“Oh? Pro? Is that really you?”
Meow.
Whoosh. In that moment, a breeze swept through the empty space, ruffling my fur. As I was gently pushed by the wind, Jung Da-hoon suddenly leapt to his feet, hurried over, and scooped me up in his arms.
“How did you recognize me?”
“How could I not…? How did you even get here? Didn’t security stop you?”
“The skeletons escorted me in.”
“As expected… I guess the skeleton friends recognized you as the former Baby Arctic Fox. You’re really showing the class of the original. Impressive.”
Jung Da-hoon carefully kneaded my belly with both hands, then offered me the grand chair reserved for honored guests and perched himself on a milk crate. It was a seat far too luxurious for my small body, but it was surprisingly soft, so I didn’t refuse.
One side of the CEO’s office had been converted into his workshop. The shadows, shaped like foxes, undulated and unraveled like threads of yarn.
“Ah, I was crafting a Shadow Fox. Using all sorts of potions.”
“Yes, I can see that.”
Looking around, the place resembled a chemist’s lab more than a ceramic artist’s studio. The scent of some unfamiliar green herb lingered at the tip of my nose, and something was bubbling in the beakers.
“I was in the middle of brewing a potion to enhance authenticity.”
“Well, now that I’m here, you won’t need any potion for that. Don’t you already think of me as a real fox?”
“It’s not that I think you’re a real fox… you are a real fox…”
“Then skip the hassle and just use me as your reference.”
“But, Pro, I have no idea how long this will take. It’s not just about crafting a shadow—I’ll need to replicate your scent, expressions, emotions, voice, posture, even your figure, all from multiple angles.”
“Is my time the only one that’s valuable? Yours is too, Da-hoon. Sure, this is all part of your path to becoming a master, but I’m the one who asked this of you.”
“Hm… I’m unemployed, and you’re the Pro. I feel like I’m being such a burden.”
“It’s fine. I’m on a two-week vacation. That’s six weeks in-game. Do your best within that time. Don’t you think I can spare that much for you? We’re wasting time right now just going back and forth.”
“Pro…! Alright. Then I’ll give it everything I’ve got.”
“What do I need to do now?”
The task Da-hoon gave me was simple. Just like when I used to model for fox photos, I had to strike cute poses from different angles.
“Yes, that’s great. Could you lift your tail just a little more? That pose is perfect. Wow…! Another success!”
“What do you do with all these shadows?”
“Pro, haven’t you watched animation? Back in the day, they’d string together a sequence of images in slightly different poses to make characters appear to move. Creating just one character would require hundreds, thousands of drawings. It’s the same concept. A repetitive grind.”
“So you’re bringing it to life through your patience and time. That’s amazing.”
“Exactly. But, Pro… would it be alright if I sniffed your scent?”
“My scent?”
“I need to recreate that too.”
“I’m kind of embarrassed. Should I go wash up first?”
“Actually, it works better when you’re in a more natural state than artificially cleaned.”
“Okay, come closer.”
“Then pardon me. You can sit comfortably, Pro.”
Just as Jung Da-hoon gently took my front paw and pressed his nose to it—
Purr-r-r-r
Click clack clatter clatter
Noise erupted outside. The skeletons were moving about in a flurry, bones clacking together.
Wondering what was going on, I turned to look—and the door burst open.
Step step meow meow.
It was Kessler Fox, tail swaying as he strode in. Behind him, the skeletons who had failed to block his entry stood rattling nervously, unsure of what to do.
Kessler didn’t care. With a flick of his hind leg, he kicked the door shut behind him.
“What are you two doing~?”
“Oh, Juwon-nim. You’re here? I was sniffing the Pro’s scent.”
“Then let me sniff too~.”
With a graceful leap, Kessler landed next to me, wrapped his tail around my body, and lowered his snout toward my front paw.
Sniff sniff.
