Return of the Mythic Bloodline

"Absorption of Soulforce completed.

Soulforce absorbed: 259.4k/400k."

"What the hell! I didn't get a single answer—just more and more questions. Who was the person they were talking about? What was the condition? How did these powerful gods turn into mindless beasts?" I shouted, pulling my hair in frustration.

Then, taking a brief sigh, I muttered,

"Tchh, I'll think about it later."

I jumped off Vyaghra's back and grabbed my sword, stained with blood.

I tried to wipe it with the slit from the sleeve of my jacket, but just moving my hands felt like lifting tons of dumbbells. I gave up throwing the slit away and sat beside Vyaghra.

My body was heavy, and I was struggling to even keep my eyes open. My tummy growled from starvation, and I could feel my intestines contracting.

"Dammit, I want to eat something," I whispered, taking a deep breath.

Ding...

"Congratulations! You have completed the subquest

Subquest:

→ Free Vyaghra from his agony by absorbing the cursed Soulforce: completed

[Claim the reward]"

What? The quest was completed? But when I cured Jambavan, I only got this notification after he woke up. However, Vyaghra was still asleep.

Or was he?

I was about to move, but a sharp touch met my throat before I could react.

"Who—who are you?" a deep, tired voice came from behind.

It was Vyaghra.

So he did wake up? And he managed to sneak up on me in that state?

I needed to choose my words carefully. One wrong move and he would chop my head off without a second thought.

"Jambavan and Ruru sent me. I am the one who removed your curse," I murmured sitting still.

The weapon left my throat, and a soft thud sounded behind me.

I slowly turned to take a look.

Vyaghra was leaning against a rock, holding his injured arm as he breathed heavily.

It was his sharp claw that had been pointing at my neck.

"I-I apologise for threatening the life of the person that saved me. My-my name is Vyaghra. How should I address you?" he murmured in a low voice.

When did he become so polite? He was extremely rude and inflexible in the memories. Now he seemed like a completely different person. He didn't even mention his title and directly told me his first name. Well, it was better this way.

I replied, sitting in front of him,

"You can call me Raj."

"Raj, do you know Queen Gumiho?" he inquired, his voice carrying an urgent tone.

"Yes. I heard about her," I answered.

"How-how is she?" he asked, gasping from pain and exhaustion.

My condition wasn't any better. I didn't want to have any conversation. Rest was the only thing on my mind. However, I couldn't decline, seeing his desperate worry about the Queen despite being worn out to such an extent.

"She is the only one left to cure, but I cannot do it," I replied, trying to control my breath.

He suddenly smashed his head onto the ground, bowing before me, and pleaded in a cracked tone,

"I beg you I will do anything you ask of me. Please save her in return. She-she has been suffering the most out of us."

"Hey-hey, don't do this, man. Please get up. I wasn't saying I would never cure her. I will help her, but not right now because I'm super hungry and tired," I blurted, getting flustered by his sudden plea.

"So how long do you intend to rest?" He asked, raising his head.

"I would have instantly recovered by bathing in Amrita water, but it's half a thousand miles from here, and my body can't even move a single foot," I replied, holding my growling stomach.

"What if I carry you there?" He asked in a firm tone.

"Can you? Just look at your condition," I said, pointing at his sliced shoulder.

"You do not need to worry about this. I can cure such a wound in just a moment," he replied, sitting down in a lotus position.

He closed his eyes and began meditating. A black shadowy energy emerged from his injury, joining the sliced skin forcefully.

He then moved his hand toward his shoulder and rubbed his finger, flickering with a black flame, onto the cut.

The atmosphere filled with the burning smell of skin as smoke emitted from his shoulder.

"Ughhh! That must have hurt," I muttered as I looked at him.

However, he didn't utter a single sound of pain. Even his facial expression remained the same.

He opened his eyes and spoke, standing up,

"The treatment is complete. You can hop on me, I will take you to the Amrita water."

"Are you sure you can move that far while carrying me?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He just glared at me without saying a word.

I sighed and pushed myself to a standing position.

"Aargh, don't tell me I'm about to be princess-carried by him," I muttered, rubbing my forehead.

He bent down, presenting his back, silently inviting me to climb on.

"Well then, let's recreate Beauty and the Beast," I said as I sat on his back, wrapping my arms around his neck.

Instead of getting up, he bent forward and touched the ground with his hands.

Slowly, his body started twisting—his legs became shorter, his spine grew longer, and golden fur with black lines began sprouting on his skin.

Just like that, he transformed completely into a giant tiger.

"Woahhh! How many transformation stages do you have?" I asked without thinking.

"How do you know that I have multiple transformation stages?" he questioned, his voice becoming even deeper.

"Oh, that! Jambavan can transform between human and bear, so I thought you might have a human form as well," I replied, trying to cover up.

"Hmm, that explains your knowledge," he replied and spoke again, raising his paw,

"Hold tightly. Don't blame me later that I didn't warn you."

"Hehehe~! I already have a ton of experience with Ru—"

We were already soaring through the sky before the words even left my mouth.