Kin ran to Vixen the moment the battle ended, his voice trembling.
"Are you okay?"
Vixen gave a small, tired smile. "I'm fine… just a few injuries here and there."
Kin's hands immediately reached for Vixen's arm, his eyes scanning for wounds. But before he could say more, the villagers began to gather around them, voices loud with gratitude and admiration.
"You fought that demon alone!"
"You saved us all, Alpha Vixen!"
Vixen raised his hand, his expression calm but firm.
"You don't need to worry. For now, the Demon God can't harm this village. But…" His eyes swept the crowd, serious. "We must remain vigilant."
A chorus of agreement erupted from the villagers, their voices ringing with determination. Slowly, the darkness over Zemura lifted. The sky brightened, the air felt lighter, and for the first time in weeks, peace began to settle over the village.
One happy week passed.
One evening, Kin was sitting beside Vixen when he spoke suddenly.
"…Do you think I'm getting fat?"
Vixen blinked, then smirked. "No… but you've become even more beautiful to me."
Kin laughed and shoved him playfully. "You're just teasing."
"I'm not teasing," Vixen said, his tone soft but sincere. "I'm telling the truth. My husband is impossibly beautiful… such lovely eyes, such a perfect nose, such—" He didn't finish, because he leaned in and kissed Kin mid-sentence.
Kin pulled back with a laugh. "Always flirting."
Then Kin's eyes lit up. "Our baby just kicked in my belly…"
Vixen immediately leaned down, pressing his ear to Kin's stomach.
"Little one… why are you disturbing my Kin? Daddy's getting very angry."
Kin burst into laughter at Vixen's mock-serious tone.
---
A few days later, they decided to visit Kenny's house. It had been a month since the old villager uncle—who had been staying there—had died, and Kenny hadn't come to the military camp since.
When they arrived, Kenny's eyes widened in joy. He rushed to hug them both tightly. "Brother Kin! Brother Vixen! You're here!"
After chatting with Kin for a while, a woman who lived in Kenny's house came in with two glasses of water. Vixen thanked her politely, but before he could speak further, the woman suddenly began talking in a trembling voice.
"The old villager uncle who was staying here… he was not a good man. To the villagers, he showed a kind and generous mask, but… you already know—he was part of the cult. And there's more. When Kenny was just a child… that man murdered Kenny's parents in service to the demon."
Kenny froze, his face draining of color. He had never heard this before.
The woman's voice shook as she went on, tears pooling in her eyes. "Kenny doesn't belong to this village. He came from a wealthy family… his father was a big businessman. My husband… he too was killed by that man."
Kin's heart clenched in sympathy, and Vixen's expression hardened.
Then the woman looked directly at them. "If you have no objection… will you take Kenny with you? If he stays with you, he can grow up to be a good man."
Kenny looked up suddenly, voice small but steady. "Then… where is my real home?"
The woman wiped her tears. "In the city of Muas. The largest mansion there belonged to your father."
Vixen narrowed his eyes. "How do you know this?"
"I found some of your father's documents in the car," the woman said. "That's how I learned the truth."
Vixen leaned forward. "Do you still have those documents?"
Her expression darkened. "…No. That man burned the car—along with the documents—before he died."
Continue.....