Kana asked in confusion, "What happened?"
The beastmen, who had been orderly before, suddenly started looking for places to hide.
Idris explained, "A monster is attacking the tribe. Usually, they won't enter the village so quickly. We still have time to find a place to hide."
The chief grabbed the calm Idris and said, "You have awakened your talent. Normally, I wouldn't let a newly awakened beastman join a real fight. But this happened suddenly, and right now the tribe needs you."
Idris nodded in agreement. At the same time, the chief and Faya quickly worked to keep order.
"Don't panic! Try to hide in the caves up high!"
Many fox tribe members turned into their beast forms and ran toward higher ground.
Faya and the chief stayed behind to help the elderly and slower ones escape quickly.
Faya looked at Kana, hesitating if she should take her along.
Her brother often said that the Akoste family's beastmen were heroes.
Looking at Idris standing beside Kana, she clenched her teeth and said nothing, then turned and left.
She thought: Since Kana has Idris, why should I worry? If she dies, that would be even better. Then Idris would be mine.
Kana, following the example of the other beastmen, changed into her beast form for the first time.
She became a beautiful fox with pure white fur and black markings.
"You're so beautiful," Idris couldn't help but praise.
Kana got anxious. "This isn't the time to say that! You should hide too. Staying alive is most important!"
Idris shook his head firmly. "I can't leave. If I go, you will all be in danger."
Just as he said this, black shadows appeared all around.
"It's demon snakes! How can they be here?" Idris stared in disbelief.
"What are demon snakes?" Kana asked.
"They're snakes that have lost their minds. They usually live in dark, damp swamps and rarely enter inland. Especially not into dry places where they can't survive."
Kana looked closely and felt her scalp go numb.
The brown snakes gave off black energy, flicking out their red tongues. Some of their scales were cracked because they couldn't adapt to the dry climate.
They were low-intelligence creatures, but had very sharp senses.
"Hissss… you carry his scent," the snakes hissed and spoke to each other.
To Kana and Idris, the hissing only grew louder, which meant the snakes were getting more dangerous.
Idris shielded Kana behind him. "It's too late to retreat to higher ground. Stay behind me. I'll protect you."
Kana could only trust him now. "Be careful!"
Idris's muscles swelled, and layers of yellow energy surrounded him.
The system showed his information:
Level: 13
Talent: Great Strength
Element: Earth
Grade: Green (Normal)
His hands were covered in yellow energy, and an overwhelming power surged from his body.
He raised his fist and smashed it down on a demon snake that came close.
The snake let out a scream and instantly fell silent. But the other snakes didn't retreat, instead rushing toward him in a frenzy.
Using his awakened talent, Idris fought fiercely, defeating many snakes quickly.
At first, Kana worried he couldn't handle them. But now, she realized she had underestimated him.
"Well done!"
Hearing her cheer from behind, Idris smiled slightly, then charged toward the demon snakes farther away.
The demon snakes realized Idris was hard to deal with, so they avoided fighting him directly. Instead, they used their snake bodies to launch quick attacks.
Idris, who had the upper hand at first, soon got injured.
He looked carefully and found that these demon snakes were not just attacking with instinct. Compared to hunting, fighting them was much harder.
"Damn it."
One demon snake suddenly spotted Kana, who was alone in the distance, and rushed at her.
Kana, worried about Idris's safety, was fully focused on him and didn't notice the danger.
But Idris, with his hunting experience, was very sensitive to changes around him. He saw the snake's intention and rushed over, kicking it away just before it bit Kana.
Kana finally realized what had happened. If it weren't for Idris, she would have died.
Even though Idris saved her, more demon snakes surrounded them again.
"System, how do I use my talent?"
Kana remembered that she had healing powers.
"Detected: host's level is lower than the target's level. Talent cannot be used!"
At this moment, she could do nothing. It felt both frustrating and dangerous.
The demon snakes attacked again. Idris, his eyes red with rage, exploded with even stronger power. But this time, it wasn't just one snake, it was a whole group.
Were they really going to die here?
Idris and Kana were forced back to the bottom of the Sacred Tree, standing back-to-back.
"Detected: host is in danger. Activating auto teleport."
The next second, the snakes crashed into each other, but Idris and Kana were gone.
Idris, ready to die, found himself in the forest instead, with no snakes in sight.
Looking around, he realized they were safe. He pulled Kana tightly into his arms.
"We survived."
He didn't know how, but after checking that Kana wasn't hurt, he felt relieved.
Turning into human form, Idris climbed a big tree to see where they were. From afar, he could still see the fox tribe's land, where black shadows were raging.
He jumped down, hugged Kana again, and said softly, "There are still many demon snakes in the tribe. I must go back to help them."
"What about me?" Kana asked.
Idris released her, whispered a chant, and a magic circle appeared on the ground with many items inside.
"These are my personal belongings."
Inside were meat, wine, dried fruit, and shiny beast cores.
"These will last you a month. The beast cores can be traded for money to keep you safe for a while."
"You're leaving all this behind? Or… do you think you won't come back, and you're giving me your last words?" Kana asked.
Idris touched her head. It was hard to imagine that the last time he got close to her, he felt only rejection.
"I don't know if I'll come back. But I can't abandon my people. Stay here, wait for me, I'll come back for you."
"Okay," Kana nodded. "I'll wait here for you."
Idris then took the stone pendant from his neck and put it on Kana.
"This was prayed over under the Sacred Tree. Wearing it will keep you safe."
