As Spyn wrestled for control through her red strings across the void, she recalled the man known as Guan. In her younger years, she was enamored by his relentless upstanding nature, and together, they followed Xane, the Allfather, in overturning the demon beasts' heavens for humanity.
Yet, one day, the couple found themselves turning against one another.
"Guan… what a pity," the Allfather muttered of their history, reminding Spyn of her duty. "I was content to stand aside at the dawn of the Age of Humanity. Yet instead of cooperating with one another to finish the demon beasts, the many human species began to fight against one another…"
"A pity that you, Guan, was too stubborn to understand the necessity for my return and establishing my absolute authority," the Allfather spoke, as if the red strings would conduct his words to Xeeseir, tied to the strings on the other end. "The fallen gods are right after all. Humanity and demons-- it must be an eternal controlled conflict. Only then can there be any semblance of stability and order."
Spyn nodded at the Allfather's words. She, too, was aghast when the human allies began to fight against one another, after toiling for thousands of years against the rule of the demon beasts. For Guan to not stand on their side-- an absolute betrayal!
Meanwhile, one of Allfather's incarnations with the appearance of an elderly beggar in worn coarse robes appeared in the Zoh Empire.
Another of Allfather's incarnations, a young man of golden hair with silver highlights, a baby face with soft flesh, round eyebrows and large brown eyes, appeared in the Hall of Heroes branch within the Green Trout City. Overseer Jeahz bowed as that young boy's body flickered and vanished towards the west.
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The remaining four men from the House of Origins could only gaze at each other in repressed rage, discontent with how the events were playing out.
They had lost one to those red strings stretching in from the void. Naturally, they understood this was simply not their stage, and staying around was not going to give them any benefits.
Geihr gestured with his right arm before turning to leave. The white-masked man, and Sir Godeyes supported by the fourth white-robed man, followed in dismay.
Meanwhile, Xeeseir struggled to complete his aurae shell in his bid to enter the shell advancer power realm. Whenever he felt close, those red strings would tighten their grip around his heart.
He finally understood why he always struggled to reach the shell realm. His fate had been controlled from the very start.
Though the echo of the fallen god that awakened within Xeeseir, long ago in his teenage years, bestowed him the gift that now allowed him to resist and return the power within the red strings… he was simply lacking when it came to truly destroying the red knot around his heart.
Xeeseir gradually realized that perhaps the power of those red strings that came out of nowhere may be greatly diminished, either from distance or suppressed by the Fusion Realm.
The red knot, however, must have been tied around his heart long ago.
As such, he faintly realized that he would not be able to free himself. He sighed as he accepted his fate. Many others, previous versions of him-- or previous existences similar to him, depending on one's interpretation of the world-- had fallen to this same fate.
Then, the gruff whisperings of an ancient voice sounded in his mind.
"Do you not wish to free yourself from those shackles? Do you fear death?" If Rein heard this voice, he would instantly recognize it as that of Master Yirn's. Xeeseir, however, has never directly interacted with Master Yirn.
Still, when asked this question, for some odd reason, Xeeseir felt a familiarity with it. It was neither positive nor negative tinged association, but he immediately felt a deep reverence.
"I do not fear death," Xeeseir replied. He had, in fact, long accepted that he was simply unable to break into the shell realm, after repeated failures with the assistance of psychedelics.
"Then gather your powers. Concentrate your soul. Ignite your soul, implode your mind, and send your origin 'Retrace', through your heart! That red knot binds your heart, your mind, and your soul. Have no fear!"
A chant of ancient language sounded within Xeeseir's ears, and he reflexively followed the chant. He naturally knew that as an inner advancer, he had barely connected to his own soul-- the soul is a power that comes with the telekinetic realm. This chant must be this mysterious voice's assistance to do so.
As he copied the sounds and syllables of the chant, an unknown power rose from within. Xeeseir knew he was effectively combusting his soul, which should mean the end of him as an existence. Yet, he trusted the words of that mysterious being in his head.
