Soft breaths reached my ears as I woke up from a far too pleasant rest. I couldn’t remember when I had fallen asleep, but the images of Zaleria petting me and combing my fur were still vivid in my mind. She had been gentle and caring, so I knew she carried no ill will, although I still didn’t know how to feel about the behavior she had shown me.
The goddess didn’t seem to be around right now, at least I neither heard her voice nor felt her touches. Instead, I was surrounded by a warm and soft sensation, as if she had rolled me into magic furs, though that couldn’t possibly be true with the movement I felt with each breath reaching my ears. It didn’t take long for me to realize I was in Cilia’s care now, who was still in her fox form to this moment.
I couldn’t help but relax once again upon making this conclusion, but sadly, I wasn’t allowed to fall asleep again. Instead, Cilia began to move now, thus forcing me to open my eyes. And indeed, she was slowly standing up at this very moment, leaving me with an urge for more of her warmth. But it wasn’t meant to be.
Cilia, after stretching herself while still in her fox shape, soon enveloped herself with a golden light, transforming back to her usual appearance. Now easily towering over me, she knelt down and reached out for me to greet me, her gentle hand petting me behind the ears.
“Wake up, sleepyhead~”
I leaned into her touch, trying to make it last for a little bit longer, but sadly, Cilia decided to not let this happen.
“We can continue this another time~” She said with a chuckle. “For now you should return to Myra. The poor girl has been trying to escape her precious treasure for quite a while now. Also, I should prepare for the banquet. It has been a while, after all…”
After explaining her reasons to send me off, Cilia hugged me close and kissed me on the forehead, before gently placing me on the ground again. She then waved me goodbye, her hand glowing with divine magic. And, before I realized it, I was already sinking to the ground, feeling really exhausted all of a sudden. My eyelids became heavier and heavier, a big green board being the last thing I recognized before I fell asleep.
“A quest…”
⮝ ⮝
⮜— – —⮞
Hours had passed without Kiomi returning from wherever she went and I was still trying to make sense of the mess I had found myself in. The unfathomably rare comb made from a metal most only knew from fairytales, was right here with me, resting against my chest. And as much as a gift this was, it had proven to be more and more of a curse as I simply was unable to appreciate the item in my pitiful state.
Kiomi had explained to me what enchantments the divinite comb came with. Most of these were comparatively unassuming when I thought of the work that must have been put into crafting the thing, as a tool or weapon made from this metal could handle any magic you could think of. Certainly, only a god would decide to use the mythical divinite just to create a mere comb with hair-enhancing magic rather than using the same material to forge a dragon-slaying sword or an impenetrable shield for their champions to use in battle.
It was the last two of the enchantments that had brought me to my predicament. Not only was the comb bound to Kiomi, meaning that it recognized her as her owner on a level that was likely unchallengeable by mortal means, but it also refused to move once it left her side. This meant it was effectively stuck right against my chest, pinning me against the wall of the burrow Kiomi had dug and leaving me with absolutely no option to do anything about it.
Naturally, I had tried to use my magic to escape my imprisonment. I had tried to swing my tails and create a carpet of blue flames to teleport to, but I simply couldn’t get that magic to work, thanks to it seemingly needing a much more exaggerated swing of my tails to be brought forth. Realizing this, I instead tried to summon the fire using other means, by giving it a name to shout out or shaping my mana to imitate the feeling the tail–magic gave me, but there was no such luck. I still had other ways to summon blue flames, but sadly, those didn’t seem to work for my teleportation ability, leaving me entirely stranded and defenseless.
The cuddle pile of Liri Foxes nearby naturally noticed my struggle, but other than yelping and running about, there was little they could do to free me. They tried to pull or push on the comb, bite it, and even ignite it, much to my horror, but nothing helped. Soon after realizing this, the small foxes were instead trying their best to at least cheer me up, by cuddling to my side or rushing out of the burrow to fetch me flowers.
It was only after a few more hours that suddenly something seemed to change. The foxes that were by now sleeping by my side woke up one after another, their ears raised high up as they seemed to be listening for something. I tried to find out what was happening, but my ears seemed to be less sensitive than the Liri’s.
