“All right, horny cat. Make yourself useful. What’s the plan?” Rakna asked whilst standing in front of the shop’s door.

“{Excuse me, I’m already useful; thank you.}”

“Well, be even more.”

“{Aaah, you’re even sassier now… first, I guess, it would be a good idea to turn your hair back to normal. That would probably avoid some additional complications.}

“Hm, why did it change anyway?” Rakna wondered as he played with a few strands. “I thought it only happened during reinforcements.”

“{Mana dyeing most likely,}” Fray said. “{You see, to use Reinforcement, mana is sent throughout your body and the faster and denser it is, the more it will affect your hair, eyes, and at a much higher stage, your skin and body. You could say that mana is an extension of yourself. Normally, in your ‘cold state’, it is the same as you; calm, cold, and still.}”

“{But in your volcanic state, it becomes rowdy and the dyeing occurs automatically. The body parts that are susceptible to it without your mana actually being used are hairs,}” he explained.

“Really? Didn’t notice a difference in my mana though.”

“{Well, it is not like your mana becomes more noticeable or anything. It is exactly like personalities in thinking creatures; mana also has personalities. And you have two; one is low-key while the other is very showy in nature, to fit the more destructive aspect of the volcanic star.}”

“Hm, if you say so. So, I guess I just need to do something like this…” Rakna closed his eyes and in just a few seconds, the color was drained out of his tails and hair. “Uh, pretty easy. Only my eyes can’t be changed,” he commented.

“{Yep… totally... Controlling your mana’s nature on your first try is the easiest thing ever,}” Higure quipped sarcastically.

“Alright… here goes nothing,” the therian proceeded to open the door.

“Mom! I won’t let you have it!”

“Aww, please. Just a sip!”

“A sip means the entire bottle with you! I won’t let you get drunk so early!”

“But you’re the one who woke me up early. I need a drink to start off the day, sweety.”

“Drink coffee instead! Why are you always so childish in the morning?!”

Rakna stood stunned and confused at the door’s step. His eyes reflected two fox women pressing their bodies against each other as a Kaelith held a bottle above her head so that the other woman wouldn’t be able to get to it.

‘…I mean… it’s a nice sight if anything,’ he thought as they bickered, unaware of his presence.

“{Wow, sexually aware? I retract all my doubts. This is the best version of you,}” Higure jested.

‘Ha. Ha. Ha. Bite me. I just don’t say shit about it in my normal state. It’s not as if I can’t notice the obvious. If someone is beautiful, are you supposed to lie to yourself? Do you look away from a nice painting, when there is no reason to, precisely because it is a good piece of art? How would that make any sense? You tell me.’

“{…this is really throwing me off. You’re too assertive about your thoughts now.}”

‘Deal with it,’ Rakna snapped and closed the door behind as silently as he could. He casually walked to one of the sofas and sat down with a quiet sigh. All while the mother-daughter pair argued.

“Wolfy is going to be here soon! Aren’t you the one who wanted to see him?! So, don’t drink! You’ll embarrass both yourself and the clan! You’re the matriarch for crying out loud!”

“Oh, come on, Kae. That’s precisely why I need my morning drink. I can’t meet your little crush in this drowsy state...”

Kaelith blushed. “He’s not my crush! And your logic of drinking to wake up is nonsensical!”

Meanwhile, Rakna looked at the ceiling. ‘Well, that’s awkward.’

The lioness chortled. “{‘Little crush’, eh?}” She said impishly. You could practically hear the smirk in her voice and he rolled his eyes.

“{Is it not about time you announce your presence?}” Fray spoke. “{At this rate, they might start a wrestling match for who will win that bottle.}”

“I wouldn’t mind that happening,” Rakna replied without thinking and he realized he had made a mistake when the two women looked at him. “Ah shit. Spoke out- loud?!” His collar was grabbed and he was instantly yanked out of his seat by a flushed Kaelith.

“How long have you been here?!”

“Um… since the… ‘aww, just a sip!’ part,” he replied laughingly.

