It saw the door opening, but couldn’t stop its body that had already leapt into the air. It squeezed its eyes shut. It braced itself to fall on the cold floor or crash into the hard door. But the expected impact wasn’t felt. Instead, something warm and soft enveloped it. The fox’s eyes flew open.
“…!”
The place the fox had jumped into was none other than that person’s broad embrace.
“I didn’t know you’d welcome me like this.”
A low laugh came from above its head. At that laughter, the fox startled and struggled in his embrace.
This wasn’t what I meant! What did I just do? To think I jumped into the enemy’s arms while trying to escape. And so stupidly at that!
The fox struggled desperately. It flailed its four legs in the air, twisted its body, and thrashed to escape from his embrace. Only then did he set the fox down on the floor. The moment its paws touched the ground, the fox quickly escaped from his feet and hid itself in a corner again.
Now what do I do? The door was open, but he was standing blocking the way. It couldn’t leave.
It should have been despairing at the fact that it was trapped again, but strangely, it felt relief along with fear that he had returned. Perhaps because it was much better than being alone in an unfamiliar room? It didn’t know. In any case, it mustn’t let its guard down.
The fox rolled its eyes, watching for his opening. But as if reading the fox’s thoughts, he closed the door behind him.
No!
The escape route was completely blocked.
Could it reach the door while avoiding that man? How could it open the door and escape? The fox began desperately planning an escape in its head.
Right then, he suddenly held something out.
Thinking it was a weapon to harm it, the fox jumped in shock. But what he held in his right hand wasn’t a sword. It was a strange object of unknown identity with a deep reddish tint.
What is this? Before it could think properly, its nose reacted first. A salty and savory smell. A mouth-watering scent entered through its nose.
“…!”
That was jerky. Very well-dried jerky at that. At that smell, the fox’s tail swished lightly.
“You can eat it.”
He spoke, having cleverly noticed the fox had reacted to the jerky. The words flowing from his mouth were like a heavenly voice tempting the fox.
Can I really eat it? Should I eat it?
Wariness held the fox’s steps, but its hungry gaze was fixed on the dark red piece of jerky hanging from his fingertips.
No, it might be dangerous.
Humans also mixed poison into food and left it as bait to get rid of small mice. That appetizing piece of jerky he was holding must surely be a trap. Humans were cunning. They always led them to death with sweet temptation.
But the craving for the jerky only grew stronger with time.
When was the last time it ate food? A day ago? Two days ago? No, it was a week ago. For a week, it hadn’t eaten proper food, let alone drunk water. It was a miracle it could walk around like this now.
The smell grew stronger. The appetizing scent of the jerky burrowed deep into its nose, making its head dizzy. Its salivary glands were stimulated and saliva pooled in its mouth.
Just one bite… wouldn’t that be okay?
Reason cried out to stop, but hunger blurred reason’s voice.
In the end, instinct overcame reason. The fox approached him very gradually and cautiously, swishing its tail. With each step closer, it watched whether there was any change in his expression. However, no malice could be read. He simply held out the jerky and looked down at it.
Finally, when it reached a distance where his hand could touch it, the fox quickly snatched the jerky hanging from his fingertips as if catching it. Then it dashed back to the corner like an arrow.
From there, it glanced at him again. He just shrugged his shoulders. Only after confirming he had no intention of harming it did the fox finally begin tasting the jerky.
“…!”
The fox’s eyes widened.
The taste spreading in its mouth was shock itself. Salty yet sweet, and the savory oiliness that oozed out the more it chewed was incomparable to anything it had ever eaten. It was on a different level from the sour wild strawberries it ate in the forest or the fishy-smelling fish someone had left behind.
To think such delicious things existed in the world!
“Nom nom nom.”
The fox frantically gnawed at the jerky. Having quickly finished the small piece, the fox raised its head with regret. As if anticipating the fox’s reaction, he was holding another piece of jerky. This one was a bit bigger than before.
“Here.”
Once permission was given, the fox now ran over without hesitation and chomped on the jerky in his hand. It didn’t even care that his finger brushed the bridge of its nose. Happiness filled its mouth. Its tail wagged vigorously without it realizing, flap flap.
