“What did you say?? What was that?? Whose did you say Yurou Jiushuang is to you??”

Christine had never been this shocked in her life. Her petal-like little mouth hung open wide enough to fit an egg.

She had heard it perfectly clearly. But the amount of information packed into those few simple words was downright explosive. It made her seriously doubt whether it was even real.

Was it really that surprising?

Feitao pursed her cherry-like lips and lowered her gaze to her own hands, then to the three tails behind her that were swaying unconsciously.

It had been a long time since she’d seen this body.

Almost thirty years, probably.

She glanced at the bronze mirror in the stone chamber. Reflected in it was a pearl-like, adorable young fox-eared girl.

Her mismatched eyes were one blue and one sakura-pink. The clear, rippling sapphire eye and the charming peach-heart pink eye looked like priceless gems set into a crown. They carried both a sense of distance from the mortal world and, at the same time, a completely opposite kind of lush, blooming allure.

A streak of cherry-crimson highlight fell across the front of the girl’s hair.

Her flawless, silken long hair was like white plum blossoms blooming and scattering in a bitterly cold land. It was desolate and beautiful, yet carried a nobility beyond price.

Her cream-smooth skin was like frost descending from heavenly mountains, snow-white and immaculate. Her exquisitely sculpted features were like a rare treasure standing apart from the world, noble and untouched by dust. Yet they also held a few threads of heart-stirring charm, enough to make desire begin to squirm.

Her fluffy white-peach fox ears twitched.

“As expected, I really can’t die,” Feitao said as she looked at those milky-white little hands, soft and delicate, like the pampered hands of some noble young lady.

A little dejected, she plopped down onto the floor.

“From the sound of it, were you really trying to kill yourself a few months ago?” Christine had finally recovered from her earlier shock. Her wine-red gemlike eyes watched Feitao with clear interest.

“Even a miserable life is better than a good death. And besides, you have the Fox Demon Bloodline. Your lifespan is practically endless. Why were you so determined to throw your life away?”

“Why not?” Feitao lowered her hands. Her childish voice carried a steadiness that didn’t match her young appearance at all, creating a strong contrast.

“An endless lifespan is far too long. When it’s time to leave the stage, you leave. Living out your own meaning is enough. Humans should be like that. Why keep clinging to life?”

“.........” Christine’s expression turned a little strange as she looked at Feitao.

No matter how she heard it, that sounded way too humblebrag.

“But you’re not even human. You’re a fox.”

“.........”

Feitao’s face darkened. Even her slightly baby-fat cheeks puffed up a little on their own.

Christine wisely chose not to continue that topic.

She had more or less figured it out. The self-racial identity of the little fox in front of her was “human,” not “Nine Tailed Fox.”

Even though she carried the bloodline of the Nine-Tailed Form, she seemed firmly convinced that she was human, not one of the Divine Race.

And... maybe it was just Christine’s imagination, but she felt that Feitao faintly rejected the identity of the Nine-Tailed Form.

It had to be said, the curiosity Christine had buried for a hundred years had been successfully stirred up by this little fox in front of her.

“Let’s change the subject. You just said your mother is that old—... ahem, I mean, the Heavenly Maiden of the Nine Tailed Fox clan, Yurou Jiushuang?”

“Mm.” Feitao clearly didn’t want to answer this either. It seemed she was only patiently telling the truth because she still owed Christine a favor.

“You’re not joking?”

“.........If you mean my biological mother, by blood, then yes.” Feitao’s face didn’t change, but it was obvious she no longer wanted to be pestered on this subject.

“My, my~” A smile of unclear meaning spread across Christine’s face.

“Tsk, tsk. That old thing acted all reserved, like some aloof fairy untouched by mortal desires, above all emotion and worldly attachment. Who would’ve thought? She was secretly sneaking bites on the side. She even has a daughter.”

Tsk, tsk. With that old fox’s tiny frame, it was a miracle she didn’t die in childbirth.

“Miss Fate... if I may ask, who is your father?” Christine now looked exactly like someone who lived for drama and wanted to dig up every bit of dirt she could on Yurou Jiushuang.

