🦊 🦊 🦊
WHEN I woke up, the sky outside the window had turned orange. Less time had passed than I’d expected. Mary still sat near the windowsill while maintaining her weapons, which were usually concealed.
Has she gone out since arriving here? I wondered while examining her. No, probably not.
And so, I decided to go on a walk with Mary. Considering my current state, we couldn’t leave the castle grounds. That said, I had no idea how to invite Mary out, seeing as I couldn’t speak. Thus, I tugged on the hem of her skirt with my teeth.
Mary knelt down to look at me. “What is it, Lady Alexandra?”
Let’s go on a short walk, I thought.
Of course, she couldn’t hear me. Even so, I stared at her with intent in my eyes.
A moment later, Mary tilted her head. “Do you want to go on a walk, perhaps?”
I nodded eagerly, overjoyed that she had understood me.
After caressing my cheek, Mary picked me up. “Well then, I’ll accompany you. It’s not safe for you to go alone.”
Yeah, yeah, exactly, I thought while bobbing my head up and down. When Mary smiled at me, my heart skipped a beat. She was a truly stunning woman.
Once outside the room, Mary set me down, intending to follow me. As I considered where she might like to go, my head collided with a giant tree.
“Bwah!” I yipped comically due to pain and surprise.
“Whoops, sorry,” an unfamiliar voice said from above. “I didn’t see you there, little one.”
Looking up, I found a man one size larger than Oreste. I’d collided with a person’s leg, not a giant tree.
He knelt in front of me, allowing me to see his dark brown hair and gray eyes. “I truly am sorry. Are you all right?”
In contrast to his appearance, he spoke in a gentle voice. Based on his white and navy fatigues, he was probably a knight of Bragioga’s chivalric order. The furrow of his brow conveyed his genuine concern for me.
“Kyun!” I yipped to express my well-being.
“Thank goodness,” the man replied with a laugh, patting my head with his large hand. “You seem to be all right.”
I leaned into his gentle touch, which starkly contrasted with the size of his hand.
“Is everything okay?” Mary asked while approaching me.
“Is this your fox?” the man asked. “Forgive me for bumping into her, but she doesn’t seem to be hurt.”
Mary and I regarded the man with surprise. Based on his bearing and the medals decorating his chest, he was undoubtedly a nobleman. Nevertheless, he’d apologized to a woman in handmaid’s attire without hesitation. While such behavior was normal among my friends and family, most nobles didn’t apologize to servants. His effortless humility stunned me and Mary.
“No, I should be the one to apologize,” Mary said while cradling me in her arms.
Laughing, the man patted my head again. “There’s no need for you to apologize. I’m the one who bumped into her. But I must say, your fox is quite clever. It feels like she’s understood me this whole time.”
“Thank you very much,” Mary replied.
Was she expressing gratitude because the man had praised me? In any case, I responded with a soft yip to show my agreement.
The man patted my head yet again. “By the way, the chivalric order’s training grounds are beyond this point. Did you have some sort of business there?”
Mary looked down at me. Yes, my goal had been to observe the training grounds. Oreste had told me its location earlier. When I nodded, Mary looked back up at the man and smiled.
“Forgive me for not introducing myself earlier,” she said. “My name is Mary, and I serve as Lady Vistriano’s handmaid. She is the daughter of Duke Vistriano of Gandolfin. I’m a martial arts practitioner and serve as Lady Vistriano’s personal guard. That’s why I wanted to observe the training grounds of Bragioga’s chivalric order.”
The man chuckled. “House Vistriano, eh? You must be quite strong if you serve a family with such powerful individuals.”
He even knows about my family. Who is this man, exactly?
“Allow me to introduce myself,” the man continued. “I’m Gaetano Cotarini—nephew to the king and vice-captain of the chivalric order. Truth be told, Duke Vistriano is famous even in Bragioga. He has a reputation for being incredibly powerful. I actually sparred with his son Janus numerous times when he stayed here. The boy was strong indeed. I would love to spar with you as well, seeing as you guard a member of their house.”
