Chapter 23: A Walk In The Woods
Appearing in the white mental space, a barrage of notifications assaulted Zulu's mind.
[Rank 2 - River Crab (Adult) consumed]
[8 Essence gained]
[Rank 1 - River Crab (Newborn) x4 consumed]
[5 Essence gained]
[Rank 1 - Horned Deer (Mature) consumed]
[2 Essence gained]
[Rank 2 -Thunder Rabbit (Adolescent) consumed]
[9 Essence gained]
[Rank 1 - Silver Wolf (Member) x6 consumed]
[13 Essence gained]
[Rank 2 - Silver Wolf (Leader) consumed]
[11 Essence gained]
[Rank 3 - Zephyr Bear (Elder) consumed]
[58 Essence gained]
[Rank 1 - Zephyr Bear (Newborn) x3 consumed]
[7 Essence gained]
Listening to the woman's voice for nearly a minute, Zulu was stunned.
"Damn! I've really been stocking up on my notifications. Just how much Essence do I have now? Status!"
>—————————<
Name: Zulu [Rank 2]
Species: Spirit Fox (Adolescent)
Species Specialization: Illusion Magic
Innate Ability: [Rank 2 - Corporeal Illusion]
Major Elemental Affinity: Fire
Minor Elemental Affinity: Wind
Essence Value: 212
Upgrades: [Rank 1 - Mana Absorption, Night Vision, Sharp Claws], [Rank 2 - Linguist, Quick Feet, Razor Teeth]
Skills: [Rank 1 - Dash], [Rank 2 - Bite, Creep]
Spells: [Rank 1 - Auditory Confusion, Fireball, Fire Snake, Olfactory Confusion]
>—————————<
'Minor wind affinity? I can use wind magic? BADASS! My life's complete! I'm guessing the bear used wind magic, so maybe I unlocked some of its spells?'
Thinking of that possibility, Zulu's ethereal form began to shake with excitement.
"Guide, show me the car fax! I mean- upgrades!"
>—————————<
>>Available Upgrades<<
-Rank 3: [Linguist (120 E), Quick Feet (30 E), Razor Teeth (30 E)]
-Rank 2: [Mana Absorption (40 E), Night Vision (10 E), Sharp Claws (15 E)]
>>Available Skills<<
-Rank 3: [Bite (30 E), Creep (30 E)]
-Rank 2: [Dash (15 E)]
-Rank 1: [Slash (5 E)]
>>Available Spells<<
-Rank 3: [Corporeal Illusion (120 E)]
-Rank 2: [Auditory Confusion (30 E), Fireball (40 E), Fire Snake (40 E), Olfactory Confusion (30 E)]
-Rank 1: [Wind Spear (15 E)]
>—————————<
'[Wind Spear]? Hell yes!' Zulu thought with elation, 'No wait. As cool as it is, that last battle showed me how useless my magic is against higher ranked opponents. Should I just focus on upgrading my current spells instead? But it's so expensive… and I want to evolve first… Ahh, screw it.'
"Guide, I want to buy [Wind Spear], and wake me up at sunrise."
[Confirmed. Learning spell.]
And everything went dark.
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Zulu awoke atop a fuzzy pile of brown fur. His body had imprinted itself on the mound of bear hide and was snugly pressed inside it.
The sun had just emerged from behind the horizon, embracing the Golden Forest with its pleasant light. At the solar alarm of the sun's glare, birds began to chirp in the distance, and the forest was soon pervaded by a cacophony of nature.
'So warm. So soft. So cozy,' Zulu thought, 'Can I sleep in? No, the grind never stops.'
Thinking that, Zulu shoved aside his lethargy and popped up, brimming with vitality.
'Alright, I'm all done here. Now I just need proof of the Rank 3, and I'm all set.'
At that thought, Zulu collected one of the mother bear's large paws between his teeth before departing the cave
However, as Zulu left the darkness of the cave, a chillingly familiar voice made his ears perk up and eyes widen.
"Zu- Zulu?"
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Raya warily approached the source of the intimidating roar. She moved with stealth, taking cover behind trees and bushes as she crept forward.
'Is Zulu fighting a Rank 3?' Raya wondered, 'I hope she's okay. That beast sounds like bad news.'
As Raya neared the roar's location, she could make out the sounds of rapidly pattering feet as though something were running around.
Raya ducked behind a tree before slowly peeking her head out to inspect the battle.
'A cave? Is she inside?' Raya thought, 'Should I go inside and check? No, I would only be walking to my death. What could a Tier 1 guard do to a Rank 3 anyway? She's a mage; I'm not. I can only wait and pray for her safety. Please be okay, Zulu.'
Raya counted the minutes anxiously, watching the cave's entrance with trepidation. She could only see a few meters into the cave with the help of the moonlight. All the while, violent thrashes of battle continued to echo out from the darkness of the cave.
Suddenly, the noise of battle ceased, followed by a thick thud. In the moonlight, a small beast appeared with a sheet of fur clutched between its jaws.
'What the? Is that the beast Zulu was fighting? What was that large thud? Is Zulu not actually here, and this was just a territorial dispute between two beasts?'
