Chapter 32 — 99
Saaa...
The grass and leaves were moving in the wind, which made a sound like a symphony.
A man and a leopard stood facing each other. They were both squinting slightly in the breeze, but their eyes never left each other.
"GrrraawWrr!"
Maybe because he was losing patience, the leopard made a low, angry sound and took a small step forward.
Jun's bow was lower than before, and it moved a little bit as if he was ready to shoot.
The leopard was still watching, trying to figure out what the man was doing.
A few days ago, it had interacted with cannibalistic humans. It knew the object the man held could be dangerous.
At that time, it had even eaten wild boar meat that this man had hunted.
It moved closer, then backed off, starting to circle Jun and the large tree behind him.
But Jun's arrowhead didn't waver—it was aimed straight at its head.
From the tip of that arrow, the leopard could smell wild boar meat... and the strong smell of snake meat hanging from the tree.
After circling halfway around, the leopard suddenly crouched down. It wasn't going to attack; it was just watching.
But every time Jun moved a little, the creature stood alert again.
"Could it be... it plans to stalk us until nightfall?"
Jun had lost track of how long they'd been staring at each other. Five minutes? Or five hours?
Now wasn't the time to think about time.
His back was covered in cold sweat.
The wind blew again, and he could feel it on his skin. He shivered.
"If this continues until night... we're done..."
He held his bow tightly, ready to risk his life.
Just like the leopard before him, Jun's body lowered—he was ready to attack.
But as if it knew what he was going to do, the leopard suddenly stood up from its crouch and let out an unusual roar—like it was calling for someone.
"Rrrawrr... Rrrawrr..."
There was a rhythm to its voice. It wasn't just a threat.
Jun's hand, which had been about to pull the bowstring, stopped moving.
The leopard kept roaring toward the big tree behind Jun.
He turned, and there was Yukino, with a backpack made of a wild boar's skin.
Jun realized it right away.
Inside that bag were two pieces of python meat they hadn't eaten yet.
The leopard wasn't hunting humans.
It came... for the snake meat.
Instinctively, Jun understood the leopard's intentions.
"Yukino, give me your backpack!"
Jun remained on high alert and didn't let his aim drop. He aimed his arrow at the leopard in front of him.
"Backpack? Okay!"
Yukino was slightly confused, but she didn't question the order.
Yukino threw the backpack to Jun, and it landed near Jun's feet.
"Good, Yukino. Now climb down from the tree, slowly."
As soon as the backpack hit the ground, the leopard lowered its body again, calming down.
Jun loosened his grip a bit.
It looked like his guess was right.
"Okay!"
Yukino slowly climbed down from the tree and walked toward Jun, limping a little.
"Can you stand up straight?"
Even though the bowstring was no longer taut, Jun remained on guard, never taking his eyes off the leopard.
Hearing Yukino come down, he asked without looking back.
"I can!"
She was now behind him.
"Good, hold this bow for me. Remember—just keep the arrow aimed at the leopard, don't look away."
Jun passed the bow to Yukino.
"Okay, I can do it."
Yukino took the bow carefully. Her ankle still hurt, but she aimed it at the leopard. Her face was tense.
"Don't worry, just relax. The leopard just wants our food, not to attack."
Jun gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder, trying to encourage her.
He asked her to come down and hold the bow just to make it look like there was a threat—to keep the leopard from approaching.
It was risky. But when he looked at the leopard again...
He knew he had won.
The leopard was lying down, mouth slightly open, sniffing with its fangs exposed.
"Hmm... I think I can manage..."
Yukino tried to calm herself, but her body was still shaking.
"Picture a big cat. Listen—it sounds kind of similar, right?"
While speaking, Jun quickly picked up the backpack.
"You're right. It is similar..."
Yukino's shaking stopped.
Jun took out a big piece of python meat, about 22 pounds, from the pack.
"He's standing!"
As soon as the meat was out, the leopard seemed excited. It stood up and made a low, threatening noise.
"Don't be afraid, Yukino!"
Jun encouraged his friend, and threw the meat with accuracy and strength toward the back of the leopard.
"Now, lower the bow a little..."
As the leopard turned and walked toward the meat, Jun helped Yukino slowly lower the bow.
The leopard noticed what they were doing, but it still picked up the meat and slowly backed away.
When it felt safe, it stopped at a certain distance, put the meat down, and growled again—as if warning me one last time: Don't follow me.
Jun understood what it meant.
Finally, after that growl, the leopard picked up the meat again and disappeared into the forest without looking back.
"He... he's gone..."
Yukino was shocked at where the leopard had gone.
"Yeah. We're safe…"
Jun put the boar-skin backpack back on, looking relieved.
"We really made it out..."
Yukino had thought they would have to fight for their lives. She had even prepared for the worst. But... Jun scared the beast away without using any magic.
They had survived.
"Yeah, we're safe now..."
Jun finally fell to the ground, tired and feeling empty. He was very confused and weak.
Even though the leopard had left, Jun didn't relax. His eyes stayed open and focused on the forest.
Luckily, no other predators appeared.
He could finally relax a little.
"Ssshh... that hurts..."
Yukino, feeling calmer, felt the pain in her ankle again as she took a step back.
