Di Shikun

It was deep into the night, the fourth watch.

Owl and Sa were resting inside Void Mushroom Market.

Suddenly, their ears twitched slightly, and they opened their eyes at the same time in the darkness.

They emerged from their respective rooms. Neither was surprised to see the other, and in tacit understanding, they left Void Mushroom Market together.

Last night's encounter had left them both in low spirits, so they had continued onward with their heads down for another hour before finally stopping to rest on a cliff near a small town.

The two stepped out of the Void Mushroom. Owl put away Void Mushroom Market, then walked to the cliff's edge and looked toward the town. Dense, incessant footsteps drifted over, along with screams and panting.

Mixed amid all those sounds were horrifying noises of slaughter.

"Lion-Ant-Bees?" Sa guessed with her eyes closed.

Owl likewise closed his eyes to sharpen his hearing. Frowning, he said, "Doesn't sound like Lion-Ant-Bees. Their heartbeats are slow. This heartbeat is very fast."

"Mm." Sa nodded in understanding.

In the distance, many villagers fled the town in madness, throwing themselves heedlessly into the peril-filled forest. They used no torches and paid no mind to the dangers lurking throughout the jungle, each one running desperately for their life.

A Rainbow-feathered Leopard lightly leaped from one branch to another. Looking down through the leaves, it watched the villagers race beneath it, a ghostly gleam shining from its pitch-black eyes.

Suddenly, it raised its head and looked into the distance. A burly man was slowly approaching. Though he was clearly moving at a very slow pace, he seemed to shrink the earth into inches, covering the distance in a few steps until he was very close to the Rainbow-feathered Leopard.

The Rainbow-feathered Leopard's fur instantly stood on