Hearing Genia's words, Kevin's face was filled with disbelief. He took a step forward, his voice now slightly impatient. He said, "Genia, this clan is not like your clan. Power rules here. If you don't become my mate, how will I be able to save you from the clutches of James or my elder brother?"
"Then find a way that doesn't require me to sell my freedom!" Genia shot back at Kevin.
Kevin was about to say something when Genia changed her tone. She realised that mere anger wouldn't suffice. She had to touch the bond between them, which might have been broken, but it still existed. She softened her voice a little, but there was still a firmness in it. She said, "Do you think this tension between you two is right? You're both brothers, and you're fighting each other over a girl?"
Hearing Genia's words, Alex's eyes fell, and Kevin turned his face away.
"Your mother... all of your mother," Genia said softly, sending a shiver through both brothers. "After listening to you and the others, I understand that she wanted to see all four of you together. She wanted you to run this clan with love and unity. But instead of following her advice, you all keep fighting among yourselves. Don't you realise how much pain she must feel seeing you all become enemies of each other like this?"
Genia knew she couldn't just tell them she'd met their mother and that she'd told them so. They would never believe her. After all, that wasn't possible. If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she probably wouldn't have believed it either.
Hearing Genia mention their mother and her words, both Kevin and Alex were at a loss.
Genia had touched a part of his pain that no one had ever been able to reach.
A slight bitterness came to Kevin's voice. He simply said, "Mother's memories only hurt now, Genia."
"It hurts because you're carrying those memories, not living them," Genia said, looking into his eyes. "If you continue to be enemies like this, you'll never give peace to your mother's soul. Do you really want your mother to watch you fight from above, like you're fighting over prey?"
Genia's words brought another silence to the room, but this time the silence wasn't heavy; it was filled with a sense of self-reproach.
Alex took a deep breath and clenched his fists.
Genia seized the opportunity and said, "Right now, right now, both of you go away. Leave me alone. I need time to think. I need to understand my purpose in coming to this clan right now and what I need to do. Why has fate brought me together with you two? You won't talk to me about this until I decide for myself who I want to choose as my mate."
Kevin looked at Alex. Jealousy still lingered in his golden eyes, but Genia's words had had an effect.
"Do you really need time?" Kevin asked.
"Yes, and I need that time now," Genia said firmly.
Alex slowly nodded his head. "Okay. We're leaving. But remember, Genia, even the walls of this house aren't safe. Maintain your vigilance and don't waste too much time making your decision."
With that, Alex left the room.
After Alex left, Kevin took one last look at Genia before leaving, his eyes still fixed on her beauty.
"I'll wait, Genia. But my patience is too short," Kevin whispered and left.
As soon as the door closed, all the strength left Genia. She collapsed onto the bed and covered her face with her hands.
"Oh, my God! What's the hell?" she murmured. "I've been from one world to another, switched bodies, and now two giant tiger-Beastmen are after me. I thought reading romance novels was fun, but when you become part of the story, it's like a nightmare."
She looked at the ceiling. Mara mother's words echoed in her mind—"The key to your return lies in their unity."
Genia sat up. A determined look now etched on her face. She said to herself, "I don't just have to save my own life. If I want to return to my world, I must unite these four brothers. But it seems impossible. Alex is calm, Kevin is passionate, James is ambitious, and Rexon... he's like a monster. And this hatred between them? Ending it is like moving a mountain."
She looked at her hands. Her skin was glowing now, the ugliness gone. But she knew that this beauty was more of a curse than a blessing. It was this beauty that had made her a prize among these brothers.
"And those three other messages…" Genia remembered. "Mara mother had said that the other three sisters had left messages exactly like hers. I have to find them. Maybe they hold a way to resolve the misunderstandings between these four."
The stuffiness of the room was bothering her now. She needed fresh air and a place where she could think without anyone watching. She got out of bed and slowly opened the door, stepping outside. She walked through the corridor towards the back of the house, the place where the magical waterfall appeared at night. During the day, the place looked like only a dried-up riverbed. White stones, dense greenery all around, and tall trees trying to touch the sky. The air carried a mixed scent of wet soil and wildflowers.
Genia sat down among the cool, white stones. She removed her scarf completely. She closed her eyes and felt the cool breeze on her face. For the first time, she didn't try to hide herself. She knew she was no longer a girl from that world where she was just an ordinary human. Here, she was a female of the Rabbit clan, a girl abandoned by her own family.
"How strange," she thought to herself. "The family that considered me worthless and handed me over to a cruel warlord, today I'm trapped between the most powerful clan in the world. And the irony is, the people who want me as their 'mate' are themselves thirsty for each other's blood."
She picked up a small stone and threw it into the dry stream. "Alex... he's different. His eyes didn't hold the hunger that Kevin's did. There was a pause in his voice. But does he really want to help me, or will he just use me as a pawn?"
Genia sighed. She remembered lying on a couch reading a novel. That world was so simple. The biggest problem there was probably office work or traffic jams. Here, the problem was that if she made the wrong choice, she could become someone's munition. Just then, she heard a faint rustling in the bushes. She stood up with a start and looked around. In the silence of the forest, every small sound sounded like an explosion. Her ears, now those of a rabbit-beast, were more sensitive than ever. She could hear footsteps coming from a distance. She was frightened, but she composed herself.
"If it's Kevin or Alex again, I'll tell them my time isn't up yet," she told herself.
But the sound was different. It wasn't the sound of a heavy body moving, but something small and sharp.
Genia held her breath and hid behind a rock. Her heart raced again. In this beast-world, where strength was everything, a female Rabbit-clan was considered the weakest link. She knew she had to rely not just on her beauty, but on her intelligence.
She waited silently, her eyes trying to pierce the darkness of the dense forest. She realised that peace in this world was only an illusion. Every step here posed a new danger, and that danger was now drawing closer to her. She clenched her fists.
"I am no longer that weak girl who can be sent anywhere," she whispered, reminding herself. "I am Genia. And I will change the rules of this game."
As she was thinking this, a small figure emerged from the bushes. It was a small beast-bird, with feathers as blue as sapphire and eyes as bright as gold. The bird stopped in front of Genia and tilted its head to look at her.
Genia breathed a sigh of relief.
"Oh, you're just a bird," it said. But as soon as she said this, the bird opened its beak and spoke in a human voice, "Beauty pleases the eyes, but only truth soothes the soul."
The ground beneath Genia's feet slipped. She shrieked, backing away in fear. "You... you can speak?"
The bird chirped softly, sounding like a laugh. "I am the messenger of Mother Mara, stranger," it said. "And I think your time begins now."
Genia was stunned by the bird's words. She understood that this new world of hers was about to lead her into even deeper mysteries. She was not alone, and now she had not only time but also a guide. However, this guide was either a guide or a trick that would trap her in a new web.
It was as if the bird had read Genia's mind. It said to Genia, "Don't worry! I am not a trick that will trap you. My job is simply to bring you messages from the other servants of the Forest Goddess, but you will have to connect the links yourself."
Seeing the bird reading her mind, Genia asked, "Can't you read my mind too?"
"No, I can't read your mind, but I can read your facial expressions. By reading them, I can guess what you are thinking."
Genia looked at the blue bird, whose eyes held a strange peace. Her mind didn't want to believe what the bird was saying, but there was such truth in its eyes that it forced her to believe it. She looked at the sky, where the sun was setting, and the horizon was turning red. Night was coming, and with it, there was no guarantee that the magical waterfall would return. It might or might not. Only the night would tell.
Genia took a deep breath and moved closer to the bird. "So tell me," she asked softly, "what's the next step?"