The Leader Descends to the Guild - Part 1

"And now, for those born between September 24 and October 23, you’re at your best moment—Libra! Luck in love, work, studies—today is your day! No matter what, you will achieve the best results! A fantastic day awaits you! Your lucky number is 5, and your color is red…"

“So, good fortune, huh?”

It was a living room. Sitting on a black three-piece sofa, facing the LED television, I found myself unable to decide what to do with my unexpected day off. The reason? My morning professor had fallen ill, and my afternoon teacher—along with the rest of the instructors who were supposed to hold classes for the rest of the day—had decided to take a break from their duties.

Realistically speaking, the TV horoscope, much like news about UFOs or paranormal sightings, was nothing but fiction. Even so, I chose to accept the words of the cheerful woman who was enthusiastically talking about good fortune.

"No matter what I do, I’ll get the best result."

With that thought, I figured that even if I spent the entire day in bed, the best possible day still awaited me. After all, the phrase: "No matter what, you will achieve the best results!" surely included wasting the entire morning sleeping, right?

And so, I walked indifferently toward my messy bedroom and made myself comfortable once again beneath my sheets. It took only a few seconds before I drifted off to sleep.

I was wrong...

"What?"

Looking back on it, that was when I realized how absurd reality is.

It was an unusual setting. Naturally, I thought it was a dream. After all, the last thing I remembered was lying in my bed. Despite that, the cold whistle of the air felt so real that I could die of hypothermia, wearing nothing but black shorts and a white short-sleeved t-shirt. I began cursing my poor pajama choice.

"I..."

I looked down at the floor, up at the sky, to my right, left, and unknowingly tilted my head to the side.

"Where am I...?"

Strange and totally ridiculous. The place I was in could clearly be described as a swamp with trees as tall as skyscrapers. It even had a lake in the middle whose surface reflected the glow of the moon. I was thankful for the lake because it allowed me to see clearly what was around me, despite the dark sky above.

Despite the strange surroundings, I didn’t have enough time to evaluate the ridiculous place I was in. Instinctively, I ran after hearing some growls behind me.

"Huh?! Damn it! Damn it!! Aghhh!!!"

Even though I knew I wasn’t athletic, I ran as if my life depended on it—because, in fact, it did.

I looked over my shoulder. Six white tigers were galloping toward me, as if chasing their prey.

"You have to be kidding me!"

I know these felines' habitat is tropical forests. I know that for sure. And unless I’ve somehow traveled to India or Bangladesh and Mother Nature decided to play a prank on humanity by turning their savannahs into swamps, none of this makes any sense. Still, I didn’t have time to think about those little details.

"I’m going to die! I’m going to die! I’m really going to die!! Aghhh!!"

I kept running, jumping over branches that stuck out of the muddy ground, trying not to slip on my bare feet.

It only took ten meters before one of the beasts caught up to me.

Its heavy claws slammed into my back, tearing parts of my clothes. The other tigers lost interest in me after their companion caught me, as if there was some kind of moral code among those white tigers that said: "The first one to catch it gets to keep it."

I would feel some sympathy for the honorable act of those beasts if I weren’t the prey under their claws.

I trembled pitifully under the white tiger. Its hot breath puffed on my neck. I was sure I’d die soon. I cried for my short and pathetic life when suddenly I heard a voice.

"Hey you! Stop trembling, it’s embarrassing."

As my heart raced, I heard the raspy voice.

I wasn’t sure where it came from, so I tried to turn my head toward the sky, but it was impossible with two hundred kilograms of animal on top of me.

"Come on! Do something!"

I was thrown by the tiger’s front paw, rolling a few meters on the ground, and when I stopped, I could finally see the source of the voice.

"WA! THE TIGER SPOKE!!"

I immediately dropped to the ground, desperately dragging myself to put distance between me and the feline.

"A talking tiger! A talking tiger! It’s a damn talking tiger!"

I continued my pathetic act.

"Of course not, idiot!"

The voice was heard again. This time, I was sure the sound came from the tiger, who was now crouched on its front paws, following me with its gaze.

"What kind of nonsense are you thinking? It’s impossible for an animal to talk!"

I wasn’t entirely convinced.

"W-W-What... What do you want from me?"

I answered, scared.

"Haha..."

The mysterious raspy voice let out a small laugh.

"Save me!"