Vol 4. Chapter 7: Sisters

Hmm?

Yuan’er’s unusual reaction naturally caught Yumo’s attention. Looking at the little girl in her arms, who was clinging tightly to her with a hint of unease, Yumo frowned in puzzlement.

Then the black-haired girl slowly turned her head and looked toward the two sisters beside them, whose eyes were practically sparkling.

‘Ah, these two girls...’

With that one glance, Yumo understood why Yuan’er was feeling a little uneasy.

It seemed the two girls’ excited and overly enthusiastic gazes had frightened their little sister somewhat.

Seeing Limo and Liyu being so enthusiastic toward Yuan’er actually put Yumo at ease. After all, most of these Demon King-class children harbored quite a strong hatred toward humans. At first, Yumo had worried that Yuan’er, whose original body was human, might not be accepted by her older brothers and sisters.

Now it seemed that she had worried for nothing.

Yumo let out a long sigh of relief. No matter what, she still hoped the atmosphere within the family could remain harmonious.

Then,

Yumo looked rather helplessly at the two enthusiastic older sisters. Seeing that neither of them had realized what was wrong, Yumo could not help but remind them:

“Limo, Liyu, be a little more careful, okay? If you act like that, you’ll scare your little sister.”

Limo: Awooo??

Liyu: “S-Sorry, Mother. I got a little carried away...”

After Yumo’s reminder, Liyu immediately realized the problem. When she noticed Yuan’er’s timid, somewhat frightened expression, the gray-haired girl awkwardly scratched the back of her head. After restraining the excessively excited gleam in her eyes, she cautiously gave Yuan’er an apologetic look.

Seeing this,

Yumo nodded slightly in satisfaction. Then she slowly raised a hand and rubbed Yuan’er’s little head, saying gently:

“Don’t worry. Those two big sisters are just a little too happy, that’s all. You don’t need to be afraid.”

As she spoke, Yumo gave Yuan’er another encouraging look:

“There’s nothing to be scared of. Come on, say hello to your sisters~”

Encouraged by Yumo’s gaze, the uneasiness in Yuan’er’s heart immediately vanished. After taking a deep breath and mentally preparing herself, the pink-haired little girl released Yumo’s waist, turned solemnly toward Liyu and Limo, and performed a curtsy with somewhat unfamiliar movements.

She wanted to execute it perfectly, but her nervousness made her movements slightly awkward, causing both Yumo and Liyu to feel their hearts melt.

“Hello. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Yuan’er-Duke. I hope you’ll take good care of me from now on. Big Sister Liyu, and... ummm, Big Sister Limo??”

Looking at the silly little white wolf that had jumped out of Liyu’s arms and was now wagging her tail, Yuan’er could not help hesitating.

“Don’t worry about that, Little Sister Yuan’er. Big Sister Limo usually looks like a little white wolf anyway. You’ll get used to it.”

As though seeing through Yuan’er’s thoughts,

Liyu tilted her little head with a smile, placed both hands on her hips, and struck the pose of a tiny adult.

“Also, welcome to our big family, Little Sister Yuan’er.”

As she spoke, Liyu skipped over to Yuan’er’s side and enthusiastically took her little hand.

“Meowooo!”

Limo also let out two cries before scampering over to Yuan’er’s feet and repeatedly rubbing her fluffy head against her in welcome.

“Mhm!”

Seeing that both of her older sisters welcomed her so warmly without showing even the slightest hint of disgust, the enormous weight that had been hanging over Yuan’er’s heart for so long finally began to lift. The smile on her face grew brighter and brighter. Sure enough, everything was just as Big Sister Youlan had told her. Her sisters were all very easy to get along with.

In fact,

as Yuan’er gradually grew bolder, she slowly crouched down and raised her hand to stroke Big Sister Limo’s soft, fluffy wolf ears.

For a time,

a warm and cheerful atmosphere surrounded the three children.

Watching her daughters happily getting acquainted with one another, Yumo quietly leaned back against her chair, propped her chin on one hand, and revealed a gratified smile. Even the blood-colored butterflies around the girl began fluttering merrily as their master’s mood improved.

‘My children really are so well-behaved and adorable~’

...

A short while later,

Yuan’er, who had already grown familiar with the sisters Limo and Liyu, also wore a bright and joyful smile. Ultimately, all three children possessed similar bloodlines, so with the power of that bloodline naturally drawing them together, it was only reasonable that they would quickly become close.

At this moment,

in order to entertain their little sister, the three sisters had gone to the open space outside the tent. The little white wolf’s body directly expanded again, transforming into a ‘husky’ more than two meters tall. Without another word, she picked Yuan’er up in her mouth, placed her on her back, and happily bounded around the clearing.

The open space was soon filled with the children’s cheerful laughter.

Under normal circumstances, the children, who needed to conceal their identities, should not have been playing around so recklessly. But considering how happy they were, Yumo temporarily abandoned the idea of stopping them. Instead, she had her Blood Butterflies slowly scatter through the surroundings and treat all those tactless people snooping around for intelligence to a generous feast of sleeping powder~

Meanwhile,

seeing her big sister and Yuan’er having such a good time, Liyu felt happy as well, but a puzzled expression inevitably appeared on her little face. Tiptoeing over to Yumo’s side, Liyu tugged at Yumo’s skirt and asked curiously:

“Um, Mother...”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“Didn’t Little Sister Yuan’er run away from home before? Why did she suddenly come back? And now she’s even calling you ‘Mom’ on her own and acting so affectionate with you. Before this, I thought... since that child was originally human, she would... be quite resistant toward you.”

