The Freed Slaves Are Obsessed

"Wow, this is delicious. Do people these days eat like this every day?"

"This is just a simple breakfast. Dinner is even fancier."

"Oh...."

Watching the two of them chat happily, Seira could only blink in a daze once again today.

It was a familiar scene. She was certain this had happened every time Lin gained a new tail.

But this time, her tails were still the same. The one who had changed was Lin herself. She no longer clung to Karamir and had a much more mature demeanor. And she spoke as if she were someone from centuries ago.

"And what exactly is going on here?"

Seira couldn't hold back and finally asked.

"It's the Gumiho."

"Lin was already a Gumiho, though."

"Not that Gumiho. The one from legends—the Gumiho who defied the heavens and was sealed away."

"...?"

Seira, struggling to understand, prompted Karamir to elaborate.

He explained how the spirit of the Gumiho from Baegungok had entered Lin, how Lin had secretly been stealing his energy, and how she had run away, ultimately awakening the Gumiho's personality within her.

Seira, who had experienced countless shocking things with Karamir, had thought she was finally getting used to it all, but this was truly something else.

"A... Gumiho?"

"Hello~ You’re Seira, right? Let’s get along from now on."

"And... where is Lin?"

"She cried herself to sleep inside me. Whether she wakes up or not, I don't know. But even if she tries, I won’t give her back. Taking away something that’s already given is against the rules, isn’t it?"

Seira more or less understood what the Gumiho was implying: as long as she was present, Lin might not reappear.

Having grown fond of Lin, Seira couldn’t help but feel troubled by this revelation.

She shot a glance at Karamir, who shrugged indifferently, as if it didn’t concern him.

What kind of scheme was he planning this time? Not knowing left Seira sighing in frustration.

“Oh, there’s one more thing I should mention.”

“Do as you please. You always act on your own without consulting me anyway.”

Whether he lived or died. Whether the Gumiho took over his body or not, they’d just do as they pleased!

Seira chugged a glass of water.

“Ah, I was going to mention the duel with Princess Hilde.”

“Pfft!”

Seira spat out the water. The Gumiho deftly dodged, while Karamir, sitting across from her, took the brunt of it.

If it had come from his slave, he would have happily licked it off, thinking it precious, but Seira wasn’t his slave. Although she wasn’t bad, Karamir’s standards had become absurdly high.

Thud!

Seira jumped up, knocking her chair back, not even bothering to apologize.

“A duel with the princess? What nonsense is that?!”

Karamir wiped his face with a handkerchief.

“She threatened to kill Lin, so I accepted. Otherwise, we’d probably have an army tearing this place apart right now.”

“Hm...”

Seira thought this over. It might indeed be preferable to a full-blown invasion.

But then she felt a sharp gaze from across the table. The Gumiho and Karamir were looking at her with cold, disapproving eyes.

“Wow, acting like you care about the world, but now that your house is safe, you feel at ease? That’s a bit off, isn’t it?”

“That’s just how people are. Personal interests matter more. Meanwhile, I led countless slaves to freedom... tsk.”

The two exchanged words so freely that Seira couldn't hold back and yelled in frustration.

“I don’t need life advice from a Gumiho and a slave trader!”

Lin’s transformation into the Gumiho didn’t halt any plans. The day of the duel with Hilde, which they had agreed on with Yuha, was fast approaching.

Up in the skies of Cheonsangru, Yuha waited. Hilde wasn’t there yet, which meant she hadn’t arrived.

When Yuha noticed the Gumiho, her expression hardened.

"You...!”

"Calling your disciple ‘you’? Shouldn't you be kinder and call me Lin?"

"Don’t spout nonsense. Did you seize control of her body?"

"She simply handed it over, saying she couldn’t bear it any longer. If she’d been left alone, she might have gone on a rampage, thanks to her master’s cold treatment."

Yuha shot Karamir a sharp look. She had entrusted Lin to him, thinking he would handle things gently.

She had trusted him, but now Lin was cowering deep inside, showing no sign of coming back out. If the Gumiho’s possession continued and her strength grew, Lin might not be able to resurface even if she wanted to.

Whether Karamir understood this or not, he remained unfazed, his expression calm.

Yuha considered forcibly bringing out Lin, but it was pointless; her powers had weakened to the point that she couldn’t guarantee victory even if she fought.

For now, she had no choice but to trust that Karamir had a plan.

Hum, hum.

Then, Yuha’s fox bead glowed. It seemed Hilde had arrived.

It was a night with the moon reflecting on the lake.

The ground underfoot was soft, and the scents of the forest and soil tickled the nose. When a cool breeze blew, branches rubbed together, and leaves fell.

A leaf landed on the lake, creating gentle ripples.

Hilde, walking along the lake, came to a halt.

She faced the group standing in the forest: Yuha, Karamir, and the Gumiho. As she met the Gumiho's gaze, her lips curled into a fierce smile.

“Wow... look at her? She really has seven tails?”

Since the Gumiho was using Lin’s body, it was natural for her to have seven tails. And neither the number nor the fact that they were pink was anything to hide.

She had displayed her tails proudly all the way to Cheonsangru, so the whole area would soon know that a seven-tailed fox had appeared.

