Beast Tamer's Rebirth National Treasure Edition novel Chapter 262

Chapter 262

Chapter 262

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In the convoy in the distance, the police and mercenaries held their breath, tension thick in the air.

They all chambered their rounds, fingers on the trigger. If the desert lion standing before Sierra or the desert lion pride lurking in the distance made even the slightest move, they wouldn’t hesitate to open fire.

The desert lion king in front of Sierra flattened its ears back, looking wary.

“Come on, humans, seriously? It’s just a chunk of beef! Fine, I won’t eat it, happy now?” the desert lion king grumbled.

With that, it started to back away.

Even though it was still hungry, risking a fight with humans over a single piece of meat just wasn’t worth it.

“Wait!” Just as the desert lion was about to turn and run, Sierra’s calm, unhurried voice cut through the tension.

The desert lion was speechless.

It stood rooted to the spot, dumbfounded, eyes locked on Sierra.

If it had been anyone else, they would’ve become its lunch in seconds. Times were tough for the desert lion pride. Back when things were easier, they wouldn’t even glance at a bird that was barely a mouthful.

Now, just to survive, they were out here everyday scrounging for seagulls.

So someone like Sierra, even if she was a little on the skinny side, would still make a decent meal.

But the real issue was that not only did it have zero desire to hurt Sierra, it actually wanted her to get even closer.

And now, with Sierra telling it not to leave, it felt like invisible shackles had sprouted from the earth, locking its paws in place. It was completely stuck, unable to budge an inch.

‘I’m screwed!’ the desert lion thought, panic rising in its chest.

Its face fell, brow creased with worry, looking utterly miserable.

Just when the desert lion thought it was done for, a juicy chunk of beef was suddenly tossed its way.

“Go on, eat. I already told you, your food’s not my thing,” Sierra said coolly.

The desert lion was completely dumbfounded.

It cautiously lifted its head and realized that Sophie, who’d been pointing a gun at it just moments ago, had put it away at some point.

“You… You’re not going to kill me?” the desert lion stammered, still in disbelief.

Sierra replied, “When did I ever say we were here to kill you?”

“Then what are you here for?” the desert lion asked, still wary.

At that, Sierra glanced at the desert lion standing before her, and then at the ones behind it. They were quaking in fear, ready to make a run for it at any moment.

“We came looking for you,” Sierra said, her tone serious. “We want to bring you all back to a safe haven. No animal can survive out here. If you stay, your pride will eventually perish.”

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Chapter 262

Take us back?” the desert lion echoed, disbelief written all over is face.

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It let out a sarcastic laugh, like Sierra had just cracked the lamest joke ever. “Seriously? Out here, we can at least hang on a bit longer. Go with you guys? We’d be toast in no time.”

Sierra wanted to reassure the desert lion that there was no way something like that would ever happen.

But before she could say a word, the desert lion walked right up to Sierra’s side and said, “I can tell you won’t hurt us, maybe the people you brought are good, too.

“But can you really guarantee there aren’t any bad people among humans?”

Sierra was left speechless.

and

She could keep herself and her own people in check, but she couldn’t promise that every human wouldn’t hurt animals for their own gain.

The desert lion could read the emotion on Sierra’s face.

“You can’t do anything about it, can you, human?” the desert lion said. “Since I was born, I’ve watched humans cut off desert lions’ heads, rip away our fur and skin, tear out our hearts, and even cut off our genitals.

“Some of those were my friends, my parents, my mate, my cubs Humans slap tracking collars on us, claim it’s for our own good, and lock us up in protected areas. But did that ever help?”

Sierra’s eyes drifted to the collar around the desert lion’s neck without even thinking.

This desert lion was huge. Even though it looked starved to the bone, its sheer bulk still made Sierra feel a wave of pressure just standing in front of it.

The chip in the collar had been gnawed into uselessness, and up close, Sierra could spot the frayed copper wires where the lion had chewed through.

Sierra’s heart twisted, and she asked in disbelief, “You mean the locals put those collars on you so they could track and kill you, not to protect you?”

The desert lion edged closer to Sierra, its coarse fur brushing against her waist, breath hot and humid as it exhaled. It rumbled softly, “Humans did the same thing before, just like today.

“They gave us food, lured us in, fattened us up, and then gunned down my companions.”

Those words hit Sierra like a punch to the gut.

In Nymeria, desert lions were so rare that local authorities let people keep them on private land. So most of the desert lions counted by international organizations were actually living in these private reserves.

The desert lion didn’t give much away, but Sierra could put two and two together from what she knew about the place.

Some of these so-called “sanctuaries” were just money-making schemes for the rich and twisted. They’d hoard wild animals, waiting for some sick millionaire to show up and turn the place into a playground for trophy hunters.

