The Fox Appears
Sloan, the Hero, loved to kill.
She took such pleasure in the act of snuffing out a life that if she went a day without hurting someone, she couldn't sleep that night.
Of course, she abhorred killing people without reason, so she was a far cry from a cruel serial killer. She hated inventing excuses just to kill, too.
Aside from that one quirk, Sloan was no different from a country girl with a righteous moral compass.
The doctrine of the Church of Light — the religion that dominated the human world — had spread even among ordinary commoners, so it was hardly strange that Sloan followed it.
"Huh? There's a woman sitting all alone!"
Having spent nearly her entire life as a devout believer of the Light, Sloan leaned conservative. Growing up in the countryside only deepened that streak; rural communities had always been closed off, after all.
But a Hero, by nature, had to possess progressive leanings. Stay stagnant long enough and you'd never discover a way to vanquish that overwhelming evil.
"Hic."
And so Sloan had been forced to learn how to hide her true self. She had to forget every value the countryside had drilled into her and act as a true Hero.
Perhaps because of that, whenever she got the chance to let her real nature erupt, she took it. It was excellent for stress relief.
"Valli? What the hell are you doing right now! Bring me a cup!"
"I-I'm Camilla…"
"Hooo. O rock — tear free from your body."
At the magic-laden voice, a section of the cave wall was carved away. As if it were mere clay, the stone crushed and bent itself, producing two perfect drinking cups.
"We've got cups now? Good — pour! Both hands, respectfully!"
Vallitics felt a gut-twisting rage.
Sloan's power was overwhelming, and if she put her mind to it she could tear him to shreds — but strictly speaking, he was a Demon King.
Born with the duty to rule this world… a member of that great evil whose very name was so foul one dared not speak it. That was a Demon King.
Should I kill her here? I've confirmed she's weak to poison. If I put my mind to it, I can eliminate her. Kill this woman… and boldly announce that I'm one of the Demon Kings. Sacrificing myself for my kin wouldn't be so bad.
As one of them, Vallitics naturally had to maintain the dignity befitting that station. Even if the Hero had long since wiped out his entire army and driven him into the canyon…
"Hey…. The cup's empty!!!!"
Sloan bellowed in outrage at the unfilled cup. In that instant, Vallitics felt every muscle in his body lock tight.
It was pure instinct. The woman before him was an overwhelming creature. The only option available to the weak was one: flee with everything he had.
I can't win.
Once again, he understood. Whether he liked it or not.
Sloan was a predator. A nightmare crafted by the Goddess, born into this world for the sole purpose of devouring the existence known as Demon King.
Pride of a Demon King be damned. Vallitics chose to resolve the situation right then and there.
"H-here you go…"
"Ohh! That's more like it."
He dropped to both knees and respectfully gripped the bottle with both hands. Waiting until the cup was extended, then pouring with a soft glug-glug-glug….
"Hoo! They say booze tastes better when a man pours it. Turns out that's true?"
"Ahaha…"
"Valli, get closer. Who's gonna hit you or something?"
Drunk, Sloan did something she never would have sober.
She wrapped her arm around Valli's waist — something that had caught her eye for a while now. Elisa's eyes went wide at the brazen act, but she couldn't bring herself to speak up.
"Come on! Come on! Cup's empty? Pour already."
"Please drink slowly. If you overdo it…"
"I'm the Hero. The Hero. It's harder to overdo it with this stuff."
Wouldn't it be better to just get her to drink more and put her to sleep? Judging so, Valli quietly poured the wine with a steady glug.
The moment the cup was filled, it was emptied clean again. Was it really all right to drink this fast? What kind of structure did that woman's liver even have?
While he was turning these thoughts over, something began stroking his thigh.
"Hmm. Soft."
"Uh…?"
"Camilla kept touching it so I wondered how soft it was. It really is soft, huh?"
Indeed, Valli's thighs were on the soft side. He was wearing pants covered in carefully tanned black cowhide, so a smooth, glossy texture caught against the hand as well.
Sloan couldn't help but marvel as she stroked mercilessly over his thigh.
"Hahaha…. Do you like touching me like that?"
