Dave had taken a moment to catch his breath, and with his paws injured from the previous rocky ground, he decided to rest briefly.
Held firmly between his paws, the magical book was a bit dirty, so the squirrel blew on it. He opened it out of curiosity, but it immediately closed, almost trapping the squirrel's paw.
He looked at it confused, trying to open it again, hoping to find something that would help him defeat the hunter endangering his friend's life.
However, the book continued to refuse to open.
"Could you try to help?! I saw how you let that human use one of your spells to defend himself. I also need to do something to take care of someone, you understand?"
But the book did not respond.
Angry, the squirrel began to drag the book through the rat's nest, reaching the opening blocked by hundreds of rocks they had passed through from Beth's cave to this very place.
"I only have one option left... her. It's not the best, but I know she will take care of that hunter if she knows it's for the pup."
The squirrel raised its paw and was about to hit the rocks when it started to feel weaker. Without noticing due to always being in adrenaline since it entered that cave, its stomach began to growl with hunger.
Leaving it weakened.
All around were dead rats, their bodies deteriorated for several days, slightly stinking up the place.
Under no circumstances would it eat something very similar to its species; it would vomit and lose more energy.
Going back the way it came would put it in total danger, so that was out of the question.
Thinking about the pup, it was most likely surviving with the rest of its species, being well-fed despite the blow from the rock it received because of him.
However, without that pup, he had no one.
"... Why am I getting into all this mess... just for a pup I barely know?"
He questioned himself for a moment, clenching his paw with hunger.
The squirrel sat down, sighing, looking at the ceiling, the only side of the rat's nest where there was nothing to torment him.
He lay down and reviewed everything he had experienced.
And how he himself had taken the worst part of the whole journey, possibly.
"... Why... do I want to help him?"
But suddenly, the rocks blocking his path were destroyed with great force.
Dave looked up and saw the book had opened, with a spell emerging from one of its hundreds of pages, a floating red pentagon, destroying everything in its path.
Dave quickly stood up, gaping at the scene, carefully stepping back from the book.
The floating red pentagon slowly rotated in the air, emitting an intense light that illuminated the rat's nest with an almost blinding brightness.
Still astonished by what he had just witnessed, Dave cautiously approached the book, now open, its pages gently fluttering as if caressed by an invisible breeze.
He felt a mix of fear and admiration for the magical object. Perhaps it responded to the willpower and sincerity of the purpose of whoever handled it...
"Thank you... I guess..." he murmured, though he expected no response.
Determined not to let this opportunity pass, Dave picked up the book and ventured into the newly cleared passage.
The path was dark and narrow, but the light from the red pentagon illuminated his way. The squirrel advanced carefully, his injured paws feeling every step on the uneven ground.
After what seemed like hours of walking, the passage began to widen, and the air turned fresher.
Finally, he poked his head through the tunnel he had made, looking ahead at who was there, before his hunger sapped all his strength.
***
"I'm sure there's going to be a war soon."
After a moment of silence, the father wolf spoke, with a serious tone and a grave accent, very similar to that of a soldier. This caught Tenma's attention.
The pups were outside the cave along with their mother and Tenma, being carefully watched by both mother and father wolf.
However, Tenma remained attentive to the father wolf's words, playing with the pups to pass the time.
"There's a hunter nearby. It's dangerous. Under no circumstances, leave the pups outside when you hear loud bangs on the ground. I'll start returning from the hunt at a steady pace."
The father wolf lovingly licked his partner's ears, who nodded confidently.
He then looked up, staring at the little Shiba Inu.
"Especially him. It's likely they'll come looking for him if they know he's around here. We can't leave him in your care, given the condition we found him in."
Tenma perked his ears, curious about what was said, looking confusedly at the father wolf, also noticing how the mother wolf lovingly licked her partner's snout.
"He's already adapting to being with us. He's as energetic as before, and he seems to get along better with the pups."
Mother wolf turned to Tenma, who looked her in the eyes, pretending not to understand them and turning to see the other pups, generating a friendly smile on the mother's face.
"He's already part of our family."
With ears perked, the wolf walked over to the Shiba Inu, sniffing him silently, causing him a tickle.
—"Sorry for not taking good care of you before... the pack doesn't recognize the potential you have."
The more he spoke, the more confused Tenma looked at him. What was the father wolf getting at?
He simply smiled, licking his snout.
"But I see you're tired too, so let me take care of the little ones this time."
With firm but discreet steps, the father wolf approached his partner, smiling at her.
"Go stretch your legs, you deserve it."
Mother wolf nodded, with a slight blush, and rubbed her snout against her partner's side and then that of her pups, including Tenma. Finally, she sighed, leaving the hideout to walk.
Seeing the mother wolf walking away, the father wolf turned to his pups, smiling at them.
"How about... we do some training? We always need to be prepared."
Turning to Tenma, he smiled.
"Especially you."
Tenma still didn't understand and nodded, swallowing hard.