“Is it good?”
He asked. That voice seemed to sound much kinder than before. Instead of answering, the fox expressed its feelings by wagging its tail more energetically.
Around the time it finished eating the jerky, he slowly stood up from his spot. Hoping for more, it looked up at him with expectant eyes. But he didn’t take out any more jerky. He just smiled slightly and extended his hand again.
“If you follow me, I’ll give you something even more delicious.”
The fox flinched and stepped back. That hand wasn’t threatening, but it still couldn’t completely let down its guard. It didn’t know when he might suddenly change and grab it.
As if reading the fox’s hesitation, he once again waited patiently. Instead of rushing, he just quietly looked at it, as when he had given it jerky earlier. His golden eyes strangely had the power to calm the heart.
The fox hesitated for a long while, but eventually decided to follow him. Thinking about it, even if it escaped this place, all that awaited was a harsh forest. This place crawling with humans and the forest with terrifying traps everywhere were about the same.
Moreover, if he had really intended to harm it, he would have done so already. Wasn’t there also a saying, ‘There are no bad humans among those who give food’? So what had pierced the scruff of its neck probably wasn’t a harmful tool either, and above all, it intuitively felt he wasn’t a very bad person.
It was a rather simple and naive thought, but having already had its heart and mind completely stolen by the jerky, the fox decided not to worry about anything else anymore.
“That’s right. Good boy.”
He approached the fox and gently wrapped its body with his massive hand. The fox’s body, which had stiffened for a moment, soon relaxed in the warmth felt from his embrace and went limp. His embrace was nice—broad and warm.
He left the room while holding the completely limp fox in his arms. The scenery outside was completely different from before. The long, splendid corridor that had only been frightening now looked like a mysterious and beautiful space while in his embrace. The paintings on the ceiling, the decorations on the walls. Everything was unfamiliar and interesting.
So absorbed in looking around, it didn’t even know when they arrived at the room. Having reached a large door, he set the fox down on the carpet. The fox’s tail swished naturally at the pleasant soft texture touching its paw pads.
“I’ll have them bring some food, so wait just a bit.”
He left the fox in that spot and leaned his body against the sofa backrest. The fox didn’t follow him and watched from a distance.
His movements were careful and relaxed compared to his large build. He didn’t suddenly reach out his hand or make loud noises. It was unfamiliar. All the humans the fox had met until now had either screamed upon seeing the fox or tried to chase it away with a broom or shoe.
Once convinced he wouldn’t pose any threat to it, the fox finally began exploring the new space. It was to check whether there were any other potential dangers.
The atmosphere was different from the room where it had woken earlier. This place was better organized and calmer.
There had been a bookshelf there too, but here was a massive bookshelf that occupied one entire wall, and next to it was a wide desk. On the desk were piles of white paper and slender, elongated objects neatly arranged.
It circled around the desk, sniffing. His smell was strongest here. It seemed he spent all day in this spot. His scent wasn’t bad. It felt calming. It was a scent mixed with soap fragrance, paper smell, and something cool.
Though it still couldn’t completely let its guard down, being in this space wasn’t uncomfortable. No, to be honest… it was rather nice. This place was clean and didn’t seem to have anything dangerous.
After examining every corner of the room, the fox headed toward the window to wait until food came. That place seemed the warmest and safest.
Beyond the glass window, white clouds were slowly drifting by. Each time clouds covered the sun and revealed it again, warm sunlight caressed the fox’s back.
As that warmth permeated its entire body, a yawn suddenly burst out. Its jaw opened, revealing sharp front teeth before they were hidden again. Its stomach was still hungry, but it couldn’t overcome the rushing sleepiness.
It curled its body into a ball near the window. Its eyelids kept drooping. Was it really okay to let its guard down? It was worried, but its consciousness was already sinking into deep darkness.
Just before falling asleep, the fox felt a gaze watching it from somewhere. When it slightly rolled its eyes to look back, it could see golden eyes watching it from afar.
At first, it felt burdensome. But as time passed, it gradually didn’t matter. Rather, it even felt protected. Feeling safe, the fox fell asleep just like that.
