“Wake up, baby fox. We’ve got to go camping.”
Saturday morning, Kessler woke me up. As he gently patted my butt, I buried my face deeper under the pillow.
“…Just five more minutes.”
“Alright.”
It definitely didn’t feel like just five minutes had passed before Kessler started waking me again.
“Nnngh…”
“Sleepy little baby fox.”
I sat up, blinking groggily. Kessler’s face gradually came into focus. I kept dawdling even as I sat at the edge of the bed, so he eventually picked me up.
“You want me to carry you?”
I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck, and he plopped me down onto the toilet.
“Now poop.”
“What the hell? I don’t need to do that. Just give me the toothpaste.”
I ignored his nonsense, pulled out my toothbrush, and held it out. He generously squeezed a mountain of toothpaste onto it. Even as I brushed my teeth, I was nodding off. These days, this had become my routine—burning through the weekdays and crashing hard on the weekends.
I might’ve overdone it yesterday since it was the weekend…
“Are you really that tired? I can go alone.”
“No. I need to do my filial duty. Mom even posted a notice that a long-awaited guest is coming.”
She said she was making his favorite—braised spicy chicken and green onion salad. No way I could skip out. I only do this whole filial son thing a few times a year.
I rubbed my eyes and got up properly to wash my face. Kessler stood silently behind me, watching. He was wearing pajamas covered with tiny desert foxes. Matching couple pajamas with mine. The sizes were different, of course… but still.
“Let’s head out.”
It was so cold, my teeth were chattering. Camping in this kind of cold? But Mom always said that’s the charm of camping.
“Ugh, it’s freezing. What part of this is supposed to be fun?”
Shivering, I rushed outside and climbed into the passenger seat. I kept saying I should get my license, I should get my license—but with someone next to me who drives so well, I just kept putting it off. So I still didn’t have one.
As soon as I got in, I pulled the blanket from the passenger seat over myself. But honestly, I didn’t even need it. The car was already toasty warm.
That was thanks to Kessler’s thoughtful habit. He always came out first and turned on the heater to warm the car, even though it must’ve been a hassle. Thanks to him, I could almost forget it was winter.
“I wanna play games. Should I convince Mom to start gaming too?”
“Already gave her the Early Bird package.”
“Seriously? You know she’s kind of old school.”
“She said it makes her dizzy. I’m thinking of simplifying the UI and system into a Golden Package. Expanding the age demographic is our next task anyway.”
“Right. If we slap on a ‘filial gift’ label and sell it premium, we’ll be rich.”
“If I make money, I’ll buy you all the tasty food you want.”
“Ha! I’m gonna hold you to that, hyung.”
The car’s speakers played a playlist of 50 international hits on repeat. He turned up the volume.
The campsite in Gangwon Province was just up ahead.
***
“Isn’t that Juwon’s car? Our boys have arrived~!”
“I’m here! Ugh, it’s freezing. Dad!”
“Wait—hold it! Hug within the camera frame!”
“Geez, really!!”
Dad pulled me into a big hug with a beaming smile—within the camera frame, of course. Then he tried to hug Kessler too, but it ended up with him getting hugged instead.
Guess genetics don’t lie—Dad’s about the same build as me…
“I missed you so much!”
Mom clung to us like a cicada on an old tree, bouncing up and down excitedly.
“Say hi to our Pingpings!”
“…Who’s Pingping?”
“It’s what we call our subscribers. Don’t you know that?”
“I thought it was Daughter-in-Laws? Hello, dear Pingpings~ I’m Yeo Woo-rim, the son of these two. I came because I heard we’d be treated to a delicious feast today.”
Dad suddenly zoomed the camera in on my face.
“Why are you filming so close?”
“The Pingpings said they want to see your pores.”
“Ahh… you really shouldn’t grant requests like that…”
Even so, I subtly leaned into the camera.
“Only today, everyone. Take a look.”
“Our son~ your skin is flawless! What’s your secret to that honey-skin?”
I’ve been keeping up with a decent skincare routine—and getting regular protein facials from Kessler every other day—so I had no doubts about my skin.
“That’s a trade secret.”
The tent, with its tarp pitched overhead, was adorned with dangling cotton-ball lights that elevated the vibe. The firewood, mixed with magic fire, flickered in aurora colors, and the crisp air added to the refreshing mood.
While we ate the jjimdak prepared from a meal kit, Mom asked how I was doing.
“Are things going a bit better these days?”
“I’m fine, don’t worry. I’ve got Juwon by my side.”
“Good, I’m relieved because of Juwon.”
It was because of that time I’d gone completely off-grid, possessed by the game. I’d always disappeared from time to time, but that one was especially long—almost three months through the entire off-season.
“You’re eating well, that’s what matters. Have fun and get plenty of rest before you go.”
We sat around chatting about this and that. We even did content like a loess sauna together, and we cut into the cake we’d brought along. It was an early celebration for Dad’s upcoming birthday the day after tomorrow.
“Let’s begin the review of our son’s YouTube videos~!”
They watched a few of his uploads together, giving feedback as they went.
“Who’s editing the videos now?”
