Chapter 76: The Forest’s Portal

“Drurrrk-”

As I alternated hands to scratch at the rope, Yoon Bora crouched down beside me.

“Harang, what are you doing?”

“I’m filing my nails.”

“Drurrrk- drurrrk-”

The scraping sound was oddly satisfying, like white noise.

“You seem to be enjoying yourself.”

Yoon Bora brought her ear close to my face, as if trying to hear something.

“Yeah, it’s great. But Yoon Bora, how did you know I’m enjoying it?”

“Harang, you always purr when you’re happy.”

What? Purring?

That was news to me.

“Yoon Bora, I purr when I’m happy?”

“Yeah, you’re even doing it right now.”

I stopped filing my nails, curious to hear this supposed purring sound myself.

I waited quietly for a while, but there was nothing.

“Yoon Bora, I don’t hear anything. Am I still purring now?”

“Yep, you’re still going strong.”

It was strange. I had never once thought about making such a sound before.

‘What is this?’

The idea that I couldn’t hear a sound I was supposedly making felt like some kind of magic.

Still, it didn’t seem dangerous purring only happened when I was happy, after all.

‘Well, I guess it’s not a big deal.’

I turned my focus back to filing my nails with the rope.

There was no point in stressing over something I couldn’t solve.

“Drurrrk-”

As I kept scraping, Yoon Bora plopped down beside me and spoke slowly.

“Harang, are your nails sharp or something?”

“Yeah. I accidentally scratched Delphine and made her bleed.”

“Oh my!”

Yoon Bora gasped, covering her mouth, and guilt pricked at my conscience.

She had always warned me about the danger of my nails, but I hadn’t listened and now this had happened.

It was entirely my fault.

“I’m sorry, Yoon Bora. I’ll make sure to file my nails regularly from now on.”

“Okay. Harang, want me to clip them for you now?”

Out of nowhere, Yoon Bora pulled out a nail clipper and clicked it open in front of my eyes.

I froze, staring at the shiny clipper in terror, and quickly shook my head.

“N-no need! I can just do it myself like this!”

“Drurrrk-drurrrk-”

I scratched at the rope faster, nearly twice per second.

“Harang, can you really trim your nails like that?”

“O-of course! I’m a genius when it comes to nail care!”

“Is that so?”

Yoon Bora gave me a skeptical look.

Desperate to prove myself, I held out my hands.

“W-want to see?”

She took my hand without hesitation and examined my nails closely, squinting.

After a moment, she nodded in approval.

“They do look neatly trimmed.”

“R-right? Tigers don’t need human nail clippers, you know.”

Relief washed over me. It seemed I wouldn’t need to deal with a nail clipper anymore.

Feeling proud, I puffed out my chest.

Yoon Bora, smiling brightly, then said something unexpected.

“That’s good. I was worried because Harang always cries when clipping nails.”

“ Yoon Bora, when did I ever cry…?”

“Well, about your nails…”

“Nails?”

At my question, Bora abruptly closed her mouth.

“…Harang, could I borrow Silver for a bit?”

“Silver?”

We had been talking about nails, so why was she suddenly changing the subject?

Though I found the sudden topic shift strange, it was better than letting rumors spread about me crying over nail clippers.

I decided to play along with Yoon Bora’s request.

“Bora, why do you need Silver?”

“Well, I need to head out for work after lunch, and having Silver would make things easier.”

“Easier? How so?”

Confused, I tilted my head at her explanation.

Yoon Bora laughed softly and elaborated.

“My mission today involves handling a dungeon that appeared in the forest and dealing with the monsters that escaped from it.”

“Ah.”

“So, I have to search for them directly. But with Silver Tiger’s sensing abilities, it’d be a lot more convenient.”

Sensing abilities? That did sound helpful. After all, Silver Tiger had once tracked down Lee Taesung, and it had no trouble finding Jinhyang and Yoon Bora quickly.

“Bora, does Silver Tiger really have sensing abilities?”

“Yep. It can sense everything nearby.”

“Ah… I see.”

No wonder Silver Tiger was so good at finding people.

“Alright, I’ll ask Silver to help.”

The thought of being able to assist Yoon Bora and the others made me happy.

There was no reason to refuse I liked helping them, and earning their praise sounded even better.

With that, Yoon Bora and I stepped outside the villa.

In the front yard, Silver Tiger lay sprawled out, wagging its tail lazily as it watched me.

For some reason, the sight of its swaying tail made me feel like I should mimic its movements.

Left, right, up, down my imaginary tail swished in sync with Silver’s.

After a moment of this silent connection, I remembered Bora’s request and approached Silver.

“Silver.”

“Grrr.”

Its tail wagged in response. That was clearly Silver’s way of saying, Why are you calling me?