Thus, he fed this new source of strength into his 'Retrace', and sent it coursing through his veins towards his heart! The accumulated power was of such force that his very being began to crack like a glass on the verge of shattering.
That energy gathered in his heart, then combusted with an almighty roar! The many red strings knotted around his heart made strenuous efforts to maintain the shape of the heart, yet they began to stretch slowly, before suddenly snapping in unison.
Xeeseir's body exploded into a thousand pieces, chunks of his flesh, blood, organs, skins and bones flying in all directions!
____________________________________________________
In another realm.
Spyn screamed in hysteria. It was a mix of anger, frustration, sadness, love and hate, all mixed together.
"He… he combusted his soul! How could he?! His soul belongs to me! He's mine! How dare he permanently kill himself?!" Spyn's eyes flashed with a madness collected over eons. It is believed that souls reincarnate. As for the specifics of how… that had become confusing to modern scholars.
This information did not cause the same reaction in the Allfather. Instead, the Allfather's closed his eyes, sinking deep into thought, ignoring the now hysterical Spyn.
After a few breaths, his eyes opened and shone with an understanding.
"Calm yourself, Spyn," he gently said, as the corners of his lips curled up in a restrained triumphant smile. "Finally, Blasphermor Yirn shows his hand. He has interfered against me from the shadows over so many years. Worry not, Spyn. Guan's soul is not dead. He will return, though no longer constrained by your strings unless you can identify him once again."
"Allfather…?" Spyn calmed somewhat. Though it is said that those who combust their souls for a sudden power would never reincarnate, she also trusted the Allfather's judgement.
"As you already know, there is the legend of the Yellow Springs that existed in the Age of Gods, deciphered from ancient texts. Supposedly, during the Age of Gods, all souls released from dead bodies would be carried through the flow of the tree of realms, down to the hellish realms at the roots, finally reaching the Yellow Springs to be judged and given the opportunity to reincarnate by the God of the Underworld, Mendes."
"However, after the fall of those gods, the original hellish realms were replaced by the fallen realms of those fallen gods. As for the original hellish realms? It is thought that they must have disintegrated back into nothingness, and the Yellow Springs, lost."
"Yet oddly, we know that reincarnation does still occur sporadically, outside of our understanding. Blasphermor Yirn never stands against me or interferes with the lesser heavens of any race for arbitrary reasons. He always does so with a purpose in mind."
"You have imprisoned Guan's soul beneath the shell realm, in hopes that he would finally change his nature over many lives. For him to combust his soul-- that old ghost from the era of the gods must have interfered."
"Since he has chosen to stick his hands in this matter, then his goal must be to free Guan, not completely destroy Guan's existence."
"That can only mean one thing," the Allfather's triumphant smile widened. "Yirn must have taken the Yellow Springs." He began to chuckle. "Legend says Yirn caused the fall of the gods. He must have captured the Yellow Springs to prevent the gods' return! Interesting… Interesting!" He gazed at the hazy Fusion Star within the star diagram. "For you to show your hand… have you gotten impatient?"
The Allfather's eyes sparkled in excitement.
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Chenhr, in his leaf-green robes, examined the bits and pieces of flesh and organs. To most, this would be a gut-wrenching sight, but Chenhr was expressionless , completely unperturbed.
He finally collected a few of the pieces he was looking for-- bloody parts that belonged to Xeeseir's heart. He placed these parts together and his hand lit up with his yellowish earthy aurae. Gradually, two drops of heartblood formed, and he placed these each in their individual vials. Normally, there should be enough to form a third drop, but that was lost due to the circumstances.
"Forgive me," he hooked his fingers as per the common greeting between advancers, and bowed to… the strewn bits and pieces. "Now that you are free, we may meet once again under better circumstances. I am certain you would wish for your heartblood to be passed to those… somewhat more honorable, even if they do not fully meet your stringent standards."
He then walked away, melding into the trees as his leaf-green robe flickered and shimmered.
__________________________________________________
Meanwhile, far to the southwest, Rein continued carrying Suey southwest, bounding off one leg then the other.
Suey was being carried in his arms. She did not ask to be put down, and instead pressed herself against Rein's chest, seeking comfort.
