Arix kept walking inside the cave. The foul smell grew stronger, and the darkness kept increasing. Because of the sunlight, he could still see the path, but he was worried that if he went deeper without finding the beast, he would have no vision at all.

  He kept walking, looking at the footsteps leading inside the cave. The mud floor was wet because of the water dripping from above. The wind didn't reach inside the cave, which helped since he was no longer cold.

  Not long after, he found a rabbit head, half-eaten, lying on the floor, and beside it a trail of blood leading deeper inside. Arix followed the trail, which led the same way as the footsteps. But the trail ended not long after.

  Arix stopped and looked behind. The exit was growing smaller, and the beast was nowhere in sight.

  “I need a light source. I should have brought Meilie at least,” he whispered.

  “But no, I had to be a hero. I had to go alone. Stupid,” Arix taunted himself when a loud, haunting cry echoed through the cave.

  He looked ahead in the direction from where the sound came. “Must be that beast,” he said and walked ahead, faster than before.

  After several minutes, there was still no sign of the beast. The light was now barely reaching him, and the path was barely visible. Arix hugged the cave wall, placing one hand on it and moving slowly forward, looking down at the ground for any danger.

  Along the path, he saw many bodies and heads of rabbits and other creatures he'd seen before. Some were half-eaten, and some were barely recognizable.

  Arix swallowed hard, looking at the red eyes lying on the floor in front of him. “A rabbit’s eyes?” he said and walked ahead with his shoulders tensed and fingers trembling.

  “How will I tame the beast without a weapon?” Arix thought.

  “I have to make it realize that I am not here to harm it.”

  He paused for a while and took a deep breath as he stood there in one place.

  “Good thing I don’t have any weapon, or the beast will never think of me as harmless,” he said and started walking ahead.

  Not long after, he saw a cliff ahead. There was a path beside the cliff going downward, and occasionally low howls echoed from ahead.

  He walked forward, hugging the wall, and reached the cliff. Arix sat down at the edge. His eyes widened at the sight ahead.

  In front of him was a small opening in the cave that formed a chamber. Walls surrounded it, and the only exit was a narrow path in the corner that led to the cliffside trail.

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  There were two small beasts feasting on the rabbits. They were eating fast and biting each other occasionally in a playful manner.

  They were small, with no fur and thin bodies. Their legs stretched the same length as their bodies, with two little horns and no tails. They looked the same as the beast, but tiny. They also had the same blue eyes.

  “Are they the beast’s kids?” Arix said, trying to go a little further, but because of the water, the ground on the cliff was wet. Arix slipped and fell directly in front of the little beasts.

  The small creatures stopped eating, their attention drawn to Arix. They stared at him and howled.

  “Hello, little buddy,” Arix said in a low voice, backing away on his hips.

  The tiny beasts ran toward him, their tongues out.

  Arix's breath quickened as he stood up, bringing one hand forward and turning sideways. “I can't harm them, or I'll ruin everything,” he thought, when one of the beasts jumped on him.

  He grabbed the beast midair, but it was already on his face. Arix panicked, closing his eyes and turning his face away.

  “I am dead,” he thought, when he felt a wet, warm tongue on his cheeks.

  He opened his eyes to find the tiny beasts weren't attacking him. One was beside him, nuzzling against his stomach, and the other, in his hands, was licking his cheeks.

  “Whoa, whoa, little buddy. Stop, it's tickling!” Arix burst out laughing, sitting up and holding the beast in his hands.

  Arix was sensitive to touch; even the slightest contact made him ticklish.

  He was laughing uncontrollably, trying to keep the little beasts away. He picked up one beast and held it at arm's length, then went to grab the other. But the other had already returned to him, nuzzling against his body and tickling him even more.

  He was playing cheerfully when a howl reached his ears. The tiny beasts stopped playing and ran toward the narrow entrance. Arix shifted his gaze to where they were running and saw the big beast standing at the entry, staring at him from a distance.

  Arix stood up immediately, bringing his hand forward. “I am not here to harm you,” he said in a low voice, stepping backward.

  Without wasting any time, the beast charged at him, lowering its horns to strike.

  Arix tried to jump sideways to dodge, but failed as one horn hit him in the stomach, and he slammed into the cave wall.

  The impact was brutal. Pain exploded through his body as he crumpled to the ground.

  “Aghhh…” he groaned, putting a hand on his back and trying to stand up with the other.

  He opened his eyes and saw the beast charging at him again. With no time to dodge, he brought both hands forward and grabbed the beast's horns as it slammed into him.

  Arix channeled all his strength into his hands and leaned forward, trying to stop the attack. The beast braced itself on its thin legs and drove all its strength into its horns.

  “I'm not here to harm you," Arix forced out through clenched teeth, gripping the beast's horns.

  But Arix’s strength was not enough, and the beast didn’t stop. After several moments, his hands slowly went numb, and the beast forced Arix back, pinning him against the wall.

  Arix screamed, but it was no help. The horn pressed against his stomach, piercing deeper. Blood from his stomach fell to the ground, yet he still refused to let go of the horns.

  Arix’s eyes were closed when he heard a small howl from ahead. He opened his eyes to see two little beasts running toward him. When they reached the larger beast, they started howling at her instead of Arix. The beast glanced at her young and eased the pressure on Arix.

  Arix fell to the ground, holding his stomach as the beast stopped attacking. He was bleeding heavily from the wound.