☆꧁༒𝕷𝖎 𝕸𝖎𝖓𝖍𝖔༒꧂☆

For thousands of years, hunters have hunted nine-tailed foxes and vixens, as they attack travelers in cherry blossom forests, disguise themselves as humans in villages and quietly kill them, and even in mass raids, when these beasts would descend on small settlements in packs, devouring everyone. There's no escape from them. They can hide their ears and all nine tails. They can lie so that even a prophet wouldn't notice. They can masterfully seduce, so much so that even a heterosexual would fall for a guy. And much more. They exist in almost every village and even small towns, but no one can prove that it is a nine-tailed fox or vixen.

But there are several distinguishing factors. Nine-tails have a strong love of sweets, which is their weakness. They have the ability to heal wounds; while in human form, they don't heal instantly, but they do so much faster than real humans. They can't touch iron, as it would burn them, and wounds from iron weapons take a long time to heal, and are painful. Foxes typically walk with a slight sway in their hips, a habit developed from their tails. They also avoid eating in public, don't talk or smile excessively, or cover their mouths with a fan or a hand.

Lee Minho is an ordinary guy living in a small town. Many people ask him to help with heavy work, which is easy for him because he's strong, and he even gets paid for it. He has a half-brother, Hyunjin. They are the same age (both 21). Hyunjin sometimes helps his brother, but his main job is in a blacksmith shop. Hyunjin's father and mother were killed by his drunken grandfather, a former samurai. Minho's father died of illness, and his mother was killed by a nine-tailed fox. He was saved by a samurai who later took him in, where Minho met Hyunjin. They witnessed two fox raids in their lives, and even participated in one. Grabbing swords, they bravely defended defenseless people. They were only 16 years old at the time.

After the massacre, everyone was checking the perimeter to make sure not a single predator remained. Minho was walking down a deserted, closed alley on the outskirts of town when he heard crying. Anyone would have thought it was a small child, scared, maybe even injured, but when he saw who was crying… A small fox cub, about 14 years old, with cute cheeks, was shaking his badly injured mother, begging her to wake up, but she was clearly already on death's doorstep… Minho wanted to get closer but stepped on a twig. The fox cub jerked its head up, then, ears pressed back in fear, fled through a hole in the stone wall that separated the town from the forest. He never saw it again. He told only his brother about the incident, and it became their secret.