Chapter 122

‘…Are they fighting?’

Though he didn’t know the situation, Haban seemed to be angry about something, while Jipyeong stood before him with his head deeply bowed.

Curiosity stirred in Dori, making his feet itch to move. Unfortunately, he couldn’t hear the conversation from here, and it would have been nice if he could get closer. Then he would be able to find out what the two were talking about.

However, if he approached any nearer, not only Haban and Jipyeong but also one of the guards stationed around them would likely notice. So, though reluctant, Dori decided to be content with this distance for now.

‘…Huh?’

Just then, Haban suddenly turned his body. Even though their eyes didn’t meet, Dori was startled.

Immediately, Jipyeong stepped in to block Haban’s way, and after a brief scuffle, the number of torches increased. Among them, the movement with five torches gathered together was Haban.

‘Black clothes…’

Dori muttered to himself.

Perhaps because he had run into vicious, murderous assassins in the hut earlier, seeing people in black clothing surrounding Haban made him instinctively tense up.

‘I don’t know who they are.’

Strangely enough, in the original story,* Dori couldn’t recall the part where “Dori” got shot with an arrow.

The embarrassing scenes of the novel were vividly imprinted in his mind as though he had experienced them himself, yet the truly important scenes were as hazy as if covered in fog.

Which only meant he had to be even more careful.

Nervous, Dori stuck out his tongue and licked his nose.

The riders they had heard earlier were all dressed in black. Their outfits were different from the soldiers standing behind Jipyeong.

They were Sal (殺)—the “Shadow” of the Emperor.¹ They must have stayed behind to guard Haban while the search party scoured the mountain. But once Haban joined the search party, they too became part of the group.

‘Are they insane? Do they plan to burn down the whole mountain?’

Before he knew it, preparations to depart were complete. Seeing the force nearly doubled in size made Dori’s eyes widen in alarm.

Surely they weren’t going to burn this mountain and its village instead of the Red Fox Village that had burned in the original story? The thought of even minor things being influenced by the original now terrified him.

‘For now, I’ll try to change things as much as possible.’

He still didn’t know the exact situation, but now was not the time to run into Haban. Since the original story had brought Haban here toward him, he needed to observe a while longer.

Time had already twisted once. As long as he didn’t get caught and dragged into that house, he still had a chance.

‘If I can just survive and get past the final scene, I should be able to return safely to the Imperial Palace with Haban.’

The moment that thought came to mind, Dori’s mouth parted slightly.

The Imperial Palace—

When had his resolve so naturally shifted into a determination to live together with Haban after everything was resolved?

Really, when had it?

On top of that, despite having many worries, he felt a strange sense of reassurance. From the moment he had bolted out of the hut, to spending a night hiding in a cave, to fleeing here—it had been one tense moment after another, plagued by cold and hunger. Yet knowing that Haban was somewhere out there was enough to calm him. An unfounded confidence bloomed, telling him that somehow things would work out.

‘Oh—he’s coming!’

The key was not to get caught.

Having bolted first, Dori, from far enough away that even the tips of his tail fur wouldn’t be spotted, slit his pupils vertically.

The soldiers who had returned into the mountain were busy searching for him. At the front was Haban. Of course, he was too far to see clearly, but Dori confirmed his presence by counting the number of torches.

‘…Idiot.’

Dori felt a twinge of disappointment.

If Haban’s martial skills had been just a little less sharp, Dori could have admired him from closer by. But recalling the range at which Haban had loosed his arrows when they first met, he couldn’t afford to be careless.

The search party spread out widely, combing through every area. In the pitch-black of night, they focused so hard on their search that the torches moved slowly.

Matching the direction in which the cluster of five torches—Haban—was moving, Dori padded along with light todok, todok² sounds. He felt almost as if they were strolling together through the Imperial Palace gardens, side by side.

He really should stop dawdling and leave, but he couldn’t shake off the lingering reluctance.

‘Ah!’

He almost stepped on it.

Dori glared at the string forming a circle on the ground. In its center sat a plate piled with yakgwa³.

…Obviously a trap.

For a moment, he wondered if the villagers had set it. But who would use yakgwa to catch wild animals? On top of that, the plate was double-layered, with water in the outer plate—probably to keep insects away.

‘Do they take me for a fool!’

Pfft! Dori snorted silently.

They had gone through all this trouble to prepare bait, but the trap meant to catch him was this pathetic?

‘This is clearly Jipyeong’s doing!’

If it were Geumhu, he wouldn’t use such a method even if Dori were in fox form—he’d remember what Dori looked like as a human.

Sure, the soldiers might not know that beastmen could transform into humans, but Jipyeong did. Yet he still used such a shoddy trap. Just how much did he underestimate him!

