Chapter 14

Before I could stop the fox—or even change back to my original form and bite him—he ordered a passing attendant to gather everyone into a large hall.

Just like that, any plan I had to punish him immediately evaporated.

[You… will pay for this later.]

I growled through sound transmission.
The fox’s fingertips trembled a little, but he still refused to put me down.

“I gathered everyone here to announce something,” he said, sounding unusually solemn and dignified for someone whose hand was shaking.

“Allow me to introduce—”

Suddenly, he slid his hands under my armpits and lifted me straight into the air.
I was left dangling helplessly in front of dozens of humans.

“My daughter!!”

“Cough! Cough, cough!!”

People gasped, choked on their own spit, froze, or stared at me with wide, startled eyes.

I slowly turned my gaze toward the fox and transmitted coldly:

[If you keep holding me up like some object,
I swear I will reduce the number of tails you have by half.
And daughter? Want to redo your cultivation from the beginning?

The fox immediately hugged me protectively to his chest.
I stretched out both hands and yanked his hair as hard as I could.

I felt strands snapping between my fingers.
Cold sweat trickled down the fox’s forehead.

“I—I was only joking! She’s not my daughter—
She’s the child of a close friend’s cousin.
There were circumstances, so she’s staying here.
Raised by her grandfather, so her way of speaking is a bit… unusual.”

“You suddenly calling me your daughter—Grandfather will punish you severely if he hears,” I said aloud.

“Haha… yes, yes. A joke. Just a joke.”

“Even jokes have limits, Uncle.”

As he avoided my eyes and fumbled for excuses, I considered pulling more hair out—
But someone spoke up.

“Pavilion Master. How should we address the young lady?”

It was Sehwa.
She stepped forward gracefully, her calm presence immediately drawing everyone’s attention.

“Her name is Cheong Hyeryeong,” said the fox.
“Sehwa, I’ll leave things to you.”

“I will serve the young lady with utmost care.”

“She’s still young and has much to learn.
So focus on that. That alone is enough.”

“Yes, Pavilion Master.”

Sehwa bowed deeply.
The rest of the humans followed her lead and bowed as well.

The sight stirred a strange feeling in me.

Everything the fox said was a lie.
A false identity, a false status.

Yet humans bowed.
Their eyes changed.

Despite my appearance being that of a child—weak, tiny, immature—
Their posture became cautious and respectful.

When I’d walked around as a baby tiger, they’d treated me like a cute pet.
offering snacks freely and patting my head without hesitation.

So this is “status”…?

I didn’t fully understand it.
but I could feel the massive difference between having no status at all
and having even a false human one.

I engraved the sight of their bowed backs into my memory.

I didn’t yet grasp the full meaning of the fox’s words.
But instinct told me this wasn’t meaningless.

***

“YOU!! HOW!! DARE!! CALL YOURSELF MY FATHER!!”

After returning to the private room with Sehwa and the fox—and sending everyone else away—the first thing I did was unleash a barrage of palm strikes onto the fox’s back.

I infused each hit with spiritual force.
Whack! Whack! Whack!

“Ow! Ow! San-gun—ow!! Wait—augh!!”

“A joke has limits! Are you trying to see what I look like when I’m actually angry?!”

“I’M SORRY!! I’M REALLY SORRY, SAN-GUN!!”

As the fox begged pitifully for mercy, Sehwa watched in stunned silence, hands folded politely, unable to intervene.

The ridiculousness of the situation made me sigh.

Compared to Sehwa, both the fox and I were acting like children despite being far older.

“Haaa…”

Now that my anger had cooled, exhaustion washed over me.
Human interaction wasn’t harmful but unfamiliar—and drained me easily.

“Young Lady Hyeryeong,” Sehwa said softly.

“Ah. Thank you.”

She handed me water with impeccable timing.
I nodded and took a sip.
The cool water spread through my body, easing my irritation.

“Uuugh… S-San-gun… this is my apology…”

The fox groaned dramatically and brought over a small wooden box.
I eyed him suspiciously before opening it.

“Oho… a rather good elixir.”

