Although he intended to cooperate with Susu and deliberately train her, Brother Leopard knew better than to rush things.
They continued on like this, walking and stopping, for the better part of the day.
When they reached another river in the jungle, Brother Leopard halted.
He turned, walked over to Susu, and nuzzled his head against her cheek, indicating it was time for a break.
After traveling for most of the day, Susu was genuinely exhausted.
She certainly wasn’t going to refuse Brother Leopard’s kind offer to stop and rest.
As he had arranged, she lay quietly in the shade of a tree, recovering her strength.
Once Susu was settled, Brother Leopard didn’t linger.
He turned back and let out a low growl, telling her to stay put and not wander off.
Only after Susu nodded in response did he finally leave, looking back reluctantly every few steps.
Not long after Brother Leopard left, Susu, having recovered some of her energy, was starting to get restless.
She got to her feet and did a quick survey of the surrounding area before her gaze was captured by the meandering river nearby.
It was less a river and more a small stream, one that had likely survived here in the jungle only because the dense canopy blocked out the sun.
The water was neither wide nor deep, and the current was gentle.
Through the clear surface, she could see the colorful pebbles at the bottom of the stream, as well as the small fish that darted about.
Susu lay by the edge of the stream, watching for quite a while.
In the end, she couldn’t resist the temptation.
When a small fish swam close to the bank, she shot out a paw and swiped at it.
However, she possessed none of the legendary fishing prowess of a cat.
No matter how hard she tried, all she managed to do was get herself soaking wet, without catching a single thing.
By the time Brother Leopard returned dragging his kill, Susu—so focused on her task that she lost her footing—had just tumbled into the stream, landing sprawled on her back.
Brother Leopard, who fished her out, got a perfect view of the entire silly spectacle.
Susu, who had choked on several mouthfuls of water and was still utterly bewildered, wanted to die of embarrassment now that her predicament had been so thoroughly exposed.
But before she could even recover from her shame, another fact seized her attention.
‘Wait, when Brother Leopard rescued me, I don’t think he jumped into the water.
In that case…’
‘How did he get me ashore?!’
And more importantly, she was now being held in a strong, warm embrace.
It wasn’t a leopard holding her, but a person.
A living, breathing man!
Tipping her head back slightly, she couldn’t see the man’s face clearly from her angle.
She could only make out the hard, stern contours of his jawline.
The line of his profile was as sharp as if carved from stone, exuding an extraordinary coldness.
Susu was completely stunned by this discovery.
She couldn’t be mistaken.
This man was the Black Panther from before.
His form had changed, but his scent was undeniable and hadn’t faded.
‘But he’s a black panther!
How could he suddenly turn into a human?!’
Brother Leopard raised a hand and gently stroked Susu’s head.
Then, as if handling a priceless treasure, he carefully set her back down in the shade where she had been resting.
He turned around and, right before her eyes, unabashedly transformed back into a powerfully built Black Panther…
!!
Susu stared, dumbfounded, at the scene unfolding before her.
‘This is way too much to process!
I’m still just a cub, digesting all this is really hard!!’