This time, no matter how rushed she was, she didn't go in without making sure of her path.

The landscape changes again when the veins of the lakes meet the abysses, generating thousands of waterfalls that vary in size. The air was moistened with the tiny drops that formed the dew giving life to multiple plants that clung to the rocks.

Lyaria is distracted for a few seconds by the sight and is brought back to reality when her nose detects something strange in the air. His muscles tense and his heartbeat quickens as she looks away and sees something that wasn't there before.

The claws were oversized and matched its size, yet it was clear that it possessed great flexibility. Its brown fur was completely soaked and one could see small green spots generated by the mosses that grew on it.

“The wind was not on my side... and even if it had been, that thing smells of earth and plants.” Lyaria immediately starts looking for the best solution that consumes less time.

"I was hoping I wouldn't run into any panther types, though my luck was never good." A few seconds passed until she decided which option to take.

Her opponent was strong and fast, just like her, but more agile. Especially in terrain like this where it can use its huge claws to pierce through rocks and climb over them.

The panther also did not want to face a wolf that exuded a clear sense of danger, although his pride was stronger than fear.

Lyaria lunges at the panther and the other does the same, pointing his claws at her head. No matter how you looked at it, the panther's claws would clearly arrive before the wolf's teeth.

But at the crucial moment, Lyaria's blue eyes flash almost imperceptibly, affecting the panther's vision and making it believe that her body was actually a few centimeters further away.

Lyaria doesn't miss the opening and her teeth find the panther's neck. The impact and weight send her thrown backwards, but she never let go of the panther's bleeding neck as it writhes on the ground, lashing out at Lyaria with its claws in the struggle.

She doesn't stop applying pressure even though the panther stopped moving. Only when a minute passes and the blood forms a pool, does Lyaria drop with a thud to the still body.

The puddle continues to widen with drops falling from Lyaria's abdomen. She tries to regulate her breathing and looks at her injuries.

“It is not very deep, it has to stop bleeding in a short time.” She forces herself to continue down the cliff using the step the panther came from.

There were numerous caves naturally formed in the rocks. Some were only a few centimeters long, while others were hundreds of meters long, even communicating with each other, creating a huge labyrinth.

Lyaria would enter each of them looking for the peculiar flower, sometimes reverting to her human form and using her hands to cling to the slippery rocks, while other times she used the powerful hind legs of her wolf form to reach inaccessible areas otherwise.

The night was approaching and Lyaria was in another huge circular abyss that swallowed large amounts of water taking them to the bottom.

The light was no longer able to illuminate the path, but Lyaria had no problem thanks to her special eyes. She had a leather bag on her back where she kept the rations, and of course, a suitable container for the ingredient that was looking for.

The low light of the setting sun shone on his skin as she returned to his human form to take a short rest. If anyone saw her at that moment, they would believe that had seen a goddess whose beauty is only real in legends.

Lyaria touches the outline of the already disinfected wounds on her abdomen. The pain doesn't bother her, though an unconscious frown forms on her face anyway.

“I already searched all the surface caves. I only have the deepest and most uncertain ones.” She takes the form of a wolf again in the midst of the constant sound of falling water.

The tunnels connect and the scents mingle, Lyaria struggling not to generate any sound as she goes for fear of awakening whatever resides deep within the abyss.

Actually, she was dismayed, she knew that the chances of finding what was looking for were slim to none. That flower only grew in places with abundant water and without the reflection of light. Besides that, it only flourished in places with a high concentration of mana. Lyaria could only think of this place to look for it.

The black rock tunnels are endless and it even seems like the air is getting thinner with every turn. She had marked each new path taken, although even in this way she was not sure that could return by the same route since dangerous smells reached from behind forcing her to move quickly, even sometimes without time to leave marks.

It was at that moment, in the midst of his frustration and uncertainty, that she spotted a small blue bird. It was beautiful, each feather radiating its color in the dark, it was clearly no ordinary bird. Lyaria tenses up and looks for any sign of danger coming from the strange being, she can't find any. Instead, the bird flutters playfully in front of her, seeming to indicate a path through all the bifurcations. She tries to ignore it, but the bird hovers insistently close to her head again.

"Do you want me to follow you?" Lyaria asks trying to understand how intelligent the bird was.

The bird seems to respond with more energetic flight and high-pitched whistles. Lyaria hesitates, knowing it's never good to trust a beast. However, she cannot take her eyes off the bird and is tempted to follow it.

The decision is made when she hears the sound of claws on rocks very close to her. With firm and cautious steps, Lyaria follows the bird that slightly illuminated the darkness.