Sierra looked at the desert lion standing before her. Hanging from its collar was a silver tag, stamped with some foreign words.

She translated what she could and realized the lion’s name was Weston. The rest of the text was probably the name or address of the reserve Weston used to belong to, but she couldn’t make sense of it.

Sierra called out,

“Weston.”

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Chapter 262

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“Take us back?” the desert lion echoed, disbelief written all over ‘s face.

It let out a sarcastic laugh, like Sierra had just cracked the lamest joke ever. “Seriously? Out here, we can at least hang on a bit longer. Go with you guys? We’d be toast in no time.”

Sierra wanted to reassure the desert lion that there was no way something like that would ever happen.

But before she could say a word, the desert lion walked right up to Sierra’s side and said, “I can tell you maybe the people you brought are good, too.

won’t hurt

us,

and

“But can you really guarantee there aren’t any bad people among humans?”

Sierra was left speechless.

She could keep herself and her own people in check, but she couldn’t promise that every human wouldn’t hurt animals for their own gain.

The desert lion could read the emotion on Sierra’s face.

“You can’t do anything about it, can you, human?” the desert lion said. “Since I was born, I’ve watched humans cut off desert lions’ heads, rip away our fur and skin, tear out our hearts, and even cut off our genitals.

“Some of those were my friends, my parents, my mate, my cubs Humans slap tracking collars on us, claim it’s for our own good, and lock us up in protected areas. But did that ever help?”

Sierra’s eyes drifted to the collar around the desert lion’s neck without even thinking.

This desert lion was huge. Even though it looked starved to the bone, its sheer bulk still made Sierra feel a wave of pressure just standing in front of it.

The chip in the collar had been gnawed into uselessness, and up close, Sierra could spot the frayed copper wires where the lion had chewed through.

Sierra’s heart twisted, and she asked in disbelief, “You mean the locals put those collars on you so they could track and kill you, not to protect you?”

The desert lion edged closer to Sierra, its coarse fur brushing against her waist, breath hot and humid as it exhaled. It rumbled softly, “Humans did the same thing before, just like today.

“They gave us food, lured us in, fattened us up, and then gunned down my companions.”

Those words hit Sierra like a punch to the gut.

In Nymeria, desert lions were so rare that local authorities let people keep them on private land. So most of the desert lions. counted by international organizations were actually living in these private reserves.

The desert lion didn’t give much away, but Sierra could put two and two together from what she knew about the place.

Some of these so-called “sanctuaries” were just money-making schemes for the rich and twisted. They’d hoard wild animals, waiting for some sick millionaire to show up and turn the place into a playground for trophy hunters.

Sierra looked at the desert lion standing before her. Hanging from its collar was a silver tag, stamped with some foreign. words.

She translated what she could and realized the lion’s name was Weston. The rest of the text was probably the name or address of the reserve Weston used to belong to, but she couldn’t make sense of it.

Sierra called out, “Weston.”

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Chapter 262

Weston blinked, totally baffled. “Uh?” it muttered, its mind spinning.

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It had no clue how Sierra would know its name. It stared at Sierra, amber eyes wide, jaw practically on the floor, like she’d just pulled off some kind of magic trick.

“Weston, please trust us,” Sierra said. “Before we came to Nymeria, my team and I had helped plenty of animals who’ve been hurt by humans, just like you have.

‘I don’t know how to prove it to you, but if you and your pride are willing to trust us, once we get these humans off your land. I’ll personally make sure to get you all out of the Skeleton Coast.”

Weston and its pride had lost count of how many times they’d been hurt. Now Sierra was saying she wanted to protect the desert lions, but without actually doing anything, it all sounded like just talk to it.

Seeing Weston still looking lost, Sierra added, “If you or your pride need anything, just say the word.”

With that, Sierra went quiet, her eyes fixed on Weston, waiting for it to respond.

Sure enough, Weston lowered its head. For a moment, its face was blank, but then a hint of thought crept in.

Deep down, it really didn’t want to trust humans ever again.

But something Sierra said just now struck a chord deep inside it

Unless they kept wandering further and further, the pride was doomed to starve eventually.

Weston mulled it over, and then glanced back.

Out on the beach, most of the white seagulls had already scattered, spooked by the desert lion pride. The dark waves crashed against the sand, spraying white foam everywhere.

On one side was the endless coastline, while endless yellow sand stretched out under its paws.

Weston’s amber eyes widened as it realized that there was no way its pride could cross the coastline, and surviving thousands of miles of desert was even more impossible.

Death was the only thing waiting for them.

With that thought, Weston suddenly turned. It strode toward Sierra like a true king, each step heavy with authority and power.

“Human,” Weston rumbled, its voice resolute, “I’ll lead my pride and make our last stand. No retreat, no surrender.”

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