The early afternoon sun hovered high in the sky, shimmering dimly through a haze of dust.
– Gol gol
– Nyang gol gol
The followers of the Fox Church, emulating the nocturnal nature of foxes, were napping in the daylight. And we seized that moment—when the sleepy skeletons swayed their tails even in their dreams.
Step by step. Nyang-nyang.
“Woo-rim, you’re beautiful now! You’ve got this!”
From Bori’s hands, I underwent a full transformation—from a scrappy little mutt fox into a pristine flower fox, as white and polished as the finest rice grain. With this dazzling new look, I lightly padded my way down the cobbled stone path.
Then, trouble hit.
– Gol gol
– Intruder!! Baby Fox, protec—
– INTRUDER ABSOLUTELY NOOOOOO!!!!
‘Busted.’
The road to meet the High Priest Fox was long and perilous. I tried to turn back and escape into the shadows, but my legs were far too short—it wasn’t easy. I gave it my all, but it was already too late. Despite my best intentions, I was effortlessly scooped up by a skeleton.
But oddly enough, the touch was gentle.
And another skeleton began driving off the Kessler Fox, who had been tailing me and snapping pictures nonstop.
‘What the—? Did they mistake me for the High Priest?’
– Baby Fox okay is you? Why is you out here?
The Kessler Fox, who had been resisting the skeletons trying to pull him away by swiping at them, suddenly paused when he caught sight of one skeleton’s glossy, shimmering tail. He stared in awe and asked:
“This tail is amazing-nyang. Where do you get it done-nyang?”
– Grr grr? You was Fox Church devotee?? I get special care from Mise-en-scène World.
“Can I touch it just once-nyang?”
– Oki doki, gently please.
As Kessler closed his eyes and began carefully feeling each strand of the tail with his front paws, the skeleton beamed with pride.
– Impressive, right?
Though they didn’t recognize him, Kessler had spent a long time trapped inside the Shadow Castle—he was what they call a time-hardened veteran. So sweet-talking a few skeleton guards into sharing info wasn’t a challenge for him.
While Kessler Fox, technically an intruder, distracted the skeleton bodyguards and gathered intel, I was gently carried into the hallway in front of the Baby Fox’s room.
– Pat pat Baby Fox, please enter. Safety is #1.
The corridor, seemingly reserved for the Baby Fox, was plastered with photos of foxes. Passing through it and stepping into the room, a whole new world opened before me.
“…Whoa.”
This wasn’t just a room. It felt like a different game altogether.
Everything was made exclusively for foxes—there was a giant Ferris wheel, bumper cars, and even a pool. There was also a Fox Library filled to the brim with books written in the fox language, designed to help the Baby Fox learn about the world.
Every piece of furniture had rounded edges—clearly designed with care, to prevent even the slightest injury should the Baby Fox tumble around.
And the food—piles upon piles of it.
Nyang.
Even during my time with Kessler, I’d never known this level of luxury. It seemed like all the tithes and taxes collected in the Shadow Castle were being funneled into pampering this one Baby Fox.
Nyang nyang. I tapped the floor softly with my paw to announce my presence. The fox, who had been sprawled out on his back with his belly exposed, staring at the ceiling, stirred and got up, smooshing his belly fur down.
“Nyang? How did you get here?”
“Hello.”
He rubbed his nose and eyes with one paw in a single swoop, and when he saw me, his expression changed to one of surprise. I hadn’t even introduced myself—just said hello. But he stopped what he was doing and stared at me. Then he began to wiggle.
“POKSUP TEACHER-NYANG!!!!!”
With his tail wagging like crazy, he dove into my arms. And then—burst into tears.
“How did you come here-nyang? I’m so sorry-nyang. You must’ve gotten so much hate because of me-nyang…”
Pat pat. I tried to comfort him by brushing my paw over his fur.
“I’m the one who caused the trouble, but here I am crying like this-nyang… Waaah…”
“Please calm down.”
Hic hic, nyang nyang. As he tried to stop crying abruptly, hiccups burst out, and his belly wobbled. The sight was honestly pretty cute.
“You recognized me right away. I came because I was curious how that was possible.”
“I’m a huge fan of yours, Yeo Woo-rim Pro-nim. I even attended the last fan meeting-nyang… You probably don’t remember. But first, let me get you some tea-nyang. Aren’t you in America right now-nyang?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
In front of me was a tray of treats: bone-strengthening milk mixed with sweet strawberries—said to be good for fox growth—and a rare, specially made pudding from the Pudding Master, known as “Diamond Pudding” because it was so hard to find.
I slurped it all down.
“It’s a long story, but my name is Ju Hak-beom-nyang. It all started with a Yeo Woo-rim cosplay event-nyang.”
It wasn’t due to a doppelgänger or some unique skill that he mimicked me so perfectly. He had simply obsessed over every little quirk of mine, every habit, every way of speaking, to a nanoscopic degree.
