Chapter 272: The Curse of Fading Beauty

"What witchcraft?"

Sora was waiting for Damien to continue explaining, but he suddenly fell silent.

Hearing footsteps approaching the room, she turned her head and realized that Drake had returned.

Recently, she had been so overwhelmed with various matters that she hadn’t had the opportunity to ask about his whereabouts. She had wanted to find him and inquire about her Adoptive Mother, but she hadn’t known where he had gone. In the end, she could only wait for him to return.

Now that she thought about it carefully, Drake had been away for seven whole days.

A hint of joy appeared on her face as she looked at him.

"You’re back."

Drake withdrew his gaze from Damien and turned toward Sora. He nodded.

"Yes, I’m back."

When he had left, he had originally planned to return within two days. Unfortunately, something unexpected had delayed him, and he had spent seven entire days investigating the matter.

He had thought he had returned as quickly as possible.

Yet, in the end, he was still one step too late.

Sora had actually formed a Contract Totem with Damien.

Drake’s gaze lingered on Damien for a moment, his expression becoming slightly complicated.

He clearly remembered that Sora had once harbored doubts about Damien. She had even been reluctant to trust him completely.

What had happened during his absence?

Why had she suddenly decided to form a Contract Totem with him?

Lucas and Xavier also found Drake’s sudden appearance somewhat surprising.

As the Tribe’s priest, it was only natural for Drake to visit Sora after she had given birth. However, he had not appeared before them for quite some time.

Moreover, he looked noticeably exhausted.

His clothes were dusty, and his face appeared haggard, as though he had traveled continuously without allowing himself enough time to rest.

"You’re back?"

Ace narrowed his eyes slightly.

He couldn’t help wondering whether Sora had sent Drake away on some secret mission. After all, the priest had been absent for several days, and his return seemed to coincide with something important.

Ace opened his mouth, seemingly about to ask a question.

However, before he could speak, Drake stepped forward and addressed Sora respectfully.

"Congratulations, Chief. I didn’t expect you to have given birth to the little cubs while I was away. I didn’t have time to prepare a gift for them, so I’ll make it up to you next time."

Sora had been worried that Drake might bring up her earlier inquiries about her Adoptive Mother in front of everyone.

She had no intention of letting the others know about that matter just yet.

Fortunately, Drake seemed to understand her concerns without needing her to explain anything. Rather than mentioning the investigation, he simply congratulated her on the birth of her little cubs.

The anxious feeling in her chest finally eased.

As expected of Drake, he was someone who understood her intentions without requiring her to spell everything out.

Sora smiled at him.

"It’s fine. You only just returned, so it’s perfectly normal that you didn’t know about the birth."

Drake nodded before taking another look at her.

"Have you eaten anything?" Sora asked.

Sora had just given birth to several little cubs. Although she was no longer in the middle of labor, she still looked somewhat weak.

Drake knew how exhausting childbirth could be. It was only natural that she needed time to recover.

He shook his head when she looked at him expectantly.

"Not yet."

Hearing this, Sora turned toward Clare.

"Could you please help me get something for Drake to eat?"

Over the past few days, Clare had prepared plenty of fish soup in anticipation of Sora’s recovery. She had expected Sora to need nourishing food after giving birth, but until now, Sora hadn’t needed it.

Now that Drake had returned without even eating, Clare didn’t hesitate.

"Of course. I’ll bring something over immediately."

With that, she turned and left to prepare the food.

Seeing the exhaustion written across Drake’s face, Sora was about to suggest that he find somewhere to rest first.

However, Drake’s expression suddenly changed.

His gaze shifted toward Damien, and he asked, "I believe I heard someone mention witchcraft just now. Has someone been cursed?"

The moment he spoke, everyone’s attention returned to Damien.

Damien had originally intended to explain what he had discovered about Sora’s sudden change in appearance. However, with Drake present, he had hesitated.

His gaze had become somewhat subtle, and he had stopped speaking altogether.

Now, after hearing Drake’s question, he glanced at Sora.

Sora was still waiting for him to explain why she had suddenly become so beautiful.

Could it really be that someone had cast witchcraft on her?

And if so, had the original owner of this body actually been beautiful all along?

Sora’s curiosity grew stronger.

However, when she followed Damien’s gaze and noticed that he seemed wary of Drake, she understood the reason for his hesitation.

She waved her hand casually.

"It’s fine. Drake is one of us. There’s no need to hide anything from him."

Wasn’t it merely a matter involving witchcraft?

Why should they conceal it?

Besides, Drake was the Tribe’s priest. Perhaps he knew something about such matters that could help them understand the situation better.

Damien paused slightly.

He hadn’t expected Sora to trust Drake so much.

Beside them, Xavier frowned almost imperceptibly.

Was Sora treating Drake a little too much like one of their own?

Nevertheless, Sora was still waiting for an explanation, so Damien finally continued.

"The red mole at the corner of Kaelira’s eye resembles the mark left behind when the Visage-Fading Curse is broken."

"The Visage-Fading Curse?"

Sora stared at him in confusion.

"What exactly is that?"

She had never heard of such a thing before.

Martin and Mark also looked surprised.

