I grit my teeth when I look at the little cheetah's moist eyes and Ciri's firm gaze.
[player]Oumu, can you open the cage for us?
[Oumu]Sigh, no wonder Shijukara told me that life is filled with danger when I'm with you.
After letting out another sigh, Oumu comes back to us and helps us open the cage. Then, before I can say anything else, he takes the initiative to open the remaining seven or eight cages one after another. However, the animals in these cages have been locked up for a long time and don't dare to come out.
[player]Do they think we're with the bad guys who locked them in there?
[Oumu]Maybe, but at least they are free now. Whether they run or stay is something beyond our control since we're also in trouble now.
Ciri is momentarily stunned by our actions, as if she can't understand why we would help her. However, the footsteps that are getting closer and closer outside give us no time to explain. Ciri purses her lips and decisively places the little cheetah into my arms, then she grabs her whip and rushes forward.
[Ciri]Follow me.
Because it took a lot of time to open the locks of the cages, we run into the patrolling security guards right after we reach the entrance of the warehouse with the birds in it. Ciri pushes me gently towards Oumu.
[Ciri]PLAYER, run.
[player]Ciri...
[Ciri]Trust me. I can handle this.
I look at the little cheetah in my arms. Its breathing is a little weak, so the best thing I can do is to run away with it right now. Oumu is very nimble. He stretches out his leg and trips one of the security guards in front of him, then he grabs me by the collar and rushes out.
Behind us, I hear the sounds of metal colliding, moaning, scolding, cursing... and the sound of a whip cracking through the air.
I seem to have returned to that time at noon in the alleyway under the scorching sun when Ciri fought alone against Shijukara, but this time, she's not alone.
We run back along the route we followed on our way inside. All the warehouse doors along the way are open, so we run to the outermost doors without any hindrance and end up face-to-face with a young security guard who is guarding the door. It is Boo, who was so scared that he couldn't get any sleep last night.
When he sees us, he instinctively takes out his walkie-talkie to try to notify everyone else. Suddenly, a wooden stick hits him hard on the back of the head.
*Thud!*
After the young security guard falls slowly to the ground, I see Shijukara standing there behind him.
[Shijukara]This way. Follow me.
Ciri stops fighting after we rush out of the warehouse. She shakes off the security guards and follows us. We follow Shijukara and get inside a van parked on the side of the road.
[player]Shijukara, you can't keep picking on the same poor guy like this. Look at what you've done to Boo.
[Shijukara]You don't understand. Of course you gotta target the soft ones.
[Shijukara]What's more, if people can keep exploiting the same group of suckers, why can't I target the same guy once or twice?
I see a police car pass us as we reach an intersection.
[Shijukara]Ah, we can relax now that the cops are here. We'll leave everything to them now.
Ciri takes the little cheetah from me, then she gives Shijukara an address and tells him to take us there.
Shijukara leaves after taking us to our destination - a veterinary clinic. Ciri opens the doors like she knows the place well. A glasses-wearing female vet greets us, and Ciri hands the little cheetah to her for a preliminary inspection.
[Vet]This young cheetah is experiencing some stress reactions and is malnourished. It could even have died if you didn't take it here in time.
[Vet]We'll perform some systematic inspections and emergency treatment. You can wait outside for a while.
Ciri and I sit in the reception room outside while we wait for the vet to treat the little cheetah. During this time, a nurse thoughtfully brings us some hot towels so that we can wipe away the dust and dirt covering our bodies.
[player]Are you so worried about this little cheetah because of Mojito?
Ciri first nods and then shakes her head, but does not say anything in response.
After a long time, the vet comes outside and tells us that the little cheetah is fine but will need to stay in the clinic for an observation period of a few days. In front of me, Ciri becomes visibly relieved, and I see a hint of relief appear on her tired face.
[Ciri]PLAYER, I don't know what to say in response to your question. If you're free right now, I want to take you somewhere.
[player]Sure, I'm free at any time.
I never would have expected that the place Ciri mentioned would be the street where Countless Springs is located. It seems like an important ceremony will take place here today, and both sides of the street are filled with people.
[Ciri]Countless Springs' geisha parade will be held today, so it'll be very lively. Follow me.
She takes me through various small alleys. After we make our way back to the side of the road again, I see that we're in an excellent viewing position as I can see everything on the street clearly from here.
