Chapter 307: Black Beast Ears

Suddenly bitten, Yu Zhizhi’s nose reddened slightly. The Duke held her close, and before she had a chance to struggle, he gripped her jaw and demanded a kiss.

The kiss ended.

The Duke’s dim, golden, vertical pupils were locked on her face. He nuzzled her neck, then lightly kissed the tip of her nose. "From now on, you’re forbidden from wearing these clothes to the Royal Palace again."

The moment he saw her today, the Duke regretted it.

’I shouldn’t have agreed to let her see Tang Luo Ke.’

’He’d heard the surveillance in the treatment room was blocked. What had they done in there? The lingering mark on her neck seemed to say it all.’

Yu Zhizhi nodded lightly. "Mm..."

’Didn’t the Duke personally pick this outfit for me?’

’He was always so moody... ’

"Duke, aside from Little Amon, can I meet the other Snake Pups?" Yu Zhizhi asked softly.

She had been at the Duke Mansion for a long time, but she still hadn’t seen any of the other Snake Pups.

The Duke placed his long, slender pipe on a nearby rack. "They’re in closed training. You won’t be able to see them for a while. Just wait a bit longer."

Beast Clan cubs with strong talents began rigorous training from birth to ensure their talents and spiritual power could flourish.

The Duke pulled her in front of him. As he held her, his fingers gently undid the ties on her back.

The fluffy skirt fell to the floor.

He lifted her into his arms and walked toward the hot pool in the backyard.

...

「The next day.」

While Yu Zhizhi was eating breakfast, the Little Octopus returned. Its red tentacles curled around a melon on the table, and it started munching on it with a CRUNCH, CRUNCH.

"Why have all the servants in the courtyard been replaced?" the Little Octopus muttered.

When it left yesterday, it could still see plenty of male servants.

Now that it was back today, they had all been replaced with females.

Yu Zhizhi ate the sesame-filled rice balls in her bowl, recalling how the Duke had questioned her last night about where she had been. She had told him that after returning from the Book Collection Pavilion, she had stayed in her study the whole time.

The Duke had only kneaded her rabbit tail and said nothing.

She had sat in the Duke’s lap, acting cute. "Can you let me have a few more servants?"

"Of course," the Duke had said at the time, giving her a meaningful look.

And then...

All the servants in her study were replaced with females.

Forget male members of the Cat Clan; it was hard to see a male from any clan.

Yu Zhizhi thought about her main quest. Time was ticking away, yet she couldn’t even find a trace of a cat.

’Am I really going to fail this mission by running out of time...?’

Ugh—

She swallowed the rice ball in her mouth, lifted her rabbit eyes, and stared out the window with a mournful gaze.

’The Duke was watching me far too closely...’

’I can’t find any opportunities at all.’

The Little Octopus held a melon with one tentacle, a wrap with another, and clutched a teacup with a third.

"I went over to that Jinshe’s courtyard yesterday. That female is a total coward. She was so scared she started screaming her head off."

The Little Octopus took a sip of milk tea. "But, man, she’s so busy. She has endless lessons every day. I saw that the books in her room are piled up like a mountain. Stuff like noble etiquette, ballroom experience, and she even has special tutors—"

The little red octopus had tea stains all over its mouth. It licked them away. "How come you’re so idle?"

’In its eyes, the little rabbit was really lazing around.’

’Every day, she just keeps the Little White Snake company, and then sunbathes in the courtyard with me.’

She had already completed most of the basic courses for her Healing Talent, only needing to take an exam once a month.

’There’s so much free time. Why is the Jinshe female learning so many things, while the little rabbit doesn’t have to learn anything?’

Yu Zhizhi held her spoon, looked at the two remaining rice balls in her bowl, and slowly shook her head.

’Noble etiquette, ballroom experience?’

’She recalled asking the Duke’s Clone about this when she met him at the residence before. The Duke had only said she was too young and there was no need to learn.’

’The last time she saw Miss Jin She, they seemed to be the same age.’

"Maybe..."

Yu Zhizhi murmured, "Her family is more distinguished."

She had no family on the Beast World Planet and was disliked by the Rabbit Clan. When she was classified as D-level, she was abandoned. It was only after she advanced to S-Class that the K family began treating her as an honored guest.

The Little Octopus extended a tentacle and snatched Yu Zhizhi’s bowl.

It used the spoon to scoop up the rice balls, gobbling down the remaining two. "I don’t think it has anything to do with her family. Why do I get the feeling the Duke Mansion is grooming her to be the future Duchess?"

Dai Li, who was at the door, couldn’t help but clear her throat softly. "Ms. Zhi Zhi, Young Master Yu Meng is awake."

Yu Zhizhi quickly stood up. "I’ll go check on him~"

She would use her Healing on Yu Meng’s Beast Bone every day. Although the Little White Snake still looked a bit sickly, Yu Zhizhi knew that its body was slowly recovering. Its vitality was much stronger than when she had first started.

The next few days passed peacefully.

The Duke would come over every evening, and in their spare time, they would visit Little Amon together.

One day, during her afternoon break, Yu Zhizhi couldn’t resist taking out the silver coin. ’I wonder if the temple messenger has found that journal yet?’

She sat on her bed, gripping the silver coin tightly in both hands.

’With this, it seemed she didn’t need a candle.’

’Nor a full moon.’

After reciting the temple spell, a cloud of mist rose around her. When she opened her eyes, she was already by the round table.

Just like the previous times, the area was vast and surrounded by endless darkness.

Only the round table was in a zone of light.

Every seat was empty.

Above, runes arranged like an Array resembled the maw of an abyss, emitting a rich, dark green light.

’Did I come so suddenly that even the temple messenger isn’t here?’

Yu Zhizhi sat alone in her chair, feeling a little restless.

Slowly, she heard footsteps.

Just like their first meeting, the temple messenger who called himself "Zero" came to the seat opposite her. He pulled out the chair and sat down.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Zhi Zhi."

Hearing the familiar young man’s voice, some of Yu Zhizhi’s apprehension subsided. "Good afternoon."

"Are you here to ask about the journal?" the temple messenger asked, considerately taking the initiative. "It’s been found. You can expect to receive it in about five days. When that time comes, Ms. Zhi Zhi, you can just come here directly."

A hint of a smile appeared on Yu Zhizhi’s face, and she nodded emphatically. "Okay! I’ll be here!"

"About... the matter of joining the Divine Hall..."

Yu Zhizhi said solemnly, "I will think about it seriously."

The temple messenger wore a white mask, so his expression was hidden, but a hint of a smile could be heard in his tone. "There’s no rush."

’In truth, he was quite anxious.’

’But he didn’t want to scare Miss Rabbit.’

’The Rabbit Clan female’s attitude was much more relaxed than when they first met. The temple messenger prepared to strike while the iron was hot.’

He stood up. "Ms. Zhi Zhi, may I come over?"

"Ah, yes." Yu Zhizhi stood up as well.

She watched as the temple messenger slowly walked around the round table from the opposite side to stand before her. The young man’s shadow was cast on the ground. The candles burning quietly in the center of the table—only two of them—gave off an extremely faint light.

He stopped.

Yu Zhizhi looked up and finally got a clear look at the white mask. Its expression seemed to be smiling.

’It gave off a refreshing feeling.’

Looking further up, she saw his short hair—half black and half white.

’His hair was actually half-black and half-white? The distance was too great before; she couldn’t see it clearly at all.’

And then...

Yu Zhizhi saw the two fluffy... on the temple messenger’s head...

Black beast ears.