Inazuma City Tenshukaku
After enjoying a breathtaking sunrise and spending the entire night drinking,
Makoto and Saiguu were sitting together in a pleasant mood Until now. Both of their faces had frozen in identical expressions. The reason sat right before them. Their gazes were locked onto the little girl whose hand Luo Li was holding. "That's little Yae?!" After a long silence, Saiguu finally broke it. From the girl's fox ears, her tail, the familiar scent, and the distinct resonance of Hakushin blood she was almost certain of her guess. "You're correct," Luo Li said. Why? This time Makoto spoke.
What she meant was why did she suddenly turn into this? Luo Li, who looked like a reluctant father dragging along a toddler, replied helplessly: "If I say I don't know either, will you believe me?". Makoto and Saiguu exchanged doubtful looks.
It wasn't the answer they wanted but Luo Li didn't seem to be lying, so they reluctantly accepted it.
For a moment, none of the three adults knew what to say. The only one unbothered and extremely delighted was Yae herself. She had waited so long, and finally transformed! Touching her cheeks, then using a polished copper mirror to examine every angle of her new appearance, her eyes were full of excitement and wonder. "So this is what the human form looks like!" Now that she was truly human-shaped,
those fantasies she once had finally gained real meaning. She waved her little hands, stretched her legs everything was new and fascinating. The once-familiar world felt strangely unfamiliar in a new body. She needed time to adapt.
Luo Li spoke calmly: "I'm entrusting her to you two." If she were still a small fox, carrying her around was no problem. But now that she had become a little girl things would be troublesome. Unexpectedly, Saiguu was the first one to object. "You caused her to become like this, and now you want to escape responsibility?"
What was with that phrasing? Why did it sound so… misleading? Saiguu pouted.
"Don't even think about dumping her on us. From now on, Yae will study spellcraft with you during the day, and I will teach her Hakushin secret arts at night." She had finally gathered her thoughts. If Yae transformed earlier than expected, it meant her education could begin ahead of schedule. Saiguu did not know whether she would survive the calamity in the future. Thus, she wanted to pass on everything she knew to her successor as soon as possible so that even if tragedy struck, the lineage would not be severed.
Luo Li: "…" Saiguu added sharply, You were willing to teach a little girl from a rural village. Don't tell me you're going to discriminate against a child of the Hakushin clan?!" With the guilt card played so blatantly, how could Luo Li refuse? But with her schedule now fully booked day and night he looked sympathetically at the excited pink-haired girl. This was no different from overly ambitious parents who wanted their child to become a prodigy. One could already foresee that her carefree days were over. "You'd better enjoy yourself now… you won't be laughing soon."
He pinched Yae's slightly chubby cheeks developing a concerning addiction. Honestly, compared to her fox form, this was quite pleasant to squeeze too. Unlike Saiguu, her own eyes were slightly narrow, and at the corners, a soft peach-pink hue made it look as if she naturally wore eye shadow. Even as a small girl, hints of future charm peeked through.
Yae ignored Luo Li's cheek-pinching and remained immersed in her joy,
completely unaware that her free time would soon be squeezed dry.
Saiguu treated her as the future heir of the shrine without hardship and sweat, she could never grow into the near-almighty Guuji she would one day become. Makoto sighed regretfully. "What a shame. Once winter arrives, I won't be able to use her to warm my hands and feet anymore." Luo Li was speechless. So that was the real reason you brought her home back then Meanwhile, Saiguu, seeing Luo Li's unspoken acceptance, smiled like a blooming flower. "Then it's settled."
Just as she said that Urgent footsteps came from outside, followed by a nervous report from the Ogitomi retainers. "General! A message has arrived from the Kanriah envoy!" This instantly wiped all casualness from the room.
Everyone except little Yae tensed up. Makoto's expression turned serious.
"Bring it in." A retainer entered with lowered head, and upon noticing Saiguu and Luo Li present, nearly jumped. Without daring to linger, he placed a lightning-sealed letter before them and hurriedly left. Without hesitation, Luo Li picked up the letter and tore it open, reading it first. As he scanned the lines, his brow creased.
Makoto asked, "What does it say?" Luo Li read aloud, slowly: "The envoy reports that Kanriah has recently experienced many strange occurrences. Rumbling sounds like crashing waves have been echoing from deep underground, causing widespread fear among the citizens." "Furthermore, several locations have shown signs of ominous power. Those who made contact vanished, and when found again, they had already turned into monsters rumored to be cursed." "To this day, the curse continues to spread. The surface is now affected as well, with hordes of monsters wandering aimlessly in groups." "There are claims that the source of this disaster
comes from the Court's chief alchemist Rheindottir who touched forbidden power and created life against the order of the world." "Many are demanding that Rheindottir cease her dangerous experiments, but the Court has not issued any response."
When he finished reading, Luo Li fell silent. He had never expected Kanriah to show internal division. There was even more detailed information inside ten full pages describing the nation's worsening state and requesting guidance from the Shogun on how to proceed. He had once thought the Kanriah war began because the Sustainer struck first, and that Rheindottir merely sought a solution, only to lose control of the Abyss resulting in monsters overtaking the land. But now it seemed that even before the war, the alchemist known as "Gold" had already leaked Abyssal power. That power was overwhelmingly strongand equally catastrophic. After reading, Luo Li passed the stack of pages to Makoto and Saiguu, then fell into deep thought. Moments later, the two women adopted the same grave expression he wore.
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