Fox Ambush!
“Wahahaha!!”
I hopped and bounced across the tops of the clouds, gathering them up with all my might. The reason I was collecting clouds was simple: I was going to make cloud bread. Castella? Casutiti? Whatever that bread was called, it had been ridiculously soft and fluffy—just like a cloud—so the ingredients had to be clouds. That much was obvious.
For the record, the way I got all the way up here was by riding Boss, who had grown a pair of wings.
…Huh?
Did Boss always have wings?
Eh, whatever!
I flopped down on the cloud beside Boss, yawning contentedly while the warm sunlight washed over us. The soft, springy feel beneath me really sold the illusion that I was lying on an actual cloud, so I took a deep sniff of the cloud scent.
…?
Sniff sniff.
Why did this cloud smell like Yerin?
Thud—
“…!”
At the strange noise I scrambled upright and spun around—only to find Yerin, now a giant of impossible size, staring straight down at me.
“Yerin?!”
“Naru.”
“You’re huge!! I want to get big too!!”
“No. If you get big, you’ll be hungry.”
“Hungry?”
Being the kind and generous fox that I am, I immediately decided to share some of my carefully gathered clouds. But giant Yerin simply reached out one enormous hand, closed her fingers around me, and lifted me into the air.
“Kyeng?”
“Naru looks delicious.”
“!!!”
I thrashed in pure shock, but there was no escaping her grip. Trembling all over, I tried to talk my way out of being eaten.
“I… I’m a fox that tastes terrible…”
“What are you talking about?”
Yerin answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Naru’s soft and squishy just like cloud bread, so you’ll definitely be delicious.”
“Kyaaeng?!”
I jerked my eyes open—and found myself lying alone in a dark place.
“Grrrr!”
Instinct took over. I dove into the nearest hole-shaped opening, hid myself completely, and scanned the surroundings while staying on high alert.
“Boss, you there?”
I had definitely flown up to the clouds with Boss. So why was I here?
Sniff sniff.
Yerin’s scent was everywhere.
“Huk—no way!!”
Giant Yerin must have eaten me. I was clearly inside her stomach right now.
“Kugh, how dare she!!”
Terrified and furious at having been swallowed, I punched her soft belly as hard as I could. Pack, pack! But the squishy stomach simply bounced my fists right back without a care. Still, in the darkness my carefully hidden hunting instinct began to stir, and I could feel my combat power rising.
I would make her regret ever swallowing me!!
“Grrrr!”
I decided on the spot to bite my way free and started chewing with everything I had.
“Duth it hurth? Thith ith the punithment for eating thith body!!”
Suddenly—
“Naru, are you awake?”
“!!!”
The strange human who had introduced herself as Kang Subin opened the door and stepped inside. Our eyes met for a second. My brain completely locked up while I tried to figure out whether she had been eaten by Yerin too—until the light spilling in from the hallway finally told me where I actually was.
“Kyeng…?”
I wasn’t inside Yerin’s stomach. I was in a room.
Thud—
Still reeling, I let go of whatever I had been attacking so fiercely. A quick glance downward revealed the truth: it was a pillow. The poor thing was already damp with tooth marks and drool, thoroughly soaked in Yerin’s scent. That was why I had mistaken it.
But still…
“Huh? But giant Yerin definitely ate me…”
“Haha, did our Naru have a dream?”
“…A dream?”
At Kang Subin’s words I finally realized I had been dreaming the whole time. The fact that I had mixed up dream and reality made my face burn with embarrassment, and I dove straight back into the blanket-hole I had been hiding in.
Poke— poke—
“Naru, even if you hide like that, these cute little feet are still sticking out.”
“Grrrr! Do not touch this body!!”
“Sorry, sorry.”
I whipped around and bared my teeth in a threat. Kang Subin immediately raised both hands in surrender and took a step back.
I have to be extra careful of that weird human. You never know what she’ll do next!
“It’s still dawn and you’re already up… no, wait—foxes are nocturnal, right?”
“What are you even talking about!”
“Eh, just something I heard.”
“Grrrr…”
I kept a wary eye on the strange human while she slowly edged closer.
“Stay back!!”
“Don’t be so scared. I won’t do anything bad to Naru.”
“I’m a smart fox!! I won’t fall for lies like that!!”
Right now I was a dawn fox! The hunting instinct Boss had drilled into me was burning hotter than ever. Looking at her, she seemed like an ordinary non-Awakened human—unlike me. For all I knew she had been waiting for me to fall asleep so she could try something sneaky.
“Naru, I get that you’re scared of unnie, but could you just stay quiet for a little bit?”
“What are you talking about? I’m not scared of anything.”
“Of course not. Our brave Naru isn’t afraid of a single thing. So how about we play quietly together while we wait for Yerin?”
“Why would I ever play with you!”
“Hehe… I wonder if you’ll still say that after seeing this.”
