201. Jager (1)
#201
Secret, who had gone missing, had turned into a furry wearfox. Ronan and Adeshan froze in place, dumbfounded. The owner, who saw the secret coming down, rushed over.
“Ah, are you awake? “Would you like me to prepare a meal for you today?”
“No, that’s enough. I still have leftovers from last night. “Could it have been Jager’s henchmen who caused the commotion just now?”
“no. It was just a local municipal miscellany. It’s common, isn’t it? “Friends whose only pride is the fact that they were once henchmen of the rebel army.”
“Thank goodness. Anyway, the meal is okay. “Thank you for taking care of me.”
“you’re welcome. “If you need anything, please let me know anytime.”
The owner returned to the kitchen again. Judging from the conversation, it seemed like Secret had been staying at this inn for quite some time.
Normally, I would have asked Jager what he was doing, but right now I wasn’t even that curious. Because, damn it, there was a white, fluffy tail waving behind Secret’s back. He approached me with his back to me and spoke slyly.
“I heard that spring has returned to the islands. “You did a great job.”
Ronan didn’t react. He absolutely did not want to admit that this bipedal arctic fox was his professor. It was quite shocking that she turned into a girl, but now she is a beast. Secret, who was looking at the dumbfounded Ronan, chuckled.
“You seem to have a lot of questions. “It’s worth it.”
“…Wait a moment.”
Suddenly, Ronan took a big sip of the distilled liquor in the stone glass. Perhaps because it is a northern drink, the alcohol content was quite high. A fragrant vanilla scent vaguely emerged from the back of the throat where the distilled spirit burned.
Well, it’s definitely a good drink. Ronan wiped his mouth and put down his drink. The bipedal arctic fox remained standing in its original position. The familiar mana was still blooming from above the dwarf shoulders. Ronan cursed, covering his face with both hands.
“Fuck.”
It was not delirium caused by the shadow’s mana. What was in front of me now was truly a secret. He pulled up a chair and joined the table.
“It’s been a while since I was student council president Adeshan. How have you been?”
“Are you really Professor Secret…? “Well, for now, I’ve been doing well.”
“I guess so. I even went on a trip to the north with my lover. Well, I recognized that this friend wrote a letter while he was trapped in the ice.”
“He’s not a lover, Ronan is just…!”
Adeshan’s face turned as red as an apple. She opened her mouth and tried to explain something, but all that came out was something unintelligible, like babbling. ‘Ah.’ “therefore.” “Uuuh.” Same things. You could just say that you are a junior or a friend, but why are you saying that?
“It’s just… that’s right…”
Adeshan, who was suddenly rambling, took a sip of the drink in front of him. She lowered her head as she nuzzled her neck without once stopping. The glass she set down was empty.
“Puha…!”
“are you okay? “It must be pretty harsh.”
“Hmm, I think it’s okay. “It’s not bad…?”
Every time Adeshan opened his mouth, the scent of vanilla came out. Ronan, seeing the indifferent reaction, laughed. The difference between Erzsebet and Erzsebet, who was drunk on a sip of wine that was almost like a drink, was like heaven and earth. I think he drinks better than me. Is drinking also a talent?
They ordered a whole bottle of alcohol. For snacks, melted cheese and crackers were served. Ade Shan seemed to like the spirit so much that he began to sip it without toasting it. Ronan brushed off her bangs and looked back at Secrit.
“So… why are you here, Professor? “Why didn’t you come back to Phileon?”
“There were circumstances. I’ll explain that later, so let’s talk about something else first. “Why did you come to the North?”
“I have to stop by Heiran and then go to the Sea of Ghosts. In addition to stopping by the blacksmith shop, you came to help me… Oh really, can’t you just leave that tail alone?”
“It’s because I’m glad to see you. I can’t control it because I move wildly depending on my emotions. “It’s a new fact that I learned only after becoming a prisoner.”
The tail hanging under the chair was constantly wagging. Secret added information that was not at all curious, such as that the ears move in the same way. As Ronan took another sip of his drink, Secret’s eyebrows twitched.
“But you’re still a student, aren’t you drinking too much? Well, it’s not a fileon, so it doesn’t matter.”
“I don’t think I can survive without drinking. “How did it end up like that?”
“I ended up like this while wandering the ancient northern ruins in search of magic to melt the Winter Witch’s ice. “It was a regrettable accident.”
“Is there a way to return to normal?”
“It’s possible right now. But I don’t know how to get it again, so I’m going to stay like this for a while. “Isn’t it fun?”
For some reason, I felt like my head was pounding. It was fortunate that there was no smoking pipe. If there had been, I would have burned an entire bag of powder right here. From what I heard, Secret’s physical condition was in a state of total chaos, worse than two years ago.
The curses, except for the beast-man-hwa curse, still remained coiled in his body. The Sphinx’s curse of changing gender and age still persisted, and as a result, he became a female werefox who grew younger and older every time day and night changed. I was wondering whether I could call this a human anymore. Secret continued.
“It’s not as bad as you think, though. Surprisingly, there are quite a few ways in which they are better than humans.”
“I guess so. You mean you can scratch her ticklish ears with your hind paws or something?”
“That’s also one of the advantages. If it’s okay, I’d like to tell you a bit about what’s going on in the outside world. “For the past few months, I have been completely cut off from any news.”
“···Of course.”
Ronan nodded. Although she was disgusted by the shocking change, Secrit, who lifted the curse, was a definite benefactor. As I keep looking at her, I think she looks better than when she turned into a little girl.
