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Chapter 24
“Both of you, please calm down.”
Sehwa’s voice broke the awkward silence that followed Fox’s shout.
“Lord Rouge. Lady Hyeryeong acted with both Cheonwolru and me in mind.”
“I know.”
“In the end, she returned safely. So please don’t scold her too harshly.”
At that, Fox sharply turned his head away. Seeing that, Sehwa gave a bitter smile and looked at me.
“Lady Hyeryeong. I’m relieved that you weren’t hurt.”
“…I’m sorry for dirtying the clothes.”
“Clothes can be washed. Still, next time, could you let someone know beforehand? We were very worried.”
Sehwa’s calm, courteous request eased my heart a little.
“…I’m sorry for worrying you. I won’t do that again.”
“Thank you for saying so.”
Seeing Sehwa smile gently, the corners of his eyes softening, I didn’t regret teaching that big brute and the idiot a lesson.
How could anyone not want to protect a child who did nothing but kind, lovely things?
“…Still, you did well.”
Just as my heart softened at Sehwa’s smile, an unexpected voice came from Fox.
“…What?”
“You got caught because you let your guard down, but still—you smashed them properly. I’m glad you weren’t hurt.”
As he spoke, Fox strode over and suddenly thrust something toward me.
“This is…”
I widened my eyes at the scent brushing my nose and the energy contained within.
“It’s a Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo.”
Fox said it without changing his expression.
Any medicinal herb that had aged ten thousand years was something you might encounter only once in a spirit’s lifetime—an exceedingly rare treasure.
For an herb that gathered energy to grow for ten thousand years without ever being noticed by spirits or humans was nearly impossible.
So the fact that he had obtained a Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo was astonishing.
“How did you get this…?”
“Just got lucky.”
Fox answered casually, then added an explanation.
“Seems that Jimjo had been sneaking around, secretly searching for herbs all this time.”
“What? That’s dangerous—!”
“That’s not really something the Mountain Lord should say, is it? Anyway, thanks to that, we found it early. So later, at least tell Jimjo thank you.”
As he said that, he furrowed his brows and took on a firm expression.
“Next time, we’ll have to go even farther. But! If you do something like this again, I won’t look for herbs. I won’t! Got it?!”
He was deliberately acting strict, but more than that, I felt a tight ache in my chest at his consideration.
“…It feels strange for me to say this, but shouldn’t Jimjo or you be the ones to take it? Why give it to me…?”
It was a reasonable question. This wasn’t just any herb—it was a Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo. It would’ve been understandable even if he had swallowed it without telling anyone.
“That’s a ridiculous thing to say. Though I get where you’re coming from.”
Fox let out a deep sigh as he replied.
“You know exactly what the Blood Cult is like, Mountain Lord. I don’t know everything yet since you haven’t told me all the details, but I can tell it’s something serious if you’re that wary.”
He lounged a bit more loosely, nodding his head slowly.
“Besides, I don’t really have a desire to become stronger. I can have plenty of fun as I am now—so why bother? It’s not like I’m aiming for ascension. And Jimjo’s been obsessed with how to restore you in the first place; there’s no way he’d eat it first.”
“But you know because I told you. The Blood Cult is—”
“You promised on your inner core that you’d protect us.”
Fox smiled.
“I’d rather be the schemer than the fighter. Foxes are cunning, not a clan that excels in combat.”
“What, so you’re saying I should fight in your place?”
“For that to happen, the Mountain Lord has to get stronger. So naturally, the herb goes to you. Right?”
Fox laughed as he said it, and I didn’t feel bad at all—because I could feel his consideration.
No matter how he joked, giving up a medicinal herb like this was an act of tremendous restraint and concession for a spirit.
“…Thank you, both of you. Truly.”
“If you’re grateful, then don’t make us worry. Hurry up, recover, and get stronger.”
With that, Fox roughly ruffled my head.
Fox said he’d taken care of the aftermath, but it seemed he had plenty of other things to do as well.
