[ Mystery Box ]
Number 777, which exchanges for a random item equivalent to the ‘value’ put into the box.
“… Fangs need to be processed to increase their rating. Let’s set these aside. The rest can go into the Mystery Box.”
Tomorrow marks the first sale of ‘Snowflake Fruit’.
If he could earn enough money, he could afford to use the Mysterious Box properly.
“All done.”
Ian had finished organizing the loot he had obtained from the hidden dungeon “Ruined Temple” and looked around the room.
This was the room of the Dessert Research Club.
A bed, wardrobe, table, chairs…
Even though he had only moved in the essentials from his dorm, it already felt like a lived-in home.
Although it was a sight he was seeing for the first time, it felt strangely familiar.
Why was that?
After pondering for a moment, Ian realized the reason.
“Ah. The waiting room.”
The waiting room. One of the locations in Fanta X Aca where characters he had collected as allies would gather.
Unknowingly, he had arranged the furniture in a similar manner to one of those ‘club rooms’.
‘This must be why they say habits are scary.’
In fact, the waiting room was one of the main features of Fanta X Aca.
Decorating the room, offering refreshments, and adding amenities or totems could boost the characters’ morale and performance.
“Hoo.”
With a deep sigh from the depths of his heart, he sat on the bed.
How should he put it?
It was nostalgic.
When he first possessed Pongpong’s body, he was at a loss as to how to survive.
Not to mention gathering allies, it was hard enough to get by day to day.
Suddenly, a notebook lying on the bed caught his eye.
[ Love Diary ]
One of the most important items to him.
It contained all the details Pongpong had collected while stalking the heroines.
As he leaned over to put it in the drawer,
“Sniff sniff.”
…What was that?
A faintly sweet peach scent was coming from the blanket.
Did something spill?
When he lifted the blanket, he saw some long, pink tail hairs stuck here and there.
Come to think of it, Danya, with her bloated belly full of tomatoes, had lain here the other day.
“… Danya.”
He’d have to call her over later to clean up the hairs.
He was thinking that when—
— Knock knock.
He saw pink ears twitching beyond the window in the door.
Speaking of the devil.
When he opened the club room door, Danya was timidly looking up at him.
“Welcome. I guess all feline animals have similar habits.”
“… What are you talking about?”
“It’s a saying that when you talk about someone, they appear… No, never mind, you probably don’t have such proverbs here. Forget it.”
“Whatever. Silly.”
Danya pouted and was about to step in.
Ian quickly stopped her.
“Wait.”
“Nyah?”
“Your shoes.”
Danya tilted her head at Ian’s pointing finger.
“What about my shoes? Are they pretty?”
“No, take them off before coming in. There’s a shoe rack right here.”
“Why?”
“Dirt and dust are dirty. Where I come from, everyone does it this way.”
“… Strange.”
Grumbling, Danya took off her shoes.
“Hmph.”
She sat down and slowly undid the straps of her sandals.
Her feet, tightly curled to remove the sandals, showed the delicate curve of her pale insteps.
The soles and tips of her feet were red from the chilly weather outside.
Sitting and taking off her shoes made her skirt ride up a bit, but Danya was focused solely on removing her shoes.
‘Hmm.’
But why was he staring at this absent-mindedly?
He must be tired from organizing things.
He needed to sleep early since he had to earn money tomorrow.
When he looked away, he met Danya’s eyes.
— Shk.
Danya’s eyes narrowed to slits in an instant.
“So, you had an ulterior motive in making me take them off?”
“No, it was purely for sanitary reasons…”
“Suspicious.”
She hopped up from her seat.
Then she took a step towards him.
The distance between them grew too close, making Ian take an involuntary step back.
“As expected.”
One step.
One step.
As he was cornered, he ended up collapsing on the bed.
Danya looked down at him with a peculiar smile on her lips.
“Be honest, and I’ll forgive you.”
“Forgive me for what?”
“Why did you make me take off my shoes?”
“That’s just something any modern person would—!”
— Thump!
Danya placed one of her feet on his knee.
Her skirt rode up, revealing her pale thigh.
Following the curve down with his eyes.
He saw the soft-looking white skin, ending in toes tinged with a peachy blush.
Her toenails were painted the same cherry blossom color as her hair.
“What do you think of the view?”
“What view?”
Slide!
Danya wiggled her toes.
“P*rvert.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You touched my toes in the Shadow Forest too. You really are a toe-loving p*rvert.”
“…”
“Well? Don’t you want to touch them?”
It tickled.
The nerves in his thin knee skin were too sensitive to the wiggling of her toes, so he couldn’t even hear what Danya was saying.
