Chapter 692: One That Needed Protection

The crossbow had already fired when Kael used Celestial Step to move out of the line of fire; the bolt struck the stone where he had been an instant earlier.

Kael appeared at the base of the rock formation and looked up. The shooter was already pulling the crossbow lever to reload, but he did not have time. Umbra emerged from the shadow behind him, restrained both of the man’s arms and ripped him from the elevated position before he could load another bolt.

"Let go!" the man shouted as he fell a little over two meters before Umbra slowed his descent and threw him to the ground in front of Kael. He wore gray clothes similar to the piece found in the forest, a short cloak and narrow boots covered in mud. "You don’t know what you’re doing. That thing needs to be captured."

Kael stepped on the crossbow before he could reach it. "You just shot at me," he replied, removing the bolt from the weapon and examining the tip. "So you can start by explaining why I should listen to anything you say."

Sylphie arrived shortly afterward and crouched near the projectile embedded in the stone. A bluish substance was spread around the metal tip. She did not touch it directly. "There’s sedative here," she said, observing the liquid. "Strong."

"It wasn’t meant for you," replied the man, still restrained by Umbra’s shadows. "You got in the way."

Kael looked at him. "You aimed at me."

The man did not answer.

A heavy sound came from inside the cave. It was not a roar. It sounded more like a short breath followed by something large dragging across stone.

Sylphie turned her attention to the entrance. "It’s awake."

"Because you’re making noise," said the hunter, trying to break free. "If it comes out of there, it’ll attack."

Umbra tightened the shadows around his wrists. "Keep struggling and find out what attacks first."

Kael left the crossbow on the ground and approached the opening. "Sylphie, stay with him," he said, stopping before entering. "Umbra, come with me."

"You’re not going in there," the man snapped. "It killed three men."

Kael looked over his shoulder. "You just said it needed to be captured. Now you’re saying it killed three people."

"Because it did."

"Who?"

The man hesitated for too long.

Sylphie noticed. "Yours?"

He shut his mouth.

Kael entered.

The cave was short and wide, with a little over fifteen meters to the back. The outside light reached only half the space, but Kael’s eyes did not take long to adjust. The creature was curled up against the opposite wall.

It was larger than he had expected.

It had the low, muscular body of a large feline, covered in thick black fur along its back, while dark-blue scales protected its neck, flanks and part of its legs. Two short wings were folded against its body, incapable of sustaining prolonged flight, but wide enough to assist with jumps between cliffs. Its head vaguely resembled a lynx, although the muzzle was longer and two short horns projected behind its ears.

The right hind leg was injured.

The broken ring of the trap was still attached above the paw.

The creature bared its teeth when Kael took two steps forward, but did not try to stand. The movement made its entire body tremble.

"I’m not going any closer," said Kael, stopping immediately.

Umbra appeared beside him. "Does it understand?"

"I don’t know."

The creature followed both of them with yellow eyes. There was enough intelligence there to assess distance and threat, but Kael did not try to decide anything beyond that.

Sylphie appeared at the entrance a few seconds later. "The man is restrained," she said, without fully entering. "Mara is coming back with the guards. I told Umbra to leave a shadow on him."

Kael looked at Umbra.

"I’m in two places," she replied. "It’s convenient."

Sylphie saw the injured paw and frowned. "The trap is still on it."

"I saw."

"If it keeps draining mana, it won’t heal properly."

The creature growled as soon as Sylphie took half a step inside.

She stopped.

"I’m not going to touch you," said Sylphie calmly, remaining where she was. "But we need to remove that."

Kael observed the ring. One of the locks had bent when the chain broke, but the main mechanism remained closed. Forcing it from the front would probably worsen the injury.

"We need the key," he said.

Umbra disappeared immediately.

Outside, they heard the man curse.

A few seconds later, Umbra returned with a small piece of metal held between her fingers.