“Can you help my friends later?”

As I spoke, I flicked my imaginary tail slightly.

Communication with Silver required more than just words; tail movements conveyed emotions much better.

“Grrr.”

Its low growl carried a question: What kind of help?

I didn’t need to think too hard to understand; instinct and intuition translated its sounds perfectly.

“My friends are going to clear a dungeon later. You just need to help them locate the dungeon and the monsters inside.”

“Grrrowl.”

“Conditions? What kind of conditions?”

Silver’s tail pointed at me.

“You want me to go with you?”

“Grrr.”

“Hm…”

That was not something I could decide on my own.

Their missions were dangerous, and I didn’t want to be a burden by tagging along.

“Bora?”

I looked up at her, watching as she lightly bit her lip in thought.

She seemed to be considering whether it was safe for me to join.

“Should be fine… right?”

“You think so?”

“Yeah. Unless it’s someone like Lee Taesung, Silver Tiger isn’t weak at all. Plus, Jinhyang and I will be there too.”

That made sense. Lee Taesung was ridiculously strong, but Silver Tiger was still classified as a top-tier boss monster.

Most creatures wouldn’t dare challenge it.

And me?

If I could command Silver Tiger and unleash terrifying roars, did that mean I was boss-tier too?

There wasn’t much point in pondering it.

My instincts told me what I already knew: I was an apex predator.

“Uahaha!”

My excitement bubbled over, and I wagged my imaginary tail enthusiastically.

Bora placed a hand on my head, her touch grounding me.

“Alright then, let’s call it a field trip for today.”

“Field trip?”

“Yep. A dungeon field trip.”

“Oh…”

That sounded like it could be a lot of fun.

Even though it felt dangerous, with Jinhyang, Yoon Bora, and Silver by my side, I was invincible.

After we all had lunch together, the three of us mounted Silver’s back and set out.

I briefly worried that Silver might find our weight burdensome, but even ordinary horses could carry two people.

A monster and the ruler of the forest like Silver could surely handle three women. Besides, I was incredibly light.

“Grrr.”

Silver let out a low growl as it darted through the forest.

The sound carried a clear meaning: There’s a dungeon nearby.

“What did it say?” Jinhyang asked from behind me.

She held onto me tightly, probably worried I might fall off Silver’s back.

“It says there’s a dungeon nearby.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that’s convenient…”

Jinhyang patted Silver’s back, her hand moving gently over its fur.

Watching her made an odd sense of jealousy stir inside me. Or maybe it was envy.

“What about me?”

“What about you?”

“Can you pat me too?”

Still looking forward, I tilted my head back to gaze up at Jinhyang.

Her calm eyes met mine, and after a brief pause, she placed her hand on my head.

She gave me a few soft pats before scratching behind my ears. It felt amazing.

“Hehe.”

Feeling happy, I began wagging my imaginary tail.

The motion caused my tail to lightly brush against Jinhyang, grazing her stomach or tapping her waist.

Since she didn’t stop me, I continued wagging it, completely basking in the joy of being petted.

After a few minutes of this unintentional “attack,” a flickering red portal came into view ahead of us.

‘A dungeon.’

The shimmering crimson portal was mesmerizing.

As I stared at it in awe, Jinhyang leapt gracefully from Silver’s back.

Thud.

Her light footsteps landed softly on the ground.

I extended a hand toward her. “Boss, me too.”

The height of Silver’s back made jumping down on my own a bit intimidating.

Though I was light enough to land safely, fear kept me rooted.

“I’ll catch you. Jump down.”

Jinhyang reached out her hand toward me.

It wasn’t that I didn’t trust her, but I needed reassurance.

“You have to catch me properly, okay? Don’t drop me!”

“Got it. I’ll make sure you’re safe. Just jump when you’re ready.”

“Alright.”

I swallowed nervously, bracing myself.

The old me would’ve clung to Silver’s back, refusing to move. But not anymore. I was growing stronger, fiercer, and braver by the day.

“Hup.”

With a soft exhale, I pushed off Silver’s back and jumped.

‘Oh!’

The leap felt good, but it was close I might’ve collided with Jinhyang if I hadn’t aimed carefully.

Still, I closed my eyes tightly, too scared to see what might happen.

Then I felt her hands wrap firmly around my waist, steadying me as I landed.

Something soft cushioned my face, absorbing the impact.

“Ah…”

I murmured weakly, still scared, and slowly opened my eyes.

But I couldn’t see anything. Something was covering my face.

“Why is your heart beating so fast?” Jinhyang’s voice came from above me.

“Huh?”

I tilted my head up to look at her. She was gazing down at me, a faint smile curling on her lips for reasons I couldn’t quite understand.