Kang Subin flashed a suspicious little smile and pulled something out from behind her back. I tensed, ready to bolt or counterattack at a moment’s notice—only to discover she was holding nothing more than a small ball.
“Don’t tell me you’re going to throw that at me!”
But I was a fox who had hunted in the mountains with Boss. On top of that I possessed the super-amazing skill known as Danger Sense. Did she really think a little ball like that could hit this body?!!
Beep—
“…!”
Kang Subin squeezed the ball. A strange, fascinating sound came out of it, and my ears pricked up all on their own. In an instant my entire focus locked onto the ball in her hand. It beeped a few more times while she waved it back and forth, and before I knew it my butt and tail had lifted high into the air as I dropped into a perfect hunting crouch.
“Ohhh, look at that concentration.”
“…”
“Here—catch!”
“!!!”
Just as I expected, she threw the ball straight at me. But my dynamic vision was so sharp that the flying ball looked completely frozen in midair.
I can see it!
The ball drifted toward me in slow motion. I smiled inwardly, already planning how I would snatch it out of the air with style and then immediately counterattack to establish the proper hierarchy once and for all. It kept coming closer, still looking so leisurely that I almost yawned.
Hmph. Attacking me with force this weak…
Beep—
“Kyeng?!”
The beep sounded at the exact moment the ball smacked me square in the face. For three full seconds the room was completely silent. Only then did the terrible truth sink in.
No matter how slow the ball looked to me, real time kept moving at normal speed. If I didn’t actually move my body, I was going to get hit.
And more importantly—I had just been attacked!
“Kyaaeng!!”
Attacked!
Danger!!
I had to run!!
“Naru, calm down! It doesn’t hurt! I threw it super gently and it’s a soft, squishy ball!”
I didn’t hear a word of it. Pure instinct sent me scrambling away from the attack site in a frantic scramble of paws. I shot straight between Kang Subin’s legs and burst out of the room. The second I spotted another door I made a beeline for it, ready to escape.
Thud—
“Kyeng?!”
The door refused to open. I face-planted right into it and was still wincing when Kang Subin caught up.
“Naru, that room is where Yerin is streaming—I mean, working—so you can’t go in.”
“Grrrr!”
“Is it because you got hit by the ball? I’m sorry. I really didn’t think you’d just sit there and take it. I threw it so gently…”
“You attacked me! I don’t trust you!!”
“I’m sorry… and since she’s broadcasting in there right now, for the time being let’s just—”
“…?”
I didn’t understand every word, but the gist was clear: she was telling me not to go into that room. Unfortunately for her, I was currently a merciless fox starving for the hunt and thirsting for revenge. Things I was told not to do were automatically ignored!
Besides, the essence of hunting was the ambush. Right now I felt certain I could take down even the mighty Yerin. In other words, this was the perfect opportunity.
Just like Boss, I’m going to claim my own territory!!
She might have saved me from that landslide, but I was going to make her experience the true cruelty of the wild with her entire body. Still, I would be generous and take her on as my subordinate. Then I would force her to offer me the cloud bread called Cas… Cas… Casususus? every single day.
“Uhohohoho.”
“That’s a really unsettling laugh… Naru, how about we go back to the other room and chat with unnie instead? Or do you want to play some more? Oh—there are snacks, too.”
“No!!”
I sprang upward, latched onto the doorknob with all four paws, and twisted. Kang Subin must have assumed the handle was too high for me to reach, because she lunged forward in a panic—but I was already inside and slamming the door shut behind me.
“Hmph.”
Having successfully infiltrated the room, I flashed a triumphant grin and looked around. Yerin was wearing black clothes and talking to a glowing square thing.
Talking to herself again.
She had been muttering to herself the first time I met her, too. I still had no idea what she was doing, but that only made this the perfect moment for an ambush. I grinned wider and settled into a ready crouch.
Yerin was much bigger than me, but any living creature had to breathe. Boss had taught me that when you hunt, you go for the prey’s windpipe. In other words—aim for the face!
“From now on, for the child’s sake I’ll temporarily—”
“Now!!”
I launched myself into the air and latched onto Yerin’s face. Of course I could have finished things instantly with my sharp fangs, but I am a fox who understands gratitude. I would capture her alive and make her my subordinate instead.
“Kyaaaaah?! Wha—what, Naru?!”
“From this moment on, this territory belongs to Lord Naru!!”
Yerin’s startled scream was all the proof I needed that my ambush had succeeded. Certain of victory, I proudly declared the room my new domain.
But then…
“What on earth are you talking about? Unnie, I’m in the middle of a stream, Naru!!”
Yerin peeled me off her face with ridiculous ease using just one hand.
And then…
“Stream?”
I glanced at the glowing square. Countless letters were racing upward at incredible speed, and next to them—like a mirror—were me and Yerin.
“…?”
“Haaah… Naru…”
For some reason Yerin let out a long, exhausted sigh as if her head were starting to hurt.
So… what about my ambush??
What about my territory??