Chapter 2: Fox Princess (Hu-ji) "Leshi... is that my name?" The boy whispered, his right hand resting on his chest. He felt an indescribable palpitation, as if an old, dusty photograph had been flipped open. That surge of warmth and nostalgia nearly brought him to tears. "Help! Someone, please help us!" A sudden scream tore through his thoughts. Leshi snapped his head up and saw the distant grass rustling violently. A young fox-beastman girl in a pure white dress was curled on the ground, while two foul-smelling, red-eyed wolf monsters closed in. Standing before the girl was a fox-beastman clad in shrine maiden robes, gripping a staff tightly with arms outstretched, desperately blocking the wolves' path. "Damn it... there are too many of them..." The shrine maiden fox perspired at the temples, her voice trembling with tension. "If there were only one, I would have dealt with it already. But with two, and while protecting a child, I can't take them both down in time!" Seeing the monsters about to pounce, Leshi’s body moved before his brain could react. He snatched a stone from the ground and hurled it at the lead wolf with all his might. THUD! The stone struck the wolf squarely in the side of its face. Infuriated, the two wolves abandoned their prey and turned toward the "provocateur" with a guttural growl. "Over here! Come on!" Leshi shouted. This brief opening became the key to victory. The shrine maiden's pupils shrank as she slammed her staff into the ground, azure magic swirling around her: "Now! Freezing Wind!" A piercing chill spread instantly, flash-freezing the charging wolves into shimmering ice sculptures. "Huff... huff... It’s over." Before even stowing her staff, the shrine maiden stumbled toward Leshi. Her spiritual fox eyes were filled with lingering fear, her tone both frantic and angry. "Are you crazy, kid?! Those were monsters! Throwing stones with your bare hands? Do you have any idea how dangerous that was!" Leshi looked at her blankly. Though her reprimand was sharp, he could feel the thick layer of concern beneath the surface. "I'm okay..." his voice was hoarse. He instinctively looked past the priestess toward the back. "What about the child?" "Big brother, I'm okay!" The little girl in the white dress poked her head out timidly, her fluffy ears still trembling. "Thank you for saving us." "My name is Hu-ji." The shrine maiden finally steadied her breathing. Her tone softened slightly, yet maintained a hint of authority. "This is Koharu. Thanks to you drawing their attention, I had time to cast the spell. But one thing's for sure—where are your parents? Why are you running around here alone?" Leshi’s chest tightened; he had no answer. Just as the atmosphere turned heavy, a sudden change occurred. CRACK! One of the ice sculptures shattered. Driven by raw instinct, the wolf monster forcibly broke free. Its eyes bloodshot, it leaped past Hu-ji, lunging straight for the defenseless Koharu. "Watch out!" Leshi screamed. Without a second thought, he spun around and shielded Koharu in a tight embrace, leaving his back exposed to the creature’s ferocious fangs. In that life-or-death moment, a call from across time and space echoed from the depths of his heart: Master, I will protect you no matter what. BOOM! A surge of sacred, golden magic flowed out like water, enveloping Leshi and forming the silhouette of a massive hound. The moment the wolf monster slammed into the barrier of light, it was completely obliterated. A wave of intense exhaustion crashed over Leshi. As the golden light faded, his vision went black, and he collapsed backward. "Leshi! What’s wrong?!" Amidst Hu-ji’s panicked cries, he drifted into a deep sleep. 第二章《狐姬》 雷希……那是我的名字嗎？ 男孩低聲呢喃，右手放在胸前感到難以言喻的悸動，彷彿是塵封已久的舊照片被翻開，那股暖意與懷念，幾乎讓他鼻頭發酸。 救命啊！誰來救救我們！ 突如其來的尖叫撕裂了思緒。雷希猛然抬頭，看見遠處的草叢亂顫。一名穿著純白連衣裙的狐狸獸人小女孩蜷縮在地上，兩頭渾身散發惡臭、雙眼通紅的狼魔物正步步逼近。而在女孩身前，一位身披巫女服的狐狸獸人正緊握法杖，雙臂張開，死死擋住惡狼的去路。 可惡……數量太多了……巫女狐狸額角滲汗，聲音因緊繃而顫抖 如果只有一隻我早就解決了，現在兩隻要保護孩子情況下同時解決根本來不及！ 眼看狼魔物就要發起衝刺，雷希大腦還沒反應，身體就先動了。他隨手抓起地上的石塊，用盡全身力氣朝領頭的狼扔去。 砰！ 石塊精準砸中狼的側臉。 兩頭狼瞬間被激怒，捨棄了眼前的獵物，轉身朝著這個「挑釁者」發出憤怒的低吼。 來啊！這邊！雷希大喊著。 這短暫的空檔成了制勝的關鍵。巫女狐狸瞳孔一縮，法杖猛地頓地，湛藍色的魔力流轉：趁現在！凍結之風！ 冷冽的寒氣瞬間蔓延，將狂奔中的狼群凍成了晶瑩的冰雕。 呼……呼……結束了 巫女狐狸法杖都沒收好，便踉蹌地衝到雷希面前。她那雙充滿靈氣的狐眼寫滿了後怕，語氣又急又氣 你這孩子瘋了嗎！那可是魔物！空手扔石頭？你知不知道剛才有多危險！ 雷希有些恍惚地看著她，對方的責備雖然凌厲，但他能感受到那層外殼下厚實的關切。 我沒事……他聲音沙啞，下意識地越過巫女看向後方，那個孩子呢？ 哥哥，我沒事！ 白裙小女孩怯生生地探出頭，一對毛茸茸的耳朵還在打顫，謝謝大哥哥救了我們 我叫狐姬。 巫女這才平復了呼吸，語氣緩和了些，卻依舊帶著幾分威嚴，這是小春。這次多虧你及時吸引注意，不然我根本沒時間施咒。但一碼歸一碼，你爸媽在哪？怎麼讓你一個人在這跑？ 雷希心頭一緊，這問題他答不上來。正當氣氛凝固時，異變突生。 喀嚓！ 一隻冰雕碎裂，那頭狼魔物竟憑藉野性強行掙脫，雙眼充血，越過狐姬直撲向毫無防備的小春。 小心！雷希大喊。 他根本來不及思考，轉身死死抱住小春，將後背留給了那對猙獰的利齒。就在這生死一瞬，他的心臟深處突然傳來一聲跨越時空的呼喚： 主人，我一定會保護你的 轟！ 一股神聖的金黃色魔力如同流水般包覆雷希身體周圍形成巨犬型態。狼魔物撞在光幕上的瞬間就被消滅 雷希感到一陣劇烈的虛脫感襲來，金光消散，他兩眼發黑，向後倒去。 雷希！你怎麼了？ 在狐姬驚慌的呼喊聲中，他陷入了沉眠。
狐姬小春
雷希小春
