The woman who had just entered moved with the grace of a hunting feline. Her green ears tilted slightly as her eyes landed on Noko.
—"Daughter," she said in a sweet voice. "You've returned."
—"Mom!" Noko ran to hug her, letting out a happy purr.
Ragan nodded in approval.
—"Ren, allow me to introduce Liria, queen of the Emerald Clan and Noko's mother."
—"A-a pleasure," I stammered, trying not to look too stiff.
She looked me up and down and smiled with a touch of mischief.
—"So you're the one who's been looking after my daughter… and living with her."
—"It's not what you think! Noko is just a friend!"
I glanced at Maya and Zara, silently begging for help, but all I saw was Maya choking on her drink and Zara struggling to hold back laughter.
—"A friend, huh?" Liria whispered with a smile.
Ragan interrupted us:
—"Very well! Now that you've met, before we can fully accept Ren as someone close to our family, he must undergo the clan's trials."
—"Trials?" I asked with a bad feeling.
—"It's a small tradition we have to test a person's worth," Liria explained, sitting down with elegance. "It's nothing deadly… at least not for those in good shape."
Maya grinned.
—"This is going to be fun."
Zara tilted her head.
—"What kind of trials will they be?"
Ragan listed them in a solemn tone:
—"First, the trial of agility. Second, the trial of wit. And third, the trial of the banquet."
—"Banquet?" I asked hopefully.
—"It consists of enduring an entire dinner and finishing all the traditional food of our clan without wasting anything," Liria clarified.
The last one didn't sound so dangerous, but… I still had a bad feeling about all of this.
The first trial took place in an open training field, where several felines watched us from the stands.
—"You just have to get through the course before the flag falls," a guard explained.
The course was full of bars, hanging hoops, rotating log platforms, and a water pit at the end.
—"Alright, I think I can do this," I said, trying to convince myself.
I started, and at first things went well… until one of the spinning logs flung me headfirst into the water. The crowd roared with laughter, and Maya clapped as if it were part of the show.
—"Again, Ren-sama!" Noko shouted, cheering me on.
I finally managed to pass the first trial after a few attempts. The second took place in a room with riddles and strange mechanisms. I glanced at Zara in confusion; she gestured in a way I interpreted as a "you can do it."
I tried to solve the riddles. I got stuck a couple of times, but once I understood how they worked, the solution was fairly obvious.
Finally, the banquet trial arrived.
Seated at a long table, surrounded by feline demi-humans, I realized every single move I made was being observed. All I had to do was finish all the dishes, right? That shouldn't be too complicated… until a waiter placed a plate in front of me with something that moved.
—"Is that… alive?" I whispered.
I gulped and tasted it, feeling my taste buds die on the spot. Without a doubt, this trial was the hardest of the three.
At the end of the night, Ragan rose and spoke in a loud voice:
—"Ren Mizuno, you have completed our trials… with mixed results, but with courage!"
—"Thank you… I think," I replied.
—"Tomorrow we shall celebrate your presence with a feast," Ragan announced. "And there, everyone will want to meet you!"