“Your mom is~”
“I figured. There are a few spelling mistakes, and the pacing’s a bit slow. What about making fast-paced shorts in that mad movie style?”
“Oh come on, only young folks do that stuff. We’re not skilled enough for all that~”
“I can help you with that.”
Kessler offered without hesitation.
“You, Juwon? You can handle it?”
“Piece of cake.”
“Wow, so cool. I’d be super grateful if you take it on! But do you have time? I’ll pay you per video—full rate~”
“Being with my boys like this… it just makes everything feel so full. I love it. Come visit more often.”
“Okay. …You two must’ve worked hard pitching the tent.”
“Tents these days are all one-touch~ And now they’re doing Nexus character impression challenges or something~”
“What kind of challenge? You’re gonna wreck your joints doing that… Wait, stand up a sec.”
We’d been chatting and even dancing around for a while when it finally came time to sleep. I wasn’t sure I could fall asleep in a tent with just a wood stove, leaving behind the comfort of home—but when I opened my eyes, it was already morning.
“Wow, seriously? This is supposed to be healing?”
“Isn’t it fun, son? We’re doing a three-month long-term camp here, so come hang out with Juwon whenever you want, okay?”
Last night, we’d stuffed ourselves with jjimdak and grilled endless chicken skewers. This morning, a steaming stone pot bibimbap awaited me. It was a feast fit for a king.
After breakfast, it was Kessler and I on dish duty. These modern camping facilities were so good—hot water came gushing out the moment we turned the faucet.
…Feels like I gained 1.5 kg in just one day.
“Thanks for the fun!”
“We’ll come again!”
Leaving Mom and Dad behind—who were planning to stay another day—we left the campsite early.
And even after all that sleeping, I crashed hard again on the ride back. By the time we got home, my entire body was itching to game.
Back at home, I soaked my feet in a basin with Kessler in the game room. While I ran a few Nexus matches with my team, Kessler booted up Last Shadow in desktop mode.
Each time I respawned, I’d sneak peeks at him. Unlike his usual self—always preoccupied with watching me—he was intensely focused on the game.
‘What’s he doing in there?’
I was curious, but I didn’t want to interrupt him when he was finally this dialed in. Once I wrapped up my training rounds, I quickly logged into Last Shadow to join him.
Helped lizards: 94/100.
‘Finally.’
Just six more to go and the quest would be complete. And thanks to the fast-track to Undertaker, my job proficiency was about to hit intermediate, too.
Once the Consoling the Soul skill hit intermediate, the Group Funeral function would unlock.
These days, it had become a bit of a norm to scoop up condolence money after a funeral. There were even some beneficial aspects to the trend.
—Thank you kkadeuri for always working hard, baby fox kkadeuri
Nyang.
Even in the lizard world, deciding how much condolence money to give was always a headache. But thanks to the baby fox who swooped in like a comet and scooped up the entire condolence basket, the culture had become a bit more relaxed. Since the fox took all the money anyway, people no longer felt the need to stuff envelopes just for show.
Nyang, nyang.
I loaded two condolence money boxes onto my back and started walking out—when I spotted Kessler in the distance.
Just as I was about to run over and greet him, a whiff of a very old desert scent hit my nose. Sniff sniff.
Across from the stone wall, where Kessler was smoking, stood the owner of that long-lost sand smell—Iljjang-gwi. The two were smoking together, as if catching up.
As soon as Kessler noticed me watching, he quickly stubbed out his cigarette, waving his hands to clear the air around him. Not satisfied with just that, he even plucked the cigarette from Iljjang-gwi’s mouth and flung it far away.
“What the hell was that?”
[System]: Player Kessler has declared this area a No-Smoking Zone for Baby Fox.
I stared at the fleeting notification in disbelief. Wait… was that a skill? He didn’t mention anything like that earlier when we were talking about skills. So this was what he’d been busy doing while I was questing…
Having finished his “deodorizing,” Kessler lowered his body and opened his arms toward me. Only then did I run to him and bury myself in his embrace.
“Baby fox, it’s been a while.”
Iljjang-gwi, now grasping the situation, let go of his sour expression.
“You look skinnier than last time. Fox, are you having a hard time these days? And you—didn’t you say you became his bodyguard? Why aren’t you taking better care of him?”
“I’m his ambassador.”
Iljjang-gwi reached out like he wanted to hug me, but Kessler showed zero intention of handing me over.
“Wash your hands before touching.”
Instead, Kessler passed him a wet towel and I turned my body just slightly to let him touch my tail. As I felt his gentle strokes, I smiled brightly and Iljjang-gwi smiled back.
“You’re still the kind of fox that makes people feel better just by being around. I’ve crossed entire continents, but I’ve never seen anything as adorable as you. I get it now—why he gave up the Dansung Noble position and followed you all the way here. I take back my offer.”
With that, Iljjang-gwi gave me a warm look before walking away.
…Wait. Offer? What offer?
But—offer? What offer? I looked up with wide eyes, and Kessler answered.
“He asked me to go on the pilgrimage with him. I said no. I have to protect you.”
For some reason, that made me feel really, really good.
I squinted and puckered my lips.
