Chapter 43: Cat Pickup (2)

A massive bolt of lightning bright enough to illuminate the entire world struck Cash Tower Mountain.

Louis watched it intently before turning to Fin. “Keep an eye on the kids, okay?”

“What about you, Louis?”

“I’m heading up there.”

“But…but…”

“I’ll be back soon.”

“All right. Please stay safe…” Realizing he couldn’t stop Louis, Fin gave a small nod.

With Fin, the children, and the astonished Jacob left behind, Louis sprinted toward Cash Tower Mountain.

Or rather, he tried to sprint but was halted when someone tugged at his clothes.

Hee-yung…!

Louis nearly tripped as he looked down at the thunder tiger pup tugging on his clothes. The surprised hunter noticed the pup lowering its stance slightly and cautiously asked:

“You want me to ride you?”

Hnn…

The pup nodded affirmatively.

Without hesitation, Louis swiftly climbed onto its back, and they sped off toward Cash Tower Mountain. As they approached it faster by the minute, Louis marveled at the pup’s speed.

It’s incredibly fast!

He couldn’t fathom how the twins had managed to capture such a swift creature. Soon, they reached the entrance of the mountain range.

“Oh…” Louis gasped.

Strong electrical currents had scorched and snapped large trees indiscriminately. The path of destruction carved by this fierce battle served as a makeshift trail through the mountain. Bloodstains dotted the ground along the way, spurring on the young thunder tiger even faster.

Before long, it abruptly halted.

Crackle, crackle…

A still-smoking black mass was enveloped in lightning. Louis instantly recognized what it was.

“It’s dead…”

Although severely crushed beyond recognition, its general shape indicated that it was indeed a drake. There were no signs of life from the charred remains.

It must be a victim of those powerful bolts earlier.

With that thought, Louis scanned the area for the thunder tigers’ bodies. Soon, his eyes caught sight of two bloody masses tangled together. He hurried over and let out a deep groan upon seeing them up close.

“Oh no…”

One thunder tiger had its torso nearly severed, while another lay with its skull caved in and tongue lolling out. The gruesome scene rendered Louis speechless.

Suddenly, a shadow passed by him.

Skreeee…

The baby thunder tiger rushed to lick the faces of its parents, but it was futile. Louis could sense there was no life left in their bodies either.

Louis quietly observed and let out a long sigh.

“Ohhh…” His eyes filled with deep sorrow as he watched the pup, reminded of his own experience losing his parents in his previous life.

I thought I had moved on…

It had been quite some time since his rebirth, yet Louis still couldn’t forget how it felt when his parents passed away. Perhaps that was why he grew increasingly attached to Genelocer.

Pat, pat.

Louis approached the young thunder tiger and gently stroked its head. He stayed by its side for a while, comforting the grieving creature. After about ten minutes, once the pup seemed somewhat calmer, Louis used holy magic to create graves for the deceased couple.

The young thunder tiger didn’t seem to object as Louis created the graves, perhaps understanding that its parents were gone. Instead, it knelt by their resting place and wept bitterly.

Before long…

“Sir Louis!”

“Louis!”

Fin, the twins, and others arrived looking for him, worried when he hadn’t returned after quite some time. Jacob was among them.

“Oh no…” Jacob instantly understood what the two massive mounds signified.

Seeing his saddened expression, Louis had an epiphany.

So this is how the connection between the thunder tigers and the Trujans began.

With both drakes and thunder tigers nesting on Cash Tower Mountain, conflict was inevitable. Even without Louis’s intervention, a battle would have ensued, ultimately resulting in the demise of the adult thunder tigers, leaving only the orphaned hatchling behind.

Had Louis not intervened, a battle would have ensued between the thunder tigers and the drakes, ultimately leading to their mutual destruction, leaving behind only the young thunder tiger orphaned.

And Jacob would’ve taken it under his wing.

Otherwise, there would be no way for him to acquire the creature. And Louis’s suspicion was correct. Originally, after the fight between the leader of the magic beasts and the drakes concluded, Jacob intended to take in the lone baby thunder tiger. That is, if Louis hadn’t shown up today.

That can’t happen!

Regardless of how pitiful the current thunder tiger might seem, its future actions were another matter entirely. Handing over this baby thunder tiger to Jacob now could potentially lead to a threat against Genelocer’s life down the line. Louis knew the simplest solution to prevent that outcome.

He extended his hand, channeling psychic Attribute Power from the dragon heart to create a thin thread connecting himself with the baby thunder tiger.

Jacob was the first to notice something peculiar about this exchange.

“Th-this is…?” Jacob recognized it as holy magic that all druids must learn and muttered almost hypnotized:

“Link…?”

Despite being mandatory for every druid, Link was not easily cast due to its nature of amplifying pre-existing bonds rather than creating new ones from scratch.

