At the Northern Fort

By Mikuni Tsukasa
Translations: 1~5 Estelion, 6 onwards Christina
Proofreading: Readers
 Contents

The foxy me.

Holding the fort, commence.
Children are the enemy.
Trespassing.
The one-eyed knight.
Frolicking.
The Vice-Captain feeds the fox.
Crisis.
Growing attached.
Iron man.
Female Knight Tina.
The tragedy of the fox cub and the unmanageable clothes.
The icy Branch Captain.
Expanding friendship.
Free time in the lounge.
Mr. Branch Captain’s secret face.
Cromwell.
Unrest.
Blizzard.
Snow spirit.
Parting.
At the northern fort

Specials

Proof of trust.
Child of flame.
Father.
Lots of guardians.

Short Story

Snowball fight.

Mil’s Mental Diary

Winter.
Summer.
The foxy me.

Back in my previous life when I was still living as a Japanese

person, I had once heard a certain urban legend.
A newly moved parent and child were going shopping. But
because they weren’t familiar with the area, the mother
stopped, lost.

But at that moment, the one that told her the way to the
shops was her child who wasn’t even 5 yet.

“We need to cross the traffic lights over there, and then
make a right. I know this street.”

Of course, this was the first time he had come to this place.
There was no way he could have known it.

But the reality was that the shop was just where the child
had said.

Though surprised, the mother followed his directions, and

as they were crossing the traffic lights, the boy muttered in
a low, mature voice,

“I… was killed by a car here in my past life.”

Gyahh!! I thought, when I first heard that scary story.

But right now I’m not in the position to be afraid. As to why,

that’s because right now I’m in the same situation as the
child in that story.
――I other words, I’ve been born again with my past life’s
memories still in my head.

But I’m not a human in this life.

I was staring at a padded hand covered in white fur. No, a

padded paw, rather.

Peering into the frozen spring in front of me, I saw myself

reflected on the ice.

“Kyun…”

I sighed. No matter how many times I looked at myself, I

wasn’t a human.

Right now I was a fox pup, with silver-white fur like the
colour of snow. Strictly speaking, I was rounder than the fox
pups I knew of, there was fluffy fur around my neck like a
muffler, and even my tail was probably 9 tenths fur.

If I curled myself up, I would probably look like a ball of fluff

lying around.

But the reason I looked this silly might have been because I
was living in a snowy mountain. The fur was like a natural
coat. Even though I was in the middle of snowy winds on a
sub-zero mountain, I was completely fine after all.

And the other reason that I was good with the cold was
because I wasn’t just a normal fox.
According to my mother in this life, our species is
『 』
categorised as a type of spirit . In other words, far from
being a human, I’m not even an animal.

Apparently we’re snow spirits that take the form of foxes,

but I don’t know much more than that.

Mother has no idea that I have memories of my past life, so

she probably didn’t tell me anything complicated because
she thought of me as a child.

Right now I’m still young, and it’s unfortunate to say that
just like human babies, I can’t speak.

No matter how hard I try, the best I can manage is “kyun

kyun”.

“Kyun…”

I let out my second sigh for today.

Even my sighs don’t sound like “hahh” and instead go

“kyun”. It’s kind of stupid sounding, so I don’t like it.
There’s no feeling of being depressed to it.

And at that moment, I saw a small fish in the spring.

My ears pricked up, and I stepped down onto the thick,

frozen surface of the water. My squishy paws were too
weak, so I knew that I couldn’t break the ice to catch the
fish.

But no matter what, I couldn’t help myself.

In my past life, I died at the young age of 18, and it’s been
about a year since I was reborn here. In other words, if you
count things simply then I should be mentally close to 20
already, but occasionally I get drawn into behaviours that
match my body’s age, and animal nature.

When I see things that move, I feel like chasing them, and I
can’t stop myself.

It’s embarrassing to say, but sometimes I even chase my

tail without realising it, and run about in circles.

I chased after the small fish under the ice, and ran around
with a pitter patter. The ice was slippery, and I fell about
once every five steps. Because my childish head was too
big, I found to hard enough to run steadily on solid ground,
to say nothing of the ice.

As though sneering at me, the small fish continued to

quickly swim here and there.

Damnit, damnitt! I want that fish so bad.

Becoming stubborn, I began scratching at the ice when,

“What on earth are you doing in a place like this, Milfiria?”

from behind me, I heard a woman’s dignified and clear

voice. Milfiria is my name in this life.

Forgetting about the fish for an instant and turning around,

I found a beautiful fox of about a metre tall, staring my way
with its light blue eyes.
It was Mother.

“Kyun!”

Letting out a high-pitched cry, I ran up to Mother, and

nuzzled my head against her forelegs.

“The sun is about to set. It is time to return home, my

beloved child.”

Unlike me, Mother can speak. I wonder if I’ll be able to

speak too once I grow up.

Gently biting the scruff of my neck, Mother lifted me up.

She walked atop the hardened snow towards our home.

Our home is a cave near the peak of this snowy mountain.

The wind doesn’t blow in, so there’s no worry of getting
buried in while we sleep either.

Mother continued into the back of the cave and put me

down, before closing her eyes as though concentrating.

And in the next moment, the figure of the large white had
fox disappeared, and in its place was a peerless beauty with
clear, white skin.

She had long and glossy silver-white hair, and around her
neck was a white fur muffler. That isn’t fox fur, right?

Wearing an outfit like a Japanese kimono with a somewhat

Chinese essence to it, she gave the impression of being a
somewhat flashy yukionna.
The breast of the kimono was opened a great deal, and a
splendid ravine was visible. Although she’s my mother, I
have to say that it’s quite an amazing chest she has. By all
means let it be hereditary.

Indeed. It was Mother in her humanoid form. Although she

spends a lot of time in her fox form while in front of me,
『 』
there are certain times when she always becomes
humanoid.

Those 『certain times』 are when Mother goes down to

town.

“Milfiria, I need a few words with you.”

In the same beautiful voice as her fox form, Mother called

out to me.
Holding the fort, commence.

“I must have you watch our home by yourself for a while.”

In a pleasant, song-like voice, Mother spoke to me.

Hearing that I would have to watch the house, my ears and

bushy tail drooped. This body is too honest.

“The truth is I have been summoned by the King, you see. …

I spoke to you of the King earlier, did I not? He governs this
Kingdom of Aridora, and is the most high ranked amongst
the humans.”
I had been taught before that this country was apparently a
『 』
monarchy. And that Mother was cooperating with that
King.

Spirits are fundamentally fond of the humans that live on

the same land as them, and sometimes help them.

For example in wars and stuff, the spirits that live in Aridora
will help the Aridoran humans.

They hate when strangers──humans from other countries,

noisily intrude on their land, after all.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that all spirits will actively

cooperate with the humans. There are some that think that
humans should solve their own problems, but on that
point, Mother is cooperative.

“Lately there has been trouble brewing with the

neighbouring nation, you see. Until matters settle down, I
shall be by their side. That one is quite likeable as far as
humans go. I have been watching him since he was a child,
after all, and it would be a pity to let him die.”

Mother continued.

“It pains me to leave you alone when you have not even
been born for a year yet, although I am also hesitant to
bring you with me to the Capital. It is a maelstrom of human
ambition and desire after all. There are also those who
would seek to make the power of a spirit their own. It is a
poisonous place to one pure as you.”
That can’t be… I’m not pure at all, so take me with you.

I’m stained with desire too.

“I shall return in one month, so endure until then.”

Hearing Mother’s smooth words, I doubted my ears. To

think that I would have to stay here by myself for a whole
month.

Mother had gone to the King before, but she would always
come back after a day at most.

Kyun kyun, I cried as I clung to Mother’s leg. Leaving an

infant alone for a whole month… That’s neglect. Abuse!!

Mother spoke to me with a troubled expression.

“I had thought that you had some oddly mature parts to

you, but you truly are still a child. But as one who will inherit
the name Snowlea, you must live more strongly. Live
without relying on your mother for this month, and fix that
cowardly nature of yours.”

Snowlea is apparently the name that each generation of our

clan inherits, and is Mother’s current name.

Mother is usually gentle, but when it comes to upbringing,

she believes in being Spartan, and rather than having me
brought up girly and gentle, she apparently prefers for me
to grow up strong and tough.
There was even one time when she told me “Climb up from
the bottom.” before dropping me off a cliff. If I wasn’t a
spirit, I would’ve died.

“Well then, try your best, Milfiria, my beloved child.”

Mother gave my fluffy head a kiss, before a small blizzard

seemed to rise from the ground and wrapped her up. When
it was gone, so was her figure.

She left for the castle with the King.

Wahhhh, Mother you jerrkkk!

It’s impossible for an infant like me to live by myself for a

monthhh!

I gave a resentful cry, but thinking about it calmly, it actually

doesn’t seem that difficult.

As a spirit, I don’t feel hungry, and I can survive even

without eating anything. That’s why I don’t particularly have
to hunt.

The other problem is outside invaders, but it’s never

seemed to be a problem before. Reason being that it’s too
cold on the summit where we live, and there are almost no
animals here.

When it comes to large carnivores, occasionally a non-

hibernating bear called a snow bear will come along, but
we’re spirits, and they’ve never attacked us before. Animals
are sharp, so they apparently know by instinct that we’re a
different dimension of being to them.

In other words, I have no enemy animals on this snowy

mountain, and even if I fail at hunting, there’s no worry of
starving to death.

If it’s just a month then even the young me can survive

without problems.

Geeez, isn’t that easy then?

It was only for a few months, but I lived by myself in my past

life as well, so it’s just the same thing. Easy peasy.

Or so I was thinking and getting cocky, but I had totally

forgotten that when I moved out by myself for university, I
fell homesick on the very first day.

❄❄❄

Suddenly waking up in the middle of the night and realising

that Mother wasn’t by my side, I somehow felt terribly
forlorn. The cave that we were using as our den was quiet,
and the silence hurt my ears. Snow was falling heavily
outside.

I closed my eyes to sleep again, but my restless feelings

kept me awake. It’s lonely living by myself in a mountain like
this.

“Kyuuun!”
Getting up and leaving the cave, I cried into the air. It was
the cry that I used for calling Mother, and was higher
pitched than normal. There was a trick to putting lots of
grief into it as well.

Normally when I get lost in the mountains and I cry out with
this voice, Mother always comes to pick me up.

“Kyuuun! Kyuuun!”

But this time, no matter how many times I continued to cry,

Mother wouldn’t come to greet me.

Even the time when I had been tossed off a cliff for training,
when I cried like this, Mother had said “Honestly, what a
hopeless child.” and picked me up.

Being by myself for a whole month really is too muchh!

There aren’t any attackers, and I won’t starve either, but I’ll
die from being lonely.

But right now Mother is in the capital, and no matter how

loudly I cry, she won’t come back.

In that case――

*imouto*

I’ve decided.

I’ll follow Mother to the capital.

If I make it to the King’s castle by my own strength, Mother
will be surprised and praise me for my toughness.

Now that I’ve made up my mind, it’s time to head down the
mountain.

With my tail up high, I left the cave behind, powered by

vigour alone.
Children are the enemy.

I woke up with a start to find that it was morning.

It was great that I set out on a journey to Mother’s side, but

I was still too young in this life. My body wasn’t moving the
way I wanted and every few hundred metres of plodding
along, I would tire out and fall asleep.

Children will sometimes play like crazy and then suddenly

fall asleep like their batteries run flat, but my situation was
exactly like that. Although, as an adult on the inside, I’m a
little embarrassed about this.

I shook my body to fling off the snow that built up while I

was sleeping. It had been layered on quite heavily.

And then renewing my determination, I decided that today

for sure I would reach the bottom of the mountain.

Although having said that, the distance I took with each

step was terrifyingly short.

Even when I ran until I panted wafuwafu, my progress was

trifling. Can I cry already?
After all, the scenery has been completely white the whole
time, and far from reaching the Capital, I won’t even leave
this mountain at this rate. I have to run more frantically.

Wafu, wafu

Wafu, wafu

This is me being frantic you know. I’m trying my best you

know.

But because of my appearance, a happy-go-lucky sound

effect accompanies me no matter what I do.

Wafu, wafu…

❄❄❄

It’s been a year since I was born. Have I ever more keenly
realised the shortness of my limbs?

Fifteen days.

The time it took me to descend the mountain and leave the

surrounding forest was a total of fifteen days.

…That’s half of Mother’s trip already.

Right now I had left the forest and was walking along a
small path that led to a human town. My spirits were a lot
lower than when I had triumphantly left home.

The only good thing was that my muscles weren’t hurting

at all, despite all the running I did. I did get fatigued each
day, but it would reset with a night’s sleep.

Even right this moment, I was only tired from the running I
did today. Is this resilience because I’m a spirit?

According to Mother, the mountain we’re living on is at in

northernmost part of the country, while the Capital is in the
middle. Even in winter, there isn’t much snow there, and it’s
a comparatively warmer place.

But right now I’m still in the middle of a snow field. If I’ve
only made it this far after fifteen days, maybe it’s impossible
to reach the Capital.

Although I was closer and closer to giving up, I continued to

walk. And while I did, I finally reached a fork in the road.

To the right spread a human town. It was my first time

coming down the mountain to a human settlement, so I
was watching the town with great interest.

The place gave the atmosphere of somewhere in ancient

Europe, and the townscape was built in a Western style. I
heard that the town was large, and there were lots of
people too, but it was cold here and there was lots of snow,
so it gave me a calm and quiet impression. Everybody was
probably holed up in their warm homes.

After having a look over the town, this time I turned to the
left.

There was a massive building of some sort, but because it

was boring and undecorated, I suspected it was a military
facility like a base, stronghold or fort of some kind.

Does this country have a military too? I wonder if they’re

knights like in fantasy stories.

I stood still at the forked road, unsure of where to do.