"Be careful!"
Jun quickly caught Yukino as she almost fell.
"I'm fine..."
She fell into his arms, her body leaning fully against his chest.
"We made it..."
Her voice shook, as if she were about to cry.
"Mmm..."
Jun didn't know how to comfort a girl crying in a moment like this. His hands moved around without a clear destination.
"Thank you, Jun... you saved me again..."
Yukino started crying. She buried her face deep into Jun's chest, as if wanting to disappear into it.
"No, you were really brave too..."
Jun patted the girl's back to calm her, treating her like a little sister.
"That's not it... it's all my fault..."
Yukino lifted her face slowly. Her face was covered in tears and mud, like a little cat that had just come out of a storm.
"If I hadn't sprained my ankle, you wouldn't have had to risk your life..."
Her eyes, filled with tears, stared straight into Jun's.
"No, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been able to throw that meat earlier..."
Jun smiled, wiping away the tears and dirt from Yukino's face.
"You're always like this..."
From the beginning, she had always been like this—she had always comforted him the same way.
But it was her own carelessness that had caused it.
Yukino looked away shyly. She knew she looked like a mess.
"I can't do anything to help..."
But despite saying that, she hugged him more tightly.
At that moment, Yukino realized something in her heart.
She wants to stay in this embrace.
She was scared when Jun went into the forest by himself.
She couldn't imagine a world where Jun didn't come back.
That's why she always insisted on going with him.
This way, even if they couldn't survive, they would die together.
"That's not true. You're really strong, Yukino…"
Jun sighed softly, still holding her, as he slowly stood up, supporting Yukino's weight with him.
"Yukino, do you want to ride on my back?"
But instead of letting go, Yukino held on tighter, like a little octopus clinging on.
"I..."
She realized how close they were only then. Her legs were wrapped around Jun's waist, and his strong hands supported her lower body.
Their bodies were very close together.
Yukino blushed brightly. She looked up briefly, then quickly buried her face in Jun's chest again.
It seemed like she really didn't want to let go.
"In that case, I'll carry you like this all the way home!"
Jun quickly put on his backpack and bow. Then, he walked quickly, carrying the nervous girl, and went to their camp in the forest.
[Yukinoshita Yukino – Affinity: 99]
_ _ _
"Put me down..."
As they got closer to the edge of the forest and saw the coconut trees by the beach, Yukino finally squirmed out of his arms.
She didn't want to be seen like this.
She was sometimes confident, but she was also modest.
"Hm? What was that, Yukino? I didn't hear you."
Jun kept walking, pretending not to hear.
"I said... put me down!"
Yukino's voice rose half a pitch.
"My ears must still be a little off..."
Jun replied without feeling any emotion, and he didn't slow down at all.
"Wow!"
The beach came into full view. Yukino panicked and tried to get away.
"Ouch, that hurts..."
Jun hadn't expected her to gently bite him on the neck again.
"Put me down now!"
Her face was bright red, showing a mix of embarrassment and anger, but she didn't dare bite harder.
She felt guilty about the last bite that had hurt him.
"Kiss me once, and I'll let you down," Jun said, bringing his lips close to her face.
"Don't even think about it! Pervert…" Yukino turned away, her cheeks burning.
"Okay, I'm just going to keep walking..."
Jun started walking again, ready to wave to Megumi and Utaha on the beach.
"No!"
Yukino's face turned red as if she was going to start bleeding. She held Jun's arm tightly to stop him from waving, then, with some hesitation, offered her neck.
"Nnngh..."
Jun, who had meant to keep teasing her, was shocked.
It's cool, soft, and has a nice smell.
Just a few seconds were enough to leave a deep impression on him.
A kiss on the lips was very different from a kiss on the cheek.
Jun made a mental note.
"Pervert... now put me down, okay..."
Yukino also seemed overwhelmed by the moment, her face now red.
"Mm..."
Jun gently put her down.
Without saying a word, the two of them walked together to the camp on the beach, holding on to each other for support.
_ _ _
"Weird..."
After hugging her brother happily, Megumi sensed something strange between Yukino and him.
It was like they had gone from one extreme to the other.
Her brother even seemed confused, like he had lost his soul.
"What really happened between Yukinoshita-san and my brother in the forest?"
Megumi said to herself, feeling curious.
It would be better to ask someone else about that.
She didn't want to ask her brother directly.
Who would be the right person to ask?
Her eyes met Utaha, who was sitting next to her brother.
Yes, she's the perfect choice.
"Senpai, there's another fresh red mark on my brother's neck..."
Pulling Utaha to the side, Megumi pointed to the right side of Jun's neck.
The bite mark was faint, but it was clearly visible. It was obvious that the bite mark was from someone.
"It must be Yukinoshita who did it..."
Utaha had already noticed the mark earlier.
"I guess their relationship isn't as simple as we thought..."
Megumi looked at her brother again.
They had been living together for years, so she could easily read his face. That dazed look meant that the person was remembering something and smiling to themselves.
"What do you mean...?"
Utaha's face showed a slight change.
"Make time to ask my brother directly... senior."
Megumi didn't want Yukino to take her brother.
And clearly, Utaha felt the same way.
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