"What's-what's the use of seeing her memories—huff... huff—when I'm going to turn into a zombie?" I muttered, staring at the screen.
"Warning! If you don't stop, your core will shatter in ten seconds."
"Warning! Ten seconds left until the subquest fails!"
"Raj, stop right this instant." Nymeria shouted, tears falling from her eyes. "Are you trying to sacrifice yourself again for the sake of others?"
"How-how do you kn—" I was about to ask, but a sudden thought pulsed in my mind.
What if I'm able to find a way to save Gumiho in her memories? It was a long shot, but it was worth a try. There was no other way for me anyway.
"Warning! Five seconds left until the subquest fails!"
"Vivi... memories..." I whispered between all the grief I was suffering from.
"Initialising host's request...
Merging Host's consciousness with the target's memory...
Attempt successful."
.
.
.
"Uwaa... uwaa," a sharp voice of a baby filled my ears.
"Felicitations, you are blessed with a girl," an old lady with the tail and ears of a fox said in a cracked voice, touching the forehead of another fox woman lying on a carpet.
"My-my child... Give her to me..." the fox lady on the carpet whispered, raising her trembling arms.
The old lady handed the crying baby, wrapped in a white cloth, to the mother.
"Where am I this time?" I wondered, looking at the surroundings.
I was inside a small, weary cottage. The sunlight filtered through the numerous holes in the ceiling, and the wind carried petals of plum blossoms through the gaps.
I tried to touch one of the petal but it went straight through my hand and landed softly on the forehead of the crying child.
At the same time, the door of the barely standing hut opened with a crack.
A fox-man with auburn hair, covered in sweat, bolted inside.
"Look before you leap. Do not disturb her," the old lady snapped at the man.
The man, now slowing down, sat beside the woman lying on the carpet.
"See, God has given us the greatest treasure under the heavens," the lady whispered with a warm smile.
The man moved his trembling finger toward the crying baby.
As his finger drew closer, the child grabbed it with her tiny hands and stopped crying.
The man burst into tears, murmuring, "Thank you... thank you so much, my wife."
He bent down and kissed his wife's forehead as he continued, "You have worked hard."
After a moment, the mother fell asleep, exhausted from the pain of delivery.
"Come here, Aruma," the old lady called to the father of the baby.
He gently put the blanket over his wife and daughter, then moved toward the old woman.
"Your daughter might be cursed," the lady said in a low voice. "When she was born, the wind blew stronger, and I felt a dreadful, suppressing pressure coming from her. Moreover, she was born with faded red eyes and two tails. I have never seen or heard of anyone in the fox clan born with two tails."
"Or she might be blessed by the fox spirit," Aruma said, before letting her continue further. "We cannot and should not be the judges of her fate simply because she was born different from others."
"Sigh... your words are true, but still, you should take her to the clan ancestor so he can check if she is cursed or blessed."
The old lady grabbed a thick wooden stick placed beside the door and walked out with slow, unsteady steps.
"What was Grandma Miyu saying?" the mother asked.
"Oh, nothing, she was just going on and on about how beautiful and blessed our daughter is," Aruma replied with a warm smile. "By the way, Hana, have you thought about what we are going to name her?"
"Help me get up," Hana replied.
"Isn't it associated with protection against evil? Ume... what a lovely name!" Aruma said, touching the baby's cheeks. "Do you like your name, Ume?"
While the couple was having their moment, I was stuck in my own thoughts.
"Why am I here?" I wondered. "Shouldn't I be inside the memories of Gumiho?"
I was a bit confused. Gumiho was nowhere to be seen. At first, I thought this lady named Hana might be Gumiho, as her appearance was exactly like hers.
But Hana's hair was brown, and she didn't have that authoritative presence in her eyes.
So the only person that could be her was... that child?
And again, this wasn't logically possible. How could someone have memories from the time when they were just born?
However, those dominating eyes and the unusual pink hair on her head were clearly indicating that she was Gumiho.
I had never seen a child this beautiful before.
Whenever Aruma called her, she smiled brightly with a soft, chuckling voice.
"You should rest for a bit, dear wife," Aruma said. "I will make the meal for you."
Hana lay down, and Aruma left to prepare the food.
I tried to follow Aruma to look outside, but I couldn't leave the hut, as if something were tying me inside. Beyond the door, there was nothing to see as a bright light was blocking my view.
It might be because, at this point in time, Gumiho didn't have the memories of what lay beyond the hut.
While I was observing the surroundings, Hana shouted in a hasty voice, "Husband, come here quickly."
Within a fraction of a second, Aruma burst inside like a mad bull.
"What happened, my wife?" He asked, completely panicked. "Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere? Is Ume alright? Tell me quickly."
"There-there is someone beside us inside the cottage," Hana said.
"Whom? Where?" Aruma asked, his voice turning serious.
"Right there," she said, pointing her trembling fingers at me.