Seconds later I finally heard soft, barely audible steps closing in on the entrance of the burrow. And it was exactly at this moment that the comb suddenly gave in, falling to the ground with a chime-like sound. This could only mean one thing – Kiomi was returning.
Knowing this, I quickly saved the artifact from the dirt it was now covered in and raised myself up, surprising the foxes that had been trying to soothe me all this time. And it was just at the right time, as a shadow suddenly appeared at the entrance of the burrow, forcing all of our attention on it.
Instead of a foxkin that could very easily be my little sister, the silhouette I now saw had a much smaller fox-like shape and was quickly making its way through the tunnel on all fours rather than slowly crawling toward us. Soon later, the Liri Foxes had already jumped up, their fiery bodies casting white light onto the invader. It was a fox that was on the smaller side, being a little bigger than the white ones that were now surrounding it to all sides. Contrary to them, it had the usual colors of a red fox, the sole surprise being the paws, which were pure white instead of black making them look as if they were covered with very short, silky socks.
By now the Liri Foxes were already greeting their supposedly new friend, their two tails wagging behind their backs as they sniffed, yelped, and laughed to their heart's content. Each of them followed the same pattern, it seemed. First, they were very interested and happy to see the new fox, but they became spooked or dazzled upon their first sniff, likely realizing that it was Kiomi, only to become even more eager the very next moment. I couldn’t help but enjoy this scene.
Kiomi, who was in the middle of all of this chaos just endured it for a minute or two until the Liri Foxes calmed down again and then turned around to address me with a single bark. I could only look at Kiomi in confusion, but she soon made her way out of the burrow once again, all of the Liri Foxes following after her like she was some kind of leader or royalty. And somehow, she was exactly that.
Halfway out of the burrow, Kiomi turned around to bark at me again, urging me to follow her, so I did just that. Placing the divinite comb next to the core where it was hopefully safe, I crawled out of the den, following after the foxes.
Soon, I found myself being led towards the boss rooms, the foxes doing their best to avoid the gravel path as best as they could. Only when we almost reached the room were they forced to walk on the sharp-edged stones, much to the horror of Kiomi who was supposed to be in the lead. She actually waited for all the other foxes to do the trip only to, once they all were at the boss room and barking at her to join them, hesitate like a child which was about to swim for the first time.
With a chuckle I knelt down, reached out for the precious little fox Kiomi and, in a moment of malicious joy, lifted her up as if to check something important, before placing her into my arms.
“A girl~” I mused to ‘myself’.
The little princess immediately came alive, her previous tameness seemingly a lie. She stared at me in pure horror, then barked at me in protest, her high–pitched yelps ringing painfully in my ears. After a few moments of this, the little fox slowly turned around, her head facing into the distance. She was very obviously feeling deeply ashamed.
I couldn’t help but chuckle at this image. Kiomi was certainly good at playing princess, although I couldn’t quite understand why she was pretending to be a fox. Still, it was fun, so I naturally played along.
With a smile on my face, I carried her over to the waiting foxes, to then place her down on the boss room’s rocky but far more acceptable floor. Before long, Kiomi was already leading her little party of foxes once again, this time slipping through the metal bars that barred off my workshop, forcing me to use my magic to follow them.
Before long, we were already deep inside of the network of tunnels, making our way past the storage and toward the Volcano Room. With the Liri Foxes lighting the way, Kiomi could run without any trouble. Sadly, her tiny legs weren’t actually carrying her far, meaning that I could keep up with the foxes just fine. Still, we soon reached the last mithril door that still separated us from our destination.
Kiomi eagerly barked, seemingly demanding for me to do my job. With a chuckle, I did just that, opening the door and accompanying the party of foxes out, before closing the door right after us.
By now, the sun was already setting, allowing me to take a breather at last, as it was highly unlikely anybody would enter the dungeon at this time of day. It was the perfect time for a little fox princess to have a big adventure.
I couldn’t help but laugh at this thought, an action Kiomi reproved with a single bark. She soon was dashing over the bridge, the Liri Foxes following right on her heels and before long, she was already in the Volcano Room’s underwood, surrounded by a small number of earth foxes who were very eager to meet her.
