On a rainy-season night in the Great Forest, inside the spacious treehouse of the two young Beastfolk Clan Heirs.
The atmosphere had reached a fever pitch.
The bright fire in the hearth blazed merrily.
It filled the entire room with springlike warmth.
It also dispelled the last trace of damp chill brought by the relentless rain.
A drinking party in the hearty Beastfolk style was quietly unfolding.
"Come on, little brother Ciyou, down another cup!"
Gyes, the Clan Heir of the Dedoldia Clan's cat tribe,
had a face that usually carried a warrior's stern dignity, but now it glowed red.
He heartily raised a drinking cup fashioned from the horn of some enormous magic beast.
He clinked it hard against Cui Ciyou's cup, splashing clear amber liquor.
Ever since their fight at the training grounds, Gyes's attitude toward Cui Ciyou had taken a complete turn.
That exhilarating fight had brought them together through their fists.
Far from creating any resentment, it had instead made this Warrior Chief, who revered strength above all else,
feel a kindred respect and admiration for Cui Ciyou's unfathomable martial skills and composed bearing as a leader.
Beside them, Tirutilia, the dog tribe's Clan Heir, was already rather tipsy.
With his thick arm draped affectionately over Rujierd's shoulders, he slurred:
"Yeah, yeah..."
"Big brother Rujierd, and little brother Ciyou."
"Tonight, we're not leaving until we're drunk!"
"Whoever goes down first isn't a warrior, he's a coward!"
Rujierd, the taciturn "warrior of the Superd Race,"
under everyone's almost brutally enthusiastic urging,
had made the rare decision to drop his usual caution and reserve and trade drinks with them.
His pale face, marked by a fearsome scar, now bore a healthy flush,
and his gaze had grown a little hazy.
It was no longer as sharp as a