After spending the night in the cave, Clara and Adam parted ways with Daniel and Leo the next morning.
The father and son planned to remain in the mountains to continue hunting—Leo wouldn't descend until he'd caught some prey himself.
Before she left, Clara shared with Daniel everything she'd learned about this area last year: there were hardly any predators, and the cave was quite safe—ideal as a temporary base.
"Be careful on the way down," Daniel reminded them. "The mountain paths are slippery."
Clara and Adam both nodded. Then, with their game in tow, they began their descent.
Clara led the way, dragging the game behind her, while Adam followed closely, carrying his burlap sack and cradling the white squirrel—now full of bite and energy, still trying to gnaw him.
Instead of retracing their steps, the two made their way along the mountain base toward Willowridge County.
It was a route Clara knew well. And now, with her physical condition vastly improved, dragging over 300kg of game didn't even feel that taxing.
The only drain on her energy was the constant need to watch over Adam behind her.
The child's pace was slow—she couldn't move too fast.
Whenever the slope was too steep, she had him sit on the drag frame so she could haul both child and beast up together.
If the path skirted a cliffside, she'd tie a rope around him to ensure he didn't go tumbling off by accident.
With all these delays, what Clara could have reached alone by dusk took her an entire extra day.
They spent one more night in the mountains, and it wasn't until midday the next day that the gates of Willowridge County finally came into view.
Fortunately, the mountain's low temperatures helped preserve the game. The decapitated tiger and the spotted deer still looked fairly fresh.
The meat wouldn't fetch top prices, but the tiger's pelt might still be worth negotiating over.
This time, Clara had learned her lesson from last year. She covered the carcass in branches so no one could see what kind of beast she'd brought down.
After paying the entrance fee for both of them, she and Adam entered the city quietly.
It wasn't a market day, so the streets weren't crowded. Clara thought of Manager Fan and led Adam straight to the back entrance of the restaurant.
"Auntie, why are we going in the back?" Adam asked curiously.
Clara replied, "Coming through the front would disrupt business."
Adam nodded thoughtfully. Another lesson learned.
The white squirrel had long since run out of steam. It lay limp in his arms, possibly from hunger—it hadn't eaten in two days.
Adam tried feeding it some wild fruits he'd picked, but it wouldn't eat. It only drank water. No wonder it had no energy left to cause trouble.
Clara set down the game, patted the dust from her clothes, and tried to straighten her hair a bit before stepping forward to knock on the copper ring of the back door.
It was a while before someone came to open it—a young kitchen apprentice.
"Madam Clara?" the boy was visibly shocked. Had he not recognized her, he might have thought two beggars had shown up.
Clara gave him a helpless wave. "Come out—I've got something good to show you."
She pulled back the branches covering the prey. Golden fur glinted beneath. The apprentice's eyes widened in disbelief. He inhaled sharply twice, then gestured for her to wait—he was off to fetch the manager.
Soon, both Manager Fan and the head chef came rushing out. At the sight of the tiger carcass on the drag frame, both men instinctively stumbled back two steps.
Then, glancing at Clara and seeing her wave casually—assuring them the beast was long dead—they dared to come closer, inspecting the pelt and the torn-up neck to judge the freshness of the meat.
They were all familiar by now, so Clara didn't hide anything. She even told them when the tiger and deer had been killed.
"Died just before dusk two days ago," she said. "Hasn't been more than twenty-four hours since. I rubbed salt on the wounds and stored it properly. The meat will stay fragrant till noon tomorrow at least."
The chef raised a brow. "Madam Clara, where's the tiger's head?"
Adam, who was still carrying the burlap sack, instinctively took a step back, worried they might try to buy it off him.
Too bad—his movement gave him away instantly.
Even when they'd entered the city gates, the guards had spotted the blood-soaked sack and insisted on checking it.
What followed was a round of shocked gasps.
To avoid trouble, Clara had discreetly paid an extra ten copper coins per person. Only then were they let through.
Seeing that they'd noticed the tiger's head, Clara simply said, "I'm keeping it. Not for sale."
The pelt would remain intact anyway.
Still, that meant a lower offer. Manager Fan opened at ninety taels of silver.
Without the head, the tiger was just over 240kg, and the deer was maybe 60kg. Manager Fan didn't even bother weighing it—it was clearly just a bonus to the main dish.
Seeing Clara's face, not entirely satisfied with the offer, he gave a wry smile and explained:
"If you'd brought this in just yesterday at dusk, I could've given you more for the meat. But now it's a headless carcass—hard to find a buyer even for the pelt."
Clara had no interest in arguing. If it weren't for Adam, she might not have encountered the tiger in the first place.
"Fine. Deal. I'll help you move it inside."
Manager Fan beamed. "Don't forget to skin it for me."
The chef added enthusiastically, "Once you're done, I'll make tiger-braised noodles for you both. I've got leftover braising stock from this morning—loaded with spices, real fancy stuff!"
From the courtyard, Clara called out, "Great. Make it five servings. And you don't owe me for killing the tiger!"
The chef smacked his forehead. "Almost forgot how much you eat!"
He turned and waved Adam in, shutting the back door to keep anyone from the rival restaurant across the alley from catching wind of the deal.
Today, they'd give the competition a real surprise.
After all, this was tiger meat—something that might not show up in their little county town once in decades.
Clara spread out the carcass and handed the drag frame to the apprentice to discard. Then she walked into the kitchen, picked a good knife, and carefully skinned the tiger in one complete piece.
Just as Manager Fan was about to carry it off, Clara remembered the tiger head.
"Who do you send these pelts to?" she asked.
Realizing what she wanted, Manager Fan waved to Adam. "Bring me the tiger head. I'll send it along with the pelt. Next time you're in town, come collect it from me."
"How much?" Clara asked.
"Five hundred copper. I'll deduct it from your silver," he said, already hurrying off with the tiger hide and head in hand.
Once he was done with the skin, he still had to put up the tiger meat banner for the day.
While Clara finished processing the rest of the game, Adam sat quietly in the courtyard with the little squirrel in his arms.
By the time Clara was done, the head chef brought out a massive bowl of tiger-braised noodles and called out cheerfully, "Quick, eat it while it's hot!"
The rich aroma of spiced meat filled the courtyard, covering up the blood smell. The belly pieces were cut into perfect cubes, braised to a shimmering tenderness, and laid out atop white noodles, sprinkled with fresh scallions—aromatic, colorful, and mouthwatering.
Adam, who had long been starving, stared at the dish with wide eyes.
Clara kept a straight face, but her hands were quick. She grabbed a ceramic bowl from the kitchen and heaped it full before handing it to him. "Eat."
Then she lifted the main bowl and dug in.
In that small courtyard, the scent of braised meat and the happy slurping of noodles from a mother and son filled the air.
When they finally finished their meal, Manager Fan returned with the silver—marking a perfect end to their hunting expedition.
(End of Chapter)
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