Another Ending to a Fated Connection

Around daybreak, the fog was thick and heavy with moisture.

The birds and beasts in the mountains had limited memories, probably not much better than Three Flower Lady's when she was little. By the time the east had turned white, the forest, which had been silent for two days because of the battle between divine beings overhead, finally began to stir.

There were faint rustling sounds nearby.

Most of those sounds were exceedingly wary.

It seemed their memories were not that poor after all.

Animals occasionally passed by the Daoist, most of them small creatures—pheasants, wild rabbits, sparrows, and other animals that did not hibernate. There were also larger ones, such as wild dogs and mountain boars.

Some passed right by him without noticing anything. Others happened to spot him and were startled, or stood where they were, staring for a while at the Daoist sitting cross-legged in the woods with his back against an ancient tree, before continuing on with their own business. They were neither especially afraid of him nor inclined to attack him.

Yet the Daoist vaguely sensed that some little creature in the distant grass had been watching him all along.

Perhaps it was an especially curious fellow.

When the first ray of morning light crossed the mountains, slipped through the treetops, and fell upon the land between the peaks, an almost imperceptible rustle finally came from that direction. Had the Daoist not been listening deliberately, he would have struggled to make it out.

The sounds his ears caught sketched an image in his mind—some little creature was tiptoeing forward. Perhaps it searched for a suitable foothold with every step; dry twigs and fallen leaves that might make a sound were absolutely not to be stepped on, and each hind paw had to land precisely in