Mo'an loosened her grip around the thick liana. She graciously landed on the public square a few meters below. Then, she turned around and waved at her brother, who was still running and jumping from branch to branch.
Every step Shi'an took was powerful and left scratches on the bark. Since he wasn't paying attention, concentrated on catching up to his little sister, his claws sometimes deeply lacerated the branch. To jump farther or higher, he was putting a lot of strength in his legs and feet, which spread to his clawed toes and resulted in him inadvertently scratching the bark.
No one in their tribe wore shoes; their claws would inevitably break it after a day or two. And when the shoes were sturdy enough and thus didn't end up torn off by their nails, they were uncomfortable, giving the impression that the shoes were about to crush their toes. Therefore, everyone tactically decided to walk barefoot. Anyway, the sole of their feet was covered with a layer of thick skin. So, they rarely hurt themselves by merely walking around.
Mo'an's tribe was made of beastmen, and with that came animal attributes like ears, tail, scales, and claws. The visible animal traits all depended on their inner beast. Nevertheless, almost all beastmen had to take into account their animal characteristics when they made clothes. The ears, the tail, and the claws couldn't just disappear into smoke; beastmen were hybrid stuck between two species, neither human nor beast.
In the case of Mo'an tribe, for example, although their inner beast was feline, their claws didn't retract. Instead of calling them 'claws', it was more accurate to say that their nails were sturdier and sharper than human's, which made them look like claws.
The beastmen of their tribe wouldn't cut their nails just to fit their feet into a pair of pretty shoes, not when their claws were the perfect weapon for their fighting style. It wasn't worth it.
To top it all, they all thought that fancy clothes were for humans. They did not need it, and they also didn't want to look like those people from the Empire, clothed from head to toe with multiple layers of clothes. Well, it could be said that Mo'an's tribe abhorred shoes for many reasons.
Hence, Shi'an left deep scratches in his wake. Since his early childhood, he always had difficulties controlling his beast's attributes. Even his ears and his tail tended to give away his emotional state whenever he wanted to hide it. Unlike his sister, he had to put a lot of effort into keeping them in check.
When Shi'an landed on the public square, he sprawled onto the wooden boards, panting heavily. He lifted his eyes and stared at his little sister, who was still full of vigor, "You're too fast!"
Puffing out her chest, her hands on her hips, Mo'an replied, "It is you who is too slow!"
The corner of his mouth twitched. He didn't want to hear that from her! She was the fastest among all of their tribe members, and even those old monsters weren't a match against her when it came down to speed. It was already a miracle that he was able to follow her for so long without losing sight of her back, yet she dared to say that he was too slow!?
"But you're still faster than Tiel," smirked Mo'an.
Shi'an wasn't comforted at all by her words, on the contrary. Tiel was a mutual friend whose inner beast was a jaguar. Although that man was physically strong, he wasn't fast. When he was young, he had chosen a fighting style based on raw power – he had a heavy body and strong muscles since his early childhood. Like most beastmen with a jaguar inner beast, he decided to strengthen his physical strength. However, no training method was perfect, and his training had been done at the expense of his speed. Of course, compared to humans, he was still faster by a large margin, but he was a bit lacking compared to his clan members' average speed.
So, the fact that his sister compared him to Tiel made Shi'an pout a little, but his pursed lips didn't make him look ferocious at all. Instead, it made him appear somewhat cuter. He had a childish face and nothing of his beast's elegance. Although feline beastman tended to have a slender figure and a more androgynous look, their facial features usually held a hint of the predatory nature of their inner beast.
Only, Shi'an wasn't born with much luck, and his delicate appearance somehow clashed with his inner beast's nature. His big golden eyes and round face made him look innocent and honest and even harmless. Hence, when he pouted or was angry, he looked like a little kitten that was trying to look imposing.
When Mo'an saw her brother's wronged expression, it made her fingers itch. Without any shame, she bent down and pinched her brother's cheeks. It was smooth to the touch, and thus she couldn't help but pinch them a few more times despite Shi'an grunts. Soon, the young man fought back and tried to tickle her ribs. His sister was an excellent warrior, but she still had some weaknesses! She was only wearing a thin shirt and not her leather armor, allowing his fingers to move on her ribs freely.
For a while, they messed around, laughing loudly without regard for the passersby. Shi'an's anxiety slowly faded away as his cheeks grew sorer and sorer. They fought until two young men approached them and asked them how old they were. Only then did they stop, and Mo'an answered frankly and proudly, "I just turned sixteen years old!"
As for Shi'an, he suddenly felt ashamed and buried his face in his hands, still lying on the ground. He answered with a small voice, "Eighteen years old."
"Are you sure? I would have said ten years old maximum," laughed one of the two men. His laugh was hearty and loud, the kind that could be heard miles away.
