The blessed one

The smile behind Catrina's silver mask was so faint that, if someone had not looked carefully, they might have mistaken the slight curve of her lips for an accident.

But Kiyome saw it.

And she understood perfectly well who that smile was meant for.

The chill that had just attached itself to her fate had not disappeared.

It did not resemble mana, nor was it anything like the ordinary curses Kiyome knew. She had already circulated mana through her entire body in secret, checked her soul, bloodline, and every defensive magical artifact she carried, yet everything appeared completely normal.

Only the special instincts of the fox demon race kept warning her that something invisible had latched onto her.

And its source seemed to be the man standing in front of her.

Lathel noticed that Kiyome had been silent for too long and frowned slightly.