To be honest, Susu had no idea what had just happened.
One moment, she was an ordinary university student, washing up in the morning and getting ready for an exam she really didn’t want to fail.
The next, in the blink of an eye, she had become a young leopard cub.
The kind being carried in the jaws of her own kind, desperately fleeing for its life.
She knew nothing about this strange new world, but in her heart, she had already cursed the unpredictable, wretched heavens a thousand times over.
Other people transmigrate and become consorts or princesses.
At worst, they become the supremely talented heir of a prestigious family, waiting to take revenge and put their enemies to shame.
‘So how come when it’s my turn, I’m not even human?!’
Grumbling to herself was one thing, but she didn’t dare move, terrified she would trouble the leopard carrying her and slow it down.
The air whistling past her ears was a constant reminder of just how fast they were running.
Even so, their pursuers remained hot on their heels, refusing to give up the chase.
A storm was brewing in the dark, oppressive sky.
The distant rumble of thunder from behind the clouds kindled a sliver of hope in Susu’s heart—a hope that they might escape.
‘The rain can wash away our scent.
Wouldn’t that make things harder for our pursuers?
If so, we might just escape this!’
But the metallic tang of blood in the air only grew stronger, bringing with it a despair that clung to them like a shadow.
“ROAR!”
Susu’s vision blurred.
A massive, striped Fierce Tiger suddenly bounded past the leopard carrying her, landing squarely in their path.
The leopard carrying her showed no weakness.
It found an opening, darted past the Fierce Tiger, and continued to sprint forward without hesitation.
Leopards are by no means slow, but days of running for its life had robbed the one carrying Susu of its physical advantage.
In an instant, the pursuing Fierce Tiger lunged and tackled it to the ground.
The violent impact sent Susu flying.
She crashed to the ground, stunned, and for a moment she couldn’t even stand.
The thick stench of blood exploded in the air again.
She scrambled to her feet instinctively and looked back, only to see the Fierce Tiger’s jaws locked around the neck of the leopard that had carried her all this way, never once giving up on her.
“ROAR!” *Run!*
In its final moments, its eyes, as bright as obsidian, fixed upon her, issuing one last, desperate command.
Run!
Flee, quickly!
Watching the injured, dying leopard struggle to bite back at the Fierce Tiger one last time, Susu fought back the wave of grief rising within her.
She turned and scrambled desperately toward the nearby forest.
She didn’t know why this leopard had been so determined to protect her, even at the cost of its own life.
But she could not bring herself to betray such a profound sacrifice.
‘I have to survive.
Only by surviving, no matter what it takes, can I honor its sacrifice.
Only then can it, and the others who made the same choice, finally rest in peace.’
KABOOM!
A massive thunderclap tore across the gloomy sky, and the long-awaited rain finally began to fall.
It washed over the vibrant green of the plains, carrying away the lingering scent of blood and any trail a Beast might use to track her.
Delayed by the leopard’s struggle, the Fierce Tiger missed its window to pursue.
By the time he had torn his barely breathing, defeated foe to shreds and looked up, the little, milk-scented cub had vanished without a trace.
The Fierce Tiger let out an irritated growl and slammed a heavy paw onto the leopard’s cooling corpse.
He glanced toward the silent, gloomy forest, now shrouded in heavy rain.
He didn’t immediately follow the path Susu had taken.
Instead, he simply stood in the downpour, squinting at the forest as if deep in thought.