With a wide smile on my lips I watched the foxes sniff at their supposed princess, only to become even more excited soon after – following a state of utter confusion, of course. Even the Fire and Lava Foxes were already making their way down the volcano’s slope, their tails wagging behind their backs as they joined the merriment. Only the Air Foxes left us waiting, as they were the slowest to arrive, thanks to their voracious appetite, as it soon turned out. There was no other explanation as to why only four of them were still able to fly and fight the wind, the other ones bloated and bound to the ground like sheep.
Thanks to all the foxes asking for attention and the Earth Foxes even showing off their dens to Kiomi, who now had the perfect size to check them out, it took us the larger part of one hour to finally make our way through the room and towards the Vulpine Circle, which had apparently been Kiomi’s goal all along. I couldn’t wait to see what she would come up with this time…
⮝ ⮝
⮜— – —⮞
Being a Fox was awesome! Not only did it allow me to befriend my monsters and do fox things, both of which Cilia’s last quest tasked me to do, but it was also fun as it gave me a whole new view of the dungeon I thought I knew perfectly! With Myra being nearby, this whole quest turned into something deeply exciting even, as I was under constant threat of being discovered. I had to behave like a fox, and perfectly so.
Sure, the quest didn’t exactly ask for secrecy, nor was there any real benefit in tricking her, but how could I resist this chance? It sounded so much fun to hide in plain sight!
Luckily, Myra was none–the–wiser about my real identity, as she was treating me like any other of the foxes, watching me play, feeding me, and petting me here and there as we slowly made our way through the dungeon. And there was way too much to see, now that I had a whole different perspective to explore.
The underground network of the foxes alone had been impressive, with them carefully digging around the roots of the trees to create large, cavern-like structures I couldn’t quite make sense of. Their leader, the Stone Fox, had actually used his magic to enchant large parts of the walls, turning them into pure rock and thus preventing a cave-in. And this was desperately needed, as the foxes had built something I could only describe as an underground town. It was a hall that had dozens of dens dug into its walls, allowing each fox to rest in peace and quiet while giving them ample room for merrimaking.
With how large the network of tunnels was, I would have been hopelessly lost if it wasn’t for the Earth Foxes proudly leading the way, with the Liris instead lighting up our surroundings. The builders of these burrows had no need for light, as they seemed to be perfectly fine without it, but that was a whole different story for me, who was forced to cling to the other foxes.
All in all, I was impressed with what the foxes had built, though I couldn’t help but give them a little present before I made my way back out. In the middle of their large hall, I summoned a pile of furs large enough to allow for a comfortable sleep for any monster that had its home down here, swearing to myself I would add light crystals as well once I got ahold of one of them.
Obviously, the foxes were more than happy with my gift. They were already dragging the furs into their respective dens when I was led outside by the Stone Fox, who still acted as their undisputed leader.
Myra was visibly happy to see me make my way out of the burrow, as the sun had already set and it was almost dark by now, forcing her to use her magic to light her surroundings. Seeing no reason to further idle around, and with most foxes already on their way back to their homes, I barked at two Wind Foxes, planning on using them for the Vulpine Circle that was nearby.
The foxes in question only stared at me in confusion, seemingly unable to understand what I wanted of them. Having a magic that turned you into a fox was apparently not enough to actually communicate with them, who spoke an entirely different language. Sadly, I couldn’t just turn back and talk to them that way, as Myra was watching my every step. She even encouraged me upon seeing me fail, urging me to try again.
“Try your best, princess!”
The next few minutes were a mess, to say the least. The foxes had either absolutely no intention to listen or they simply were unable to understand any of my words. I had barked at them, yelped, and whimpered. I had even laughed like I had seen some of the foxes do earlier, but nothing helped. If anything, the Air Foxes only seemed to become restless due to my struggle, now more than desperate to find out just what I was trying to tell them. So I tried again, this time basically singing all the fox noises I was aware of. And there were a lot of them.
A resounding laughter cut short my majestic performance, making me shut up almost immediately. I turned around, and, to my horror, Myra was already on the ground, slapping her knee as she pointed at me in uncontained glee and schadenfreude.
“You should hear yourself!” She laughed. “That was amazing!”
I froze, unable to even think as she jumped to her feet and raised me high up as if to present me to the few foxes that were still surrounding us.
“I believe the Princess asks for your assistance over at the Vulpine Circle~” She announced with a playful voice.
