Chapter 26

Today, I am in the capital city.

I have come to meet the human king.

To protect me, my mother wanted to keep my existence hidden, but after the incident the other day, she seems to have changed her mind. The one-eyed knights must have reported about me to their lord, the king, so she decided to take the initiative before they started prying.

She introduced me to the king and said things like, "If anything happens to this child, I don't know what actions I might take," and "Please make sure to convey this to the humans as well," firmly driving the point home.

I, being a timid person, was inwardly nervous as I heard my mother speak in a commanding tone to the king. I don't know if the kings are used to it or if my mother is actually more powerful, but they didn't get angry, and I heaved a sigh of relief.

"But what a charming child."

The king smiled and looked at me.

My mother and I were led to a spacious and luxurious room, like a reception hall, where we sat on elegant sofas surrounded by delicate, elegant, and slightly ostentatious furnishings, facing the royal family. The people present were the king, the queen, and the eldest prince. The prince is already an adult, and the king and queen are probably in their fifties. They all have golden, sparkling hair, which makes them look very regal.

"Indeed. Just looking at her is soothing."

"Her fur must feel wonderful too."

The queen and the prince also said, one after another.

Since the moment we met, they had been subtly giving off a "want to pet" aura, but I didn't move, sliding my body halfway between my mother's and the back of the chair. No, I couldn't move. It's impossible not to be nervous in front of the royal family. In my previous life, I was just a little girl.

The king and queen, sitting opposite us, leaned their bodies slightly to try to see me, who was hiding behind my mother. Incidentally, the guards standing behind them also leaned slightly, which was a bit amusing.

"However, I seem to have been born in a very good era. It's not often that one gets to see a young spirit, especially two children of snow and fire."

The prince said, turning to the queen and encouraging her to agree.

"Fire child?"

I couldn't help but speak out at the intriguing word, and everyone on the opposite side suddenly turned their gaze back to me. Since this was the first time I had spoken, I was trembling, thinking I had surprised them, but the queen praised me, saying, "You can already speak! What a lovely voice."

"Didn't you hear from Snowlea? In the south of this country, there is a spirit of fire, and he also has a child. He is about half a year older than Milfia."

The prince explained with a smile.

A spirit of fire? A child around my age? I didn't know about it at all.

When I peeked at my mother's face, she looked a bit unhappy. Does she not like the spirit of fire very much?

"Let's stop talking about this. As the saying goes, 'If you speak ill of someone, they will appear.' What if he shows up?"

Ah, she really doesn't like him.

The king smiled wryly at my mother but, glancing at the window, said with a troubled smile,

"It seems it's already too late."

I turned my face in the direction he pointed. There, a bright red ball of fire was floating, and I involuntarily bristled with fear. For a moment, I thought it was a ghost, but the fireball flared up, elongated, and swirled, expanding into a large shape.

In the next instant, the fire disappeared, and in its place stood a man with brown skin.

Burning red hair, crimson eyes. From the flow of the conversation, he must be the spirit of fire.

He was bare-chested, with tattoos spreading from his collarbone to both arms, and he wore gold ornaments around his neck and wrists. He had loose trousers cinched at the ankles and a loincloth with embroidery. He looked a bit like Aladdin.

My mother was wearing a kimono, but he had no Japanese elements. Spirits come in various forms, I guess.

"Isn't that Snowlea! It's been a long time!"

The large spirit of fire raised his hand and showed a friendly smile. His shining white teeth were beautiful.

I thought the spirit of fire would be more self-centered, but he seemed very friendly. However, I also felt that he might be uncontrollable if he got angry, and he seemed a bit too enthusiastic for a first meeting. And his voice was loud.

"Stay away from me."

The spirit of fire approached very familiarly, but my mother, holding me, hastily stood up, unusually sweating.

"I've been saying for ages to be careful about getting too close! We are weak against your 'aura.' Being near you makes me feel like I'm melting."

She glared at him.

I calmed down a bit and tried to sense the spirit of fire's 'aura.' Indeed, it was a bit... too much for us. It felt like heat was emanating from his body. It was hot, and I started to feel a bit lethargic.

"Sorry, sorry! But you don't have to avoid me so much! I'm not used to your 'aura' either, but I don't dislike it that much!"

The spirit of fire laughed heartily, and a wave of heat hit us again. Ah, I'm melting! My mother and I huddled together to endure it. The human king and queen didn't seem particularly affected, so they must not be as sensitive as we are.

The spirit of fire... I can understand why my mother wants to avoid him.

It's not just a matter of incompatibility. For example, if you bring fire and snow close together, which one will disappear first? It's probably the snow. The snow will likely turn into water before the fire goes out. Even if the water eventually extinguishes the fire, it's the water that wins, not the snow.

So, fire and snow are not on equal terms. Fire is stronger.

"Oh, by the way, that small one..."

The spirit of fire, who had been smiling, tilted his head slightly and peered curiously into my mother's arms.

My mother tightened her embrace to shield me from his gaze.

"She's my child! Stay away!"

"Child? I didn't know you had a child!"

"I just said it now. Stay away, I say!"

"You smell of water. Why didn't you tell me sooner? From her size, she must be at least a year old. Is she a child of 'water'? You refused to have a child with me!"

"Of course! The thought of mating with you is unimaginable. You're too hot!"

"Gentlemen, please, not in front of the child..."