Two young children were approaching from town, and

when they caught sight of me, they started running this
way.

“Wanwa!”

Just who is ‘Wanwa’. So rude.

“Wanwa, Wanwa”

Just as I had registered the girl and boy happily running

towards me, in the next moment, gyuuu, they hugged me
without hesitation.

Ugwohh… I’m begging you, please be a little gentler.

Various things that aren’t supposed to are going to come
out of my mouth.

“Wanwaa!”

I get it. Wanwa gets it.

With their Western faces, the two children were as cute as

angels, but they were quite strong. They tugged at my fur,
and tugged at my tail, and I couldn’t help but let out
pathetic kyunkyun noises.
I’ve even lost to children?

But it isn’t as though these children are hurting me on

purpose, so I couldn’t even bite at them to resist.

Owowowowow.

While grimacing in the midst of this battlefield──it was

easily a battlefield for me──just as I was wondering how to
escape, a saviour appeared with wonderful timing.

“Alt, Mine, where are youuu?”

The female voice came from the direction of the town,

probably belonging to their mother. The children
immediately turned that way and relaxed their hands.

Unwilling to let this chance go, I immediately ran away. In

the exact opposite direction of the children.

Like a white bullet, I sped across the snow.

…I’m sorry for lying. The truth is I just toddled and tumbled
away.

After hiding in a bush, I turned around to have a look and

found that the mother had finally arrived as the children
were looking at me in disappointment.

“Time to go home.”

With her children in hand, the mother brought them back

to their warm house.
Aahh, how nice. I miss Mother as well.

Who would guess that this spoiled fox was actually almost
an adult in her previous life. I think my mind really is being
pulled down to my body’s age after all.

I was a little bit more together in my past life… at least, I

should have been…

Now then, it’s about time to leave the bush.

Stepping out, I began to think.

Those children are still in town, so I don’t really want to go

there. From now on I need to watch out for any children
that sprint my way with a smile. Children are cute, innocent,
and terrifying beings.

Since I no longer had the option of going into town, I began

heading down the left path.

I walked as far as the menacing fortress, and looked for an

entrance I could use to enter. This place is probably a
division of this country’s knights or military or whatever. I’m
sure there’s going to be heaps of people here who know
the way to the Capital.

Although the problem is, given that all I can do is make

pathetic “kyunkyun” noises, I don’t know how exactly I’m
supposed to ask them.

But well, everything in life begins with a try.

For now I was going to head inside, so I slipped through a
crack in the surrounding fence.
Trespassing.

Although my head got stuck in the fence, I somehow

managed to squeeze through and I made my way inside.
The place was large, and if I walked about at random I
would probably get lost.

I sniffed the air, and looked for a place that smelt of people.
Given that it was a military base, the place was filled with
the scent of males. It was very different from mother, who
smells sweet and fragrant.

The paths that people used had the snow shovelled off
them, so I just followed them. Eventually, it opened up into
a clearing of sorts. Kind of like a snowy sports ground.

I found dozens of people gathered in one of the corners, so

for the moment I hid in the shadow of a building.

I then once again slowly poked my head out. They were

apparently doing sword training, and even though it was so
cold, they weren’t wearing coats or anything. There were
probably other people working or doing other training, so
maybe these people were only a fraction of all the people
living in this base. After all, compared to the size of the
building, there were too few people here.

Everyone had a sword in one hand, but the only people

swinging their swords were the two in the middle.
“You’re being too timid. You think you’re fit to be a knight
with guts like those?”

A strict-looking superior was scolding them harshly, as he

watched the two match swords.

Since there weren’t any ‘knights’ in my old life, I got just a

little excited.

The superior man had short grey hair, and a fearless face.
He was tall and muscular, and had a well-maintained figure,
like a boxer. He probably like 3% body fat.

Not only that, but what stood out most was the big scar on
his face. It ran down the left side of it, from the forehead to
his chin. It was like a sword cut right down, and because of
that his left eye was scarred.

While I was staring at the one-eyed knight from the

shadows, without any warning, he suddenly turned my way.

We were pretty far apart, so I never thought he’d notice

me, but the moment our eyes met my fur stood right up
and I jumped back into the shadows.

His right eye shot right through me. Why did he notice me. I
didn’t move or make a sound at all.

It can’t be that he noticed my gaze? Was it because I boldly

stared at him?

The man showed no signs of heading my way. I could still

hear the metal swords clashing, and the training seemed to
continue without incident.

After getting my breathing under control and calming down

a little, I stuck my head out to have just one more lo──

──ok, oh he’s still looking this way.

HE’S STILL LOOKING THIS WAYY!

This time our gazes definitely met, so I turned my body

around and ran right out of there. As my feet hit the
ground, soft snow flew up. Moving my short legs, I ran for a
few dozen metres before slowing down to take a corner.
It’s fine, nobody is chasing me.

Around the time that I sighed in relief, I calmed down and

realised that there was no reason I actually had to run.

To begin with, I came in here because I wanted to ask

somebody for the way to the Capital. I haven’t figured out
how to ask when I can’t talk though.

Anyway, I really need to make contact with the humans or

else nothing will ever begin. What am I going to do if I run
away just from eye-contact. I was a human too, in my past
life. I know full well that humans aren’t just walking masses
of cruelty. There’s no reason to run.

Alright!

I took a step forward after gathering my courage.

But when I saw a few knights walking from afar, I

immediately curled my tail and hid in the shadow of a
staircase.

Mother…

Like you said, I might be a bit cowardly.

Actually, now that I’m this small, a human is actually
shockingly big to me. Seeing them up close is pretty scary.

Not only that, but I don’t even know how the humans of
this world would react to me. What if they caught me and
killed me, and then skinned me for my fur.

Since I look just like a small fox cub, what if they didn’t
realise I was a snow spirit. And if they did notice, what
would they do? I don’t think anybody would attack me,
but…

Anyway, the point is that it’s scary not knowing what they’d
do to me. Would it be safer for me if I acted like a normal
fox, or would it be safer for me if I really brought out my
“snow spirit-ness”? Umumu…

I was thinking seriously about the issue, but a wave of

sleepiness started to wash over me. I spent all day moving
about after all, and I had a really rough time with those
horrid children too.

It’s almost evening now, and even though there’s some

time left until sunset, I should probably start sleeping now.

I gave a large yawn――since I’m in this kind of body, I

couldn’t do a pretty little yawn with my hand over my
mouth. It was a bold yawn with my teeth completely
bare―and then I began sneaking around looking for a
place to spend the night.

*imouto*
I walked about the base, careful not to bump into any
humans, and in the end I decided on the back of what
seemed like a barracks or dormitory for the knights. It
wasn’t all that spacey, but there were some short trees
here and there. I bet once spring comes, the lawn will pop
up from beneath the melted snow.

It didn’t seem like people would often come here, and

there weren’t any markings by stray cats or anything either.

There was a shed in the raw corner of this back courtyard,

and it seemed almost forgotten, so I decided that I was
going to sleep there. Maybe the door had been broken,
because I couldn’t see one anywhere.

Inside, it was small enough that maybe even an adult

couldn’t lay down here. The only things inside were snow
shovels. Since there was no door, a little snow had blown
inside, but it was no issue to a living fluffball like myself.

I entered the shed and then curled up into a ball.

If I had to name one worry, I suppose it would be that the

whole shed was visible from a dorm window. The opening
to the shed was completely in-line with it.

But once the sun sets, the place will be blanketed in

darkness. It’ll be pitch black in here too, and even if
somebody looked out the window, maybe they wouldn’t
see me?

With my eyes closed, I thought about it casually with one

foot into the land of nod… ZZZ…
The one-eyed knight.

-GATA GATA-

My ears twitched at the sound of a window opening. But I

was still sleepy, so my eyes wouldn’t open.

In my half-awake mind, I dimly thought “The windows in my

old life opened a lot more smoothly huh.”

I wonder if the frame is wooden.

-GATA GATATA-

Maybe you guys should oil it a little.

So noisy.

I opened one eye.

There was a person by the window, opposite the shed I was

sleeping in. The window was wide open, and he was looking
through it.
──Staring. Right this way.

*imouto*

“…!?”

I immediately woke up. Bolting to my feet, I stared right

back at him. I could tell that my hairs were standing on end.

It’s that one-eyed knight.

…Could that be your room?

There was a lamp in the room, but the light leaked through
the window and illuminated my body.

OH MY GAH.

Who was it! Who was it that said that I’d be hidden once the
sun set! He can probably see every hair!

Maybe he had gotten back and was already relaxing,

because he was wearing a lot less now. Umu, he really does
have great muscles.

As I stood in the shed, and he in his room, the two of us

watched each other without moving.

The atmosphere is getting kind of tense. I could feel a

nervous sweat forming at my paw pads.

At that moment, the one-eyed knight suddenly placed his

foot against the window frame, and then -don- landed
lightly on the ground.

His one good eye pierced through me, and his boots began
to crush the snow as he made his way to me.

With my escape route blocked, I fell into a huge panic, and

then because he was closing the distance, I panicked even
more. There was only a metre between us now.

The light from his room was illuminating him, but because it
was a backlight, his face was obscured and it made him all
the more terrifying. It’s a bit mean to say this, but he had a
scary face to begin with.
After a moment of silence, his arm stretched towards me,
and I screamed “GYAHH!” in my mind. In reflex, I kicked off
the ground and moved back.

But this shed is tiny. When I jumped back, I crashed into all
the shovels.

And then the loud sounds of the crash surprised me, and
sent me further into a panic. The shovels fell to the ground
noisily, and I became so confused I had no idea what was
up or down anymore. I jumped and flailed about, and even
stepped on my own tail and tripped.

“Oi.”

His palm reached out for me again. It was about the size of
my face, and there were small scars and calluses from
practising the sword. This man is probably really strong.

On the other hand, I’m powerless. Mother can use blizzards

to freeze her enemies, but that kind of thing is still
impossible for me.

What am I going to do if One-Eyed Knight wants to kill me?

What if those hands strangle my neck?

It’s the end for me if he catches me.

When I realised this, the battle instincts I didn’t know I had

surged out from within.

You think I’ll let you catch me?

Get the enemy before he gets you first!

My fangs were bared before I realised, and I bit into his

hand. A low growl escaped my throat.

I thought he would retaliate, but he stayed still down to his

expression.

Since he wasn’t reacting at all, I gradually grew calmer. I

stopped growling, and then let go of him in a fluster. I could
faintly taste blood on my tongue.

When he slowly stood up, I froze with a start, but he just

said,

“Sorry for scaring you,”

and then left the shed.

With my escape route open again, I quickly ran outside, and

then took a certain distance from him. I stared his way, all
four legs poised to run at any time.

My heart was hammering away, but I was a little calmer

now.

What do I do? I bit his hand. I didn’t think I had such a feral
part to me.

Apparently it was a finger on his right hand that I had

bitten, because it was bleeding just a little.

My canines are small and thin. Not only that, but my jaws
don’t have much biting power, so as far as I could tell his
injuries were light.

But it’s quite a shock to me that I could hurt somebody like

this. I could feel my ears and tail drooping.

“Kyunkyun,” I cried, as I tried asking if it hurt.

“Somebody’s gotten meek all of a sudden.”

One-Eyed Knight smiled lazily at my attitude change. Paying

no heed to his injuries, he came my way.

“Kyan!”

Awawa, don’t come over here!

I ran away again. And after taking enough distance that I

could feel safe again, I stopped and turned around.

Each time he frowned and came my way again, I would run

away the same distance. We repeated this again and again,
and maintained the same distance.

“What the hell…” muttered One-Eyed Knight.

I don’t get it either, okay. I’m sorry about biting, and I want
to apologise about that, but when you close in on me, it’s
still scary and I get nervous.

The human in me judged that One-Eyed Knight wasn’t a bad

person.

He has a scary face, but he doesn’t mean me any harm.

Maybe he means to shelter me.
But the fox in me kept thinking “You can’t trust him so
easily,” and stayed on guard.

Until I’m absolutely sure that he’s safe, the fox me is going
to keep a distance.

While I was watching him, he turned back and headed back

to his room.

I sat down on the spot and watched him leave.

Did he maybe lose interest in me? I’m not sure if I’m

relieved, or lonely about that.

He returned through his window, and didn’t show his face

for a while. Maybe he was treating the bite wound.

I’m a spirit, so I don’t think I’ll give him diseases, but he

probably thinks I’m an animal, and I guess he would need
to be careful to sterilise it.

If I could talk, then I could apologise…

Fifteen minutes passed without incident, so I decided it was

time to get closer to his room. The window was still wide
open.

When I looked inside from the shade of a tree, I found that

One-Eyed Knight had some kind of plate in hand, and once
again showed up by the window.

“?”

I stretched my neck because I was curious about the plate.

When I did, I found that I could smell something appetising.
There were a few small balls of meat on the plate. Meatball
with sauce, it seemed.

My stomach growled. Even though I shouldn’t need any

food as a spirit, my human self knew that the food would
probably be yummy. When I imagined how it would taste,
my tummy suddenly felt empty.

Sometimes I see Mother drinking alcohol, so I should be

okay eating human food, right?

Lured by the smell, I tottered over to the window.

Aah, it smells good.

It smells really good.

I looked at the meatballs in One-Eyed Knight’s hand, and

gulped.

Mother tells me “Spirits don’t need food,” but sometimes

she brings me mice as “snacks”.

But I still have my thoughts as a human. How could I look at

a mouse with its eyes rolled back and think “Wow, looks
delish!”? I always shake my head and let Mother have them.

Since we live on a mountain, Mother always brings me

dying animals as “snacks”. Thanks to that, I guess I
misunderstood and thought that I had no appetite. I might
not have ever seen human food since coming to this world.
But now, with this meal in front of me, the longing for it was
unbearable. Drool was running from my half-open mouth.

