Chapter : 26
“Young master…!”
When Soya raised her voice, Gayul suddenly jumped down from the tree with a light thump and began running away.
Soya immediately chased after him.
“Kyah!”
Gayul was quickly caught.
He had forgotten that Soya had received a Wind Orb from Sanho.
Gayul, who had a strong competitive streak, felt a little wronged that Soya had managed to catch him.
“Kwaang! Kwaang, kwaang! (That’s cheating, cotton ball!)”
Gayul stomped the ground with his front paws in protest.
Just then—
Soya gently tucked a flower behind Gayul’s round ear.
“Grrr? (W-what is that?)”
Seeing Gayul’s flustered reaction, Soya burst into laughter.
“That’s your punishment. You got caught by me.”
“Kwaang! Kwaang, kwaang! (No! I’m the great third son of the White Tiger clan—!)”
Gayul jumped up and struggled to remove the flower with his short front paws.
“Huh? No, you can’t! A punishment is a punishment!”
Soya quickly grabbed his paws to stop him.
“Grrr…! (Who decided that it’s a punishment!)”
Looking at the sulking Gayul, Soya smiled and made a suggestion.
“Then this time, Young Master can be the tagger. If you catch me, I’ll let you take the flower off.”
“Khuh? Grrr… Kwaaang! (What? No— Hey! Cotton ball! Where are you going!)”
Before Gayul could even finish speaking, Soya dashed off in the opposite direction.
A bright smile bloomed across her face as she ran.
It was a clear, radiant smile—
one that even Soya herself had long forgotten how to make.
* * *
Thanks to the Wind Orb, Soya could hop lightly even along the uneven hillside without much effort.
However, she couldn’t beat Gayul in endurance.
Because speed and stamina were balanced between them, their game of tag turned into a fairly even match—unlike when they played ball in the garden.
After running around for quite a while, Soya and Gayul finally collapsed onto the ground, panting.
They had been playing so energetically that even Gayul—who prided himself on his stamina—felt a little tired.
After sharing the lunch box Yeonjeong had prepared, Gayul returned to his human form and lay down on the grass, soon falling into a light nap.
Soya played nearby, enjoying the flowers, when she noticed that Suri’s expression looked unwell.
“Suri-nim, what’s wrong?”
“I think… I might have an upset stomach.”
Suri replied, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
“A-are you okay? Shouldn’t you go back down the mountain quickly?”
“I can’t ruin your first outing because of me, Miss. I’ll quickly go to the White Tiger Palace and come back. Just stay right beside the young master and don’t go anywhere, okay?”
Suri gave Soya a gentle smile.
But the smile looked strained, which made Soya worry.
“Yes! I’ll stay right next to the young master! Please go quickly and come back, Suri-nim!”
The moment Soya finished speaking—
Poof!
Suri transformed into a large wolf.
As if he was in a hurry, he dashed down the mountain in a single leap and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Suri-nim is really fast even without a Wind Orb.
The beast-people of the Azure Wolf Clan, famous for their wind-like speed, had long served as warriors protecting the direct bloodline of the White Tiger.
I wish I had an amazing ability like that.
Soya thought the Azure Wolves were incredibly cool for protecting others with their powers.
Special abilities.
Unique powers possessed by beast-people, usually inherited through their family bloodline.
For beast-people, awakening their spirit core and manifesting their abilities was normal.
But for Soya—whose spirit core had been stolen for three years after her first transformation—it was impossible.
Even though she had gotten the core back now, it barely functioned.
Worse still, if left untreated, it could even threaten her body.
Hadn’t she collapsed last time because of problems with her spirit core?
She diligently took the medicinal tonics Sara sent her every morning and evening.
But deep down, Soya knew.
She would probably live her entire life as a half-complete beast-person with a broken spirit core.
“Take the child’s spirit core and lock her in the cold palace.”
“If that girl makes you sad, I’ll remove her from your sight forever. So don’t cry, Lili.”
Whenever Soya thought about her father and Brother Hwayu, her chest still tightened painfully.
But she realized something.
Thinking of them didn’t hurt as much as before.
