Player Quest, <Impartial Judgment> , second round of public voting will end shortly. The results announcement is scheduled to begin soon.
I headed for the chapel. I needed to transform into Yeo Woo-rim to participate in the vote, but at the moment, it was difficult to find the right timing to do so.
‘Hmm… Is he heading back to the castle?’
The reason was simple: Kessler, who’d told me to get lost once I’d finished sleeping, was now tailing me closely. If I walked slowly, he’d slow down. If I sped up, he’d match my pace, keeping a consistent distance between us. When I stood at the fox crossing, Kessler stood waiting at the player walkway.
I assumed his destination was the fortress, so I let it slide. But even when I detoured to the rear park to transform, he kept following me like a shadow.
‘…Why is he following me?’
Was our destination just coincidentally the same? I abruptly turned around and dashed into the first-floor corridor. Immediately, Kessler switched direction and followed me inside.
At this rate, he seemed more like the pet than I did.
‘What, is he a human pet or something?’
Once I transformed into my human form, I’d need to talk to him, but now wasn’t the time—I had to attend the vote. More urgently, I really had to pee. It was embarrassing to do it in front of him, but I didn’t have much choice.
Drip, drip!
I climbed up onto the corridor railing and let out a quick sprinkle of pee toward the flower bed outside.
“That’s an unusual routine.”
Kessler, who had been watching silently, offered his commentary.
If he called it a “routine”… was he tailing me just to verify my location because I always had location services turned off?
‘That’s probably it.’
Keeping his distance, watching me like an observer.
Second-round announcement is starting.
No more time to dawdle. I sprinted toward the chapel at full speed to check the results. I’d wasted time messing around and almost missed the second voting window entirely.
As I neared the chapel, the voice of raid leader PeeledGarlicUnpeeledGarlic boomed from a loudspeaker.
“The top vote-getter in the second round is Jung Da-hoon. Would you please come up to the podium and make your case?”
By the time I entered the chapel, Jung Da-hoon, the top vote recipient, was already walking up to the stage.
The usual process of listing “reasons for selection” had been omitted this time due to complaints that it was too emotionally damaging to the candidates.
“Ah…”
Standing on the podium with the microphone, Jung Da-hoon spotted me and looked like his stomach was churning with anxiety.
I watched his defense with a twinge of pity.
“It’s true I haven’t earned your trust. But… could you believe in me just once? I’m begging you, please.”
Even Kessler, who’d been tailing me all this time, seemed curious about the situation.
“What’s that guy doing up there all by himself?”
“Ah… Glorious!! Kessler-nim. We outsiders are running a survival quest. We’ve narrowed down three users suspected of being Murderers, and the goal is to kill them. That Jung Da-hoon guy is currently the top murder suspect.”
“Yeah? You guys play rough.”
Jung Da-hoon was up there because of me. If I hadn’t put up that banner accusing Mr. Jung of being the killer…
Nyaang. A sorrowful cry escaped my throat.
Kessler now sat at the end of a pew, watching the situation unfold beside me.
“Thank you. We will now announce the second-place vote-getter. KebabGudasaai-nim, please come up to the podium.”
Second place was KebabGudasaai. Down a spot from last time. He, too, looked a bit disoriented.
“I took a shower since everyone said I smelled. I’ve been taking all the feedback seriously, but I’m still second place? That stings. Should I just die, then? Is that what you all want?!”
The atmosphere in the room turned ice cold.
“WELL?! SAY SOMETHING!!”
Despite his frustrated outburst, the players remained silent. They couldn’t help it. Even if he bathed, he never washed his clothes, so the stench still clung to him like a cloud. On top of that, he still peed in public and hadn’t stopped stealing dog food until recently. So yeah, it made sense he was still a target.
“That’s unfortunate. KebabGudasaai-nim, please step down so we can hear the next argument.”
Kebab stomped off in a huff. And the next person called was—
“Third-place vote-getter, Yeo Woo-rim-nim, please come to the podium and make your case.”
But the human version of Yeo Woo-rim wasn’t there.
“Ah, is Yeo Woo-rim-nim not present? Then we will skip them.”
Then it happened.
“What did you call this again? A cute guy popularity contest or something?”
“No… That’s the top suspect pool for the Murderer quest. We’re choosing three to…”
“Just now, you said Yeo Woo-rim?”
“Yes… Yeo Woo-rim got selected.”
Kessler rose from his seat. With steady, unwavering steps, he made his way toward the expedition leader. All eyes in the chapel turned to him. Behind his back, four tails twitched subtly.
