‘In-game marriages are just a common thing couples do.’
We exchanged couple rings, checked the random options, invited our hunting buddies as guests, and after it was over, an event map popped up for the reception. That was the standard formula for in-game weddings.
But somehow, things kept escalating. Honestly, once it reached the point of “something about marriage,” I had already written it off as out of my hands and switched into full-on casual gamer mode.
At the very least, thanks to the last quest reward, I got to visit the First Treasure Chamber again and even made it back to the Treasure Tower for the first time in a while.
“How is it?”
The Lord’s private vault. It had every imaginable item inside. But since most of them were purely luxurious trinkets, I only had one thought.
“Blinding.”
“Blinding like your eyes, baby fox.”
Kessler raised his head proudly, complimenting my eyes.
“Take whatever you want. Everything you pick becomes your dowry.”
“…Do you even know what dowry means?”
“Wedding money, right?”
“Yup. Not bad.”
He probably heard it somewhere and just parroted it vaguely, but I decided to let it go.
“Hm… I’ll just take a few of these.”
I opened the “Golden Ice Box” and transferred several radiant, shimmering ice jewels into my bag.
“This should be enough for a while.”
Just then, as he stared at me, he suddenly opened my bag and, like a generous market vendor, dumped in a whole handful of ice. My bag filled up in an instant thanks to his grand gesture.
[System]: You have acquired 388 Jewel Ice.
“I really don’t need this much.”
“It’s my love. You can never have too much of that.”
He always says things like that in a way that leaves no room to say no. Thanks to him, my inventory was overflowing.
After the vault tour, our next stop was the shopping district.
“Didn’t find any jewels you liked?”
“I liked all of them. I’m just not that into decorative items.”
“I see? Then come here. You’ll like this.”
He led me to a newly opened pudding shop for foxes. Neatly arranged puddings in every color imaginable were lined up on shelves, just like in a convenience store.
The color-coordinated rows gave off a strange sense of satisfaction.
“Whoa… They’ve got every pudding under the sun.”
Since I was the only fox living in this castle, this shop had clearly opened just for me. Delighted, I clapped my hands with all my might. Judging by the way he kept glancing at my reaction, I figured I should at least give him this level of enthusiasm.
“This kind of thing is nothing.”
With an arrogant expression that looked like he scoffed at the world itself, Kessler pulled a gold card out of his chest pocket.
“Bead Head.”
The shopkeeper skeleton, Bead Head, approached politely and clacked its jawbones. Kessler gave me a glance as if to say, Watch this, then pointed toward a nearby shelf.
“From here.”
He tilted his chin subtly toward a shelf in the distance.
“To there. Give us everything.”
—Clack, clack!
The vendor’s jaw dropped in awe. Kessler gently pushed it back up and looked at me again to see how I’d react.
“They’re all your snacks.”
“That’s way too much.”
“It’s only too much for people who earn a hundred and spend a hundred. I earn so much I can’t count it, but I only spend what can be counted. That’s different.”
When he put it that way, it kind of made sense. Someone who collected taxes shouldn’t be hoarding resources—they should be circulating them.
“Then I’ll gratefully accept and share them with friends.”
“Say your fiancé bought them for you.”
“Okay.”
As soon as the payment went through, a forklift beeped its way in, picked up the entire shelf, and hauled it to the plaza where the campfire event was taking place.
“We still need to take wedding photos. Let’s pick out outfits for each other, baby fox.”
“How about this one?”
Their next stop was the dressing room. A skeleton bride with bright red lipstick on her bones—WeddingGol—greeted us at the entrance.
We picked out outfits for each other. I suggested a stark white skeleton dress with an outrageously plunging neckline for Kessler, but he completely ignored it and chose a crisp black suit.
“I think this’ll look great on me. What do you think?”
“Same.”
“Then I’ll try it on. Wait here.”
Kessler headed into the fitting room, the sound of rustling fabric soon following.
…What if I’d said I wasn’t getting married?
—Open the curtains.
A moment later, the skeleton attendant pulled back the curtain. Under the bright lights, Kessler stood tall in his perfectly fitted suit.
He looked me dead in the eye with such confidence, his head nearly grazing the ceiling. And yet, he’d stuck a flower behind his ear.
The line of WeddingGols surrounding us burst into applause. Caught up in the moment, I clapped along, and only then did Kessler crack a satisfied smile, tugging one corner of his mouth upward.
