The Black Fox of the Supernatural Ability Academy
Jeon Chayeon wanted to touch her.
“……”
The path winding between the rows of trees.
Arena walked ahead with a sullen expression.
Right beside her, Chayeon scratched her head awkwardly.
Behind them, the girl with long purple hair trailed along, grinning from ear to ear.
“Hey, Arena, cheer up~”
“I’m not mad! Just… annoyed!”
Arena’s tone was closer to a pout than actual anger.
She shouted once, then stormed off on her own, legs striding fast.
“Wait! Come on! I’m saying it for your own good!”
The words carried zero welcome.
Chayeon clutched her forehead and hurried after her, steps quickening.
They were heading north to the famous autumn foliage viewing spot, just as they had planned the day before.
Even before reaching the main viewing area, the trees along the path were already blazing with crimson and golden leaves, the ground below painted in a riot of color.
So why was Arena so bristling with irritation?
To find out, they would have to go back in time.
A moment ago—
“Hmmm~♪”
When Chayeon arrived at the agreed meeting place, she saw Arena standing in front of a small hand mirror, humming to herself while fussing with her bangs.
“Arena.”
“Huh! Oh, you’re here!? Why are you so late?”
Chayeon’s voice made Arena jump; she whipped around, then quickly shoved the mirror behind her back.
If someone was right behind you, hiding the mirror wouldn’t change a thing.
Noticing this, Arena startled again and quickly tucked the mirror into her pocket.
“I wasn’t late.”
“What do you mean?! You made me wait thirty whole minutes!”
“You left thirty minutes early.”
“What?! No! I didn’t get excited and leave first! I didn’t!”
She hadn’t even said anything, yet the way she was now chattering on about everything sounded exactly like her usual self.
After spending time with her, Chayeon finally understood.
At first she had wondered how such a lively, eccentric girl could have so many friends.
Arena simply received attention from everyone around her.
One word to describe how her friends reacted: “Oh my, really?”
There was some teasing fun to it.
Other people would have found it annoying, but Arena’s version somehow wasn’t.
Maybe because she was pretty?
Yeah, her face had that convincing, believable quality.
“Let’s go.”
Chayeon held out her hand, and Arena stared at it blankly.
Then her face turned bright red, as if she had suddenly thought of something.
“N-no! H-hand?! What about you— you’re dating Seohui sunbae! How could you be such a playboy?!”
“What nonsense is that? Hand me the bag, I’ll carry it.”
Chayeon pointed at the bag Arena was lugging around.
She had packed a lunchbox, just like she promised yesterday.
“…! I know that! And it’s fine! You’re the shorter one here!”
“Hmph,” Arena snorted, then strode ahead.
Thinking about it, she was right—Arena was taller than Chayeon.
A tiny girl offering to carry a heavy-looking bag.
Standing beside them, it probably looked ridiculous.
So sweet.
“……”
Chayeon, feeling embarrassed, stuffed her hand into her pocket.
“What are you doing?! Hurry up!”
Arena, already far ahead, noticed Chayeon wasn’t catching up and started tapping her feet in irritation.
Chayeon smiled faintly and quickened her steps.
Heading north, suddenly Chayeon felt a gaze watching them.
‘Tail?’
It seems that way.
Immediately she thought of Arena, but the girl was right beside her now.
“Arena, wait a second.”
“Huh?”
Using the same method, Chayeon led Arena around the corner of an alley.
They walked for a long time, but no one appeared to be following.
Maybe this one wasn’t as dumb as Arena.
“What is it?”
“Wait here.”
She stopped Arena, gripped the hilt at her waist, and headed in the direction the gaze seemed to come from.
From Chayeon’s perspective, she was simply moving; to Arena it looked like she had disappeared.
“Kyaa!”
She hadn’t expected anyone to suddenly appear, so the girl yelped.
Hmm.
Who was it?
A girl in a blue jacket with long purple hair trailing down her back sat on the ground, butt on the dirt.
She seemed familiar.
Kind of.
Ah, she remembered.
The girl Chayeon had met the day Arena first woke up, when she had gone to visit her in the hospital.
Presumably one of Arena’s close friends.
“H-Byeol!? What are you doing here?!”
Curious, Chayeon had followed, and now she stared at the fallen girl in shock.
“You’re her friend, aren’t you? She was secretly tailing us.”
“Hehe.”
The girl gave a pained laugh.
“F-following?! Byeol, you…!”
“Sorry, Arena. But yesterday you got so excited bragging that I couldn’t ignore you.”
“Bragging?! What are you talking about?!”
“On the phone last night you talked for an hour straight. Saying we’d eat lunch together and go see the maples…”
“S-stop! When did I ever—?!”
Arena’s face flushed scarlet as she waved her arms.
“Byeol! Byeol! Chayeon and I are going to see the maples! What do I wear tomorrow?! What should I bring?! If there are any leftover massage packs left, maybe I can borrow one… ugh! ugh!”
She copied Arena’s voice perfectly, and Chayeon quickly covered her mouth.
It had clearly been the conversation from yesterday.
So that was what happened.
“Hey, kid, you’re killing me here.”
Only after Chayeon pried her hands away could Arena finally free her friend’s throat.
“Haa, so I ended up following you~”
The girl was bright red from holding her breath earlier, but the moment she was released she smiled cheerfully as if nothing had happened.
She clearly had the same eccentric personality as Arena.
“Go back! If you’re going to say weird stuff, go away!”