“What exactly are you doing to Yeo Woo-rim?”
“Ah, Kessler-nim. It’s not like we’re doing anything right away. Depending on the final deliberation results…”
“Mm.”
“We’d put him on the guillotine…”
“Mm, and then?”
The pale wooden ceiling above them began to darken, starting from its center. Sharp players, sensing something ominous, tried to quietly exit the chapel—but gravity denied them.
Even PeeledGarlicUnpeeledGarlic, sensing the weight of the encroaching shadow, crumpled to his knees as if crushed by an overwhelming force choking his throat.
“Aagh!”
“Please, have mercy!! For the record, I voted null!!”
Dark shadows engulfed the ceiling. Windows shattered, and wind and rain howled inside. Wooden pews split with a crack. Trash left behind by players was swept up into a whirlwind, and one player’s wig flew off, revealing a shiny bald head.
In that chaotic storm, only Kessler and I remained untouched. Kessler had preserved a pressure-free zone around me.
A clear footprint appeared on the expedition leader’s chest as he lay flat on the floor.
“Go on. You were saying—put him on the guillotine and?”
Kessler’s toe ground into the man’s protruding nipple.
“…Execute him.”
“Why is Yeo Woo-rim a Murderer?”
“Well, everyone voted based on speculation about who the killer might be, and…”
“Isn’t it just ‘cause he’s got a pretty tail and you’re jealous? So you hang him and call it justice?”
Kessler spoke as if he were stating an undeniable fact. He was half right, half wrong—but I liked the way this was going, so I barked in agreement.
Nyang nyang!
I even felt a little moved. He was defending human Yeo Woo-rim.
“Then just kill that guy and call it done.”
Kessler pointed toward Jung Da-hoon, who had been observing from the sidelines.
“Yes, we’ll follow Kessler-nim’s judgment.”
No. Don’t.
Nyang-nyang!
[System]: An unidentified threat has been detected. ‘Protective Instinct’ has been triggered.
[System]: You have declared this area a ‘Baby Fox Peace Zone.’
With my eyes now even bigger and cuter than usual, I dashed forward and blocked the way in front of Jung Da-hoon.
No. No way.
Nyang! Nyang-nyang-nyang! Nyang-nyang! Nyang!
Kessler fell silent at my desperate cries. A wordless gaze filled with unspoken emotion passed between us.
Nyang-nyang! Nyang!
“You like that guy that much?”
It wasn’t like that.
“You ditched me and switched sides for him, didn’t you?”
That wasn’t it either. I’d never betrayed Kessler, never switched to anyone else.
I walked up to Kessler and tugged gently on his pant leg with my snout.
“You gotta go this far to tear yourself away from that husk of a man?”
No, just… let’s go outside and talk. I’ll transform into Yeo Woo-rim and explain.
“You really didn’t have to go dragging me out like this. Just because my body’s small, doesn’t mean my conscience is.”
Nyang!
“That really hurts, y’know.”
Okay, first… let’s just get outside and I’ll shift to my human form.
Just as I was about to bolt for the door, Jung Da-hoon grabbed Kessler.
“I… I received money from Baby Fox-nim!”
Kessler turned to look at Jung Da-hoon.
“For that thing you know about too, Kessler-nim!”
“You got paid?”
“Which means if I die, Baby Fox-nim’s very first investment goes straight down the drain. A tragic loss, isn’t it?”
Nyang-nyang!
Jung Da-hoon had spoken well. I barked twice in agreement.
“You could’ve just had me do it instead.”
“Well…”
“…Ah.”
Seeing Jung Da-hoon falter, Kessler suddenly looked as if he’d just realized something.
“I was being clueless, huh.”
Suddenly, all the commotion in the space came to an abrupt halt. The debris that had been suspended midair dropped to the ground, and the pressure crushing the players lifted.
Was the misunderstanding resolved?
“You didn’t have to go that far.”
Suddenly, Kessler gently scooped me up and carried me in his arms.
Leaving behind a chapel ravaged like a disaster zone, he whispered:
“You don’t have to keep track of the 50 days anymore.”
What was that supposed to mean? I tilted my head, then something clicked and I opened the Relationship Panel.
Day 49 of being in love ♡
Unbelievable. This bastard wrecked the whole place, and now I finally get why he suddenly calmed down. He must’ve thought Jung Da-hoon was my partner for his 50 day anniversary gift.
