A dying man jolted awake from a dream.
Time in the Equipment Slot was effectively frozen. But because he hadn't hit the lynx too hard in the first place, the shock of hitting the water suddenly brought it back to its senses.
Splish, splash—
Its broad forepaws thrashed at the surface. It held its head high and opened its mouth, yowling in terror.
Merlin's expression turned complicated. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he watched the lynx.
"Should I kill it? It..."
But a moment later, he reconsidered. It's a little thing that can't talk. It probably doesn't know much, and it doesn't remember me. At most, it closed its eyes and opened them to find itself here.
Just then, the lynx spotted Merlin—the culprit who'd knocked it out without warning—and its pupils shrank. Even more terrified, it sprang out of the hot spring.
As it burst out of the water, Merlin shot to his feet. His right hand darted out like a bolt of lightning and grabbed it by the scruff, lifting it into the air.
The lynx struggled in his grasp. Merlin swung his arm in an arc and flung it away. The lynx that had helped him so much went flying.
It yowled in panic, but twisted nimbly in midair and landed on all fours with a slap.
Its back arched, and its bright yellow eyes stayed fixed on Merlin. It held perfectly still, gathering itself to spring. Watching it, Merlin's eyes glinted with amusement.
"Go on, get out of here! You're free!"
To Merlin's surprise, the lynx seemed to understand. It turned its head slightly, looking around.
When it realized it was in the mountains, it let out a low, rumbling growl, then crouched and began backing away one step at a time.
Seeing