Sharp claws pierced through her waist and yanked her entire body outside the house.
Wu Xiaomi was pressed into thick fur between massive fingers, her back against the soft pad of a claw.
Grumble.
She swallowed.
Just one claw was already big enough to cover her entire body.
“Down—”
She was pinned firmly to the ground, the soft pad wrapping around her body, leaving only her small head exposed, looking up at the creature through the gaps between the fingers.
“Ha—”
Drool landed near her head.
The “monster” opened its enormous jaws and leaned forward.
That one bite could swallow Wu Xiaomi whole.
“I’m not… a demon…”
Wu Xiaomi stared at the giant beast in front of her.
It was a long, sleek fox with glossy fur.
Compared to the plump, silly statue of the Spirit of Abundance, this one was much leaner.
And much more dangerous.
The skin on the giant fox’s face twitched, wrinkling in fury.
“I can smell it on you, that cunning, bastard witch… Even if you’re not a demon, you’re her lackey!”
Ah.
Wu Xiaomi remembered what Nainailiya had said.
Most of the time, the Spirit of Abundance was gentle.
Except when it came to a certain someone.
Ah…
So she’d stepped right on the landmine?
0v0
What now? Should she try to deny any connection to the witch?
Pretend she’d been tricked, just an innocent fool fooled by an evil demon?
But… that witch had helped her twice.
Badmouthing her behind her back felt kind of wrong.
Ha…
Forget it.
Can’t win, might as well stop thinking.
……
The girl simply closed her eyes and smiled.
A look of peace on her face.
“…Why did you give up so easily?”
Seeing Wu Xiaomi go completely limp, the Spirit of Abundance actually lost interest.
“I really did… make a deal with the witch…” Wu Xiaomi murmured weakly, “If this is the price for that… then go ahead…”
The Spirit of Abundance’s fangs hovered in front of her.
This child…
So dumb.
A normal person would be freaking out right now—desperately denying it, screaming for their life, right?
But she showed almost no will to survive.
“Don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because of that.”
The Spirit of Abundance’s voice was low and beastly, full of savage cruelty.
Its sharp fangs hooked under her shoulder blade—half of Wu Xiaomi’s body was already in its mouth.
It had no intention of showing mercy.
……
Was this it?
Warm breath blew from the Spirit of Abundance’s throat, like a gale, lifting Wu Xiaomi’s clothes.
Its mouth didn’t stink like a wild animal’s.
On the contrary, it carried the intoxicating scent of wine.
It made her sleepy.
She could now clearly see its esophagus.
Its throat opened wide, ready to feast.
[They’re always like this.]
Hm…?
The witch’s voice?
[So full of righteous words when begging for help.]
[But when it comes time to repay their debt… heh.]
The silver snakes on her anklet began to writhe—they’d come to life again.
“It’s you?!” the Spirit of Abundance suddenly shrieked in terror.
Its fangs snapped down in a panic.
A silver snake coiled around one of its canine teeth and, with a sharp crack, snapped half of it off.
Wu Xiaomi tumbled out of its mouth, carried by the force of recoil.
A sudden gale burst across the flat ground, whipping through the golden sea of wheat.
It rampaged, blending stalks and dust into a tawny tornado.
At the same time, wild grass in the fields began to grow at an incredible speed.
“Don’t leave,” the grass said.
The moon began to bleed.
The rapidly growing grass twisted into vines, becoming incredibly tough.
The Spirit of Abundance tried to flee, but the vines wrapped tightly around its entire body.
“Get off me!”
“No.”
Just like that first day, the vines traced the form of the witch.
She was a noble queen—even as just a silhouette, she walked with stunning grace and elegance.
She didn’t look directly at the Spirit of Abundance.
Instead, she slowly approached Wu Xiaomi.
She lifted Wu Xiaomi’s face, vines growing from her arms and wrapping around her, as if merging the two together.
“You… why didn’t you fight back?”
Crimson pupils looked down from above.
As if a monarch were gazing upon her guilty subject.
“Couldn’t beat it…” Wu Xiaomi said righteously.
“You could’ve lied,” the witch’s gaze bore into her eyes, oppressive and intense, “You could’ve played the victim, begged for pity, distanced yourself from me. You could’ve said you were tricked—just an unlucky fool who got caught up in something.”
“I’m a witch. You could’ve thrown all the blame on me, and no one would’ve questioned it.”
“Huh?”
Wu Xiaomi looked at her, confused.
“But why would I do that?”
“Why not? You nearly died just now. Weren’t you afraid at all, standing on the edge of life and death?”
“I was… kinda scared…”
Her heart was still pounding like crazy.
“You’re not stupid. You grew up crawling through mud—you lie like it’s second nature.” The witch lifted Wu Xiaomi into the air, forcing her to meet her gaze, “Don’t tell me it didn’t even cross your mind.”
“Th-thank you for the compliment?” Wu Xiaomi didn’t know how to react, so she just: “Ehehe~☆”
A silly grin.
“…”
The witch’s vines tightened.
“Why?” the witch stared at her coldly. “You just said, ‘if this is the price of the deal’… Are you really willing to pay with your life?”
Huh?
Faced with that question, Wu Xiaomi only looked more puzzled.
“You saved Xiaozhi’s life. You saved mine too. When I had nowhere left to turn, you were the one who reached out to help me… Isn’t it only right that I do everything I can to repay you?”
“…”
Is it?
This was a deal with a demon.
The witch fell silent.
“I’ll repay you properly.”
The girl’s smile was pure and earnest.
The witch found herself momentarily stunned.
“If you’re thirsty, I’ll bring you water. If you’re bored or annoyed, I’ll play cards with you.
And if… you’re in danger, I’ll protect you.”
“Protect me?” the witch chuckled softly. “You?”
Looking down on her, huh?
Wu Xiaomi puffed up her unimpressive chest.
“That’s right! Me!”
She said it with complete seriousness.