He just used Link now…?

Jacob couldn’t help but be astonished by what he witnessed before his eyes. Typically, casting Link took considerable time because building such deep connections with another creature wasn’t easy.

However, Jacob was unaware that Louis had chosen a different method altogether to strengthen their bond.

Look at me.

Louis’s voice reached thunder tiger’s mind through the connected thread. The grieving cub raised its head and gazed upon Louis, who revealed his true identity to the young beast.

Grrr…

The cub shuddered involuntarily. It sensed an overwhelming presence from something massive watching over it from above. Although it didn’t know what this entity was, instinct told it not to defy him.

Come here.

Slowly, the cub approached Louis.

If you trust and follow me…I will take you under my wing.

There was an irresistible force behind Louis’s voice that stirred deep emotions within thunder tiger. This feeling, which humans call “awe,” was something new to the young beast.

“Will you follow me?”

With Louis’s second question, thunder tiger bowed its head, lowering itself completely beneath Louis. Jacob’s jaw dropped as he realized what this gesture signified.

“S-servitude?”

The Link spell allowed for companionship rather than a master-and-subordinate relationship. Yet despite being young, thunder tiger, known as the king of beasts, had submitted entirely to a tiny human child. Jacob looked utterly astounded.

Soon, countless thoughts raced through Jacob’s mind.

It all makes sense now! That explains it!

Jacob looked at Louis with admiration as he reached a realization.

“D-did you…?” He stammered his question.

Louis flinched at Jacob’s hesitant inquiry.

Oh no… Did he figure it out?!

Considering how much of himself Louis had revealed, it would have been more surprising if Jacob hadn’t caught on.

I think I’ve been busted…

“A-are you an elf?” After being stunned for quite some time, this was the first thing that popped into Jacob’s head.

“…Huh?” Louis blinked at the unexpected query.

What is he talking about?

He cocked his head in confusion, wondering what kind of nonsense Jacob was spouting.

Jacob couldn’t help but think this way. Despite appearing older than Pablo, Louis had spoken to him without any deference. And although he looked no more than ten years old, he wielded advanced holy magic with ease. On top of that, despite being a wild creature who’d lost his parents, thunder tiger instantly submitted to Louis’s amiable nature. As far as Jacob knew, only elves possessed all these qualities—and not just any elf, but specifically high elves, which were legendary beings found only in myths.

His ears must be hidden by holy magic!

Jacob was convinced he’d hit the nail on the head and bowed slightly toward Louis.

“It is an honor to meet…the guardian of this forest.”

“…” Louis scratched his cheek as he watched Jacob bow deeply toward him.

Hmm… He seems to have misunderstood something.

Jacob appeared to be under some kind of misconception about Louis, but Louis didn’t bother correcting him. There was no need for that anyway. Why waste such a golden opportunity?

I should thank you if you think so highly of me!

Louis quickly adopted a serious and solemn demeanor.

“That’s right.” Despite trying to sound deep and mature, his voice still came out sounding like a child’s. However, since Jacob had already concluded Louis was an elf, even his youthful tone seemed honorable to Jacob.

“I never expected to meet a high elf here of all places. Please forgive my earlier rudeness.”

“It is fine.” Louis puffed out his chest and put on a dignified expression, despite looking like a silly elf.

A question popped into his mind at that moment:

…Do elves actually talk like this?

Louis had never met an elf before, but it didn’t matter. Judging by Jacob’s reaction, he would’ve believed Louis even if he started babbling nonsense. So Louis decided to play along.

This is much better than revealing I’m a dragon when dealing with someone whose dream is to tame one.

With that thought, Louis mentally prepared himself to stay committed to the role.

Jacob then turned to look at the twins. “By any chance, they’re…?”

“Yes, that’s right.” Louis nodded without knowing what Jacob was referring to but guessing it would be favorable for him to agree. Sure enough…

Jacob excitedly exclaimed, “As I suspected! Though young, they’ve already achieved great feats as elite elven warriors assigned to protect you, Lady High Elf!”

“That’s correct…” Louis nodded twice.

Pablo caught on and wisely kept his mouth shut while observing Louis and Jacob.

What kind of bluff is he trying now?

Louis had witnessed this young hatchling pulling scams more than once. In fact, Pablo himself was one of its victims. He had learned firsthand that it was better for his mental health to simply turn a blind eye during such situations.

As Pablo discreetly looked away, the twins clung to the whimpering baby thunder tiger and turned to Louis.

“Louis! Louis! Can we take our Nabi?”

“We wanna bring big kitty too!”

The twins pleaded with sparkling eyes. Their whining made Louis realize there was an unexpected problem at hand.

Huh? Wait… What should I do with him?

Louis gazed down at the crouching baby thunder tiger near him.