SAFBIAN Ch 63

Chapter 63

‘Why is that?’

It wasn’t like he meant any harm—in fact, he even seemed to harbor some fondness toward me—yet, for some reason, my tail fur bristled.

Dori licked his nose nervously and looked around the quiet surroundings once more. Perhaps it was just his imagination, but the once-comforting place suddenly felt eerie.

Then, a voice laced with amusement reached him.

“Whoever you’re looking for, this path doesn’t see much foot traffic.”

“……”

“Where were you headed? I’m not in a hurry, so I can show you the way.”

“……”

Dori flicked his tongue.

Was Yungak asking such a question because he really thought what he was seeing was just a fox?

Where was he going, he asked. If he could answer that, he wouldn’t be just an ordinary fox anymore… Still, seeing how he offered help so readily, he didn’t seem like a bad person.

‘Well, even if their personalities changed to some degree, they all still resembled their original versions.’

Wonwoo, who had grown obsessive and wanted to claim a mate bond with him, was the one who got “Dori” exiled from the red fox village. Haewon, who took charge of Dori’s daily care in addition to medical treatment, played the role of helping “Dori” escape from the imperial palace. Even if things had deviated slightly from the original work, the essence remained the same.

‘People who are kind to animals are supposed to be good people.’

Dori lowered his guard just a bit.

“Hmm… if not that, how about my quarters? We could have a pleasant little chat.”

But the moment Yungak took a step forward, the fox’s pupils slitted sharply.

‘Someone… is coming?’

The ever-alert fox’s ears twitched upright.

Yungak had said people didn’t often pass through this path. Could someone be looking for him? The tips of his ears flinched, as if trying to confirm.

The sound was very faint. He hadn’t noticed it earlier because he’d been too distracted by Yungak.

‘I should head back for now.’

If they really had come looking for him because he was missing, then word would surely reach Haban. The imperial palace was vast anyway, and finding the escape hole today seemed unlikely.

“Hey! You there!”

Dori turned on his heel and bolted. He shot off toward the quarters like an arrow, tail streaming behind him as he ignored Yungak’s call completely.

The next day, Dori felt much more at ease.

Yesterday had been his first time wandering the palace alone, so he had been incredibly cautious and afraid. He’d even wondered whether Haban had sent someone to catch him for disappearing—but it turned out it was just a passing palace worker, and nothing had happened.

In fact, Haewon had been startled just seeing him run in so suddenly.

And then—

‘Fox… what do I do… I’m doomed. I failed my test for the first time ever…’

Tsk tsk.

So that’s why Haewon had been gone for so long. It had been exam time.

‘Didn’t he say failing meant he couldn’t advance to the next rank?’

He looked so unusually dejected that Dori quietly patted his back. Though with his small fox paw, it looked more like a gentle poking.

In any case, Haewon declared he would be devoting all his time to studying for now, aside from taking care of Dori. That meant no more walks together. Still, he was determined to pass the test as soon as possible.

‘It’d be best to hear the location of the hole from him directly, but oh well.’

With a more confident stride than yesterday, Dori stepped outside. Instead of waiting idly for Haewon to pass his test, he thought it’d be better if he searched the palace himself—maybe he’d find the hole sooner.

‘Let’s start with a loop around this area.’

The building he’d been staying in, and the walled-off compound around it, belonged to the emperor. In the original story, “Dori” had only been trapped within this area, so the escape hole was likely nearby.

‘A big rock and a tree. A big rock and a tree…’

Dori recalled what Haewon had said.

In the original story, “Dori” had been carrying a basket of herbs when he ran into a soldier. Which meant it had been a place close enough to avoid detection—so, not far from the emperor’s palace.

Swish, swish.

The fox’s tail swayed with uncontainable excitement as he walked along the wall.

‘…This is unexpected.’

But much later, once he returned to his starting point, Dori let out a big sigh. He’d expected the quarters where Haban lived to be quite large, but even completing a single loop had taken a while.

‘…Nothing is ever easy.’

The fox blinked. His golden eyes were veiled for a moment by his eyelids, then revealed again. The guard stationed at the gate screamed internally.

‘That adorable little guy!’

The white fox, hidden away deep in the emperor’s palace, was even lovelier than imagined. His snowy, fluffy fur was so tempting that the guard’s palms itched to pet it.

No wonder. Those who had gone to the hunting grounds and captured the fox had all clammed up afterwards.

‘Tch, ha… If only it weren’t His Majesty’s order.’

