Coldsnap: The Billionaire Alpha's Fated Pregnant Princess (GL)
Chapter 129 - Not The Rabbit! Get The Rope!

Chapter 129: Chapter 129 - Not The Rabbit! Get The Rope!

A/N: More Natgeo hunting before the Snowflake. Warning provided!

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The scent hit me - that musky, earthy smell of rabbit warren. My hybrid form froze mid-stride, and raised my nose as Vrika’s hunting instincts surged to the forefront. Honing in on the direction.

> Lucked out, didn’t we? I was starting to think I’d eat jerky for breakfast. <

I shifted to wolf form while letting Vrika take greater control to approach the warren. While I of course, as a beast, know how to hunt as a fox... this required the wolf’s instincts for its bigger form to pull off.

Can’t just dive into the hole after it, now can I? We crouched low, following the scent trail one of them had left through dense undergrowth. To where the burrows were cleverly concealed beneath an old fallen tree.

Multiple entrance holes scattered around the rotting timber. We could hear soft rustling inside that told me at least one was home. Positioning ourselves downwind and hoping the direction wouldn’t change, we waited with the patience my beast heritage had taught me.

Hunting another creature required stillness, timing, and decisive action. Or else you go hungry... or are forced to rely on the royal cook in your shame.

A plump cottontail emerged from the second nearest hole. It’s little nose twitched as it tested the air, looking for signs of predators just like me waiting for it. We held perfectly still until it hopped four times away from its bolt-hole.

The greyish-brown rabbit squeaked once and turned as I pounced, taking control from Vrika at the last second to perform the aim of the leap myself. No offense to my wolf, but what does it know better than a fox about hopping onto prey?

My paw pinned it and jaws closed around its neck... with a single jerk and crack. A clean and quick kill that sends warm blood over too sharp teeth, right into my mouth, as I lift the limp body.

Vrika’s satisfaction flooded through me - and my own was nearly as great. The rich, iron heavy taste was exactly what my body had been craving. Which is why I devoured the liver and some other choice parts immediately.

The fresh organs helped settle the lingering queasiness in my stomach, proving that at least part of it was caused by missing something from my diet. The rest of the meat I field-dressed after shifting back to human form, working with a sharp knife to separate the best parts for later snacking.

"We all have to eat. But sometimes it’s nice to eat well."

I found a space big enough to pull out my Stash and store the carcass parts, intending to look up ways to make use of the skull. Helene knew of something called ’bone broth’ which sounds intriguing.

> We can crunch down the smaller bones as beasts, but it has always bugged me to leave the ones too large to do anything with... <

Ignoring Vrika’s assertion that the hybrid form I shifted back to could probably make powder of the small skull in its jaws - because I saw an Equipment Review for something called a ’pressure cooker’ this morning that really interested me - I continued toward the ravine.

With that, all sides of my nature were satisfied. Predator, purchaser, and of course the expectant mother who needed to think about preparations for lengthier food storage options.

⧖ ☾ ❄ ☽ ⧖

Hidden by forest until I was nearly at its edge was a jagged scar in the earth. A drop of at least thirty feet with loose shale and exposed roots. The twisted oak that the hunter had described in their journal was easy to spot.

Growing horizontally from the ravine’s bottom side, its trunk curved improbably as it reached for where sunlight would strike best in the coming hours. It looked like a very treacherous place to put it...

I searched and found a suitable clearing near enough to the ravine’s edge and brought forth the shipping container. The white metal gleamed in the morning light... but practicality trumped camouflage. No risk without reward?

> Most importantly, we have not scented any humans in this area the whole trek. So it is unlikely someone will come and check this out, right? <

Better to have my Stash free to use than struggle with pulling everything up from the depths. I may have been foiled getting things out of the tree before, but this is the opposite situation! Surely the system will not make a fool out of me on this brand new day.

The slopes were steep enough that descending would require care, though this body’s natural werewolf agility made it less daunting than it might have been for a human. I can’t imagine one of them going down there and back without breaking an arm or leg in a fall.

I may be able to stay shifted and just hop and slide down... but why risk it? I retrieved my rope and got clothed while mentally reviewing what parts of Ravi’s royal guard training had been secretly taught to me.

"Never trust your physical ability entirely when equipment could provide backup. Never trust your equipment entirely, if your physical ability cannot back you up. The phrase ’do not put all your eggs in one basket’ is another way of saying it, I suppose."

I secured the rope around one corner of the shipping container. Then I set up a proper, harnessless rappelling configuration just like I looked up before dawn.

My carabiners were woven with rope and each other in a way that could be used as a braking system. The knots tied where necessary were second nature... almost muscle memory from countless ’training sessions’ over the palace walls.

> There was one wall I snuck over a lot. When the other routes were being watched too hard because of other people’s illegal activities. The guards never caught on! <

Vrika seemed more curious about the stories than anxious as I made preparations to descend. My wolf trusted our enhanced coordination and strength... as well as the glimpses of memories I shared of doing something like this before.

"Well, you know, there was this one time... it was pretty dark and I didn’t look before tossing the rope over. It landed on this unlucky human beggar lying in the crevice at the bottom."

I laughed as I remembered how he cursed me and threatened to call out for help. Thinking I was a mere thief, he even extorted me for what he thought he could. From then on, he became my eyes on the street at night - for a pittance.

I’m not sure if he ever learned who I was, as he never said anything that had an ounce of respect or fear. Thanks to the help of one merchant daughter whom I didn’t really get along with for long... I did learn he died.

> Stopped using the route after that. So full disclosure? I haven’t actually done this in five years. <