Chapter 85: Not The Runt I Thought You Were
Aster kept ramming his shielded fists into the trunk of the cherry tree. The anger, helplessness, and pain fueled his strikes, and the shockwaves that came from his fists grew stronger and stronger as he drove them against the splintering bark.
When the worst of the feelings overflowed from within him, Aster finished his task with a final, resounding collision that echoed into the nearby town with ringing ferocity as the trunk of the large tree finally gave way to the assault when the wood splintered from the force.
Hundreds of the tiny red fruits had been knocked to the dirt by his efforts, but as the large tree split in two, and the bulk of the arbor fell into the river with a splash, Aster couldn’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment for bringing such destruction to something he had once foolishly admired, that once made him feel safe and in awe of what his friends could accomplish.
It was indeed naive and foolish to think so highly of others who would betray your trust the next moment.
As Aster stood panting and sweating from his efforts, he heard something move behind him and turned his scowl to the beast who had simply been watching the display in a state of surprise.
Oust hadn’t meant to spy, but as he was frustrated with his lack of results from the bear’s training that day, the tiger had been instructed to just step away for a while to clear his head.
He just so happened to stumble across the runt in his bout of rage on his way back from the training spot further up river.
Oust knew the look on the human’s face all too well. It was something he never would’ve imagined he would see in the usually friendly human, but it was something he himself had bore often. It was just a bunch of pain and hurt, desperately trying to find an outlet.
As Aster glared at the tiger behind him, a thought crossed his mind.
`Good. At least it’s him... He, despite what he is, is honest.’