The fox’s eyes momentarily flashed with light.
“Really?”
“Yes. Because I can take you to the imperial palace in your fox form.”
Theodor presented the clearest and simplest solution. Of course, the words that came from his mouth weren’t a pure suggestion.
He had no intention of taking the fox to the imperial palace. First, he planned to reassure the fox with sweet lies and keep it by his side. That way he could sufficiently study the fox’s power. Having promised to grant what it wanted, he now thought he could manipulate the fox as he pleased.
However, before that thought could even finish, the fox’s expression darkened in an instant.
“No.”
The reason the fox wanted to become human wasn’t simply to cross the threshold of the imperial palace. Its true purpose was to seek forgiveness from Adrian. It wanted to convey in human language the feelings it could never express in beast form.
But if Adrian felt disgust upon seeing its humanized self, it would be meaningless. Theodor, who had no way of knowing these inner circumstances, asked.
“Why not?”
“I have to apologize. To Adrian…”
The fox barely continued speaking with clumsy pronunciation.
Apologize to Adrian? Theodor fell into thought for a moment. Had the fox committed some wrongdoing? But from what he could see, the Emperor didn’t seem to harbor anger toward the fox. The Emperor’s nerves were just frayed by the emptiness that came after the fox left his side and the endless sleepless nights.
“Apologize? What apology are you talking about?”
“Umm… I broke it, the honey jar. The papers too…”
The fox muttered while tracing the moments of disaster it had caused. That day when it tore books, shattered the plaster statue to pieces, and spilled the sweet honey jar on the floor. As it recalled the room that had become a complete mess, the fox’s voice gradually grew thinner.
Once speech opened up, words flowed smoothly. Though the pronunciation was clumsy and word order jumbled, Theodor roughly guessed the situation from the fox’s few words. The fox had turned the Emperor’s room into a battlefield and ran away, afraid of being scolded. Like a young child who breaks a glass and hides, afraid of punishment.
‘So that’s why it was wandering outside the palace.’
The puzzle was completely solved in Theodor’s mind. The Emperor hadn’t driven the fox out; the fox itself had run away, afraid of being scolded, afraid the Emperor would be disappointed.
That meant, to the Emperor, this fox was still a ‘cherished beast.’ If it just returned, the Emperor would surely welcome it with open arms.
Then all the more reason I can’t let it go.
The corners of Theodor’s mouth rose slightly. Now that this special fox had rolled in on its own feet, he couldn’t miss this opportunity. The more the Emperor suffered from insomnia, the deeper the curse became, the more solid his position as a priest would be. But if this beast returned to stay by the Emperor’s side and swallowed the curse in his stead? His own position would inevitably narrow.
More than anything, this creature had research value. A magical beast that could absorb curses and transform into a human. If he could discover the source of this power and make it his own, he might gain authority incomparable to merely treating the Emperor’s insomnia.
Theodor nodded with a deliberately serious expression.
“Oh my. You’ve made a big mistake.”
Theodor clicked his tongue and continued.
“To damage the Emperor’s belongings and even spill precious honey. I think I now understand why His Majesty is angry.”
The fox’s face turned noticeably pale.
“Angry?”
“Yes. Do you know how brutal the atmosphere in the imperial palace is right now? The guards have their eyes lit searching for the culprit who messed up the office. On top of that, His Majesty can’t sleep from the sense of betrayal.”
It was a lie. The Emperor couldn’t sleep because the fox wasn’t there to absorb the curse, and the guards were searching not for a culprit but for the missing fox.
But it was an appropriate lie to frighten a beast that knew nothing. As expected, the fox made a tearful face and hung its head. Just moments ago, it had thought there was no way Adrian could be angry, and even if he was, it would be resolved quickly if it sought forgiveness.
But the moment it heard Theodor’s words, anxiety arose that an apology alone wouldn’t be enough to quell his anger. No, before that, Adrian who saw its human form would swing his sword, so it would die without even being able to apologize.