The two Air Foxes immediately yelped in reply, betraying all my attempts to make them understand me. When Myra carried me over to the magic circle, the two foxes happily followed after us and, once we had reached the site, were already hovering on their pedestals, not needing a single word of further explanation. I felt slightly betrayed, to say the least.
Myra gently placed me down on one of the remaining empty pedestals, before petting me one last time.
“Princess Kiomi,” she exclaimed. “Everything is prepared!”
Being back inside the Earth Foxes' network of tunnels, hidden deep where the light doesn’t reach, sounded rather fantastic right now thanks to Myra’s barely hidden ridicule. It seemed like she had known all this time, likely smiling to herself as she watched me play pet. Knowing this, how could I not wish to hide?!
Sadly, that had to wait, as there were more important things to do right now. So, trying to not think of Myra’s very memorable reaction to my failed plot, I instead closed my eyes and concentrated on the fox I wanted to create, hoping I would get a good image in my current state of mind.
With two Air Foxes being its base, it was only natural that the new fox would be able to fly, so I imagined it with big, birdlike wings that would carry its agile body at great speeds. As for the color of its fur, I went with pure white, allowing it to hide within clouds, fog, and mist. Intelligent, blue eyes would indicate its real strength, which did not lie in assaulting delvers with powerful magic – I had more than enough capable fighters – but rather in them being able to lead other foxes into battle, almost carrying them with the wind as they charge towards their opponents as an unstoppable force. These foxes would not only lead others into battle, they would also ensure their safety by preventing most ranged attacks from finding their mark. Not only that, these new foxes would also be able to infuse their wind magic with the magic of other, weaker foxes, creating forces of nature delvers would have real trouble facing against. While this fox wouldn’t have strong magic on its own, relying solely on other foxes to turn it into a threat and the speed of their charges to throw back opponents, it would easily endure long fights if it must, being able to continue casting spells long after other foxes used all of their mana.
With the appearance of the fox completed and its abilities all fleshed out, it didn’t take long for a familiar wave of cold to assault me – mana was rapidly leaving my body. The feeling lasted for about a minute, time I spent perfecting the image in my head. And, soon enough, the drain stopped, allowing me to finally open my eyes again. A small, green board was already waiting for me, announcing my success.
「You have created a Winged Fox」
The monster in question was a very majestic looking fox that had appeared right in the center of the Vulpine Circle. It was everything I had dreamt of, the best parts of both a bird and a fox, with its deep blue eyes promising so much more. Seeing my perfect creation, I couldn’t help but dash towards it, welcoming it into my dungeon like all other foxes before. Soon later, we were already sniffing each other, our tails wagging behind our backs which was apparently enough to finish the quest Cilia had given me earlier. It had been a rather easy task, after all.
『Quest 21:
Task: As a fox, befriend 30 other foxes.
Reward: Feel instinctively what foxes want
Don’t worry! You can turn back and forth as much as you like! Just think about it and it will happen!
As for your reward, I am sure it will prove its worth to you!』
I stared at the fox, waiting for my new ability to do its thing, but for the larger part of a minute, basically nothing happened. My mind was getting slightly cloudy the more I concentrated on the fox, but other than that, there was no change. It was only when I was about to give up that a cloudy image flashed into my mind, one that seemingly showed the fox flying high in the air and chasing after friends.
That… was reasonable. It had to wait, as I was completely out of mana right now, but I naturally understood the fox’s wish for someone to share its life with. Family and friends were important and even more so if you never really had the opportunity to enjoy either.
As for where the new fox would live? The volcano room was easily the most lively place I had, but it was already at its limits, so having a large group of two-tailed foxes move in would surely turn things sour. As such, the Winged Foxes would have to stay in the future town, at least until I could come around to build a proper home for them.
A new image appeared before my inner eye, pushing away my thoughts. It was a more affordable desire this time, but one I could easily get behind, as it asked for nothing but a good meal, symbolized by a roasted chicken that was slowly rotating in my head. I had no chicken, so no luck there, but a tiny bit of concentration was enough to reward my new Fox with a nice selection of tasty treats. It immediately began wolving down with vigor. This would have to do for now…
- - - - -
Kiomi cuddling with Cilia [collapse] Poorly edited AI Winged Fox [collapse]
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Soft breaths reached my ears as I woke up from a far too pleasant rest. I couldn’t remember when I had fallen asleep, but the images of Zaleria petting me and combing my fur were still vivid in my mind. She had been gentle and caring, so I knew she carried no ill will, although I still didn’t know how to feel about the behavior she had shown me.
