Chapter 173: Qiuqiu’s Choice
Qiuqiu bared his teeth and glared at him, the purple blood-like markings under his scales flickering.
"Don’t look at me like that."
Seville suddenly let go and plucked a Golden Feather from his Wings.
"Prey targeted by a Black Priest will be dug out even if they flee to the ends of the Star Sea."
The Golden Feather collapsed into a ball of light in his palm, and he gently pressed it into Qiuqiu’s chest.
"This will block any tracking. Now scram and go find your father and Female Mother."
As he turned, his black and white Wings stirred a light breeze, but he heard the PATTER PATTER of footsteps behind him.
"I’m not going back!"
The young cub suddenly lunged forward and hugged his leg, the force making Seville stumble.
The scales, matted with blood and grime, scraped against the fabric with a sorrowful RUSTLE.
"I don’t have a father, and my Female Mother... she doesn’t want me anymore! The only one who was ever nice to me was my aunty!"
Qiuqiu thought of Su An’an’s gentle, beautiful smile and suddenly let out a choked sob.
"I-I can’t let her get hunted down too!"
Seville froze.
Moonlight streamed through a crack in the mine, illuminating the fresh tear tracks on the cub’s face and the charred marks left by his pursuers’ burns.
’What a pain.’
He suddenly unfurled his snow-white left wing, wrapping Qiuqiu in the warm, clean white feathers.
"If you dare piss on my wings, I’ll throw you to the hyenas."
"WAAAH!"
Qiuqiu wiped his tears and snot on the dry feathers, whimpering, "I’ll be good!"
"Don’t wipe your tears and snot on them either!"
The sound of Seville gritting his teeth echoed through the mine, settling over the corpses of the pursuers in the corner.
「A hidden villa, the monitoring room.」
Louis stared intently at the needle of the Blood-colored Compass in his hand.
The needle, which had been vibrating frantically just a moment ago, was now as still as if it were dead.
"What’s going on?!"
He smashed the compass in a fury, his amber beast-like eyes narrowing into slits with rage.
"Where are my men? All twenty elite Death Warriors have fucking lost contact?!"
On the Light Screen, the last image transmitted was frozen on a fleeting, black-and-white afterimage before the screen went completely dark.
"The Swan Priest, Seville? Wasn’t he crippled long ago?! What is he doing here?"
Louis neurotically gnawed on his fingernails until he tasted blood, then suddenly gave a sinister smile.
"Excellent. Since Su An’an’s old flame has shown up, this show is about to get much more interesting."
His blood-stained fingertip slid across the stolen Princess Badge as Louis quickly pulled up Nicola’s schedule.
"The Empress, driven by jealous love, tortures and kills her love rival—enough to be an Interstellar headline!"
「Black Star, a luxury villa.」
When Lu Chengfeng rushed into the room clutching a potion vial, he nearly tripped over the dresses scattered all over the floor.
Nicola was standing in front of a full-length mirror, already on her seventh gown.
The peacock-blue hem of the dress was studded with star diamonds that sparkled brilliantly under the light.
She tugged irritably at the sash. "It’s too tight! Nemo, what kind of crappy dress did you pick out?"
The shark Beast Husband she’d called out sighed helplessly, still holding more than a dozen jeweled necklaces.
"Female Master, Seville probably prefers a simpler style."
"Bullshit! In an interview two years ago, he clearly said star diamonds are beautiful!"
Nemo scratched his head in resignation. Seeing Lu Chengfeng enter, he looked as if he’d just seen his savior.
"Quick, come help the Female Master pick a dress."
On the other side, Yan Tian, who was holding dozens of pairs of high heels, saw the potion vial in Lu Chengfeng’s hand and asked in surprise,
"Did Su An’an get Jiu Su to prepare a potion for you?"
"No!"
Lu Chengfeng shook his head.
"Su An’an prepared this herself. She said it can delay my genetic collapse!"
SNAP!
The sharp sound of a high heel echoed through the dressing room.
Nicola snatched the potion vial from Lu Chengfeng’s hand.
"You dare drink a potion made by Su An’an? Aren’t you afraid she’ll poison you to death?"
