Chapter 4
Theo Rebellin, a noble of the Kingdom of Shastia, walked through the forest, doing his best to hide his nerves.
This was the Edelweiss Forest.
Though it was a resource-rich forest teeming with plants and animals within Rebellin territory, the people of the domain never entered it.
That was because the forest was famous for its frequent appearances of cruel monsters,
and no one would enter it just to gain a little something unless they were exceptionally skilled in combat.
Besides, those with great combat skills would naturally seek out more efficient work, so in practice, hardly anyone ever set foot here.
The same was true of Theo. If not for his family's coming-of-age ceremony, he would never have come to this forest.
Although it was a family tradition, it was an outdated rule, and few heirs throughout history had observed it. His family tried to stop him, saying there was no need to follow such an old rule, but despite their objections, he entered the forest with only the basic preparations.
He'd reluctantly accepted the two potions his younger sibling had handed him while sobbing, though.
'His stepmother probably gave them to him.'
His sibling was five years younger than him, after all. There was no way they'd managed to get their hands on expensive potions and give them to him.
His stepmother was a woman who could smile and gently accept his father's rough temperament, enough to make anyone watching click their tongue.
So Theo had thought she was either a kind woman who wanted the power of House Rebellin, or simply a good woman who'd fallen for his father.
But even after Theo's father had passed away recently, her affectionate behavior toward him hadn't changed. Fortunately, it seemed she was the latter.
'Father...'
Theo's father, Heinrich Rebellin, was a man who embodied arrogance.
An ignorant man who thought only of himself and looked down on everyone else.
His personality was one thing, but he was also tremendously strong. In the past, he'd even commanded the kingdom's finest order of knights.
The king had bestowed the title of Steel upon him, after all.
But a month ago, he suddenly died of an illness,
and no one had imagined that Theo, his son, would succeed him and become the lord of Rebellin's vast lands at the age of just thirteen.
Not even Theo himself.
That was why Theo had readily accepted this coming-of-age ceremony.
He had to prove to everyone that the Lord of Rebellin was a dependable man, not a little kid with a runny nose.
That House Rebellin was still going strong.
Otherwise, House Verdia to the west might set its sights on Rebellin.
'Of course, this alone won't be enough to earn their recognition.'
It was undeniably dangerous, but an accomplishment like this would surely end up as nothing more than gossip over drinks.
Still, it wasn't a bad first step toward earning recognition.
After all, this was only the beginning.
'That aside...'
About half a day had passed since he'd entered the forest, but he still hadn't encountered anything as dangerous as he'd feared.
If he was lucky, he might make it through without encountering any monsters.
'First, I need to find somewhere to hide.'
If he found a decent cave, he could spend the day there comfortably,
but if the cave's owner showed up, he could be in serious danger.
So, as he'd originally planned, finding a sturdy tree and climbing up to spend the day there wouldn't be a bad idea either.
Of course, running into a monster with wings would be a disaster.
'I hope I can find somewhere decent before the sun sets.'
Theo kept watch over his surroundings as he walked on and on, making his way through the rugged forest.
Whum.
'What is that?'
A small orb giving off a blue light appeared before Theo's eyes.
Whum!
"Is it telling me... to follow it?"
Whum.
As if agreeing with him, the orb flew off in one direction,
and the sudden turn of events left him momentarily at a loss.
It was obviously suspicious. Normally, the right thing to do would be not to follow it.
He'd read in books about the monsters at the mansion that some creatures used bait to hunt their prey, so there might be one of those kinds of monsters here.
But after hesitating for a moment, Theo soon ran in the direction the orb had flown.
'It wasn't nearly enticing enough to be bait.'
They said monsters of that kind usually lured people by showing them what they most wanted to see,
but the orb hadn't shown Theo anything like that,
and instead had cried out as if desperately asking him for help.
As if begging him to follow it, saying it needed help.
Whum.
Even as he ran heedlessly through the undergrowth, the orb kept making sounds to let Theo know where it was,
and soon he arrived at the place the orb wanted him to go.
'An orc? And...'
There lay a decapitated orc's corpse and two foxes, while the orb circled around them.
Seeing that, Theo understood what the orb wanted.
He hurried over to check on the foxes.
Both were alive, but judging by their wounds, they were almost at death's door.
The one with severe wounds around its belly looked so bad that he wondered if it was already dead.
Theo immediately took a potion from his bag and poured it over the more badly injured fox,
"[Heal]"
and cast a spell at the same time.
His healing magic was still crude, but it should be effective enough when used together with a potion.
"Kyuuuuu"
Just then, the fox beside it opened its eyes with a pitiful whine.
But the fox paid no attention to Theo,
its gaze fixed solely on the fox he was treating.
Seeing that, Theo realized the two foxes were family, and felt sorry for the fox.
Even though it was badly injured itself...
"Don't worry. I'll make sure your family survives."
He wasn't saying it just to give the fox false hope.
The fox that had seemed to stop breathing was moving its chest and slowly beginning to breathe.
"Kyu..."