[Ciri]She was sitting behind the screen the entire time when we went to Countless Springs last time, so you probably couldn't see her appearance clearly. That person on the street is Kurone Toujou.
I look where she is pointing and see a splendidly dressed woman walking slowly along the street, catching everyone's attention.
[Ciri]I pretty much guessed the reason you've been following me everywhere these days. You want to know what I'm up to, right? It's most likely that you were asked to do this by someone close to you. Is it Sara, Ryan, or someone else?
[Ciri]Haha, don't be nervous. I wouldn't have brought you here if I was bothered by this.
[player]Then the reason you've brought me here is...
[Ciri]I guess I want to clear up your confusion. We've been through a lot these days, so I think I can tell you some things about myself.
[Ciri]The thing is, I was raised by tigers and lived in the jungle until I was eight years old. Sid found me and brought me back to human society.
[Ciri]But, deep in my heart, I've always considered beasts to be part of my family.
[Ciri]That's why I often go camping in the jungle when I'm not performing to live together with them for a while. It's precisely because of this habit that I learned about the existence of poachers.
[Ciri]I've been fighting against various poachers all these years, but I don't have the power to stop many tragedies from happening.
[player]Ciri, you've already done very well.
[Ciri]No, it's not enough. I couldn't protect my family in Soul when it broke apart, and I haven't been able to protect those innocent animals.
Having said this, Ciri looks at Kurone Toujou on the street.
[Ciri]PLAYER, what kind of person do you think Kurone Toujou is?
[player]Um... she's a luxurious, elegant, and beautiful person.
Ciri nods in agreement with my words.
[Ciri]That's what I think about Kurone Toujou too, but...
[Ciri]Whenever I make contact with her, I can sense the aura of a powerful beast on her. That aura is savage, mighty, and powerful...
[player]That feeling doesn't seem very compatible with Kurone Toujou's appearance.
[Ciri]It is quite contradictory, right? But my intuition is never wrong, which is why I've been going to Countless Springs to get close to her. Beasts should act together with beasts, right?
After saying all this, she smiles at me.
[Ciri]Okay, you know all my secrets now. Can you make this our secret and not tell anyone else about this?
[player]Not even the people of Soul, right?
[Ciri]Yes. Taking this red-crowned crane incident as an example, the things I want to do will definitely be dangerous. If the other members of Soul find out, I'll only put them in danger too.
I know what she's worried about, but I don't think she's right.
[player]Ciri, I don't think you need to shoulder this burden alone. You still have me.
Ciri looks at me for a long time after hearing what I said, then she mumbles something.
[Ciri]Maybe you're right. At least my experiences over the last few days are telling me that it's quite nice to have a companion.
Suddenly, my phone starts vibrating. I look at the incoming call and see that it is the police officer I reported the crime to.
[Police Officer]Is this... PLAYER?
[player]Yes, that's me.
[Police Officer]Okay, you can relax. I'm just calling to let you know that we've cracked down on the wildlife trafficking den that you reported. Although several people are still on the run, we've identified where they are with the clues we have, and they will all be arrested soon.
[Police Officer]We've sealed that warehouse because it is suspected of harboring criminal evidence. All the animals inside the warehouse have been handed over to wildlife rescue agencies except for a few Tibetan foxes that were too sick and no longer had any vital signs by the time we arrived at the scene. As for the other animals... oh, those two little red-crowned cranes you specifically mentioned before are safe, so don't worry.
[Police Officer]Oh right, we've also moved the red-crowned crane in Beryl Blue over to the rescue agencies with the other animals. If there's nothing else, I'll be hanging up. A silk banner will be sent to your home in a few days to commend you for your contribution to One Han City.
[player]Eh? There's even a silk banner? Can you send it to Soul instead then?
[Police Officer]Soul... Is that the touring troupe?
[player]Yes. I didn't do this alone. This honor belongs to everyone.
[Police Officer]Haha, okay, I understand.
After hanging up, Ciri gives me a confused look, and I relay the conversation in the phone call to her.
Ciri covers her eyes with her hands and leans on the wall behind her. I can't see her expression, but I can tell she is happy from the raised corners of her mouth.
After a while, Ciri controls her emotions and reaches out to me with a bright and sincere smile.
[Ciri]PLAYER, I'm glad to be your companion.