The vixen closed and opened her mouth. On one hand, she was embarrassed to death and on the other, she was almost terrified by the fact that she hadn’t noticed him in the slightest. The System hadn’t even notified her of his arrival at all and even now, with her hand on him, she still couldn’t get a reading on his aura or presence.

‘What is going on…?’ She thought with a scowl and finally, she noticed his red eyes, full of unhidden amusement, and his mouth that was quite clearly forming a smile. “Wha-”

“Oh, so you are the infamous Rakna?” Kaelith was pushed away before she could say anything else and Kara greeted the therian with a graceful smile. Her previous childishness was gone; replaced by an air of maturity. But she still couldn’t help her reddened cheeks. It wasn’t only embarrassing for her daughter, but her as well, to be seen acting like that.

“I apologize. I have shown you a most shameful behavior. I am Kara Yahkshasa, Kae’s mother. She has told me many things about you.”

“Rakna Xiorra. So; many things, huh?” Rakna repeated with a small grin that put Kaelith in a daze and surprised the older vixen a bit.

“Well, among other things… she has described you to be a lot more taciturn.”

“Ah, yes. Don’t worry about that. Let’s say that… I’m temporarily as warm as lava,” he joked. “You can trust your daughter’s descriptions of me. But for now, treat me as an entirely different person from the one you pictured.”

Kara blinked her enchanting eyelashes and nodded slowly. “I see… Well, can you join me for a chat about the ‘Obsidian’ situation?” She offered whilst waving at the table in the corner of the room.

“Sure,” Rakna accepted and took a seat with her. All while Kaelith glared a hole into his back.

The matriarch cleared her throat. “So, Rakna… I can call you as such, right?”

“Knock yourself out. You can even call my Rak if you want. You also don’t need to be formal with me at all, especially as long as these eyes of mine are red.”

Kara smiled faintly. “I do not really get the eyes part but I understand. I will call you Rakna so you can refer to me as Kara.”

“Pleased to meet you, Kara.”

“As am I.”

Kaelith groaned as she watched her mother and friend chuckle at each other. She pulled out three cups from her storage and slammed them on the table. “Can we get to the point?” She asked with a snarl at the end. “Then I can thoroughly question you, wolfy,” she said pointedly whilst filling the cups with tea, and a coffee for her mother, which she accepted sulkily.

‘Hahaha… I’m in danger,’ Rakna commented in his mind.

“{No shit.}”

Kara sipped on her coffee and sighed. “Let’s get to the heart of the subject. I am willing to convince the council to welcome Obsidian as a legitimate member of our clan. You will have our full support when acting as a Nine-Tailed with no strings attached.”

Rakna’s eyes widened and even Kaelith was startled. This was the first she heard it.

“No strings attached?” Rakna reiterated and leaned back on his chair. He raised an eyebrow. “Are you being serious? You would do it without asking anything from me at all?”

“Why would I not?” Kara replied unperturbed. “There is absolutely no downside for us. Not only for your future potential, which I can tell will be immeasurable… as I already cannot measure it at all,” she said a bit drolly. “You must have an interesting skill.”

Rakna shrugged. “That’s a recent one.”

“Fascinating. Regardless, besides your aptitude, you have publicly received backing from Hybran Blacksteel himself and the Basilica of Eternal Night. That is already incredible. You are also part of the most infamous guild ever, the Throne of Glory.”

Rakna snorted. ‘If only she knew who I truly have backing me,’ he retorted silently as he thought of his latest title, and the closest thing he had to a family whom it represented.

“That is why I do not see any problem in forming an amicable relationship with you.”

“Reasonable, reasonable…” Rakna hummed. “How do you want to do it?”

Kara sipped her drink and put the cup down. “Marry Kae.”

“Wha-! Mom!” Kaelith stood up in haste.

Rakna, on the other hand, smirked and tilted his head. “Hoh…? I don’t find the idea of marrying foxy unpleasant.” He heard a small hiccup. “But are you willing to allow my entry into the clan to be… right into the path of succession?”

“Yes,” she said without missing a beat. “A Nine-Tailed Werewolf? Whatever others think, I believe what you said to be true; you are superior. Who else would be more fitting to head the wolves?”

