Chapter 547: Safe Time to Fail
A woman stalked through the grass. She looked to be in her early twenties, with dark skin, darker hair, and eyes the color of amber. Her lithe body was covered in green leather armor, painted with yellow splashes to fit into the terrain, while her hands held a flexible spear.
Ebele’s ears twitched. She fell to the ground, crawling the last few feet. A thick tree stood in front of her. She grabbed the bark and peeked from its side, her eyes catching the glint of metal. Vertical bars sandwiched by wood. Cages. Inside which, a collection of pink boars oinked in distress.
Her eyes narrowed. “Damn,” she spat a whisper.
The creatures of this forest were highly desired as both pets and materials. However, since this was Academy territory, no outsiders could enter. Stealing animals was illegal even if they could. The Academy strived to maintain a healthy ecosystem, promotion of biodiversity, and smooth allocation of differently-powered beasts to facilitate the safe and timely training of its students, who could wander this forest freely.
Some of these students were assholes. The ones Ebele faced now, laughing with greed as they counted the number of cages over and over, were one such group of people. Poachers.
Three, four… she counted. I can probably take them.
She stepped out from behind the cage. The others spotted her instantly, shooting to alertness. “Who’s there!?” they asked.
“The forest,” she replied. “Coming to reclaim its own.”
As she stepped into a column of light piercing the foliage, she saw the students’ face go from panic, to relief, to wariness. “Ebele Rust,” one of them said with a frown. “We want no trouble with you.”