[player]Let's try the left side. Judging from when Ciri found the injured red-crowned crane, if it was imprisoned at that time, the droppings it left when it was transported must have dried by now.
After we walk up to the door, we find that it isn't locked and opens with a slight push. The smell of disinfectant hits us immediately.
I go inside and take a look around. There really are many birdcages inside, but they are all empty.
[Ciri]It looks like they have just cleaned and disinfected this place after removing all the animals.
We look at each other in the eyes. That means the other warehouse is the right one. Oumu rushes over and opens the lock.
I open the doors and find that it is completely dark inside. Before my eyes can adjust to the darkness, the smell of bird feathers mixed with droppings assaults my senses. After Oumu turns on the torch of his mobile phone and waves it around a few times in this room, the originally quiet warehouse is filled with the sound of chirping birds and wings flapping violently against cages.
Ciri walks over to the wall and fumbles around before finding the light switch. We are shocked by the scene in front of us after the lights are turned on. There are hundreds of different birds in cages of various sizes.
[player]It's impossible for the three of us to save all these birds...
Oumu looks at the flock of birds in front of us and frowns, then he turns to look at me.
[Oumu]Can you find those two red-crowned cranes? Let's save our targets first.
[player]Red-crowned cranes have very obvious characteristics... Let me see.
I move quickly through the various bird cages. It looks like people don't clean them every day as the aisles between the cages are filled with feathers and droppings. This shows that these little ones are living in a terrible environment.
[player]Ah, I found them!
In a large cage on the inner side, I see two particularly conspicuous blots of red. I walk over and see that there are many birds inside this cage. Most of them have tattered wings, and two red-crowned cranes are among them.
Just as I am about to call Ciri over, I notice that she is constantly checking the status of the other birds in various cages.
[player]Ciri?
[Ciri]Hmm... I don't think we should just save the two red-crowned cranes. All the lives here belong to nature and shouldn't be used as capital in human transactions.
[player]But... if it's just the three of us...
Suddenly, I remember that the police gave me a mobile number that I can use to contact them if I discover anything. Soumu warned us earlier that any rash actions we take may make the other party kill all the hostages, so I was thinking of saving the little red-crowned cranes before making a police report.
It looks like I'll need to bring this plan forward now.
[player]Ciri, I don't think the three of us can save all these birds. Even if nobody stops us, we still wouldn't be able to move them out of here.
[player]Why don't we let the police deal with this? After all, we have sufficient evidence right now.
[Ciri]That's what I was thinking.
[Ciri]I should have thought of this earlier. Since this is a gang that specializes in wildlife trafficking, there's no way they would only catch a few animals, especially when they have rented such a large warehouse...
[player]We've all been nervous these days, so nobody really thought about this carefully.
[Ciri]Yea...
Ciri suddenly falls silent. While I'm taking photos as evidence to send to the police, I look up and see her staring behind a pile of birdcages. She motions for me to be quiet just as I'm about to ask her what's wrong.
[Ciri]Shush-- Listen carefully. Can you hear the sound of animals?
[Oumu]Isn't this place filled with animals?
[Ciri]No, not birds. It's the sound of beasts.
[Ciri]...It sounds really familiar. It sounds like... a young cheetah calling for help.
I hold my breath and listen carefully. Sure enough, amid the chirping of birds and flapping of wings, I hear some subtle cat-like calls.
Ciri rushes over quickly and finds a door behind the birdcages after pushing them aside. The door is not locked and is ajar. Light fills the room after she pushes the doors open, revealing a cruel scene to us.
There is a group of mammals in this warehouse. Unlike the birds outside, they seem to have been locked up here for a long time. They are so skinny that they look like skin and bones, and their fur has no luster.
Ciri turns on the torch of her mobile phone and looks through the cages while searching for the origin of the sound. Eventually, she finds a thin cheetah that looks sick and in poor condition.
After seeing Ciri, it raises its head and makes a few weak sounds, which are the same as the cries for help we just heard.
Ciri circles around the cage, trying to find the lock to set it free. Suddenly, I hear a burst of footsteps outside and the loud shouting of security guards.
[Security Guard A]There's an intruder. Everyone, come here quickly to search for them!
We immediately calm down and listen carefully to the movements outside. Judging from the footsteps and voices, it seems that all four patrolling security guards are coming.
[Security Guard B]Hey, this is warehouse number two. We need backup. We need backup...
[player]Someone is calling for reinforcements. If we don't do anything, their numbers will keep increasing.
Oumu glances at his mobile phone and looks at us anxiously.
[Oumu]The boss told us to leave quickly. Several vehicles belonging to this security company are moving in this direction.
[Oumu]Quickly! We have to leave now, or we won't be able to get away.
I pull Ciri's hand and notice that she is looking at all these cages painfully.
[Ciri]Oumu, please take PLAYER away from here first.
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