Chapter 4

"I couldn't move..."

Exposed to the black tiger's roar for the first time, my body wouldn't stop shaking.

The moment I heard its voice, I couldn't think straight.

Then came the usual headbutt. I was thoroughly devoured.

"If fighting was futile, then..."

I can suppress my voice, presence, and footsteps as much as possible, and I quietly make my way to the dead end of the cave.

The rocky, exposed no-entry zone where we meet for the second time.

I'm like a rat in a bag, but this time it's different. Since I'm not making any noise, the black tiger hasn't noticed me... I want to believe that.

I hide in the corner, crouching down and holding my breath. Hugging my knees helps with the cold a bit.

I am a rock, a rock, thinking of nothing. I am nothing. I am inorganic.

That's right. I am a rock, so I am not afraid of anything. I think of nothing.

The hot, foul breath coming from ahead doesn't matter.

The smell of my suit being scorched by the drooling is just my imagination.

Yes, the strangely warm heat that caresses my skin—everything—

The sharp object digging into my back and under my elbows—

"Ughhh, it hurts, it hurts, stop it, stop it, st—"