Emma's "queenly tactics" had worked. The bold admirers around campus had dwindled significantly. But Fox Lian, apparently unsatisfied, began indulging in being "marked" by Emma with increasing enthusiasm.
"Emma," he drawled one day after rune literature class, sprawled lazily across his desk, silver hair cascading like silk, tail swiping gently across her hand. "Brush my tail."
He said it as casually as commenting on the weather, but his violet eyes subtly watched her reaction. Around them, classmates who hadn't yet left perked up their ears. Even Gu Liang slowed her packing.
Emma glanced at the fluffy silver tail practically poking her in the face, then at the not-so-subtle stares around them. Her ears warmed. He's doing this on purpose.
Still, she didn't refuse. After all… that tail was irresistibly soft.
She pulled out a comb made of warm jade and spiritwood—one of many tools she'd prepared since dating Fox Lian—and began brushing with practiced ease. From base to tip, her strokes were gentle and precise, as if handling a fragile treasure.
Fox Lian closed his eyes in bliss, a soft purring sound escaping his throat. His ears twitched unconsciously. The sight of him so relaxed and trusting made several lingering girls flush with envy.
See that? Fox Lian's entire body language declared: Only she gets to touch.
And that was just the beginning.
Days later, Emma began noticing more and more "Fox Lian elements" on her belongings.
Her rune book now bore a fox sigil embroidered in gold thread and tail fur. Her alchemy furnace had a tiny sleeping fox carved into its base. Even her favorite jade pen had a fine silver fur wrap around the handle.
The most outrageous moment came one morning when Emma woke up to find a new pendant attached to her divine forehead ornament—a tiny crescent-shaped charm, carved from one of Fox Lian's shed baby teeth. It gleamed softly, nestled against her brow, radiating unmistakable possessiveness.
"Fox Lian!" Emma held up the ornament, half amused, half exasperated, glaring at the fox pretending to admire the scenery.
He turned, blinking innocently, tail curling around her wrist. "Doesn't it look good? I think it suits you." He paused, then muttered, "Now everyone will know you're taken."
Emma stared at his shameless expression, sighed, and finally put the ornament on. Fine. If it makes him happy.
What she didn't notice was that when she stepped out of her dorm wearing the pendant, Fox Lian's eyes lit up with smug satisfaction. His tail wagged happily all day.
His goddess… was now marked from head to toe.
This "marking craze" quickly spread—Gu Liang picked it up with gusto.
"Cang Ming!" she barked, slapping a bracelet onto his wrist. It was made of dragon scales and merman scales, glittery and unmistakably bold. "Wear it! No taking it off!"
Cang Ming looked at the flashy, slightly stiff bracelet, then at her determined face. He smiled, resigned but indulgent. "Alright."
And so, the students of All-Race Academy were subjected to daily displays of coupledom—two pairs flaunting their affection in increasingly creative ways.
Meanwhile, the Single Alliance quietly relocated their hangouts… to the most remote corner of the back mountain.