The goddess didn’t seem to be around right now, at least I neither heard her voice nor felt her touches. Instead, I was surrounded by a warm and soft sensation, as if she had rolled me into magic furs, though that couldn’t possibly be true with the movement I felt with each breath reaching my ears. It didn’t take long for me to realize I was in Cilia’s care now, who was still in her fox form to this moment.
I couldn’t help but relax once again upon making this conclusion, but sadly, I wasn’t allowed to fall asleep again. Instead, Cilia began to move now, thus forcing me to open my eyes. And indeed, she was slowly standing up at this very moment, leaving me with an urge for more of her warmth. But it wasn’t meant to be.
Cilia, after stretching herself while still in her fox shape, soon enveloped herself with a golden light, transforming back to her usual appearance. Now easily towering over me, she knelt down and reached out for me to greet me, her gentle hand petting me behind the ears.
“Wake up, sleepyhead~”
I leaned into her touch, trying to make it last for a little bit longer, but sadly, Cilia decided to not let this happen.
“We can continue this another time~” She said with a chuckle. “For now you should return to Myra. The poor girl has been trying to escape her precious treasure for quite a while now. Also, I should prepare for the banquet. It has been a while, after all…”
After explaining her reasons to send me off, Cilia hugged me close and kissed me on the forehead, before gently placing me on the ground again. She then waved me goodbye, her hand glowing with divine magic. And, before I realized it, I was already sinking to the ground, feeling really exhausted all of a sudden. My eyelids became heavier and heavier, a big green board being the last thing I recognized before I fell asleep.
“A quest…”
⮝ ⮝
⮜— – —⮞
Hours had passed without Kiomi returning from wherever she went and I was still trying to make sense of the mess I had found myself in. The unfathomably rare comb made from a metal most only knew from fairytales, was right here with me, resting against my chest. And as much as a gift this was, it had proven to be more and more of a curse as I simply was unable to appreciate the item in my pitiful state.
Kiomi had explained to me what enchantments the divinite comb came with. Most of these were comparatively unassuming when I thought of the work that must have been put into crafting the thing, as a tool or weapon made from this metal could handle any magic you could think of. Certainly, only a god would decide to use the mythical divinite just to create a mere comb with hair-enhancing magic rather than using the same material to forge a dragon-slaying sword or an impenetrable shield for their champions to use in battle.
It was the last two of the enchantments that had brought me to my predicament. Not only was the comb bound to Kiomi, meaning that it recognized her as her owner on a level that was likely unchallengeable by mortal means, but it also refused to move once it left her side. This meant it was effectively stuck right against my chest, pinning me against the wall of the burrow Kiomi had dug and leaving me with absolutely no option to do anything about it.
Naturally, I had tried to use my magic to escape my imprisonment. I had tried to swing my tails and create a carpet of blue flames to teleport to, but I simply couldn’t get that magic to work, thanks to it seemingly needing a much more exaggerated swing of my tails to be brought forth. Realizing this, I instead tried to summon the fire using other means, by giving it a name to shout out or shaping my mana to imitate the feeling the tail–magic gave me, but there was no such luck. I still had other ways to summon blue flames, but sadly, those didn’t seem to work for my teleportation ability, leaving me entirely stranded and defenseless.
The cuddle pile of Liri Foxes nearby naturally noticed my struggle, but other than yelping and running about, there was little they could do to free me. They tried to pull or push on the comb, bite it, and even ignite it, much to my horror, but nothing helped. Soon after realizing this, the small foxes were instead trying their best to at least cheer me up, by cuddling to my side or rushing out of the burrow to fetch me flowers.
It was only after a few more hours that suddenly something seemed to change. The foxes that were by now sleeping by my side woke up one after another, their ears raised high up as they seemed to be listening for something. I tried to find out what was happening, but my ears seemed to be less sensitive than the Liri’s.
