Patches of pink fur had fallen out all over him, especially around his neck, where three spots were still bleeding. Emma clicked her tongue inwardly. The Threefold Backlash really lives up to its name. Marcus lounged lazily on the couch, his fur slightly disheveled. Apart from a few beads of blood staining the snowy fur around his throat, he was almost completely unscathed. The moment he saw Emma step out, Marcus shifted back into human form, rising from the couch in haste. He pointed nervously at Cotton Candy. "Ms. Tibarn, I didn't hit him. The rabbit lost his mind and came at me first." Malrik—the one who had clearly lost—covered his head with a paw and didn't dare meet Emma's gaze. He hadn't expected Marcus to possess such ability. Emma instructed Edric to treat the wounds on Marcus' neck. Then, she walked over and scooped up Cotton Candy, who had gone silent and was now sulking again. Her tone carried a note of praise. "Cotton Candy, you're really something—you're actually bold enough to fight Marcus, someone of the Rank 11."Malrik, who had thought losing would make her dislike him, froze in surprise. She isn't upset? She's praising him? She still likes him? "Eek eek!" Malrik let out two weak cries. Emma stroked his soft fur, her expression tender. "Marcus was too rough. How could he hit you like this? He's even messed up my beautiful Cotton Candy's fur." "It breaks my heart." She sighed dramatically. "Does it hurt, Cotton Candy?" She hugged the pitiful little rabbit tight, murmuring words of concern, but made no move to actually heal him. "Eek eek!" Ms. Tibarn, I'm fine. It doesn't hurt. Please don't worry. Emma fussed over him for a while, then opened her lightcore to check the time. She gently set the rabbit back on the couch and turned to Edric and Marcus."I'm heading to the hospital to visit Laura. Cotton Candy's too injured to come along, so he's staying home. Marcus, you're still in your heat period—stay home too." "Ms. Tibarn, I'm fine now." Marcus had no intention of staying behind. If she was going out, he had to follow her and protect her. Besides, his brief scuffle with the rabbit had helped him vent some of the restless heat. He felt a lot better now. Seeing that he really did seem calmer, Emma nodded. "Alright, then. Come along." She had Edric send the cakes and cookies meant for Aria and Her Majesty back to Aurelia through the guards. Then, she went upstairs to change, took the pastries she'd made for Laura, and left the place with Edric and Marcus. Once Emma's airship left the manor, she opened her lightcore and brought up the manor's surveillance feed. …Inside the manor, Malrik lay on the couch after Emma left. He was barely moving, a small, blissful smile flickering on his face now and then. She doesn't dislike me. She's worried about me. All I want is to kiss her. When will she be home? If I'd known losing meant I couldn't go with her, I wouldn't have fought Marcus at all. Being tied up for a while wouldn't kill me. Emma watched the footage for a while but saw nothing unusual in the rabbit's behavior. Was she really overthinking it? "Ms. Tibarn, are you suspecting that rabbit?" Marcus' voice was soft as he sat beside her, his head coming to rest lightly against her shoulder while her eyes stayed on the screen. Emma's gaze flicked to the marks on his neck. After Silas' leaves had been applied, the wounds had closed, leaving only faint red lines. She looked back at the screen. "I'm just wondering—how could a normal rabbit bite through your skin?" Marcus is Rank 11. A regular rabbit can't possibly injure him. "When it bit you," she asked, "you didn't think anything was off?" "I did." Marcus wrapped an arm around her waist, his cool lips brushing her ear as he murmured, "So, I gave him a beating—to force him to show his true form. Since it didn't work, I dropped it. "I strike hard. If that rabbit was hiding something, there's no way he wouldn't have exposed himself. Unless… he's Rank 11 like me." There aren't many Rank 11s in the entire Interstellar Empire. And certainly not rabbits. Rabbits are fragile. A Rank 11 among them was almost unheard of. Marcus figured the rabbit was just unusually resilient, and he had sharp teeth. After all, he'd been in his heat period, unguarded, when the bite came. Even a Frostveil wolf cub could draw blood when he wasn't defending himself. Marcus explained his thoughts to her. Emma rubbed her chin, deep in thought. "Then, what if," she said slowly, "he really is Rank 11?"