Catgirls And Dungeons (Yuri)-Chapter 48: Abandoned
Eris promised she would always be here to protect me.
That she would never let anything happen to me.
But… where is she now?
I am alone.
Wandering down this dark, endless path, my footsteps swallowed by the eerie hush of the night.
The air bites at my skin, cold and suffocating. I have no idea where to go, no idea what might be lurking in the shadows, hiding within the dense, whispering bushes.
The fog has thickened—so much so that even my catgirl eyes are nearly useless.
I can't see my own feet.
Everything around me has twisted into dark, shifting silhouettes, shapes that seem to breathe and move just beyond my vision.
The trees loom, their gnarled branches stretching out like skeletal hands, clawing at the sky.
The wind whistles through them—a mournful, ghostly wail that rises and falls like a chorus of banshees mourning the dead.
Every rustle of leaves.
Every snap of a twig.
Every distant caw of a crow.
Icy shivers race up my spine.
My skin prickles with goosebumps, and my breath catches in my throat, tight and shallow.
"Eris… Eris… please… where… where are you?"
The words barely escape my lips, nothing more than a fragile, trembling whisper.
Fear coils around my neck—an invisible serpent, merciless and unrelenting.
Tightening. Squeezing.
I can't breathe.
My throat burns from calling her name, over and over and over, but no answer ever comes.
My heart pounds so violently, each beat feels like a hammer against my ribs.
My breaths come in short, frantic gasps—ragged, uneven.
No matter how much I try, I can't calm down.
Panic.
Pure. Panic.
I've had panic attacks before—plenty, actually.
But nothing like this.
My ears droop, my tail fluffs up, trembling uncontrollably.
My whole body shakes, every muscle locked tight with panic, every nerve on fire.
Just minutes ago, this garden trail felt serene and peaceful with Eris by my side.
But now, without her—
It has transformed into a landscape of pure dread.
A place where shadows whisper.
Where the air presses in.
Where something unseen is watching, waiting.
Why?
Why did this happen?
What did I do to deserve this?
Why would Eris leave me like this?
I don't understand.
I don't understand.
And then—
A horrible thought slithers into my mind.
Wait…
Could it be…?
A horrible thought slithers into my mind:
Because I'm useless… Eris abandoned me?
No.
No, no, no, NO!
That can't be true!
That CAN'T be true!!!
Eris isn't like that!
She would never!
I shake my head violently, trying to banish the thought, but it lingers—
Gnawing. Whispering. Twisting.
It burrows into me, digging deep, sinking into my chest like a poisonous dagger.
And the worst part?
The fact that I can't entirely deny it.
A sharp ache blooms in my chest, deep and suffocating.
My heart cracks.
Tears well up.
Hot, stinging, unstoppable.
Before I know it, I'm sobbing.
My shoulders shake, my breath hitches, my fingers clutch at my chest as if I can hold myself together—
But I can't.
Because Eris is gone.
And I don't know if she's coming back.
But!
No—I have to calm down.
I have to.
If I can't even stand up and keep moving—
Then I really am useless.
And I refuse to be useless!
I have to keep going!
I have to believe in Eris!
I grit my teeth and force myself forward, pushing one foot in front of the other. My legs feel like lead, my breathing ragged, but I don't stop.
The plan is simple—keep walking, follow the moonlight, find the main road.
From there, I can look for help.
Or maybe—maybe I'll even find Eris.
It hadn't taken us more than twenty minutes to get from the Adventurer's Guild to the clock tower earlier, even with the stops we made.
So it shouldn't take long to get back.
Right?
Right.
That's the logic I cling to—desperately.
So, I walk.
One foot in front of the other.
The fog presses in, thick and suffocating, swallowing everything around me. It's like walking through a dream—a nightmare.
To keep my focus, I count my steps out loud.
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"One… two… three…"
…
"Nine hundred and—"
Wait.
What… the hell is happening?!
I freeze, dread creeping up my spine like icy fingers.
No.
This can't be right.
No matter how far I go, the scenery stays the same—the same trees, the same bushes, the same endless, fog-choked path.
It's looping.
Like a twisted horror game, the world resets with every step.
I could walk forever and never escape.
My chest tightens painfully, my breath coming in shaky gasps.
Why?
Why is there no end to this place?
What kind of hellish trap have I stumbled into?
"No, no, no… this isn't happening," I whisper, gripping my Messer sword so tightly that my knuckles ache.
My mind scrambles for answers, clawing at possibilities, searching for something—anything—that makes sense.
Then—
A single explanation rises to the surface.
Magic.
Could it be… a spell? A trap?
But what kind of magic?
Think, Felicia.
THINK!!!
I bite my lip hard, forcing my panic aside.
Teleportation?
A looping spell?
Maybe I triggered something when I stepped on a specific leaf or crossed an invisible boundary.
That would explain why Eris and I got separated.
Yes… that has to be it.
Which means—
Eris didn't abandon me.
She's probably looking for me right now!
Or worse—
She could be in danger herself.
The realization hits like a punch to the gut.
But even knowing this, I still don't have a plan.
I still don't know what to do.
"Damn it!"
I curse under my breath, frustration and fear pressing in from all sides.
The darkness tightens, the fog choking the space around me.
It feels like I'm being swallowed whole by the terror that—
I might never escape.
—————————
Even so—
I keep trudging forward.
Even though, deep down, I know it's probably pointless.
Each step feels heavier, exhaustion pressing down on me, made infinitely worse by my utterly abysmal stamina.
"Do I really have to wait until morning for this nightmare to end?" I mutter, frustration bubbling up alongside my fatigue.
My voice sounds small, swallowed by the oppressive mist, as if the very air refuses to carry my words.
Then—
Something moves.
A shadow slinks through the fog, shifting just beyond the veil of gray.
"Shit! What now?" I whisper, my pulse spiking like a shock to the system.
The movement sends a jolt of adrenaline through me, my breath hitching, my heart slamming against my ribs, each beat loud and frantic, like it's trying to punch its way out of my chest.
My grip tightens around my sword, the blade quivering in my trembling hands.
Moonlight catches the steel, flickering off its edge in fleeting flashes, like tiny warnings.
I brace myself.
Every muscle coiled.
Every nerve screaming.
It's just a tree, right?
Yeah. It's probably just a tree, swaying in the wind.
I tell myself that.
I want to believe that.
But then—
The shadow moves again.
And then—
Rustling.
Closer.
And closer.
The dread clawing up my spine tightens its grip, locking every vertebra in place.
My mind races, desperately trying to rationalize what I'm seeing.
No.
It's not a tree.
It's moving too deliberately.
Too alive.
It's a creature!
A freaking creature!!!
Icy fear wraps around me like a noose, my knees threatening to give out as I watch the thing emerge, its form slowly taking shape.
Its silhouette grows clearer—
A round body.
Long ears.
Twitching.
Bounding ever closer through the fog.
