CHAPTER 86: EMBERWOOD AWAKENS

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[Basic Beast Profile of the world.

Species: Fire Leopard

Rank: D-Rank - A-Rank

Type: Beast-Class Predator

Affinity: Fire / Ambush

Threat Level: High

Profile Summary: A solitary apex predator native to volcanic borderlands and ash valleys. Known for its intelligence and precision, the Fire Leopard prefers ambush tactics, striking only when success is near certain. Its fur emits residual heat and can warp nearby air, deflecting low-mass projectiles and confusing prey. Every fire step leaves a heat-burn memory on the ground. It does not roar—it does not warn. It executes.

Abilities:

Ember Veil (Passive): The heat shimmer from its fur can distort vision and deflect basic projectiles (arrows, needles, etc.).

Paw Flame Control (Active): Can regulate the ignition radius of its steps—burn or suppress at will.

Heat Pulse (Active): Releases a circular burst of superheated air, igniting leaves and stunning nearby foes.

Flamebound Reflex (Passive): Can sense changes in temperature and air pressure, allowing evasion of traps or ambushes.

Ignition Mane (Passive): When injured or provoked, its fur crackles with active flame. Close-range attackers suffer burn damage.

Weaknesses:

Cooling agents (e.g., water, char-sap) can dampen flame output temporarily.

Vulnerable underbelly, throat, and joints—where fire coating is weakest.

High heat generation shortens stamina during prolonged combat.

Warning: Recommended difficulty for D-Rank parties. Engage only with traps, team coordination, and flame resistance tools. Direct solo melee is discouraged.]

(Back to the story)

[Ding! System notifications- Danger: Fire Leopard detected (Rank-D).

Suggested Tactics: cooling agents • coordinated strikes • precision snares.

Status: Ember Veil active — projectile accuracy reduced.]

The thing padded from the treeline. It was longer than an adult deer, its shoulder a hand taller than Zephyr’s knee. Against Star’s fledgling height, the beast might as well have been a moving furnace door. Its coat wove veins of lava-red through night-black fur, every step searing faint orange prints across dead leaves.

No roar, no hiss. It was confidence incarnate.

Zephyr’s heartbeat hammered. "It came so soon after Muse arrived..." He crouched, tracking the beast’s footwork.

"Too smart," he whispered.

Fenna fitted an arrow, whispered back, "Aurora—light."

The phoenix fledgling spread her wings barely two spans wide. Golden cinders bloomed around her, painting a halo over Fenna’s draw.

The leopard paused, ears flicking at the sudden heat signature. That flicker of attention was all Fenna needed.

Twang!

An obsidian-tipped shaft streaked for the eye.

Air wavered—Ember Veil bent the arrow, sparking off the beast’s cheek.

Fenna cursed under her breath. "Damn it!"

Molten eyes shifted, locking onto her as a prime quarry.

Zephyr vaulted the toppled hawthorn, hatchet glinting. He chopped the blade into soil before the leopard’s feet—whump!—kicking a puff of ember dust up into its eyes. Rolling clear, he reversed grip on his dagger and slashed for the nearest fore-tendon. Too slow. The cat hopped sideways, leaving only scorching after prints on the ground.

"Star—Flank!" Zephyr command.

Star answered with a hiss. The fledgling’s jaws opened; Ember Trail burst as a pencil-thin jet, striking the leopard’s hock. Fur smoked. The cat jerked, pivoting with a rumbling snarl. At first only the sound emitted. Flames under its pads flickered off instantly: it chose not to ignite the leaf-litter. Controlled. Calculated.

Aurora shrilled, launching in a Flame Dash—a hummingbird-quick line of light that raked glittering dust along the leopard’s ribs. Heat rippled, incinerated half the sparks but not all; a few stuck, fizzling like ember ticks. The beast twitched, it was distracted.

Zephyr lunged across basalt shards, yanking a hidden gut-cord. Snap! The decoy lid dropped—wood stakes glinted.

One back paw touched the rim. A pulse of pressure rippled—Flamebound Reflex—and the leopard sprang clear, landing weightless beyond the pit.

It spun, eyes narrowing: every trap obvious, every bait amateur.

"Damn," Zephyr muttered.

He looked at Fenna and yelled. "Plan B."

Fenna unshouldered a fist-sized globe of char-sap adhesive and volatile resin that cooled to glass if flash-heated. She steadied, waiting for Aurora.

Aurora banked over the leopard’s muzzle, coughing a scattered ember trickle like confetti. The predator’s visage turned upward, annoyed.

"Muse, back!" Zephyr yelled.

The cow lurched, wagon creaking, hooves skidding on wet basil gravel. Cookpots clanged free—metal clamor flooded the night.

One of the pots bounced, struck a char-pot mine—POP!—a glare of white flare illuminated everything. The leopard’s pupils narrowed to slits. Ear twitched—only a heartbeat, yet enough for opening.

Star darted in with Spark Dash, a low belly-skim sprint that left a streak of smoking grass. He bit down on the leopard’s tail-end heel: tiny jaws, but razor teeth. The cat snarled, stamping. Star released and zipped away before the counter-kick landed on him.

Zephyr sprinted left, keeping low. If the beast chased, it would cross the pressure plates he re-armed moments ago.

It didn’t chase.

Instead, the leopard swept its tail in a crescent. Heat detonated outward—Heat Pulse.

A flash-ring roared through leaf litter, igniting a dozen small fires. Ember shards whirred. Zephyr dove flat. Fenna ducked behind the trunk. Aurora zipped beneath a fallen branch, singed but intact. Star skidded, agile body hugging soil beneath the thermal wave.

Smoke plumed. The leopard sprang—straight toward Muse’s wagon path.

"Now!" Zephyr shouted.

Fenna hurled the char-sap globe. Crack! It burst at the beast’s fore-paws. Aurora, mid-dive, spat a micro-burst: three star-sized fireballs, just hot enough. Resin flashed from liquid to glass, locking front claws to basalt.

The leopard reared, yowling pure furnace fury. Hind legs churned, tail shearing eddies of flame.

Zephyr tugged the hidden spider-cord. The loop cinched the left rear ankle. Counter-stone dropped, yanking the beast off balance; tendon strained with a wet pop. An agonized roar shredded the clearing’s hush.

"STAR use Ember LANCE!"

Star flared wings for lift—barely half-meter span, but enough to hop. He sucked air, throat sac glowing orange, and loosed Ember Lance: a pencil-wide bolt, hotter than Ember Trail, that speared the sinew just above the snare. It didn’t cleave a limb, but it seared nerves. The leopard’s scream spiked fourteen octaves.

Aurora followed with a Flame Dash across the creature’s muzzle, leaving ember spots hugging whiskers. It shook head violently, Ember Veil shimmering erratic— first sign of disorientation.