I stared into the man’s eyes, and after a long pause, I finally managed to say, “Thank you, Uncle…”
“Uncle…?” He didn’t seem to like the title very much. “Calling me ‘Uncle’… you might as well call me ‘Lord Vermilion Bird.'”
“Lord Vermilion Bird?” I was a little confused. This wasn’t ancient times—why would anyone call themselves ‘Lord’?
But Lord Vermilion Bird really did save my life.
If he hadn’t shown up, I would have definitely died here.
He must be a very, very good person.
“Little one, you made a very brave decision today,” Lord Vermilion Bird said with a smile. “From now on, you won’t go hungry or be bullied again.”
“Huh?”
“It’s almost evening. Come with me.” Lord Vermilion Bird beckoned and walked out the door.
Only after stepping outside did I notice the deep red feathered cloak draped over his shoulders.
“L-Lord Vermilion Bird, where are we going?” I hurried to catch up.
He pointed to an open area not far away, where a shimmering, glowing door had appeared.
“You are now a ‘Zodiac.’ Every night, you must board the ‘Train.’ That’s the first rule,” Lord Vermilion Bird said. “May you make new friends.”
“Zodiac… Train… Friends?” I didn’t understand a single word.
But in the blink of an eye, Lord Vermilion Bird had vanished.
Was he some kind of god who came to save me?
As the surroundings grew darker, I had no choice but to walk toward that glowing door. It looked like something out of a fairy tale—floating in midair but leading somewhere else.
I stepped through slowly and found myself standing in a long corridor lined with wooden doors. Many masked figures were emerging from them, but none lingered. Instead, they all headed toward the other end of the hallway.
When I turned around, the glowing door I had entered through was gone, replaced by a wooden one.
“What’s going on…?” Had I come out of that wooden door too?
“Move, don’t block the way.” A rough voice growled behind me.
Startled, I quickly stepped aside and saw a tall man wearing a white tiger mask towering over me.
“What the… how is there one this short?” He gave me a disdainful glance before walking past without another word.
“Ah…” Only then did it hit me, and I immediately chased after him. “Uncle!”
The tall man froze at those words, then slowly turned back.
“What…?” His voice softened instantly.
“Uncle… h-hello…” I bowed my head slightly before asking, “Um… where is this?”
The tall man gave me a complicated look before replying slowly, “This is the ‘Train.’ It’s where the ‘Zodiacs’ rest.”
“Where the ‘Zodiacs’ rest?” I still didn’t understand. “Why am I in a place where the ‘Zodiacs’ rest?”
The tall tiger uncle seemed stunned again.
I thought he might explain, but after a long pause, he only managed four words: “How… old are you?”
“Uncle, I’m almost ten,” I answered earnestly.
“Ten…?” He blinked. “Are you hungry?”
“Hungry…?” I rubbed my head sheepishly. “Well… I am a little hungry…”
“Come on, I’ll take you to eat.” He reached out with a large, warm hand and took hold of mine.
We had only walked a few steps when another uncle emerged from a door ahead.
He wore a snakeskin mask and carried a foul odor.
“Well, well!” the snake uncle called out. “If it isn’t little Tiger! Haven’t seen you all day—found yourself a girlfriend?”
“Piss off.” The tiger uncle’s tone was sharp. “Want me to tear you apart?”
“Hahahaha!” The snake uncle burst into laughter for some reason. “You’d tear me apart on the ‘Train’? Come on, come on… I’d love to see what Goat would say about that.”
“Then I’ll just break your fingers,” the tiger uncle growled. “If not for Goat, all ten of them would’ve been snapped by now.”
“Alright, alright…” The snake uncle slung an arm over the tiger uncle’s shoulders. “We’re practically ‘classmates,’ why so angry?”
“Get lost.” The tiger uncle shoved him off. “What kind of sick joke is ‘girlfriend’? Watch your damn mouth.”
“Hah! Isn’t she?” The snake uncle bent down to look at me. “A little mouse-type loli? Nice taste.”
I swallowed nervously and met his gaze. “H-Hello, Uncle…”
The moment those words left my mouth, the snake uncle froze.
“Eh?” His expression shifted, and he quickly turned to the tiger uncle. “You kidding me… that voice… she’s just a kid!”
“No shit, you idiot,” the tiger uncle muttered. “What the hell were you even saying earlier?”
“I—I—” The snake uncle slapped a hand over his mouth. “Damn it, how was I supposed to know?! But why is she here?”
“Enough. Let Goat figure it out.” The tiger uncle pulled me forward and scanned the area before asking, “By the way, where’s that old Black Goat? Dead?”
As soon as he spoke, the door in front of us swung open.
A man wearing a black ram’s head mask stepped out.
He gave the three of us a cold glance before walking off in another direction.
“Damn it…” The tiger uncle cursed. “Even though we’re both ‘Goats,’ just seeing him pisses me off.”
“Relax…” The snake uncle patted him with a laugh before bending down to me. “Kid, you must be starving, huh? Let’s get you some food.”
I smiled awkwardly. If not for this snake uncle, I might have been eating by now.
Each holding one of my hands, they led me through the crowd of masked figures.
The tiger uncle seemed well-respected—many people stepped aside to make way for him.
We followed the black ram uncle for a while before stopping at another door.
I was curious. All the doors looked the same—how did they know where to go?
The black ram uncle knocked and spoke respectfully. “Goat, we’re here.”
“Enter.” A man’s voice came from inside.
The three of us slowly pushed the door open to reveal a dining room.
The table was laden with food, and my eyes widened in awe.
There was roast chicken, ribs, fish, and so many things I didn’t even recognize!
Just as I swallowed hard, I noticed the person sitting at the head of the table.
He wasn’t wearing a mask—instead, he had the actual head of a pure white goat, like something out of *Journey to the West.*
His cold gaze lingered on me before he looked up at the tiger uncle. “Tiger. What is this?”
His voice was young—not like an “uncle,” more like a “big brother.”
“Goat…” The tiger uncle pulled me forward. “Something strange happened. A child became a ‘Zodiac.'”
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