"Stop!!!" The cry tore through the air behind the bear's back.
Claw sprinted desperately, each stride clawing at the earth.
His chest heaved; the distance felt endless.
The ground blurred beneath his paws, but the bear loomed larger with every step.
Each heartbeat screamed that he wouldn't make it in time.
"Too late…" Grizzeler smirked, lowering his claw toward the baby's fragile body.
The baby couldn't process what was happening; his gaze froze, wide with shock.
"Goodbye…" Grizzeler hissed, his smirk twisting.
The air seemed to pause, every sound in the forest holding its breath.
Claw's heart cracked in silence, helpless against the bear's looming strike.
Thud!
The claw slammed into the earth with a bone-rattling crash.
For a single, suspended heartbeat, every small sound sharpened—the baby's laugh, Claw's ragged breaths, the whisper of wind through grass.
"I… impossible!" Grizzeler said, his voice trembling with disbelief.
His eyes darted, scanning his surroundings; disbelief flooded into rage.
This wasn't possible—not even fate would dare defy him like this.
Before Grizzeler realized, the baby dangled from Claw's jaw, giggling wildly, as if mocking death itself.
"It was so close…" Claw panted, his unsteady breath pushing the baby's hair.
Grizzeler turned, began humming with a faint smirk,
then whipped back with a furious frown.
He stared at Claw, serious and desperate.
"You're just too polite, aren't you?"
"What an emotional moment." Grizzeler clapped, his tone carrying a hint of amusement, then he approached.
His massive frame loomed over Claw and the baby.
He paused for a moment, staring at them.
Claw swallowed; his body froze, as if any movement would kill him.
The moment Grizzeler appeared, the baby's laugh cut off.
The forest hushed, as though waiting for the strike to fall.
"It's over for you, impostor leopard!" Grizzeler swung his arm down.
Then, mid-swing, he stopped — a scene cut him off.
"W… what?!"
Grizzeler's eyes locked on something only he noticed; it felt like doom to him.
"Did this damned leopard just set a trap for me?" The bear kept staring at two shadowed figures, swallowing.
Grizzeler froze, his gaze sharpening to a blade.
Claw covered the baby with his body, then lifted his head in confusion.
Grizzeler frowned, almost starting to complain, then he lowered his hands and turned toward the forest.
"Heh… clever, for such a naïve leopard."
Then he pushed forward on all four.
"He… heheh…" Claw's breath shook as he laughed.
The baby clung to Claw's body.
His tiny warmth pressed against Claw's trembling chest.
For the first time, Claw felt something beyond fear.
I… I don't know what just happened… but I'm glad it's over…
Claw kept staring at Grizzeler's massive body as it began vanishing from the scene.
A tribe member approached cautiously; the old man among them smiled, closing his eyes.
"I told you we would be saved."
When the tribe approached slowly, Claw pushed the baby forward with his head, offering him a gentle push.
The parents rushed to him in tears.
Claw staggered backward as the tribe's attention shifted to the unharmed baby.
For a heartbeat, he thought he could disappear without anyone noticing.
He… he… he's safe… now… I think it's time for me to g—
A girl approached Claw, without a trace of fear.
"Thank you, big cat!" The girl offered Claw a flower.
Claw stared in disbelief, frozen by the moment.
W… what is she doing?
Is she offering me that?
The girl giggled as she tucked the flower behind Claw's ear, then laughed.
Claw's breath hitched; the strange gesture disarmed him more than any weapon could.
The tribe members shifted toward Claw, some holding spears ready to strike, others ready to push.
Then the old man of the tribe threw up an arm.
"Are you blinded?" The old man's expression hardened.
After a pause, he said,
"This creature means no harm…"
The girl ran to the old man, pushing Claw from behind.
His massive frame could have crushed her, yet he softened his stride, approaching slowly.
"Grandpa! Grandpa! Can we keep him? Please, oh please!" The girl's eyes widened as she stood behind Claw.
"He's not like the last one!"
"The last one?" Claw thought, lowering his head to the ground.
"Did she mean… the real Claw…?"
"Sure, we will keep him!"
The old man cleared his throat, then stepped forward to the tribe with a commanding voice.
"From this day forward, he is our savior!"
The tribe members cheered.
The sound rose into the trees, echoing like a storm breaking the silence of fear.
"H… hahah…" Claw stood still, unsure if their praise was truly meant for him.
Far on the edge of the mountain, two figures kept staring, their eyes gleaming in the darkness.
Neither spoke; the weight of what they had witnessed pressed the words from their throats.
As they watched the moment unfold, Gash trembled, barely able to stand, while Vein's gaze froze, wide with shock.