And then he really started to take it in. He kept his nose pressed against my paw for quite some time before he started to lift my limp tail.
“No!! Not here!! This is not the place!!”
Without thinking, I flailed my paw to the side, shoving his face away. I didn’t want to act indecent in front of Jung Da-hoon. Just look—Da-hoon had that sheepish, awkward look on his face, clearly caught off guard.
“Um, Juwon-nim, I’m sorry, but… could you please back off a bit?”
“Why?”
“The fox’s stink—ah, I mean, scent is mixing in. It could interfere with the Shadow Fox crafting.”
Nod.
When Jung Da-hoon laid out a cushion at a distance, Kessler picked it up with his mouth and dragged it over to sit across from me.
“It was a very nice smell. Sweet, savory, and… addictive.”
Jung Da-hoon defined the scent he had picked up from my paw.
“I think I just need a little more to be sure.”
“I’m the only one allowed to smell Baby Fox.”
Meow.
Kessler casually tossed over the brush he always used to groom my fur. It was pink and packed with my shed fur.
“I’ve used that brush diligently, so find inspiration from it. Don’t embarrass Baby Fox.”
“I’m fine with this, it’s not embarrassing. Kessler.”
“No, you’re embarrassed.”
“Pro said it’s okay to touch… Ack!”
“Sorry. Hands off.”
Feigning concern, Kessler came up and clamped his teeth around Jung Da-hoon’s fingers, subtly wedging himself between us.
“……”
“I’ll cooperate instead. If you want, I can brush Baby Fox’s fur for you.”
“Just say you don’t want me touching Baby Fox.”
“How could I? We’re friends.”
Jung Da-hoon, incredulous, held up his hand, blood dripping from his bitten finger.
“Do friends bite this hard?”
“I sincerely apologize.”
Kessler bowed deeply in a polite posture to express his apology. Then he picked up the brush and began diligently grooming my fur.
“I’m not extracting DNA or anything—wait. That’s it. DNA…!”
With a sudden idea, Jung Da-hoon yanked out a few strands of fur that still had their roots attached.
“That’s precious. Handle it with care, Jung Da-hoon.”
“Got it.”
Though thoroughly warned by Kessler, he still peeked his head over with curiosity, closely watching what Jung Da-hoon was doing.
“What are you doing with that?”
“I’m calculating isothermal constants. I’m separating molecular membranes from the single-molecule layer of Pro’s hair roots, then blending in specific shadow elements to observe the shadow concentration. This was my major, so I picked this up as a sub-profession too.”
“Impressive.”
“But could you please move your face? Your tail antics keep blowing everything around.”
“Okay.”
Kessler, who had been wildly wagging his tail in growing interest, finally sat still. And thus began Jung Da-hoon’s shadow magic show before two very attentive foxes.
Poof!
With a loud sound, a lump of shadow appeared, and Kessler’s nose twitched in reaction. He turned his head, sniffing back and forth between the new shadow and my scent.
“Is it close? I wouldn’t know—it’s my own smell.”
Intent on comparing further, Kessler lowered his head and buried his face into my front paw again, sniffing intently.
[System]: Player ‘Kessler’ is in a state of ecstasy.
“No, I mean, does that Shadow Fox smell similar to me?”
“Hm… I think so?”
Reviewing his crafting formula to verify its accuracy, Jung Da-hoon suddenly raised his hands triumphantly.
“It worked!”
Meow!
Meow-meow!
As I stood on my hind legs and raised my front paws, Kessler joined in, celebrating alongside me.
Purr-r-r-r
Purr!
Even the security skeletons outside, unsure of what was going on, could be seen dancing joyfully in shadow form.
“And with this, we now have a fox that smells like the real deal.”
You have witnessed the work of a master-level ceramicist. Though Baby Fox’s eyes cannot yet fully comprehend the depth of this masterpiece, just seeing it will raise your aesthetic standards.
Art +3, Sensitivity +4
