The Fluffy Baby Fox Only Bites the Crazy Villain - Chapter 4

I ran away screaming “Kyaaang!”

I flipped my body and scampered away on the spot. Baddung! Dirt flew up as I kicked the ground.

Moving my short legs diligently, pitter-patter, I dodged between the soldiers. My legs may be short, but my body is small and agile, so this much is easy to escape!

“Catch Cotton ball!”

“Gasp, it’s too cute!”

“Let me hold it just once!”

The soldiers panted heavily, desperate to catch me.

Their eyes were shaking wildly, and some were clutching their chests in pain.

As they reached out to grab me, I nimbly hopped away.

“Ugh, Cotton ball is running.”

“M-my heart hurts too much.”

Just as I was about to leave the training ground, having finally shaken off the soldiers’ pursuit.

Sniff sniff. A delicious smell pricked my nose. I can say with certainty, this is the smell of meat.

I shouldn’t be tempted by the smell of meat now. I needed to escape outside the training ground immediately.

But animal instinct took over. My body was already heading towards the source of the meat smell.

That smell was coming from a plate in the distance.

On the plate was a golden chicken leg, nicely grilled. And Karden was watching me with a sneer, arms crossed.

For a moment, I was caught in a serious existential conflict.

My body is a baby fox, but my soul is 21 years old. In other words, I’m a noble human with reason and patience.

I couldn’t throw away human dignity for mere chicken legs…

Or could I?

I lost my reason and pounced on the chicken leg.

Kyang!

I firmly grasped the chicken leg with my short front paws and gnawed on it with my sharp teeth.

Delicious juices and savory meat spread in my mouth.

Chomp chomp chomp.

Delicious. I’ve never had such tasty meat before.

“Got you, Cotton ball.”

As I was frantically gnawing on the chicken leg, I heard Karden’s voice. It sounded like he was trying hard not to laugh.

Our eyes met. There was an unpleasant smile on Karden’s lips. To me, it looked like the arrogant smile of a victor.

“Krrrung! (Setting a trap with food is unfair!)”

“Don’t be angry. Just eat.”

I hesitated as I was about to eat the chicken.

Dozens of soldiers had already surrounded me, blankly watching.

“Cotton ball eating… how can it be so cute…”

“The tiny thing is nom-nomming, ugh.”

They were whispering towards me, and some were clutching their chests in pain.

Did they all eat something bad? Why are they like this?

“Krrrung! Sniff sniff! (What’s wrong, never seen a fox eat before?)”

I threatened the rude guys, then finished off the chicken cleanly. They say you’ll be punished if you leave food.

After eating the meat cleanly, I opened my small mouth wide and finished with a perfect ‘burp’.

The soldiers burst into laughter.

Really rude and unpleasant people. Whispering and laughing while someone’s eating.

Karden looked satisfied at the plate with only chicken bones left.

“Well done, Cotton ball.”

Karden straightened up and shouted at the murmuring soldiers standing around.

“Since you couldn’t catch Cotton ball, as punishment, run ten laps around the training ground!”

The expressions of the soldiers who had been laughing deflated looks at me instantly turned serious. Surprisingly, no one complained and immediately went to run around the training ground.

Captain Burke approached and bowed his head to Karden.

“I’m ashamed that the new recruits were so slow, Commander.”

“This time, I saw some soldiers with quick movements. Train them specially. They should be able to participate in monster subjugation.”

“I will obey your command.”

Wait, did you deliberately let me escape to test the soldiers’ training?

“Krrrung! (How dare you use me!)”

I bared my teeth and growled. I raised all the hair on my body to show I was angry.

But Karden didn’t seem to care at all.

Rather, Captain Burke swallowed a low groan and stared at me intently.

“Ahem, even when this baby fox is angry, it’s cute to the point of being trivial. Commander, do you intend to raise this fox in the fortress?”

“We’ll have to see how far this one’s abilities go.”

At that moment, Karden’s hand approached me. I flinched and hopped to the side.

Although I had become a baby fox, my soul was an adult.

It was unpleasant and unfamiliar to be casually petted just because I was cute.

Perhaps noticing my feelings, Karden withdrew his hand.

That guy was unnaturally perceptive. As if he understood all my inner thoughts.

Captain Burke observed me curiously.

“Commander, the fox seems quite intelligent. It seems to understand human speech completely.”

“That’s right. It understands everything people say. So watch your words, Burke.”

