Chapter Twenty-Four: Named… Xī

“?”

To be honest, Vilyric was somewhat surprised by the agility of the other party. It’s important to note that Leila was a genuine legendary-level powerhouse, and the speed provided by her ancestral White Feather Wing physique was far beyond that of ordinary beings. Although this fellow appeared a bit disheveled, he indeed evaded that attack through sheer strength.

More importantly, from the reaction just now, it felt as if he recognized someone over here.

“Stop, wait a moment.”

Seeing the Priestess speak again, Leila, who was ready to follow up with her attack, paused slightly before quickly retracting her hand. Renée, who was preparing sky magic, also temporarily ceased her chanting and turned around with a look of surprise and confusion.

However, the vines summoned by Tilysha would not simply disappear. After all, these were real plants that she had secretly sprinkled on the ground while passing through the entrance, nurtured by divine life force. Even if she cut off the magical supply, they could still exist for quite a long time.

At this moment, those dark plants were blocking the alley’s entrance like door gods, sealing off all regular escape routes and preventing any outside eyes from peering into the alley. In the nighttime, ordinary people wouldn’t notice the situation here unless they looked closely.

Temporarily halting her companions’ attacks, Vilyric’s silver-blue eyes behind her mask met the extremely human-like figure in the shadows, and she spoke in a calm tone.

“Who is this young lady you just mentioned? Who are you? What are your intentions in following us?”

As a member of the divine race, the Priestess had excellent night vision and had naturally seen the other person’s appearance the moment they met. This was also one reason she decided to have Leila and the others stand down for now.

They were a group of Fox-Humans.

No, saying “Fox-Humans” might not be entirely accurate. The differences between the true Fox-Humans of the Beast Kingdom and humans were quite obvious. The males typically resembled real foxes, with most of their appearance and physique similar to that of true foxes, covered in fur, their heads and bodies looking more like beasts.

As for female Fox-Humans, like Mavis, the little fox whom Vilyric had encountered a few times before, although they might appear more human-like due to their roles in the race, many obvious fox traits remained. This included exceptionally long and fluffy tails, fur on their bodies for warmth, and claws that markedly differed from those of humans.

That was the true nature of the Fox-Humans. As for Beastmen, even if their blood was diluted, they should still have at least basic features like fox ears, tails, and slitted pupils.

However, these individuals were different. Although they initially seemed somewhat like Beastmen, closer examination would reveal they only had a pair of fox-like pointed ears on their heads, lacking tails or claws, and their pupils were identical to humans.

If anything, they bore some resemblance to… Vilyric herself, who was now wearing the Mask of the God Fox, having altered her appearance.

Upon hearing Vilyric speak, the leader of the group, a fox-eared young man in a thin black outfit that seemed quite merchant-like, stepped forward, carefully observing the white-haired girl with the mask under the moonlight, he whispered.

“It’s me, young lady, Ming Lan. It’s only been a short time apart. Have you really forgotten me?”

“Ming… Lan?”

Furrowing her brows as she pondered this oddly archaic name that seemed to be out of place in this world, Vilyric felt a slight unease in her heart but simply shook her head calmly on the surface.

“My memory is quite good, but I’ve never met you or anyone named Ming Lan. You must be mistaken.”

“No, you haven’t seen me? What are you joking about? This… this…”

It seemed the response from the Miss White Fox displayed an unfamiliar attitude that was hard for him to accept. He turned back to glance at a few companions behind him—some males and females, all looking like they were only around twenty years old, sharing bewildered looks. Then he turned back, seemingly scrutinizing the young girl in front of him.

His gaze wasn’t lewd but rather carried a sort of reverence as if treating her like a noble, so even Little Dragon Daughter remained silent, simply standing by Vilyric’s side with a cold stare.

To be honest, Vilyric was somewhat perplexed about what this self-proclaimed Ming Lan was studying. After all, she was wearing a semi-artifact-level mask; could they see through the concealed form?

The other party didn’t make them wait long and soon spoke with a tone of certainty.

“There’s no mistake; this is indeed the sacred object passed down in our clan. Your figure and voice are almost identical to that of the young lady. So, may I ask, have you ever heard of the name Xī?”

“You say… what?!”

A sense of extreme absurdity surged through Vilyric like lightning, almost overwhelming her ability to contain her astonishment. If it weren’t for the formidable psychological fortitude of her divine race kicking in at a critical moment, she would have likely gasped in shock.

How could… this Ming Lan know the name Xī?!

“Master?”

The girl’s intense turmoil almost transmitted through the contract to Xiao Guang, who worriedly moved a little closer to Vilyric, seemingly wanting to do something to comfort the Priestess. However, even Little Dragon Daughter, who had been following her all this way, might not fully grasp the tremendous shock caused to Vilyric by hearing such a name from a complete stranger.

“Ha… I’m fine, really. Don’t worry, I’m just… a bit surprised.”

Taking a deep breath, Vilyric slowly calmed her turbulent heart, her thoughts shifting back.

It’s too early to say. After all, she had appeared with the same appearance and name when rescuing over a hundred slave girls in Demon Town. Many of those girls had probably returned home by now, and it’s possible that it was during that time that the name Xī had spread…

Even if… even if it truly wasn’t the case, panicking was meaningless.

“Ming Lan… right? May I ask why you believe I am your young lady, and where did you learn the name Xī?”

“Uh, young lady, what on earth is… wrong? Have you been away from the clan for so long that you don’t even recognize your own name? You are Xī; to be precise, it’s Ming Xī. Of course, everyone is more accustomed to calling you simply Xī. And the mask you are wearing is precisely the sacred object Mask of the God Fox, lost alongside you after that incident. There’s no way I could be wrong about this.”

“Ha…”

So they even accurately called the Mask of the God Fox by name… what on earth is going on?

If this fellow was merely speaking hearsay, there’s no way he could state such secret information so precisely. Not to mention Mask of the God Fox was gear from Fantasy World, and ordinary people in this world had no means to learn about it.

Moreover, in a way, the other party’s words weren’t completely wrong. While the surname puzzled Vilyric, she…

“You’re not wrong; I… do indeed go by Xī, but I truly don’t know you, so what exactly…”

“Wait, Master! There are many creatures quickly approaching outside. Based on their aura, they should be the so-called Temple Knights of this nation. How shall we deal with this?”

Little Dragon Daughter’s whispered alert rang in her ear, coinciding with the sound of dense footsteps that began to appear in Vilyric’s hearing. Beyond the alley sealed by vines, a golden brilliance and chanting unique to belief-type magic lit up.

The Temple Knights?… They sure are quick.

Taking another deep breath, the girl wearing the white fox mask slowly steadied her tumultuous emotions.

It seems she would need to take some time to sort things out.

   

---