Theo didn't know whether the fox had understood him or simply run out of strength,
but it closed its eyes weakly, and Theo took out another potion and held it to the fox's mouth.
'I'll have a story to tell my little sibling when I get back.'
That their potions had saved two little lives.
Theo's younger sibling loved animals, so they'd probably be over the moon to hear it.
***
I felt warmth.
Like when I'd first been born into this world and slept pressed against my sibling.
Lick.
I could feel my sibling licking my face.
That was when I realized.
This was a dream. My sibling was dead, after all.
The moment my sibling died, I realized it.
I'd been deceiving myself all along.
Even though I'd been using my memories of being human to get through each day,
I'd looked down on my sibling just to bolster my own self-esteem.
If only my sibling's family had included someone more capable than a foolish human like me, reincarnated as a fox.
If only I'd survived by using clever ideas like the ones in the novels and manga I'd read in my previous life.
My sibling wouldn't have died.
I'm sorry...
Lick.
I'm so sorry.
Lick, lick.
I'm sorry...
Lick, lick, lick!!
Huh...?
The sensation felt so real that I cautiously opened my eyes,
"Kyuung!"
My sibling was crying as it looked at me.
Is this a dream? Or... did I die too?
Lick, lick!
S-stop!
"Kyuang!"
"Kyuung..."
You always get all dejected whenever I get mad at you... Wait, no?!
"Kyu?"
My sibling tilted its head.
But I was the one who couldn't make sense of this situation.
I'd never licked my sibling or anything like that before,
but it was so unbelievable that, after thinking it over again, I went over and licked its face.
Lick.
"Kyuuuu"
My sibling smiled as if it was happy that I licked it...
It's real. I'm really alive!!
Lick, lick.
"Kyuuuuuu!"
Thank you, God.
But how...?
&%&%&%&?
"Kyuuaaaang?!!!!!"
My heart nearly stopped!! That strange sound coming from beside me almost scared me to death.
Startled, I looked over there.
&%&%?
A human. The first person I'd seen since being born into this world.
I couldn't understand what he was saying, but there was an unmistakable warmth in his voice.
At the same time, I realized:
This person had saved us.
By the standards of my previous life, he looked barely middle-school age, and his blond hair gave him an exotic air, but...
his gentle smile gave me a sense of his kind nature.
Come to think of it, we'd collapsed in front of the cave where we lived.
Maybe the boy had carried us here. Looking around, I realized we were in a cave much larger than the one we'd lived in.
There was even a warm fire brightly illuminating the cave. So that was the warmth I'd felt earlier.
&%&%
At the boy's gesture, as if telling me to rest some more, I felt something strange.
Soft and warm. It was the feeling of being protected, something I'd never felt before since being born a fox.
Even though this was our first meeting, I felt a strong fondness for the boy.
And...
Lick, lick.
&%&%
I wanted to express my gratitude for saving my sibling and me, but we couldn't speak the same language and I couldn't think of another way, so I went over and gently licked his hand.
Swish.
"Kyu...ang"
The boy seemed pleased and gently stroked me, and I shivered at the strange pleasure I felt each time his hand softly passed over my body.
Why does this feel so good?
I could understand why dogs and cats in my previous life squirmed with delight when someone petted them, though honestly, I was a little embarrassed too.
Feeling good while a little kid like this petted me? From a human perspective, that was downright perverted.
But I'm a fox now, aren't I?
So I want him to keep petting me. It feels so good.
"Kyuung!"
Maybe my sibling was jealous too, because it came over like me and licked his hand. In the end, the boy warmly hugged both of us.
And so we spent the night nestled in his warm embrace, receiving his gentle touch until dawn.
I'd been born as a fox almost three years ago.
Maybe this was the warmest night of my fox life.
…
…
…
At daybreak, the boy and we left the cave.
The boy stretched contentedly, then came over and stroked each of our heads once.
&%&%
I couldn't understand what he was saying, but I had a feeling I knew what it was.
He was probably saying goodbye.
I didn't know why he'd come into this forest, but he probably had a home where his family was waiting for him too.
But at that moment, my heart began to tremble.
Maybe we'd grown attached in the meantime. Even though we'd only spent one night together, I didn't want to part with him.
It was probably because he was the first person I'd met since being born in this world, and on top of that, he was the one who'd saved my sibling and me.
&$&$&!
But the boy, unaware of how I felt, waved as if telling us to take care.
Wait, just a moment.
"Kyuang!!"
Your name—tell me your name.
The boy looked puzzled, but soon seemed to understand what I meant. He smiled and said a single word.
"Theo"
Theo, Theo...
All right, I remembered it.
I nodded at the boy to show I understood.
Perhaps my reaction surprised him, because his eyes widened for a moment,
"Theo"
and he smiled as he said what seemed to be his name to me once more.
He had a truly lovely smile.
The kind of smile that made my heart feel warm just looking at it.
&%&%
After that, the boy left, and I watched absentmindedly until his retreating figure disappeared. Then I made a decision.
Theo. Our benefactor...
Someday, I would go and repay that boy for everything he'd given us in the short time we'd spent together.