I forgot about my fear for him, and ran over with my tail
wagging.

But the window was too high for me, and I couldn’t reach
the food. Aah, damnit. It’s so close. I placed my front legs
against the wall, and let out heartbroken cries as I stood on
my two hind legs.

Seeing this, One-Eyed Knight went back inside, and brought

three wooden boxes from somewhere. I took a few steps
back in wonder.

Leaning out of the window, he dropped them onto the

ground. Using the three boxes, he created a crude
staircase for me.

And on the second step, closer to the window, he placed

the plate down for me.

In joy, I jumped onto the first step. But just as I was about
to take a bite, Wait a minute, I thought, and looked right up.

Standing at the window was One-Eyed Knight, watching me

from up close.

He probably didn’t mean to, but I felt really pressured by

his grey eye and hair. Maybe because his eyes were sharp,
it felt like he was glaring at me.
Meeting his gaze from so close, I felt my body freeze. As I
felt regret at the smell of the food, I went down the stairs
and took a distance.

I want to eat. But being near him is scary.

I walked restlessly around the boxes. Unfortunately my

nose is really good, so I could perfectly smell the fragrant
meat and sauce.

I’d approach the food, but his eyes made me run, I’d
approach the food, but his eyes made me run.

As I repeated this over and over, he gave a troubled smile

aid said,

“Got it. I’ll leave, so take your time.”

With that, he really disappeared into the room, so after

watching carefully for about a minute, I quickly leapt onto
the box. While feeling moved about this taste from my old
life, I gobbled down the food. Yummyyyy.

The 5 bite-sized meatballs quickly disappeared, but it was

more than enough to fill my little stomach.

After licking the sauce off the plate, careful not to step on
the plate, I placed my forelegs against the window and
peeked in.

In the plain, undecorated room, One-Eyed Knight was

sitting on his bed and polishing a sword. I was still worried
about the bite I left, so I stared carefully at his hands.
It looked like he had washed it, and all that was left were
two red dots──marks from my teeth. It was just a small
injury, but I was worried, and wondered if he wasn’t going
to use a band-aid or something.

I called out in a small voice, and let him know that I was
done.

“Did you eat it all?”

He put down his sword and stood up. And then when I
jumped down from the box, he stretched out his arm
through the window.

“You licked it clean, huh.”

Not a single stain could be seen on it.

“Where are you sleeping today?”

His tone was soft and gentle. It was comforting, listening to

his low voice. Was he worried about me?

I went into the shed with the fallen shovels to answer him.
There’s probably nowhere better.

“I’ll get rid of the shovels for you tomorrow.”

Seeing me find a spot between the shovels, he laughed.

“Cya.”

Closing the window, the quiet night returned. But if I

listened carefully, I could hear the sounds of floorboards
groaning, and doors opening and shutting.

Even though it’s scary when he’s too close, for some reason
it makes me feel safe to know that he’s close-by.

Hearing the other knights inside the dorm helped the

loneliness of having Mother gone. On the mountain top,
not even an animal could be seen, I felt like I was the only
one in the world, and it was terribly lonely.

Because I have memories of my old life, I’m different to

both a proper animal and a proper spirit.

I guess I really feel most relaxed around humans.

Resting my shin on a fallen shovel, I fell into a deep dream.

Frolicking.

The next morning. I woke up as the surroundings got

brighter.

While I was stretching outside the hut, with the -gatagata-

sound of a window opening,

“You’re up early.”

The one-eyed knight poked his head out. He was still in his
pyjamas. Maybe he still has low blood pressure in the
morning. He still felt drowsy.

He just woke up, yet his eyes or his face didn’t get puffy.
How enviable.
“Wait a little longer for breakfast.”

Saying that, the one-eyed knight went inside.

I climbed up on the wooden boxes to peek inside since I

was curious, but I was greeted by the scene of the one-
eyed knight changing his clothes, so I hurriedly turned
away.

My face still in its hot state, I went back down to the

ground. To calm my heart, I continuously dug up the piled
up snow. -zubabababa- …Oh my, this is quite fun.

The one-eyed knight brought my breakfast when I reached

the mud as I dug the snow, that my front paws were all
muddy.

“Don’t dig too much. You’ll fall in,”

he said while placing a plate of food on the wooden box.

How rude. Even I don’t fall into my own holes.

Then I fell in.

I was too focused on the food that my front paw fell in the
hole and I tripped over.

“That’s why I told you,” laughed the one-eyed knight.

Embarrassing. My face heated up.

“Eat well,”
he said with a smile on his face and then disappeared
inside, closing the window behind him.

After I got myself out of the hole and climbed the boxes, I
peeked inside, where I found the one-eyed knight just
about to exit the room.

Having noticed me peeking inside, he lightly waved his

hand, saying, “see you.” He’s probably going to go training.

After seeing him go out, I started eating.

It was a soup with carrots and potatoes, along with bite-

sized pieces of bread. This feels like cat food. I’m glad he
didn’t give me raw meat from overly considerate.

Hafuhafu, I breathed as I brought the food to my mouth

with my tongue. The bread was soaked so it looked
unappetising, but it still tasted good.

Now that my belly was full, I started thinking about the

future. I really want to go to where Mother is, but I still
don’t know the way to the Capital. So instead, maybe I
should stay here for a bit.

Here in this base, there are no innocent but scary children,

nor are there any hunters aiming for my fur. There are only
knights here. I think it’s a rather safe place.

I can’t imagine a knight bullying a small animal. Even the

one-eyed knight was kind.
The way from here to the Capital is endlessly long for my
small legs. There might be danger on the way too.

Then, it might be best to wait for Mother here without

moving. There are many people here, so I won’t get lonely
like when I was up in the mountains, and plus I can have
tasty food.

…That could actually be the number one reason.

After using my hind leg to scratch my head with a -kakakat-,

I walked around the hole I dug. I will be here for a while, I
should take some time to look around.

Moving around stealthily as to not encounter any humans, I

arrived at the sports ground that I visited yesterday. To be
accurate, a training ground maybe? The one-eyed knight
had his subordinates here.

However, today, there wasn’t anyone here, and the snowy

ground was silent.

Maybe they ran, since there were many footprints drawing

a circle around the field. There were footprints where the
knights trained yesterday, but as for the rest it’s all fresh.
No one stepped on them.

Fidget fidget…

Fidget fidget…

My big eyes are probably shining brightly. I can’t stop this

pounding in my chest.
Who could win against that white temptation.

It’s impossible for me, impossible!

After checking that there wasn’t anyone around, I ran out

while my tail wagged -bunbun-. I am going to make
footprints on this untouched snow.

About twenty centimetres high. It’s soft and clean, it’s the
best. Hwafuhafu. I ran around the field, jumped about,
rolled about, buried my face in the snow and dug holes.

How fun!

“Are you a kid?” you might laugh but I’m still fine if you say
that. Because I am a kid.

I wouldn’t have the courage to do this in my previous life’s

appearance, but now that I am a fox cub I have no shame in
doing this.

Panting about, I rolled around freely on the snow while

attaching snow on my fur, my pride and joy.

After I played around until I was satisfied, I went back to

walking about the base. It was also fun moving around
stealthily to not get spotted by humans. It felt as if I was
playing hide-and-seek.
I stalked a knight that was moving, and sneaked up to the
sentry knight as much as possible.

I lose if I get spotted, but so far I haven’t been discovered.

Usually, I do have my consciousness as a human, but once
my play switch is on, I can’t stop myself. My instincts
demand fun things.

Though I am dumbfounded at how childish it is, I still

rushed in when I saw fresh snow, sadly.

Leaving paw footprints on the snow, stalking a knight,

climbing a small mountain of snow that was created from
cleaning the snow, sniffing the horse in the stable, going
into some place like a toilet and almost falling in.

I played around for the whole day. When I realised it, the
sun was already setting.

When I returned thinking that I needed food, the one-eyed

knight was waiting in front of the shed. It appeared that he
moved all the shovels away someplace else and laid out
blankets.

After placing dinner――some sort of meat, roasted

simply――on top of the wooden box, he looked at me and
said this teasingly,

“Did you have fun running on the snow? You looked quite
excited.”

…You were watching?

For some reason, I felt really embarrassed. Just where did

he see that from. Was it when I was on the training
grounds.
While slightly shaking my tail as if to hide my
embarrassment, I pledged to be careful from here on.
The Vice-Captain feeds the fox.

The group in charge of the Northern Fort was the Ninth

Branch of the Kingdom’s Knightly Order.

The Branch Vice-Captain — the second-in-command Grail

recently found something joyful.

Though he was someone who was both respected and

feared by his subordinates, at the moment his sharp gaze
was dulled as he stared at a certain creature.

It was a white fox that had settled in the shed next to the
quarters four days ago.

Though he was not certain since he did not investigate,

Grail believed that it was a she. Lovely and timid, it felt like a
‘girl’.

Though she was always up earlier than Grail, today she was
sleeping in. She was wrapped up in blankets in the old
shed, sleeping peacefully.

Though she seemed too small to be on her own, the

mother fox was nowhere to be seen. Grail thought that she
wandered over here after the mother abandoned the
youngling. Perhaps she couldn’t even get food on her own,
since he had never seen her hunt.

After glancing at the sleeping fox cub for a while, he left the
window.
Having finished changing his clothes, he headed to the
dining hall in the base. It was reserved for the knights
working in the fort.

Because it was still early, there weren’t many people here.

Still, it quickly became crowded over the next thirty
minutes.

“Good morning, Vice-Captain.”

“Aah, ‘morning.”

After exchanging greetings with his subordinates, who also

woke up early, he got his breakfast on a tray.

He sat down alone and ate silently. As he returned the tray,

he spoke out to the Chef, a man who had nice physique and
had worked here for a long time now.

“Can I get the morning portion?”

“Oh, Mr Vice-Captain. I made sure to set some aside.”

He knew of the existence of the fox cub from Grail’s stories.

And he was the one preparing food.

Since it was just making the knight’s food less salty, it

wasn’t a hard task. Today’s breakfast for the fox was a soup
of turnips, cabbage and bacon with bread. Soup was
common for breakfast meals.

They thought that foxes enjoyed meat, but this fox cub
didn’t really seem to. Vegetables, bread, fruit, she ate them
all happily.

In contrast, she seemed to be bad with raw meat. While she

gladly ate meatballs and roasted meat, when she was given
fresh, blood-dripping deer meat she looked disgusted and
took a few steps away.

Perhaps she thought that raw meat was not food because
she only had her mother’s milk so far?

“It’s the first time giving her turnips. I hope she likes them.”

The Chef said as he held out a dish with food in it. He didn’t
care too much for the knights since they ate whatever was
given, but he took more care for the fox cub. She didn’t
seem to like green peas, since she left them yesterday.

“It doesn’t have a strong flavour, so it should be alright.

Thank you as always.”

When Grail said that,

“You’re welcome. I’m also happy when she eats it all up,”

laughed the Chef. Though he hadn’t gotten to meet her yet,

he was excited like a grandfather who just got a grandchild.
It seemed that he was going to make jerky for the fox cub
again today.

While smiling at the energetic Chef, Grail took breakfast for

the baby fox and headed back to his room.
When he opened his room’s door, the baby fox was by the
window.

She woke up while Grail was at the dining hall.

She was stretching out her neck on the wooden box, but
from where Grail was he could only see her front paws, her
large ears and the top bit of her head.

Maybe she was hungry. Seeing her sniff about and trying to
peek into the room was lovely, and was rather destructive
towards his stern demeanour.

Though Grail was usually expressionless, even he ended up

smiling at the sight.

“Here, food.”

When Grail approached and opened the window, the fox

cub quickly darted off the box and distanced herself. Grail
thought that she might have gotten used to it by now, but
she still looked afraid of coming near. Even when he placed
the dish on the second step, she just hung about and
avoided coming closer.

However, when Grail closed the window, she nimbly

climbed up the box and started eating.

At first, she became tense just from Grail watching, but now
as long as there was the window in between she seemed to
be fine.
While lifting up her head sometimes to see Grail, she
gobbled with a haguhagu.

“See you in the evening.”

Grail said to the cub while tapping the closed window with
his fingers. Everything she did was interesting, and never
ceased to amuse, but unfortunately it was time for training.
He left the room and headed to the training grounds.

Being the vice-captain, Grail had to work with documents a

lot. He also supervised his subordinates, so no longer did
he train until he couldn’t move.

Thus, before work began, he would always train alone in the

morning. He did the basic routines, like muscle training,
running, and swordsmanship training (basic things, but
enough for a normal knight to keel over in exhaustion)
before going off to work.

Grail did not know that his subordinates called him ‘iron
man’ behind his back with fear.

❄❄❄

After Grail finished his morning training, he would hole up

in his room and focus on paperwork.

Then when it was time for the noon break, he put the pen
and paper down and left the room.

In this country, people ate large meals, but only twice a day:
breakfast and dinner. If there was something around noon,
it was a snack.

Grail, too, was not going to eat even though he left his seat
at noon. He went in the other direction from the dining hall
in the third floor corridor.

Looking outside the window at the end of the corridor, he

saw the training ground. It seems that the 6th brigade was
using the ground this morning, but now they were moving
inside.

The ‘division’ at this fort, the 9th Division, was divided into
‘brigades’ that acted on different schedules. The 1st
Brigade to the 4th Brigade were guarding the borders,
while the 5th Brigade patrolled the city and the 6th Brigade
trained.

After people left the training ground, the white fox

approached.

It came as expected. Grail smiled. The fox cub looked about

to see if there were any people around and crept to the
centre.

Because it snowed again yesterday, there were no

footprints. The only footprints that were there were those
of the 6th brigade.

The cub scanned her surroundings once more, then started

running on the snow. At first she was just walking all over
the place, but then she started diving into the snow with a
glint in her eyes.
Burying herself into the snow with only her ears and tails
out, or rolling and jumping into the snow again.