Karamir hadn’t bothered to stop her. Lin’s story was nearly over anyway. He was confident he could handle any attacks that might come.

But from Hilde's perspective, this flaunting seemed like mockery.

“You’ve been hiding your tails all this time? I’ve never seen such a deceitful b****.”

“...Did you just call me a b****?”

“What, feeling tickled because the great Gumiho is finally getting insulted? Want me to say more?”

“Hah.”

The Gumiho let out a low, disdainful laugh, brushing her bangs back with her hand. Her heterochromatic eyes gleamed momentarily.

“Even dumb beasts know their place once they learn to speak, yet this one dares to pick a fight.”

The past really was better. If she regained her strength, perhaps she’d turn the world back to the way it was.

The Gumiho twirled her wrist. Her fox bead appeared, hovering in mid-air.

Without a word, Hilde began stretching, clearly readying for a fight.

Hilde’s body heated up with anticipation for the upcoming battle. Her excitement and tension intertwined like a double helix.

What dominated her emotions was the thrill of facing a powerful opponent, the pleasure of combat, and the euphoria she would feel upon overcoming that foe.

If she could defeat this demon and display its hide in the plaza, she’d be celebrated as Bestia’s strongest hero.

A smile slowly spread across Hilde’s face, her mouth twitching with excitement. Her muscles flexed, and her blood thirsted for battle.

The cool forest breeze brushed past.

“Ha!”

BOOM!

With a single shout, Hilde’s combat instincts awakened.

Her opponent was a Gumiho, despite the seven tails. She was no fool to hold back.

She was going all out from the start.

With a battle cry, Hilde’s black energy surged explosively. Leaves scattered like dust. She crouched, adopting a predator’s stance.

The Gumiho, with a graceful smile, sneered.

“Hmm, nice spirit.”

“Hah! Let’s see how long you can stay so smug!”

Hilde’s power took the form of a massive lion, its golden eyes gleaming through its black mane.

ROAR!

The lion’s roar, echoing like a war trumpet, shook the lake. The moonlight rippled violently across the surface.

BANG!

Hilde launched herself like a missile, leaving a trail of afterimages. Her powerful kick left the ground in shambles, as if hit by a landslide.

“What, frozen stiff? Are you too scared to move?!”

It all happened in a blink.

Hilde appeared right in front of the Gumiho.

Clenching her fist, she split her lips into a wicked grin, as if ready to finish the fight in a single blow. She poured half her strength into her strike, aiming a lethal punch straight at the Gumiho’s face.

Whoosh! BOOM!

A violent blast followed. Beyond her extended fist, a vast black beam of energy flashed, splitting the forest into two.

The strike, capable of wiping out everything in its path, left nothing but scorched earth.

Including the Gumiho.

Hilde’s eyes widened. The Gumiho had vanished without a trace.

Did she really disintegrate into dust? Could a Gumiho die so easily?

Impossible.

“What are you aiming at? Did you gouge out your own eyes because you look like you eat anything?”

No sooner had the thought crossed her mind than the Gumiho’s mocking voice filled the air. Hilde didn’t even look, launching another punch in the direction of the voice.

BOOM!

Once again, a black beam slashed through the air. While the power was slightly lower, it could still easily level a mountain.

“Are you really aiming at something? Think you can even touch a single hair?”

But the Gumiho’s voice continued. Hilde glanced around, but neither the Gumiho nor Karamir or Yuha was visible.

Not even the expected allies remained in sight.

“Hah! Acting all high and mighty but hiding behind tricks? Some great Gumiho you are!”

“No point in taunting. This fight ended ages ago.”

“What, scared? Planning to flee now?”

“Shh. Don’t raise your voice. It only makes you look weaker.”

The Gumiho’s laughter echoed mockingly from the air. She began to explain, as if generously instructing someone far below her in rank.

“Most of the power of the Moon’s Eye may be gone, but not all of it. With the eye in my possession, I can still use its fundamental powers.”

“What are you talking about?”

“If the Sun’s Eye reveals the truth, then the Moon’s Eye holds the mystery to deceive anything.”

“What nonsense! Stop hiding and show yourself!”

Ignoring Hilde’s shouts, the Gumiho continued speaking calmly.

Leaves fluttered in the air. Ripples appeared on the lake’s surface. The reflection of the moon wavered.

It was like a dream, like an illusion, where reality blurred. Yet, the Gumiho’s voice rang clearly in her head.

Laughing at Hilde like a clown, the Gumiho grinned and muttered softly.

“When did you think this duel began?”

In that instant—

Snap!

A crisp snap of fingers echoed, silencing everything. The leaves froze midair, and the ripples stopped in perfect circles.

Time and space seemed to vanish, leaving only the disappearance of the moon from the lake.

“Shatter, Mirror Flower Water Moon.”

As if responding to her voice, the very space began to crack. The night sky shattered like pieces of glass, falling to the ground. The sky was crashing down.

Once the illusion faded, they were no longer in a forest but under Cheonsangru’s sky.

And there—

“Your flair was all show.”

The Gumiho was standing, her foot planted on Hilde’s head as she lay defeated on the ground.