Ruston nodded in agreent before looking at Renan. "Renan, can you try to do what your grandma suggested now?" he asked gently.
Renan, without hesitation, nodded his head and closed his eyes. All of them focused their attention on him, watching closely.
In just a second, his body started to glow with a mix of every color. The vibrant light surrounded him as his body began to shift. The fox’s ears and tails slowly faded, his features morphing back to his original form. As the transformation completed, Renan opened his eyes—once again shining with their familiar red hue.
Everyone’s eyes widened in amazent. Although they had expected this outco, witnessing it firsthand was sothing else entirely.
The first to break the silence was Namari.
"I think we need to keep this a secret,"
Belinda nodded her head and said, "Indeed, if this were to get out, forget about our current war with humans—we would be facing a war against every race on Earth. No one would let go of soone who possesses both the bloodlines of dragons and foxes without any side effects. Forget about others, even I feel tempted by the possibilities."
Ruston, who had been deep in thought, sighed before speaking in a serious tone. "Indeed, it is, Renan. So promise your Grandpa that you won’t tell anyone else about this, okay?" His expression, which would always be soft with Renan, was unusually stern, emphasizing how important this secret was.
Renan, seeing the gravity of the situation, nodded without hesitation. "Okay, Grandpa, I promise I won’t tell anyone about this," he said firmly.
But after a brief pause, a thought crossed his mind, and he hesitantly asked, "But… can I show this to Grandmother Nyria?" His voice was hopeful yet cautious, unsure if this exception would be allowed.
Ruston rubbed his chin thoughtfully, considering the request. He remained silent for a mont, his mind weighing the risks and benefits of revealing this information to Nyria. Eventually, he nodded. "Yes, you can show it to Grandmother Nyria," he confird, believing she was soone they could trust completely.
Encouraged by the approval, Renan quickly followed up with another question. "Can I also show it to Elowyn and Sylveria?" He was close to them and trusted them, but he knew this was not a simple matter, so he asked to hear Ruston’s response.
Ruston narrowed his eyes slightly, falling deep into thought once more. He didn’t answer imdiately; instead, he turned to Belinda and spoke to her telepathically. ’What do you think of those two girls, Belinda?’
Belinda, who had also considered this matter, replied telepathically, ’Elowyn is the daughter of Nyria, and Sylveria is the daughter of Kael. Both of these girls’ parents are our most trustworthy comrades and are Grand Duke and Duchess. So, I believe it should be safe. However, we can’t leave this to chance. So I will personally ask Elowyn and Sylveria to take an oath separately before they learn anything. That way, we can ensure they won’t reveal it to anyone.’
Ruston listened carefully to Belinda’s reasoning before nodding in agreent. He then turned his gaze back to Renan, who was still waiting for an answer. "Yes, you can show them," he finally said. "But rember, Renan, other than those people—Grandmother Nyria, Elowyn, and Sylveria—you are not allowed to tell anyone else." His voice grew more serious as he continued,
"Not even the Elders. Do you understand?"
Renan’s eyes widened slightly at the ntion of the Elders. Even they weren’t to know? That only proved how serious this was. He swallowed hard before nodding resolutely. "Yes, I understand, Grandpa," he answered with determination.
Ruston, satisfied with his answer, gave him a small smile and ruffled his hair. "Good boy. This is sothing you must keep to yourself unless we say otherwise," he said warmly.
Belinda, watching their exchange, sighed in relief. The situation was finally settled, at least for now. However, a lingering unease still sat in the back of her mind. She glanced at Ruston, who seed to be thinking the sa thing.
Just what exactly had happened to Renan? And what did this transformation truly an for their family and for the dragons?
~~Next day~~
In the sa training ground where Renan trained for the first ti in his life, two figures stood facing each other. One was Gracen, who observed the other with a calm but serious expression. The other was a young fox with black hair, golden eyes, and three tails swaying behind him. It was Renan in his fox form.
Renan shifted on his feet and looked up at Gracen with curiosity. "Now, Father, can you tell why I need to transform into this form?" he asked, tilting his head slightly.
Gracen folded his arms across his chest and replied, "Well, it’s because I want you to train both of your forms at the sa ti. If we focus only on your dragon form, your fox form might be left behind, causing an imbalance. If one side becos overwhelmingly stronger than the other, the balance that maintains your transformation could be disrupted. That kind of instability could lead to chaos inside you, and we still don’t fully understand how your bloodlines are balancing themselves. This is the best way I can think of to ensure that no accidents occur."
Renan nodded thoughtfully. "I see," he muttered.
"So anyway, let’s start our training," Gracen announced, his expression sharpening with focus.
"First, let tell you about the racial abilities of foxes," he began. "Foxes are sowhat similar to dragons in terms of growth. They require ti to mature and gain strength. The strength of a fox is often determined by its tails—starting from a one-tailed fox, progressing to three, five, seven, and finally, the ultimate form, a nine-tailed fox. However, unlike dragons, foxes don’t beco overwhelmingly powerful even when they reach their peak. At most, a fully matured fox would be equivalent to an eight-circle mage or an eight-star warrior in human terms. And if compared to dragons, they are still weaker than an adult dragon or, at best, equal to one in certain aspects."
Renan listened carefully, taking in every word, but a question lingered in his mind. "If foxes are that much weaker than dragons, then how did they survive the war?"
Gracen smiled knowingly. "Good question. That’s where our racial abilities co into play. Despite not being physically dominant like dragons, foxes have unique gifts—hypnosis and illusion. These abilities allow us to manipulate our enemies, but there are limitations. Our powers only work on those who are equal to or weaker than us. Against those who are stronger, it has no effect—unless they have a weak will or lack ntal resistance."
Hearing this, Renan’s mind sparked with a realization. ’Was it because of this ability that I suddenly felt compelled to touch the golden ball of energy inside ?’ he thought. But before he could dwell on it further, Gracen’s voice pulled him back to the present.
"Although we played a vital role in assisting dragons during the Second War, we foxes were well aware that without the dragons’ protection, we wouldn’t have survived. That’s why, when your Grandmother Belinda sought ways to help dragons grow stronger at a faster rate, she also looked for a way to strengthen foxes. After finding a solution for the dragons, she dedicated another couple of years to helping us foxes evolve beyond our natural limits."
Renan listened with keen interest as Gracen continued.
"In the end, the solution was quite different from the dragons’ thod, but not too different either. Unlike dragons, foxes don’t possess elental affinities, so we couldn’t rely on the circle thods. Instead, your grandmother decided that we would follow the human warrior path—using their star cultivation thod. However, instead of forming stars inside our bodies like human warriors, we form them inside our tails. Every ti a fox successfully forms a new star, they grow an additional tail. Since I have seven tails, that ans I have successfully ford seven stars."
Renan’s eyes widened slightly at the revelation. "So foxes basically get physically stronger by forming stars?"
"Exactly," Gracen nodded. "That’s how we managed to close the gap between us and humans. But strength alone wasn’t enough. Once we gained physical power, we also had to refine our combat techniques. That’s why we studied martial arts and various fighting styles from humans. Over ti, most foxes found that wielding a katana suited them best. The weapon just feels right in our hands, allowing us to maximize our agility and precision in battle."
Renan glanced at Gracen’s waist, where his katana rested. He had never seen his father wield it, but now he was eager to witness it in action.
"And that brings us to today’s training," Gracen finally said, his lips curving into a small smile as he look at Renan.
"You are going to form your first star inside your tail."
Renan’s eyes glead with excitent.
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