Arena squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.
“Oh? So I really am a bother, huh?”
“W-what…?”
“Yeah, it makes sense. A friend at a date without noticing, following along—it’s a bit much, isn’t it?”
“D-d-date?! Date?!”
Arena repeated the same word twice, eyes spinning in circles.
“Well, since you want to be with Chayeon and have a little more alone time, I’ll disappear.”
“Th-that’s…”
“I wanted to play with you too, Arena~ Too bad. The maple viewing looks fun~”
“If I come along, I can just come! Let’s go together!”
Finally, Arena surrendered.
This girl knew exactly how to handle Arena.
She had done it a couple of times before.
“Hehe, it seems so. Thanks, Chayeon.”
The girl winked.
She looked like she would attract a whole crowd if she grew up.
She’s about to become a true fox.
She had even confirmed the Black Nine-Tailed Fox’s identity.
***
Thus, the unexpected group size for the maple viewing jumped from two to three, and Arena’s condition never improved.
Anyone could see she was in a terrible mood.
She knew it, or perhaps she knew better than anyone else.
The girl walked along with a bright, cheerful smile, right beside Chayeon and Arena.
“Byeol, right?”
“Yes, my given name is Han Byeol. Feel free to call me Byeol.”
“At our first meeting, that’s a bit much.”
“Oh? But we’re not meeting for the first time?”
Byeol tilted her head, puzzled.
“On the first day, Chayeon was the first person I heard say ‘get lost.’ Now hearing honorifics is kind of weird.”
She covered her mouth and giggled.
Ah, so they really had been in the same class during their first year?
That explained why she had seemed familiar when they met at the hospital.
“I get it. So then….”
Chayeon stepped closer and whispered in her ear.
Do something about her.
About what?
Don’t play dumb. Arena’s completely in a foul mood right now.
Hehe, it’s kind of cute, isn’t it?
Well, yeah, it is.
That was Arena’s real talent—when it came to teasing, she was unbeatable.
“What? You two are super close?”
Arena eyed the whispering pair with her eyes raised high.
She tried to step away, but Byeol added another layer and sidled up even closer.
“Yeah, Chayeon and I get along great. Arena, come over here. Let’s talk.”
“N-no! I’m good!”
With a weird sound, Arena spun around and strode off.
If she didn’t give her a little space soon, there would be hell to pay.
Leave it to me.
Still thinking, Byeol spoke from the side and trotted over to Arena.
Standing beside the snorting girl, she whispered something in her ear.
Arena’s eyes widened, then she suddenly focused and listened intently.
She even nodded her head vigorously.
After a while, Arena and Byeol slowed their pace and came to a stop beside Chayeon.
“I’ll look after you today!”
Arena’s face was practically beaming, though Chayeon had no idea what “look after” meant.
That girl really had cast some kind of spell.
While they chatted, the three of them reached the entrance to the park at the end of the tree-lined path.
The sign at the entrance read the park’s name.
[Nexon Park]
She had heard it meant “maple” in the ancient language of the gods.
Just as the name suggested, beyond the entrance stretched the maple forest, one of Jindal Academy’s famous spots.
And then—
“There are way more people than I expected?”
It was a sea of people.
More visitors had gathered than they thought possible.
“It’s popular. Must be the season.”
“No way! I didn’t hear anyone say it was this crowded!”
“Yeah, it’s strange how packed it is.”
Arena complained in frustration, and Byeol chimed in right after.
“Oh! Come to think of it!”
Byeol clapped her hands as if remembering something.
“I heard there’s a very famous person coming to the academy today. Do you think they might be here?”
Nexon Park, the northern spot, was right beside the academy entrance, Jindal Gate.
“A celebrity?”
Arena’s eyes sparkled at the word.
She looked positively curious.
“A celebrity? You mean an idol? I’ve never seen real idols before!”
Logically, it was impossible for an idol to visit Jindal, a place that secretly gathered ability users, but Arena’s thoughts didn’t reach that far.
Jindal has celebrities? Who could it be?
Chayeon was also curious for another reason.
“Let’s go check them out.”
“Chayeon, you’re curious too since you said idol!”
Chayeon stepped inside first, and Arena puffed out her cheeks, following.
Finding the celebrity was easy.
People were already flowing toward one direction, so they simply followed the crowd.
“I’m seeing them for the first time. What do I do? I’m shaking.”
“Wow, I never thought this day would come.”
Excited voices surrounded them.
Who could it be to attract this many people?
The curiosity grew with every step.
Following the crowd, they finally passed the long line and arrived at the spot where people were densely packed.
The crowd formed concentric circles around one central point.
The celebrity must be right in the middle.
“There they are! Let’s hurry!”
Unable to hold back, Chayeon and Byeol picked up their pace at Arena’s urging.
Oh no…!
The quiet Black Nine-Tailed Fox suddenly cried out, jolting Chayeon’s head.
What’s wrong?
Chayeon, get out of here.
What?
She felt puzzled by the sudden words, but—
She was experienced enough to know that when the Black Nine-Tailed Fox spoke urgently, it was best to listen without question.
“Hey,”
Just as she was about to turn around and say something, their eyes met.
In the center of the crowd forming a circle stood a girl in a white hanbok that resembled a wedding dress.
Red accents at the edges of her hair swayed in the breeze.
Overall silver-white, but the tips were dyed red—somehow familiar, like Chayeon’s own hair.
She’s a White Nine-Tailed Fox.