The stars were starting to fade, dawn brushing the sky with the softest hints of lavender and gold.
They stood at the same bridge where it had all begun—Ren, with his arms crossed like always, and Saeya, her fox mask hanging loosely in her hand. She looked at him with those ancient eyes, but something in her expression had changed.
Lighter. Softer. Almost... hopeful.
"Well," she said, tilting her head, "that's the end of the game."
"I won," Ren reminded her with a cocky little smirk.
"You did," she admitted, though her lips twitched in amusement. "Which means you get a wish."
He didn't answer right away.
She waited, expecting something teasing. Something selfish, maybe. A kiss. Her secrets. Mortal men always wanted something.
But Ren just looked at her for a quiet a second.
And then he said, gently, "I wish to free you."
She blinked. "What?"
"I wish to free you from this... cycle," he said. "From being bound to this festival. From being nothing more than a story people wait to see once a year. I don't think you ever wanted this, Doo Doo yeng."
For the first time, her smile cracked—and behind it, something real bloomed. Her eyes widened a little. Her lips parted, like she wasn't sure if she'd heard right.
And then...
Her breath hitched. Her eyes shimmered, not with illusion this time—but with something raw and very very human.
"Why would you..." she began, voice unsteady, "Why would you waste your wish on me?"
Ren just shrugged. "It's not a waste."
She laughed—soft and broken at the edges, pressing a hand to her chest like she didn't know what to do with the warmth suddenly blooming there.
"No one's ever..." she whispered. "No one's ever set me free."
He didn't say anything.
He just smiled.
And for the first time in centuries, Doo Doo looked truly happy. Not playful. Not mysterious. Just... happy.
She took a step forward, slipped the mask into his hands like a goodbye.
"Thank you," she said, voice trembling with more emotion than magic. "Thank you, Ren."
Then she vanished—like starlight dissolving in the morning.
And as the sun rose over Shi Feng, the villagers spoke of the festival like they always did. But that year, The Foxie's Play never happened again.
Only Ren remembered the girl with the golden eyes...
And the wish that broke her curse.