Something about squeezing some money out thanks to a hooligan, something about there being nothing useful even after shaking down the Dark Soul Society bastards.
Fox’s muttering increased, but I didn’t get involved.
It wasn’t something for me to interfere with, and above all, I had to prepare to consume the Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo.
‘If I take it without preparation, it’ll backfire.’
I couldn’t afford to underestimate the energy contained in a ten-thousand-year-old herb.
If I swallowed it without any precautions, my body might just burst apart.
To accept such energy, I needed my natural qi, properly harmonized and ready to draw it in.
“It’s going to take a while…”
The energy within the Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo was that abundant. And unlike before, Fox had too many responsibilities to serve as my guardian during cultivation.
‘It can’t be helped.’
With that thought, I approached the window.
[Jimjo. Are you free for a moment?]
[What is it, Mountain Lord?]
The one who had transformed into a crow landed on the windowsill.
[I’m sorry, but I think you’ll need to guard me for a bit.]
[Ah, because of the herb, right?]
[Yeah. I’ll be vulnerable.]
[Of course I should help.]
[Will it be all right? The place is the basement of this building.]
Jimjo spread one wing and waved it lightly as he replied.
[Human brats are tiresome, but this is about protecting you, Mountain Lord. And if it’s underground, we won’t run into humans anyway.]
As he spoke, his size shrank. He transformed into a pitch-black sparrow and flew onto my shoulder.
[Tch. What is that fox even doing? Can’t even guard you himself—]
[Fox is probably doing what only a fox can do. I didn’t want to interfere.]
[Well, whatever. Even without him, I can protect you just fine.]
Jimjo puffed out his chest as he said that, but since he was in sparrow form, he looked more cute than reliable.
[All right. I’m counting on you.]
Holding back a laugh, I brushed my index finger down Jimjo’s back and headed for the underground training hall.
I’d already given Fox advance notice. All that remained was to prepare my body to consume the Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo.
After pouring effort into it for about two weeks, I reached a fairly satisfactory state.
[This should be enough to eat it.]
I returned to my true form, consumed the herbs and elixirs Fox had provided, and accumulated qi, strengthening my foundation.
Now I was at least capable of controlling the Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo’s energy without being overwhelmed by it.
[Oh, you’re finally done cultivating?]
When I opened the door to the underground training hall, Fox approached, beaming.
[You’ve recovered compared to before, haven’t you? Your fur’s glossier, and there’s strength in your muscles now.]
As he spoke, Fox examined my tiger body from every angle, his face clearly full of emotion.
[Mountain Lord, let’s check properly.]
[Check what?]
[You said your muscles got stronger. And your fur’s all shiny too—just let me touch it once.]
[Do you want to get bitten?]
I bared my teeth and growled, but he showed no sign of backing off.
Instead, Fox’s eyes gleamed as he approached, wiggling his fingers, and a chill ran down my spine.
When I flicked my tail sharply, Jimjo chimed in.
[Don’t satisfy your impure desires, you damn fox.]
[That’s my line. Weren’t you staying with the Mountain Lord under the excuse of guarding him?]
[That’s because I’m way more reliable than you!]
[Delusions are free, I guess.]
[Delusions? What delusions! Well, I suppose if the truth is hard to accept, calling it a delusion is convenient.]
Jimjo puffed up his feathers to the fullest and lifted his chin proudly atop my head.
…Though with his pitch-black sparrow form, he looked cute rather than arrogant.
[Both of you, that’s enough. More importantly, the Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo.]
[Hey, how can you say that at a time like this?]
[Everything we did was to eat the Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo. So hand it over.]
[Damn it, give me back my emotion.]
[Will emotion restore my inner core? Recovery is only natural. If I eat the Ten-Thousand-Year Hasuo without recovering first, it’s no different from deadly poison.]
As Fox and I started bickering, Jimjo shook his head and quietly hopped down from my shoulder to the floor.
[…Honestly, is this really the time for that?]
I heard the mutter, but ignored it.