"Do you now… dislike me?" she eventually asked, hesitant and worried. "I… I intentionally dragged you into this hectic whirlpool for my own interests and desires…"
Rein sighed. Perhaps he might have if his mind was still fixated on disliking and misunderstanding the very nature of 'fate'.
"If it is in my nature to pursue such a purpose… then so be it. I will walk this path," Rein said with determination as his right hand reached up to run through Suey's now silky royal blue hair. "Additionally, would it matter? Since you identified my existence from all those visions of the future… it must be inevitable, no?"
Suey was overjoyed to hear this, and clutched onto Rein's bulky form, feeling secure as his heart beated against her ear.
Rein's words and awakened will assured her that she was right to throw herself recklessly onto the man. Though her mind and nature might have been somewhat warped by the many horrific visions of the future she had witnessed, Rein was hers. Primarily, at least.
As she thought this, the aurae within her began to climb in a crescendo, and her body became encased in a cocoon of pink aurae mist that solidified into a complete shell. The pink shell wrapped around Suey did not negatively affect Rein-- rather it gave him a sense of comfort, along with a desire in his loins…
An energy exploded from her body as a light shot high into the sky in a shower of gold, creating a path to heaven.
Rein observed this phenomenon with interest. Was this the effect of breaking into the shell realm?
"Thank you, my celest!" Suey was jubilant. "In my visions, I needed to consume psychedelics to break through due to an obstacle in my mind! Even then, it was but a silver light with specks of gold, nothing more. This is a heaven-ranked breakthrough! A golden path!"
She raised herself and began kissing Rein in a trance.
After a few breaths of time, Rein extricated himself.
"A golden path?" Rein curiously asked.
"Yes!" Suey could not contain her excitement."If you break through the obstacles of your mind properly and understand yourself in relation to the laws of the world, the breakthrough of each realm will be a golden heavenly breakthrough. To enter the shell realm, one must understand and regulate their heart and carve a self-defining path to walk upon, representing your very existence."
Rein nodded in understanding.
"Do you wish to hear my path, my celest?" Suey whispered softly, her breath tickling Rein's right ear.
"Best not to…" Rein replied with a frown. Though Rein's knowledge is limited, he is aware that explaining one's path to another fully and accurately could be dangerous-- if one gains a deep understanding of an enemy's path… then one could use that knowledge against said enemy, and potentially even cause the heart of this enemy to collapse.
"No," Suey replied as she batted her lashes and her eyes hazed over as if she was drunk. "My path requires me to tell you, my celest."
Rein raised an eyebrow, not having expected this.
"My path is of devotion and unbreakable will," Suey whispered into his ear. "No matter what happens in the future, as long as you don't abandon me, then at the very least, the beginning of my path will remain golden."
These words rather concerned Rein. That meant…
"Yes," Suey answered as she felt a deep happiness at Rein's concern, as well as a mixture of vulnerability and… desire as she was held by Rein's strong arms. "If you desire to break my path… all you need to do will be to abandon me…"
Rein sighed in his heart. This woman really is too reckless. If he had a daughter, he would not wish for her to so easily walk upon such a singular, 'do or die' dangerous path.
At the same time, Rein's heart turned even 'weaker' as he felt an ever deeper tenderness towards Suey due to this revelation. Perhaps, it was simply his nature to feel such softness towards such a woman.
He could not help but feel that he needed to watch over Suey and ensure her safety and happiness. She was simply too reckless. He sensed that she was likely going to throw herself into further trouble in the future without a care for herself, for her realm and her people. He will have to take care of her in place of herself…
Rein stroked her hair once again.
"Your enlightened mind makes this path golden. But that is surely not the only reason…" Rein wondered.
"Yes, my celest," Suey explained. "This path is further strengthened by a universal law. I do not yet fully understand its intricacies but… it is the concept behind… mmm. Revealing one weak point to strengthen all other areas…? You're now effectively my anchor. As long as you do not abandon me, I will have an unbreakable will, an unexpected unique strength rising from the core of my being."
