WAS THERE ANY OTHER PERSON more simple-minded than me? But then, Doggy was asking me if I felt a bit complicated.
The only complicated thoughts I had was that there might have been a possibility that the sorrowful Lucian would become a sub male lead, but like the original, I don’t think there’d be a possibility of that anymore.
And with the way Doggy was looking at me with those eyes…
He couldn’t possibly hate me, really.
“Doggy, don’t speak informally to the Master.”
Damian approached me as he said this, then politely took my hand and removed it from Doggy’s cheek.
Like a child who’s been deprived of his toy, Doggy shouted.
“If you change my name! Please just change my name!”
Then, I took my hand again and placed it back on his head. He smiled like a purring cat as he closed his eyes. Seeing this, the name Doggy suited him though.
But since he hates it so much, should I change it?
“Hmm…”
When I showed a little concern over this, Doggy opened his clear eyes, reminiscent of rubies.
“Do you hate the name ‘Doggy’ so much?”
Doggy jumped up at my question, then grabbed my shoulders.
“Yeah, I really hate it. Give me a cool name, Master. You know that you’re the only one who can change my name.”
Doggy begged desperately.
“If you change my name, I promise I’ll be mature and I’ll stop speaking informally. I’ll listen to you well. Oh, and…”
Now that he was saying this, I couldn’t help but listen. I stared at him, recalling the original work.
Honestly, I thought about giving him a different name, but I couldn’t think of a name that suits him more than Doggy.
I asked him first.
“You don’t need to do anything. Just make a promise with me first, okay?”
“Okay, what is it! I’ll do everything you say!”
The already excited Doggy exclaimed. I have to prepare for an emergency. I still have a duty to protect my bias.
“Don’t make Brother sad. If Brother tells you not to do something, you absolutely shouldn’t do it.”
I took Doggy’s hand and intertwined his pinky finger with mine. I could see his fingernail, which was sharper than a human’s, tremble slightly.
“This proves our promise. Okay, Damian, you’re the witness. This means that our promise is valid, alright?”
“Yes, Master.”
“Doggy, what’s your answer?”
Doggy hesitated for a moment before he met my eyes. His thick red lips opened and closed repeatedly. As he thought carefully, I waited for him to answer.
Then, when he had already decided, he soon opened his lips as he stared into my eyes.
“Promises are very important to fox shapeshifters. Hawk shapeshifters automatically don’t betray their master once they’re contracted, but fox shapeshifters are different.”
Yes, I know.
That’s why I need a definite promise with you.
You shouldn’t disobey Lucian even when I’m not there.
This is for your sake, too.
I waited for his answer, swallowing down the words that I couldn’t tell him.
“But I will never betray you, Master. It’s been a long time since I made up my mind. You have my bead, right?”
“Yes, I have it right now…”
I took out the bead he gave me. Doggy once got angry when he found out that I wasn’t carrying it with me, so since then, I’ve been taking care of it.
Seeing this, Doggy smiled brightly, even revealing his fangs.
“Then give it to me.”
Doggy took the red bead and the blue bead he said he’d give me. Then, he put them all in his mouth at once.
“W-What are you doing?”
Actually, I didn’t know exactly how beads were made. But I didn’t expect that they would come out of his mouth!
Doggy spat out the beads again, but I was surprised to see that they had fused into one.
The blue bead had wrapped over the red bead, and now it was in the shape of a droplet.
“This is how I can prove it. You’re my master, and I won’t disobey you.”
As Doggy said this, he placed the bead onto my palm.
I was nervous because I thought it would slip due to his saliva, but contrary to my thoughts, it was dry.
“Huh?”
“Now, you’re the only one who can own me. Anyway, nothing has changed.”
The way he crossed his arms and raised his nose expressed how proud he was of himself.
I couldn’t help but smile. He was so cute, and I didn’t know that he made his beads in such an unexpected way.
I placed the bead in my pocket. Then, I smiled at Doggy and spoke.
No, I called his name.
“Oscar, Damien, it’s been a while since we went to the mountain. Let’s go.”
“…Oscar.”
Doggy, no, Oscar repeated his name. Just as he rolled the bead in his mouth, he uttered his new name preciously.
