In the days that followed, the rain remained lingering, always pouring down at night and in the early morning, only subsiding slightly during the hottest hours of the afternoon into a light, drizzling rain.
With Lore’s continuous feeding and silent companionship, the wound on the Jade-Faced Golden Nine-Tailed Fox’s hind leg had completely healed, leaving only a faint scar.
Her relationship with Lore had also clearly grown much closer.
Now, every time Lore went out, she would follow behind without hesitation, like a little shadow, no longer needing to hide.
And every time they returned to the den, she would nimbly use Lore’s massive body as cover, hiding behind him and trying to avoid direct eye contact with Mother Zinogre and Luna.
After all, those two didn’t have the leisure to keep a “pet,” and their attitude toward the little fox remained indifferent, with a hint of instinctive curiosity; their relationship was naturally not close.
It was another noon as the rain began to ease, and Lore went out to forage as usual.
The little fox could now waddle confidently at his heels, sometimes running ahead to scout the path, and other times circling back to his side, looking every bit like a lively little sidekick.
Lore felt quite proud of this; he hadn’t expected such a rare creature to be so affectionate toward wyverns.
He recalled the game settings from before he transmigrated; the Jade-Faced Golden Nine-Tailed Fox was indeed an endemic creature that was particularly affectionate toward hunters who showed it goodwill.
It seemed that as long as someone showed her goodwill, she would gradually let down her guard after spending some time together.
Not to mention that he had also saved her life and raised her.
Surely by now, this little fox had developed considerable trust in him.
The pair walked in tacit understanding toward the waterhole they frequented.
However, the water surface was unusually quiet today, with almost no bubbles from fish breathing to be seen.
Lore looked around and keenly caught the sight of a few orange-and-white figures darting hurriedly into the bushes, while a peculiar, pungent odor lingered in the air.
It was Izuchi!
A type of small, gregarious Bird Wyvern.
Although they were not strong individually, they were quite troublesome when in packs, especially with their sharp foreclaws.
Fortunately, these creatures seemed to realize they had trespassed into the territory of a Zinogre, and after snatching a few fish, they quickly retreated.
Having been “patronized” by Lore for days, the fish resources in this waterhole had already decreased significantly.
Now that a portion had been snatched away by the Izuchi, it was even more stretched thin, like a useless scrap.
Seeing that it was too late to give chase, Lore had to abandon this spot and planned to try his luck elsewhere.
“Although Sashimifish tastes delicious, eating it every meal is indeed getting a bit tiring.
I might as well take this opportunity to find some other prey and change my palate.”
He comforted himself, then let out a soft growl to the little fox beside him, signaling her to follow, and turned toward another direction in the forest.
What Lore found amusing was that before he could even express his dissatisfaction with the fish thieves, the Jade-Faced Golden Nine-Tailed Fox beside him was already unhappy.
She bared her teeth and barked wildly in the direction the Izuchi had fled, her voice sharp but filled with anger.
Then, she raised her head and gave a long “hmph” like a little princess, before unwillingly trotting to keep up with Lore’s pace.
That puffed-up little look seemed to say: How dare you steal my fish!
It seemed she was quite bothered by the fact that Lore’s “fishpond” had been violated.
Lore was amused by her possessive and tsundere-like appearance, and couldn’t help but extend his front paw, gently rubbing the little fox’s fluffy head with his soft paw pads.
The little fox was stunned for a moment, then a comfortable, purring sound emanated from her throat, and she squinted her eyes.
The little bit of resentment she had just felt seemed to vanish instantly, and she even took the initiative to rub her head against Lore’s paw.
However, just as the wolf and the fox were enjoying this rare, heartwarming moment of interaction, a familiar, heavy, snorting panting sound, mixed with the sound of soil being trampled, came from behind a bush not far away.
It was this sound!
The Jade-Faced Golden Nine-Tailed Fox, who had just been immersed in the petting, was as if struck by an electric current.
Her fur stood on end instantly, her tail stiffened upright, her lively eyes were filled with extreme fear, and her small body even began to tremble slightly!
This sound clearly stirred up a deeply unpleasant trauma for her.
Lore immediately became alert.
He shielded the little fox behind him, cast his sharp gaze toward the direction of the sound, and at the same time, twitched his nose vigorously to capture scent information in the air.
A strong, pungent odor peculiar to a Bullfango rushed toward him, but…
within this familiar stench, there seemed to be mixed in an even more powerful, more violent, and strange aura!
“No, this isn’t right,” Lore felt a chill in his heart, “This is not an ordinary Bullfango!”
The moment he made this judgment, the Jade-Faced Golden Nine-Tailed Fox behind him let out an extremely fearful, sobbing whimper.
Her entire body almost curled into a ball, hiding tightly between Lore’s hind legs, not even daring to look in that direction.
Lore focused his gaze forward and saw the dense bushes in the distance shaking violently.
Immediately after, a massive giant, a full circle larger than an ordinary Bullfango, with tusks like curved bone blades and a body covered in thick mud armor, walked slowly out from the shadows of the forest with heavy, oppressive steps.
Its small, scarlet eyes flashed with a violent light, and its nostrils puffed out white steam mixed with mud spots, clearly locking onto Lore and the shivering little fox behind him.
“That is…?!” Lore’s heart sank, and fighting spirit like cold light erupted in his eyes!