I opened my eyes, the world spinning around me. I was exhausted, my mind still fuzzy, and the familiar ache of confusion swirled inside me.

Where am I? I swear I just fell off a cliff and died.

I sat up, looking at my body. It was the same as before—no wounds, no injuries, not even a bruise. There wasn’t any pain. My breath caught in my throat.

I glanced around, and my heart sank. The steep cliffside loomed ahead of me, and a massive waterfall crashed to my right. There was no mistake about it—I was alive. After falling from that height? It didn’t make sense.

But as my eyes continued to scan my surroundings, they landed on a sight that made my stomach churn. About thirty feet away lay the bandit boss. His body twisted in grotesquely, surrounded by swarming insects. I almost gagged at the sight.

“Yoo-hoo~! Looks like Sleeping Beauty finally decided to wake up!” A high-pitched voice sang out, breaking the silence.

I whipped my head around, trying to locate the source, but all I saw was a cat. A sleek, pitch-black creature with piercing blue eyes, staring directly at me.

“What the -” I froze mid sentence .the cat spoke?

I stared at the cat, my mind struggling to catch up. A magical talking cat? What kind of ridiculousness is this?

“Hold on. You’re a cat… that can talk?”

“Well, duh, I am!” The cat scoffed, tail flicking lazily. “Guess my healing magic fixed your brain too—you're welcome~!”

“You can use magic?”

I rubbed my eyes, trying to make sense of everything. This can’t be real... but it feels so real.

“That was a huge tumble, Mister Hero! But hey, at least your family's all safe and sound!”

I froze. My family?

“Alive? And well? How can you be sure?” My voice cracked with the mix of shock and excitement.

The cat’s blue eyes twinkled mischievously as it purred, “Mwehehehe! A magical kitty never spills her secrets! Besides you did kill the remaining bandit, so they should be on their way down the mountain towards Crullsfeld.”

“So where am I?” I asked, a twinge of frustration in my voice.

The cat narrowed its eyes and rolled its head as if I’d asked the most obvious question. “Do I look like a map to you? No, no, no! We’re by the Winterpeak Mountains, duh!”

I exhaled sharply, massaging my temples. “Brilliant deduction. Now, do you know how I can get back to my family?”

The cat turned, its tail flicking like it had already lost interest in my question. “Oh, I do know! But if we go to them now, we’re definitely toast! Getting back to your family means scaling that mountain again. Supplies? None. Odds of making it? Zip.”

I clenched my fists, anger and desperation rising. “So what do you suggest?”

Alina’s grin widened, a flicker of something unnervingly knowing in her eyes. “Easy. My place. Shelter and food.”

“Training?” How was a cat going to train me?

“Duh. You’re alive, sure, but barely useful. Time to fix that.”

I closed my eyes, trying to push away the dizziness creeping up from the absurdity of it all. But there was something in me that urged me to follow this… cat. My gut said I should go with it.

“Fine,” I muttered. “Lead the way.”

We walked for what felt like ages—half an hour, maybe longer. The forest was thick with deep green trees and silence, broken only by the occasional call of birds or the rustle of wind through the leaves. I broke the silence.

“So, you’re a talking cat with magic. You must have a name, right? What is it?”

Her tail perked up, “Mhm! The name's Alina~ What's yours? Or do you wanna just keep being called Sleeping Beauty?”

I sighed deeply, “Nikolai Nordhil.”

She grinned widely, her blue eyes sparkling. “Dunno why I even asked, I already knew.”

I blinked, taken aback. How did she know my name?

I couldn’t help but make a joke. “So the magical talking cat knows my name without me saying it? Guess that’s pretty spot on.”

Alina laughed, the sound like tinkling bells. “Wow! Didn’t expect Mister Stoic over here to crack a joke!”

The silence stretched on again as we walked, until we came to a towering tree. Above the branches stretched out as if they were trying to absorb every bit of sunlight. I inspected the base and noticed its roots were thick and long, signifying the trees age. At its base near the center was a small opening— big enough for the cat to squeeze through, but barely large enough for me.

“Here we are!” Alina announced, darting through the opening. “Come on, Nikolai. Try to keep up!”

I hesitated but followed, awkwardly squeezing myself through the opening. It took some effort, but I finally made it inside.

The inside of the tree was… massive. The walls were all wood, but somehow the space felt bigger than it should be. There was something magical about it, something I couldn’t quite place.

“Oh, don’t tell me you’re confused already,” she teased, her tail flicking lazily. “That, my dear Nikolai, was a portal. You know, a magical shortcut? Honestly, it’s like you’ve never seen a cat casually rewrite the laws of physics before.”

Portal? My mind buzzed with questions. What kind of magic could create something like this?

Before I could ask, she interrupted. "Anyway, you must be starving! Lucky for you, I’m feeling generous—allow me to nourish you.

A soft, glow consisting of every color of the rainbow surrounded her as Alina closed her eyes in concentration. A wave of warmth and energy washed over me, and I felt… full? Rejuvenated, even. It was like all my exhaustion had evaporated and my stomach was full, leaving me with a strange sense of strength.

“What kind of magic was that?” I asked, my voice filled with confusion. “I’ve never read about anything remotely close to this before.”

Alina grinned and proclaimed with amusement. “Rainbow magic!”

Clearly she doesn’t want to reveal this “Rainbow magic” of hers, but maybe I can get some hints along the way to decipher it.

She sat down, her gaze locking with mine, sharp and unyielding. "Nikolai," she said, voice steady, "if you want to protect your family, you’re going to need to get stronger." A wicked laugh escaped her lips, her eyes gleaming with amusement. "You can’t keep falling off cliffs and expecting me to swoop in every time. It’s about time I start training you!”

“Wait you’re gonna train me?”

She smirked, eyes gleaming with mischief. "Oh, I’m definitely going to train you. Well—assuming you survive, of course.”