Seconds later I finally heard soft, barely audible steps closing in on the entrance of the burrow. And it was exactly at this moment that the comb suddenly gave in, falling to the ground with a chime-like sound. This could only mean one thing – Kiomi was returning.
Knowing this, I quickly saved the artifact from the dirt it was now covered in and raised myself up, surprising the foxes that had been trying to soothe me all this time. And it was just at the right time, as a shadow suddenly appeared at the entrance of the burrow, forcing all of our attention on it.
Instead of a foxkin that could very easily be my little sister, the silhouette I now saw had a much smaller fox-like shape and was quickly making its way through the tunnel on all fours rather than slowly crawling toward us. Soon later, the Liri Foxes had already jumped up, their fiery bodies casting white light onto the invader. It was a fox that was on the smaller side, being a little bigger than the white ones that were now surrounding it to all sides. Contrary to them, it had the usual colors of a red fox, the sole surprise being the paws, which were pure white instead of black making them look as if they were covered with very short, silky socks.
By now the Liri Foxes were already greeting their supposedly new friend, their two tails wagging behind their backs as they sniffed, yelped, and laughed to their heart's content. Each of them followed the same pattern, it seemed. First, they were very interested and happy to see the new fox, but they became spooked or dazzled upon their first sniff, likely realizing that it was Kiomi, only to become even more eager the very next moment. I couldn’t help but enjoy this scene.
Kiomi, who was in the middle of all of this chaos just endured it for a minute or two until the Liri Foxes calmed down again and then turned around to address me with a single bark. I could only look at Kiomi in confusion, but she soon made her way out of the burrow once again, all of the Liri Foxes following after her like she was some kind of leader or royalty. And somehow, she was exactly that.
Halfway out of the burrow, Kiomi turned around to bark at me again, urging me to follow her, so I did just that. Placing the divinite comb next to the core where it was hopefully safe, I crawled out of the den, following after the foxes.
Soon, I found myself being led towards the boss rooms, the foxes doing their best to avoid the gravel path as best as they could. Only when we almost reached the room were they forced to walk on the sharp-edged stones, much to the horror of Kiomi who was supposed to be in the lead. She actually waited for all the other foxes to do the trip only to, once they all were at the boss room and barking at her to join them, hesitate like a child which was about to swim for the first time.
With a chuckle I knelt down, reached out for the precious little fox Kiomi and, in a moment of malicious joy, lifted her up as if to check something important, before placing her into my arms.
“A girl~” I mused to ‘myself’.
The little princess immediately came alive, her previous tameness seemingly a lie. She stared at me in pure horror, then barked at me in protest, her high–pitched yelps ringing painfully in my ears. After a few moments of this, the little fox slowly turned around, her head facing into the distance. She was very obviously feeling deeply ashamed.
I couldn’t help but chuckle at this image. Kiomi was certainly good at playing princess, although I couldn’t quite understand why she was pretending to be a fox. Still, it was fun, so I naturally played along.
With a smile on my face, I carried her over to the waiting foxes, to then place her down on the boss room’s rocky but far more acceptable floor. Before long, Kiomi was already leading her little party of foxes once again, this time slipping through the metal bars that barred off my workshop, forcing me to use my magic to follow them.
Before long, we were already deep inside of the network of tunnels, making our way past the storage and toward the Volcano Room. With the Liri Foxes lighting the way, Kiomi could run without any trouble. Sadly, her tiny legs weren’t actually carrying her far, meaning that I could keep up with the foxes just fine. Still, we soon reached the last mithril door that still separated us from our destination.
Kiomi eagerly barked, seemingly demanding for me to do my job. With a chuckle, I did just that, opening the door and accompanying the party of foxes out, before closing the door right after us.
By now, the sun was already setting, allowing me to take a breather at last, as it was highly unlikely anybody would enter the dungeon at this time of day. It was the perfect time for a little fox princess to have a big adventure.
I couldn’t help but laugh at this thought, an action Kiomi reproved with a single bark. She soon was dashing over the bridge, the Liri Foxes following right on her heels and before long, she was already in the Volcano Room’s underwood, surrounded by a small number of earth foxes who were very eager to meet her.
