Tharn frowned deeply. "If that’s true, it’s dangerous. Chaotic energy isn’t rare anymore."
Ressha exhaled heavily. "Her body is fragile. Too fragile for this forest." Her gaze lingered on the unconscious human, her voice softening. "We’ll have to be careful."
Once the wounds were treated as best as possible, they brought out their remaining roasted ga, ate quietly, and assigned the night watch.
Among the twelve of them, four were on night watch—Dark, Vors, Miren, and Eiran.
Two stood farther from the shelter, their silhouettes just barely visible between the branches, while the other two guarded the entrance directly. The rest of the Panthers sprawled across the ground, their breaths deep and steady, the warriors having shifted to their beast forms as exhaustion pulled them into sleep.
Moonlight spilled through the tangled canopy above, so bright it painted everything in silver. It shimred over fur, skin, and earth, giving the hollow an almost dreamlike glow. Outside, the forest continued its nocturnal symphony—calls, chirps, low growls, rustling leaves—all creatures going about their business.
Hours passed.
Lavayla, lying on her side near the warm bulk of one of the sleeping Panthers, twitched—a small movent, barely more than a shiver.
The system gasped in her mind.
’Host? Host, are you waking up? Host...?’
A faint hum vibrated sowhere between consciousness and sleep.
"Mhm..." The sound escaped her throat, weak and muffled, nowhere near loud enough for the Beastn to hear.
But Nessa practically exploded with joy.
’Host?! Host! Your vitals are rising—respiration stabilizing, neurological activity spiking, and your motor responses are returning! Your brainwave activity has crossed the minimum threshold. You’re going to wake up!’
Lavayla shifted again. Her fingers twitched. Her eyelids fluttered like soone fighting through layers of fog. A low groan escaped her when she rolled her head slightly to the side, her cheek brushing cold earth.
Her breathing hitched. Her eyebrows knit.
Her body was sluggish—heavy—like soone had poured molten lead into her bones. Warmth pulsed faintly through her limbs, stiff but returning, prickling like pins under the skin. A cold draft swept across her neck and she shivered.
Her eyes fluttered... then squinted... then slowly cracked open.
For a mont, everything was blinding white—the moonlight flooding her blurry vision. Then shapes started forming. Shadows. A massive silhouette lying directly in front of her. A tail flicked once. A soft grunt.
Then—
CHI! CHI! CHI!
A cascade of system notifications slamd into her skull like tal gongs dropping from the sky.
Lavayla hissed in pain, imdiately pressing a hand to her temple. Her head throbbed. The chis kept ringing, bright and sharp. She squeezed her eyes shut again, trying to breathe through the sudden pounding ache.
anwhile, Nessa was absolutely losing it.
’OH MY HOST, YOU’RE AWAKE! THANK GOODNESS YOU’RE FINALLY AWAKE! When you fell unconscious, I swear I almost DIED. I thought you were gone! I thought—’
"Stop..." Lavayla muttered, voice scratchy. "You’re... you’re a lump of data. You don’t have a heart. So you can’t have a heart attack."
A dramatic gasp echoed in her mind.
’Host, what do you AN by that?! I was scared for you! I CARE about you!’
"...Right. Thanks," she whispered, rubbing circles into her temples.
When the ringing finally faded, she opened her eyes again—slowly this ti.
And froze.
All around her... massive figures slept in the dim glow. Broad chests rising and falling. Furred tails curled around limbs. So in beast form, so in human form but still enormous and deadly.
Her heart stuttered—stopped—then resud with a full-force gallop that thudded painfully beneath her ribs. A cold rush of adrenaline hit her so fast she almost sat up.
’...While they were all away, I was the only one who—’ Nessa was still rambling.
"Nessa! Nessa!"
’Yes, host??’
"What is happening here? Why am I in a hollow surrounded by Beastn and Beastwon? What—what happened?! Do you know what happened?!" Her voice was a frantic whisper, barely contained.
The system hesitated.
’Uhh... I tried my best but when you went unconscious and your energy system rebooted itself, I went into a partial sleep mode, but—but—I still captured everything happening around you. So, yes, I know what happened. It’s... kind of a long story. Do you want to narrate it?’
Lavayla didn’t even need to think. She held absolutely still, neck tilted uncomfortably toward the hulking mass of a sleeping Beastman ters from her face.
"Please. Start talking."
Nessa narrated everything, and Lavayla instinctively glanced down at the tiny bundle resting against her chest.
The baby’s lashes cast trembling shadows over his cheeks — still asleep, his little fingers curled like soft petals.
"Wait..." she murmured, voice low but clear, "why is he still sleeping? He hasn’t cried, hasn’t even twitched. Is he okay?"
Nessa froze like she’d just been caught red-handed stealing cookies from a sacred jar.
’Oh! Yes, yes, host, completely fine! Not a scratch on him — he’s just... um... in shock.’
Lavayla blinked once, twice. "Shock?"
’Uh-huh! From everything — your sudden disappearance, the chaotic mana, the fight, the Beastn scents, the travel, the adrenaline storm... His tiny little brain basically threw its hands up and said, "I’m done. I’m clocking out." So he’s sleeping it off. He’ll wake on his own once he feels you moving around more.’
Lavayla adjusted her hold on him automatically, tucking him closer to her chest. "Alright... as long as he’s okay. That’s what matters."
’He is! Completely fine! Now, host, please — let continue, so you fully understand why everyone out here practically aged ten years in one night.’
"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead."
And Nessa dove right back in, narrating with the unhinged enthusiasm of soone who thought they deserved a trophy. She described the ambush, the way Ressha moved, how Garrick carried Lavayla the whole ti like she weighed nothing, how the Panthers fought the mutated beast. Every detail. Every near-death mont.
By the ti Nessa finished, Lavayla’s jaw was practically hanging to her knees — wide enough that, honestly, a mosquito could’ve zipped in, opened a restaurant, hired staff, and started taking midnight reservations.
Reviews
All reviews (0)