The peacock-blue dress billowed with her sudden movement, the star diamonds tracing sharp arcs of light.
"That’s why I wanted to ask you to check it for me, Female Master!"
Lu Chengfeng’s wolf ears twitched guiltily.
A blue light of spiritual power suddenly flared at Nicola’s fingertips, and detection runes spread across the potion vial like ripples.
Three seconds later, her pupils contracted.
The formula was so exquisite that even she couldn’t find a single flaw.
"It’s effective, all right."
She snorted and tossed the bottle back to Lu Chengfeng. "This is about all Su An’an is good for."
Nemo’s shark fin wagged fawningly. "That’s just because she got lucky and was favored by Jiu Su. If it were you, Female Master..."
BAM!
A ten-centimeter high heel kicked Nemo hard in the shin. "Bullshit! A genetic collapse potion isn’t that easy to formulate. Even I might not be able to learn how."
"Yes, yes, yes! You’re right, Female Master!"
Nemo rubbed his shin helplessly. He’d almost forgotten that Nicola was always very serious when it came to the study of potions.
"Consider yourself lucky. Hurry up and drink it."
Nicola shoved the potion vial back into Lu Chengfeng’s arms, then turned and threw herself back at the wardrobe to continue picking out clothes.
Lu Chengfeng tilted his head back and drank the potion in one go.
As his Adam’s apple bobbed, the blue cracks on his chest faded away like a receding tide.
The beast markings unique to the Silver Wolf Clan flowed across his skin once more, and even the tip of his tail regained its fluffy curve.
"Su An’an is amazing!"
Nemo’s shark fin trembled with excitement.
"What did you just say?"
Nicola’s cat ears suddenly swiveled 180 degrees, and her ten-centimeter high heel came down with a CRACK, shattering a floor tile.
"If you like her so much, go be her Beast Husband!"
"I don’t like her! How could Su An’an possibly be as amazing as you, Female Master!"
Nemo’s shark fin drooped into a cowardly wave as he shot a pleading look at Lu Chengfeng.
The Silver Wolf’s ears twitched, and he decisively changed the subject. "Female Master, you seem to be dressing up more than usual today. Are you perhaps meeting an important beast?"
"Seville is coming!"
Nicola’s cat-like eyes shone with astonishing brightness as she excitedly grabbed Lu Chengfeng’s arm.
"Weren’t you a fan of his back in the military academy?"
Lu Chengfeng froze.
Of course, he remembered. Three years ago, when Seville sang "Starfall" at the Alliance ceremony.
Even the academy’s headmaster and the Alliance Marshal had stood up to applaud.
But right now, he was more concerned about something else. "Where did you get this information?"
Nicola brandished her communicator smugly, her cat ears twitching with excitement.
"I have an informant in the Golden Feather Clan. They said he’s coming to Black Star specifically for business!"
An excited blush rose on her cheeks, and her eyes were full of a fangirl’s adoration.
"I wonder if I’ll be able to get his autograph this time?"
"He’s probably here for Su An’an. After all..."
Before Lu Chengfeng could finish, he was cut off.
"Impossible!"
An amethyst necklace was slammed down on the vanity, and Nicola’s cat ears instantly bristled.
"Su An’an was the one who poisoned Seville’s voice! How could he possibly go back to that vixen!"
"Su An’an is different now!"
Lu Chengfeng said hesitantly,
"I heard she was secretly poisoned by the Rebel Army back then, and that’s why she hurt her Beast Husbands."
"Now that she’s cured of the poison and has even been upgraded to a High Level Female, maybe..."
"Maybe my ass!"
Nicola suddenly changed into a fan-club T-shirt printed with a magnificent Golden Feather Swan.
"Even if Su An’an has changed for the better, Seville can’t be with her!"
She turned and yelled at Yan Tian and Nemo,
"Quick! Project my ’Guide to Protecting Seville From Scammers’ onto the villa’s outer wall!
"I have to protect him this time!"
Outside the window, hidden in a corner, a listening device flashed with a dangerous light, capturing Nicola’s every move.