Chapter 10

"Hmm. We've come this far. It's time for a break."

Kuuna walked over to where I and Anne were.

She had been studying using the reference book I created to solve the past questions she got wrong yesterday. From the look on her face, it seemed she had understood and mastered the material.

Anne had just finished her second bowl of gruel.

"It was delicious. Thank you for taking care of me, arranging a place to stay, and everything else."

Anne bowed her head. I had expected her to be difficult to handle since she was a former noble, but she seemed to have a rather honest personality.

"You don't need to thank me. I received money from Kuuna and examined you as a doctor. The money for the room, the gruel you ate, and the clothes you changed into—all of it was Kuuna's money. Thank Kuuna."

"Is that true, Kuuna?"

"It's true. For a friend, I can be generous with this much."

"Still, it's all borrowed money, and I'm the one who fronted it. If you can't pay it back, you promised to let me pet your tail."

When I said this jokingly, Kuuna puffed out her cheeks and spoke.

"Soji, I'll definitely pay it back soon! I won't let you like my tail! ... But I will thank you for helping Anne. Thank you."

For some reason, Anne's face turned pale, and she lost her words. The pale and trembling Anne slowly opened her mouth.

"To offer the petting of a fire fox's tail as a condition, how cruel."

"Huh? It's just a tail, right?"

I was surprised by Anne's exaggerated reaction.

"Soji, do you perhaps not know what a tail means to a fire fox?"

I shook my head.

"To a fire fox, a tail is the second most important thing after life. Only family and partners are allowed to touch it. Anyone else can only pet it if they have pledged absolute obedience."

"That's right. A tail is life. I won't let anyone touch it until my destined one appears and takes it."

Kuuna turned her back to me and wagged her tail demonstratively. Irritated, I slowly reached out, and she let out a "hi!" and jumped away, hugging her tail and glaring at me with teary eyes.

Indeed, a tail is life, it seems.

"Kuuna, that was your fault. If you wave it in front of someone, any man would want to grab it."

"That's true. I was rash."

"Exactly!"

I couldn't help but point it out. My desire to pet her tail was purely out of a sense of affection, not lust.

"Kuuna, I'm sorry. When I said 'pet,' I didn't mean it in that way. It's more like wanting to pet someone's head. If I had known, I wouldn't have said it."

I was scared of my past words and actions. Surely, to Kuuna, the condition of petting her tail if she couldn't pay back the debt sounded like becoming a sex slave if she couldn't pay.

"Really? I thought it was a proposal to make me your wife if I couldn't pay back the debt. I thought you were such a despicable and cowardly person to get your hands on the cute Kuuna."

"Is that what you thought?"

Indeed, if the rule is that only family and partners can touch a tail, it could be interpreted that way.

But, it's better than being seen as a dangerous person who would make her a sex slave. I remembered Kuuna from when we met in a game. She used to let me pet her tail and often said...

"You can do whatever you want with me if I'm dirty enough. I have nothing left to protect. I have nothing, nothing left."

Thinking back now, it had a very heavy meaning. I wanted to apologize to the old Kuuna.

"So, it was a misunderstanding. I almost cut you down to save Kuuna from the devil's hands."

"Technically, you're my benefactor, and Anne's too, so please don't cut Soji down."

The thought processes of these two are disturbing and scary.

"Soji, do you think this will cover Kuuna's debt? It's the last thing I took from the mansion. From my experience, I think it's worth ten thousand bal."

Anne took a ring from the pocket of her clothes, which she had washed and left by the bed, and handed it to me.

"From your experience?"

"Yes, during my travels, I sold gems I took from the mansion to fund my journey. This is the last one. It was a keepsake from my mother, so I couldn't sell it. In the end, I collapsed from hunger. If I hadn't collapsed in front of you, I would be... I feel so foolish. That's why I decided to use it here as a reminder."

I looked at the ring she handed me. It was a platinum ring with a blue sapphire. The craftsmanship was excellent, not overly assertive but enhancing the sapphire's charm while still having a presence.

"From your experience, you said ten thousand bal. Were the other gems you took much lower in value?"

"No, they were all of the same quality."

I almost gasped. This girl... she's incredibly naive.

"I can't accept this. The value doesn't match."

"Yes, the people before said ten thousand bal was a fair price."

Anne sighed deeply. She must be disappointed to learn that her mother's keepsake was only worth that much.

"No, the opposite."

"The opposite?"

"The fair price is eight million bal. The inn and medical expenses are around five thousand bal. I can't accept this, and even if I gave change, I can't prepare seven million nine hundred and fifty thousand bal."

"Really? Then the people who bought it from me before?"

"Yeah, they were really overcharging. They took advantage of a naive lady in a desperate situation."

"... Ha ha, how foolish. To waste the last of my father's wealth like this, I want to kill myself."

It's typical of her to blame herself rather than the merchants who deceived her.

"But you're a good person. If you had taken it without saying anything, you could have made eight million bal."

"Because you're a friend of a friend."

"... A friend?"

Kuuna pointed to herself and tilted her head.

"Kuuna... that reaction hurts. I enjoyed being with you."

Indeed, we only spent about two days together, but they were dense days.

"Wait a moment. Let me think. The gratitude for trying to help me, the resentment for blocking my entry into town, the gratitude for teaching me, the resentment for losing all my wealth, the resentment for being told I'd have to marry if I couldn't pay back the debt, the gratitude for helping Anne... the joy of being together. And the good cooking."

She muttered about everything that had happened.

"You're a friend. Soji is my friend. From now on, we'll be good."

Kuuna extended her hand for a handshake, and I shook it back.

"I'm envious. To say that."

"... Then, let's be friends. I like Anne's personality. Plus, you're Kuuna's friend. I want to be friends."

"Thank you. You're the first friend I've made since I left Oukreille. From now on, call me Anne, and close friends call me that."

She smiled like a child.