Erin knew the fox that Lucy had brought to the academy during the first vacation very well.
She was the one who had been in charge of the fox while Lucy was away, so it was impossible for her to forget.
She was the one who caught the fox rubbing against Lucy Allen’s clothes in the laundry room and bathed it.
She was also the one who stopped the fox from sticking its head into the leftover water after Lucy had finished bathing.
And when the fox tried to stick its tongue out at Lucy’s childhood drawing, Erin had stopped it.
Back then, Erin had simply thought of the fox as an animal, assuming that it only had deep affection for its owner. She thought it was a cute little thing that always looked for the scent of its owner, no matter where it went.
But if that fox wasn’t just a pet, then everything changed.
"...That look in its eyes seems too fierce."
“Doesn’t it look gentle? Everything the fox has done is flashing through my mind right now.”
“Uh, well, yeah.”
Visit freёwebnovel.com for the 𝑏est n𝘰vel reading experience.
Under Erin’s sharp gaze, the fox, Lina, naturally kneeled down.
There was no pride left in her as the ruler of the forest.
Erin knew that if she told Lucy even part of what Lina had done, it would cause a huge disaster, so there was no way she’d preserve her dignity.
Lina had come here, borrowing a fraction of the power from her true form, with the intention of avoiding being driven out by Lucy.
"Could you at least give me a chance to explain?"
“Your excuses should be made in front of the young lady, not me.”
"Do you think I would do something so abnormal without reason?"
"Yes, so what?"
"No! There are unavoidable circumstances! As the ruler of the forest, I would never commit a crime for selfish gain!"
"...You, the ruler of the forest?"
"Yes!"
Unlike before, Lina, now borrowing some of her true power, suddenly stood up and confidently showed off her strength.
“Look!”
As she lit a fire in her den, smoke filled the room and began to take the shape of foxes, filling the space.
Erin’s eyebrows raised slightly as she faced this magical and mesmerizing scene. Lina, seeing this, puffed up her chest.
So far, so good. They had seen the incredible nature of the young lady, so now all they needed to do was make up a plausible excuse.
She could say it had something to do with magical power, and she’d be able to convince this woman as well.
"...The room is filled with cigarette smoke."
Erin’s eyes, now sharp with suspicion, made Lina quickly retract the smoke and desperately continue her explanation.
“Don’t worry! This smoke is a part of the young lady’s power! As you can see, it leaves no trace!”
Despite Lina’s protests, Erin checked the room to make sure the smell hadn’t lingered, and only then did she nod, though her eyes were still cold and hard.
"...You still don’t believe what I’m saying?"
“No. I believe you. It’s just hard to believe that this is the ruler of the forest. But I suppose there could be a strange spirit involved.”
Under the weight of Erin’s gaze, Lina thought it was strange.
This woman was indeed Lucy’s servant, but she was just a human.
There was no need for her to act so cautiously.
But strangely, there was power in Erin’s words.
Lina, wondering why, realized that Erin’s energy resembled the aura of the Apostle of the Art Guild.
...Goddess. I knew you were interested in Lucy, but did you really want to observe her servant and give her power to do so?
"Fox?"
"...Hmm? Oh, why?"
“You haven’t been listening to me.”
“No, wait. Calm down for a second. Alright, I’ll give you one of these little trinkets, since you treasure Lucy so much, you must want something like this, right?”
"...What do you think I am?"
Erin pressed her forehead, as if feeling a headache, but her gaze still subtly lingered on the Art Guild’s jewelry.
Pretending not to care, but being honest deep down!
Yeah! Of course, Lucy’s people can’t ignore these things!
"Look, just take a look first! The most notable part of the jewelry made by the Art Guild is Lucy’s picture, but it’s not just that—it has much more power!"
Lucy, as the Apostle of the gods, was practically a holy relic.
Because of that, the jewelry featuring her image also possessed extraordinary power.
Thanks to the divine powers of the gods, it improved health, brought luck, and even kept evil from approaching. What an incredible item!
Lina, rambling like a street vendor, grew more excited as Erin showed interest in her words.
“What’s even better is that, since Lucy’s divine power is part of this, it always feels like she’s right there with you! Do you think I was just burying my face in it for no reason? There’s a reason for everything!”
“Why is this beast getting worse every day?”
Hearing a voice from behind, Lina cautiously turned her head and met Lucy’s eyes, filled with disgust and contempt, causing her body to tremble.
“Do you want to be treated like a beast?”
"...Yes?"
