Chapter 231: A Plan At Hand.

Chapter 231: 231: A Plan At Hand.

Neris walked through the tribe alone on his little legs that day. As he moved, he didn’t bother looking around at the curious tribe members who watched him and wondered where he was going.

Some beastmen called out to him, but he simply ignored them, determinedly moving in a certain direction with those little legs as if he were going to save the whole world.

"Neris! Neris!"

Behind him, Nat, Nyeon, and Zay followed. The three of them hurried after him, curious to know what he was up to. They were also worried that he might get himself into trouble.

"Where are you going?" Nat asked when they finally caught up with him.

Zay followed closely behind, his tiny wings flapping at his back. All four of them were in their human forms.

Neris didn’t respond to them at all. He simply kept moving while they bombarded him with endless questions.

"What do you want to do?"

"Are you still sad about the milk?" Zay asked. "Here, I saved some milk for you! You can have this. I’ll get more for you!"

But Neris shook his head.

"No. I won’t take it. I’ll make Mama happy again so she’ll give me milk herself," he insisted as he continued walking.

The other three followed behind him, growing more confused about what he was planning to do.

Soon, they arrived at their destination.

They stood before a huge apple tree in the distance. The other three also stopped and stared up at the massive tree in confusion.

Nat and Nyeon tilted their heads as Nat asked, "What are you doing here, though...?"

"Do you want apples...?" Zay inquired.

Neris folded his arms as he looked around. "Ally is sick because of me, and Mama isn’t happy because of me. Ally once got hurt getting apples for us... and she also likes apples. And so does Mama..."

Neris paused before adding firmly, "In fact, everyone likes apples! So I’m going to gather a lot of apples for Mama and Ally as a way of apologizing!"

Nat and Nyeon stared at each other before slowly nodding.

"Oh... I see," Nyeon said in understanding.

"But..." Nat stared up at the massive apple tree. "This tree is so big! Isn’t it dangerous to go up there?"

Zay nodded in agreement. "Mmm. Other beastmen don’t go up this tree that much because of its height and everything. So it’s dangerous for little cubs like us to climb."

Neris folded his arms firmly.

"Doesn’t matter! The bigger the apple tree, the bigger and more delicious the apples, and the happier they’ll all be. So I have to do it."

The other three were skeptical. They stared at each other, then back at Neris. None of them thought they could talk him out of it.

Nyeon pouted. "You should be careful..."

"Don’t worry about me. I’m not a kid anymore. You all can go if you’re scared. I’ll do it!" Neris said firmly before proceeding to climb the tree.

The three of them stood to the side, worried as they watched him begin climbing.

Neris held onto the trunk firmly, carefully placing his hands and feet in the right spots before beginning to ascend at a steady pace.

They all watched him, blinking worriedly and curiously.

"He’s moving fast, though..." Nat slowly nodded, both hands resting on his waist. "Do you think he’ll get it?"

Nyeon shrugged. "I believe he will..."

They watched as Neris climbed higher and higher until he reached a spot halfway up the tree. Then, his eyes caught sight of a big, bright apple.

Happily, Neris leaned closer to pluck the large apple. As he did, the others leaned forward to watch, anxious yet excited at the same time.

As soon as Neris got the apple, he smiled and began moving back.

But his foot slipped.

He suddenly began falling, the apple slipping from his hands as well.

"Ah!" Neris screamed as he fell from the massive tree, while the others stared up in complete shock.

For a moment, the little cubs didn’t know what to do. They could only stare up in horror as they watched Neris fall from above.

But then, Zay instantly felt the urge to move.

He stomped a foot against the ground and took to the air, his tiny wings flapping hard.

He was flying for the first time.

Zay immediately dived toward his brother and caught Neris by the hand. He managed to catch Neris along with the big apple he had picked, firmly carrying both of them down until they landed safely on the ground.

"..."

Nat and Nyeon were beyond scared as they watched them land. But the moment they realized they were safe, relief appeared on their faces, and they both let out deep sighs of relief.

"That was close! I almost lost my heart!" Nat sighed as Nyeon rushed over to hug Neris in shock.

Neris and the others turned to stare at Zay in disbelief.

"Wow! You can finally fly now!" Nat exclaimed with a smile.

Nyeon grinned. "You were so cool!"

Neris looked down at the apple in his hands.

"Thanks for saving me..." he said before turning back toward the tree. "I still have to find a way to get the fruits..."

Zay sighed as he stared at his brother’s back. He glanced at his own wings for a while, admiring them as he flapped them experimentally.

Then, he suddenly had an idea.

"I’ll help you pick the apples. As many as you want! Just tell me, and I’ll go up and get them. You three can grab them from below! What do you think? Let’s do it together."

Nat and Nyeon immediately liked the idea, both of them nodding firmly.

"Yes! I also like the idea! And it’s safe too!" Nat said.

But Neris slowly shook his head.

"No... I’m the one who made Ally sick and also made Mama unhappy... so I have to do it all alone to make everyone happy again."

He stared at the three of them with a determined expression.

"So let me bear it all alone..."

The other three stared at each other before shaking their heads.

Then, Zay slowly approached Neris and gently placed a hand on his shoulder, preparing to speak.