Hhhss!

Dori bared his fangs in silence.

Either way, this confirmed that the search would reach this point. Fine—let them try to catch him if they could!

His goal was to end things differently from the original and ensure “Dori” found happiness.

Which meant he could not die here.

Plop, plop.

Each time Dori leapt over roots and rocks, his fluffy white tail bounced, almost taunting his pursuers.

The pitch-dark sky had already begun to lighten. The urgency of finding Dori at all costs had made the passing of time go unnoticed.

It had been four days since they had failed to return to the Imperial Palace.

With Yungak disappearing midway, finding Dori had become just as important as capturing him.

“Your Majesty, a moment.”

While Haban was searching the mountain, Jipyeong, who had just received something, approached him.

In his hand was a small note, and his expression was grim. It seemed to be news from the Sal (殺) searching the treacherous mountain behind the Imperial Palace.

A bad feeling twisted in Haban’s gut.

He snatched the note from Jipyeong’s hand and unfolded it.

“…!”

The moment he read it, his heart sank.

The note said they had found a sack believed to have been used to transport the white fox, but it was empty. However, fox fur was scattered around it, along with bloodstains that looked several days old.

Could something have gone wrong?

For a moment, a horrific thought gripped Haban.

‘…No, impossible.’

Yungak had been heading this way before disappearing. His destination had been the Imperial Palace. So, no matter how unclear his movements had been afterward, it wasn’t possible given the timing.

Besides, if they had intended to dispose of the fox so easily, they wouldn’t have stolen it alive under the strict order not to let even a hair be harmed.

Even so, the unease wouldn’t go away.

Looking at the worried Jipyeong, Haban growled sharply.

“When did this arrive?”

“Just now, as soon as they discovered the place.”

“I’ll go confirm it myself.”

With Yungak’s trail impossible to follow for now, Dori’s safety was the highest priority. Haban felt as if the ground under his feet might crumble.

When the Emperor turned around, the soldiers searching nearby hesitated for a moment.

“No need to stop. Keep going.”

No—it couldn’t be.

Clinging to the hope that he could still meet Dori, Haban ordered them to continue searching for the white fox and turned away. Jipyeong quickly followed behind.

Having decided to stay hidden for now in order to figure out a way to twist the original story, Dori first searched for a place in the mountain to spend the night.

It had to be somewhere not too far from the village, with a clean stream nearby, and from which he could flee quickly in any direction.

Fortunately, he found a good spot beside a large rock, with soft soil that provided good cover.

Pah-pak, pah-babak.

Digging into the soft ground with his forepaws and kicking the dirt away with his hind legs, Dori made himself a small burrow and let out a sigh of relief.

‘Who knew trying to escape from the Imperial Palace would come in handy like this?’

Really, you never knew how life—or fox life—would turn out.

‘How long will I have to hide here?’

For now, there was no other choice.

So, he spent his nights tucked in the makeshift burrow, slipping out at dawn to quietly nibble on wild fruits. Luckily, the area was abundant with food.

It was while he was sneaking closer from time to time to check on Haban’s situation that—

‘Why are they so noisy?’

Dori tilted his head.

With his mouth still stained red from gorging on bright berries, the fox awkwardly rose to his feet.

At that moment, Haban mounted his horse. With a short cry of “Hyah!” the horse began to gallop.

‘Huh? He’s leaving?’

…Already?

Dori’s golden eyes quivered faintly.

Once Haban was gone, it would be much easier to approach Jipyeong. He wouldn’t even need to go through the trouble of getting clothes to find Jipyeong’s house.

He knew that, and yet—he still felt a pang of sadness.

Before he knew it, Dori was standing on his hind legs, blankly watching, just to see Haban a little longer.

And that was when Jipyeong spotted him.

The triangular fox ears, the long and luxuriously swaying tail, and above all, the pure white head poking out from the grass—

It was unmistakably the white fox.

Jipyeong panicked.

“Y-Your Majesty! Wait! Please wait! The fox—the white fox! Look behind you!”

Startled by the shout, Dori flinched. But he thought there was no way Haban, already galloping that far ahead, would hear it.

Yet in that instant, Haban yanked on the reins and turned around—

And their golden eyes met, wide and round in shock.

¹ Sal (殺) – Literally “kill,” but here it refers to an elite imperial shadow corps, the Emperor’s covert operatives, functioning as assassins, bodyguards, and intelligence agents.

² Todok, todok – Onomatopoeia in Korean for the soft, light sound of footsteps, especially small animal paws.

³ Yakgwa – A traditional Korean honey pastry made with wheat flour, sesame oil, and honey or syrup, often served as a ceremonial sweet.