As they continued to travel, Suey bit her lips as she gained the determination to further reveal the truth, perhaps compelled by the path she had stepped onto.
"I… in truth I hated the version of you that existed in those visions," she said, causing Rein's eyes to widen in bafflement. "That version of you I met in my visions… he did not have the bright will that you now have."
"I could not understand it at first," she continued. "I sensed that 'will' locked inside of you in the visions, but it was hidden deep within, behind an impenetrable barrier."
"I examined those visions again and again, and I determined that it was that woman who infected your mind and restrained your will!" Though Suey has a naturally soft voice, Rein could hear the anger. "So be careful not to lose your will…"
"Then this woman…" Rein muttered as he was reminded of something the Suey had said before-- supposedly the Rein in her visions was stuck at the peak of the outer realm. "Is she the cause of my outer realm limit? Who is this woman?"
Suey nodded to confirm his first question. As for the second?
"She is not an evil soul, nor one with questionable schemes, but perhaps… possessive and limited. Now that I'm your first…" she paused to gather her thoughts. "I would feel guilty for abusing my future sight to steal a man, so… do not deny a woman desperate for your attention. As long as you do not lose your will. And remember that I'm the first!"
"Of course. Hmm…" Rein agreed, but also wasn't sure what to make of Suey's statement on this mysterious woman. If she is not a malicious being, then perhaps unforeseen circumstances might have caused that 'limit'. His mind spun to conjure up such situations. Perhaps… he and this 'future' woman were being threatened or influenced by an unseen force? Perhaps that goddess of fate had somehow stuck her strings in? It was concerning to say the least.
"I…I also fear that my further interference would lead to disastrous results," Suey continued. "The goddess of fate was able to sense my presence because I had caused too many changes in this realm."
"Moreover, you cannot bypass this future woman, if she truly seeks your heart. If you are meant to 'engage' with this woman in said vision, and you avoid it due to the information I have provided to you… it is possible that it may cause a disastrous chain of events."
"For example… if you are to commit good deeds, saving valuable lives in cooperation with this woman, then your avoidance of her will lead to many deaths as compensation, causing an unknown disaster," Suey further explained. "At the very least, your reputation as well as hers was… quite positive in the eyes of the general populace within my visions."
Rein grumbled as he nodded in enlightenment. This explanation certainly opened his eyes to the dangerous game being played by Suey. It also, perhaps, provides an additional reason as to why she permits him to have other women. Rein recalled the phrase she used-- if said woman was 'desperate enough', a footnote he placed in his heart.
They sank into silence, gradually reaching the destination the Suey had already informed Rein of.
Meanwhile, Rein could not resist examining Suey's true form. Her illusion form was silky raven hair extending a bit past her shoulder height. Now, that royal blue hair is just as smooth and silky, with sky blue highlights at its ends. Aside from the color, the other difference is that her hair became much lengthier, extending down all the way to her calves! As she was being carried by Rein, that hair flowed and wrapped around Rein's side, a flowing sheen of a screen in the air.
He then began playing with Suey's fox ears, which twitched under his gentle hands.
"My celest… they're… sensitive," Suey whined as she blushed.
Then there was her bushy tail peeking out from underneath her robes. He adjusted her body against his, and Suey complied, immediately understanding what Rein desired to examine.
Rein's hands reached underneath her robes, running across her slender thighs then her round buttocks, before wrapping around the base of her fluffy tail.
Suey could not control her moans as Rein ran his hands along the length of her bushy blue tail.
Aside from these differences, Suey is very much human. Such is the nature of half-breeds.
No. Rein corrected himself as he gazed into Suey's lusty eyes, eyelids fluttering in pleasure. Her now sapphire eyes now had a narrow pupil.
Another deep kiss was shared, as they arrived at a small uninteresting hill surrounded by the forest that extended from the western foot of the Evergreen Mountains.
The two knew that they had to part for now-- Suey's interference had drawn the eyes of the goddess of fate, and she needed to hide and remain silent to avoid detection. As for Rein, he needed time to grow in the shadows.