Herbs that contain spiritual energy are hard to find.
Even a tiny bit of energy improves their potency, making them highly sought after by martial artists and beasts alike.

If an herb has accumulated qi, even spirit creatures covet it.

Finding something strong enough to help me recover was therefore extremely difficult.

Which meant:
You accept whatever you can get.

This elixir was high-quality.

[This level is something humans would fight over just to increase their cultivation.]

[I am not a human who barely lives a hundred years.]

I swallowed the elixir neatly and licked the remaining traces from my lips.

“Anyway, Sehwa. If the Pavilion Master annoys you, feel free to hit him. I’ll protect you.”

“…Pardon?”

“He called me his daughter without warning.
He should at least coordinate with you.”

“Can’t I even make a simple joke…?”

“There are jokes, and then there are your jokes, Pavilion Master.”

The fox groaned again.

Sehwa finally spoke carefully:

“I… I am fine, young lady.”

“Okay. But if you ever want to hit him, let me know. I’ll help.”

“I could never…”

“San-gun,” the fox whispered. “Please don’t treat Sehwa like she treats you.”

“Hmph. She’s your subordinate—fine.
Anyway, the meal was acceptable today.”

I flexed my fingers and checked my inner core.
Even after eating all that, I’d barely restored a tenth of my qi.

A long road ahead indeed.

Still, the elixir’s qi was gentle and absorbed quickly.
That was at least comforting.

“Pavilion Master… What of young lady Hyeryeong?” Sehwa asked.

“Oh. I plan to keep Hyeryeong with me publicly so she can gain various experiences.
She’ll need guards, and for people to accept that, her identity must be clear.”

Sehwa nodded in understanding.

“I will remember that, Pavilion Master.”

[Fox. Is there a place where I can quietly train alone?

[There is… but why?]

I shouldn’t be leisurely studying humans right now.
I need to strengthen this weak body first.]

The fox’s eyes narrowed.

[San-gun… how much have you recovered?]

[About one-tenth.]

[Only that much?]

[Considering I was barely even at that when I first woke up, it’s progress.]

The fox groaned again and stood up.

“Sehwa. I will leave with Hyeryeong for a moment.
Watch over Cheonwolru.”

“I will manage it well.”

[San-gun. I’ll take you to the right place.]

[Fine.]

Reluctantly, I reached out my arms.
The fox picked me up securely and walked away, leaving Sehwa behind.

***

He led me deeper and deeper underground.
He pressed a small brick in the wall, which sank in, and a hidden door opened.

The passage was pitch black—
But for a fox and a tiger, it was no obstacle.

Bioluminescent moss faintly illuminated the deeper walls.
Dim for humans, but more than enough for spirit beasts.

The space we finally entered was a wide chamber with walls of smooth metallic minerals.

“What is this place?”

“A place where I can return to my true form when necessary.”

I looked up at him.
His eyes gleamed sharply in the dark.

“No matter how skilled my shapeshifting, sometimes I must return to my original body to…”

“More like a place to release your pent-up instincts.”

I glanced around.

The floor was polished with a metallic sheen.
Claw marks—deep, jagged, violent—covered the walls.

“Our essence is still that of beasts.”

“…I won’t deny that.
But sometimes, I think humans can be more beastlike than beasts.”

His lips twisted into a crooked smile.

“It’s difficult, pretending to be human all the time.
But life among humans is so entertaining that I can’t give it up.
So I built myself a place to vent.”

“It’s sturdy.”

“I gathered a ton of Bluesteel Ore to build it.”

“That alone wouldn’t withstand your strength.”

“It’s mixed with Cold-Iron.”

Ah. Then it made sense.

I tapped the ground and examined the claw marks again before nodding.

“This will do. With one-tenth of my qi restored, I can start cultivating properly here.
So go do your work.”

I waved him away.
He frowned.

… Why? Shouldn’t he be happy I was recovering?

Before I could question him, he cut in:

“Hey, San-gun. Even if this place is hidden, you want me to leave you alone while you gather qi?”

“That way you can gather herbs faster. No one else knows this place.”