#merlins claw

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-> Following a grueling battle against Hoolay and the borisin, everyone on the Xianzhou Luofu is left feeling wary and on edge.

-> On top of such, the recent events force you to quarantine within the Seat of Divine Foresight; urges and temptations gnawing and clawing at the back of your brain. All of the borisin outside have been driving you crazy, and that brief crimson moon was the cherry on top.

With a groan, you look up towards your General, "Master Jing Yuan. Is Yanqing feeling better yet? Can I go visit him?"

◇ The Arbiter-General barely spares you a glance, sorting through the abundance of paperwork– likely some back and forth between the Alliance's higher ranks.

◆ ...

"Jing Yuannn.."

◇ ...

"Jing Yuan? Are you alive?"

◆ Still no response. Whatever.

◇ Standing up and stretching your limbs, you tread towards the exit. No answer probably means 'yes', as far as you're concerned.

"〔Name〕, if you're going to go outside, remember to not use your ability. While the Alchemy commission is quite a long way away, the tourist would panic if they saw a giant wolf prowling– not everyone here is a Luofu resident. They don't know." The old man finally warns, before you close the door and step into the starskiff.

◆ You weren't really planning on doing so, anyways. It's not like you'd have any valid reason to.

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-> In the end, after spending like 3 hours walking, your journey to the Alchemy Commission is for naught. Not only is your comrade not in good enough shape for visitors, but the newly appointed Cauldron Master seems almost apprehensive towards your arrival— regardless of how friendly your fanged smile is.

◇ As you begin trudge back to the Seat of Divine Foresight, a bit disheartened, you bump into one of the Foxian patients, wearing a bloodstained blindfold. He obviously can't see you, but as soon as the man catches your scent he tenses up noticeably.

"What are you doing in the Alchemy Commission? Your Warhead has been defeated, and the Xianzhou Alliance isn't very fond of the Borisin."

◆ Oh. Well, this isn't the first time, in your life, that someone has mistaken you for one of the Borisin– you are kind of lupinus, after all, even when not in your more canine form– not that that's any less upsetting, though.

"Ah, don't worry, I'm not a—" You aren't even allowed to finish your sentence before the snarling Merlin's Claw roundhouse kicks you; launching your body into one of the stone walls and leaving a deep dent. She must've come to the same conclusion as her companion had.

"Halt, Abomination of Abundance! I shall not allow you to bring harm to anyone here!" the Arbiter-General's voice booms loud and clear in your ears, leaving you paralyzed in an unfamiliar fear.

◇ It's only when her spear is pointed directly at you do you finally manage to desperately force the trapped words out of your throat and into the Autumn wind.

"I'm not! I'm not a Borisin—"

"I know of what you are capable of. Pleading for your life won't save you." The Yaoqing General looks tired, but her snarl isn't any less intimidating.

"But I'm really not! I'm a lycanthrope— which I know is suspiciously similar– but it's a completely different species! I'm not related to Foxian's or Borisin in any form! I'm not even a very long-living species!" You protest, holding your hands up.

◆ BOMBASTIC SIDE EYE.

◇ CRIMINAL OFFENSIVE SIDE EYE.

◆ ...

◇ .........

◆ Whether to prove your point or to get the hell away, you dig your heel hard into the stone tile floor and break into a sprint.

◇ The two Foxian's exclaim something before quickly giving chase. It doesn't matter, regardless, as you lean lower and lower towards the ground until your hands are almost touching it.

◆ Your bones crackle in pop in a grotesque fashion as your body shifts and contorts in unnatural ways. Leaving nothing– aside from tattered clothes and rough pawprints that gradually fade away into who-knows-where– to track you down.

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"Are you sure what you saw was a Borisin, and not just a regular wolf?" Jing Yuan inquires, still filing through endless piles of paperwork while the Foxian General paces back and forth.

"Are there regular wolves on the Luofu?" Feixiao retaliates with a question of her own, "If there are, then that's an entirely different conversation,"

◇ Jing Yuan puts a hand to his chin in faux contemplation, finally putting the pieces together and seeing where this conversation is leading.

"No, we don't have wolves here. However, we do have 〔Name〕, if they count,"

"Who?"

"〔Name〕; they're one of my disciples– they also happen to be a lycanthrope. A werewolf, if you will."

◆ Feixiao stops dead in her tracks and gives the Dozing General a wide eyed stare, before averting her gaze to her palms. 'Holy shit they weren't lying'. She'd literally attempted to kill one of the Luofu Arbiter-General's disciples.

"You didn't... happen to run into 〔Name〕, did you?" Jing Yuan asks, smiling coyly.

"Uhhhh" "....No."

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