Chapter 64

I hesitated between writing a casual note or a main chapter, but since no crows appear, I'll go with a casual note.

2/5 Since it was heavily involved in the main plot, I removed the casual note label from the title.

He gnawed noisily at the carcass of his prey.

As usual, it had been a simple task today.

When he bit into the enemy, paralyzed by fear, as weak as a newborn, it was already nothing more than food to him.

Satiated, he moved to hunt another, as he always did.

It could be a rabbit or a bird; anything that could fill his belly would do.

In the deep forest, where the green scent filled the air, he searched for the scent of prey.

Any prey would do. Whether strong or weak, they were all equally weak to him, and he believed that only his partner stood on equal footing with him.

Any prey would do, but the weaker, the better.

The scent of blood meant a struggle was taking place, with the weak being wounded and the strong wounding them.

Both would equally become his food.

The fox believed this without doubt.

A scent caught his attention.

The fresh scent of blood. The iron-like aroma tickled his nostrils, and the faint screams he heard were a spice that helped him imagine the taste.

This scent and the screams suggested that a dog was being attacked by a raptor.

The more food, the better.

He dashed off.

Silently, like the wind, he moved between the trees.

It was time to hunt for his partner.

The small prey was screaming.

The fox, seeing this, felt a bit dissatisfied. This small dog wouldn't be enough to satisfy him and his partner.

But his dissatisfaction was soon dispelled.

Seeing the size of the raptor attacking, he changed his mind. The spread wings were larger than a large dog, and even larger than the fox, suggesting a good meal.

The fox, lacking the facial muscles to smile, was indeed smirking.

The stray dog was fighting desperately.

He had taken many lives, but accepting his own life being taken was not something he could do easily.

When the raptor suddenly attacked, he resisted with all his might.

The sharp beak of the bird descending from the sky had already gouged his side.

He couldn't stop moving. If he did, he would surely be impaled in the next instant, becoming a corpse, just like the many he had seen.

He didn't want that.

The stray dog, who had lived by instinct without reason, was still filled with the instinct to avoid death.

The stray dog ran around.

Of course, he also fought back, trying to bite the raptor that was diving at him.

But his teeth couldn't reach.

The sound of his teeth clicking on air echoed through the forest. The raptor flying in the sky was beyond their reach.

Finally, the raptor's attack on the stray dog reached its mark.

At that moment, the stray dog realized he was about to die.

Instinctively, he closed his eyes, bracing for the impending impact. Reflexively, his body stopped moving.

But the moment never came.

The fox was waiting.

He had no effective attack against the raptor flying high in the sky.

He had been watching the stray dog, waiting for a more certain moment.

His target was the moment the raptor lowered its altitude to attack the stray dog.

He would strike the raptor at the moment it was about to finish off the stray dog.

And finally, that moment arrived.

He pounced at the exact moment the raptor, diving at breakneck speed, was about to strike. It was his first time, but it went well.

"Kee!"

The bird, caught in the fox's jaws, let out a short scream. It didn't understand what had happened. Just as it was about to finish off the dog, an abnormal situation occurred. It realized this.

Trying to escape the abnormal situation, it flapped its wings in resistance.

But the fox wouldn't allow it.

He bared his teeth and tore into the gray body. Blood filled his mouth, staining the corners.

Soon, the resistance stopped. The body would soon cool, turning from prey to food.

He felt no emotion during this routine task.

He didn't chew.

This was a gift for his partner. He only took life, a skill the fox had learned.

He was a wise beast.

The stray dog cautiously opened his eyes.

The expected impact never came, and the presence had increased and then decreased.

What had happened? Had he been saved?

Thinking this, the stray dog looked at the scene before him and felt death again.

The overwhelming terror he felt from the fox that had appeared was something he had never experienced before.

Finally, even the stray dog's instincts submitted.

He resigned himself to death.

And the fox, who saw the now defenseless prey, would not let it go.

The fox, having secured his second meal of the day, felt full for the first time in a while. He couldn't eat another bite. He would probably feel sleepy soon.

Before that, he needed to give his partner the gift. The happy fox carried the raptor to the den at a brisk pace.

He entered the usual burrow.

This den, which he had found a while ago, was dark and dusty.

But it was very comfortable.

Occasionally, something sharp poked out from the walls, but nothing ever happened because of it. In fact, it seemed to keep other weaklings away.

Encountering weaklings when he didn't need food was just a nuisance.

That's why they liked this burrow so much.

But today was different.

When he left earlier, there was no such smell.

The fox had once encountered a forest fire.

The sight of weaklings being burned to death in the forest came to mind. The smell was the same.

It was strange.

In addition to the smell of burning, there was also the smell of blood.

It was odd.

Somehow, a weakling must have entered their burrow and his partner must have hunted it.

Satisfied with this thought, the fox believed they were the strongest.

He had never met anything stronger than himself.

He didn't understand what was happening.

A burned carcass lay there, smelling just like the weaklings from the forest fire.

But it was strange.

The form was familiar.

Was this the form of his partner, the only one he considered his equal?

It was a corpse.

What had happened? He was puzzled and called out to his partner, trying to wake him up.

His unresponsive partner. What was wrong? Usually, he would greet him with a joyful cry when he brought food.

Would shaking his body wake him up? When he tried to flip him over with his nose, he only felt a squishy sensation.

The cold sensation made him realize.

His partner was dead.

His partner, with whom he had grown up, hunting prey in turns, and living together, was dead.

He had become food.

The fox felt a pain.

He didn't have the rationality to understand that this was sorrow, but he understood that this feeling was unpleasant.

A howl echoed through the ruins. The sound of sorrow swept through the dark darkness.

He howled until his voice was hoarse.

Then, to avoid being overwhelmed by the sorrow, his instincts kicked in.

Anger began to rise. The fox didn't understand this boiling emotion, but by letting himself be carried away by it, the previous discomfort would lessen.

The smell of blood and burned kin. Mixed with these scents was a different one.

The smell of humans, which he had tasted a few times.

The moment he identified this smell, his anger intensified, swirling in his chest.

"ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO