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Iris’s wickedness could hardly be called the embodiment of altruism, love, justice, and punishment.
The previous Saints of the past were described as having a personality that embraces both coldness and love.
Iris was a man who lagged behind in every way.
Frankly, no one would have thought Iris was a Saint had it not been for the phoenix feather to prove that the stigma on his left shoulder was real.
For the first time, the Pope mustered courage.
“Alanto. Are you nearby?”
“Yes, Your Holiness.”
“Secret gathering.”
“Whom should I summon?”
“The Guardians. The protectors of the Saint.”
“But if they are the Guardians…”
“Yes, I know. That’s why we should never get caught.”
Alanto bowed his head and left in an instant.
The Guardians do not follow Iris therefore they will answer the Pope’s call.
‘The Saint is the pillar of the western continent. Everyone’s destruction and survival are in the hands of the Saint, so, if he really did impersonate the Saint…’
Isn’t that the reason why The Holy Land of Gaia became a non-aggression zone?
Numerous countries in the Western Continent made tributes to Gaia.
It was the same with Grenia Empire.
No matter how great they were, they were mere creatures and needed divine care. The priests of the Holy Land also had a deep understanding of their sacred mission.
‘Even if it’s a one-in-a-million possibility, It would be a big deal if Saint Iris was a fake.’
When that day comes, perhaps the whole world would step up in search of the Saint.
“We need to find the real saint as soon as possible…”
The pope muttered without even recognizing what he was saying.
***
Scyllia, who had slaughtered the monster without mercy, raised her head.
“What’s going on?”
“Co-Commander, that is…”
She walked towards the gathering place of her members.
“Mom! Whuaaaaa!”
A young child was prostrated with his arms held by the knights.
“Explain.”
Vice-Commander Eric, who had turned white, swallowed dry saliva and opened his mouth.
“It is said that paladin Nellachi, saw a monster who escaped from the auction house transform into a human child.”
“Then why aren’t you killing it?”
No one answered and could only sweat.
It’s a child. One that cries sadly looking for his mother. Even if they try to cut it, they’re not sure if it’s really a monster who has turned into a child.
Scyllia looked down at the child with cold eyes.
The child was similar to Ran, but clearly had a different kind of energy.
Unlike Ran, where there is a lot of room like a gray area mixed with the blood of a divine beast, this one was not worth worrying about.
Scyllia drew her sword without hesitation.
“Argh! Help me! Mom!”
The child screamed and peed.
“Commander.”
Eric, who was standing next to her, tried to stop her with a face that wanted to faint, but Scyllia didn’t even blink her eyes.
She raised her sword at once and pierced the heart with precision.
“Ahhhhhhhh!”
The child screamed loud enough to burst an eardrum but stopped when Scyllia pulled out her sword.  The small body was horribly distorted, soon returning to the form of a monster and sprawling on the floor.
Everyone froze and watched the horrifying sight.
“Move it elsewhere.”
Scyllia coldly commanded while shaking off the sword once and then putting it in the sheath.
While Eric stood blankly in the same place, Scyllia’s clear eyes gently moved.
“Eric.”
“Ah! Y-Yes, ma’am! What are you doing! Put this away!”
Only then everyone moved in unison, it was also the last monster, so all that was left was to clean up.
Scyllia, who was about to go back, suddenly grabbed Eric’s arm.
“Gasp!”
Eric shuddered like a man caught by The Reaper.
“Did you get hurt?”
“Wh-What?”
“Priest Tara!”
When Scyllia yelled at her, a healing priest who was dealing with the aftermath rushed to her.
“Did you call? Oh my, Sir Eric. You have a cut.”
It was then that Eric noticed that his forearm was bleeding.
“Is it serious?”
Scyllia asked with a stiff face. Priest Tara smiled softly and shook her head.
“No. It’s not deep.”
“Poison.”
“I think there’s none.”
Scyllia, who nodded, left only then.
Eric stared blankly at her back as she moved away.
***
“Ran?”
Scyllia, completely exhausted, entered the house calling for the little fox.
She saw a fox sleeping with its body curled up on the sofa in the living room overlooking the porch.
She moved silently and went to shower first. She was unbearably tired.
‘If it continues like this, it would be difficult to hold out for a long time.’
Scyllia roughly washed her face with cold water.
The curse has been throbbing all the time. She examined the scar with a serious face. It looks like it’s burned, but it’s not a burn, it’s a strange, mysterious scar.
As she endured the pain and struggled to live, every day was difficult for Scyllia, dark bags of exhaustion took place under her eyes.
She washed her body and put on a robe.
When she came out of the living room, Ran was sitting on the sofa he had been lying on, raising only his head.
“I’m sorry, did I wake you up?”
Ran buried his head in the sofa with no energy.
“What’s wrong, Ran?”
When she gently scratched the top of his round little head with her fingertips, his nine tails fluttered in all directions.
“Are you in a bad mood?”
“Kurung…”
“I think you look upset.”
“Ku.”
As she sat on the sofa and looked at the pouting fox, Scyllia strangely began to feel better.
Scyllia wondered why her mind was at ease even though Ran was angry.
‘Is this the power of the nine-tailed fox?’
Scyllia was amazed.
‘Is he bewitching me with his cuteness? But I think it was written a little differently in the book…’
Scyllia’s hands, which had been playing on Ran’s head, were busy moving, this time scratching his chin.
Ran folded his yellow eyes as thin as a crescent moon, and wept softly. Scyllia became more serious than before.
‘Is the cuteness that stimulates a protective instinct the nine-tailed fox’s weapon?’
She only remembered that it was written as a slightly more dangerous nuance, and couldn’t think of a detailed explanation. Because these days she only cuts, cuts, and cuts even more monsters, even what she studied was blurry.
Her hands ran down to his stomach.
Ran’s fluffy, warm and soft pink belly wrapped into the palm of her hand. He couldn’t stand the gentle rubbing and turned over.
At the same time, Scyllia remembered what was written in the book.
‘Seducing people with their innate decadent beauty to restore the energy…’
Scyllia stopped thinking about it.
‘No way.’
Ran was lying on his back with his tongue sticking out by the side of his snout. Every time she pets him down, he grunts, grumbles, and weeps.
She looked forward to seeing how cute he would become in the future.
Scyllia’s clenched lips loosed.
‘Nothing is known about the nine-tailed fox, so it seems that people have unleashed their imaginations into the book.’
Scyllia firmly believed so.
Ran and a decadent and dangerous mood did not match. When she imagined Ran pretending to be sexy, he felt cuter, and laughter leaked out.
‘Is Ran growing?’
Time flies, but he was still the same size, Scyllia felt so sorry for him.
‘I wish I could see him grow up like a human.’
The baby nine-tailed fox had no change in figure, instead, it grew up at once, that was her only disappointment.
“Ran, do you like it?”
Ran opened his eyes. He had the eyes of a cat, awakened from a frantic craving for catnip or a dog chasing a squirrel and banging its head in a tree.
“Aruwarung!”
Ran struggled, straightened himself up, and stood back, glued to the wall.
Scyllia felt wronged because Ran’s eyes were wary as if he had been forced to be touched.
“Ran, you liked it too.”
“Growl!”
“You liked it when I touched your belly, so I…”
“Urururu!”
“All right. Sorry.”
Although she apologized, Ran showed no signs of letting loose. It seemed that his pride had been severely damaged.
Scyllia, who was watching the fox’s long snout that turned his head, suddenly realized that he had been alone all day.
“You’ve been waiting for me, Ran. Right? That’s why you are upset?”
Ran showed no reaction.
Even Scyllia, who had a precarious level of reading-the-mood skill, could notice that it was a positive reaction.
“Sorry. Strangely, I am very busy these days.”
I’m not feeling well either.
The wound throbbed as soon as she thought about it.
‘It seems to be getting worse.’
Without realizing it, she bit her lower lip and patted her left shoulder. In her mind, she wanted to cut out the scarred flesh.
‘I’m sorry for Ran, too. He was alone all day, I wish he had friends…’
She sighed heavily and rose from her seat. She needed her trump card in order to soothe Ran’s sullen heart.
“Ran. Would you like a snack?”
Ran turned his head away from Scyllia and stood still, but Scyllia clearly saw one of his large ears swish towards her as he turned away.
She bit her lip, trying to hold back her laughter.
“What is it? Ran seems very angry, so a normal snack won’t soothe his anger…I guess I’ll have to prepare  an even more delicious snack…”
Ran’s tail or two began to wiggle loosely from side to side.
“What kind of snack should I give? It looks like jerky won’t be enough…Should I take out the roasted pheasant?…”
The glittering fox’s nostrils fluttered vigorously.
Scyllia gnawed at her molars, barely suppressing a laughing fit, and then walked into the kitchen.
She then took a large vial with preservation magic from her cupboard and uncapped it.
Although it was not seasoned separately, it was good quality meat with vegetables, edible flowers, and fruits.
A fragrant smell rose and made even Scyllia, who had no appetite, salivate.
Ran stayed motionless on the couch holding the last strand of his pride.
Scyllia mumbled to herself as she rummaged through the vial for no reason.
“I really wish Ran would eat it…”
Tododododo!
As soon as she finished speaking, Scyllia heard toenails knocking on the floor while running excitedly.