The Duke's Killer Rabbit [BL]

Clint now wore better clothes, He had on a dark gray tunic with silver buttons, pants that fit properly, and boots that actually had soles, not worn out like his old shoes.

The cloak over his shoulders was light but thick enough to keep him warm, with a small silver clasp that kept it in place.

He walked through the town with his hands in his pockets, following Elric, who didn't seem to care whether Clint was keeping up or not.

Clint raised his voice, "Hey, where else are we going?" he called out as he caught up with him.

Elric didn't answer but instead walked into another building, this one with large windows and shelves inside.

Clint, not knowing where the Duke's estate was or how to get back, stayed outside and leaned against the wall, waiting.

A few minutes later, Elric came out holding a folded paper bag that was made of thick brown parchment, tied neatly with a red string.

Elric tossed the bag at Clint without a word.

Clint caught it with a frown. "Hey! I'm not your servant to carry your things!"

Elric turned to look at him and replied in a calm voice, "You're not? But you look like one," then turned back and started walking again without waiting.

Clint rolled his eyes and followed, muttering as he looked around at the people passing by, the stone roads.

"Maybe this place isn't as dangerous as it could be," he muttered, remembering the part in the book that mentioned Beastbloods.

After a few more steps, Clint slowed down and eventually stopped walking.

He looked to his left and noticed a narrow alley between two buildings.

He glanced at Elric, who had walked ahead and hadn't noticed yet.

"Perfect," Clint whispered to himself as he slipped into the alley.

"I'll sell this to get some money and think of a plan," he said, holding up the bag Elric had thrown at him earlier.

Then he reached into his inner pocket and took out the small glass potion Elric had warned him about.

The liquid inside shimmered softly with faint silver light. Clint stared at it with a thoughtful expression.

"Should I drink it now?" he asked himself, then shook his head.

He remembered Elric's warning about possible side effects.

"It might be dangerous… I'll find a safer place first."

He tucked the potion back inside his coat, then carefully peeked from the alley and saw Elric now standing in the middle of the street, looking around with an annoyed expression.

Clint ducked back quickly, hiding behind a crate.

A few seconds passed, and Elric ran in the opposite direction, probably thinking Clint had wandered off into the crowd.

Seeing his chance, Clint stepped out of the alley, turned in the other direction, and started running.

He didn't know where he was going yet, but one thing was clear in his mind he needed to stay far away from the Duke, Elric, and anything that might turn him back into a bunny.

The busy sounds of the town started to fade behind him. He turned into a narrow alley between two brick buildings and leaned against the cool stone wall, catching his breath.

He looked up at the sky peeking through the narrow gap between rooftops and let out a long sigh.

'What am I going to do now?' he thought as he rubbed the back of his neck. 'I can't risk transforming in the middle of town. That potion might help, but I can't drink it here.'

Clint slowly stood and peeked out of the alley, carefully looking around to see if Elric had followed him.

But Elric was gone.

'Good… he lost me,' Clint thought.

Just as he was about to step out, a voice echoed from deeper within the alley behind him.

"Well, well... look who wandered into our place."

Clint turned around. From the shadows further back, four figures stepped forward.

They looked young, maybe late teens or early twenties, but their eyes were sharp and they all had something strange about them.

He noticed right away fluffy animal ears on top of their heads.

One had wolf ears, another fox-like, and two more with slightly different fur patterns.

'Beastbloods,' Clint thought, narrowing his eyes.

He shifted slightly to leave, stepping backwards toward the alley's exit.

But before he could move far, two of them suddenly rushed forward.They were fast, much faster than normal people. In a blur, they blocked his path and shoved him back.

Clint stumbled deeper into the alley and stopped himself before hitting the wall. When he looked up, he was surrounded now. Two were behind, and two were in front.

"Hey now, what's the rush?" one of them said, grinning, showing a hint of sharp teeth. "You entered our space without permission, human. That's kind of rude."

Clint frowned, keeping his cool "I didn't know this was your place," he said flatly. "I'll leave."

The wolf-eared one chuckled. "Too late for that."

Another one leaned closer, sniffing the air slightly. "You smell weird. Not from around here, are you?"

Clint's eyes darted between them, looking for a gap to escape, but they weren't letting him out easily. 'I have to avoid trouble.'

Another one from the group stepped forward, taller than the rest, with long reddish-brown hair and fox-like ears that twitched excitedly.

He sniffed the air and then let out a strange grin.

"Wait… this smell..." he said, narrowing his eyes at Clint. "You reek of it."

Clint raised a brow, still tense. "What?!"

The wolf-eared one's eyes lit up, nose twitching fast like a dog catching a scent. "Our favorite food."

The others started sniffing too, one even leaning in closer. Their expressions changed from playful to curious, then excited.

"Mmm. No doubt about it," one of them said, eyes gleaming. "So… you're a beastblood too."

Another spoke with a grin so wide it showed his sharp canines. "A bunny, I'd say. Soft scent. Clean. Sweet. He's definitely prey type."

Clint's jaw tightened. He slowly lowered the bag in his hand to the ground and stepped over it slightly with one foot.

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about," he muttered, but his body moved like it was ready to fight.

His arms dropped slightly, shoulders loose, knees bent.

"I'm not looking for trouble,"

But the way the beastbloods looked at him now wasn't friendly anymore.

It was like a group of predators seeing something rare and tempting in front of them.

"Too bad," said the fox-eared one, cracking his knuckles. "We are."

And with that, one of them lunged.