“I even dominated Nexus main championship rankings because I lived and breathed as your fan, Pro-nim-nyang.”
So when the fan community launched a “Yeo Woo-rim Imitation Contest,” for him, it was a prestigious event to determine who knew Poksup best.
To win, Ju Hak-beom unleashed every bit of Woo-rim trivia he had, even practicing balancing tricks on top of a coconut.
Nyang, nyang-nyang. Nyang-nyang nyang~
But that was exactly the problem—he looked too convincing.
– !!!
“The skeletons… they were longing for the former Fox—you, Pro-nim-nyang.”
One by one, the skeletons gathered. And soon, they were crying tears of emotion. They even invited Ju Hak-beom into their homes and treated him generously.
“At first, I liked it. I thought, ‘Wow, thanks to Pro-nim, I’m receiving all this love in the game-nyang.’ But it wasn’t that simple-nyang.”
The skeletons began to believe Ju Hak-beom was the reincarnation of the former Fox. They worshipped him. He tried to explain, but their devotion was absolute.
“They believe what they want to believe-nyang.”
He got swept up in it—like being pulled under by a wave. By the time he realized it, he had already become the skeletons’ hope and dream.
“I considered publicly announcing that I’m not the former Fox. But many Fox Church members, who had only recently reentered society, started new lives under that belief. If I shattered that illusion and dismantled the religion, those reclusive skeletons might lock themselves away again. So now, I’ve been forcibly appointed as a priest… tending to their depression and helplessness every day-nyang.”
Every word carried the weight of responsibility.
“So I reached out to other players for help. I begged. But no one believed me-nyang.”
He wanted to back out so as not to be a burden on me, but concern for the skeletons left him trapped in a no-win situation.
“I’m so sorry. I don’t deserve to face you-nyang.”
As the fox bowed his head, three plush layers of chin fat bunched under his snout. I reached out and gently squished them with a forepaw, as if to comfort him.
“So, what do you want to do?”
“I….”
The fox lifted his head.
“I want to move on to the next stage-nyang. But I want to do it in a way that doesn’t hurt anyone, that preserves the skeletons’ happiness. And I think I found a way….”
“Yes? What is it?”
“While I’ve been trapped here, I haven’t just been eating and napping. I read all the fox books-nyang.”
Ju Hak-beom pulled out a history book titled Do You Know the Legend That Became a Statue?
It told the story of a happy ending: after the High Priest died, a statue in his likeness took over his role, and everyone lived happily ever after.
“I want to follow that story. I’m going to have a statue that looks like me—well, like you, Pro-nim—made, and then quietly leave. So I’m looking for a sculptor. I’ve already caused you enough trouble-nyang.”
“Don’t worry about me. If people get angry, I’ll just tell them it wasn’t me.”
“May I ask… why you haven’t done that already-nyang?”
“Would a public statement really solve anything? And besides, I wanted to hear your story first. I was curious. You really did a great job with the impersonation. Thanks for telling me.”
My fans tended to be fiercely loyal. Some, even extreme. If I had made a public denial from the start, Ju Hak-beom might’ve become the target of their rage. That’s why I waited to hear his side first.
“Gghh… Pro-nim-nyang…!”
After finishing the conversation with Ju Hak-beom, I logged off.
As soon as I removed the VR headset, I saw Kessler’s back. He was printing out a freshly captured in-game photo of my Baby Fox backside.
“You done?”
“What the—”
Jung Da-hoon had always said, “The more you take pictures, the better you get.” He might’ve been right. In this dynamic composition, my baby fox butt was perkily visible.
“This is the A-cut.”
“Ooh…”
Kessler proudly showed me photo after photo. He kept the one with the back view for personal collection, and shared the ones where Baby Fox was smiling sweetly with Jung Da-hoon.
“……”
I stared blankly for a moment before snapping out of it and opening Messenger. There was something I needed to ask Jung Da-hoon.
[Da-hoon-ssi, I know you’re busy sharing photos, but could you take a call for a moment?]
Jung Da-hoon
Yes, Pro-nim. Anytime.
I called him immediately.
– Yes, Pro-nim.
“I just spoke with the High Priest Fox. Your game goals for this season haven’t changed, right?”
Jung Da-hoon had played since the alpha days but never reached Master rank. This season, he’d sworn he would finally hit Master in Dexterity, and I vaguely remembered hearing he switched classes to Pottery Artisan for that.
– Yes, that’s right. I’m working on wooden dolls these days.
But it wouldn’t be easy. Aside from the training itself, the economy was in shambles with Shadow Castle in its current state.
“Then, by any chance, could you craft a statue with your pottery skills?”
– Not yet, but if I level up a bit more…
“Perfect. I’ve found someone to support you until you reach Master level. But you’ll need to do your part too.”
– Could you elaborate?
“We need a statue to replace the High Priest Fox.”
And then, I explained the whole situation.