He saw her play along like this before at the training

ground so he thought that she might come again, and he
was right.

‘It never gets tiring to look at,’ thought Grail.

“Ah! If it isn’t the Vice-Captain.”

At the quiet corridor, a bright voice rung out.

When Grail turned around, his subordinate, who had

flamboyant blond hair, was approaching. It was Kix, a
promising young soldier, though he had the fault of
behaving flippantly.

“Whatcha doing here, sir?”

Kix was one of the few subordinates who spoke to Grail

without restraint.

Grail silently pointed to the window with his chin.

“Nn? …Oh, it’s a fox!”

Kicks said after he saw the baby fox playing around on the
training ground.

“Huh, I guess that’s the rumoured white fox.”

“Yeah.”
Grail nodded.

Truth be told, it was not only Grail that knew of the fox cub.

Many other knights saw the baby fox running about the
training ground.

And that rumour spread among all the knights in just four
days.

Because of all the snow, in winter the Northern Fort had

this depressing feeling, but this lovely baby fox healed the
hearts of the knights.

These rough men were happy to find tiny paw prints on the
snow.

However, other knights did not know that Grail was taming
her. Only the chef knew.

Grail was not hiding it on purpose and would have gladly

answered any questions, but no one asked.

“So you like animals, Vice-Captain?”

Kix said as he stared at the baby fox.

He continued talking as his lips were distorted as if to

suppress laughter.

“So, like the Branch Captain, you unexpectedly like cute

animals? …Pfft, that feels so off.”
To his rude subordinate who finally burst into laughter,
Grail flashed a cold smile. He put a hand on Kix’s shoulder.

“Kix, if you have free time, please be my opponent for

sparring. I’m not sure if I can go easy though…”

“I’msorryIapologiseI’msorry.”

❄❄❄

After his work was over in the evening, Grail headed to the
dining hall. After having his portion, he went to the chef and
got the portion for the baby fox as always.

When he went into his room and lit the lights, the baby fox
noticed and let out a small bark. She couldn’t wait for the
food.

He opened the windows, left the food and went away.

Because the fox cub seemed to get nervous when Grail
approached.

While she was eating, Grail took his coats off, unlaced his
shoes and prepared to take a bath.

A while later, a cry, “Kyan!” could be heard. It was a signal

that she finished eating. When Grail approached the
window, there was an empty dish on the wooden box and
the baby fox was staring over at Grail a little ways off at the
shed.

The food seemed to be good, since she was licking her lips
many times.
The baby fox looked to have opened up to Grail, but she
didn’t seem to trust him fully yet. The subtle distance
between the two is the proof of that.

From the moment they met, that distance did not close that
much.

Grail wanted to touch the fluffy looking fur of the baby fox,
but she became alarmed when he approached.

However, today, he thought that he just might be able to.

Grail had a secret weapon to close that distance in his hand

— a piece of jerky that he got from the Chef.

It was made from chicken breast meat, battered into thin

strips and baked in an oven. It didn’t have any seasoning,
but the flavour of the meat was condensed, that it probably
was good enough for human tongues as well.

Grail held up the jerky and shook it at the baby fox.

The baby fox tilted her head, as if to say “Hm?” and

approached Grail to check what it was.

When she arrived at the wooden box, she caught the

aromatic whiff of the jerky, which made her tail stand
straight.

She was still hesitant to approach Grail, but she was

bothered by the jerky. She nervously moved about the
window, while having her eyes locked on the jerky.
“Here. It’s good.”

Grail tore off a small piece from the jerky, placed it into his
hand and stretched his arm out. Up until now, the baby fox
never ate directly from his hand. This was a big challenge
for Grail too.

He wanted to tell her that there was nothing to fear about

human hands.

Lured by the smell, the baby fox placed one paw on the first
step off the wooden box. It was the closest she ever got to
Grail.

She desperately stretched her neck out, but it seems that

she then realised that she had to move in closer to get the
jerky. Trembling, she placed one paw on the second step
and got on.

She smelled Grail’s hands and then smelled the jerky.

Meanwhile, Grail was trying his best to not move so that the
baby fox won’t be surprised.

“She didn’t need to sniff that carefully,” one might have

said from seeing her sniff about cautiously. Then, the baby
fox took one piece and swiftly got off the wooden box.

After she got an adequate distance away from Grail, she

chewed on her prize.

“Haguhagu.”
The wet nose of the baby fox touched his hands, just
momentarily. Grail was moved by that feeling. It wasn’t as
though he had a fetish for noses. He was just happy that
she took some food from his hand.
When he tore off another piece, the baby fox approached
again, more used to it than last time.

Her appetite might have won over her wariness for people.
This time, she didn’t take the jerky and got off, but ate next
to Grail.

It was the first time she approached Grail this much. ‘The
power of jerky is amazing,’ thought he.

In the end, the baby fox ate the rest of the jerky next to
Grail or directly from his hand.

Though it was from food, the distance between the two got
closer.
Crisis.

That day, too, began peacefully.

For breakfast, I had the remaining jerky from yesterday,

licking every corner to make it softer. To give me something
this delicious, as I thought the one-eyed knight is a nice
person.

I was now less wary of him because of the jerky. Also, I

wasn’t so afraid anymore when I approached him now.

Still, I still got nervous when he stared at me, and still

darted away when his rough hands reached out to pat my
head.

Every time the one-eyed knight made a disappointed face, I

also felt sorry — I’m getting good food, I can let him touch
my fur a bit — but my instincts as an animal or as a spirit
disallowed humans to touch me.

I understood that I wasn’t going to be hit, but a big hand

slowly falling over my head was a scary sight.

“Patting is no good, huh.”

The one-eyed knight smiled bitterly.

I’m sorry, but it’s not possible yet.

I’m not a cheap woman who wags her tail at anyone. You’re
mistaken if you thought that! Though I have fluffy fur that
does not have a single trace of the wild, I am a noble――

“Then, see you later.”

The one-eyed knight closed the window and headed to

work.

I’m still talking!

*imouto*

Having finished breakfast, I cautiously went out of the shed,

trying to not be spotted. Now, what should I do to kill time
until the sun sets?
As a baby fox, I don’t have to do work, do household
chores, or study. I’m so free every day.

Should I have an adventure in the facility again?

I’ve been moving around the base quite daringly, but I

don’t think people other than the one-eyed knight found
me out so far. Maybe I have knack for being stealthy.

It’s clear this morning, and the temperature seems high for
a wintry region. I heard the soldiers say, “It’s a hot day
today.”

No, I don’t think it’s hot at all. Even though the sun is out,
the snow hasn’t melted and I think the temperature is
lower than that of Tokyo in the dead middle of winter.

Maybe their senses are weird because they spent so much

time in this cold.

However, as a snow spirit that has resistance to the cold, I

also felt that it was warm today.

This region is cool even in summer――on the mountain

where Mother and I live the snow never melts――if I go
further down south, I might evaporate from the heat. Even
after I grow up and can move around more, I shouldn’t go
down from the mountains in summer.

*imouto*

It was peaceful again during the daytime.

I waded through the soft snow, and greeted my friends at
the stables with nose touches.

Also, these little birds flew around me and picked a fight! I

had to fight back…

I thought the animals feared Mother and I because we were

spirits, but I found out the unfortunate truth that the
animals only feared Mother. When I become an adult and
become dignified, I hope won’t be belittled by these little
birds.

*imouto*

The incident happened when the sun started setting.

The surrounding grew darker and the air got colder in early
evening. If it was me from my previous life, used to heating,
I might not have been able to withstand the cold, but now I
am a furry animal. I’m staying warm thanks to my natural
fur.

Only feeling the cold on my wet nose and on my paws, I

returned to the shed behind the barracks.

I moved around a lot today, so I’m hungry. I wonder if the

one-eyed knight is still working? Or is he preparing dinner
for me?

I panted my way towards him, but danger was lurking on

my path.

“…?”
At first, I only saw a dark silhouette. It was in a far corner in
the dark, so I couldn’t discern what it was.

But from the smell that rode the wind, I found out what it
was.

A stray dog?

The smell of a beast, and a rough breathing sound. Come to

think of it, the silhouette is a that of a dog too.

What I thought of from the word ‘dog’ was the common

dog that was leashed and walking down the streets. I
almost said, “Where are you from!” like an old lady.

However, when I could see it clearly as it approached, I felt

danger.
It was a stray dog, not anything cute.

――A wild dog. It’s a wild beast that is not controlled by

humans.

The air is tense.

It’s eyes are bloodshot, looking almost as if they’re burning.

From its mouth that was panting heavily, I could see sharp
fangs. Its sticky saliva dropping on the ground indicated its
hunger. It had bulges between its eyes, and a low growl
sounded out of its throat.

From my eye level, the wild dog had an intimidating

presence, that I shrunk back in fear.
My waist almost gave out, but I managed to hold on with
willpower.

However, my hind legs were shaking greatly, which also

caused my vision to tremble.

It was definitely looking at me as a prey. It will move in to

chomp off my throat and eat me.

The wild dog took a step forth. It lowered its head and was
measuring the timing to pounce forth.

The dog is different from the little birds that played around
with me during daytime. If I fight back now, I’ll die.

I felt true fear for the first time in this body. My paws were
drenched in sweat.

Fear of death crept upon me.

Even as I was assaulted by terror, I did not turn my eyes

away for my own safety. I slowly backed away without
agitating my opponent.

However, getting restless, the dog started dashing here, so

I too turned around and ran at full speed.

I got extremely desperate.

I ran up a narrow path that did not have snow. My enemy’s

legs are longer, so I have to move my feet at a faster pace.

I strained my eyes, and ran――even faster than when I was

being chased by those kids.
In the middle, there was a bit that still had snow, but
thankfully because it was in the shade the snow had
hardened. I’m light, so I was not hindered, but the dog fell
in the snow. However, our speeds were still similar.

Here, I had to increase the distance, but because there was

mud my escape route was not good. I ran away too
carelessly.

“Owah! Wha… What’s going on!?”

On the way, there was group of knights but I had no time to

pay attention to them.

I ran right in between their legs and kept running. The dog
stopped momentarily, but soon resumed chasing me.

The sound of my enemy’s panting dominated my ears. I

didn’t have time to look back, but I could tell that it was
chasing me with its tongues out and drooling.

I could feel my enemy’s presence right behind me.

Fear crept into my head.

At this rate, I’ll be caught…!

――At that moment, I noticed a small pond lying bleakly at

the edge of the base.

It was probably man-made. Thus, it was not that large, but it

seemed pretty deep. Maybe they dumped the removed
snow there, because there were lumps of snow floating
around.

There’s no ice, but I can tell that it will be painfully cold.

Still, I headed there. If I kept running, it was clear that I

could be caught at this rate.

I steeled my resolve and dived into the cold pond.

❄❄❄

I dived into the water, but there wasn’t that freezing cold I
had imagined there would be. I was worried that I might
stop breathing because of the low temperature, but that
was just a worry.

The reason I didn’t feel the cold probably was thanks to my

fur.

Especially, my undercoat had air underneath it, that my skin

didn’t come into direct contact with water.

Then, I don’t have to worry about losing body heat too

quickly.

However, unlike when I was on the ground, I did feel cold

and my muscles started to contract. Though I don’t think a
snow spirit would freeze to death…

With my feet that became stiff from the cold, I desperately

dog-paddled about. I thought that my body would become
heavy because the fur would take in water, but the air
inside acted as a tube of sorts so it wasn’t too hard trying to
stay afloat.

The dog that was chasing me stopped at the pond as I

thought. While drooling and growling, it circled about the
pond so as to not let me go.

Occasionally, it poked the surface of the pond with its legs,

but maybe because it was scared of water, or maybe
because it was afraid of the cold, it did not jump in. It
merely stared at me frustratedly.

For now, I escaped the danger of getting eaten, but it

wasn’t about to give up anytime soon. It circled the pond
and waited for me to come back out.

I glanced at that dog and moved my short legs under the

water to swim to the middle of the lake.

-SHAKASHAKASHAKA SHAKASHAKASHAKA-

I kept moving my legs in the water, but because I had been

running they were getting tired. However, if I stop moving,
my nose will be submerged underwater. There’s more
danger of drowning than of freezing.

Please give up quickly.

I looked at the wild dog while wishing that, but the

famished dog was not about to give up quickly.

I might look round and tasty, but my body is actually mostly

fur!
Meanwhile, water started seeping into my undercoat as
well. When I felt that cold sensation on my skin, I let out a
cry, “Hyah!” like a human. Even though I had resistance to
the cold, I could still feel the cold.

My fur gradually grew heavier. It felt as though sticky mud

was clinging on to my body.

My legs started to tire out as well.

Dangerous…! I’m in danger now!

Appu! Appu!

I desperately gasped for air.

“Found them! There!”

――At that moment.

The knights I just passed by came.

“The animal in the pond is that baby fox? The one that
settled here recently?”

“So it was being chased by that wild dog.”

While saying that, one knight grabbed some snow,

hardened it and threw it at the dog. Other knights too
hurled snowballs as they approached the wild dog.

After whining a bit from getting hit by hard snowballs, the

wild dog eventually gave up.
Even as it sent a frustrated gaze at me, it ran the opposite
direction from the knight and jumped over the fence out of
the base.

However, I had no leisure to be relieved.

My fur absorbed so much water that it’s as heavy as lead!

I’m drowning, I’m drowning!

“Here, come here!”

A knight crouched down by the pond and called me over.

Because I also wanted to get back on land soon, I swam
there, but upon seeing the knight’s appearance, I
hesitated.

Scary, shaggy bearded man…..

“Come on! You’re going to fall in!”

Even that was in a low, gruff voice, that I felt as though I was
getting scolded.

This person, he’s scary!

The shout of an adult male made me flinch. My big ears

twitched. I don’t want to go there.