Theodor looked down at the fox that was only fidgeting with its fingers. It looked quite pitiful. He paused, then added in a subtle voice as if offering salvation.
“Of course, if I plead well with His Majesty… he might forgive you.”
The fox’s head shot up. Its watery blue eyes turned toward Theodor filled with hope.
“Really?”
“I can’t guarantee it, but I’ll try.”
The fox’s face brightened again. It believed he would help. How naive. It was quite different from the black-hearted people Theodor had encountered so far. So naive that even he, who had planned to use the fox from the start, felt a slight twinge of conscience.
But that twinge didn’t last long.
“But before that, you need to help me too.”
The fox nodded its head so vigorously its hair flew. Its expression said it would do anything as long as he would appease Adrian’s anger.
“His Majesty suffers from insomnia.”
“Insomnia?”
The fox tilted its head at the unfamiliar word.
“It means he can’t sleep.”
“Can’t sleep? Adrian?”
The fox made an expression of disbelief. Adrian had always slept comfortably by its side. Of course, it had occasionally seen him looking at documents late into the night, but he eventually fell into deep sleep.
“You wouldn’t know because he slept well when with you, but right now His Majesty hasn’t been able to sleep for days and his health has deteriorated.”
The fox’s eyes widened. Health deterioration. It meant Adrian was sick. Its pale face was instantly colored with worry.
“S-sick? Badly?”
“Yes. It’s not an immediately fatal illness, but being unable to sleep is like torture that slowly dries a person to death. His Majesty’s nerves are extremely weakened right now, so he’s greatly agitated even by small stimuli. He probably won’t last long.”
Adrian is sick.
That fact weighed on its chest. When it had been by his side, it had never seen Adrian suffering so painfully. Only the peaceful face with even breathing as he stroked its fur every night remained in its memory. But now he can’t sleep and is wasting away. It couldn’t believe it. It was so worried.
“But you can help.”
The fox’s ears seemed to perk up visibly. Its face, which had been full of worry, brightened slightly as it leaned forward.
“Me?”
How could it treat Adrian’s insomnia? When it couldn’t even distinguish medicinal herbs from poisonous ones.
“His Majesty’s insomnia isn’t a simple illness. It’s caused by a curse.”
“A curse?”
“That’s right. And you have the power to purify that curse.”
The fox’s expression became even more puzzled. I have the power to suppress curses? I had such tremendous power? It was unbelievable. That it, who couldn’t even hunt properly, possessed such power.
To be precise, it wasn’t purifying the curse but absorbing it, but Theodor didn’t explain in detail. Because it was bothersome, and he didn’t feel the need to do so.
“But we don’t know exactly what that power is or how it works. Even you don’t know. If you go blindly, that power might actually harm His Majesty instead. Uncontrolled power is like a blade. So…”
Theodor bent forward and met the fox’s eyes. His gray eyes glistened like a snake.
“You need to first investigate that power with me. What ability you have, how you can safely treat His Majesty. Only after making that certain should you see His Majesty. That way His Majesty will have justification to accept you, won’t he? As a ‘cure.'”
Cure. That word stuck in the fox’s chest. Not simply as a pet, but as someone essential to Adrian. Not a troublemaker fox, but a useful existence that could keep him from hurting.
If it’s that, will Adrian forgive me? Will he hug me affectionately like before?
The fox didn’t ponder further. It nodded vigorously.
“I’ll do it. Anything.”
At the naive answer, the corners of Theodor’s mouth rose faintly. A shadow cast over that peculiar smile.
“Good. A wise choice. Then first, let’s find out about you. Who are you? How did you become human? You don’t seem to be an ordinary fox… are you perhaps a magical beast?”
Theodor poured out questions. He seemed desperate to know the identity of the power the fox possessed.
“I am…”
The fox’s mouth slowly opened. But before it could finish speaking, suddenly black furry ears popped up from atop its head.