“Really? Is it perhaps a mutant monster or something like that?”

“I’ll have the magician Ron investigate that. Now, continue the training.”

“Understood. Take care, Commander.”

Karden turned his gaze to me and reached out his hand.

“Let’s go now, Cotton ball.”

Karden still had his hand stretched out to me.

Where are you trying to take me?

I glared at him with eyes full of suspicion, wondering what he was up to.

“Kyaang? (Where are we going?)”

“We’re going to find out your identity.”

Karden calmly informed me as if he understood what I said.

This guy, he’s so different from his character in the original story. In the original, he was described as cold and cruel. And he even understands animal speech well.

They say there are no bad people among those who love animals.

I stared down at Karden’s palm in front of me.

Can I trust him? Can I stay in this castle as he says?

I need to find a way to return to my original world quickly too. I don’t want to live as a fox for the rest of my life and die as prey.

Like the bear in the Dangun myth, could I become human if I only ate mugwort and garlic for 100 days? I really hate garlic though.

T/n: The protagonist’s reference to becoming human by eating mugwort and garlic alludes to the Korean creation myth of Dangun. In this legend, a bear and a tiger both aspire to become human and are given a test by Hwanung, son of the Lord of Heaven. They must stay in a cave for 100 days, consuming only mugwort and garlic. While the tiger gives up, the bear perseveres and transforms into a woman (Ungnyeo) after 21 days. Ungnyeo later marries Hwanung and gives birth to Dangun, the mythical founder of Korea.

While I was seriously pondering these existential questions,

“Cotton ball, don’t lick too much. It tickles.”

“Kyeeng! (Oops!)”

I was so focused on thinking that I had unconsciously been licking Karden’s palm with my tongue, lick lick.

Ah, this is a misunderstanding. It’s just because of animal instinct that I licked it.

I stepped back, startled. Karden chuckled and then gently wrapped my chubby little belly and held me in his arms.

“Let’s go now, Cotton ball.”

I was going to get angry if he grabbed me by the scruff of the neck again, but this time he held me quite comfortably. I’ll let it slide with a broad mind.

***

The magician’s laboratory was in the highest tower of the castle. Karden carried me up the winding stairs and arrived at the top of the tower.

When the door opened, my eyes widened at the scene before me.

There was a large desk in the center, and books, papers, inkwells, and various experimental tools were scattered everywhere.

Along the walls were bookshelves lined with old books and specimens of creatures I had never seen before.

When Karden put me down on the floor, I sniffed around here and there, tapping things with my front paws.

Becoming a baby fox made me even more curious. When I see something new and unfamiliar, I feel like jumping around thinking ‘How interesting, thrilling, novel!’

My tail was already spinning like a helicopter.

It’s embarrassing, but what can I do if I can’t stop it?

“You, stay still.”

Karden picked me up.

The exploration had just begun! As I squirmed to get out of his hands, he whispered in an ominous voice.

“There are many dangerous artifacts in the magician’s laboratory. If you touch the wrong thing, you might be cursed and turn into a frog.”

“Kyaang? (Really?)”

As I flinched and my eyes widened, Karden turned his head.

Heh. I heard the sound of laughter escaping between his lips.

“Kaaang! (You’re teasing me!)”

Angry, I hit his broad chest with my front paws. But my white rice cake paws couldn’t make any impact.

Rather, Karden’s chest muscles were so hard that my paws hurt.

“Hitting me will only hurt your paws.”

As I was huffing at him mocking me, my nostrils twitched. An unpleasant smell wafted in.

In one corner of the room was a brazier with a fire burning. Above it, a purple liquid was bubbling in a triangular glass bottle.

“Kyeuung. (The smell is terrible.)”

Becoming a fox, I could distinguish people or objects by smell or scent alone. My nose had become so sensitive that even a brief whiff of a bad smell made me feel unwell.

I tried to cover my pointed nose with my short paws, but of course, I couldn’t reach it.

I squirmed, curling my whole body into a ball to try to cover my nose.

As I was whimpering alone, Karden took out a snow-white handkerchief from the inside pocket of his uniform.

A crazy Grand Duke carrying around a girlish handkerchief doesn’t suit him at all.

“Bear with it for a moment.”

Karden lightly covered my pointed nose with the handkerchief. The handkerchief had a fresh and tangy citrus scent.

Ah… This is Karden’s body scent.