It was like sothing out of a dieval fever dream—a lion's head with piercing golden eyes, a goat's muscular, shaggy body, and, for good asure, a snake-headed tail that hissed like it had personal grievances with the world.
Its lion head roared, and the ground beneath practically quaked.
I gulped.
"C-c-chira!"
My voice cracked like I'd just hit puberty again.
The chira's gaze locked onto . It tilted its head for a fraction of a second, as if thinking, 'Hmm, food?'.
Then, it roared louder and charged.
"Oh no, no, NO!" I shouted, already sprinting before my brain fully caught up with my legs. My sneakers slapped against the dirt path as adrenaline turned into an Olympic sprinter.
Behind , the chira's snake tail hissed, and then—FWOOSH—flas burst past my ear, igniting a patch of grass ahead.
"I'm gonna die. I'm gonna DIE!" I wailed, dodging left and nearly tripping on a root.
In that mont, I had one very specific, deeply humiliating thought—my obituary would read, 'Carl Suis, unknown zoologist, flambéed by an unidentified creature.'
I veered right, my breath ragged and my legs burning, narrowly clearing a fallen log. The snap of branches behind made my pulse spike.
I dared a glance back—huge mistake.
The chira's lion head roared, its snake tail hissing like it was cheering it on.
"Not today! Not like this!" I wheezed, sprinting harder.
The rock ca out of nowhere. One second I was a desperate runner— the next, I was airborne. My foot caught, and gravity sucker-punched straight into the dirt.
Thud.
My face planted into the mud with the grace of a dying fish.
"Seriously?!" I spat out a mouthful of soil, fumbling to get up. A shadow lood over , blocking the dappled sunlight.
I froze, heart hamring.
Slowly, I turned my head.
The chira stood inches away, its goat legs pawing at the ground, the lion head glaring at with a look that scread snack ti. The snake tail, anwhile, was eyeing like I was its next chew toy.
"I-I taste terrible! Really! Probably stringy, not enough protein!" I babbled, crawling backward on my hands and knees.
The chira sniffed the air, then lowered its lion head, opening its jaws wide.
"Hey! HEY! Bad kitty-goat-snake thing!" I yelled, grabbing the nearest stick. Not my finest mont, but desperate tis and all that. I waved it like a lunatic. "Shoo! Get! Go chase a griffin or sothing!"
The chira paused, tilting its massive head. For a mont, I thought I'd outsmarted it. Then the snake head lunged, snapping at my face.
"AAAH!" I threw the stick. It bonked harmlessly off the lion's nose. Big mistake.
The chira roared, fire building in its throat.
"Oh, CO ON!" I scread, scrambling to my feet. The fireball whooshed past , singeing my sleeve as I bolted back into the forest.
I didn't have a plan—just keep running, keep breathing, and maybe, just maybe, don't get flambéed.
"HELP!" I yelled, dodging low-hanging branches. "Anyone? Hello?"
I veered left, only to trip over yet another rock that seed to appear out of nowhere. My face hit the dirt once more with a humiliating thud.
This was it. I was toast—literally.
I curled into a ball, covering my head with my arms.
"Arghh!" I wailed dramatically, clutching my head as the chira's heavy hoofbeats thundered closer.
For a split second, I debated whether I should at least strike a cool pose before my untily death. You know, for when the historians painted this scene in so museum. Then again, I doubted splat-faced-burnt and mawed Carl Suis would make for an epic mural.
I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for impact.
…And then…nothing.
No flas. No claws tearing apart. No snake tail wrapping up like a burrito.
I cracked open one eye.
The chira was sitting.
Just sitting.
Its lion's tongue lolled out as it panted, its body visibly exhausted from all the chasing. The snake tail flicked lazily, its hiss now sounding more like an exasperated sigh.
"What the…?" I muttered, cautiously lowering my arms.
The chira tilted its massive lion head and blinked at , almost as if to say, Why are you on the ground?