As Suey turned to the rather average uninteresting hill, she hesitated in her steps before losing control of her desires.
She returned and jumped back into Rein's arms, her calf-length royal blue flowing, seemingly floating in the air.
"My celest~ When I said my path won't break as long as you don't abandon me…" she said as she batted her eyelashes with a coy smile, "That means I will still be fine even if you only keep me as an exotic pet slave. After all, that would likely be my fate if I am captured by some of the supposed gods of this era…"
By now, Rein fully understood the type of play that Suey was 'addicted' to.
"Strip!" He growled as he roughly shoved Suey onto the soft forest ground.
Suey cared not for the robes given to her by Lyne, and simply ripped the clothing off, exposing her lithe form and perky coconut-sized breasts for Rein to see.
She quivered under Rein's heated gaze as she opened her slender legs wide as she exposed her honeypot for Rein to plunder, undulating her form over the ground.
"No." Rein, however, shook his head disapprovingly. "Our child is growing in there, no?" Suey had tempered her body to be incredibly soft and flexible, to the point where her small body could stretch and take Rein's draconic and enlarged form. Now, with the child in her womb, it was simply no longer safe even if her body could endure.
Suey mewled in disappointment, but was also exuberant that Rein displayed such care despite his dominant position.
"Come, slave kitten," Rein bid Suey to approach.
Suey crawled towards Rein with her hips swaying seductively, her bushy tail excitedly swishing back and forth. Her long calf-length blue hair had become a bit of a mess but silky as it was, flowing over her lithe form, flowing over her backside like a glimmering water curtain.
Rein could not resist his wanton desires as he gathered her long royal blue hair in one hand.
"I will collar you one day, pet. But even then, this will be your leash," he said as he pulled on Suey's lovely hair, using it as a leash.
Rein was careful to pull with enough force for Suey to feel his strength, but not to any major painful degree.
Suey mewled and whined as she crawled while being tugged on by her long hair. Rein led her to a thick and sturdy tree, and pulled Suey into a position where the back of her head was placed against the tree. He gently twisted Suey's long blue hair into a spiral to keep it together, then wrapped a section of it around Suey's neck.
Suey's devoted eyes remained on his face-- she felt that it was both 'right' and 'wrong' for Rein to do this to her, and chose to indulge herself in that 'right' sensation.
Rein stripped off his own robes and jammed his rock hard, thick and knotted manhood past Suey's lovely lips, gradually forcing himself further down her throat. Suey offered no resistance, and began to play with her own honeypot with both of her hands desperately moving between her thighs.
A 'gluking' sound filled the area as Rein began using her throat as simply flesh for pleasure. The knot on his tempered rod repeatedly caused Suey's throat to constrict and deliver additional pleasure.
It was then that a magical door suddenly opened on the side of that average uninteresting hill. Rein turned his head to find Suey's twin sister, Jory, leading a row of priestesses out from the hill.
Jory herself was dressed in an incredibly thin silk robe of pure white and vibrant bright red. The top half was mostly pure white with red seams, while the bottom skirt was a flowing vibrant red.
Behind her was a procession of young maidens, all similarly dressed. They all had fox ears and tails, but were of a different color to Suey and Jory's royal blue.
"You can't simply run out like this, secondary head priestess!" A woman's voice sounded exasperated. From that magical door, five half-women appeared.
The five were dressed in shining metallic plate armour, but they weren't weighed down at all, speedily leaping forward to surround Jory.
Rein shuddered as his heart froze with fear. These five guards all had grey wolf-like ears and tails, matching the metallic armor, with their eyebrows slanted to display a naturally ferocious expression.
Rein felt a measure of dread primarily because… well… he was, to put it bluntly, battering Suey's face and throat with his movements.
As such, he quickly withdrew himself from Suey's mouth. However, before he could fully extract himself from the situation, Suey's hands wrapped around his thighs and she slobbered over his manhood in a drunken daze. Rein simply could not resist her devoted eyes.
Then again, it was too late, for those five human-wolf guardswomen had noticed their presence.