“Heh. Hehe.”
He grinned mischievously as if he really liked his new name. Damian, who was wearing a vest, waited by my side.
“Then, let’s go.”
Damian reached out to me, just like when Lucian escorted me. Oscar stood next to me, shouting proudly with one hand behind him.
“All the rabbits will die! This Oscar is coming for you!”
In response, I said two words.
“Phantom rabbits.” To be exact, they were about to hunt down illusory rabbits that were created.
The three of us have been training since we were in the south.
Cassander, who was still attached to this body I possessed, had the ability to make illusions. He often caused trouble because he wanted to show off his abilities.
Amber once fainted because she saw a lion wandering in the villa.
Making phantom rabbits now was only because Cassander had a change of heart, even if he didn’t want to admit it. Back then, it was hard to restrain him.
In particular, when I’m asleep, he would surface and make illusions.
On one hand, should I say it’s fortunate that he couldn’t control bodies?
I wasn’t sure if this was because I’m a transmigrator.
Maybe there’s another reason, but all he could do without my consent was to make illusions.
And when it came to a point that he’s frustrated because I keep blocking him out of my mind or ignoring him, I would often hunt with Doggy and Damian to relieve his stress.
Ah, the name ‘Doggy’ was still sticking to me.
We weren’t actually allowed to hunt, but Doggy and Damian were enthusiastic even when they were just phantom rabbits.
Today was no different from when we did it in the south. But now, compared to when I was younger, I was less awkward with my movements.
I ran vigorously alongside Oscar and Damian.
Ah, it’s this feeling.
It’s definitely worth running wildly like this.
It felt like the knots in my stomach were gone. As though I had returned to my childhood, I ran and ran while avoiding the roots of the trees protruding from the ground.
—Hmph. You’re running quite fast. But can you chase the rabbits I made? I should make a deer this time. What do you think? Can you catch a deer?
I almost laughed along with Cassander, whose tone was lighthearted.
“You’re looking down on us, huh?”
Fwiip. I whistled to Damian, who was soaring in the sky. He quickly turned back and descended towards me.
I reached out my arm and let him land.
“Damian, your target has changed. Get the deer. If you find it, cry three times. Understand?”
“Kyaak!” Damian replied loudly and flew back up. Then, I called Oscar.
“Oscar, you move with me. From now on, we have to corner the deer.”
“Kng kng!”
The grown-up white fox that had a fluttering red earring began to run at a faster speed.
He had been running at a similar speed to me a moment ago, but he was now pushing ahead even faster than me.
“Haa, haa, I want to run faster, too.”
As I followed him, we heard Damian cry three times. As soon as he heard this, Oscar turned towards that direction right away.
“Right. Our smart Dogg—no, Oscar.” I ran behind him, pushing my legs more. Then, we found a deer running in the distance.
It was a nice, sturdy deer that had large antlers. Certainly, Cassander’s personality was terrible, but his ability to make illusions was something else.
I rushed towards the illusory deer, which looked no different than the real thing. The three of us surrounded it, both in the skies and the ground.
“Oscar!”
Oscar intimidated the deer as he revealed his sharp teeth. Startled, the deer ran from side to side, then turned towards me.
Actually, this happened not only once or twice. The illusory animals that Cassander made behaved exactly like real animals.
So that meant that the illusory animals also thought that I was the weakest link. Having already experienced this with the rabbits, I took out a magic tool that had a built-in net.
I threw it towards the deer, and the net spread out and hit it squarely.
Once this happens, the illusion should disappear. That’s the promise made between me and Cassander.
But this time, the deer was already trapped in a net, but the deer still did not vanish. Instead, it thrashed around recklessly.
The crude net, which I bought only for the use of catching illusory animals, was torn in an instant by the deer’s antlers.
“What the—”
I thought you were an illusory deer, I didn’t know you’re the real thing! I staggered back, but the deer had already locked into me as an enemy.
The deer dug one leg into the earth and moved in seemingly slow motion. At the same time, I heard Cassander cackling.
When I couldn’t move out of the way it solidified, something as white as snow rushed in front of me.
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