CHAPTER 2 — "THE OLD MAN'S SECRET CHANGED EVERYTHING... DEMON HAD BEEN WAITING FOR THIS BOY."
The old man pushed through the crowd so quickly that several spectators stumbled aside.
"Move!"
"I have to see him!"
His trembling voice echoed across the silent arena.
Don Mateo recognized him immediately.
It was Esteban.
The oldest ranch worker in the region.
A man who had helped raise cattle for more than fifty years.
If anyone knew Demon, it was him.
Esteban reached the fence, gripping the wooden rails so tightly they creaked.
His eyes filled with tears.
"I knew it..."
"He has his father's eyes."
Don Mateo frowned.
"What are you talking about?"
Esteban never looked away from the boy.
"Fifteen years ago..."
"There was another bull."
"Bigger."
"Stronger."
"But gentle."
"And only one man could control him."
The spectators listened in complete silence.
"His name was Gabriel."
"He never used force."
"He never carried sticks."
"He believed animals remembered kindness longer than pain."
The boy gently scratched Demon's neck.
The enormous bull leaned into the touch like a tired horse.
No one could believe it.
Esteban continued.
"One stormy night, Gabriel rescued a newborn calf trapped in a flooded ravine."
"He nearly drowned saving it."
"The calf survived."
"But Gabriel disappeared."
"They never found his body."
Don Mateo's face slowly lost all color.
"You mean..."
Esteban nodded.
"That calf..."
"...was Demon."
A wave of whispers swept through the stands.
People looked back and forth between the bull and the teenager.
The resemblance suddenly became impossible to ignore.
The same calm eyes.
The same quiet voice.
The same fearless posture.
The boy finally turned toward Don Mateo.
"My father told me something before he left."
"If you ever meet the frightened calf..."
"...don't punish him."
"Find out who taught him to fear people."
The arena became silent once again.
Don Mateo lowered his head.
For years he had believed Demon was born vicious.
But now memories flooded back.
The harsh trainers.
The chains.
The electric prods.
The shouting.
The beatings hidden from visitors.
The bull had never been evil.
He had simply learned that humans meant pain.
Ashamed, Don Mateo stepped into the arena without any weapon.
Slowly...
He approached the giant animal.
Everyone expected Demon to attack.
Instead, the bull looked at the boy.
Almost as if asking permission.
The teenager nodded once.
Only then did Demon allow Don Mateo to touch his shoulder.
Tears streamed down the wealthy landowner's face.
"I spent three years trying to break him..."
"When all he ever needed..."
"...was someone to understand him."
But before anyone could celebrate, Demon suddenly jerked his head toward the entrance gate.
His ears stood upright.
His entire body became tense.
A deep growl rumbled from his chest.
The boy's smile vanished instantly.
Someone else...
May you like
Had just entered the ranch.
And the moment Demon saw that man, he became more furious than anyone had ever seen before...
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