The White Tiger Clan’s Baby Cotton Ball - Chapter 45

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 45

 

―How curious. I thought the child who awakened me would surely be a tiger from the Western Region. To think a baby bird from the Southern Region would wake me.

 

White Tiger, who had seen through that Soya was a bird beast-person, muttered with considerable curiosity.

 

Soya, who had been overwhelmed by the pressure emanating from the ancient divine beast, mustered her courage and spoke.

 

“You are White Tiger, aren’t you?”

 

―That’s right, baby bird. I am the guardian of the Western Lands. The divine beast, White Tiger. For what reason have you awakened me?

 

Soya couldn’t understand why the ancient divine beast White Tiger was before her eyes, or what he meant by awakening him.

 

But one thing. She could tell that this ancient divine beast before her was the only hope that could protect Ga Hyeon.

 

“Please help me, White Tiger! I have to protect Hyeoni Elder Brother! Hyeoni Elder Brother is, you see, Saeon’s…”

 

―Oh ho.

 

At Soya’s voice filled with desperation, White Tiger let out a short exclamation.

 

―Now I see, you possess the heart of a divine beast.

 

“The heart of a divine beast…?”

 

―You don’t need to cry anymore, baby bird. The power to protect what’s precious to you already exists within you.

 

“…?”

 

Soya blinked her eyes, unable to understand White Tiger’s words.

 

However, White Tiger didn’t explain any further.

 

Instead, he lowered his head and gently touched his forehead to Soya’s forehead.

 

From the point where their foreheads met, warm white light enveloped Soya’s body.

 

“Ah…”

 

Soya let out a short gasp at that warm energy.

 

White Tiger’s pure white spirit form gradually shrank, then became a white sword and was placed before Soya.

 

Clatter.

 

The moment Soya carefully lifted it up, the frozen time shattered and began to flow again.

 

The still air began to move again, brushing past Soya’s cheek.

 

Soya wondered for a moment if she had seen an illusion, but the shining white blade in her hands told her it was definitely not a fantasy.

 

She had never wielded a sword before.

 

However, the moment she gripped it in her hand, Soya could understand how she should move.

 

“What? What just happened…”

 

Chaos muttered in a flustered voice. He seemed to have no idea what had occurred.

 

Soya calmly raised her sword.

 

Swish―!

 

With the sound of cutting through wind, the sword drew a pure white trajectory through the air.

 

White light blooming from the sword’s path stretched toward Chaos.

 

“Ugh, uaaaaaahhhhh!”

 

Chaos was swallowed by the white light with a single scream.

 

‘I really, defeated him…’

 

Soya breathed heavily with a dazed feeling, unable to believe she had actually defeated him.

 

“Soya…”

 

From behind, Ga Hyeon’s strained voice could be heard.

 

‘Ah, this isn’t the time for this, I need to help Hyeoni Elder Brother…!’

 

Soya, who suddenly came to her senses, ran to Ga Hyeon.

 

“Elder Brother, are you alri…”

 

That was when it happened.

 

Whiiiiiish―!

 

One of the snake vines writhing on the ground wrapped around Soya and Ga Hyeon, then pulled them and slid them down below the cliff.

 

“Ahhh!”

 

“Soya!”

 

Even while falling, Ga Hyeon pulled Soya’s body into his embrace.

 

Thud!

 

The two bodies fell down into the deep precipice.

 

“Ugh…”

 

“Elder Brother!”

 

While falling down the cliff, Ga Hyeon’s beast transformation was released.

 

Unlike Soya who wasn’t hurt at all thanks to Ga Hyeon protecting her, his condition wasn’t very good due to the successive impacts.

 

“Elder Brother, Elder Brother, you’re bleeding…”

 

Soya sobbed as she looked at his arm with long cuts.

 

“There’s too much blood. What should I do.”

 

“Still, I’m glad you weren’t hurt, Soya.”

 

“It’s not a relief. Elder Brother is hurt like this…”

 

“I’m, as long as you’re okay… Ugh.”

 

Ga Hyeon smiled softly then immediately coughed up blood.

 

“Elder Brother!”

 

Soya cried out like a scream.

 

“I’m fine. I’m fine, Soya.”

 

“You’re not fine at all. You’re bleeding this much.”

 

Finally, Soya began crying loudly.

 

“Because of me, Elder Brother got hurt trying to protect me, if only I wasn’t here, sob, sniff, wahhh…”

 

Ga Hyeon reached out his hand and rubbed around Soya’s eyes.

 

“Don’t cry. When you cry like this, Elder Brother’s heart becomes too sad, Soya.”