Rein believed himself to be in big trouble, but his manhood did not obey his mind, and instead responded to Suey and the exposure situation, further hardening and lengthening to Rein's dismay.
For reasons unknown to Rein, Jory and the five wolven-humans stood there unmoving with rather calm expressions. The leading wolven-woman even had a look of…hunger in her eyes…
More humanoids with animal features came out. This time it was a procession of men, which made Rein feel even more threatened.
Leading were a few men with tiger features, then those of lion features. Rein could not keep track of them all, but there was a mix of reptilians alongside many other beast-types. Though the leading few tigers were half-men, many half-women existed in the group as well.
Rein knew he was doomed. He simply could not extract himself from Suey. The minx, after all, was now sucking dutifully on his family jewels, her small hands half-wrapped around his thickness.
Yet, once again, Rein was surprised to find this other group to stand still. Instead of anger, many belonging to this other group had expressions of pity. That pity was not directed towards Suey, but at Rein himself!
It was baffling to say the least.
Once Rein realized he was not going to be butchered and killed, his eyes gazed back down at Suey.
The little minx stuck out her tongue, and Rein was shocked to discover another difference. Her tongue now appeared to have a roughness to one surface, along with an increased length. For those who had studied demon beasts, they would know this as papillae, clusters of soft spines to help clean furs.
Suey bit her lips and activated this feature of her fox tongue. Rein initially flinched, but then swore in increased pleasure. Suey was expert with her fox tongue, using those soft spines to deliver a tingling incomparable pleasure to Rein's rod, having the ability to somewhat curl around his thickness as well.
"He's done," the leading half-tiger man commented.
Suey engulfed his manhood once again, but she struggled to fully push her lips to his base. Her eyes gazed at him for assistance, and Rein once again gathered her long silky blue hair.
"Indeed. He is finished," a half-lion said behind the half-tiger.
Under their eyes, Rein felt a desire to express his pride. Perhaps it was the pride hidden within a man.
He ruthlessly rammed himself down Suey's throat once again, causing the front of her neck to bulge in front of her supposed people.
A 'gluking' sound echoed against the surrounding trees once again. The half-breeds observed silently.
"She's conquered a man of strong potential," the leading wolven-guardswoman hungrily gazed at Rein. "The next generation will at least be born with incomparable physical strength."
Rein was relieved that at least a few of the fox-eared followers were perturbed by his actions. That was much more 'normal'. However, there were as many that seemed to be… salivating!
Still, the members belonging to the latter group continued to gaze at him as if pitying his fate!
It was only now that Rein surmised that these half-breeds understood something that he did not. A thought he did not pursue for he is in the middle of his pleasure.
After relentlessly 'abusing' Suey's throat for at least five hundred heartbeats, Rein finally could not contain himself as he released his liquids with Suey's lips wrapped around the base of his manhood.
As usual, Suey attempted to swallow his seed, but she failed completely. She choked and could only withdraw herself as a copious volume spilled from her lips, leaving Rein to finish through decorating her face in a shower of white.
"You've now tasted my true form~" Suey giggled with happiness as she used her hands to further spread Rein's liquids down and over her two mounds.
To Rein's amazement, Suey gathered her lengthy blue silky hair, which no doubt takes strenuous effort to maintain, and placed it into Rein's hands.
"Use it to clean yourself," Suey whispered as she fluttered her eyelids.
How perverse. Yet Rein could not deny that her hair was rather unique… normal humans would not have such a color of hair, after all…
He was still semi-erect, and felt an incredible softness as he used Suey's hair to clean the slobber over his manhood…
Suey observed Rein's actions. She knew that if Rein could survive the initial storm of this new era, they would share a future. Now that Rein was 'defiling' her well-taken-care-of hair, then when that time came… it would be easy for her to act 'vulnerable' and bait 'my celest' into taking responsibility over maintaining her lovely hair.
She was already imagining every morning, having Rein lovingly comb her hair while she would play with his desires…
Rein finally regained control of his own mind, and felt rather ashamed of himself, but very much satisfied. He suddenly realized that Suey might need her own release as well, and thus pushed the woman back onto the ground.