With a wide smile on my lips I watched the foxes sniff at their supposed princess, only to become even more excited soon after – following a state of utter confusion, of course. Even the Fire and Lava Foxes were already making their way down the volcano’s slope, their tails wagging behind their backs as they joined the merriment. Only the Air Foxes left us waiting, as they were the slowest to arrive, thanks to their voracious appetite, as it soon turned out. There was no other explanation as to why only four of them were still able to fly and fight the wind, the other ones bloated and bound to the ground like sheep.
Thanks to all the foxes asking for attention and the Earth Foxes even showing off their dens to Kiomi, who now had the perfect size to check them out, it took us the larger part of one hour to finally make our way through the room and towards the Vulpine Circle, which had apparently been Kiomi’s goal all along. I couldn’t wait to see what she would come up with this time…
⮝ ⮝
⮜— – —⮞
Being a Fox was awesome! Not only did it allow me to befriend my monsters and do fox things, both of which Cilia’s last quest tasked me to do, but it was also fun as it gave me a whole new view of the dungeon I thought I knew perfectly! With Myra being nearby, this whole quest turned into something deeply exciting even, as I was under constant threat of being discovered. I had to behave like a fox, and perfectly so.
Sure, the quest didn’t exactly ask for secrecy, nor was there any real benefit in tricking her, but how could I resist this chance? It sounded so much fun to hide in plain sight!
Luckily, Myra was none–the–wiser about my real identity, as she was treating me like any other of the foxes, watching me play, feeding me, and petting me here and there as we slowly made our way through the dungeon. And there was way too much to see, now that I had a whole different perspective to explore.
The underground network of the foxes alone had been impressive, with them carefully digging around the roots of the trees to create large, cavern-like structures I couldn’t quite make sense of. Their leader, the Stone Fox, had actually used his magic to enchant large parts of the walls, turning them into pure rock and thus preventing a cave-in. And this was desperately needed, as the foxes had built something I could only describe as an underground town. It was a hall that had dozens of dens dug into its walls, allowing each fox to rest in peace and quiet while giving them ample room for merrimaking.
With how large the network of tunnels was, I would have been hopelessly lost if it wasn’t for the Earth Foxes proudly leading the way, with the Liris instead lighting up our surroundings. The builders of these burrows had no need for light, as they seemed to be perfectly fine without it, but that was a whole different story for me, who was forced to cling to the other foxes.
All in all, I was impressed with what the foxes had built, though I couldn’t help but give them a little present before I made my way back out. In the middle of their large hall, I summoned a pile of furs large enough to allow for a comfortable sleep for any monster that had its home down here, swearing to myself I would add light crystals as well once I got ahold of one of them.
Obviously, the foxes were more than happy with my gift. They were already dragging the furs into their respective dens when I was led outside by the Stone Fox, who still acted as their undisputed leader.
Myra was visibly happy to see me make my way out of the burrow, as the sun had already set and it was almost dark by now, forcing her to use her magic to light her surroundings. Seeing no reason to further idle around, and with most foxes already on their way back to their homes, I barked at two Wind Foxes, planning on using them for the Vulpine Circle that was nearby.
The foxes in question only stared at me in confusion, seemingly unable to understand what I wanted of them. Having a magic that turned you into a fox was apparently not enough to actually communicate with them, who spoke an entirely different language. Sadly, I couldn’t just turn back and talk to them that way, as Myra was watching my every step. She even encouraged me upon seeing me fail, urging me to try again.
“Try your best, princess!”
The next few minutes were a mess, to say the least. The foxes had either absolutely no intention to listen or they simply were unable to understand any of my words. I had barked at them, yelped, and whimpered. I had even laughed like I had seen some of the foxes do earlier, but nothing helped. If anything, the Air Foxes only seemed to become restless due to my struggle, now more than desperate to find out just what I was trying to tell them. So I tried again, this time basically singing all the fox noises I was aware of. And there were a lot of them.
A resounding laughter cut short my majestic performance, making me shut up almost immediately. I turned around, and, to my horror, Myra was already on the ground, slapping her knee as she pointed at me in uncontained glee and schadenfreude.
“You should hear yourself!” She laughed. “That was amazing!”
I froze, unable to even think as she jumped to her feet and raised me high up as if to present me to the few foxes that were still surrounding us.
“I believe the Princess asks for your assistance over at the Vulpine Circle~” She announced with a playful voice.