I swam towards the shore, but turned around because the

knight there was scary. I decided I’ll try somewhere else.

-BASHA BASHA-
I swam about while spraying water everywhere, aiming for
the opposite side.

However, there was also another knight there — a brutal

looking knight with a buzz cut.

“Here! Climb up here!”

I think I saw a criminal like this on the tv news in my

previous life…
In my arbitrary image, I imagined a knight to be ‘a dazzling
young man’, but most knights here were muscular, and had
scary faces. If they didn’t have their uniforms on, I don’t
think anyone would have noticed that they are knights.

These people, they’re good people — chasing away the wild

dog — but their appearances had too much impact.

“C’mon, quickly!”

Please don’t say that with those eyes. It’s scary! I hate low
and loud voices.

I tried to turn around again, but the five or six knights

surrounded the pond, that I didn’t climb up anywhere. Left
with no escape route, I circled about the centre of the
pond.

“Why isn’t it coming out?”

“It’s scared of your face.”

“Scared of your face, too!”

Stop fighting! You’re all scary! It’s more or less the same!

“Hey, I got a usable stick!”

Then another knight came. He had a long wooden stick in

his hand.

Then he prodded me with that.

“Okay, push!”

“Doing well!”

Pushing by the stick, I was being moved to the opposite

side of the pond.

――Where a brutal criminal awaited…

KYAH!!

I frantically paddled about. In panic, I tried to escape the

stick.

“Ah, no! Stay still! I’ll push you to the shore!”

I think I was panicking. I was chased into a cold pond by a

wild dog, and became agitated. Then, scary surrounded me
and pushed me with a stick.

Rationally thinking, I know that these knights are trying to

help me.

However, right now, I’m confused and I even have this

animalistic cautiousness. Even if my life was in danger, my
body refused to go into some unknown person’s arms.

I was desperate trying to avoid the stick and the knights.

I couldn’t even dog-paddle anymore. I merely floundered

my legs about and focused on staying afloat.

However, I swallowed water many times and choked

already. My throat hurt. I couldn’t breathe properly.

My legs are tired, my body is heavy, I think I’ll drown at any

moment.

MOTHER! MOTHER!

I wanted to cry, that I just let out pathetic voices.

It’s impossible now. The wet fur is too heavy. My legs were
still moving, but it did not float back up.

I slowly sank, my mouth and my nose submerging.

I can’t breathe. It’s painful.

My eyes, my head, my ears too sunk into the pond, that my

small body was fully submerged in water.

Ah, I’m drowni――!

*imouto*

The moment I felt death, someone grabbed my back and

pulled me up with great force.
Owch! My consciousness started coming back. Then,
someone’s hand grabbed my belly and lifted me out from
the water.

I breathed in oxygen and coughed out water. My legs had

become amazingly thin. It’s because the wet fur was
sticking on the legs.

Because they don’t have the usual fluffy fur, they don’t feel
like my legs.

The person who saves me walked out of the pond towards

the shore.

The rather deep pond soaked up to his chest.

Ah, to go into a snow-filled pond at night in the dead middle

of winter.

I’m a snow spirit, but a human might get a heart attack.

It’s a really dangerous act, just who is it that dived in to save

me?

To see the person who saved me, I raised my head.

Is it the bearded knight? Or is it the brutal criminal?

However, what the moonlight revealed was a horrible scar

on the left eye.

――The one-eyed knight.

He dived into the cold pond and saved me.

Even as I felt relieved to see him, I thought something rude.

‘This person is scary, too.’

Growing Attached.

Mmm… Hot…

Why is it so hot. It is winter, right?

Unpleasant. So very unpleasant.

I slowly opened my eyes with a frown.

Huh? Was I sleeping?

The moment I woke, I tensed up.

I was in what seemed to be an unfamiliar lounge. The room

was dyed in soft shades of orange due to the flickering
fireplace.

Being near that fireplace was probably why I was hot and
displeased.

However, it wasn’t why I was tense.

I had woken to find myself on the lap of someone sitting on

a sofa.

I was wrapped in a big towel and could only move my head

freely, but even without raising my head I could tell from
the scent. The person was a complete stranger.
At the very least, it wasn’t the one-eyed knight who saved
from the pond.

Through the towel, I could feel the stranger’s body heat. I

instinctively held my breath. I was scared because I didn’t
know who this was. I didn’t want them to realise that I had
awoken.
However, my nose itched. I couldn’t hold it in, and ended
up sneezing helplessly.

“…kushi!”

“Oh, are you awake?”

From above my head, I heard an unknown voice.

However, the voice wasn’t that of a man’s but the soft voice
of a woman’s instead. It was a little less scary. Come to
think of it, she smelled nice and sweet.

I looked up at her.

“Oh, oh gosh…! It’s staring! How cute! What should I do!”

The person who had me on her lap was a female knight in a

neat uniform. Her hair was the colour of milk tea and worn
in a long pony tail. Her face had both dignified beauty, as
well as the cuteness of a young girl.

It was my first time seeing a female knight here.

“Are you cold? We’re right next to the fireplace but you just
won’t warm up” she said as she rubbed my back in concern.

Although it was through the towel, my hairs stood on end

from the foreign touch. I wasn’t disgusted. I was just wary,
or tense.

As a human, I would have welcomed cute women, but my

foxy self didn’t seem to. The female knight looked kind, but
she was a stranger, so I couldn’t rest easy on her lap.
I had the impulse to jump off and run off into a corner, but I
didn’t have the guts to. Instead, I just turned to stone on
her lap.

The one-eyed knight should have been here.

I darted my eyes about and searched around the room, but

there was no one else in the room but me and the female
knight. I could smell the trace of the men who used this
room, but the few sofas were all empty.

My heart beat fast, and my wish that she would let me go

seemed to have been conveyed.

“Don’t be so scared. Your heart feels like it’s going to burst.

I’m not going to hurt you,” she said with worry.

I guess she could feel my heartbeat.

Her soft voice calmed me, and I could understand what she
was saying.

But, my instincts didn’t allow humans to approach so easily.

Unknown voice, unknown smell, unknown person, scary.

My instincts kept urging me to be wary, and my body kept

stiffening.

Moreover, I was bothered about the flame from the

fireplace. It was my first time seeing fire, but apparently it
didn’t bode well with me. Humans might have felt warmth
from this distance, but for me it was too hot.
She probably meant to warm my cold body, but I’d have
preferred diving back into that snow-filled pond. It’s hot!

I couldn’t bear it anymore, so I forced my way out and took

some distance from the fireplace.

“Ah…”

The female knight stared at me and looked at the towel I

shed in disappointment.

“Come here. Isn’t it cold over there?”

No, it’s not cold.

My body was still wet, but I don’t think a snow spirit would
catch a cold from this.

I shook my small body like a dog, letting in air to my fur

which was sunk.

However, because I was being covered in a towel, the fur

was still stuck to my body. My pride and joy, my fur…

Oh well, once it dried I was back to my usual fluffy fur.

“Come here.”

While I was crouching down and licking my front feet to do

my fur, the female knight stood up and approached.

Her footsteps were very light, maybe to avoid surprising

me, but her figure grew larger and larger, and I couldn’t
help but run away.
She wasn’t particularly tall, but for a baby fox like me all
humans were big.

I quickly ran away to a dark corner in the room. The female

knight looked shocked.

“Am I that scary?”

I felt sorry when I saw her face sink.

Sorry, sorry. I’m not scared of you, but I’m scared of

strangers.

When I leaned up against the wall, the female knight

stopped approaching.

“Right, it is a wild animal. Of course it would be afraid of

people.”

At distance, she crouched down, lowering her eye level.

“I’m not scary. I’m just going to touch you a bit~”

She beckoned me over.

However, seeing that I didn’t budge in the slightest, she

changed her plan.

“Hm, I’ll need some food to let her guard down,” she
murmured before standing up.

At the same moment, a heavy looking door opened and one

man came in.
He had short grey hair, and a long scar down his left eye.

When I realised the man was the one-eyed knight, I felt so

relieved that the tension left my body.

So much that I was surprised by it.

Though she was a beautiful woman, I was more anxious

than I thought at being alone in a room with a stranger.

The female knight turned around and talked to the one-

eyed knight with a crestfallen expression.

“Vice-Captain, it’s afraid of women as well. It was impossible

for me.”

“…I see. I thought it would be better than rough men, but it

looks like people’s sex doesn’t matter to wild animals.”

The two spoke while staring at me. I was wondering about

why I was with a stranger instead of the one-eyed knight
who saved me, but it seems that he was being considerate.

“I was planning on keeping her here until it could grow

independent, but it’s sad to see her shivering like that.
Maybe it might be better to let her out.”

“But what if she’s attacked by wild dogs again… Right, Vice-

Captain, you were giving food to her, weren’t you?
Wouldn’t she open up a bit to you then?”

“…No, not really. She just ate the food I gave her, but she
never opened up to me.”
The one-eyed knight said that without changing his
expression too much, but seemed a bit sad.
Indeed, I was attracted by the tasty food, and never
followed him for real.

However, it was different now.

I was confident that he wouldn’t hurt me now. Because the

one-eyed knight dived into a cold pond to save me.

To think, ‘Won’t he hurt me?’ to person who saved me

would be contradictory and strange.

From the beginning, he didn’t feel like a bad person, but

from this incident my trust for him rose greatly. My
animalistic guard towards him too was almost gone.

With a light ‘tatata’ footstep sound, I trotted towards the

one-eyed knight past the female knight.

I felt him flinch slightly, but I paid it no mind and put my

nose at this feet. It seems that he changed his clothes after
he went into the pond, since his trousers and his boots
were dry, and didn’t smell of water. I could only smell the
warm reassuring scent.

I wagged my tail unconsciously.

“…You said that it didn’t open up to you, but what’s this!

Vice-Captain, it’s unfair! I’m jealous!”

Behind me, I could hear the female knight’s angry voice.

“No… I think she just thinks that I’ll give her food…”

Even as he said that, he looked surprised to see me wag my

tail.

His voice was shaking. It was the first time I approached

him this closely when he didn’t have food or jerky on him.

He already helped me at the pond. Those rough hands

weren’t scary anymore. It wasn’t too hard after that first
contact.

The one-eyed knight’s big hands wouldn’t hurt me. Rather,

they would protect me.

I shook my tail which was half as fluffy as usual because it

was still wet. I raised my head and stared into his eyes. My
neck hurt.

The one-eyed knight stared at me absent-mindedly for a bit,

then started rummaging through his pockets as though he
thought up something.

Then he brought out a piece of jerky, then he held that out.

Because he crouched down, his face came closer.

“I see, you came because you could smell this.”

Though he was smiling, he looked a little disappointed

when he said that.

However, the jerky that was held out didn’t stimulate my

appetite. I wasn’t hungry now.
Rather, I was surprised that he thought it was because of
the food. I didn’t come because I was attracted by the jerky.

I just thought I would feel relaxed around him. Also, I

wanted to thank him.

Seeing me not go for the jerky, the one-eyed knight looked

puzzled. “What’s wrong? You like this, don’t you?”

He poked it at my nose to make me confirm the smell.

I know! I know it’s a tasty piece of jerky!

I ignored that jerky and stared at the one-eyed knight.

“Vice-Captain… she’s not attracted to the food. She’s grown

attached to you,” said the female knight from behind me.

Good, explain that well to this dense man.

“But, she wasn’t this this morning. Why would she suddenly
like me now?”

“She understands that you helped her. Isn’t she saying

thank you?”

Amazing! The female knight spoke for me so well!

‘Thank you for helping me back then,’ or so I wanted to

convey, so I licked his fingers.

Get across, my feelings! After licking his fingers intently, I

ended up licking my nose from habit.
Then, I looked up at the one-eyed knight.

For a moment, he looked astounded and was frozen in

place. He then brushed back his short hair and hid his hair.

But I saw. I saw his expression loosen up into a happy one.

It was a rare expression.

“How nice, I’m jealous,” the female knight suddenly said.

She didn’t seem like a bad person.

I think I can open up to her after some time. Let’s get to

know each other slowly. Please wait a bit more until my
instincts are no longer wary of you.

“It’s already late today. It doesn’t seem to be hungry, so we

should get her to sleep.”

Having regained his composure, the one-eyed knight said

that while looking at me. I was unconscious until just now
but I was still sleepy.

“It’s dangerous outside. Even though this is a base for

knights, there are still many dangers around. Like today,
there might be more wild dogs that came for food.”

Though he probably saw me as just a baby fox, not a spirit

that could understand human words, he stared straight at
me and said that. I was so happy about that, that my tail
wagged faster.

Seeing this, the two knights laughed.

“What is she so happy about?”

“Too cute. She shouldn’t wag her tail when she’s being told
that it’s dangerous.”

“Anyhow, I don’t think it would be good for a wild animal to

be raised by a human, but I have no plans to turn you into
wild dog food. Until you grow up, I’ll raise you.”

I was happy to hear his declaration.

The wild dogs were still scary. It was much better to be

protected and safe inside the buildings.

However, I think I could only stay for about ten more days.
Mother was coming back soon

I couldn’t stay here ‘until I grew up’.

I was happy that Mother was coming back, but it would be

sad to part from the one-eyed knight.

Then, at least until then, I’ll get spoiled by him and enjoy
the life here.

I thought that and wagged my tail wildly.

Since the one-eyed knight waved his hand in beckoning, I

parted with the female knight and followed him out of the
room.
Iron man.

My legs are short.

Even though I am moving almost as if I am running, it is
slow compared to the one-eyed knight striding through the
hallways.

I desperately moved my legs to not get separated from him.

Wait up!

Of course, he wouldn’t have heard my mental cry, but the

one-eyed knight turned around and looked at me.

Then, seemingly realising that I was far behind him and

desperately running, he stopped and waited for me, then
moved with slow steps.

Ah, what a relief.