Ronan explained in detail his travels through the world of imagination during which he wandered for two years and what he experienced after awakening. The Winter Witch and Lorhon, the unexpected audience with the emperor, and the decisive battle with Darman at the top of Farzan. After hearing the story about Nebula Clazier, Secret’s eyes sparkled as if he was interested.
“Huh, I didn’t know it was such a vicious organization. But to see something like that in the Festival of Swords, I guess you did it right, even if it meant killing you.”
“Thanks to you, high-ranking people from all over the world became aware of it. “Now we are branching out on a continental basis.”
“That’s a good thing.”
Secret laughed. Ronan was satisfied with the information provided, but he thought it was a bit harsh.
As he did not know about the great incident that took place at the Festival of Swords, it seemed as if he had lived quite a life apart from the world, as he said. Secret, who was licking a drink from a wide bowl, muttered softly.
“Hmm… Then, is what’s happening here related to those fanatics? “This might be more serious than I thought.”
“hmm? “Has something happened to Rundalian?”
“okay. To be exact, I would say the North. “You happened to come to the North at a dangerous time.”
Secret’s face became somewhat serious. Ronan tilted his head after hearing the meaningful words.
“Dangerous times?”
“okay. If it’s okay, let’s do the rest in my room. “Because it’s not a story worth talking about in an open place.”
Suddenly, Secret stood up. Ronan was puzzled by the sudden change in atmosphere, but he followed suit and got up. He tapped Adeshan’s shoulder as he was drinking alone.
“Senior, are you okay?”
“Yeah…it’s nothing. “This is delicious.”
Adeshan smiled softly. Her charming nasal voice was evident in her tone of voice, but she remained calm and there didn’t seem to be any problem. Ronan raised his eyebrows after seeing that the bottle was empty.
‘Did you drink this all by yourself?’
It was almost twenty glasses, and he was a natural drinker. I didn’t know because we had never drank together in our past lives. Ronan gently stopped her as she lifted the glass to her mouth.
“Stop drinking now. “I drank too much.”
“Aang, this is shameful.”
Adeshan puffed out his cheeks as the glass was taken from him. Her face was flushed red and she looked playful, yet somehow giving off a seductive look. She said by the way she said ‘Aang’ now. You probably heard it wrong, right?
“Oh, wait.”
At that time, Adeshan suddenly raised his face. Big gray eyes were sparkling before her eyes. Ronan gasped as the distance narrowed until her nose touched.
“···What is it?”
“I buried it here.”
Adeshan suddenly stretched out his hand and rubbed the corner of Ronan’s mouth with his index finger. It came out with cracker crumbs the size of her fingernail attached. Apparently, it was buried during a conversation with Secret. She casually put her index finger in and out of her mouth and smiled coquettishly.
“Ahaha, I heard you have a bit of a clumsy side too.”
This truly provocative action made Ronan forget what he was going to say. It was a scary drinking habit in a different way from Erzsebet, who was fussy about showing off the essence of flame magic. Secret tapped his back with his tail and whispered.
“I thought about it earlier, it suits you well.”
“It’s not like that.”
Ronan, who had washed his face, shook his head. She didn’t drink much, but she seemed drunk. A professor I haven’t seen in a long time has turned into a beast, and my former boss, whom I respected a lot, is showing off a charm that isn’t even common… Of course, the latter wasn’t bad.
“Then, let’s go up.”
Anyway, Ronan and Adeshan followed Secret to the second floor. His room was located in the most corner.
In the doorway, a curtain of mana that seemed quite dense at first glance was shining and shining. It was a security magic I had seen before. Only after the secret holding the doorknob mumbled a specific spell did the curtain disappear and the door opened.
“It’s dirty and shabby, but please come in.”
“This···.”
Ronan’s eyes widened as he entered the room. Secret’s room had a very different feel from the Separazio I saw two years ago. Various books, clothes, and pieces of paper with something scribbled on them were strewn about. White clumps of fur, presumed to be body hair, were rolling around like bushes in the wilderness.
The blanket with the phrase “For Human Use Only” embroidered on it was stuffed in the corner of the room, and I couldn’t easily lift it out because it seemed like something small and evil was living inside. To summarize, it was just shit. Ronan looked around the entire room and opened his mouth.
“···It’s really shabby and dirty.”
“Hmm, I warned you like that.”
“What on earth do you do to end up like this?”
Apparently, with the change to Wearfox, my lifestyle habits also changed to become dog-like. Fortunately, I was able to defecate in the bathroom. Adeshan, who was drunk as she was, was tapping her forehead against Ronan’s back and only letting out her innocent laugh. Her three critters scratched their heads in embarrassment.
“I stayed here for about a month. “I was so busy researching Haeju and tracking down Jaeger’s gang that I didn’t have time to pay attention to cleaning.”
“Do it? Jager?”
Jager was the name that had appeared in the conversation with the owner just moments ago. Secret nodded.
“okay. The leader of the new beast-in alliance that has been on the rise recently. “From what I don’t know, it looks like you haven’t visited any cities other than Rundalian.”
Secret walked into the room and picked up a piece of paper rolling on the floor. On a large piece of paper, presumed to have been torn from a poster, was a picture of a white tiger wearing an eye patch the size of a gate.
Although he wasn’t as good as Jaifa, he still had a good temperament. At the bottom of the portrait was written a provocative motto: “Let’s wash the North with the blood of inferior races!” Ronan, who had received the paper, was in the process of carefully examining his face.
“I can’t find a cute corner even after washing my eyes… hmm?”
It was a face that gave me a feeling of déjà vu. The same was true even taking into account the fact that all the prisoners looked like that. Ronan, who was finally digging through memories of her past life, raised his eyebrows.
“This kid…”
