My Beastly Fertility System Chapter 125: The Night Ambush

The beastfolk was clearly targeting her. Every strike, every move—aimed squarely at Claire.

The dark figure didn't answer. It lunged at her again.

At that moment, the moon slipped behind a bank of clouds, and the world plunged into inky blackness.

The shadow's movements blended into the darkness. You couldn't make out a thing unless it was right on top of you. The situation was dire.

Claire was Level 2, but that only boosted her fertility. Her combat ability was barely a notch above an ordinary female—nowhere near enough to handle something like this.

Fortunately, Marcus was right there.

He shifted into beast form without a second's hesitation. An enormous, fluffy panda charged at the shadow with a furious roar.

"Touch her, and I'll kill you!"

His paws slammed the ground. Claire felt the earth lurch beneath her. She barely kept her footing before Marcus had already closed the distance, locked in a brawl with the dark figure.

Marcus was blind—completely sightless. But in pitch-black night like this, his opponent's vision was just as compromised. That was where Marcus's hearing became his weapon.

He could track the attacker by the sound of displaced air alone. The figure hadn't spoken a word, but its hammering heartbeat was a war drum in Marcus's ears. Every movement was crystal clear.

A Level 3 beastfolk, Marcus handled the shadow with ease.

Claire didn't even need to lift a finger.

Marcus looked young and unassuming in human form, but Level 3 was still Level 3. His strength was no joke. In beast form, he was an entirely different creature—imposing, overwhelming.

One look at the shadow being driven back, step by step, and it was obvious just how powerful Marcus really was.

Rip!

Marcus's fangs raked across the shadow's arm, tearing open a gash. Blood sprayed onto the ground.

The figure—unyielding until now—finally realized tonight wasn't going to end well.

It wanted to retreat, but its eyes lingered on Claire, unwilling to give up.

"Running? Not a chance. You went after Claire. Tonight, I'm going to make you regret it."

Marcus charged, cutting off the shadow's escape.

But the figure had only feinted. It reversed course and lunged straight at Claire.

"No! Watch out, Claire!"

Marcus shouted.

Claire was already prepared. She drew a long sword from her storage space and blocked the strike.

The shadow faked again—its body sailed over Claire, vaulted the wall, and vanished.

Marcus was about to give chase, but Claire's voice stopped him.

"Marcus, I've been poisoned!"

He rushed to her side.

In its last move, the figure had flung a pouch of powder at her.

Claire hadn't dodged in time. The stuff got into her nose and mouth, sending her into a violent coughing fit.

"Drink water! Flush the poison out!"

Marcus bolted to the kitchen and came back with as much water as he could carry, frantic to help her rinse it away.

Claire took the water and rinsed her mouth, but the creeping numbness had already begun spreading from her nasal passages, racing through her entire body in a matter of breaths.

"It's no use. The toxin is spreading too fast. Marcus, if I die, remember—go to the eagle clan and find Zane. Tell him to live well."

"Claire, don't say that! You're going to be fine."

Marcus sprinted to his room and came back clutching a fur-wrapped pill.

"This is an antidote pill, passed down through my family. Take it. Now!"

Claire didn't want to die. But she also didn't want to waste something so rare. In her moment of hesitation, Marcus had already shoved the pill into her mouth.

It dissolved instantly.

Claire felt her body lighten immediately.

A moment later, the numbness was gone. Completely.

Marcus helped her to the bed in her room.

"Marcus, I'm fine now. Thank you for the antidote pill. I'll make it up to you."

Marcus waved it off.

"As long as you're okay. No pill in the world is worth more than your life."

Claire was genuinely moved. Close to tears.

They waited a while longer, and once they were sure nothing else was wrong, Marcus finally went back to his own room at her insistence.

Lying in bed, Claire replayed the attack in her mind, but she couldn't figure out who would want her dead.

In the end, she narrowed it down to two possibilities. Either Jeffrey had somehow survived and found his way into Grimstone.

"Or it was that tiger beastfolk from the market. Maxim."

Neither option was good news.

She couldn't afford to cross either of them.

On the bright side, as long as Marcus was nearby, she was safe.

Claire was thinking it through when her body started heating up again.

"Ugh, I feel awful. It's so hot."

She assumed the Ember Fruit's effects hadn't fully worn off. At first, she didn't think much of it. She drank some water, but the heat didn't fade at all.

After struggling for a while, every inch of her skin felt like it was on fire. She was restless, tossing and turning in bed, stripping off one layer of fur after another, and none of it helped.

Unbidden, images flooded her mind—her days with Zane in the cave, her nights bonding with Rufus in the treetops. One scene after another.