Voices drifted by her ear, tugging Rebecca back from a distant yet familiar dreamscape. She slowly opened her eyes and rubbed her aching head. Mm… probably the aftereffects of that Demon Potion.

“Huh?” While she wrestled with the throb in her skull, she suddenly felt something off.

Rebecca looked around. This… this…

“Where am I?” The question hit hard.

This wasn’t her bedroom. This… oh, gods—she swore she’d just watched a mouse dive into the cabinet in the corner. Rebecca hated mice and roaches with a passion. Okay, sure, she’d originally been a boy, but hating vermin had nothing to do with that. No!

A cramped, shabby room. The building was all wood and carried a faint moldy smell. The furnishings were simple and bare-bones: one table, two chairs, a cabinet, and the bed she’d been lying on. At least the sheets and quilt were surprisingly clean, freakishly clean compared to the room. The quilt even had a pleasant scent. Light, but the Demon Race had sharp noses.

The voices kept going outside. She listened carefully. That was… the Huobi tongue?

Rebecca had studied hard since childhood. Not just magic and martial arts—she took her culture classes seriously too. So she could understand the Huobi language spoken outside.

“Huobi? Huobi people? Humans?” She blinked, dazed. Her mind was a mess. How did she wake up in this random place? Judging by the language, this had to be the Kasmo Empire south of the Dark Forest. The Huobi were the main people there.

Wearing a total what-the-heck expression, Rebecca climbed off the bed, went to the door, opened it, and stepped out.

A narrow corridor. Doors at regular intervals. Kind of like an inn?

Footsteps approached. From the sound, she could tell it was just an ordinary person.

“Good morning, beautiful, adorable miss~” Rebecca turned. A plump woman in a shabby maid dress smiled warmly and handed her a hot towel.

“Uh…” Rebecca stared blankly at the towel, then at the retreating woman, her head still a whirl.

She lifted the coarse, cheap towel, glanced at it, hung it on the doorknob, and headed for the stairs at the end of the hall.

At the stairwell, the chatter grew louder.

Tables and chairs were strewn everywhere in a chaotic mess. People of all kinds sat inside. They looked strange, and their outfits were stranger. With weird weapons slung over shoulders, at their waists, or dumped on tables, they felt like… a rabble. Yeah, a rabble. That was the vibe they gave Rebecca.

They looked fierce and carried steel, but read more like undisciplined bandits. For a moment, Rebecca wondered if she’d been kidnapped to be some bandit chief’s bride. Then she thought again: this sorry lot crossing the Dark Forest to abduct her? As if. So how did she end up here?

As her questions piled up, her beauty and out-of-place aura immediately drew eyes.

“Look, that girl’s stunning! Hard to imagine a beauty like this in Black Town! No, my heart’s hers already—I’m going to propose!” A burly man threw down his pork knuckle, grease coating his mouth, and charged over. His shout snapped many shocked gawkers back to their senses.

“You think you deserve a woman like that? Get lost. She’s mine!” Another bald brute roared.

“Hmph. I’m with the Golden Sword Mercenary Corps! I’ll take this woman as an offering to our esteemed captain!” This one actually looked normal and wore a neat set of light armor. Not so rabble-like.

“Golden Sword, big deal? This is Black Town! I’m claiming her.”

More and more joined the scramble over Rebecca. Only a few sharp ones, seeing her looks and aura, decided she wasn’t ordinary. Trouble risk. They stayed back to watch.

Rebecca was already frustrated from waking in this place for no reason. Now a whole crowd was leering at her. She clenched her fist—

But just as she was about to strike, a figure rushed in and planted herself in front of Rebecca. She swung an unsheathed greatsword in a sweeping arc.

“Ah!”

“AAH!”

Clang! Boom!

Screams and the stairway collapsing hit at once. As the stairs gave way, the woman grabbed Rebecca and leaped to safety.

“Move!” she barked. A few people immediately followed, and together they burst out of the inn.

Curses and angry shouts chased them, but the group was already on horseback, riding hard…

…

“We’re clear…”

The horses stopped. They dismounted. Every gaze fixed on Rebecca.

“Uh…” Her head felt even foggier. Today made zero sense. What was even happening?

She woke up in an inn in Black Town. Then a bunch of creeps tried to snatch her. Then these four women rescued her and galloped all the way to a riverside. What even is this sequence?! By routine, she should be in the Dark Lord’s palace brewing potions right now!

“You okay?” The one who’d shielded her—the woman with the greatsword—spoke. She wore bright silver armor, with well-designed chain at the joints that didn’t restrict movement. Her broad-bladed greatsword, only a head shorter than Rebecca herself, was impossible to miss. She didn’t even look that strong, yet swung a sword like that. She had to command powerful battle qi. And she was beautiful.

Bold, heroic brows—not ideal on a girl—but her blue, bright almond eyes softened them. She kept her hair short, gold and side-parted. Fine nose, thin lips, no makeup. Looked like she’d styled herself into a tomboy on purpose.

“So cute~ No, I need more hugs~” While Rebecca studied the greatsword woman, something soft pressed against her cheek.

A chest! A huge one—smothering.

“Hey, hey! Lilia! You held her all night. Still not enough?” A woman in a pure white robe smiled gently nearby.

Her vibe was serene. Her smile warmed the heart. Her golden hair was neatly braided and wound across her forehead. Her crescent eyes made it feel like she was always smiling. Her oval face, neither too thin nor too round, carried a touch of regal grace. Unlike the greatsword girl’s cool sharpness, she radiated comforting warmth.

“Kami, you’re just jealous I got to cuddle her last night~” The busty woman finally let Rebecca go. Rebecca got a proper look at her…

She was all heat and enthusiasm, like a swimwear beauty on a summer beach. Her chest felt amazing. Rebecca’s head was a mess, but she couldn’t deny she liked that feeling. Honestly, that was why she hadn’t exploded yet.

A mature, explosive figure. Big red waves of hair. But a doll-like face. Bright, adorable brown eyes blinked. Her slightly baby-fat cheeks puffed up, and her small cherry lips pouted. A baby face with a bombshell body…

As for the fourth, Rebecca couldn’t see her face. Hood up, mask on. But the tight leather armor told the story: a woman, and a very well-shaped one.

Soon, Rebecca’s focus snapped back. The busty woman had said she’d held Rebecca all night. So she’d slept that hard yesterday? If it was last night, then that meant…

“I… you… why are you here me?” Rebecca could understand the Huobi tongue, but she hadn’t practiced speaking much, and years had dulled it. Her words came out halting, with a strange accent. Still, it was oddly cute—like a beautiful foreign girl trying her best to speak the local language.

“We rescued you from the Dark Lord’s palace!” the busty beauty declared proudly.

“Uh…” Rebecca’s mind went blank.

Rescued from the Dark Lord’s palace? Were these the so-called heroes who caused chaos in the Dark Forest yesterday? They crossed the Dark Forest? And “rescued” her? Were they brain-dead? She was Demon Race! Who didn’t know that? She had red eyes! Black hair… Wait. Gold?

“What the hell?” Panic rushed in. She broke free of the busty woman’s hug and ran to the river.

Her features hadn’t changed—still that same pretty, cute face. But why was her hair now gold, and her eyes green?