Boar

No matter what, Link had once again become famous at his new high school using the same method. The camping event continued, and Iris no longer cared about what had happened to Link at his previous school, because she had noticed that many girls were looking at him differently now.

If she threw a little tantrum to keep him in line, someone else would probably take advantage of the opening soon enough. As far as Iris knew, her best friend and roommate Jessica was already eager to make a move. She didn't want to give those bitches any opportunities, so she became even more accommodating toward Link.

With Iris's cooperation, Link and she were no longer confined to their cramped dorm room during those days. At Link's suggestion, the two embraced nature, leaving behind beautiful melodies on the grasslands and in the woods.

More than a week passed before they knew it, and the final competition was drawing near. Wilmott Academy for Gifted Children was already ten to twenty points ahead of its four opponents. Just as in previous years, it held an absolute advantage.

The day before the final competition, the teachers announced that everyone would have a day to rest and adjust their condition.

Most of the teams from the various schools chose to train for half the day and rest for the other half. After morning training, Link, Iris, Jessica, and Peggy sat together for lunch.

Jessica asked Link, "Link, what are you doing this afternoon?"

"Nothing special. Do you have any good suggestions?"

"Want to take a look around the woods to the west?"

Iris frowned when she heard that. "But didn't Teacher Johnny say before that it isn't safe over there? There could be danger."

"He was just trying to scare us. This is a ranch, after all. I went there with someone last year, and I found a secret too. There's an underground hot spring there. Soaking in it and relaxing would be much more fun than staying in the dorm."

Peggy was the first to speak. "A hot spring? Really? Great, I want to go."

"Of course. It's a natural hot spring, about seven or eight square meters. It's just big enough for the four of us. I haven't told anyone else about this secret before. Link, do you want to come?"

"That sounds pretty interesting."

Once Link agreed, Iris naturally couldn't give Jessica a chance to be alone with him. She immediately said, "All right, but I need to go back and prepare some clothes."

"Of course. We'll get ready after lunch and leave at one o'clock."

Jessica really hadn't been lying. The group crossed beyond the school's designated activity area and walked west into the woods for over half an hour before they saw a natural hot spring about seven or eight square meters in size.

Link reached in to test it first. The water near the surface was around thirty-seven or thirty-eight degrees Celsius, while it was warmer deeper down. It was perfect for soaking. The four of them promptly took off their outer clothes, revealing the swimsuits they had prepared earlier.

Iris and Jessica had both chosen bikinis. If Iris barely reached a C cup, then Jessica's chest, straining against those tiny scraps of fabric, was definitely a D.

Link couldn't help staring for quite a while, only to receive a warning look from Iris. Jessica, on the other hand, didn't care at all. Her gaze even carried a hint of provocation.

After exchanging looks, Link understood what Jessica wanted. He immediately returned her look. Perhaps this wasn't the right time, but they could make a date after the camping event ended.

After enjoying their time in the hot spring, they prepared to clean up and leave when it got late. Once they were dressed, Iris and Peggy went a little farther away to take care of some private business.

At that moment, Jessica gave Link a look and said, "Want to get intimate while Iris isn't here?"

"Why not?" As a free and unrestrained bird, Link naturally refused to be bound. Without hesitation, he lowered his head slightly and began exploring those peaks, repeatedly measuring them with his own hands in the spirit of science so that he could obtain more accurate data.

But before long, they suddenly heard a loud cry for help. Link quickly released Jessica, then saw Iris rush over. "Help! There's a boar!"

Link was immediately startled. Many forests in the United States were well protected, so it wasn't strange to encounter wild animals, but boars were definitely among the most dangerous.

Link remembered that, across the Pacific Ocean, people in ancient times had ranked the dangers various fierce beasts posed to humans. The result had been, "First boars, second bears, third tigers." In other words, boars ranked first in terms of danger to people. Encountering one in the wild could be even more terrifying than encountering a tiger!

When Link saw Iris running over alone in panic, he hurriedly asked, "Where's Peggy?"

"I don't know!" Iris said.

Link quickly said, "You two go back first and get someone!" Then he darted toward where the cries had come from.

When Link arrived, he saw a boar that wasn't particularly large standing in front of Peggy. Peggy had her back against a tree and was so frightened that she couldn't even speak.

The boar wasn't very big—at least, not from Link's perspective. In reality, though, its size was already more than enough to pose a threat to a human.

Link hurried over and stood in front of Peggy, facing the boar. At the same time, he asked Peggy behind him, "Are you okay? I'll draw its attention. You leave first."

At the sight of Link, Peggy's panic eased considerably. She pressed her lips together before saying, "I can't walk."

If he had a suitable weapon at hand, Link was fairly confident he could take it down. But he was empty-handed right now and didn't dare act rashly.

The story of Wu Song killing a tiger sounded impressive, but that was just fiction. With Link's current strength, throwing a few punches would more likely enrage the boar and drive it mad. Besides, who knew whether it had companions?

"Follow me and back up!" Link said, reaching one hand behind him to support Peggy as he slowly retreated.

Link had gone hunting with Robert before and knew some of a boar's habits. He could tell that this one wasn't particularly fierce. It was probably a young boar, not very brave, and likely frightened as well. As long as they didn't provoke it, they could still get away.

Keeping his eyes fixed on the boar, Link led Peggy backward toward a thicket, gradually using the trees to block its line of sight. Once they had retreated some distance, he suddenly picked Peggy up and ran along the path they had taken.

After running back for around seven or eight minutes, they saw Iris and Jessica ahead of them. Link didn't waste words. "It's only a small boar. It probably won't chase us, but just in case, we should leave quickly."

The moment Iris and Jessica saw Link, they breathed sighs of relief. But they didn't stop, instead continuing to run back with him. Only then did Link look at Peggy in his arms and ask, "Peggy, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Peggy shook her head, then continued leaning against Link's chest. Afraid that something else might happen, Link wanted to leave as quickly as possible. He didn't have time to check on her further, so he kept carrying her as he ran back.

It had taken the group more than half an hour to reach the hot spring, but Link took only half that time on the way back. They would have been even faster if they hadn't been in the woods.

However, after returning to the activity grounds, the four of them didn't stop. They went straight back to the dorm before finally coming to a halt.

Only then did Link set Peggy down on the edge of a bed. Sitting beside her, he said, "All right, it's okay now. We're back."

"Mm." Peggy nodded, then leaned against Link again. "Link, thank you for saving me."

"It was nothing. I told you before, you're like a little sister to me." After saying that, Link looked at Iris, who was sitting on the bed opposite them. "Iris, are you okay?"

A hint of shame appeared on Iris's face. "I'm sorry, I was terrified just now..."

"It's okay. When people encounter that kind of situation, their natural reaction is usually to run." Link comforted Iris, then added, "You're a girl too. You were scared out of your wits. Didn't we make it back safely?"

Jessica said, "Should we tell the teachers that we found a boar?"

"We'd better not." Link shook his head. "We ignored the rules and went into the woods. If they find out, we'll probably lose points. The final competition is tomorrow, and we don't hold an absolute advantage. There's no need to create extra trouble."