Then, from time to time, he glanced back at me to check if I

was following him properly, but it looks like there’s some
other purpose as well.

He’s usually expressionless, but when he looks here his

expression loosens up.

Well, I am very cute in this world! Or so I thought

narcissistically, but it seems that he’s also happy that I am
following him.

From the fact that a baby fox was following him even
without a leash, his expression loosened.

After many intervals of him turning around, we arrived at a

door. It’s a simple, but sturdy wooden door like the ones I
saw in the hallways on the way here.

When the one-eyed knight opened the door, there was

somehow familiar room. It wasn’t that wide, and only had
the necessary furniture and lighting, along with few books
and a sword.

However, when I followed in after the one-eyed knight, I

noticed that the room smelled like him.

I see. So this is the one-eyed knight’s room. Because I

always looked into this room from the window, which is
opposite from the door, I didn’t realise that fact right away.

“Living inside might be uncomfortable, but sleep here

today. During daytime, I will let you out as much as
possible. I’ll also make you practice hunting so that you can
get food on your own.”

The one-eyed knight spoke to me softly.

Uu—, I don’t want to hunt. As if I can catch mice. Rather

than my reflexes, there’s the problem of a biological
detest… I don’t even want to bite it, nor less eat it!

As my ears and tail drooped, the one-eyed knight said,

“Wait a bit,” then exited the room.

Then, I sensed people’s presence outside.

I perked up my ears.

“Vice-Captain, how was the baby fox?”

“Still wary?”

“Rather, when did you tame it?”

“It’s unfair.”

“You left us behind.”

Soft whispering voices denounced the one-eyed knight.

Come to think of it I did feel that there were people

following me. So it wasn’t just a feeling.

It seems that the story of me getting attacked by the wild

dog spread quickly among the knights here. So like primary
school boys wanting to see the dog that sneaked into
school, they gathered here.

“You guys, it’s too loud.”

The one-eyed knight sighed dumbfoundedly.

“As I said, the baby fox is not used to people. I am taking

care of it, but don’t get too close. It will get scared.”

From that, I felt happy that the one-eyed knight was being
considerate for me. Maybe there weren’t people in the
hallways or in the corridors — though they were secretly
tailing us — because the one-eyed knight was being
considerate for me.

I was greeted by a kind female knight when I woke up.

Outside the room, the young knights complained for a bit,
but suddenly everyone started mumbling. The one-eyed
knight probably silenced them with his sharp glare. Shut up,
or so.

“…Oh, oops, it’s already this late! We have to return to our

rooms.”

“R-Right. Sorry we bothered you late in the evening, Vice-

Captain…!”

After some time passed in silence, a young knight

purposefully raised his voice in a somewhat scared tone.
Other knights anxiously followed suit.

The presences of people busily dispersed. He only has one

eye, but the one-eyed knight is amazing.

A while after that, the one-eyed knight did not come in

straight away, but went somewhere with soft footsteps.

To calm myself from the fear of being alone, I munched on

the bed legs. With my small fangs and my weak jaws, I could
only make shallow marks, I felt annoyed for some reason.

While I was playing around, the one-eyed knight came back.

Because my big ears caught his footsteps already, I
stopped biting the bed legs and sat down on the bed. In
addition, I even wagged my tail. I waited like a good kid~.

When he opened the doors and saw me, he smiled softly.

Wahaha, he got fooled so easily!

The one-eyed knight had a basket in his hand. He placed
that next to his bed and beckoned me over. What is it?
When I went over, there was a blanket over the basket.

Could this be my bed?

I kicked the floor and hopped into the basket. Because I

didn’t like that the basket was folded so squarely, I shook it
around.

It’s much fluffier and better when it’s a bit messed up like
this.

I did realise that the one-eyed knight was smiling bitterly,

but feeling very satisfied I rolled up my body on the
wrinkled blanket.

The basket, being made from natural materials, smelled of

plants.

The size wasn’t too big, and fit me. This somewhat tight
feeling made me very calm.

“Good night.”

As the one-eyed knight said, I closed my eyes.

I thought that he would of course go to sleep on his bed,

but he did not budge from his position. I was somewhat
bothered, but I still started falling asleep. As I was sinking
into a dream, something gently stroked my head.

The one-eyed knight’s hand?

Maybe it’s the first time he’s petting me.

Half asleep and half awake, I thought that. Though that’s

because I fled.

Maybe because I didn’t open my eyes in rejection, he

started stroking me a bit more confidently.

Over and over again so that he can enjoy my fur.

Hey…

I can’t sleep.

❄❄❄

The next day, I woke up first. I gaped my mouth and let out
a yawn.

Being a young fox, I fall asleep easily, but I wake up just as

easily. I stood up and climbed out of the basket. My white
fur was fully dry now. 20% dryness, 80% comfort, it was back
to the usual feeling.

Now this is more like my fur.

I turned my head to the bed next to me, and saw that the
one-eyed knight was still sleeping. Since he was sleeping
while looking over here, I could see his face as well.

Usually, the defenceless sleeping faces are cute or funny,

but the one-eyed knight was different.
The moment I saw his sleeping face, my hairs stood
straight.

The one-eyed knight was sleeping with a serious

expression, his mouth shut tight, and with a frown.

Really intimidating.

His eyes are closed, but it almost feels as though he’s

glaring at me.
If I was an assassin, I probably won’t be able to kill him. Is
he really sleeping? Or so I would get jittery. The moment
the knife was swung to take his life, he was indeed awake
and the one who was killed was the attacker. I could
imagine such a scene.

I collapsed on the floor — my waist gave out — and was

staring at his face, but suddenly he woke without any sign.

Then I noticed that he was staring at me with a frown on his

face.
Scary!

“Hyan…” or “Hin…”, an incomplete cry escaped my throat.

I-Is he angry? Did I do something wrong?

The one-eyed knight took his eye off me, slowly rose and
scratched his head.

His face was still scary. His eyes are too sharp.

Then, for a bit, he stared off into vacant space absent-

mindedly.
When he turned around towards me, the frown was gone.
His eyes weren’t sharp either, and he was looking at me
with a kind gaze.

“Ah, right, I made you sleep here. Morning.”

I let out a sigh in my head. It takes about 20 seconds for his

brain to come fully awake after he opens his eyes.

When he’s unconscious, he’s about 30% scarier. Tomorrow,

I’ll take greater care to not let my waist give out.

The one-eyed knight got off the bed and walked barefoot
on the cold floor. From above, a hand came down gently
and stroked my head.

For a moment, I shut my eyelids tightly. Seeing me like that,

the hand moved away slightly.

However, when I didn’t run away and looked at him again,

the warm hand softly stroked my head again. I dislike the
heat of the fire, but I don’t dislike the warmth of this hand.

Having stroked me enough, the one-eyed knight started

changing.

Panicking, I pretended to chew on the blanket inside the

basket. I didn’t see~, I didn’t see~.

After that, the one-eyed knight briefly left the room, maybe
to wash his face. He came back in soon and picked up the
sword. I wonder if he’s going out to train? Indeed, his
clothes were light for a knight going out to work. To train
his body even though he didn’t need to, how amazing.

“I’ll be back soon. I’ll give you food then.”

Picking up the sword, he went out. I would gladly stay

quietly in the room —— not, so just before the door closed
I sneaked out. Because I didn’t make a sound, the one-eyed
knight didn’t notice me.

After waiting for him to lock the door, I followed him

through the cold hallways.

It went well, but just after we headed out the one-eyed

knight suddenly turned around.

He looked down here and opened his eyes wide.

Why is it here? was what his expression was saying.

“When did you… you want to come along with me? It’s not
going to be fun though.”

It’s going to be more boring to wait inside, so I want to tag

along.

Thinking that, I wagged my tail once.

With a faint smile, the one-eyed knight let me follow.

❄❄❄

It was clear in the morning.

However, it was very cold.

Well, I didn’t feel the cold that much, but it probably was
painful for humans. If they breathed in the crisp dawn air,
their lungs might freeze. It’s a refreshing morning, but it
would be impossible to breath in deeply.

On the training grounds, the snow was still piled, and some
of the melted snow from yesterday had frozen up.

I’m saying this again, but I don’t feel that cold. I have my
fur, and I’m a spirit of snow.

And I’m saying this again, but it’s painful for humans. It’s
strange if isn’t cold for them…

The one-eyed knight started off with light stretches and ran
laps around the grounds. Then, suddenly, he took off his
shirt and started swinging his sword.

His body probably did get warm from running around, but…
not in this cold! It probably cooled off already.

…The one-eyed knight must be an iron man.

Female Knight Tina.

Tina is the only female knight at the Northern Fort.

To begin with, there aren’t many female knights, and this is

the frontier.

However, Tina was not demoted here, but volunteered to

come here.
She came out of the thought that if she can survive the
harsh life of the Northern Fort surrounded by snow, her
willpower will grow as well as her confidence as a knight.

In the knightly orders, women are scorned, but it would be

different if she survives the Northern Fort. Everyone will
acknowledge her.

That’s just how hard life here is.

Which is why Tina is about the only one who came here by
her own will.

Other people came here because they caused accidents at

the Capital or at other branches. “Go grow some
backbone!” Or so they were chased out to this place.

There is only Mother Nature around the fort, in winter

there’s the endless snow-clearing work to do, and one has
to survive the terrifying training of the ‘Iron Man Vice-
Captain’. Thus, some young knights even look grimly
resolute on their first day here.

*imouto*

After tidying herself, Tina slowly exited her room.

Though she is a female knight, it wasn’t as though a
separate building will be prepared for just one rookie
knight. Like the male knights, Tina too is assigned a room to
sleep in. However, while other young knights share a room
among two to four people, Tina uses hers alone.
Furthermore, the ‘Icy Branch Captain’ lives in the room next
door, and the ‘Iron Man Vice-Captain’ lives across her room.
It may be thanks to the the Branch Captain and the Vice-
Captain that Tina never felt danger to her person even as
she lived in a building full of men.

Tina suddenly looked at the door across from her room.

The room of the admired Vice-Captain Grail.

Grail did not come here because he was demoted like other
knights, but came here from the request of the Knight
Captain in the Capital to fix things up here. He has been the
Vice-Captain here for some years here.

There aren’t that many superiors that are this trustworthy,

Tina thought. The same went for the other knights as well.
Even though they feared him, they also respected him.

It was still early in the morning, but there was no presence

of anyone sleeping inside. It seems that the rumour that he
trains before the sun rises every day is true. Today, the
weather is clear but the temperature has dropped a lot.

Tina puffed out white breaths as she shivered.

To have breakfast at the dining hall, she locked her doors

and passed in front of the room of the ‘Icy Branch Captain’.
It seems that the Branch Captain also wakes up early, but
he isn’t training outside like the Vice-Captain. Maybe he’s
reading inside.

As for the Branch Captain…… Tina thought that she was the
only one who came here by her own will, but she recently
learned that it was not.

She didn’t hear it directly from him, but it seemed that

Branch Captain also volunteered for the Northern Fort.
Though Tina did not know the reason because she was not
that friendly with the Branch Captain.

❄❄❄

As Tina quietly proceeded through the hallways, a door

suddenly opened in front of her.

A blond knight who still had a boyishness came out. His

name was Kix, and he joined the knights in the same year as
Tina did — though he was two years her senior when it
comes to living here.

In this fort, there are only about eighty knights, so most

people know each other.

“Oh, it’s Tina. Morning.”

“Morning, Kix.”

She greeted the young man in front of her, even as she felt
that something was off at meeting him so early.

“What is it? You still have time to sleep. You woke up quite
early today.”

She doesn’t wake as early as Grail, but Tina also wakes up

quite early. Around thirty minutes afterwards, everyone
else wakes up and the quarters become noisy, so she
wakes up early to prepare.

However, Kix was weak in the mornings…… To Tina’s words,

Kix replied with a yawn.

“Night shift. I’m going to have food then sleep.”

“Ah, I see. Border patrol last night?”

“Right. Boring as always.”

One the main duties given to the knights of the Northern

Fort is border patrol. However, there wasn’t any recent war
with the neighbouring country, nor were there any illegal
immigrants.

It’s because there is a mountain range between this

country and the neighbouring country. With Mt. Snowlea as
the centre, the mountain range is hard to cross.

These mountains are snowy mountains with high altitude,

that there’s even snow in summer that people get lost or
die of cold. Long time ago, there may have been people
trying to sneak into the country, but they would have all lost
their lives before the knights at the fort found them.

Thus, border patrol duty is hard because one does not

need to do anything.

One of the other duties is the patrolling of the nearby

towns and villages. Not only do the knights just observe the
people’s lives, they hunt down stray beast that wandered
into villages and also help with clearing the snow.

Also, patrolling the foot of Mt. Snowlea is also an important

duty.

Having immense power, the spirit would be an attractive

target to greedy people.

There are people who come to Mt. Snowlea to pray to the

spirit, but there are also those who visit with wicked
intentions to make the spirit’s power their own.

Of course, even if someone did try, they would exhaust

themselves from the cold before they reach the top, but we
still can’t let our guard down.

Because the Snow Spirit Snowlea is a thankful spirit that

protects the country. Even the king himself ordered that we
knights should pay more attention to protecting Mt.
Snowlea than the borders.

Indeed, if a spirit is captured by an individual or by another

country, that in itself is a great loss to the country. There
aren’t many spirits that are cooperative to humans like
Snowlea.

For good or for bad, spirits are cold-hearted.

Fundamentally, they do not intervene in human affairs, but
Snowlea is different.

Tina has never seen the spirit, but according to the

rumours she is a breathtaking beauty.
It’s not just Tina wants meet such an existence that
transcended humanity. Her colleague knights also joke, “I
want to see for myself how beautiful she is.”

“If you’re going to the dining hall, let’s go together.”

To Tina’s words, Kix cheerfully said “Yes,” and nodded his

head.