He secured her with one hand around her neck against the ground, and his other curled into Suey's honeypot.
Rein observed Suey's twisted expression of pleasure as her body arched and writhed under his fingers. The irresistible minx attempted to close her legs, but was helpless as Rein's fingers repeatedly brought her to many screaming releases with no break in between.
Finally, tears of pleasure rolled down her cheeks as her mind became stunned by an unending fountain that watered the ground from her lower mouth, under Rein's relentless fingers.
The two shared a final kiss and Suey wobbled to her feet to return to her circle of priestesses.
After a few steps, her trembling legs failed to keep herself upright and she collapsed back on the ground.
Then, an idea occurred to her, and she gazed back to make sure that Rein's eyes were following her.
She dragged herself towards her circle of priestesses using her hands, legs trembling weakly. As such, her slender body winded like a snake until she finally reached that circle of priestesses, before struggling back onto her feet.
A priestess stepped forth with a cloth, desiring to clean up Suey's body, but the seductive minx shook her head.
Another stepped forth with the standard outfit of their temple, only to be rejected as well by another shake of the head.
Finally, a third priestess stepped forth, her face red. She held up an outfit that was similar yet different. This different outfit was primarily pure white, but that pure white material was semi-transparent. It also did not have the bright red long skirt. Instead the semi-transparent white material extended just low enough to barely cover the buttocks, and the short robe was secured by a bright red sash.
Once Suey put this on, it also became blatantly obvious that this outfit has an incredibly deep plunging neckline that exposed Suey's cleavage.
Suey turned and met eyes with Rein, beaming with her face caked in his scent, and stretched to display her cleavage for his eyes. Then and there, Rein felt a desire to kidnap and collar this… demon fox.
Jory threw a pouch at Rein, and Rein recognized this to be his belongings that he had left behind in the central outpost. He thanked the woman.
The whole entourage then bowed in unison and reentered that magical door into the average typical hill, leaving a single man with fox ears behind. Suey turned and gazed with sorrow at this man before choosing to utter final words to Rein.
"Remember your will. There are many paths that can lead to the same destination!" She shouted from afar.
Rein felt these words to be… enigmatic. Still he chose to reply.
"I am ordering you to take care of yourself, and not take unnecessary risks." He said these words because he knew of Suey's path. If her path was of such extreme devotion, he needed her to know of his desire-- no-- his command for her to live well.
Suey nodded with a smile and disappeared into that magical door, leaving Rein alone with the fox-eared man. Rein realized he was still in the nude, and sheepishly dressed himself, withdrawing his typical black outfit from his spatial pouch. His Hall of Heroes robes were also within, but he dared not take that out, risking the possibility of this location being detected. Currently, those robes are isolated within the space of the pouch, and thus could not be detected.
"You are?" Rein asked curiously, examining this fox-eared man. He appeared to be a man stepping into his final years. His brown hair and the fur on his fox ears carried many grey hairs, and his skin was wrinkled. His eyes, however, remained sharp.
"My name is Cory," the fox-man said. "I have been given two final tasks by the head priestess. And one secret task by a previous head priestess, of many generations ago. I am, after all, your...great…great-granduncle…?"
"Come again?" Rein blinked his eyes a number of times.
Cory laughed. It had been many years, and he had spent a good amount of time in seclusion. He had lost track.
"Hard to be specific, my apologies. Now…I know, I know. Technically, you're not married to the head priestess Suey. However, you might as well be. Do you still not understand why Foozy-- that tiger-man and the lion-man said you're 'done'?"
Rein's bewildered expression was enough to push Cory to continue his explanation.
"They're called demon foxes for a reason, great…great…nevermind that, little one. Now, as a male half-fox, I did not inherit their seductive qualities and nature. However, once a demon fox grasps hold of a man… it's over, you understand?"
"Think, for a moment. Do you believe there's any other woman that could possibly satisfy your desires as well as… well, little Suey?" Cory questioned.