“........I dunno,” Feitao pouted.

“???”

Oh my god, that’s even juicier!

Christine had assumed that fake-prudish old fox spirit had secretly married someone. She hadn’t expected it to be an out-of-wedlock pregnancy.

“Your mother does care about you quite a bit. She placed so many protective clan curses on you. You have no idea. When those curses lit up, they nearly blinded me.”

“But from the looks of it, your relationship with your mother doesn’t seem very harmonious, does it?” Steering the conversation back on track, Christine feigned confusion as she tried to coax more out of Feitao.

“........What she cares about isn’t whether I live or die. It’s the bloodline on me that came from her, that’s all.” Feitao shook her head. She had clearly touched on too many things she didn’t want to mention. Her patience was already worn away.

Ah.

So there really was conflict between mother and daughter, and it clearly wasn’t anything small.

“Mhm, I see.” Christine knew when to stop and didn’t press further.

“Then, have you thought about what you’ll do next?”

“? Do what next?” Feitao tilted her head, and the fox ears on top of it tilted with her.

“You didn’t die.” Resting her chin on one hand, Christine smiled. “A Nine Tailed Fox has nine lives. Your Fox Demon Bloodline was never going to let you die that easily.”

“Since you failed to die, life has to go on. Have you thought about your plans from here on?”

“.........”

“Looks like you haven’t.” Christine seemed to have expected that reaction already.

“I do have a pretty good suggestion.”

“? A suggestion?”

“That’s right. My suggestion is this: stop being a knight. How about it~?”

“..........”

“Knight Fate Saint Lune is already a thing of the past. His mission is complete. Just treat this as being reborn. How about it?”

“.........Reborn?” Feitao’s sakura-like eyes filled with confusion.

“You want me to go live in the mountains as a fox?”

“I never said that.” Christine smiled. “It’s up to you. You can keep being your human self, an ordinary human. But you need to be prepared. From this day on, you’ll have nothing to do with the identity of the Dawnbreaker Knight.”

“You need to cut yourself off from your past.”

“Cut myself off from the past?”

“That’s right.”

“After all, everyone’s impression of the Dawnbreaker Knight is just that suit of iron armor. Other than people who know you personally, no one recognizes you, right? So why not use this chance to start a brand-new life?” Seeing that Feitao was a little tempted, Christine continued to guide her along.

“It’s an age of peace now. No one needs you anymore. You don’t have any lingering attachments, and you feel no nostalgia for the people or things from before. If that’s the case, why not try putting down that heavy responsibility and live as an ordinary person from now on? It might suit you better.”

“A new life, huh?.........” At that, Feitao pressed her lips together, and her gaze shifted.

Sakura petals drifted through the air. The mark of the Nine Tailed Fox flashed like a brief flower blooming at dawn, then quietly faded.

The beam of light drew in. Her three tails and fluffy ears retracted. At the same time, the girl’s height returned to a normal level.

She turned back into a human.

“Maybe... I can?.........” The moment the words left her mouth, Fate’s pupils shrank, and a rare trace of panic appeared on her face.

“Me?” Fate looked at Christine, who was watching her with obvious interest. “Me? I still haven’t changed back?”

Other than being taller and her voice sounding less childish, this was obviously still a girl’s voice, wasn’t it??

What was going on? Had she not turned back into a human??

“No, you did turn back,” Christine said with the expression of someone thoroughly enjoying the show. “But not completely.”

“What do you mean??” Fate looked down and found silky platinum-white hair spilling freely over her shoulders, trailing down the faint valley of her chest and disappearing into it...

“Me??” Fate stared at her own fair, flawless, jade-soft hands. It was hard to believe these were the same rough hands that had held a sword for years and built up countless calluses.

“Well, this just goes to show that trying to die has consequences,” Christine explained in a teasing tone.

“The old you could suppress the bloodline of the Nine Tailed Fox. But once your human body died, the Fox Demon Bloodline became the only pillar keeping your life going. The part of you that belongs to the Nine Tailed Fox successfully bit back.”

“So even if you turn back, you can only turn back into a human body. As for your sex, that part definitely isn’t changing back.”