Because she now understood.
They had never been her family to begin with.
Her broken spirit core was the price she paid for stealing Miss Lili’s place and causing them grief.
Thinking like that helped her swallow the sadness little by little.
Besides—
There had been warm hands that comforted her when she cried so bitterly.
And it’s okay even if I don’t have special abilities. I protected people too.
Soya remembered the colorful stone talismans she had made with Yeonjeong and Sanho.
Her gloomy mood lifted a little.
When I go back this evening, I’ll make a talisman with these flowers and give it to the young master as a gift. I hope he likes it this time.
Soya smiled softly as she looked at the sky flowers in her basket.
Then—
“Huh…?”
Her ears suddenly perked up.
Grrr…
An unfamiliar growl came from the bushes.
“!”
Instinctively, Soya jumped to her feet and looked toward the sound.
Then she froze.
A wild beast stood there, drool dripping from its mouth as its threatening eyes glowed.
Why…?
Soya’s eyes trembled with tension.
Yeonjeong-nim said the animals on Horim Mountain never attack people…
But there was no time to question it.
I have to run…!
Her hands and feet trembled.
Soya suddenly remembered when she had felt this way before.
The day she left the Vermilion Bird estate.
After the summer festival, when she had been left alone and faced a man in a black mask.
This feeling—
It was unmistakably killing intent.
I can escape. Last time I stupidly tripped and almost died, but this time I have the Wind Orb Sanho-nim lent me.
Soya clenched her fists tightly.
Then she glanced toward the young master.
He was sleeping soundly a short distance away.
The beast seemed focused only on her and hadn’t noticed him.
Tap!
Soya kicked off the ground and ran in the opposite direction from Gayul.
Immediately, the beast began chasing her.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Urgent footsteps echoed through the mountain.
Hearing the noise, more beasts began joining the chase.
Trying to avoid them, Soya ran deeper and deeper into the forest.
After running for a long time, she reached a dead end.
A massive black rock blocked the path.
Soya glanced back.
The beasts slowly began surrounding her, realizing she had nowhere left to run.
Grr…
Grr…
Grrr…
Soya swallowed hard and turned back toward the rock.
It was enormous.
After a brief hesitation, she started climbing.
Normally she wouldn’t even consider climbing such a rock.
But the Wind Orb strengthened the power of her legs and ankles.
Soya quickly scrambled upward with her hands and feet.
She almost slipped several times but eventually reached the top.
The beasts gathered below the rock.
Then suddenly—
RUMBLE—!
The sky darkened and the ground began to shake violently.
Soya, who had been clinging to the rock, slipped and fell onto the ground.
“No…!”
She hurriedly stood up—
Then stopped.
The beasts that had been baring their fangs moments ago were now whimpering in fear.
Huh…?
Soya blinked in confusion.
Then suddenly—
A huge shadow fell over her.
She slowly tilted her head back.
And froze.
Now she understood what had terrified the beasts.
The “rock” she had just climbed—
was standing up.
A chilling fear far greater than before swept over her.
It’s not a rock! That’s…!
Her eyes shook violently.
Beneath a black, hard shell glowed ashen gray eyes.
Four thick legs supported a body as massive as a boulder.
It was a demonic beast.
“Grrrrrr!”
The moment its roar echoed—
The ground shook again.
BOOM!
The beast slammed its huge forepaw onto the ground, splitting the earth open.
“Yelp…!”
“Whine…!”
Before the animals could flee, they fell into the cracks in the earth.
In an instant, Soya was left alone with the demonic beast in an empty clearing.
“Grrrr…”
Soya stood frozen.
She didn’t even dare breathe.
She had to run.
She needed to escape.
But the overwhelming fear from what she had just witnessed bound her body tightly.
“Grrrr…”
The beast stared at her with its shining gray eyes.
Tears almost welled up from instinctive terror.
Then—
Crack…
The rough, bark-like black shell peeled away.
The beast’s enormous body melted like mud…
until—
“Bbyat!”
It turned into a small black fluffball.
“Bii?”
The little black furball tilted its head while looking at Soya.