The two Air Foxes immediately yelped in reply, betraying all my attempts to make them understand me. When Myra carried me over to the magic circle, the two foxes happily followed after us and, once we had reached the site, were already hovering on their pedestals, not needing a single word of further explanation. I felt slightly betrayed, to say the least.
Myra gently placed me down on one of the remaining empty pedestals, before petting me one last time.
“Princess Kiomi,” she exclaimed. “Everything is prepared!”
Being back inside the Earth Foxes' network of tunnels, hidden deep where the light doesn’t reach, sounded rather fantastic right now thanks to Myra’s barely hidden ridicule. It seemed like she had known all this time, likely smiling to herself as she watched me play pet. Knowing this, how could I not wish to hide?!
Sadly, that had to wait, as there were more important things to do right now. So, trying to not think of Myra’s very memorable reaction to my failed plot, I instead closed my eyes and concentrated on the fox I wanted to create, hoping I would get a good image in my current state of mind.
With two Air Foxes being its base, it was only natural that the new fox would be able to fly, so I imagined it with big, birdlike wings that would carry its agile body at great speeds. As for the color of its fur, I went with pure white, allowing it to hide within clouds, fog, and mist. Intelligent, blue eyes would indicate its real strength, which did not lie in assaulting delvers with powerful magic – I had more than enough capable fighters – but rather in them being able to lead other foxes into battle, almost carrying them with the wind as they charge towards their opponents as an unstoppable force. These foxes would not only lead others into battle, they would also ensure their safety by preventing most ranged attacks from finding their mark. Not only that, these new foxes would also be able to infuse their wind magic with the magic of other, weaker foxes, creating forces of nature delvers would have real trouble facing against. While this fox wouldn’t have strong magic on its own, relying solely on other foxes to turn it into a threat and the speed of their charges to throw back opponents, it would easily endure long fights if it must, being able to continue casting spells long after other foxes used all of their mana.
With the appearance of the fox completed and its abilities all fleshed out, it didn’t take long for a familiar wave of cold to assault me – mana was rapidly leaving my body. The feeling lasted for about a minute, time I spent perfecting the image in my head. And, soon enough, the drain stopped, allowing me to finally open my eyes again. A small, green board was already waiting for me, announcing my success.
「You have created a Winged Fox」
The monster in question was a very majestic looking fox that had appeared right in the center of the Vulpine Circle. It was everything I had dreamt of, the best parts of both a bird and a fox, with its deep blue eyes promising so much more. Seeing my perfect creation, I couldn’t help but dash towards it, welcoming it into my dungeon like all other foxes before. Soon later, we were already sniffing each other, our tails wagging behind our backs which was apparently enough to finish the quest Cilia had given me earlier. It had been a rather easy task, after all.
『Quest 21:
Task: As a fox, befriend 30 other foxes.
Reward: Feel instinctively what foxes want
Don’t worry! You can turn back and forth as much as you like! Just think about it and it will happen!
As for your reward, I am sure it will prove its worth to you!』
I stared at the fox, waiting for my new ability to do its thing, but for the larger part of a minute, basically nothing happened. My mind was getting slightly cloudy the more I concentrated on the fox, but other than that, there was no change. It was only when I was about to give up that a cloudy image flashed into my mind, one that seemingly showed the fox flying high in the air and chasing after friends.
That… was reasonable. It had to wait, as I was completely out of mana right now, but I naturally understood the fox’s wish for someone to share its life with. Family and friends were important and even more so if you never really had the opportunity to enjoy either.
As for where the new fox would live? The volcano room was easily the most lively place I had, but it was already at its limits, so having a large group of two-tailed foxes move in would surely turn things sour. As such, the Winged Foxes would have to stay in the future town, at least until I could come around to build a proper home for them.
A new image appeared before my inner eye, pushing away my thoughts. It was a more affordable desire this time, but one I could easily get behind, as it asked for nothing but a good meal, symbolized by a roasted chicken that was slowly rotating in my head. I had no chicken, so no luck there, but a tiny bit of concentration was enough to reward my new Fox with a nice selection of tasty treats. It immediately began wolving down with vigor. This would have to do for now…
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Kiomi cuddling with Cilia [collapse] Poorly edited AI Winged Fox [collapse]
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