[BotB] Chapter 15

Sohwa, who had been focusing on his long, straight fingers, vehemently denied it as if she had been stung.

"No, no?"

Despite her reaction, Dohwi casually spoke as he scooped up some vegetables for her.

"I heard the sound of foxes."

"I heard it, too."

Sohwa straightened her shoulders.

Yesterday, the foxes had howled all night long. It was a mystery when so many foxes had appeared on Mount Ihwang.

"I'll have to go and drive them away."

Reading Sohwa's spirited look, Dohwi chuckled as if she were cute. It was an expression that seemed to say, 'Who will drive out who? It would be lucky if you're not the one driven out.'

"Don't worry about it. This is not a place for foxes to live, so they'll leave on their own."

"But I'm living just fine, aren't I?"

Saying that it wasn't a place for foxes to live, Mount Ihwang was not lacking as a fox habitat except for its proximity to human villages. The prey was abundant, and there were no predators, so there was no threat of being eaten.

Dohwi found it cute that Sohwa thought so and pinched her cheek once before letting go.

"You're not eating."

"I guess I ate a lot for dinner. I'm still full."

'What did you eat so much of?' About to ask, Sohwa just closed her mouth. She was scared he would tease her, saying, 'I ate all the deer that lived on Mount Ihwang.'

Dohwi had a different taste than her. They both liked meat, but Dohwi liked a different kind.

'He must have filled his stomach going back and forth to the village.'

The generous breakfast table laid out just for her felt embarrassingly excessive.

"Why did you prepare so much?"

She felt guilty for only eating the pheasant meat and subtly putting down her spoon.

Even when Sohwa lay down in the main hall after chatting at the breakfast table and Dohwi cleared the table, it was a normal start to the day as if nothing had happened the night before.

Early in the morning, Dohwi said he was going to the human village to buy groceries and left. There was a reason why he had prepared such a generous breakfast.

Since he had to go down to the foot of the mountain, it would take at least half a day. Even though it was for Sohwa, a picky eater, Dohwi did not hesitate to make the effort.

'This is my chance.'

Sohwa left the house, recalling the fox sounds from the early dawn.

It was important to find out the tiger's identity, but it was a separate issue that another fox was encroaching on her territory. If it were a male fox that had come looking for her scent during the mating season, it would be one thing, but if it was a female fox, she had to drive it away without fail.

She also needed to practice hunting from time to time, and as the rightful owner of this mountain, she should check on the other creatures living here, but with the nagging chatterbox always by her side, she never had the chance to go on patrol.

Dohwi hated it terribly when she wandered around the foot of the mountain alone.

'Hmph, does he think I'll get lost?'

However, it had been so long since she had explored Mount Ihwang alone that the overgrown mountain paths seemed strangely unfamiliar. This path looked like that path and looked like this path.

Ultimately, Sohwa had to turn into a fox and walk with her nose to the ground.

"Where is this?"

After wandering the mountain for a while, Sohwa circled a large oak tree.

Sniff... Sniff. After sniffing around the tree's base for a while, she faintly caught a scent. This unfamiliar but somewhat familiar scent was undoubtedly a female fox's scent.

'There really is another female fox here!'

Her heart pounded. The moment she lowered her head, she heard a rustling sound.

"Is this where you live?"

At the sound of an unfamiliar voice, Sohwa jumped up in surprise. The stranger's voice, sharp and clear like a cat's, was filled with a unique confidence and superiority.

"So you're a mutant fox."

The comment came after observing Sohwa's ebony-like tail and white body.

"I am Miho, the red fox."

Sohwa, who had glanced back, locked eyes with a young maiden smiling beautifully and froze on the spot. Her elegantly braided hair was a light brown, as were her eyes, beautiful like fall leaves.

Even though she was in human form now, Sohwa instinctively knew she was a magnificent female with the full features of a red fox.

Her tail curled inward at the unexpected appearance of a dominant female fox. It was the first time she had met another of her kind, let alone a female fox with whom she would have to compete for territory!