*imouto*

When they arrived at the dining hall, there weren’t many

people. For Tina, it was the usual scenery, but Kix
murmured, “Looks easy to find a seat.”

Kix suddenly stopped and looked puzzled. Since Tina knew

that he had surprisingly good observation skills, she also
looked around.

Indeed, it is strange. Their colleague knights’ gazes were

pointed at one direction.

While they ate bread and soup, their facial muscles were all
loose.

“What the, how unpleasant.”

Kix bluntly exclaimed. Tina felt the same.

However, when she turned toward where their gazes

pointed at, she too understood.

“Ah! Yesterday… Mil-chan!”

At one end of the dining hall, Vice-Captain Grail was eating
after his morning training, but there was also white fur by
his feet.

On closer examination, that furball had proper ears and

tails. It was the baby fox.

Tina felt relaxed and comfortable. Just by seeing that lovely

animal, she was healed. She couldn’t possibly criticise the
other knights.

“Mil? …Aa, the rumoured baby fox? But why is it here? And
why is it following Vice-Captain?”

As she explained what happened last night — How it was

attacked by a wild dog, and how it came to be placed under
the protection of Vice-Captain, who had already been
feeding it — Tina approached Grail and the baby fox.

It seemed that the baby fox had just finished eating, since it
was dejectedly licking the empty dish. However, it became
alarmed by Tina’s approach and hid in the shade of Grail’s
long legs.

“Mil-chan, it’s me~ Remember me from yesterday?”

Tina made the kindest voice possible.

Then, the baby fox twitched its ears, and cautiously peaked
out from behind Grail’s legs.

From that, Tina almost got a nose bleed. The same probably
went for the other people in the dining hall.
How the baby fox was so naturally stepping on Grail’s boot
was irresistible. The baby fox had its attention focused
here, that it did not realise it either.

“You named it?”

Tina, who was breathing hard in front of the baby fox, came
to her senses from Grail’s cool words.

He had finished his meal and was looking here.

“G-Good morning, Vice-Captain! Sorry for making a fuss.”

“Good morning, Vice-Captain.”

Tina greeted him in panic, while Kix greeted him as usually.

“Ah! The name…… well, I just named it in my mind after I

saw it in the base.”

While she was breaking out in cold sweat, she gave an

excuse. It was not as though she was trying to be a
godmother.
Kix asked interestedly.

“Why Mil?”

“It’s embarrassing since it’s so simple…… because it’s white

like milk.”

When Tina explained while blushing,

“Come to think of it, I forgot to name it. It’s easy to

remember, so Mil is good, don’t you think? Right, Mil?”
Grail briskly gave an okay. The baby fox also wagged its tail
in approval. Though it might just have been their
imagination, its eyes looked to be gleaming, looking happy.

“Is it okay? The name I thought up…… I-I’m happy.”

“Anyway, Vice-Captain, you never told us that you were

feeding it. Why were feeding it in secret for. Unfair.”

“I just didn’t tell you because you never asked.”

“That kid is the idol of the Northern Fort, you’re

monopolising it. Unfair. Low.”

Kix’s good point is that he is friendly to anyone. That is also

his bad point.

When Vice-Captain said, “How about training after a night

shift,” he finally shut up. However, he did not seem
dejected. With an energetic voice, he called out to the baby
fox.

“Come here, Mil~!”

Seeing Kix approaching it without hesitation, the baby fox

hid behind Grail’s legs again.

“Stop. Don’t scare it.”

“Don’t raise your voice like that.”

Tina and Grail simultaneously warned Kix.

“Sorry…… but I still want to touch it. It looks so fluffy.”

Kix crouched down and stared at the baby fox with a boyish
expression.

Feeling that gaze, the baby fox curled up even more. It was
almost as though its heartbeats could be heard where Tina
was.

“It takes time to get close to Mil. She didn’t open up to me

yet either.”

When Tina said that a little sadly, the baby fox peeked out
and let out a cry -kyunkyun- as if she was making an excuse.

She didn’t know what the baby fox was trying to say. But
she knew that its cries are cute. That was a fact.

Then, Tina and others talked for some more time, but when
the baby fox started getting tense because there were
more people started coming into the dining hall, Grail stood
up.

“Now, I’ll get it… get Mil back to the room. It still doesn’t
seem used to having people around her.”

When Grail went to return the food trays, the baby fox
followed in panic. Maybe it was afraid if it wasn’t near Grail,
since it was moving its short legs desperately, which was
also lovely.

At the counter, the chef asked, “Was the food nice?” The
baby fox flinched a bit from the low voice, but she quickly
let about a cry,
“Kyun.”

“It’s as if it’s replying.”

“How does it know that it’s being talked to?”

Observing that, Tina and Kix gave their impressions. The

two of them were still here for breakfast, but Grail quickly
left after returning the trays and having a short
conversation with the chef.

The knights stared as they left the dining hall. Since they
knew the circumstances well unlike Kix, they were quietly
observing.

The baby fox became a source of joy for the Northern Fort
which did not have much in terms of entertainment. Tina
thought so as she saw the men whose expressions had
melted as they watched the baby fox.

In this land trapped by snow, it was always somehow

depressing, but it was different this winter.

Just from seeing the baby fox chase after Grail, everyone
softened. From seeing it move busily, the mood brightened.

However, seeing Grail only slow down not pick the baby fox
up even when he saw it chasing after him desperately, Tina
smiled wryly because it was so like Grail.

If it was me, I would have gladly hugged it, but that

wouldn’t help the baby fox, Tina thought.
Grail was being both strict and kind because he knew that it
had to return to nature some time.

“By the way, does the Branch Captain know?”

While seeing Grail and the baby fox off, Kix asked.

“Vice-Captain must have made a report, no? Even if he

didn’t, I think he would within the day.”

“I see. I want to see how ‘The Icy Branch Captain’ would

react when he sees that baby fox.”

Kix said with a grin.

The tragedy of the fox cub and the unmanageable clothes.

I was named.

The female knight Tina named me.

My name here is ‘Mil’. It’s Mil from Milk, but coincidentally it

was the same as my real name Milfiria.

Since I’m not able to talk yet, I couldn’t introduce myself, so

I was happy that I was called by the name Mother gave me,
even if was a coincidence.

I was glad that I wasn’t getting called ‘Shiro’ because I’m

white, or ‘Chibi’ because I’m small, or something simplistic
like that.

Well, Mil from Milk is pretty simple too.

But still, getting called Chibi but growing big is a bit
awkward, you know?

*imouto*

Anyhow, I safely escaped from the crowded dining hall and

was following the one-eyed knight through the hallways
with quick footsteps.

When I encountered someone on the narrow aisle, I hid

myself as much as possible behind the one-eyed knight’s
legs. Meeting strangers is nerve-wracking.

I wasn’t like this in my previous life, but I am afraid of

strangers in this life. Maybe it’s because I only saw Mother
since I was born.

The one-eyed knight was saluted by everyone passing by.

Maybe he has a high position. Also, he was called ‘Vice-
Captain’.

Come to think of it, I still don’t know his name.

We returned to his room. The one-eyed knight took his

shirt off, and was preparing for work.

Will he take me along? Or am I to stay here?

While thinking that, I silently observed the one-eyed

knights actions. It’s not going to be fun staying here, so if
possible I want to accompany him.

“I’ll come back once, at noon.”

I looked at him with expectant eyes, but it was in vain. The
one-eyed knight said that, looking down here while
preparing for work.

House-sitting, huh…

My ears and my tail visibly drooped.

“I’m going out patrolling this morning with my

subordinates. You can’t ride a horse.”

The one-eyed knight smiled slightly.

I can ride a horse. If you life me up, I’ll balance myself. Also,
I’m quite friendly with the horses at the stables.

However, I do realise that I might bother him if I’m there. I’ll

behave well.

I gave up and headed to my bed, the basket with a blanket.

Then, the one-eyed knight hastily came over here.

“I’ll be back by noon.”

He said that and patted my head.

I heard that already.

After that, he patted me for about five more minutes, then

headed to work with slightly sad looking eyes.

“I’ll be back by noon.”

I know, I know. It’s the third time I’m hearing it.

I’ll be a good kid until noon.

*imouto*

The moment the one-eyed knight left the room, I climbed

into bed. What a lovely body not related in any way to
insomnia.

However, I did sleep well yesterday, so I couldn’t sleep until

noon.

I woke up about an hour later — though this is just a guess

since there weren’t any clocks — and rolled around on the
blanket or chewed on the basket handles. However…

I’m bored.

I’m bored to death!

If I at least had a toy. In the one-eyed knight’s room, there

wasn’t anything like a toy.

I climbed out of bed and stared out the window. However, I

could only see the sky. It’s because the window is placed
quite high.

In the morning, it was clear, but now thick clouds covered

the sky and pouring snow down. Big and wide ones.

Flutter, flap flap, flutter.

When I stared at the snow, my tail started wagging on its
own. I could find a pattern to the wagging. Watching snow
fall makes me excited. Though I don’t feel that when rain
falls making a *saa* sound.

I joyfully looked out the window for a bit, but ultimately got
tired of doing that so next I looked around the room.

I wanted to play around so I climbed onto the one-eyed

knight’s big bed. It’s soft and fluffy so it’s fun. However, the
bed was full of the one-eyed knight’s smell, and that was a
bit embarrassing so I hurriedly came down. What am I
doing.

The next target is the table by the window. I could see

documents, a feather pen and an ink bottle on top of the
table. There were also some old, thick books.

Come to think of it, I wonder if I can read the letters of this

country?

I got interested, so I first tried to climb the chair. Since I

don’t yet have the jumping power to climb directly onto the
table.

I first put my paws on the chair and hopped many times,

trying to get up.

But it wasn’t going very well. My hind legs, do your best!

Let’s get up now! I jumped with all my strength. At the

same time, I supported my weight with my forelegs.
The upper half of my body made it up, but the lower half
was still hanging midair. I rapidly fluttered my legs midair to
climb up with the momentum.

If I become careless, I’ll fall right away.

Uooh, to your best, my forelegs! Lift up the lower half!

When I somehow managed to climb up the chair, I felt a

sense of accomplishment. My forelegs trembled.

Thankfully, climbing onto the table from the chair was

easier since the height difference wasn’t that much.

The scenery from the top of the table was somewhat fresh.
Looking from a high ground made me excited.

Now then… I thought and headed to the books. I tried to

read the letters on the covers, but I couldn’t. It’s as if
someone took the latin alphabet and made it more
complicated. I don’t remember seeing this in my previous
life either.

So I need to study properly. What was that… I was

wondering if I can read it with the spirit’s power — going -
paa- — or something, but it’s impossible, I see.

Indeed, it wasn’t as though I understood the spoken

language either. I practiced from listening to Mother, or so
should I say. However, I do think that my learning ability
was better than human babies. I’m not sure if it’s because
I’m a spirit or if it’s because I have knowledge from my
previous life.
I opened the book on top skilfully with my nose. The smell
of paper wet with ink spread.

I traced the letters with my eyes. Yup, I don’t know!

When I grow older, I’ll learn from Mother.

I gave up on reading and turned around on the small table.

To go back down on the chair, and onto the floor.

However, when I turned around, my front foot collided with

something small and hard. The thing kicked by me was a
bottle of ink that wasn’t closed properly.

Needless to say, ink is liquid. It’s not very viscous either. So

the moment I knocked it over, the ink started spreading
over the table. I couldn’t stop it.

Also, ink is black. There’s nothing blacker that it.

I merely stared at the black thing spill over important

documents.

I heard that people actually become calm in emergencies.

While watching the black ink seep into the white paper and
the wooden table, I only calmly watched and thought, “Ah,
what should I do…” My brain wasn’t admitting the fact that
ink was spilled.

After the ink arrived near the books, my brain finally started
working. I pushed the books with my nose to put it far away
from the menace of ink.
However, I pushed too much and they fell off the table.

-basabasabasa- With impressive sounds, the books fell on

the floor. My brain stopped working again.

It’s okay, it’s okay.

I consoled myself and cautiously peeked down below from

the table. There, I saw the the horrible corpses of the books
that were forced to perform death leaps. Ah…

For now, I came down as well. I can’t do anything about the

ink that was already spilled on the table. It can’t be saved.

However, reorganising the scattered books would be

possible for me, with my front feet that have paws.

With the tip of my nose, with my mouth and front feet, I

organised the books on the floor. I also properly closed the
books that flipped open when they fell on the floor.

While working I noticed something.

The books were soiled with ink.

Strange. I did drop them from the table, but I thought I

saved them from the black menace.

But I soon found out the ugly cause of this tragedy.

Could my front paws… be dyed black with ink…

Stupidly enough, it seems that I failed to realise that my feet

were soaked in ink.
I swallowed hard. My heart beat fast.

It’s okay, it’s okay.

Even as I trembled nervously, I looked around the room.

The floor, the chair, wherever I walked, black paw prints

dirtied the room.

On the table, the ink was dripping down from the table on
the floor, making its mark.

This is… Well…

Calm down, calm down.

I have to make up for it, let’s run my little brain on full

power.

It doesn’t seem like something so convenient like tissues

exist in this world. There isn’t even a rag in the room. Even
if there was one, I won’t be able to handle it well with my
hands, and I won’t be able to wipe away all the ink.

It will merely continue to spread.

“…”

Cold sweat formed on my paws.

W-W-W-What should I do!!

At this rate, the one-eyed knight will become angry. I have

to clean this up before he comes back!
I anxiously walked back and forth on the spot.

However, I saw that the floor was getting dirtier from that,
so I hurriedly stopped moving. It’s better to not move
rashly. My legs are currently cursed by ink. Let’s not spread
the damage.

Ink spilling from the table, documents dyed in black, traces

of black pawprints on the chair, the floor and the scattered
books…

From this devastating scene, I just wanted to cover my eyes.

