Okay, now that everything's sorted, let's catch some chickens!!
That's what I wanted to do, but while I was working on my skills, I ended up thinking: What should I do with the chicken after I caught it?
The normal thing would be to pluck it and eat it, but we're out of gas (the gas cylinder was stolen), and I don't even know if Mari can eat meat now, being a Pixie. I could give it to Lumi and Nawa, but that wouldn't be fair to the Cleaner who "helped me before"...
Aaaahhh, I'll have to catch at least three and hope the item box has room for them.
Shortly after, I was on the edge of the roof, looking at the neighbor's house. Everything seemed normal, that is, if I ignored the broken gate and the car that made a hole in the wall of the other neighbor to the left.
Thanks to my enhanced senses I could see a small movement near the garage and another in the shed in the background, as the edge of the second floor "terrace" was closer to the garage I decided to go after that one first.
"Okay, as agreed, I'll stay here, guarding it so you don't get in the way, but seriously, be quick."
Mari said as I mentally prepared myself for a jump of just over 5 meters (height, not distance).
"Okay, I think it shouldn't take more than 3 minutes, maybe less."
3 minutes to catch a chicken may seem like a long time, but remember, chickens are very fast animals, and when cornered, they use their beaks and claws mercilessly.
Not to mention that, like every farm, our neighbor also has a rooster, and unlike chickens, they come at you already hopping and flapping their wings, ready to scratch and peck anyone who tries to harm their chickens and chicks.
3 minutes to catch a chicken when you're not used to it is actually a good number. That's according to what an aunt of ours who has (or maybe now had) a farm told me. But that was when I was a little kid, around 7 or 8 years old.
Even today, I remember running after the chicks and running away from the roosters. So I have a basic understanding of how to catch these hens, but this is also an opportunity to see what this Dhampir body is capable of.
Taking another deep breath, I flexed my legs, launched myself, and was soon on the ground. I barely felt the 5-meter descent, or the thud of hitting the ground; even the sound of landing seemed muffled, like a cotton blanket falling to the ground.
I also didn't feel any numbness in my feet, something I've never been good at. I don't know if it was my new body or the help of the [body reinforcement] ability, but whatever it was, I'm certainly grateful.
My body's exaltation aside, I quickly got up and walked as quietly as I could to the garage where I thought I'd seen the hen.
Crouching down a bit and with my hands ready, I came out from behind the wall and grabbed the animal. She didn't even have a chance to start cackling before I lifted her off the ground.
I was about to bite her like a goblin, but I stopped when I noticed something as soon as I looked at the chicken clutched in my hands.
*Chiirriiil Chiirriiiilll*
This in my hands wasn't a chicken, it was a chick. A giant chick.
Chickens are relatively similar in size and weight, but they still vary from species to species. However, on average (at least for the most common breeds in Brazil), hens would be 30 cm tall and weigh a maximum of 2.7 kg, and roosters 50 cm and 3 kg. The chicks would logically be much smaller, at 10 or 20 cm at most.
But if a chick is already the size of a full-grown chicken, how big are the chickens altered by the mana?
The answer came almost immediately from the central window (also broken). Jumping higher than it should have been possible to do so, and coming with sharp claws toward my face, a 90cm chicken appeared.
Thanks to [enhanced senses] and [body reinforcement], I managed to dodge the four natural razors (which I'm sure I saw a metallic glint in), albeit just barely. I ended up with two small scratches on my temple.
Saying it like that, it might sound like I dodged with class and calm, but I didn't. I practically threw myself back to avoid getting my head sliced open.
Of course, I let go of the chick when I did this; the little ball of feathers went straight to the trunk of the car, where I could see two other chicks. Turning my attention to the hen in front of me, I quickly reassessed her and confirmed that it was indeed a hen.
Specifically, it was a female, since she didn't have a very large crest or a flashy tail like the males.
I'm no chicken expert, but I know the breed my neighbor had wasn't the aggressive type. Of course I am a stranger and at the very least the roosters would have the tendency to attack, but not the hens, the hens would run away as soon as I got near.
Is this also the effect of magic, or a characteristic of every mother defending her offspring?
Once again, I didn't have time to lose myself in useless thoughts. When the hen confirmed that her chicks were "safe" in the trunk of the car that crashed into the wall, she spread her wings and positioned them in what appeared to be an intimidating pose.
I know roosters have intimidating poses, but is it normal for a hen to have one?!.
*Paapppa paappgggpppaaa!!*
She seemed to be giving me a warning as she positioned her paws to make it easier to attack.
To me, this felt more like a challenge, and I've never been one to shy away from a fight (which was a real headache for my family, and I admit it's something I need to work on). I also positioned myself forward, like a football player's attack stance.
I went first, and before I knew it, my nails had grown and turned black. It seemed I'd unconsciously activated the [obsidian claws] ability, and I was already close enough to rip the chicken's throat open.
But she wasn't far behind in the fighting department. She retracted her neck, turtle-like, at the last moment and retreated a few steps.
Immediately after, she did something I've never seen a chicken do, either in real life or even in cartoons: she charged at me as fast as I was and headbutted me in the pit of the stomach.