 

“Sob, sniff, sniffle…”

 

She had heard similar words somewhere before.

 

It resembled what Hwayu had said when Miss Lili cried.

 

She must have secretly envied seeing him, who had turned away coldly from her tears three years ago, sharing in Miss Lili’s sadness over her tears.

 

Seeing how such a sorrowful feeling arose from Hyeoni Elder Brother’s words that resembled those words.

 

“This time I wanted to protect you, but I was protected by you again. You were really cool just now, our Soya…”

 

Ga Hyeon’s voice gradually became faint, then his hand that had been rubbing around Soya’s eyes dropped down with a thud.

 

“Elder Brother!”

 

Soya shook Ga Hyeon’s body, but he couldn’t open his eyes.

 

‘This isn’t the time to be crying. I need to find a way.’

 

Soya stood up abruptly.

 

‘I can’t help Hyeoni Elder Brother by myself. I need to call other people…’

 

Because they were isolated below the cliff with all sides blocked, there was no way to call people.

 

There was only one path.

 

Soya raised her head and looked up.

 

The cliff they had fallen from was the only way to escape this place.

 

But the cliff was too high.

 

‘Still, if that’s the only way, I have to climb up somehow.’

 

Soya didn’t hesitate and ran toward the cliff and began climbing.

 

However, climbing the cliff was much more difficult than she had thought.

 

Her hands got scraped, her nails broke, and she bled.

 

She endured the pain and moved her hands and feet, but she kept missing her footing and falling to the ground.

 

“Ouch…”

 

Her knees got scraped and bruised, but Soya got up like a roly-poly toy and repeated climbing the cliff and falling.

 

How many times had she repeated this?

 

“…”

 

Soya looked up at the dizzyingly high cliff with a dejected face, breathing heavily.

 

She realized the impossibility.

 

I can never climb this precipice, not in this form.

 

‘But…’

 

However, there was one more way to climb that precipice.

 

‘If I use Beast Transformation.’

 

It was actually a method she had known from the beginning. But it was also a method she had been avoiding out of fear.

 

‘Maybe I could fly up.’

 

Soya clasped her hands together and gulped.

 

She had only used Beast Transformation by her own will once.

 

But with that one time, Soya had to lose everything.

 

She still remembered Father’s expression of horror when he saw her transformed appearance.

 

‘The White Tiger Palace people are all kind, but they don’t know… They don’t know how unsightly and terrible I look when I use Beast Transformation…’

 

It wasn’t that she didn’t believe Ga Hyeon’s words that any appearance didn’t matter.

 

It was just that the strong fear and terror imprinted at a young age had dominated Soya’s heart for a long time.

 

‘But still…’

 

Soya recalled Ga Hyeon who had saved her just moments ago.

 

‘I promised to protect Elder Brother. I was even prepared to die. Being abandoned is worse than dying, but…’

 

Perhaps now they too would look at her with horror.

 

Calling her an unsightly and terrible baby bird, she might be abandoned again just like three years ago.

 

‘Even if I’m abandoned again, it’s okay. As long as I can save Elder Brother.’

 

But it was okay.

 

She still hated being abandoned more than dying, but now Soya had something more frightening than being abandoned.

 

Not being able to protect precious people.

 

Now that was the only thing in the world that Soya feared most.

 

So Soya became a baby bird who could do anything to protect precious people.

 

‘Yes, I can do anything.’

 

Even if the pain of being abandoned by precious ones were to repeat.

 

‘Because we’re family, I’ll protect them.’

 

The moment she thought that, the lock that had been tightly wound around Soya’s heart for so long smoothly unlocked, and Soya’s body changed with a ‘pop!’

 

“Peep!”

 

Her vision suddenly dropped low and a baby bird’s cry came out from between her small beak.

 

Soya felt that she had become very small and light as she carefully lifted her wings.

 

Soya stared intently at her wings, then soon squeezed her eyes shut and tried flapping them.

 

The baby bird’s small body seemed to lift slightly, then crashed down with a thud.

 

“Peep-yaa…”

 

Soya tried to rub her sore bottom but realized her wings were too short to reach and gave up.

 

Instead, she got up again and stood before the precipice.

 

Baby birds originally learn how to fly from their parents.

 

Since Soya couldn’t do that, her Wing Flapping was bound to be clumsy.

 

But Soya didn’t give up.

 

‘I can fly too. I’m a flying beast after all.’

 

She spread her small wings and flapped with all her might.

 

Her wing joints ached and throbbed, but she didn’t stop flapping.

 

She flapped with all the strength she had.

 

“Peeep!”

 

Soon Soya’s body caught the wind and soared up with a whoosh.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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