Chapter 40: The Panther, the Python, and the Savage Human
"Ulaa!"
Surround her!
The tribal chief shouted, and two of his helpers quickly moved in, getting on both sides of the savage girl from the left and right, like two hungry wolves getting ready to attack their prey.
The girl's small, agile body moved quickly, suddenly turning left and stopping abruptly. The two men chasing her couldn't change direction quickly enough and ended up running into nothing.
But the cannibal chief had already drawn his bow.
Swoosh! A sharp arrow shot from behind, grazing the side of the girl's head and hitting the ground right in front of her.
"Ulaa... ulaa..."
She knew that if she took just one more step, she might get hit. The savage girl hugged her head and dropped to her knees. She was shaking with fear.
"Uuu... nnaa..."
She started to talk quickly, trying to explain that she had only gone out to look for more food—not to escape from her tribe.
But the cannibal chief didn't believe her.
"Ulaa ulaa!"
One of his employees said, "Chief! Let's cook her tonight!"
The other one agreed, saying, "Yeah! Let's chop off her head first so we don't lose our appetite!"
They were already planning to make a pot of crocodile soup with human meat as the main dish for the night.
"You idiots! She's still useful for other things. Don't eat her yet!"
The cannibal chief hit both of them on the head with his stick, which made them wince and clutch their heads.
"Tie her up and bring her back. Lock her up for a few days until she's tame!"
After kicking the girl several times, the chief ordered them to drag her back to the village. She remained on her knees, pleading nonstop.
_ _ _
"Senpai, let's start gathering the vines now."
Jun was now in the area that used to be the black panther's territory, on the other side of the forest. But today, the panther was not there.
He wondered if it was still traumatized from that time.
Jun couldn't hunt, so he switched to Plan B: gathering vines.
They were used to carry supplies, make tree-climbing ladders, and even build small bridges across rivers. Strong and flexible vines were essential for these tasks.
"Is it just this kind?"
Utaha pointed at the blue-green vine that looked like braided hair.
"Yeah, this is the only type that's both strong and elastic," Jun replied, tugging on the vine to show how durable it was.
This was the same vine he used to tie up Yukinoshita Yukino.
She was close to losing her mind.
Yukino never mentioned it again because it was so embarrassing, and Jun pretended not to remember.
"If only we had more metal tools..."
They only had one iron machete, which they had sharpened many times. Though sharp, it still made the work of two people feel slow.
Maybe I should go back to the site where the plane crashed.
Jun thought. With their current abilities, building a raft was no longer a problem. Going to and from the crash site wouldn't use as much energy as it did before.
"Awoooo!!"
Suddenly, a loud, roaring sound came from far away.
"What was that!?"
Utaha panicked. The sound reminded her of wild humans. Or maybe it was just her imagination—she was still traumatized.
"Quick, climb the tree! It came from that direction!"
Jun quickly grabbed Utaha's hand and started climbing the nearest tree. But unlike Yukino, Utaha wasn't very good at climbing.
In the end, Jun had to support her from below—his hands pressing on a soft area.
Even though Jun was wearing loose pants, she could still feel how soft and warm they were.
"Before we move to a new place, I really need to teach you all how to climb trees."
Jun sighed as he watched Utaha. She was perched on a branch, still holding onto his arm. Her body was shaking because she was scared.
"I'm scared..."
Utaha pressed herself closer to Jun.
"It's okay... We're up in a tree, and it's far enough. We should be safe," Jun whispered, trying to reassure her.
He separated the thick leaves in front of him and looked toward the source of the sound.
And just as he suspected—he was right.
It was the panther.
But this time, the panther wasn't alone.
A huge red python, about eight meters long, was fighting a panther. The two of them looked at each other angrily, like they were about to start fighting.
Even though the panther growled and showed its teeth, its smaller body made it hesitate. The path behind it offered a clear way to escape to the trees.
The red python knew this and didn't rush to attack. It hissed, flicking its forked tongue into the air, as if judging the distance and threat.
"Rrrhh..."
The panther made a quiet noise. Its jaw opened a little, its whiskers twitched, and its eyes glowed with alertness.
It was ready. If the snake moved even a little bit forward, the snake's sharp claw would strike out.
But not to attack—to block the retreat path.
The panther knew it couldn't win.
"What... is that?"
Utaha only saw a little bit of bright red through the leaves.
"Don't look. That's a big problem," Jun said seriously.
He hadn't expected to find such a big snake in this area. He knew just by its size that it was much bigger than the black snake he had killed before.
"M-m-monster?"
Utaha held her face in Jun's chest. She was shaking.
"It hasn't seen us. It's still focused on the panther."
Jun took off his bow and got an arrow from his back. But from this height, with all the leaves and branches in the way, it was impossible to shoot accurately.
Also, the panther and the snake were both dangerous. If he attacked one, both would notice him.
He wasn't alone. He had Utaha to protect.
Should I back off for now? he thought.
But before he could move, he decided to wait. Maybe the two beasts would fight and weaken each other.
Jun held his breath and watched without blinking.
The panther and the snake were like two warriors waiting for the other to make a mistake.
Then suddenly...
"Ulaaa..."
"Uuuu..."
From a small opening between the plants, two wild people came out, holding the wild girl who was tied up with vines.
They appeared between the panther and the snake.
Plop.
They froze right away. They were shocked to see the huge red snake.
They dropped the girl to the ground and pulled out their stone spears.
The savage girl herself, upon seeing the two beasts, immediately squirmed away with all her strength despite being tied up, wriggling like a worm away from the center of danger.
"Ulaa ulaa!"
The cannibal chief appeared last, looking furious.
"You idiots! I told you not to take the shortcut!"
But he quickly went from angry to panicky when he saw the red python lift half its body as tall as a man—its eyes glowing blood red.
"Ssshhh!"
The red python recognized them.
They were the three savage humans who stole its food the other day.
There would be no mercy. It raised its body, coiling like a whip from hell, and lunged straight at the three of them!
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