“What do you think? Fell for me again?”
Honestly, that guy had a way of bluntly fishing for exactly the words he wanted to hear.
“…How did you know?”
After adjusting his shoulders and tidying his outfit, he walked up to me and knelt down on one knee.
“What are you doing now…”
He took the multicolored flower from behind his ear and tied it gently around my neck.
“It’s a mark. Proof that you’re mine.”
“Looks more like a dog collar made of flowers.”
Still, the flower looked familiar. I checked the mirror again, just to be sure.
“…Wait? You had this?”
I laughed out loud in disbelief. This was the rare flower that Jung Da-hoon, me, and a few alpha tester users had scoured that construction site for.
‘Ah… No way.’
Then it hit me. The reason this flower never respawned at the construction site.
‘Tester No. 1—who was chosen by the top-ranked ghost during Alpha Test.’
Kessler had started the new game while still in possession of the flower, which meant it never regenerated at the construction site.
“It’s a really pretty flower.”
“Baby fox is prettier.”
As we exchanged embarrassingly sweet words, Kessler suddenly moved in close behind me and sniffed around my tail.
“When was this last washed?”
…Of course, never.
“…Dunno. Why?”
“It smells foxy.”
“That means it’s good.”
As long as I washed it before the wedding, what did it matter? I tried to dodge the question and shifted away, but his hand, still holding the base of my tail, slid naturally to my waist.
Our eyes met. The mood ripened, and the WeddingGols around us quietly took their leave.
“By the way, when’s our wedding?”
“We’re going right now.”
‘What the hell?’
I was surprised by the sudden pop-up, but the system itself seemed even more startled. The screen shook violently for a moment before settling.
[System]: Once a Partner Bond is established, a Subordinate Bond cannot be formed.
‘No, this psycho—why is it telling me this now? And in the middle of such a sweet moment?’
Even the system must not have expected the wedding to proceed this fast.
My mind raced. I remembered once sitting at the Byeonhogol Law Office when an unfaithful skeleton came in with their lover, asking for help with a divorce. Something about the wife refusing to finalize it.I vaguely recalled—
‘Wasn’t the divorce mediation period four weeks?’
Then this wedding… must not go through.
“What are you doing? Just look at me. Think only of me.”
Kessler caught me red-handed, clearly plotting something.
“I was thinking… this might be a bit soon for marriage.”
“Why?”
“Um, because I have this sub instinct. I need to be under someone, like… in a Subordinate Bond, maybe.”
The deep furrow in Kessler’s brow eased slightly.
“But I’ve got this fantasy, you know? About mating on our wedding night.”
“I think I’d prefer sticking to the master and pet dynamic for now.”
“Snap out of it, baby fox. Just because everyone calls you Mutt Fox, doesn’t mean you’re actually a mutt. Isn’t this your chance to flip the dynamic? You think becoming my Partner Fox is easy?”
It was practically a battle of spear and shield at this point.
‘This is driving me nuts.’
With that fiery, hungry look in his eyes, I didn’t even know where I could run anymore.
“Then when do you want to get married?”
“I’d like to revisit that question after I’ve fairly and squarely won this part.”
“Then how about we just register the marriage and get engaged today?”
“No. Let’s do it all in one go when the time comes—quick and clean.”
“First night, first night.”
“Even first-night mating needs practice.”
“Practice?”
I nodded and, in one smooth motion, lifted my own tail. No matter how I thought about it, this was the only way to legally delay the wedding.
Kessler stared intently under my lifted tail, his Adam’s apple bobbing. He licked his lips like he was suddenly starving, and I shut my eyes tight.
Just as I braced myself for another blow to my precious masculinity—ding!
[Shadow Expo
The Shadow Expo has begun. Come and support your comrades in their final moments.
You’ve received one admission ticket.]
“Oh, the Shadow Expo just opened. Gotta get over there.”
Saved by the bell. As I scrambled to move, he snatched my tail, leaving me stumbling in place.
“Why?”
“It lasts three days anyway. That means we can go later.”
“Well, that’s true.”
“So can we mate right now?”
He held my grimy tail and wrapped it around his waist like a belt.
Sigh. If you can’t escape it, might as well enjoy it.
I braced my toes and turned around—then pulled my pants straight down.
