Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: She Was Definitely a Fox
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"...It's nothing."
No matter how troubling the issue, there are things you can confide in others about and things you can't.
Unfortunately, my worries fell into the latter category. So all I could do was force a smile.
Thankfully, Claire didn't seem intent on prying deeper. She lost interest in me and shifted the topic.
"By the way, what on earth is that guy's deal?"
"...You mean Cadet Yuha?"
"Exactly! Even setting aside his behavior, with Professor Gloria and that fox beastkin named Mimi sticking so close to him, there has to be something going on."
The fox beastkin named Mimi, who had joined as a janitor with no fewer than seven tails. She must have been talking about her.
Her first impression had certainly been explosive. Everyone around had been stunned when she'd come charging in at incredible speed from afar and thrown herself into Yuha's arms.
Beastkin. Janitor uniform. Speed even Academy cadets couldn't track with their eyes. Calling out "Master" while leaping into his embrace. And that bizarre speech pattern with "nya" tacked on at the ends.
Every single detail was off the charts.
And on top of that, there was one uncomfortable truth that others might not know, but I did.
"Professor Gloria is the one who cleared the 50th floor solo, so that's no surprise. And that Mimi woman is clearly no ordinary person either... But why is she working as a janitor? Wait, before that—why a slave...? Ugh..."
Claire pinched the bridge of her nose, feigning a headache. The expression looked strangely familiar. If I looked in a mirror, I'd probably see myself scowling and sighing just like her.
It was a bit disheartening.
"Haa... No point overthinking it without solid info anyway."
"Yeah, true."
"Pfft. What if you looked closer and found out Lili isn't just some ordinary slave either?"
"Hahaha."
It was probably meant as a joke to lighten the mood, but I ended up laughing more out of sheer absurdity than amusement.
After all, in that group, the least ordinary one was probably Liliss.
Claire looked quietly pleased, like her humor had landed perfectly.
I wondered if the day would ever come when she'd figure out the full truth. Imagining her face when she did was kind of entertaining.
'Speaking of which, that beastkin Mimi... She's gotta be the Beast, right?'
A white-haired, red-eyed beastkin with multiple tails—according to what I knew, no one fit that description except the Beast.
There was one internet rumor floating around about fox beastkin, but since no one had ever proven it, I could dismiss that.
So, assuming she was the Beast for now...
Thinking of that half-mad figure, always radiating wild charisma, now going "nya nya" made it hard to breathe.
Especially unlocking her appearance conditions and seeing her in the Beast storyline finale, leading the eastern beastkin in a declaration of war against humanity—that was pure final boss material.
For that Beast to come bounding up like an overexcited puppy with a weird speech pattern, nuzzling into Yuha's arms every time she saw him...
Even Liliss sitting primly on Yuha's lap seemed tame by comparison.
If I chalked it up to being smitten, it wasn't impossible to accept.
Why she was smitten? Hell if I knew.
"It's not just that... But doing such shameless displays of affection right in the middle of the hallway is a problem, don't you think?"
Ah... She meant that sudden kiss. Yeah, they really needed to tone that down. Seeing it all the time would give anyone heart trouble.
"I think Professor Gloria should warn him about that kind of indecent behavior, not just tutor him in class."
"It was pretty intense today too."
"She must have some issue with his conduct if she's training him that harshly, so why doesn't she put a stop to it?"
Claire scrunched up her face like she genuinely couldn't comprehend it.
But personally, I suspected Professor Gloria had no real complaints about Yuha's antics.
Last time, I'd accidentally witnessed her carefully taking his hand, bowing her head deeply, and blushing.
'And if that fox beastkin is the Beast, then Professor Gloria might be the Sword Saint.'
The Beast and Sword Saint, presumed dead or gravely injured. If the Beast was fine, that meant the Sword Saint likely was too—which pointed to Professor Gloria being a strong candidate.
Both showing up at the Academy together out of nowhere, and the Beast being Yuha's slave to boot.
With Liliss as a slave too, I couldn't help but entertain the worst-case scenario. Professor Gloria as the Sword Saint—and her as Yuha's slave too.
The thought made me want to punch the air.
The Vampire Queen, Blood Sword Saint, and Beast all in one place? All slaves to a single man?
If this were a game, Jeras Pairan was certain he'd have hit Alt + F4 right then.
At that point, the sealed Demon God would be a sideshow, and Yuha the true black curtain of this world.
Envisioning a grim future under that premise, Jeras genuinely wanted to drop out.
"Come to think of it, are you planning to join the swordsmanship club too, Cadet Claire?"
I tried changing the subject because I didn't want to talk about them anymore.
Claire seemed to pick up on it and dropped the Yuha topic.
Or she would have.
If something hadn't come charging down the hallway around the corner ahead at breakneck speed.
"Iyaaah! Mimi-style Secret Technique! Tail Clean!"
"Wha—?!"
As we reached the end of the right-turning corridor, a white-haired, red-eyed fox beastkin burst out.
For some reason, she was furiously wagging all seven tails, using them to scrub the entire hallway as she barreled toward us.
Caught off guard by Mimi—presumed to be the Beast—Claire, who had been slightly ahead, backstepped hastily to dodge.
Her foot tangled a bit, and she started to stumble, so I steadied her by placing a hand on her lower back.
"Th-thank you."
"No problem."
Even without warning, Claire shouldn't have tripped that easily. Was she lost in thought or something?
"Oh? You okay-nya?! Mimi should've been more careful, sorry-nya!"
Her apology came with such a bright, sunny smile that it felt a tad suspicious, leaving Claire with a complicated expression.
Claire stared at the top of Mimi's head in silence for a moment before letting out a soft sigh.
"Please be more careful next time, Mimi."
"Got it-nya!"
The instant Claire finished speaking, Mimi snapped upright, looking utterly convinced she'd been forgiven.
"So, what had you running around like that?"
"Huh? Mimi was cleaning-nya!"
"Clean...ing?"
Claire eyed Mimi at the word "cleaning." But Mimi held no cleaning tools whatsoever.
"You're not holding anything?"
"Mimi used this-nya."
Mimi twisted her waist slightly, swishing her seven tails at us proudly.
I vaguely recalled hearing "tail clean" earlier. That was what she meant?!
"With your... tails?"
"Mimi-style Secret Technique-nya!"
"Won't that make your tails dirty even if the hallway gets clean?"
I nodded vigorously in agreement with Claire.
"That's when Mimi uses this-nya!"
She suddenly plunged a hand into her cleavage and pulled out a wide, flat paddle-like object. I whipped my head away on reflex.
And of course, I turned right toward Claire.
Claire's eyes went wide, then she shot me a wordless glare that screamed look down.
I'd averted my eyes, so that look felt a bit unfair.
"What's that... A Clean Artifact?"
"Yup! Ria bought one for Mimi-nya! So Mimi can always keep clean and get pets from Master anytime, anywhere-nya!"
"I... see."
...Why not just not use her tails for cleaning? Even if it was a convenience artifact, using it like that seemed wasteful.
But to her, it clearly wasn't. Pride oozed from her voice.
Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, she pressed a finger to her lips and spoke in a subtly sultry tone. I swallowed hard without meaning to.
"But... sometimes Mimi gets dirty on purpose-nya. Then Master bathes Mimi..."
Her speech was like a cat's.
Her actions were like a puppy's.
But she was definitely a fox.