“Admit it. Say, ‘I like feet, so I made you take off your shoes.'”
Danya’s eyes narrowed like crescent moons.
“If you admit it, I might let you touch them.”
She smiled playfully.
Seeing her looking down at him like that, he suddenly regained his senses.
‘Hierarchy.’
Just like with animals, establishing a hierarchy with a beastkin could be a serious matter.
Danya’s actions were definitely… an instinctual attempt to establish hierarchy.
In that case, he couldn’t back down.
He pointed out her misconduct simply.
“I can see your underwear.”
“Nyah!”
Swoosh!
Danya quickly tucked her skirt between her thighs.
“P-p*rvert!”
“I think the one showing it is the p*rvert.”
“T-this is unavoidable!”
Seeing Danya embarrassed in front of the bed, a thought crossed his mind.
“Ah. Right. You came at the perfect time, Danya.”
“Huh?”
“Come over here.”
He patted the spot next to him on the bed.
Danya’s face turned red instantly.
“Nyah… Nyaaaah?”
“Don’t run away.”
“I-I’m not… I’m not ready yet…”
“What preparation? All that’s needed is responsibility, Danya.”
He grabbed her arm and pulled.
She resisted a little, but soon gave in and relaxed.
She relaxed so much that she ended up lying on the bed under the blanket.
“Smart. You know what to do, huh?”
Instead of answering, Danya squeezed her eyes shut.
“How can you close your eyes?”
“B-but… it’s embarrassing…”
“But if you don’t look, you can’t confirm.”
Danya’s trembling eyelids.
Her eyes were strangely moist.
“And you should be lying on your stomach.”
Danya started to whimper.
“Still, for the first time, we should face each other… You told me to keep my eyes open.”
“Why would you be facing me? You should be looking at the floor.”
“T-that!”
“Are you going to disobey? After doing something wrong?”
Danya’s sharp gaze wanted to retort, but she soon turned over.
“Y-yes, I understand. Master…”
Master?
Well, whatever.
Situational comedy isn’t bad either.
“B-but, I don’t really know the posture… It’s not something covered in books, so I couldn’t study it…”
“Do you really need to study that posture?”
“B-but! I’ve never done this before…!”
Danya squeezed her eyes shut again.
Ian sighed and sat beside her.
“You were raised well, Danya. Look. I’ll show you an example.”
He leaned down and plucked a tail hair from the blanket.
“See? Just pull them out like this.”
“…Nyah?”
Danya stared at him blankly like a broken cat.
He gave her a clear command.
“Remove the hairs. The ones you left from your tail last time.”
“…”
Danya suddenly began to tremble.
“Are you okay? What’s wrong?”
She glared at him.
… Scarier than ever.
He couldn’t avoid her swift kick.
“Idiot!”
It didn’t hurt since she was barefoot.
◆
A ball of fur the size of a 100-won coin lay on the table.
Behind it, Danya sat dejectedly.
Her ears drooped low against her head.
To reward her for her labor, Ian brewed some tea from the high-end leaves he bought in the eastern market.
“…”
Danya silently sipped the tea, her head dipped towards the cup.
Occasionally, she would glance up stealthily.
“Eep!”
When their eyes met, her cheeks reddened, and she quickly looked away.
After a few more sips.
Danya, having finished her tea, silently stood and headed for the door.
It was hard not to wonder, ‘Why did she come here in the first place?’
But Ian had a guess.
The look on Danya’s face when she stared blankly at the wolf in the dungeon.
Her voice, heavy with emotion, muttering that it looked like her parents’ enemy.
Danya’s past.
Since she wasn’t a heroine, Ian didn’t know how heavy her burden was.
He also didn’t know why the usually cheerful Danya looked so troubled now.
Instead.
“Danya.”
He was no longer just watching her through a screen.
He was here with her, and he could listen.
To understand the weight his companion carried. To hear the stories he didn’t know.
“Tell me when you’re ready.”
By the door. Danya, who was clenching her fists so tightly they turned red, looked up at him.
“…Huh?”
“If it’s hard to talk about now, you can take your time.”
“…”
“I’m not going anywhere, right?”
“You’re… not going anywhere?”
“Of course not.”
Danya’s hand slowly unclenched.
The red marks on her palm looked painful.
But he didn’t ask if she was okay.
Her voice regained its brightness.
“Hey, Ian.”
“Yeah?”
“If you have time during the break, will you go to the Grand Forest with me? To my clan’s place.”
The Grand Forest.
The sacred land of the beastkin.
Where Danya grew up. A place whose location they rarely revealed to outsiders.
“Of course.”
