Now that he had confirmed Talulah's and the Doctor's whereabouts, everything that followed became much simpler.
He didn't even bother using the Shadow Ninja Corps for teleportation. An Xora took off directly from where he stood, and in a short span of time, he arrived near Lungmen.
"Hm? Sounds like someone's fighting?"
As he flew over the wilderness outside Lungmen, An Xora sensed something and glanced downward.
On the barren plains below, a white-haired Lupo wearing a black trench coat—clearly not in great condition—was locked in a fierce gun-and-blade fight with a group of people dressed like gangsters.
The more An Xora looked, the more familiar the white-haired Lupo seemed. He halted midair and observed carefully for a moment before recognizing her.
"Isn't that Lappland? Why is she here?"
Judging by the current point in time, Lappland should already have been expelled from her family, becoming a lone wolf. Following Texas's trail all the way to Lungmen would make perfect sense.
But why was she being cornered and ambushed in the wilderness outside the city like this?
With his Kryptonian super-hearing, An Xora listened for a few seconds and quickly grasped the situation.
It was actually quite simple. After being driven out of her family, old enemies from Siracusa had tracked her down. They waited for a chance when she left Lungmen not long ago and ambushed her on her way back, successfully catching her off guard.
From Lappland's current state—clearly injured and far from peak condition—it was obvious that her situation was extremely dangerous.
Normally speaking, given her role in later events, this crisis would likely resolve itself in the end. But with An Xora's presence, Terra had already diverged significantly from its original course. A butterfly effect wasn't out of the question—Lappland dying here outright was entirely possible.
So, An Xora intervened.
Lappland, who had been fighting desperately against her enemies below, suddenly seemed to sense something. Ignoring the foes in front of her, she looked up toward the sky.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Countless bolts of lightning crashed down from above, instantly reducing every enemy around her—everyone except Lappland—to charred corpses.
In the next instant, a figure landed before her.
It was a man whose appearance bore almost no obvious racial characteristics.
Clearly, the devastating attack just now had come from him.
"Who are you?"
Despite the man having effortlessly wiped out the gangsters who had been besieging her, Lappland showed no fear. She raised her tactical longsword and pointed it straight at him.
"No need to be so tense. Judging from the outcome just now, I count as your lifesaver, don't I?"
An Xora didn't mind her wariness in the slightest.
After all, what threat could a mere steel blade pose to him? He could stand there forever and let her hack at him without even scratching his skin.
"Heh. Who knows if you have some other motive?"
Lappland still didn't relax. Growing up in Siracusa—a place filled with gang wars, deception, and intrigue—combined with the brutal heir-training methods of Siracusan mafia families, meant she trusted no one easily.
"Oh, I do have other motives," An Xora replied casually. "But probably not the kind you're thinking of."
"After all, aside from that pretty hide of yours, there's really nothing about you worth scheming over. So as payment for saving your life… offer me your ears and tail."
As he spoke, An Xora suddenly stepped closer, reaching out with his wicked hands toward Lappland's ears.
"Wait—hey! Get the hell away from me!"
Lappland instinctively tried to resist, forcing her power into motion. Unfortunately, she accidentally aggravated her injuries and was just a beat too slow. An Xora pressed a hand on her head and began vigorously rubbing her hair, ears, and cheeks.
He had left Londinium in a hurry last time and hadn't gotten the chance to rua a catgirl. Now that he was in Lungmen, rua-ing a doggo wasn't a bad alternative either.
Lappland wasn't completely passive. She tried punching, kicking, even stabbing him with her weapon—but none of it worked. The man's body was as hard as steel. Her futile resistance looked less like an attack and more like… some kind of strange foreplay.
"Damn it!"
In the end, realizing resistance was utterly useless, Lappland simply gave up. She stood there, glaring at An Xora as he continued to manhandle her, silently engraving this humiliation deep into her memory.
What surprised her, however, was that the man seemed oddly true to his word. Aside from her ears, cheeks, and tail, he didn't touch any other part of her body.
Earlier, when she heard him talk about "scheming over her body," she had thought he meant forcing himself on her. But judging by how things were going now, his attitude toward her felt more like…
A pet?
Is this guy insane?
"Given your injuries, you should probably go to Lungmen for treatment," An Xora said casually. "My destination happens to be Lungmen as well, so I'll give you a lift."
I don't need it. For injuries like this, some bandages will do.
Lappland was just about to say that when she realized that a car had appeared beside them at some point, and several black-clad figures dressed like Dongguo ninjas were respectfully holding the door open.
When did this car get here? Was there even a car here just now?
Before she could think—or speak—Lappland was dragged into the car by An Xora. The Shadow Ninjas promptly shut the door, one of them taking the driver's seat as the vehicle headed toward Lungmen.
"Hey, you—enough already! Can you stop touching my ears?!"
Even inside the car, An Xora's hands showed no sign of stopping, and Lappland finally snapped.
"What, you don't like it?" An Xora said with a grin. "I heard petting dogs like this is supposed to feel pretty good."
"The only one feeling good here is you! And I'm a Lupo, not a dog!"
Even though there was an oddly pleasant sensation to it, Lappland still protested, emphasizing her point.
"That's not important," An Xora said. "What matters is something else."
"Those people who attacked you—old enemies from Siracusa, right? I've heard that wolves over there always move in packs, whether gangs or families. But you were alone, facing so many enemies. If I'm not mistaken, you've been expelled from your pack and become a lone wolf. Am I right?"
"…What does that have to do with you?"
At his words, Lappland's expression darkened visibly.
In response, An Xora shook his head.
"Originally, it had nothing to do with me. But you just happened to be lucky enough to run into me."
"When I first saw you, I could see it in your eyes—resentment. The kind that wants to rebel against fate, yet feels powerless to do so."
"And I just happen to be a kind-hearted person. I especially enjoy helping helpless young ladies fulfill their dreams."
"So tell me, girl—do you yearn for power?"
"Power great enough to defy your own destiny on this land."
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