"What? Because I'm getting older, I can play child's games anymore?" grumbled Mo'an while accepting the helping hand the second young man offered her. With his help, she stood up swiftly. Her brother received the same treatment, and he also took the helping hand, a grateful smile on his lips.
"Don't listen to him. He's just jealous," winked the second man, and the first one sneered.
"Oh, I see. I haven't played with you for a while, after all," hummed Mo'an. She looked at her friend with a malicious glint in her eyes, and her smile almost grew vicious. Two small fangs appeared between her lips.
The man's face turned pale. His tail bent inwardly, and his ears turned sideways. He frantically waved his hands in front of his chest as he said, "I didn't say anything, I didn't say anything! You're the most mature person I know!"
That girl's way of playing was too brutal. Last time, he almost thought he was going to die. He never wanted to be her sparring partner again. Contrary to her, he wasn't a battle freak! Well, if it were only that, it wouldn't be that bad, but when they were paired up to go out to hunt, Mo'an always targeted the most ferocious, dangerous beast in the vicinity, and their easy hunt became hellish. He stopped to count how many times he almost ended up in the stomach of their prey.
Adding difficulties to their training or their hunt was what Mo'an called fun. It was her way of 'playing.' He would never understand how Shi'an was able to keep up with his sister's hellish training without losing his sanity. In his mind, no one sane would agree to such barbaric methods to get stronger.
The man who was presently questioning Shi'an's sanity was Tiel. He was a tall man with broad shoulders and well-defined muscles. His facial features were sharp, and his jawline seemed to have been chiseled by a sculptor. Since his inner beast was a jaguar, jaguar ears stood at the top of his head, and his hair was a dark blonde with strands of black. He kept his hair long and braided it in one big, loose braid. As for his eyes, they were pale green with a hint of blue. Although he looked like a healthy young man, he was someone who loved to laze around and do nothing all day.
The second man was Nael. His inner beast was a snow panther, and thus his ears and tail were from a snow panther. He had a slender yet lean body with long legs. His white-grey hair was cut short, but there were also a few shoulder-length and waist-length thin strands of hair that fell here and there. At the end of the strands, there was a small black pearl that tied the hair together. His crystal blue eyes were gentle and warm, which tended to put people at ease. He seemed to be a kind-hearted person.
However, his close friends knew that this gentle aura of his was deceiving. Nael was a cunning man who loved to pull pranks on his friends. Most of the time, it was Tiel who bore the brunt of his bad habit. Today too, the poor jaguar was about to fall for his scheme.
"So, that's what you look like as a man," said Nael while carefully observing Mo'an. With a small smile, he complimented, "It suits you well."
"You think so too?" replied Mo'an, glancing at her brother with a smug face. She knew he had only indulged her earlier. She didn't think he was serious about finding her new look 'handsome'.
"If not, why would I say so?" asked Nael with an honest smile.
Mo'an didn't say anything, only raising an eyebrow, which made Tiel burst out laughing.
"…" Nael shamelessly switched the conversation to another topic, "Do the changes in your body hinder your movements?"
"It doesn't seem so," answered Mo'an, flexing her fingers to prove her words. "However, I did lose balance a few times when I was racing with Shi'an. After all, my chest feels weightless now. It's a bit weird. I will need to get accustomed to it. "
"Then, I maybe have an idea to help you get used to your new body."
"Oh?"
"For you, the best way is probably to fight a few rounds," said Nael, and Mo'an nodded.
She didn't feel too much difference while she was walking or running, but fighting required complex movements, and a mistake, no matter how small, could result in a disaster. Over the years, she had also taken many habits. Some were even due to her breast that sometimes hindered her movements. Now that her chest was flat, it was sure to influence some of her moves. Moreover, she wanted to verify how much it affected her fighting style before leaving the tribe. Sadly, she couldn't take the pill sooner, so she only had one day to get used to her new body.
"Thus, I was thinking, since you haven't played with Tiel for so long, you could take this chance to test your new body and strengthen your bond with him," added Nael with a serious tone. The moment Shi'an heard his words, he immediately looked at Tiel with sympathy on his face. His sister's answer was easy to guess.
Sure enough, Mo'an smiled brightly and said, "I love that idea very much!"
Grinding his teeth, Tiel glared at Nael, and his eyes tried to drill a hole into his head. That traitor! He would remember the favor!
Without waiting for his approval, Mo'an grabbed his collar and dragged him to the training area. When her back was turned, Nael's lips moved, and he silently said to Tiel, 'Better you than me.'
After all, even if he hadn't said anything, knowing their friend, she would have dragged one of them to the training ground sooner or later. So, Nael thought that he might as well save himself and pray for his friend's survival.