"Yeah. Feels really good. Like petting Becky's back."
"Becky?"
"A dog I raised when I was five. Drought hit and we ate him. Made the meat into stew, and the hide into shoes."
To Valli, those words felt like they were aimed straight at him. Wasn't that exactly what would happen if his identity was discovered? But for the time being, he wouldn't be found out….
"You're really cute. Looking this close…. Your face is so white. Body's small too. I get why Camilla and Elisa are fighting over you."
"You're joking…"
"I'm not joking? Then maybe I should fight for you too."
"Excuse me?"
"Pffft. That was a joke. A joke. Why make that shocked face. I'm not interested in guys or anything."
…Then let go of my waist. And stop touching my thigh.
Vallitics muttered inwardly, lips trembling. He had no idea what might come flying if he expressed it out loud.
"Ahem, ahem. As you know. I'm the Hero. Of course I'll have to continue the bloodline eventually. But there's no need for that right now."
"Ah…"
"Why? Disappointed? Heh heh…. I hear men these days have almost no sex drive left. Does Valli still have some?"
Already accustomed to sexual harassment thanks to Camilla and Elisa, Valli simply took it in one ear and let it flow out the other.
Her drunk habits really are awful.
What on earth had she done when there was no man like Valli around? He could easily deduce that she'd gotten drunk and caused a ruckus.
Causing a ruckus with that gorilla-like strength…. The thought that facing a dragon with broken claws would be far more advantageous crossed Valli's mind, and he gave a small shudder.
"Looks like our Valli likes this kind of dirty talk…. Should I tell you more?"
He wanted to plug his ears. But Sloan interpreted Valli's silence as shyness.
He likes it too.
What should she do with this cute thing? Sloan tapped his side with her finger. The way he squirmed in response was amusing.
"Valli's small, but he's a guy. So he's got a cock hanging there, right?"
"Well…. That's true, but please stop saying weird things."
"Keep listening. A guy's cock goes in here."
Sloan grinned and tapped between her own legs with her other hand. At that lewd display, Valli shrank back.
Has this woman finally lost her mind?
Wasn't this far too different from her usual self? Unlike Elisa and Camilla, who were sex-crazed, Sloan had been the demure type.
Suppressed sexual desire exploding with the help of alcohol — something like that?
Sloan, who had been an ordinary country girl, had a strong sex drive like any normal woman. She simply couldn't express it because of her sense of duty as a Hero and the need to maintain her dignity.
Elisa and Camilla had no such reasons, so they'd simply pounced on their ideal type — Valli.
"A woman's place…. You know even the biggest cock can go in all at once?"
"I don't want to know…"
"Our Valli's short, so that part's probably small too. Hic…. It's fine. Women don't care about size, they say. As long as the face is pretty."
Elisa, who had been grinding her teeth with jealousy, let out a snort of laughter at those words.
Valli was small? From the perspective of an elf who had seen that place firsthand and taken it inside, it was simply ridiculous.
As expected, Sloan isn't qualified to have Valli.
As a rule, only those who truly know the real value of something are qualified to possess it.
Whether that something is a precious object or a man.
"Hmm…. Did I drink too much? Suddenly sleepy. Yaaawn."
"Ah… finally!"
"What?"
"N-no! You're going to sleep already?"
"Yeah, I should sleep now. Camilla? Sleeping bag, please."
"As I always say, my magic is—"
"I know. I know! I'm asking, okay. So."
She'd have loved to snap back with a retort, but a drunk Sloan was more dangerous than a Demon King.
Thanks to Valli, the latent violence hadn't erupted — but it could blow at any moment. Just thinking about that cup in her hand being thrown….
"Gather. Weave."
As the mage murmured, plants without intelligence moved like snakes, forming a soft sleeping bag.
Did she pull the fibers from the grass and make a blanket? Anyway, that's really convenient.
He knew magic could display terrifying power, but he hadn't realized how useful it was when applied to daily life. Valli could only blink.
Sloan crawled into the sleeping bag thus created and fell asleep within seconds…. Once the snoring started—
"Done."
Camilla's eyes sparkled. Far too brightly….
"When the tiger's away, the fox becomes king, right?"