Rein suddenly realized. That was probably impossible. Though men might have the tendency to jump into tasting different flavors, there is always one primary preferred flavor.
"So, you've realized," Cory laughed. "Little Suey was specific in choosing you for a reason. Partly, because she knew she would enjoy playing, indulging and devoting herself to your deepest desires, both the good and the… well… perverted."
"You won't be able to escape her as long as you live. And it will likely be quite difficult for you to gain comparable pleasure from any other women. You will always feel others lacking in comparison to little Suey."
Rein shuddered. He realized the fox-man's words to be true. Indeed, though at first glance, it might seem as if he was 'in charge', he now realized that in reality, he had never been able to resist Suey's feminine wiles. She simply knew how to draw out the so-called 'beast' within him. It was as if she knew exactly what to do, what to say, and what not to do. And yet, at the same time, he is also certain that she at least carried an overwhelming devotion to him.
As such, his heart calmed.
"That is the true power of the demon fox. The half-men of our world know this, and only those willing to sacrifice their own lives for momentary pleasure would be willing to engage with the Temple of the Nine-tails," the fox-man sighed as he shook his head.
Rein shrugged, having already settled his heart. He was of the belief that he would have chosen this path regardless of Suey's seduction.
"Regardless. My first task is to inform you of some basic information. We call ourselves Xunians. After all, we are created by the man known as Xune. We are the legacy of Xune."
"By now, they should have opened a portal to the hidden realm. You should know that our realm floats through a space that cannot be fully conceptualized by our human minds, occasionally bumping into these major realms. Each time, many die to ensure the protection of our people."
"If you are truly our fated star, then at the time of our greatest need, you will find yourself… drawn to our realm through some… unexpected occurrence…?" The fox-man clearly does not believe in this, but Rein certainly carries the 'Sole Cauldron' Art that connects him to Suey.
"Now, I have been told to inform you of my duty. The children of the primary head priestesses of previous generations are always burdened with the duty of protecting critical channels into our hidden realm."
"As a son of a previous primary head priestess, I am here to defend this area. The spatial channel formed from within this hill to our hidden realm will leave behind a lingering signature that can be used to reform the spatial channel. My duty is to defend this location until the lingering link fully fades. Then this will be my grave."
Rein couldn't believe his ears.
"It was Jory who ordered me to inform you of this point," the fox-man declared. "Your child with Suey will have a similar fate, lest you overturn the current heavens!"
Rein felt the weight on his shoulders increasing. He knew what Jory must be doing. Unlike Suey, Jory is much more direct, and one might say, shrewd in her methods. Rein could not deny the effectiveness.
"As for my secret mission," Cory's expression was now indecipherable. "An order left to me by my mother before she was played to death by that damnable goddess of fate. My mother once entered a trance before me. She prophesied that I must control a sliver of the lightning protecting our hidden realm, and insert said strain into the man found by little Suey, for there is the possibility of a spy attempting to enter our hidden realm. She also stated that I am not to let anyone know of her words."
Before Rein could react, the wrinkled right arm of Cory shot forth. Rein felt an invisible energy enter his body. Wondrously, he discovered an invisible lightning energy swirling and dancing in joy alongside the draconic lightning within his veins! Of course! This lightning energy originally belonged to Gent!
Cory's eyes brightened as he was filled with indescribable joy. Suddenly, his nose and ears twitched as he sensed the approach of an enemy. Still, his smile then returned, even more radiant than ever.
"I understand now!" He began to laugh as if a heavy weight was lifted from his shoulders. He stood straight, his motivation rising to incomparable heights. "That prophecy was not to test you, but to convey to me the importance of my final stand!"
His resolve, desire to succeed against all odds, rose to a height he thought wasn't possible within himself.
"Leave, little one. The enemy is approaching. He will not, must not succeed! Though this will be my final moment, its success… its success will definitely pave the start of a different age!"
Rein wasn't positive of what the old Xunian Cory meant exactly with those words, but he certainly believes that a powerful enemy must be approaching after all the chaos. As such, he hurriedly left northwards, aiming to return to the Xuere Gap, then the Hall of Heroes.