The icy Branch Captain.

Having returned to the fort from patrolling, Grail took off

his coat and gloves that got wet from the snow and moved
to his quarter.

He did move the swords and the spare blades elsewhere,

but he was still worried if Mil was well without any injuries.
That baby fox is not yet used to living indoors.

‘I didn’t leave anyone there since I thought she was shy, but
maybe I should have asked someone that was off duty.’

While moving, he went over if he left anything dangerous in

the room. To begin with, he didn’t have any needless
furniture or luggage, and he even cleaned the floor. He
didn’t want those soft paws to get scratched, so he didn’t
miss a single splinter on the wooden floor.

He spotted his room door, so he took out the key from his
pocket and put it into the keyhole with experienced
movements. He was impatient, but because Mil might have
been sleeping inside, he opened the door gently.

“Mil?”

He naturally began with looking towards the baby fox’s

bed, the basket with the blanket. However, the basket was
empty, and after Grail looked around the room he froze up.

He could only see one colour. Black, black, black.

…What is this.

There is a table in the inside of the room, and on that was a

fallen ink bottle. The ink was dying the half-written
documents and the table, black. The ink dripping from the
table was also dirtying the chair and the floor, turning
Grail’s room into a desolate state.

Just what happened in my room. He thought that it might

be a thief, that his face distorted into a scary expression.
However, from the culprit’s small black tracks all over the
room, it didn’t take long to identify who the culprit was.

Grail sighed and laughed a little. He was worried, but he felt

relieved after he found out the culprit’s identity. The books
that were placed on the table when he was writing
documents were also neatly organised on the floor with
pawprints on them. Might this also be the doing of Mil? Just
what was she trying to do?

“Mil?”
Grail looked around his room again. In this bland room,
there isn’t much of a hiding place. The black pawprints also
betrayed the culprit’s location. Grail looked under his bed
without hesitation.

“…”

The white baby fox was there.

Under the bed, at the furthest corner in the dark.

“Mil.”

When Grail called her, Mil twitched here and stared here.
She was properly looking at Grail. However, she did not look
at his eyes.

She had guilty face, while she hid the ink-stained front feet
under her body. Was she trying to hide the evidence?

When he stared under the bed for a while, Mil carefully

turned her gaze towards him while hanging her head down.
However, when their eyes met, she immediately turned her
gaze. She stared somewhere else with a strained
expression.

She was hiding her dirty feet, and was holing up under the
bed, trying to not meet Grail’s gaze. Those attitudes
showed that she was the culprit.

First, it shows on the face.

If she wasn’t related, she wouldn’t make such a grim
expression.

She’s emitting an aura as if it was ‘the end of the world’.

Grail could not hold it in and laughed.

“It’s okay. I’m not angry.”

When he said it in the softest voice possible, light of hope

returned to Mil’s eyes in the dark under the bed. To check
that, she stared up while trembling.

“It was my fault for not closing the lid on the ink bottle.”

If the lid was shut tightly, a baby fox wouldn’t have been
able to open it. Not with those clumsy paws.

He did not check the objects on top of the table because he

thought that it would not be possible to climb.

“So now, come out.”

Grail stretched his arm under the bed. He grabbed Mil, who
was still hiding her front feet, by her nape and dragged her
out. Mil was not coming out on her own, but she didn’t
resist either.

“Ah, they really are black. Plus, all four of them.”

He laughed upon seeing her feet. Why was it that he did not
feel angry or dumbfounded when she dirtied the room so
much?
He patted Mil, who was making an expression strangely like
a human’s.

“It doesn’t look like you have any wounds. Let’s wash off
the ink now.”

When he spoke kindly, Mil, who was making a grim

expression without saying a thing, suddenly cried
*kyunkyun* and clung to Grail’s feet. If it were to be
translated, it would be “Wa~n, I’m sorryyy!” maybe. She was
like a child pouring out tears because it felt relieved.

She cried as if she were begging for forgiveness, leaping

with her hind legs and scratching Grail’s trousers with her
forelegs. That action was so lovely and it would have been a
waste to stop it in the middle, so Grail gladly sacrificed his
trousers. The ink on Mil’s front feet were not dry yet.

❄❄❄

Ah… I’m sorry.

I’m really sorry.

I was prepared to receive a scolding and be driven out of

the fort, but the one-eyed knight was a kind man. Even
though I soiled the room with ink, he didn’t scold me,
saying that it was his fault for not closing the ink lid. I even
increased the damage when I was apologising before,
dirtying his trousers, but he smiled softly as if he didn’t
care. How tolerant!
Furthermore, he’s doing his best to wipe the ink off my feet,
Even as he’s saying, “This isn’t coming off well.” He’s sitting
cross-legged and is wiping off the ink from my feet with a
wet cloth. From washing my feet in a bucket of lukewarm
water, most of the ink came off, but my feet were still grey-
coloured.

He was touching my sensitive belly, but I had no right to

complain. The only right I was allowed now was for me to
reflect and be thankful.

Thank you so much, and I’m really sorry. I wanted to convey

that, so I persistently licked the one-eyed knight’s hand.
When I did that, he said, “Alright alright,” and swiftly took
his hand away. How unfortunate.

In the end, my four legs had light grey socks. The one-eyed
knight said, “They will come off when you run around in the
snow.” I hope so. If they don’t get erased, the evidence of
my failure will remain for eternity.

After that, the one-eyed knight started cleaning his room.

The books weren’t dirtied that much, and he read a lot so
he said that it’s okay. That’s a relief, but I’m still sorry.

The stain on the floor or the chair weren’t completely

erased, but he said that he’ll just keep using them. I’m
sorry.

As for the table, the ink seeped in deeply, and it was old to
being with, so he said that he’ll get rid of it. “I was planning
on replacing it, so this is a good time,” he said, but I’m
sorry.

Then the important-looking documents are all scrapped.

I’m sorry!

“I can always write the documents again.”

The one-eyed knight is so kind that it hurts.

While he’s cleaning, I couldn’t help because I was a fox, just

standing behind him quietly. To not get in his way, I just
stayed still and quiet with a distressed expression, watching
him work.

“…”

In front of me, the one-eyed knight was cleaning up the

mess I made while I couldn’t do anything. However, he did
not hate this useless me, but rather he sometimes looked
over here and smiled.

I wonder why?

*imouto*

After he finished cleaning my feet and his room, he

squeezed out the water into a bucket full of dirty water and
stretched his neck. It must have been tiring. I increased his
workload. I couldn’t help but feel overly self-conscious.

“The lunch break’s almost over.”

“…!”
S-Sorry, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I made you clean in your
precious break time.

I circled around the one-eyed knight.

However, the one-eyed knight did not seem to care a bit

about wasting the break time. He picked up the bucket,
looked down at me with a benign expression and said
something jokingly.

“Now, we’ll go greet the Branch Captain. He’s the highest

ranked person in this fort, so don’t bite him.”

…Mn? Mr Branch Captain?

*imouto*

After putting away the bucket, the one-eyed knight and I

went to the Branch Captain. I put all my effort into climbing
the steps, and proceeded down the quiet hallway. Here, the
atmosphere feels somewhat different. Unlike the rowdy
dining hall or the comfortable quarters, I could feel the air
getting tense here. I straightened my back and stuck close
to the one-eyed knight.

Branch ‘Captain’, he said, so is he higher ranked than the

one-eyed knight, the ‘Vice’-Captain? Before, he said “the
highest ranked person in this fort”.

Just front thinking about meeting him, my steps became

wonky from nervousness. I have four feet, so I’m confused
about which one I have to move first…
If the Branch Captain does not give me permission, I
wonder if I can’t stay here.

If he’s the one-eyed knight’s superior, I wonder if he’s

older and stronger and tougher.

In my head, I imagined a large and strong man like a bear.

It’s the man in charge of this fort in this harsh environment,
after all. He’ll need to be someone like that to be here.

We stopped in front of a large wooden door. Maybe it’s the

office of the Branch Captain. Then, the one-eyed knight
suddenly knocked without a sign. Wait, I’m not ready for
this yet…! I tried to fix my hair fringe, but I realised that I did
not have hair.

While I was just realising such a trivial thing, an answer

came from inside and the one-eyed knight opened the
door.

I gathered up courage to face the bear in power and

entered the wide room. Though I hid under the one-eyed
knight’s legs.

I felt a sense of disharmony the moment I entered, from

the smell. I do understand that the smell of burning wood
from the stove would be strong, but there was also the
clean smell of soap. In this fort full of men, only Tina has
that kind of smell. What is this refreshing smell.

The room did not have anything unusual. There were

bookshelves and filing cabinets by the wall, a classy low
table in the middle along with a black sofa that went well
with that, and an office desk by the window. Also, the floor
was carpeted and soft, good for my paws.

“Thank you for the work today, Branch Captain.”

The one-eyed knight greeted the Branch Captain while

standing at the entrance. His voice was lower, more polite
and calmer than when he speaks to me. From that, I also
looked toward the desk. The moment I saw the Branch
Captain, the image of a bearish old man received a punch
and disappeared. The Branch Captain was the opposite of
my imagination.

The person sitting on the desk was a handsome man that

deep black hair that reached down to his shoulders. In his
small face, his long eyes, his handsome eyebrows, his thin
nose and lips were arranged perfectly. He didn’t have the
breathtaking beauty of Mother, but he had a gender
neutral beauty to him.
And he was younger than expected. He looked like he was a
little younger than the one-eyed knight even.

Compared to the rough knights in the fort, he was much

thinner and much more elegant. However, he seemed to
haven been training, as he did not have a soft feeling to
mistake him as a girl.
He gave an impression that he is a strict and cold superior.

“Today, I am here to talk about the baby fox I mentioned

sometime ago. May I have permission to protect her in the
fort? I brought the fox in question over as well.”

“…What?”

Upon hearing the one-eyed knight’s words, Mr Branch

Captain lifted an eyebrow. He doesn’t seem to like me
coming that much.

Mr Branch Captain slowly turned his gaze to me, who was

hiding under the one-eyed knight’s legs.

It was as if I was being pierced by those pitch black eyes,

that my heart pounded like crazy from nervousness.

However, I have confidence in my looks. To be frank, I am a

bit cute.

…Yes, I’m sorry.

Still! Seeing this fluffy white me, no one would think, ‘Uwaa,
how ugly,’ or ‘biologically impossible’. Though Mr Branch
Captain may be a cold person, I don’t think he’ll say “I won’t
give permission. Throw it out,” to this poor little fox.

I am a poor baby fox. Mother went to the Capital, so I have

nowhere to go to. I am careless and pour ink all over the
place (mental scar), but I am a good kid. I get excited over
fresh snow and lose myself, but I fundamentally am a good
kid. Please let me stay!
I pleaded Mr Branch Captain with my eyes while thinking
that.

When his gaze met mine, he sharply raised his eyes for a
blink. I’m not exaggerating, just for a blink. In those eyes,
there were other emotions than coldness, but I couldn’t
read what they were.

His reaction afterwards was what was important for me.

Mr Branch Captain closed his eyes, frowned greatly,

clenched his teeth and grimaced.

Eh? I was scowled at…? Was it biologically impossible?

However, that expression lasted only for a moment, and

returned to a calm expression. As if nothing happened — as
if he did not see me — he turned to the one-eyed knight.

“That?”

Icy cold voice. ‘That’ must mean me.

Oh no, he might hate me. I looked up at the one-eyed

knight out of anxiety, but his expression was as usual…

“Yes, isn’t it cute?”

He lips curled into a smile slightly as he said that softly. How

is he being so carefree in front of this icy Branch Captain?

Mr Branch Captain ignored that and delivered his decision

in a composed tone.
“…It’s not bad to interact with animals. It can help with
restoring vigour to my subordinates who are tired from the
harsh life and work here. However, if discipline falls from
that, and there are troubles with work or missions, it needs
to be reconsidered. That is all.”

He said that in a businesslike manner, but he did not deny

my existence. Rather, it was a normal and rational opinion.
From that reaction when he saw me, I thought he was
going to say, “What do you mean protection, get that beast
away!”

Moreover, from what he just said, I also understood that he

was thinking of his subordinates properly.

How unexpected.

“Then, will you give permission for protection?”

“If you, Grail, will take care of the baby fox, I will not
interfere.”

“There won’t be a problem. Thank you.”

It seems like permission was given. It seems like Mr Branch

Captain doesn’t like me very much, but I didn’t dislike him.

I felt that he was a person that could make fair judgements

as the person in charge of this fort.

“Then, please excuse me.”

“…Yeah.”
I chased after the one-eyed knight into the hallway. It would
be scary to be glared at again, so I did not look back.

It was good that permission was given, but I think I have to

change the impression I have on myself. Would there really
be someone who dislikes a little frail baby fox? What had I
been thinking. How self-conscious.

There are people that dislike animals, and there are also
people indifferent to animals. The one-eyed knight is kind,
Tina keeps saying ‘cute’, and the other knights did not
dislike me either, so I ended up getting a little too full of my
self. I must reflect.

‘I might be a healing kind…’ I feel embarrassed for thinking

that for even a moment. Very embarrassing. I want to hit
myself. What do you mean, healing kind, you furball!

Yes. I’m just a furball. I do have knowledge from my

previous life, but I’m not using it, and I don’t even have
special powers as a spirit. I can’t earn money, I can’t hunt, I
don’t have the strength protect someone, I don’t know
anything, I spill ink (mental scar)…

Huh? I’m more helpless than I thought I was.

Expanding friendship.

Free time in the lounge.

Mr. Branch Captain’s secret face.

Cromwell.

Unrest.

Blizzard.
Snow spirit.

Parting.

At the northern fort

Proof of Trust.

Child of flame.

Father.

Lots of guardians.

Snowball fight.

Winter.

Summer.

ty for help cleaning one of the pictures, soli!