A Day Trip to Wutai

This ending is achieved by developing a relationship with Clouded Leopard, refusing to go the the City God's temple for protection after Leopard attacks Tiger at the dance studio, and finally attempting to escape the cave during the night after Leopard kidnaps Liao. Leopard then searches for and finds (the injured and freezing) Liao and brings him directly to Wutai.

## Catlogger

I woke up somewhere, but not my home.

It was a shabby cabin and I had no idea where I was. Leopard was nowhere to be found. After I shouted out for him a few times a group of strangers came to me, I could see Leopard in the distance behind them... They were the Rukai people of Wutai.

I was nervous but thankfully they were kind to me, treating me as if I were a child lost in the woods. After all, I had done nothing wrong. Leopard urged me to proclaim myself the new oracle, but I ignored him. I couldn’t talk to him with all the tribe around anyway, refusing to mention Leopard on purpose. Unaware that I had any purpose to be there, they called the police officer to help me home.

Predictably Leopard tried everything he could to stop me, from summoning apparitions to throwing debris through the air. Although freaked out, there was no way for anyone to know that I was to be the new oracle.

Eventually the officer arrived to take me to their car, offering me a hot drink and a thermal blanket to keep me warm as we drive out of the mountains towards Pingtung.

Along the way they asked me if I was lost but I could only say I didn’t remember. Things got even more confusing when they rang my school to find that I had been to class just the afternoon before. After all, there was no way I could make it from Taipei to the deep mountains of Wutai overnight. Between my sudden disappearance and my “amnesia” no one was able to explain what happened.

The police just had to write it off as a mysterious disappearance. Some of the officers at the station even joke around about aliens, time travelers, or espers being among our suspects.

Once everything was sorted out I returned to Taipei, immediately taking Tiger‘s statue back home. Leopard was still following me but I always made a point to stand in crowds, refusing to speak to him. Once I reached Mazu Temple Leopard tried to follow me in but was swiftly driven off by the gods residing there.

The main downside of being home was having to deal with the dozens of guardian tigers. Their traditional views got on my nerves but it was worth it to have Tiger’s statue repaired. According to the other gods at the time Leopard was still trying to reach me, but.. I just didn’t feel like talking to him anymore. After all, nothing had been stopping me from going out to see him, I guess... I just wanted to hide.

Later I heard that he was injured in an attempt to break into the temple. I didn’t care to go out to look for him. He’d be fine anyway, he’s too powerful to lose his life... The only thing he’ll lose is me.

If anything it would’ve served to help him forget about me, give up, and move on... I don’t want to be kidnapped ever again.

Once Tiger’s statue is fixed, we went back to Taipei. I didn’t see Leopard on the way back. For a moment I had thought about if he had come back, would I have forgiven him? I really don’t know... but it’s not something I wanted to think about anymore.

With Tiger by my side, I made I through the rest of my semester without any trouble. I heard that after I left the temple, several other guardian tigers were assigned to protect me. I guess that’s why Leopard never ended up coming back.

From time to time, I still think about him, how he is, whether he even managed to save his tribe. Regardless, as Tiger said a long time ago, it was never my obligation to help him, so it is no longer my business. And honestly that’s okay, because now I finally have the peaceful college life I always wanted.

Sometimes, I just feel a little lonely, nothing more or nothing less.

## Trivia

* The provided catlogger is from the latest revision of the English script from the v1.06 update of Nekojishi.