It gave a soft, rumbling growl—not aggressive, more like a grumpy cat who didn't get its afternoon nap.
The goat body shifted as the chira flopped onto its side, legs outstretched like it was about to take a well-deserved nap.
I sat up slowly, my heart still hamring in my chest. "Wait. Are you…tired?"
For a long mont, I just stared, utterly baffled.
Then, I noticed sothing. Around its neck, hidden under tufts of fur, was a leather collar. A collar with a shiny, silver tag.
"You're soone's PET??!" I gaped at the chira, still sprawled in the dirt. "I nearly got flambéed by soone's fluffy murder beast?!"
My brain short-circuited. I had just spent the last five minutes outrunning a monster death machine—only to find out it was dosticated?
The chira snorted, the lion head giving a look that scread 'Obviously'.
"Oh, co on! You could've just barked or sothing instead of trying to barbecue !"
The snake tail flicked again, its beady eyes narrowing. If we wanted you roasted, you'd be roasted, it seed to say.
I reached for the tag cautiously, my hands still trembling. Engraved in neat lettering were the words:
"Monty. Property of Eldrin. Return if lost."
"You've got to be kidding ." I groaned, sitting back on my heels. "I was almost turned into a chira chew toy because Monty got lost?"
Monty gave a low, rumbling purr-growl, clearly unbothered by my dramatics.
At that mont, I heard a deep, rumbling laugh. "New here, are ya?"
I spun around to see a figure leaning against a tree—a tall, imposing elf with long, silver hair and a bemused smile. "Na's Eldrin. I'm the head caretaker around here. And Monty's owner. "
"Oh, thank goodness," I said, stumbling toward him. "Look, I don't know how I ended up here, but—"
He held up a hand. "Lem guess. Clicked an offer, thought it was all fun and gas?"
I nodded, feeling a wave of relief. "Yes, exactly! And then—" I paused. "Wait, you know about that?"
He chuckled, patting my shoulder. "Oh, we get a lot of you types. 'Animal lovers, eager for an adventure,'" he said, mimicking the ad's tone.
"You're number…what, seventeen this year? I've stopped keeping track." He shot Monty a look. "At least you didn't eat this one."
My eyes widened at that. Slowly, I turned toward Monty, who was still lazily sprawled on the ground, looking completely comfortable and relaxed.
"But most don't read the fine print," Eldrin added, his tone dripping with amusent. Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by novelFɪre
I blinked. "Fine print?"
"Yeah, the part about 'mythical creatures' and 'alternate dinsions.'" He raised an eyebrow. "Still interested?"
I stared at him, my glowing hands, and the magical forest around us. Sure, I was confused, maybe a little freaked out. But despite everything—despite the griffin, the pet chira, and my current glow-in-the-dark situation—there was a thrill coursing through .
And—I desperately wanted a job.
Besides, what's the worst that could happen? (Spoiler: So much worse than I expected!)
"Are you kidding?" I grinned. "This is the most exciting thing that's ever happened to ."
Eldrin's smile widened, a glint of mischief in his eyes. "Good. Because you're about to find out just how chaotic things can really get."
"Right, but before that," I said, gesturing to my face and glowing arms, which were practically lighting up like a concert glow stick, "do you happen to know how I can, uh, you know… 'de-neon' myself?"
Eldrin's grin widened as he tossed a small, shimring bottle. It glead like it had been plucked straight from a wizard's discount rack.
"Here, drink this. It'll sort you out," he said, his voice oozing the kind of confidence that made a little suspicious.
"Oh, right," he interrupted, casually waving a hand. "You only need to take a sip. There's a small side effect, but—"
I didn't wait for further instructions—big mistake. I chugged the potion like a frat boy at a chugging contest.
Eldrin smirked. "...but nothing too bad, I'm sure."
I froze mid-swallow. "Define 'too bad.'"
A beat passed. My stomach rumbled ominously.
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