Chapter 217


    Jeremy kicked the stone cliff face and propelled his body back as he untied the rope andnded firmly


    on the ground. The


    movement startled a colony of bats.


    As he stood up and patted the thorny weeds that clung to his clothes, his sharp eyes began scanning


    the surroundings. The environment at the bottom of the cliff was particrly harsh, and the situation


    looked rather bleak.


    No traces of Corinne could be found. Whether she was dead or


    alive, he was adamant about finding her at all costs.


    He frowned, pushed asideyers of vegetation, and carefully searched for her. All of a sudden, a ck


    shadow pounced at him from behind. Jeremy was keenly aware of the movement, and he turned to


    give the figure a thumping kick. He then saw a brown bear howling as it bared its teeth and fell over.


    The brown bear seemed to be very hungry, and its eyes lit up when it saw Jeremy-a potential prey


    item. After a while, it got up and attacked him again. Nheless, his body was strong and agile, and it


    took him barely any effort as he knocked the brown bear to the ground with several kicks.


    For the moment at least, the danger had been temporarily averted.


    Jeremy had a bad feeling when the bear appeared, for he did not expect such a huge beast to be


    present there.


    ‘Could Corinne have been eaten since she’s nowhere to be found?’ As that thought appeared in his


    mind, his eyes turned red, and he took out a miniature shotgun from his back waist.


    to aim at the brown bear’s head.


    The brown bear seemed to be aware that its time was up, and


    it could only shiver since itcked the strength to escape.


    “Don’t shoot the bear, Mister!” Corinne’s voice resonated


    through the gorge in an ethereal echo.


    Jeremy’s pupils shrank, and he nced toward the source of the sound. There, he saw a dirty-faced


    Corinne standing not


    N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    far away with disheveled hair and tattered clothes.


    Though she looked miserable, she seemed to be somewhat


    energetic. Corinne stepped over some vegetation and walked


    toward Jeremy. “Mister, you-”


    Before she could finish her sentence, he hurried over, pulled her into his arms, and hugged her tightly.


    The conversation.


    was interrupted, and her head was pressed so firmly on his chest that she had difficulty breathing.


    Corinne struggled in his arms to look up as she said to him in a serious tone, “That species of bear is a


    totally protected animal. Killing it is against thew!”


    Jeremy’s tense muscles rxed slightly when he confirmed


    that she was fine. He looked down at her and then said in a


    lecturing tone, “Protected animals can be killed if humans are


    attacked by them in the wild. Understand?”


    “Oh, that makes sense.” Corinne pursed her lips. “By the way, Mister, why did youe down here?”


    He frowned slightly and looked nkly at the little fool.” What do you think?”


    Corinneined with a look of disgust, “I didn’t fall. I was


    hanging on a crooked tree near the cliff waiting for someone to rescue me, and I tried calling you when


    I saw you tying a rope anding down, but you didn’t hear me at all! I had no choice but to jump


    down to look for you, and I ended up


    tumbling to the ground!”


    Jeremy frowned, held her shoulders, and checked her body nervously. “Did you sprain yourself?”


    Corinne waved her hands. “I’m fine! I just tore my clothes a


    little.”


    Jeremy stared at her. “If you didn’t fall, why did you jump off and risk spraining yourself when you saw


    mee down?”


    “Because…” Corinne nearly blurted out her reason, but the moment she realized he might


    misunderstand her, she immediately held back what she wanted to say.


    Jeremy narrowed his long eyes and looked at her intimidatingly. “Because of what? Say it.”


    His stare left her feeling a little awkward, and she turned her face away from him before snorting


    angrily, “I jumped down


    for the same reason you did!”


    Jeremy was stunned for a moment and ended upughing.


    He calmed himself down, stared at her dirty little face, and covered her head with his big hand as he


    rubbed her tousled hair. “At least you’re smart enough to worry about your


    husband’s life!” he said out of contentment.


    Corinne was speechless.