Mark frowned deeply and asked, "Sora has no grudges against anyone. Who would want to curse her?"

Martin’s expression became solemn.

For so many years, he had believed that Sora had simply been born with her original appearance. After all, from a distance, she had always looked somewhat like him.

He had never imagined that someone might have deliberately cursed her.

When he had brought Sora back to the Wolf Tribe, she had already been unusually unattractive.

If she had indeed been cursed, that meant the curse had been placed on her long before she returned to the Tribe.

Martin’s heart tightened as he considered the possibility.

He turned toward Sora and asked, "Before you returned to the Wolf Tribe, did you have contact with anyone?"

Before she returned to the Wolf Tribe?

Those memories belonged to the original owner of this body, and they were so distant that Sora could barely recall anything useful.

She searched her memories carefully, trying to find even the smallest clue.

Unfortunately, nothing came to mind.

After a moment, she shook her head.

"It’s been too long. I can’t remember."

Martin’s brow furrowed.

Whoever had cast the curse must have had a reason for doing so. But what kind of grudge could someone have held against a little Female?

And why had the person gone to such lengths to ruin her appearance?

The more he thought about it, the more troubled he became.

Perhaps it was time to pay a visit to Sora’s Adoptive Mother and ask her what she knew.

Back then, Sora had gone out with Lan Ya and had accidentally been captured by their enemies. After that, all news of her whereabouts had disappeared.

When Martin finally recovered Sora from the Black Bear Female, the only obvious problem he had noticed was her appearance. Aside from that, she hadn’t seemed to have suffered any other mistreatment.

He had always believed that although she had been lost for a long time, she had at least managed to survive.

Now, however, he realized that the truth might be far more complicated than he had imagined.

Damien continued explaining.

"The Visage-Fading Curse is a type of witchcraft used by the Black Bear Tribe to curse someone’s appearance. It isn’t commonly used, and very few people know how to recognize it."

He glanced at the red mole at the corner of Sora’s eye.

"If I hadn’t noticed that faint mark today, I might not have realized what had happened."

He paused before continuing.

"Once someone is afflicted with the Visage-Fading Curse, their appearance deteriorates rapidly. Unless they find a way to break the curse, it can remain on them for their entire life."

Sora blinked.

"But I haven’t done anything special, and I’ve become beautiful."

That was precisely what confused her.

She hadn’t cultivated any abilities to remove curses. She hadn’t taken any special medicine, either.

So how had the curse been broken?

Damien explained, "The red mole indicates that the curse inside your body has been devoured by something."

"Devoured?"

Sora was even more confused.

She had intended to begin cultivating properly, but she hadn’t had the time to start. With the pregnancy, childbirth, and all the troubles surrounding the Tribe, cultivation had been pushed aside.

Where could she have obtained the power necessary to devour a curse?

Lukan, who had been listening quietly, suddenly spoke.

"Kaelira hasn’t done anything unusual recently. The only significant event is that she gave birth to the little cubs."

He looked toward the newborns.

"Could the little cubs have devoured the curse while they were still inside her body?"

Damien nodded slowly, a faint light passing through his dark pupils.

"I suspect that’s exactly what happened."

Xavier also spoke up.

"I examined several of the snake eggs earlier. They all have horn-like growths on their heads, and each of them possesses the strength of a First-Rank Beast from birth."

Lukan nodded in agreement.

"The three wolf cubs are the same. They were also born at the First Beast Rank."

He considered the situation carefully.

"If the little cubs possessed such strength before they were even born, it’s entirely possible that they consumed the curse while developing inside Kaelira."

The room fell silent for a moment as everyone considered this possibility.

Then Martin’s eyes lit up with excitement.

"My precious grandsons are actually this powerful?"

He could hardly contain his happiness.

Normally, newborn cubs possessed little or no Beast Rank. They had to cultivate and break through gradually before they could increase their strength.

Yet Sora’s little cubs had been born at the First Beast Rank!

That was an extraordinary talent.

Martin had always believed that Sora’s Beast Husbands possessed excellent potential. That was precisely why he had supported her in forming Contract Totems with them.

He had expected their offspring to be exceptional.

But he had never imagined that the little cubs would be so gifted from birth.

His judgment had indeed been excellent!

Martin immediately decided that such wonderful news deserved a celebration.

He would have to arrange a bonfire party to celebrate the birth of his talented grandsons.

Sora, meanwhile, was still stunned.

She had known that her little cubs were special, but she hadn’t expected them to be so powerful that they could devour a curse even before being born.

Born at the First Beast Rank!

She couldn’t help remembering how much effort she had once put into developing her own supernatural abilities. Back when she was still at Level Zero, she had worked diligently just to cross the threshold and make her first breakthrough.

Yet her little cubs had apparently achieved something similar without lifting a finger.

Sora looked at the newborns, her heart filling with amazement and pride.

As expected, there was simply no competing with those who were born exceptionally talented.

And now, it seemed that her little cubs had not only inherited remarkable potential but had also helped restore the beautiful appearance that had been stolen from her.

The mystery surrounding her past had only deepened.

Who had cursed her in the first place?

And what other secrets were still buried in the memories she could no longer access?