Time passed, and night fell.
Stars twinkled across the sky, and the bright moonlight bathed the earth, covering Orario in a layer of silver gauze.
On the streets, adventurers finished their day's explorations and headed in groups toward taverns to begin their nightlife.
At that moment, a roar suddenly echoed from a small alley beside the street.
"You little brat! Stop right there!"
"Only a fool would stop."
Lili darted through the alleys, glancing back from time to time at the burly man who was gradually closing the distance behind her.
The other party was strong, at least stronger than her.
If it turned into a contest of speed and stamina, she would be caught within a few minutes at most.
However, with the help of the surrounding terrain, that was a completely different matter.
Turning into a nearby alley, Lili dashed left and right, quickly disappearing from sight.
"Damn it! Where did she go?!"
The burly man stopped, his face twisted with anger.
He usually operated in the southern district of Orario and inside the Dungeon, so he was unfamiliar with the terrain in this area.
After looking around for a moment, the burly man suddenly caught a trace of a familiar scent drifting from the path on the left.
He knew this smell very well. The wolf girl who had just stolen his money carried the exact same scent.
"Tsk! That little brat really runs fast!"
Not daring to waste time, the burly man followed the scent and dashed toward the left passage.
Just a few seconds after the burly man left, Lili emerged from another narrow path.
"He really is an idiot. How could Lili possibly leave such an obvious clue?"
After mocking the burly man, Lili turned around and ran back the way she came.
Ten minutes later, Lili arrived at the other end of the alley and pulled a pouch out from her chest, giving it a light shake.
Listening to the crisp clinking sound and feeling the weight of the pouch, Lili's mood instantly improved.
Her luck had been good today. She had run into someone wealthy.
With this money in hand, she was one step closer to saving enough to leave the Soma Familia.
Hah~!
A refreshing night breeze blew past, causing the hood on Lili's head to fall back and reveal a pair of fluffy beast ears.
The girl raised her hands and gently stroked her ears, then parted her lips and softly chanted.
"[Twelve O'Clock Revelation]."
A faint ripple of magical power spread outward.
Like a thin layer of dust settling into place, a gray membrane of light enveloped Lili's petite body.
Silently, the ears on Lili's head melted away.
The bangs that had covered her eyes and the tail swaying behind her waist disappeared completely as well.
In the blink of an eye, Lili transformed from a wolf girl into a Palum.
"That should do it."
Lili put away the money pouch and walked out of the alley.
The transformation magic [Cinder Ella] was the magic Liliruca possessed and her only trump card.
As a Palum, Lili was inferior to adventurers of other races in terms of strength, speed, and stamina, giving her no advantage in combat.
Within the Soma Familia, where everyone fought over Soma's divine wine and went mad with their obsession for money, even attacking their own companions in order to steal their wealth,
The only way for the weak Lili to survive was to rely on her magic to change her appearance and steal money from wealthy adventurers.
Although it was dangerous, Lili had managed to escape time and time again thanks to the convenience of her magic.
If nothing unexpected happened, she would soon save enough money to leave the Soma Familia...
"Guess who?"
Her vision was suddenly covered by darkness, and an unfamiliar voice sounded from behind her.
Lili remained silent for a moment before forcing a stiff smile.
"Sir, please don't tease Lili."
"Ah, that reaction is no fun at all."
With a sigh, the hands covering her eyes were withdrawn and her vision returned.
Not daring to act rashly, Lili slowly turned around to face the black-haired boy who had somehow appeared behind her.
He was handsome.
That was Lili's first impression of him.
The boy seemed like a celestial being who had descended into the mortal world.
Radiant and noble, with an elegant temperament, he looked like a god who had stepped out of a painting.
After living in Orario for so many years, this was only the second time Lili had seen a human whose appearance could rival that of a deity.
The first time had been outside the Tower of Babel when the Loki Familia returned from an expedition. Lili had been searching for potential clients from a distance when she spotted Ais within the crowd.
At that time, she had lamented that the gap between people was sometimes even greater than the gap between humans and dogs. Compared to Ais, who was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, Lili felt like a sewer rat, dark and insignificant.
"Cain, Captain of the Hestia Familia."
The introduction pulled Lili out of her thoughts about his appearance, and she quickly took several steps back to create some distance between them.
"Lili's name is Liliruca Arde, a member of the Soma Familia."
"Lord Cain, may I ask why you came looking for Lili?"
"I'm a little short on money right now."
"Huh?"
Lili froze in surprise.
"That magic earlier, I saw it~"
Cain poked the Palum girl's cheek as a smile slowly spread across his face.
"Lili, you wouldn't want the Soma Familia to find out about your transformation ability, would you?"
"..."
Lili's expression darkened. The boy's charming smile now looked no different from a demon's grin in her eyes.
Almost instinctively, Lili's hand slipped into her chest and gripped a deep red dagger.
"I advise you to calm down. Even if you activated that magic sword, with your strength, you wouldn't be able to hit me."
"...Lord Cain, you misunderstand. Lili was just looking for her vault key."
After hesitating for a moment, Lili released the dagger and handed over the key pendant hidden on her body.
"This is the key to the Goblin Bank rental vault in the eastern district. It contains all of Lili's savings."
"Huh? What do you mean by that? You're making it sound as if I'm robbing you."
Cain casually tucked the key into his chest pocket, his smile becoming even wider.
"Lord Cain, may Lili leave now?"
Lili lowered her head, silently cursing the boy standing in front of her.
This was the money she had painstakingly saved over many years.
Now that Cain had taken it, she had been pushed all the way back to the beginning.
No, the situation was even worse than that.
She recognized the familiar smile on Cain's face.
It was the smile of someone who had discovered a profitable cash cow and intended to squeeze every last drop of value from it.
"Lili, there's no need to be nervous."
Then let Lili leave already!
"I'm a reasonable person. Since you gave me money, I will offer you some help in return."
Lili doesn't need it. Just get lost!
"You want to leave the Soma Familia, right? I can help you."
I said I don't need it, huh?
Lili's eyes widened suddenly.
"L-Lord Cain, what did you just say?"
Cain smiled.
"I can help you leave the Soma Familia, but on one condition. You must be obedient."
"Lili... has no problem with that."
After a moment of hesitation, Lili replied.
In truth, Cain's method was nothing new to her.
It was simply coercion mixed with temptation, something the members of the Soma Familia frequently used to take her money.
Under normal circumstances, Lili would only pretend to agree and would not take such words seriously.
But this time was different.
Her magic had been exposed, and Cain had set his sights on her.
This meant she had lost her method of saving money and could no longer rely on savings to escape the Soma Familia.
Whether Cain's words were true or false, she had no choice but to believe him and grasp this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"Lord Cain, what must Lili do to leave the Soma Familia?"
"For today, come home with me and get some sleep first."
"Huh?"
...
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