“Ummm, about that...”

Faced with Liyu’s perfectly reasonable question, Yumo smiled helplessly and thoughtfully looked toward the pink-haired girl playing with Limo.

“Actually, yesterday, I went to see Yuan’er.”

“Hmm? Mother, you went to see Little Sister yesterday?”

“Mhm. It was probably right after Karina withdrew with the Abyss Demon horde.”

...

...

--

Meanwhile, in Wind Facing City near the eastern edge of the Great Winter Forest.

After enduring yesterday’s hellish ordeal, Wind Facing City finally welcomed a new day. Yesterday, under Lei Jie’s furious roar, the Abyss Demon horde had been ‘frightened away’ and fled back into the Great Winter Forest. With the crisis threatening their survival finally resolved, the people of Wind Facing City had erupted into unprecedented celebration.

Even now, a full day later, their joy had not diminished in the slightest. If anything, it had only grown stronger.

Because,

as the city gates opened, under the delighted gazes of all the citizens, the members of the Duke Family, led by Xiumu himself, returned to Wind Facing City under the escort of the Blizzard Knights. In an instant, earth-shaking cheers erupted from the massive crowds gathered to welcome them.

The people displayed overwhelming joy at Marquis Xiumu’s return.

Some time ago, because Xue Tianao had deliberately distorted the truth through propaganda, the people of Wind Facing City had begun harboring deep suspicions toward their lord. They suspected Marquis Xiumu of colluding with the Abyss Demons and planning to turn ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) the entire city’s population into food that would replenish his granddaughter’s energy.

However, yesterday’s sight of the Duke Family’s Guardian Beast, Lei Jie, roaring and driving back hundreds of thousands of Abyss Demons, together with the fearless performance of the Blizzard Knights as they defended the city, had gradually dispelled many people’s doubts. Combined with the Black Rose Family’s deliberate propaganda during this period and the reputation the Duke Family had accumulated over several centuries,

the citizens of Wind Facing City had completely cast aside their suspicions of the Duke Family. They no longer believed that the Duke Family had colluded with the Abyss Demons, nor were they willing to believe that Miss Yuan’er had transformed into an Abyss Demon. In their eyes, all those previous claims had been nothing but rumors—lies fabricated by Xue Tianao in order to destroy the unity of the north.

Therefore,

when they learned that their beloved Marquis had not been killed by the Emperor and had instead returned to Wind Facing City once again, the citizens spontaneously flooded the streets and gave him an incomparably enthusiastic welcome.

Watching this scene from atop his warhorse, Xiumu felt deeply gratified. A trace of emotion even appeared on his pale, aged face.

“Finally... I’m back...”

Xiumu had originally believed that going to the Imperial Capital meant certain death. Now, seeing these familiar streets and the familiar scenery of the northern frontier once again, countless emotions surged through him.

For once, his heart felt genuinely relaxed.

However,

as Xiumu let out a long sigh, Sikta, Commander of the Blizzard Knights, wore a completely different expression, one filled with worry.

Looking at the cheering citizens, Sikta could not help turning his gaze northward.

That was right.

The Abyss Demon horde had withdrawn for now, and the Marquis had returned. But that did not mean their old lives could simply return to normal.

After this massive assault, the northern defensive line had already been shattered. Without the border defenses, the Abyss Demon horde could return at any moment. With no other fortresses remaining to provide cover, Wind Facing City could be said to stand isolated on the northern frontier, forced to face the threat of the Abyss Demon horde alone.

Lei Jie’s overwhelming display of power had indeed successfully ‘frightened away’ the Abyss Demon horde before,

but what about next time?

What if a Demon King-class existence led the Abyss Demons here? Would they really be able to recreate yesterday’s miracle?

Therefore,

at this stage, for the sake of the people of Wind Facing City...

Thinking this,

Sikta guided his warhorse slowly toward Marquis Xiumu.

“Marquis, shouldn’t we arrange for the citizens to evacuate as quickly as possible? With the situation as it is now, if this happens again...”

In Sikta’s eyes, abandoning Wind Facing City, which generations of their ancestors had spent their lives building and protecting, was undoubtedly a cruel decision. But in order to survive, in order to avoid becoming food for the Abyss Demon horde, they had no choice but to do it.

As the Marquis, Xiumu would surely agree.

However,

contrary to Sikta’s expectations, after several seconds of silence, Xiumu slowly shook his head.

“Marquis...?”

“There’s no need for us to evacuate anymore, Sikta.”

Looking around at the surrounding people, Xiumu spoke slowly.

Hearing this answer, Sikta immediately revealed an expression of disbelief.

“Huh? We’re not evacuating? Why would you say that? Wouldn’t that leave us in terrible danger? What about those Abyss Demons?”

In response, Xiumu seemed strangely relieved. He turned back and gave Sikta a meaningful look.

“Don’t worry, Sikta. The Abyss Demons won’t attack us. This place is safe... very safe...”