“Then get lost. Animals like you should stay in the forest.”
“That I cannot do! Please forgive me!”
“Did you grow up in the forest and forget your manners? That’s not how you apologize!”
As Lucy’s words hit, Lina buried her head in the ground, only to have someone’s foot step on it.
At first, she thought it was Lucy’s foot, growling angrily, but soon realized something was wrong.
The foot pressing her head was too large and clumsy to be Lucy’s.
Hesitantly, Lina lifted her head and, upon seeing Cal standing there, immediately began foaming at the mouth.
The cruel reality in front of her was too much for Lina to handle.
In the blur of her thoughts, the last thing she heard was Lucy’s chuckle.
The task of dealing with the doppelganger on the 100th floor wasn’t difficult.
After all, the sheer power difference made it almost impossible to fail.
But defeating the doppelganger didn’t fill the emptiness I felt.
Even though I knew I had won, I couldn’t bring myself to be happy about it.
“Congratulations~ cute older sister~ I’m so glad you’re so strong~ But hey, you know, if you train too hard, you won’t grow any taller, right? Hahaha. If this is why you’re so small, you’ll be stuck at the bottom forever~”
The doppelganger’s mocking words kept echoing in my ears as I left the dungeon, feeling the weight of the words "won, but lost."
And then I thought about it.
How should I punish Cal?
The conclusion came soon.
Since he was my personal knight, I decided to ignore him until he figured out just how wrong he was.
He would realize his mistake when he was treated like air.
It didn’t take long for me to realize I was right.
Every second that passed, Cal’s expression kept changing.
“I’m really sorry! Young lady! This time...”
“Lady? Why are you ignoring me?”
“I’m sorry! I’ll accept any punishment! Just please listen to me! Please!”
The problem was that my punishment was working way too well.
Cal, bowing his head until blood came out, had drawn all eyes to him.
At first, I pretended not to care, but as the murmuring around me grew louder, it became hard to ignore.
Eventually, I gave up on waiting for my friends and ran back to my dorm, only to find Erin being seduced by the fox and teasing it.
I vented my frustration by teasing the fox, laughing at how ridiculous it was.
Hahaha. Looking back, it’s hilarious. It thought it was going to get stomped by me, but the moment it realized it was Cal, it started foaming at the mouth!
Next time, I wonder who I should punish. Surely there’s someone even more disgusting than the clueless fox.
“Sorry, young lady. I should’ve told you right away.”
“Don’t worry. It’s not Erin’s fault she’s incompetent and pathetic.”
“Thank you for your mercy.”
Though it might sound sarcastic to anyone else, Erin, who was used to my tone, understood the meaning behind my words and sighed in relief.
“But, you know, pathetic Erin, do you also want to own one of those items with my picture on it, like that pervert?”
“...What do you mean?”
“Hehe. So, you’ve got some sly intentions, huh?”
When I saw Erin’s cheeks redden slightly, I promised I’d get her one later.
I didn’t want anyone close to me to have one, but since Erin seemed to like it so much, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to let her have it.
...Honestly, I’m starting to give in.
What can I do? As time goes on, more and more items with my picture are showing up both inside and outside the academy!
I can’t stop the trend, no matter how hard I try!
At this point, it’s better to just get a proper one and buy some favor with it!
“...Young lady, I...”
“Pathetic dog ♡ Can’t even do your role properly? ♡ If you keep showing such incompetence, I’ll have to abandon you ♡”
“Kiiing...”
Cal, being treated like a dog instead of ignored, spoke pitifully, and Erin made a disgusted face.
As Cal trembled with shame, he couldn’t get up from his spot.
After all, with me riding on his back, how could he move?
"...I envy you."
The dumb fox, watching all this, expressed its jealousy toward Cal.
“Envious ♡ You want to play the chair too? ♡”
“Right! I’d do it for days if I could!”
“But that’s a punishment for a dog, right? ♡ A fox like you should stay in the forest ♡”
“Woof! Woof! Grrr! Arf!”
“Hahaha ♡ You’re so much of a pervert that I almost feel sympathy for you~ ♡ But no ♡ I won’t do it ♡”
“Then...”
Watching the dejected fox, I smiled. Just then, an alert sound flashed in my ears.
For a moment, I wondered if the god was trying to get something perverted from me, but strangely, the sentence that appeared this time was the right one.
[Quest triggered!]
[Strange happenings in the forest]
[Ask the ruler of the forest about other forests]
Something was happening.