Chapter 388 - 356: Returning To Tribe Settlement...

(A/N):

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The Guardian beast lowered its head and then it slowly bent its enormous front legs and bowed before Devara.

The tribal leader’s eyes widened.

Karna and Ashwatthama exchanged a brief glance, but neither said anything.

Devara himself was momentarily surprised.

"You don’t have to do that,"

He said softly, stepping closer to the guardian.

The beast lifted its head slightly, looking directly at him.

Devara could see gratitude in its eyes.

He had not simply broken a chain.

He had given this creature its life back.

The guardian slowly moved its massive head closer, and before Devara could react, its large tongue came out and swept across his face.

Devara froze as his entire face was covered in the beast’s saliva.

Karna immediately turned his face away, struggling to suppress his laughter.

Ashwatthama lowered his head, though the slight movement of his shoulders made it obvious that he was trying not to laugh as well.

The tribal leader stared at Devara with a completely bewildered expression.

Devara slowly wiped his face with his hand and looked at the guardian.

"You could have just bowed."

The guardian gave a low rumbling sound that almost resembled laughter.

Devara stared at it for another moment before shaking his head with a helpless smile.

"Fine. I suppose that’s your way of saying thank you."

The guardian lowered its head again and gently pressed its forehead against Devara’s chest.

Devara placed his hand upon its mane and slowly stroked the thick fur.

For a moment, neither of them moved.

The forest around them continued to breathe with renewed life, the leaves rustling softly in the wind while distant animals began returning to the areas they had abandoned.

Devara could feel the warmth of the guardian beneath his hand, and for the first time since entering the cave, the creature no longer felt like something that belonged to a forgotten legend.

It was alive.... It was free.

And judging from the way it remained beside Devara, it seemed to have decided that the man who had freed it was someone it would never forget.

Devara continued stroking the guardian’s enormous mane for a few moments before an idea came to him.

He slowly lifted his right hand, and a thin sacred thread appeared around his fingers.

The thread was simple in appearance, its pale yellow strands carrying the faint fragrance of sandalwood and turmeric, the same substances that had been used to sanctify it before Devara summoned it.

A small amount of divine energy moved through the thread, so faint that Karna and Ashwatthama could barely sense it, but the guardian immediately noticed the change and lowered its head curiously to watch what Devara was doing.

Devara stepped closer to one of its enormous front paws and gently lifted it.

The guardian did not resist. Instead, it remained perfectly still, allowing Devara to wrap the sacred thread around its leg.

Because of the enormous size of the beast, the thread looked almost ridiculously small against its powerful limb, but Devara carefully tied it several times before forming a firm knot.

The guardian looked down at the thread, then back at Devara.

"This is for your protection,"

Devara explained, giving the knot one final adjustment.

"You may be powerful, but you have already spent centuries trapped by someone else’s curse. I don’t want another enemy taking advantage of you while you are alone."

The guardian stared at him quietly.

"This thread will protect you from attacks that come without warning. If someone tries to harm you through a sneak attack, the thread will react before the danger reaches you. It won’t make you invincible, but it should give you enough warning to defend yourself."

Devara then tapped the thread gently with his finger.

"And there is something else. If this thread ever breaks, I will know immediately."

The guardian tilted its head slightly.

"I will also know where you are when it happens. So if something serious happens to you, I won’t have to spend days searching through the forest trying to find you. I can come directly to you and help."

The guardian looked down at the sacred thread once more.

It slowly moved its paw, feeling the strange object tied around it, before looking back at Devara.

Devara smiled.

"So don’t think of this as a chain. You have had enough of those."

His expression softened as he continued.

"Think of it as a way for you to call me when you need help."

The guardian lowered its enormous head until it was almost level with Devara and gently nudged him with its nose.

Devara chuckled as he placed his hand against its forehead.

"I suppose that means you understand."

Karna watched the exchange with a faint smile before saying,

"You have given a divine guardian a way to summon the king himself. I doubt there are many creatures in this forest who can make such a claim."

Devara glanced at him.

"After what this creature has suffered, I think it deserves someone watching its back."

The guardian gave a deep, satisfied rumble and lifted its paw slightly, causing the sacred thread to glow faintly in the sunlight.

Devara noticed the glow and nodded.

"Good. It has accepted you as well."

The tribal leader looked at the guardian, then at Devara, still struggling to comprehend how quickly the relationship between them had changed.

A creature that had once been nothing more than a forgotten legend in his people’s stories now stood freely beneath the forest sky, wearing a sacred thread placed upon it by their king.

And for the first time, the tribe leader began to wonder whether the ancient protector of the forest had not merely been freed that day.

Perhaps it had found a new protector of its own.

With the matter finally resolved, Devara, Karna, Ashwatthama and the tribal leader began making their way back toward the settlement.

The journey that had taken them deep into the forest felt strangely different on the way back.

The same trees that had seemed unnaturally quiet earlier were now alive with movement, birds had begun returning to branches, and the distant roars of tigers could still be heard from different parts of the forest.

Every now and then, the sound of a boar squealing in panic would reach them, followed by the unmistakable roar of a tiger giving chase.

The natural order that had been disturbed for so long was slowly correcting itself, although it was certainly going to be a frightening adjustment for the people who had lived through the period when the tigers had mysteriously disappeared.

As they finally approached the tribal settlement, they immediately noticed that something was different.

The bamboo gates were tightly closed, and several tribal warriors stood on the walls with their bows ready, while others watched the surrounding forest with nervous expressions.

The entire settlement appeared to be under lockdown.

People who would normally be outside working, cooking or tending to their animals had remained inside their huts, while parents kept their children close.

The reason was obvious.

Since the return of the tigers, sightings of the predators had become frequent, and the animals were actively hunting the wild boars that had multiplied throughout the forest.

For the villagers, who had spent years watching the tiger population disappear, hearing those roars again was not comforting.

They knew the tigers were part of the natural order, but knowing something was necessary did not make standing near it any less frightening.

The moment the guards on the wall recognized their tribal leader approaching, their tense expressions immediately changed.

"The leader is back!"

The announcement travelled through the settlement almost instantly.

The bamboo gate was opened, and several people hurried toward them.

Women came out of their huts, elderly men leaned against their walking sticks, and younger warriors gathered around the returning group.

The moment they saw their leader standing safely among Devara, Karna and Ashwatthama, several people released the breath they had clearly been holding.

"Where did you go?"

"What happened inside the forest?"

"Are the tigers attacking the settlement?"

"Why are there so many of them now?"

"Did you find out what happened to the animals?"

The questions came from every direction, one after another, until the tribal leader raised his hand.

"Enough. Everyone calm down."

His voice was firm enough to silence the crowd.

He looked around at his people before speaking again.

"There is nothing you need to fear right now. The tigers have returned because the balance of the forest was disturbed, and they are hunting the boars that have multiplied beyond control. They are not coming here to hunt us."

Some of the people still looked uncertain, but the leader continued before anyone could interrupt him.

"We went into the forest to discover why the tigers had disappeared. What we found was something none of us could have imagined."

The villagers slowly gathered closer.

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(Author note:)

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