As Raya's mind raced with theories, the beast's body glowed with a dazzling white light before mutating into the silhouette of a human. Due to the minimal light provided by the moon, one could not fully discern its facial features.
In front of Raya's incredulous gaze, the beast began wrapping itself with the fur before falling asleep on the cave floor.
'A beast who can disguise themselves as a human? Whatever it is, it's dangerous. I need to tell dad. I should probably find Zulu first, though.'
As Raya thought that, another thought presented itself in her mind, and she stopped herself from leaving.
'No, that's not possible. There's no way, right?' Raya began to rack her mind for excuses as to why it wasn't the case, but the more she speculated about it, the more it began to make sense. However, this alone would not persuade her, 'Okay, I'll wait and see for myself. It's absolutely crazy, but I need to be sure.'
Reaching that conclusion, Raya hid behind the tree and waited, occasionally returning her gaze to the humanoid figure in the cave.
After only a few seconds, the figure returned to its fox form with a white flash and moved back into the darkness.
'It returned to its beast form?' Raya thought, 'But where is it going?'
A moment later, the sound of voracious tearing and chewing reached Raya's ears.
'It's eating the beast it defeated? That makes sense, I suppose.'
After half an hour passed, the consumption stopped.
'Wow, it really took its time eating the other creature. It's almost as if it ate it down to the- bone… Down to the bone… Haha, I'm going insane, aren't I? There's just no way,' Raya thought with some reluctance.
The moon passed over the sky as the hours passed; However, the creature had yet to leave the cave.
'Did it fall asleep?' Raya sighed thinking that, 'That's probably the case. I've got no choice but to wait. Sleeping isn't an option; I can't risk it waking up before me.'
Raya leaned her back against the tree before sliding down, resting against the rough bark. She closed her eyes and waited, unease spreading throughout her body.
As the sun peeked over the horizon, Raya jolted her drowsy eyelids open before returning her attention to the cave.
'C'mon, c'mon. Please let me be wrong,' Raya thought.
After twenty minutes, the rhythmic echo of faint footsteps could be heard. They were light, almost inaudible even, but Raya's attentiveness did not allow her to miss it.
As the beast approached the exit of the cave, a pair of vertically-slit amber eyes appeared from the darkness, illuminated by the sun's golden rays. Raya's heart sunk to her stomach and her mind fell into utter turmoil at this sight; She could recognize those peculiar eyes anywhere.
'T-There's no way… All this time…'
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Zulu was frozen in his tracks like a deer in headlights; The unthinkable situation he found himself in was quite the shock, and he wasn't sure how to proceed.
Interrupting Zulu's daze, a female voice called out from behind a tree, "It's you, isn't it? I-I could see you in the moonlight, you know? And those eyes… I recognize them. I just can't believe it…"
A figure appeared from behind a tree, revealing itself to be Raya.
Raya's mouth quivered as she spoke, "This whole time… you were a monster... You deceived me…"
'Ahh, fuck, Raya. Why'd you have to follow me?' Zulu thought, 'I really didn't think you were too bad either, especially for a human.'
"But, it- it's okay, Zulu. I'm not mad. You can trust me, right? Please, just transform back into your human form so we can talk," Raya said, her face becoming oddly stern, discarding its previous apprehension.
Zulu triggered his [Corporeal Illusion], and with a blinding light, returned to his human form.
"I'm sorry you had to see me like this, Raya," Zulu said with a solemn expression.
"It's okay. You saved my life, remember? I don't care if you're a human or a magical creature, you'll always be my little sister," Raya said with a smile, "C'mon, let's return to Noelenwood. Then we can grab some food together like we agreed, right?" She said, turning to leave.
"Yeah, sure," Zulu said nonchalantly, following behind her.
'As much as it hurts to believe, Zulu's a monster... But she saved me, and I can't just forget that kindness... But how many people has she killed before then? What if she had an ulterior motive for rescuing me? Did she use me to gain access to Noelenwood?'
Following this train of thought, Raya remembered something, 'That's right, she's cursed! So that's why… Did she ever even consider me as a friend, as I did her? I'm just so lost… What do I do?'
Raya and Zulu calmly walked between the yellow-leaved trees, listening to the ambiance of the forest and enjoying the warmth of the sun. If it were under any other circumstances, it would simply be a tranquil stroll between two good friends.
As they walked, Raya's mind was in utter turmoil, 'She's a monster. She has to die... Is what dad would say... But... I can't... Zulu is my friend...'
After a few moments of internal struggling, Raya's face calmed as she reached a conclusion to her inner battle, 'I know my decision.'
"Okay, I'll try to help you as best as I can, and I'll keep your secret. Don't worry, little sister, I've got your back," Raya said, turning to glance at Zulu while giving him a thumbs up.
Zulu simply smiled and nodded, though, he was truly occupied by his thoughts as well.
'It has been fun, Raya. However, in reality-'
"-I've been using you," Zulu said out of nowhere.
Raya was unable to interpret his words, "Huh? What do you me-"
'[Wind Spear].'
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
TooLazyToWork
TooLazyToWork Thank you for reading! It was a shorter chapter than usual, but shoving in more words would have been just useless filler. Will release chapter 24 tomorrow.
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