Chapter 13 This is the Fox I Raised

It was nightfall.

The Jennings Family Villa was silent inside and out, with only a few bedroom lights still on.

Scarlett Garrison lay on a pink princess bed, looking at the starlit ceiling painting that emitted bits of luminescence in the dark, dreamy yet cozy.

It was meant to comfort a child waking up in fear in complete darkness.

Just from the room's arrangement, one could tell the anticipation Lucas Jennings' parents had for her birth back then.

This was the kind of familial affection Scarlett had never felt before.

Because in the Garrison Family, no one had ever anticipated her arrival.

If anything, they likely only anticipated her death.

After all, her death could ensure a lifetime of fortune and smooth sailing for Isolde.

Scarlett closed her eyes, choosing not to think about the people and things in the Garrison Family, then shifted her thoughts to another question.

Since she entered the Jennings Family, they had not mentioned her biological mother.

Was she no longer around?

Or was there a hidden story?

While thinking, a familiar call seemed to pierce through her consciousness sharply, causing Scarlett to snap her eyes open.

As if realizing something, her expression changed, and she suddenly got up, grabbed a coat, and quickly ran to the window.

That was the direction from which the sound came.

Opening the window, Scarlett took one look at the pitch-black night sky, then a Yellow Talisman appeared out of thin air in her hand. She decisively tossed it into the air while quickly reciting,

"Heaven and earth clear, the universe united, I invoke the Imperial Decree, let a gentle breeze flow!"

After chanting, she pushed off with one hand and unhesitatingly leaped out of the third-floor window.

The next moment, a breeze wrapped around the Yellow Talisman and flew back toward her, and Scarlett's falling body was suddenly enveloped by a gust of wind, which safely delivered her to the ground.

At the second-floor window, Lucas Jennings, who was clutching his phone intensely battling with his brothers, caught sight of something seemingly dropping from upstairs. He instinctively turned his head, only to have his inattention result in a game-over screen.

"Oh, come on!"

Lucas yelled out, suddenly springing up from his chair. Realizing who lived upstairs, he stormed towards the window in frustration, wanting to see what the unruly cousin had tossed downstairs.

He intended to retrieve it and throw it right back at her face.

However, when he peered down, he noticed a shadow swiftly darting across the garden below. Just as Lucas was about to take a closer look, the figure vanished.

Lucas stared wide-eyed in the direction the figure disappeared.

"What the heck?"

Despite his gaming obsession, Lucas had excellent eyesight.

That silhouette, why did it look so much like that mystic Scarlett Garrison?

And when had she come downstairs??

...

At the mansion's gate, Scarlett dashed in a particular direction as soon as she exited.

From afar, she could see a three-story mansion, brightly lit inside, and upon approaching could faintly hear some commotion coming from within.

"Yip, yip!"

Another familiar call came, and Scarlett quickened her pace to the mansion's gate, peering through the iron garden gate to see several bodyguards chasing something small around.

Noticing one of the bodyguards brandishing a baton towards the small creature, Scarlett's expression changed, and she shouted through the gate,

"Don't touch it! It's my pet!"

As she spoke, Scarlett instinctively reached for a talisman, but before she could act, a muddled voice came over the bodyguards' walkie-talkies, prompting one of them to gesture, causing the other to immediately retract his baton.

The next moment, the iron gate in front of Scarlett automatically opened. She hurried inside, and the little creature that had been surrounded by bodyguards quickly dashed towards her.

The little guy, previously hidden in the shadows, now revealed its true form.

A snow-white little fox, with a rotund body trailing a fluffy tail, even had a pet backpack strapped on its back, clearly containing items that swung back and forth as it ran.

The little fox bounded to Scarlett, clawing at her leg to climb up, making a sound akin to a pitiful "wheeze" that bore no resemblance to the fierce growl it directed at the bodyguards earlier.

Scarlett resignedly scooped up the little fox, perplexed that with its sense of smell, it couldn't have gone to the wrong place.

Just as she pondered this, a flash of golden light caught Scarlett's eye.

Her instincts made her look up, and she saw the familiar golden brilliance at the mansion's entrance.

Upon closer inspection, it was a person.

And not just any person, but someone she knew.

Samuel, Great Demon King, Chalmers.

Was this actually Boss Chalmers's home?

The golden light surrounding Samuel Chalmers looked even more dazzling against the night. Scarlett had to take a moment to adjust her vision.

Carrying the little fox forward, Scarlett felt a bit embarrassed.

"Mr. Chalmers, I'm sorry, this is my pet fox. It came looking for me but must have gone to the wrong place."

Samuel Chalmers observed the girl, wearing only thin pajamas and obviously having rushed out, only managing to grab a coat. The little fox in her arms left some faint paw prints on the slightly wrinkled outfit. His brows furrowed slightly, but his face revealed little emotion.

"It doesn't seem like it went to the wrong place."

Samuel's voice, thick and gravelly like ancient pine, carried a chill that intensified in the night. His pale gaze discreetly swept over the little fox in Scarlett's arms.

Following his gaze, Scarlett looked down to see the erstwhile whimpering Pretty Hamilton now craning its neck, straining towards Samuel Chalmers.

Its bright, keen eyes were fixed intently on Samuel Chalmers, shining with intensity.

Scarlett had no doubt that if she weren't holding it now, the little fox would have rushed towards the Golden Light Leader.

In an instant, she seemed to understand why the little fox had "gone to the wrong place."

It was obviously drawn by the golden light!

"Pretty Hamilton!"

With a hint of warning in her tone, Scarlett tightened her hold slightly.

Even I haven't managed to get close to that golden light, and you want to?

Think again!

The little fox, thus cautioned, finally retracted its fur that instinctively stretched towards Samuel Chalmers, though it ceased struggling to approach, its beautiful eyes still gazed longingly at the man before it.

Seeing the pitiful creature, Scarlett instinctively took a step forward. "It just likes pretty people..."

Unexpectedly, just as she took that step, Samuel Chalmers discreetly stepped back, a foot behind the entrance.

Scarlett's forward motion came to an abrupt halt, her mouth twitching slightly.

Was she... being rejected?

Looking down at the little fox in her arms, now slightly soiled from its nighttime escapades, Scarlett resolutely thought,

The Leader's disfavor must be towards this little fox.

For certain.