My family is pretty amazing, huh? Tales of our strength have spread all the way to the nephew of a neighboring king. Father and Janus really are a cut above the rest. Hold on a second, though. If Gaetano is the king’s nephew, does that make him Julie’s cousin? And if so, is he Damiana’s older brother?
As I scrutinized Gaetano, Mary broke my train of thought.
“Thank you so much for the kind words,” she said. “However, my fighting style differs from a swordswoman. I normally use concealed weapons, after all.”
“You have me even more intrigued,” Gaetano responded with a grin.
Thus, he led us to the training grounds. What started as a casual stroll turned into something rather extraordinary. Most of the knights had finished training and were cleaning up the grounds. However, the arrival of the vice-captain and a handmaid carrying a fennec fox caught everyone’s attention. Before long, everyone gathered around us with curious expressions.
“Wait for me here,” Mary said.
After I nuzzled her cheek, she set me down on a spot somewhat removed from the training grounds. I was trying to offer her encouragement. Did she understand?
“I’ll do my best,” Mary said with a smile.
Sounds like she got the message.
Mary and Gaetano’s duel turned out to be quite a spectacle. Gaetano’s fighting style bore a striking resemblance to Oreste. Mary took a few hits, as his attacks were too powerful to fend off. Even so, she still had the upper hand in terms of speed. Furthermore, she’d trained as a secret agent. After vanishing momentarily, she would launch another attack from an unexpected direction. Their polar opposite fighting styles thrilled not only me but also the knights. Yet, in the end, Gaetano sent Mary’s knife flying through sheer brute strength.
“Checkmate,” he said.
Mary smirked. “Not quite yet.”
She swept his feet out from under him. Disarming Mary had made him overconfident, and as a result, he went down like a sack of potatoes. In a flash, Mary straddled Gaetano and placed another hidden knife against his neck.
“Your opponent often has more than one weapon,” she said.
Gaetano laughed heartily. “Ha, too true! I yield.”
The training grounds erupted in cheers as the match concluded. After standing up, Mary and Gaetano started up a friendly conversation. Unfortunately, I couldn’t hear them over the roar of the crowd. Regardless, Mary appeared to be having fun, which filled me with joy as well. Earlier, I’d jumped atop a fence. As I bounced up and down on the edge, my feet slipped, which sent me plunging downwards.
Oh crap!
Suddenly, I found myself floating in the air.
“I’ve never seen Mary smile like that,” Embert said.
Of course, he’d been the one to catch me.
Despite her usual composure, Mary laughed surprisingly often as well. That said, she might not have done so with people outside our family. In other words, her smile indicated just how much she’d enjoyed the sparring match. As I reached that conclusion, Embert bombarded me with a cheek-nuzzling assault.
“Ally,” he said with a sigh. “How I missed you.”
Was it just my imagination, or was the friction producing actual heat?
Yeah, I need to regain my humanity ASAP. If this keeps up, I’m definitely going bald. No, I might get roasted alive before then.
As I considered the grim fate of my fur, Mary returned with Gaetano by her side.
“You were here, Prince Embert?” Gaetano asked with a jovial laugh. “And you as well, Lord Janus. Then you both saw me thoroughly embarrass myself.”
Embert smiled. “Not at all. It was a splendid match.”
“By the way,” Gaetano said, a note of curiosity in his voice. “Did you have some sort of business here?”
The sun had already set some time ago. Most people wouldn’t train this late.
“I did indeed,” Embert replied, his smile as charming as ever. “I came to pick up this adorable little one.” He then proceeded to nuzzle my cheek.
For the millionth time, I’m begging you to stop that!
“Oh, that fox belongs to you, does she?” Gaetano asked. “Still, I’m impressed that you knew her location.”
Embert’s smile transformed into a terrifying grin. “I’ve taken certain measures to always know where she is.”
A chill ran down my spine. I didn’t even have my ring in my current form. Wait, could it have been stored inside me somehow? Or had Embert placed a new enchantment on me? Either way, my heart hammered in my chest. Embert seemed to notice my quickening pulse since he was holding me in his arms.
Chuckling, he whispered softly enough that only I could hear. “For some reason, my tracking spell is still working.”
In that case, the ring must have been stored inside me somehow. I let out a soft sigh while ignoring Embert’s apparent delight.