My Pet Fox Is Actually A Demon Prince-Chapter 50: Choking Me To Death

"Snowpuff, you bit me!"

Kyva’s voice rang out in disbelief as her fingers brushed the dark red mark blooming at her neck. Ever since she had woken, the soreness there had throbbed like a secret she could not ignore.

She had dismissed it at first, going about her morning, but the ache lingered, stubborn and insistent.

Now, staring into the mirror, she traced the mark with trembling fingertips.

What mischief had Snowpuff fallen into to leave such a claim upon her skin?

Meanwhile, the culprit sat not far away, his snow-white fur catching the morning light as he lowered his fox ears. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Guilt gnawed at his conscience, though beneath it pulsed a dangerous satisfaction. He had no idea what possessed him last night, only that the hunger had been undeniable. While a part of him thrilled at the memory, another recoiled at the breach of restraint.

Yet the truth was undeniable.

Last night confirmed what his instinct had whispered all along.

His human was his mate.

The thought rang with the weight of prophecy. His uncle had spoken it before, half in jest and half in certainty, and yet he had been right.

For one born with demonic blood and shadowed by such turbulent power, Calhoun had long believed he was destined to walk alone. The women who surrounded him during his younger days had been predators in silken guise.

From them, he had learned only pure suspicion, never tenderness.

Love, to him, had always seemed like a cruel invention. A chain forged to bind the heart, only to shatter it in the end. He had never wanted nor sought such a bond.

To love was to invite ruin.

His mother had been the proof of that.

She had loved too dearly, too fiercely, until that very devotion became the blade that destroyed her.

Calhoun had struggled trying to understand the concept of romantic relationships. But now, just a single taste of his human had shattered every wall he had built. His self-control honed from years of solitude and suspicion, crumpled like ash beneath the storm of desire.

The memory of her skin against his lips haunted him. It was nothing but a fleeting indulgence, and yet it had undone him entirely.

That knowledge burned through him with equal parts terror and rapture.

Kyva rose to her feet and folded her arms across her chest, narrowing her eyes at the culprit who dared look so innocent.

Snowpuff sat upon the bed with his ears drooping and his wide eyes fixed upon her, as though he thought he could charm his way out of this with nothing but a pitiful expression.

It very nearly worked.

"No more late-night cuddles for you," Kyva declared, pointing an accusing finger at the fox. "That is your punishment."

At once, his ears flattened further.

Kyva huffed and turned back toward the mirror. The bite was not deep, but... it had left a small wound upon her neck.

After dabbing the mark with a bit of scented water, she pressed a narrow strip of plaster over it.

"A part of this is my fault, I spoiled you too much," she muttered under her breath.

A sudden knock at her door drew her attention. She turned around just in time to see the door slide open, and two familiar figures stepped inside.

Her eyes widened, surprise breaking into a smile.

"Selene, Liora!"

The two maidens hastened toward her, their expressions filled with relief the moment they spotted her.

"Kyva, how have you been?" Selene asked softly, though worry still lingered in her gaze."Are you hurt, what happened to your neck?"

Seeing them here, despite everything that happened yesterday, made Kyva’s heart ache with gratitude. She nodded quickly, assuring them that she was alright.

"I am well," she said. Then, with a small laugh, she touched the little bandage at her neck. "Oh, it is only the doing of a certain stubborn beast. Nothing serious."

Upon the bed, the white fox curled amongst the blankets gave the slightest twitch of an ear.

"We planned to check on you last night," Liora said, "but after the convocation there was so much disorder within the circle that we could not leave on time."

Kyva shook her head, her smile gentle. "You both are here now. That is more than enough for me."

Only then did her gaze drift to their attire.

The two of them stood clad in robes of deep cerulean, the fabric heavy yet elegant, embroidered with pale silver threads that traced the sleeves and hem like moonlight upon water. Upon the breast of each robe gleamed the crest of the Aquiline Quarter, stitched with meticulous care.

"Are those the robes bestowed upon new disciples?" Kyva asked softly.

Selene and Liora inclined their heads in unison, pride shimmering in their eyes.

"And we bring tidings as well," Selene added, clasping Kyva’s hand with warmth. "You are summoned to the Aquiline Quarter. Lady Mia herself, one of its famed Masters, has sent us to fetch you. Your Master has at last given his consent."

Kyva’s eyes widened slightly.

"You mean... I am to become part of the Aquiline Quarter?"

"Yes," Liora replied at once, a grin spreading across her face. "You deserve to be a disciple just like everyone else. Then the three of us can stand together against... What’s her name again? Vera, yes! Sadly, she is a water-affinity disciple as well. How can she be so heavily favored?"

At that, Kyva’s thoughts sharpened.

The sting of Vera’s public humiliation now revealed its true cause. Of course one so privileged would seek to bar her from the circle. Yet Kyva resolved that this time, Vera’s cruelty would not go unanswered.

"She was deemed exceptional by the Masters," Liora continued, folding her arms with a displeased huff. "Yet she only arrived not long ago, and already her spiritual strength swells in unnatural measures. It is most suspicious."

Her sour expression lightened as she turned to Kyva with a look of fierce determination. "But you need not worry about her any longer. If she dares trouble you again, I shall snap her in two myself."

Ever since learning the truth of Kyva’s condition, and how the seniors and Masters had regarded her, Liora could no longer bring herself to think harshly of her.

The poor girl had endured what no soul should endure.

No one deserves such cruelty.

Meanwhile, Kyva was too excited about joining the Aquiline Quarter to care about Vera.

Though whispers now followed her through the Sacred Order, though her name had been stained by the humiliation, Selene and Liora were still here.

For that alone, her heart warmed.

And she swore silently that she would clear her name, no matter what it took.

"You are far too fortunate," Liora lamented dramatically. "I would be lying if I claimed I was not jealous. To be chosen by the Fox Master himself..." She pressed the back of her hand to her brow. "If it had been me, I would have become utterly unbearable within this Order."

A conflicted smile tugged at Kyva’s lips.

"Have you glimpsed his face beneath the mask?" Liora whispered suddenly, leaning close and ignoring the sharp nudge Selene gave her. "You may tell me. I shall guard the secret with my life. I wish for a handsome fox master as well."

"Ah, honestly," Selene sighed, clicking her tongue. "You are shameless."

Across the room, Calhoun lay upon the bed, watching the exchange with narrowed eyes. Despite hating that her attention had been stolen from him, he was also satisfied to see his human had friends.

Then, without warning, a prickle of danger stirred within him.

His ears twitched.

Too late.

Before he could leap aside, Liora had already scooped him into her arms.

’What are you doing—’

She held him high with delight sparkling in her eyes.

"Perhaps your little fox familiar might transform into a handsome prince for me instead."

"You are far too much of a dreamer," Selene teased, and Kyva’s soft laugh broke the tension like sunlight through mist.

Meanwhile, Calhoun found himself imprisoned within an embrace from which there seemed to be no escape.

Liora held him against her chest and was now happily squeezing him like he was some manner of treasured stuffed toy.

He could not breathe.

He could not move.

For an immortal being, he literally saw his life flash before his eyes.

And his human—

His own human was merely standing there and laughing.

Traitor!

Was she truly content to watch him suffer such indignity?

Such betrayal?

Calhoun twisted dramatically in her grasp, but there was so little his frail body could do.

Liora buried her face in his fur with an excited squeal.

"He is so soft! Look at him! Such a majestic little creature!"

Calhoun flattened his ears and simply surrendered with the expression of a man who had lost his will to live.

If he survived this humiliation, he swore he would never forgive Kyva.