of his eyes.
To Jว Xiวo ลu, this was equated a tacit approval.
Of course, regardless of the reason, Jว Xiวo ลu had already determined he confronted the beastmen to save her.
“You provoked them, and they seem very difficult to deal with. Won’t they look for you?” Jว Xiวo ลu was very worried about him standing in for her.
The small leopard laid quietly in her arms as if there was no nothing to worry about at all.
Jว Xiวo ลu lightly whispered to the top of his head, “Where is your race? Is it far from here?”
Then she set him on the ground, “You had better go back to your race. Your clansmen ought to be able to protect you should they come after you. I fear that I cannot protect you.”
The cub stood motionlessly and raised his head to stare silently at her with his dark eyes.
After some time, he still refused to move.
Jว Xiวo ลu tilted her head askew, puzzled, “Why won’t you go?”
He silently walked around to stand at her side.
? ? ?
What situation was this?
Did he not intend on going back to his race yet?
Jว Xiวo ลu stood up and deliberately walked forward two steps.
Right away, the leopard stood and followed after her, his injured leg staggering behind him. Where she went, he went.
Jว Xiวo ลu, at long last, asked, “You want to follow me?”
He stopped beside her leg, agreeing by default.
“But I am heading far east. The road might get dangerous and we may never come back. You still want to go with me?”
The leopard finally had a little reaction, but he did not leave. Taking advantage of when Jว Xiวo ลu bent over, he exerted force on his uninjured hing leg and jumped into her arms.
Jว Xiวo ลu was afraid he would fall and scrambled to catch him.
“Okay,” Jว Xiวo ลu said helplessly, slightly amused, “Since you want to follow, then follow. . .”
She came to this world and he was the first animal she met.
When she thought about it, perhaps it were fate?
Thing this way, Jว Xiวo ลu dropped her emotional burden and quickly acquired a pleasant attitude.
She had originally intended to go alone, but now that the cub would be going, she had to rearrange her itinerary.
. . .
Actually, it did not matter. Nothing had been planned. The patriarch had only said that the turtle called Pat was on the easternmost part of the continent and that she would just have to go east.
Remembering Barry, she was reminded of Eric.
Jว Xiวo ลu planned to leave after saying goodbye, but she had met the leopard race and disrupted her plans. She had to run away and she already stood at the foot of a mountain.
Jว Xiวo ลu looked toward the forest and decided not to say goodbye.
She had no way to explain her race to him, or why she had to go east.
Turning around, she walked a few steps and heard a call from behindโโ
“Wait a minute, ลu!”
Jว Xiวo ลu was astonished to turn around and see Eric running from afar, his huge antlers shaking with his footsteps. Her heart trembled in fear.
Still not in front of Jว Xiวo ลu, Eric could not wait to ask, “I heard my grandfather say you were heading east to find your clan. Why didn’t you tell me your race was so far away?”
Jว Xiวo ลu hesitated, “Oh, I did not want to be a bother. . .”
Before Jว Xiวo ลu finished, Eric raised his head to smile brilliantly, “That doesn’t matter. I will take grandpa’s place at the Elk Village meeting. It is also in the east, if you don’t mind, we can go together.”
“. . .”
Eric finished speaking just as he reached Jว Xiวo ลu and finally saw the leopard she was holding.
The grey striped leopard stared at Eric, and his dark eyes flashed with the characteristic glint of a carnivorous race seeing prey.
I cannot help but laugh though, because Eric is so big and Ryan is so small right now. . . Though, I suppose it would be like us being so grossed out/terrified(me) of roaches.
Meatbun Delivery~
Thank you for the chapter ( โwโ)
Sorry Eric~ you were one upped by kitty~
You're very welcome. And he is very adorable. I keep running out of descriptors that mean small, so I kind of improvise here. . .
And thank you. Really. I picked up the project on a whim, because I was running out of things to read, and it's been a blessing in itself to see how warm the response has been. I'm happy it helps perk up your day, because I know that feeling well.
Glad to have you on board!
I know. She seems really down to earth? I have no idea if she's just still reeling in shock, or if she's just naturally a resourceful person that just looks at things the way they are. Kind of like: "eh, this is how it is now, let's get on with it."
I must say shes taking this very well, catnip ๐ hehe, oh well…
Awww the small leopard is so cute.. <3 Thanks for the chapter by the way! You probably don't know this, but waking up to a new chapter everyday has been so blissful for me who has so little things to do. I really, really appreciate it. Thanks again! ๐
Yep! And he even rescued her.
You're welcome, and thank you for reading!
Thanks!!
Finally.. boss is here.. wot wot
I keep imagining chopper in his human form tbh ๐