"It was in the inside pocket of his cloak," she said, handing the key to Kael. "I also found two vials of sedative and another dismantled trap."

"Good."

Kael kept the key in his hand, but did not advance.

Sylphie looked at him. "If both of us approach at the same time, it’ll react."

"I know."

Kael removed the sword from his belt and placed it on the ground, well behind him. Then he removed the small knife and did the same.

Umbra watched. "It doesn’t know what that means."

"Maybe not," he replied. "But I do."

He took one step forward.

The creature growled.

Kael stopped.

Waited.

Then took another.

The growling continued, but it did not attack. When he got close enough to see the wound clearly, he understood why. The metal had cut deeply around the joint, and part of the fur was matted with dried blood.

"It’s going to hurt when I open it," said Kael.

The creature bared its teeth.

"Yes, I wouldn’t like it either."

Sylphie remained a few meters behind him, ready to intervene if necessary, but did not try to help before the right moment.

Kael slowly knelt and showed the key resting openly on his palm. The creature sniffed the air. The muscles in its shoulders remained tense, but it did not retreat.

He moved his hand toward the lock.

The attack came quickly.

The front paw struck toward his face, but stopped a few centimeters away when Kael caught the creature’s wrist with his other hand. He did not squeeze. He only prevented the claws from reaching him.

"I expected that," he said.

The creature tried to pull its paw back.

Kael released it immediately.

It seemed surprised.

This time, when he brought the key to the ring, it only growled.

The mechanism opened with a click.

Sylphie moved forward the instant Kael removed the metal from the paw. The creature tried to stand, failed and struck its flank against the wall. Sylphie placed her hand on the ground, not on it, and thin roots emerged through the cracks in the stone, forming a low barrier around its body to prevent it from hurting itself further.

"Easy," said Sylphie, keeping her mana low. "It’s over."

The creature was breathing quickly.

Kael threw the broken ring behind him and stepped back twice.

It looked at its own paw.

Then at him.

The growling diminished.

Outside, footsteps approached. Mara appeared at the entrance accompanied by two guards, but stopped when she saw the creature.

"What is that?" she asked, keeping her hand away from her weapon.

Kael answered without taking his eyes off the animal. "I still don’t know exactly."

The restrained man shouted from outside. "It’s a Vharak. It’s worth a fortune alive."

Mara immediately turned her head.

Kael did too.

The silence inside the cave changed.

Sylphie was the first to understand. "So you knew what it was."

Kael left the cave and found the man still immobilized by the shadows. "Now you’re going to explain everything to me," he said, crouching in front of him. "Who hired you, how many of you came and why you were trying to capture a creature protected by containment equipment."

The man’s expression hardened. "You don’t have the authority to interrogate me."

Mara let out a short laugh.

"He might not need it," she replied, taking the shackles from her belt. "You placed illegal traps in a managed zone, shot at a visitor under administrative protection and are hunting a creature without a license."

Kael stood. "Great. Then he’s yours."

Mara blinked.

"You’re not going to interrogate him?"

"You just listed three local crimes," replied Kael. "Start with those. If something bigger appears, call me."

Mara looked at Sylphie.

She shrugged.

"He’s learning."

Kael ignored her.

Behind them, inside the cave, the creature tried to stand again.

This time it managed to support itself on three paws.

The fourth remained raised.

Kael looked back at it.

The problem was not solved yet, but now they finally knew which one needed to be protected.

The creature took an unsteady step out of the cave and paused as it felt the wind. Sylphie remained at its side, without touching it.

"She needs treatment and food," Sylphie said, eyeing the injured paw. "Nothing else for now."

Mara nodded and called over one of the guards.

"We have a forest outpost less than an hour from here."

Kael looked at the Vharak. "Take the hunter to Arvend. We’ll stay with her until you get the place ready."

Umbra crossed his arms.

"And then?"

Kael watched as the creature slowly set its paw on the ground.

"Then we find out who was paying to capture her."