The moment the duo passed through the castle gate, they were surrounded by nearly a hundred guards. The castle was built at the center of the city, so the explosions caused by Gumiho were loud enough to attract their attention.

"Where are you taking that hideous thing, Yuta?" an arrogant voice came from behind the guards.

A young fox-man with jagged claws walked in as the guards stepped aside, paving the way for him.

"Mind your tongue, Riku. If not for Ume, your corpse would have already rotted away in that waterfall."

"What is there to mind? Just look at that thing. That half-burnt face marred with numerous marks and disgusting scars."

Gumiho's fingers quivered upon hearing the nonsense spewed by Riku.

"Who do you think is responsible for this appearance of mine?" she muttered, walking toward Riku. "Didn't you play your fair role by framing me as a demon? Starting with you, I will clear all the debts the main family owes me."

Riku's claws shrank, his legs trembled, and he quickly moved behind the guards.

"W-What do you mean by framing? You're a two-tailed demon," Riku stammered. "Guards, kill that thing this instant! And as for you, Yuta, grandfather will deal with you once he returns."

"One can grow in age or height, but they can't change their nature. He's still as cowardly as before," I sighed inwardly.

"These are the elite guards trained by the Ancestor. They're awakened warriors capable of beast transformation. Be careful," Yuta explained, baring his claws again.

As Gumiho stepped forward, the guards' bodies started to twist and transform into fox beasts nearly the size of an adult elephant. Their fangs elongated, saliva dripped from their bloodthirsty mouths as they stared at Gumiho like a prey.

And yet, Gumiho remained calm. Terrifyingly calm. She raised her right arm upward, her index finger pointing at the sky.

Then she whispered, slowly lowering her finger toward the army of beasts.

P

E

T

A

L

R

A

I

N

Out of nowhere, hundreds of petals began falling from the sky in a small radius where the army of beasts stood.

Before they could even launch their attack, the unavoidable petals touched their bodies—and the one-sided massacre began.

At that moment, I wasn't sure what was more deafening: the explosions from the petals or the screams of the beasts being blasted apart. It didn't take more than a minute for Gumiho to wipe out the elite guards of the Ancestors with a single movement of her finger.

The outburst threw the whole city into chaos. Flames erupted. Houses burned. Buildings fell. Ordinary people ran around shouting,

"The two-tailed demon has escaped!"

And at the center of the chaos, Gumiho stood drenched in the blood of the beasts she had slain.

"Please… please don't kill me," Riku pleaded.

He was the only one left—deliberately. His legs were gone, and one of his arms had already been blown off.

"Don't worry. I won't kill you. Send a message to your grandfather that he should wash his neck," Gumiho said as she passed by him. "I will be coming for it soon."

After walking for a few minutes, Yuta guided Ume to an abandoned house.

The inside looked like any other house—a futon in the center, a small kitchen in the corner, and clothes hanging on the wall on the other side.

Yuta quickly closed the door behind him, folded the futon, and removed the planks from the floor beneath, revealing a path below it.

"It took me several years to create this secret path. It leads directly out of the city to where your father's army is currently fighting against the Ancestor."

"You still haven't gotten over your obsession with secret places," Gumiho mocked in a friendly tone before turning serious as she asked, "Do you know where my mother is kept? We need to take her as well."

"I have already transferred the crystal in which she is sealed to the other side. Uncle Aruma attacked the fox clan six months ago, and since then, I've been working as his spy. He assigned me only one mission—the safe rescue of his wife and daughter. Right now, he is going all out at the front to keep the Ancestor distracted while I rescue you from here.

We need to hurry. I don't know how, but the Ancestor's power has become unfathomable over the years. Uncle Aruma can't hold him forever."

Gumiho nodded, and the duo jumped into the hole. It was a long tunnel with darkness as far as the eye could see.

They ran for a few miles, but then my vision started to blacken, as it did every time Gumiho lost consciousness.

A loud thud resounded, and my sight was completely gone.

...

"You were pushing your body beyond its limits. Even if you're gifted, you haven't fully recovered yet," Yuta's calm voice, along with the sound of fast-running steps, echoed as my sight returned.

He was carrying Gumiho on his back, still inside the tunnel. But the path wasn't abyssal like before—there was light at the end.

The closer they reached the light, the tighter Gumiho gripped Yuta's shoulder.

"Thank you, Yuta," she whispered, placing her head on his back as the duo came out of the tunnel.

The night had passed, and the sun was already rising.

"Yuta, you're late. We've been waiting the whole night here."

"We thought you got caught. We were about to send reinforcements."

"Idiot, we are the reinforcements."

Hundreds of human-beasts surrounded the tunnel the duo had emerged from. The land was filled with army tents, weapons, and soldiers whose eyes were locked on the figure resting on Yuta's shoulders.

"Is... is that lady the daughter of Lord Aruma?" one of them asked, clearly nervous and excited.

"Yes, she is," Yuta replied, putting her down.

"Ring the bells! The rescue mission is successful!" Yuta shouted in a loud voice.

A group of soldiers, following Yuta's order, ran toward the watchtower where a huge metallic bell hanged at its top.

"Look at her appearance. How much did they torment her?" someone whispered among the onlookers.

"I heard Lord Aruma boasting about his daughter's beauty countless times. It's such a pity," another sighed.

Gumiho, who could clearly hear their whispers, clenched her fists tighter and tighter until her palms began to bleed.

Yuta was about to speak up, but then a stream of ringing echoed through the surroundings as the soldiers who had left earlier began striking the bell with the hammers using all their might.

"Have the years of war turned them insensitive, or are they just plain stupid?" I thought inwardly. "A pathetic pity is the last thing she needs right now."

And then another voice came from among the soldiers — a cracking voice laced with relief and sadness.

"You've grown, my precious Ume," Hana whispered, walking through the soldiers with fragile movements.

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