The room fell silent and Kaelith alternated anxiously between her mother and Rakna who had, in her opinion, a very unsettling grin she wasn’t used to at all.

“I like it,” he eventually said with a nod. “I like your proposal very much. There is essentially no downside. You would need to be an egotistical dumbass to refuse it.”

Kara smiled. “You made a good decision. We can start discussing the details at any-”

“But I refuse it.”

“-time you want… what did you just say?” The older vixen uttered and Kaelith froze on the spot.

“I refuse your offer,” Rakna repeated himself and passively began to pat a Pronos whose head had dozily stuck out of his scarf. “‘Obsidian’ or ‘myself’ will not join your clan.”

“…may I ask why?” Kara inquired.

“A few reasons. One; because the mutts that compose your so-called council sound like a pain in the ass from what I’ve heard until now.”

“I can-”

“Two,” he interrupted her and raised two fingers. “It would paint a target on my back. I don’t know what’s going inside your clan but the fact that internal conflict occurred not so long ago honestly doesn’t make you look very good. I prefer keeping my paws out of there if one day you all start slaughtering each other for the sake of politics or noblesse.”

“…”

“Three, public opinion.”

“Public… opinion?”

“I have no idea how things are in the System, to be honest. But one thing I know for sure; people who call themselves noble aren’t necessarily loved by the populace. But what about someone with noble descent that refuses to associate with noblesse and is on the side of the lower class? Like, let’s say, a person who saves a child and brings her back to her mother? That kind of person gains popularity. And that, lady, is invaluable.”

“…”

“A word from someone powerful can move armies. But a word from someone loved, can create armies,” he said derisively and raised a fourth finger. “Four, if I were to join you, I’d be associated with you regardless of how much you pretend that there’ll be no strings attached. It’s false and you know it. That would close many doors to me.”

“I do not intend to have my growth hindered by your little cluster fuck of a clan,” Rakna added and lowered his hand. He placed it on the table and slowly stood up and leaned forward. His claws dug into the table and penetrated it. “And five…” He growled out and his eyes became whirlpools. His fur grew all over his body and turned red at the same time.

He stood on his hind legs and put even more weight on the table. The werewolf squinted and put his head closer to Kara until they were staring at each other very austerely.

“I will not submit myself to your bullshit plan to control me,” he growled out.

Kaelith was shocked at the development and was stuck between sticking up for her friend or her mother. She watched nervously as a very stern-looking Kara returned Rakna’s glare that was also accompanied by a maddening grin displaying his row of fangs.

“…are you not scared of retaliation? You are but a centimeter away from turning this encounter into a threat on your part.”

“We both know I wouldn’t be able to do shit to you,” Rakna scoffed. “And that if you were to try to kill me or injure me instead, you would be in heaps of trouble.”

“Do you trust your backers that much? I could make you disappear right now if I wished to. They would be none the wiser.”

“In front of your daughter?” Rakna retorted and even he had to admit it was a dirty blow but it had its intended effect as Kara winced. “But to answer your question… I have a much stronger backer than any of those you’re aware of. I don’t know if he will ever find out what happened to me once I die, but if he does… your clan is doomed without any chance of survival.”

Kara now flinched as another chip was put on the table. Someone that could destroy her clan? It was a ridiculous claim that anyone would consider empty threats. But… she didn’t detect any lies and there was no reason for him to bluff anyway. His current allies were more than enough to stop her from doing anything uncouth.

After one more minute spent staring at each other, she ultimately relented under the intimidation of the considerably larger werewolf. Weaker than her he may be, but a daunting appearance could make anyone feel punier.

Rakna knew that very well, his ability to fight psychologically was admirable.

She sighed and raised her hands. “Aah, I lost. You win,” she said pitifully with a pout. She then lied her head down on the table. “I knew I should have drunk. I was outwitted by a kid below his fifties.”

Rakna cackled and reverted to normal with a triumphant face. “You were the one who wanted to play. I humored you and I hate to lose at anything.”

“So it seems,” she said and giggled softly and he imitated her. They laughed together as if they had just come out of a pleasant and funny talk.

Kaelith wanted to bang her head on the wall as her jaw hung open at the situation. ‘What the heck is going on?!’