There had been a strict command not to pay attention to the fox or acknowledge its presence, no matter what it did.

The guard wondered if he could sneak in a pet when no one was looking. It wasn’t like the fox could talk and report him.

‘Gasp!’

But from afar, he felt a sharp gaze on him. Someone was silently trailing the fox.

Yes, no matter how cute it was, it wasn’t worth risking his career in the palace. The guard quickly rolled his eyes away from the fox.

Meanwhile, the fox was trotting off somewhere again.

‘Hmm… let’s start with that side.’

Dori decided to investigate the building to the right of Haban’s quarters first, for ease of memory. He planned to search each place one by one.

‘Phew…’

After walking some more, Dori sat for a while beneath the eaves of a building.

The inner court that Haban had mentioned was massive. Dori didn’t know exactly where it started or ended, but red cords had been tied to certain doors, as if to silently warn him not to go any further.

‘Finding the hole… might take longer than I thought.’

Dori’s expression turned serious.

Just then—clang!

A sharp, ringing sound echoed. The sound of swords clashing.

‘What, what was that!’

The fox sprang to his hind legs, alert.

‘There’s no way assassins would’ve infiltrated the palace, so where is that sound coming from?’

Could Haban… be in danger?

The thought no sooner crossed his mind than he took off toward the sound. His ears perked straight up and his tail swayed wildly.

‘…Huh?’

But the scene he arrived at wasn’t what he expected. Dori quickly hid in the bushes after spotting many people sitting with their backs turned.

A large, open courtyard. Weapons neatly lined up on one side.

Clang!

Two swords met at the center. The pair exchanged fierce, violent blows.

Watching them were the captain of the imperial guards, Jipyeong, and Haban in his blue robes.

This was the training ground where the palace guards sparred.

Whoa. Dori’s jaw slowly dropped.

“Stop.”

The match had become so intense it was hard to determine the victor, so Haban raised his hand to halt it. The blades, which had seemed ready to strike true at any moment, dropped without hesitation at his word.

Haban paused and looked toward a spot.

Amid the thick green brush, a sliver of white fur—ear and tail—peeked out. Anyone else might not have noticed, but Haban had been aware of the fox’s presence since the moment it arrived.

‘I thought it would run off right away at the noise.’

But contrary to expectations, the fox was quietly observing. A faint smile touched Haban’s relaxed lips.

Gasp!

The guards sucked in a breath.

“H-His Majesty smiled…!”

“Did we do something wrong again?”

“I don’t know. But one thing’s clear—we’re dead.”

As the emperor’s guards, they were currently stationed here because they had let assassins ambush Haban during an escort mission and endangered his life.

It wasn’t an official punishment, but a grueling training session had been arranged. They’d mentally prepared for the ordeal, but seeing Haban smile while watching their sparring?

Yeah, they were definitely in trouble.

All the guards had the same thought.

Only Jipyeong, standing beyond the line of seated guards, noticed the shadowy presence guarding the fox and suspected the reason behind Haban’s mood had something to do with the fox again.

“You seem to be in good spirits today,” Jipyeong grumbled, selecting a sword from the pile and giving his wrist a little twist. The blade gleamed red in the setting sun.

“You don’t seem to be.”

Haban casually picked up a sword of his own. Any one would do—it didn’t matter.

“Sir! I feel like I’m going to die from obeying Your Majesty’s orders! He’s not even a wildcat cub, but when I brought him water because he looked hot, he scratched the back of my hand. Then he leaned against me like he was drowsy, so I told him to go sleep if he was tired—he glared at me and stayed up all night! Which meant I couldn’t sleep either. And then, he called me stupid!”

“……”

“The consort’s personality is getting worse by the day. I truly wonder what kind of woman could ever handle him.”

“…Did you say that to the Prime Minister, too?”

“…Excuse me?”

“Forget it. Let’s begin.”

Clang!

The moment Haban finished speaking, his blade surged forward. Jipyeong, who had been venting mere seconds ago, blocked the strike and instantly launched a counterattack.

“Some guard you are, relying more and more on cheap tricks.”

“When facing Your Majesty, I have to resort to them.”

Before Haban could even take a stance, the sparring resumed with a flurry of attacks.

‘So cool!’

Dori covered his mouth in awe.

That sword looked heavy and unwieldy even just holding it—but Haban wielded it freely. It flowed like water, gracefully shifting direction, then suddenly lunging to strike.

Drawn in by something, Dori slowly walked forward.

And then, at that moment—