The king made a reasonable point. Actually, I don't really know how spirits have children. From the conversation, it seems they might do something similar to humans. And, do I even have a father?

"Oh, right! This is not a conversation for a child to hear."

The spirit of fire laughed again, showing his white teeth, and looked down at his feet. I followed his gaze.

—And there, I saw a small, black lump, which I couldn't help but stare at.

"How delightful! What a wonderful day. To see two adorable spirit children together!"

The queen clapped her hands in joy.

Another spirit child besides me...

"Rrrr..."

The black lump turned out to be an animal resembling a black panther. Its body, wrapped in glossy black fur, had a round shape typical of a child, and its size was almost the same as mine. However, its thick, sturdy limbs hinted at future growth.

A small red flame flickered at the tip of its long, thin tail, exuding a fiery aura. Is it not hot for him?

This was the first time I had seen another spirit child, and my impression could be summed up in one word.

"Wow, cute."

I couldn't help but say it out loud. A small black panther is bound to be cute. All children are cute, but I personally find the young of large carnivores especially adorable.

However, my comment seemed amusing to the spirit of fire, who laughed and said,

"You're cute too, apparently."

The king and queen also laughed. It is indeed a bit funny for a child to call another child "cute."

But as spirit children who don't age, I wanted to become friends with that child and jumped out of my mother's arms.

"Hey, Mil!"

"That's fine. It's good for children to get along."

"But..."

My mother looked worried, but after being reprimanded by the spirit of fire, she decided to watch for now.

As I approached the small black panther at the feet of the father, I could feel the intense gazes of everyone around me. My mother was the only one who looked anxious; the others— the spirit of fire, the king and queen, and the guards—seemed excited and eager to see what would happen.

If I saw a child fox and a black panther about to interact, I would definitely observe, expecting a cute and endearing scene.

To show that I had no hostile intentions, I approached the child, gently wagging my tail. I had to get closer to the spirit of fire as well, which was a bit hot, but I endured it. The child, hidden behind his father's legs, glared at me and growled, his eyes red like flames.

"Kugaru, you're a boy, right? It's not dignified to threaten a younger girl!"

Reprimanded by his father, Kugaru stopped growling. As I had expected, he was a boy. I would have preferred a girl friend, but it's okay.

"Threatening is something the weak do, right?"

"I'm not weak!"

Kugaru raised his voice to deny his father's words, revealing fangs thicker than mine.

The small black panther, determined, wagged his tail from side to side— the flame at the tip flickering but not going out— and stepped forward. His eyes were slightly higher than mine.

As a spirit of fire, he seemed to emit heat, but being a child, it was weaker than his father's, which was a bit reassuring.

"Hey, you!"

His tone was intimidating, but his speech was still a bit slurred, so it lacked impact.

"I'm not weak!"

He declared with a snort, but I didn't think of him as either weak or strong. I just thought his small, thick legs were cute. Are his paw pads black too? Can you show me?

"I'm strong! Watch this—"

As Kugaru lowered his stance, I had a bad feeling.

And as expected, he pounced on me. Kicking off the ground, he leaped and closed the distance in an instant. I didn't have time to escape and was pinned down, letting out a pitiful cry, "Kyaa!"

"Milfia!"

"Kugaru!"

But the feeling of Kugaru's weight on me was brief, and we were quickly separated. Kugaru was lifted roughly by his father, who grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, and I was in my mother's cool arms. The king and queen, along with the guards, had also leaned forward to help, but my mother and the spirit of fire were faster.

"Kugaru! You foolish child! What is a spirit doing trying to show off their power!"

The spirit of fire scolded his son, and my mother retorted,

"Hmph, who are you to say that? A battle-loving, competitive spirit. Your son takes after you."

"Ugh... But I don't raise my hand against the weak."

The spirit of fire mumbled, which was a bit cute. I wonder what he would look like as a beast. A large black panther would be cool, I bet.

Held by his father, Kugaru, who didn't seem to be reflecting, was focused on something else.

"Father, put me down. That one smelled good. I want to smell it again."

Is the talk about being strong or weak over? Kugaru, thrashing about, couldn't escape his father's grip. "No way!" he was firmly told.

I shrank in my mother's arms, frozen. I'll wait until Kugaru grows up and becomes more mentally stable before trying to be friends with him, yeah.

"You will not let your child near my dear Milfia again."

My mother said, her eyebrows raised.

The spirit of fire looked troubled, lowering his eyebrows.

"Well, I'll teach him to be gentle with girls. But after that, it's fine to let them meet. There are no other spirit children their age, and they might become mates in the future."

"There is no such possibility! Don't say such terrifying things!"

My mother turned pale and argued. I don't really understand what "mates" means, but it sounds like becoming lovers or spouses. I think it's a bit premature.

But I'm glad my mother opposed it. At one year old, I almost ended up with a slightly violent fiancé.

Kugaru, still held by his father, continued to glare at me with his red eyes and repeat his strange request to "smell" me. It's a good thing he's a cute black panther. If he were an adult, I would have reported him without hesitation.

That day, my mother soon said, "I'm going back. It's too hot," and we returned to our snowy home. But a few days later, Kugaru appeared there using a teleportation technique.

He pounced on me and sniffed my body thoroughly— which sounds a bit perverted, but since I'm a fox cub and he's a small black panther, it's not at all erotic. To be honest, it was just cute— and left with a satisfied look, leaving me in a daze.

What was that all about?

A pervert?