Seeing that the situation in the village was only growing more tense and the misunderstanding showed no signs of clearing up, Ren finally decided to pull out. He climbed back into his van slowly, turned the vehicle around without saying a word, and drove off—leaving behind a crowd of villagers still watching him with tightly held suspicion.
"What the hell's their problem?" Ren muttered, tapping the steering wheel in frustration. "I showed up politely, just asked for a place to rest, and they treat me like I'm some kind of demonic envoy."
In the rear cabin, Bella—the female Penal plains tiger—was still growling softly, while Alfred sat on the dashboard, his tail flicking irritably. Their three cubs huddled together in one corner, fur still bristling from the defensive instincts triggered by the earlier standoff.