After saying this, Idris stepped back reluctantly, then transformed into his beast form and ran toward the tribe.
Watching Idris leave, Kana could only pray quietly for him and the others in her heart.
She sighed and started looking for a place to hide in the forest.
The forest was huge. The deeper you went, the stronger the beastmen and magical beasts became.
For the fox clan, who lived on the forest's edge for generations, going deep inside was forbidden.
Luckily, Kana found a spot in a nearly dead tree where she could hide.
It wasn't too big or small, just enough for her to turn into her beast form and sleep.
After escaping in shock, she was tired and hungry.
She hadn't prepared anything, but thankfully Idris had left her food.
After eating, she fell asleep inside the tree hole.
"Kana, Kana, it's me."
She looked up and saw a blurry figure in front of her.
"Idris, is that you?"
Happy, she leaned out, but her view was blocked by leaves. She turned back into human form and jumped down.
But there was nothing around, only leaves.
It was just a dream.
Kana felt disappointed and sat under the tree, waiting quietly.
The sun set, the moon rose.
Days passed, and she lost track of time.
Was Idris okay?
Should she go back and see?
Standing on the tree trunk, she looked toward the fox clan's territory.
No matter what, she needed an answer.
She packed the little food she had left into the system's storage space, which was free to use for keeping things.
She wondered if it could store living creatures too.
After preparing everything, she headed toward the fox clan.
Long after she left, the place where she had hidden rustled. Three fox clan beastmen appeared and shifted into human form.
It was Yujin, Wayin, and Idris.
They searched, but found nothing.
Wayin said sadly, "Could she have been taken by that escaped snake…"
Idris's face showed guilt and pain. "It's all my fault. I made you fight alone for so long, and I even lost Kana…"
Yujin comforted them. "The tribe suffered heavy losses and has moved elsewhere. You two should go back to help. I'll search the forest. The tribe can't afford to lose more beastmen. Idris, you're injured too. Go rest and heal. Even if we find Kana, you won't be able to help her like this."
He patted Idris's shoulder and continued, "You've searched for days already. You did your best. Leave the rest to me."
Wayin and Idris nodded and left, while Yujin stayed behind to search.
Where had his sister gone?
Meanwhile, Kana moved carefully toward the fox clan.
She thought everyone would be there, but when she arrived, she saw signs of a fierce battle.
Even the high ground was littered with the corpses of magical snakes.
She ran to her brothers' cave, but it was empty.
She checked all the caves of the Acoste family, but no one was there.
Only the food storage cave still had some supplies.
Her own food was almost gone, so she took some. At least that was a small blessing.
As she walked out of the cave, she saw a beastman in the distance.
Behind him, a magical snake was waiting to strike, its red tongue flicking.
Kana quickly shouted, "Watch out behind you!"
In an instant, the beastman grabbed the snake, squeezed lightly, and it turned into blood mist and vanished.
So strong!
She had seen Idris fight magical snakes before, but she hadn't expected this beastman to be even stronger.
After finishing off the snake, he turned and walked toward her.
Kana was suddenly trapped by a strong force, unable to move at all.
"You… who are you? What are you trying to do?"
"System! System, help me!"
"Detected that the host is not in danger. Defense cannot be activated."
Not in danger? Then what does this beastman want?
The beastman stood in front of Kana, his purple vertical pupils staring at her. His gaze then moved to her slightly rounded belly.
"You're pregnant?"
"So what if I am? Let me go!"
He bent down, sniffing carefully at her neck. His warm breath brushed over her skin.
Then he stretched out his tongue and licked her gently, as if tasting and confirming something.
His purple pupils suddenly tightened.
Kana's face turned red. She shouted at him, "You… you! Stay away from me! You have no manners at all!"
"Manners? What's that?"
Did this little female mean it was something to eat? But he had never heard of it before.
She looked thin and weak, and she was pregnant. Clearly, she had not been well taken care of.
He reached out and lifted her with one arm, carrying her toward the forest on the other side of the fox tribe's land.
Kana realized she could move freely again, but after seeing how easily he killed the snake beast, she didn't dare to provoke him.
She curled up in his arms and stayed still, worried for her life.
"Where are you taking me?"
"To eat something first."
"Huh?"
Kana didn't understand for a moment. They weren't even familiar with each other. Of course, she didn't dare say that out loud.
They reached a large lake. The water was so deep it looked black.
"Stay here and don't move."
When he set her down, Kana thought about running.
"Don't think about escaping. I remember your scent."
Uh… Kana awkwardly turned her head away, refusing to look at him.
The beastman took off his coat, revealing his strong body, and jumped straight into the lake.
After splashing around for a while, he threw a huge crab onto the shore.
He came out of the water, gathered some dry wood, and placed the crab on it. Before long, the smell of cooked crab meat filled the air.
"Come eat."
To be honest, Kana hadn't eaten a proper meal in a long time. She had been living off raw meat and blood every day.
But seeing the powerful beastman in front of her, she hesitated and didn't dare approach.
Until he got up again and carried her directly in front of the food.
"Eat it while it's hot."
"This food doesn't have poison, right?"
Hearing that, the beastman laughed, then picked up a small piece of crab meat and tasted it slowly.
His cooking wasn't bad at all.
Watching the male beast enjoy himself, Kana's hunger grew stronger.
The crab's white flesh and golden roe shone with a tempting glow.
In the end, she couldn't resist. She reached out, took a piece, and then ate faster and faster.
"When will the baby be born, roughly?"