NOVEL SIMPLE Ch-24-Departure (Again)
Waking up, I found myself in an unknown room, lying on a round bed made of a dark red silk-like fabric with red curtains surrounding it. The curtains themselves appeared to be for decorative purposes only as they were too thin for anything and let far too much light flow through them. They were also drawn to the side so I could easily see the rest of the room.
On the left wall, a small section protruded out, showing it to be either a closet or bathroom; given that on the outside wall of it, there was a rack with multiple robes and dresses hanging off it, I assumed it to be the latter.
The rest of the room contained many dressers and tables that all had some stuff resting on top of them. Only one exception to that could be found, and that was the mat on the floor with intricate designs showing various scenes of nature on it and a blank circle in the center.
The center of the circle showed some wear and tear from being used, while the rest of it showed nothing of the sort. Looking over the entire room once more, I saw that all the walls had windows to the outside, showing that this building was only used for one single purpose.
With my analysis done, I got up and felt some fabric slide off me. Looking at it, I found that it was a blanket made out of the same fabric as the bed, only in a lighter shade of red.
Climbing off the bed, I try to think about what happened that led me to this situation.
Sadly, It did not take me long to remember that I was stuck in an embarrassing situation and even fell asleep.
Wanting to get a little revenge, I look around the room before my eyes fall to the rug again.
Like a light bulb going off, I get an idea. The moment that happened, I got a notification from the system about a quest, and after checking its details, I smiled and got to work with the materials provided by the system.
Half an hour later, I exited the building to find myself in the same courtyard as yesterday.
The brush was even left on the bench where the incident happened.
Feeling my cheeks start to get red, I briskly walk past the bench while knocking the brush off of it with my tail and coming up to the door for the main building in the middle of this small complex.
Stopping at the door, I press my ear against it to see what I can hear when someone yells on the other side, causing me to jump at how loud it is.
It turns out that having enhanced hearing means you do not have to press your ear against a door to hear what is being said inside.
It also seems that I was not being as sneaky as I wanted, as the door swings open and Raina's voice comes from inside.
"Yes, and the person you were supposed to be escorting is now awake as well, so you can leave right now if you wish."
Hearing her words, I assume that the Elder finally found out that I was here and came back. Before entering the room, however, I tasked the crafting panel to repack the parachute that I used before on my way here.
With that, I entered the room to find that the only ones there were Lou Xia and Raina.
My confusion must have been apparent on my faces as both of them started laughing. Raina then turned to Lou Xia and said, "Didn't I tell you that she did something cute?"
This only left me more confused as I then heard Lou Xia respond, "I did not know a kitsune's tail did that."
Her words finally gave me a clue as I checked what my body was doing, and apparently, my tail formed into the same question mark as yesterday when I was confused, making them laugh at how cute I was.
That did not last long, though, as Raina stood up and walked over to me.
I went to dodge out of the way as I was still angry at her for yesterday, but she seemed to be at my side instantly and was already rubbing my head between my ears. Unconsciously, my ears flattened out, and a purr rumbled from my chest.
This sensation was far too nice and was doing something to my head that I did not like. Even more so when I had the random thought that I wanted Mom to do this even more.
She was not even my mother! Yet, for some reason or another, I had the random thought that she was Mom!
I did not like the implications of what that was implying.
Then, before I could dwell on that anymore, she said, "It will be a while before I can see you again, but you should really start heading to the Sect by now."
Lou Xia got up at this point and bowed her head toward Raina, saying, "Thank you for your hospitality, ma'am, but as you said, we should be off."
I wanted to say something in retaliation, but before I could, Raina spoke up once more, saying, "You are right, and I would not want to delay you anymore. By the way, last night, I think your ride also came into the front courtyard, so you only need to head out that door to leave."
She then pointed to the door in the middle of the room on the far wall that I had already been dragged through once before.
Seeing my chance at escape, I abandoned my previous thoughts and ran through the door before it could fully open. This was the fastest I have ever run in my life, and the moment I made it into the courtyard, I jumped and used the pillar of the building to jump even higher.
Looking at where I was going to land, I could only see a flash of feathers as I hit the back of something.
Getting up, I found myself on the back of the eagle we were riding yesterday, and next to me were the unconscious forms of the Elder and Jiahao.
Before I could show any concern, however, a voice I was all too familiar with spoke up. "They seem to be suffering the after-effects of entering somewhere they weren't supposed to. The reason you aren't in the same condition is because it seems to target only those with innate yang energy." Raina explained.
I was unsure whether she was telling the truth, but there was no way for me to check as I was not an expert on what ails cultivators may face.
Accepting that explanation, for now, I waited for my only conscious traveling companion to climb aboard so we could set off for the Sect.
After seeing me on top of the eagle, Raina sighed before turning to Lou Xia and saying something that I could not hear for some reason.
Soon, Lou Xia jumped up and landed on the back of the eagle as well.
When she was on board, the eagle launched itself into the air, opening its wings wide and flapping hard.
In only a few seconds, we were hundreds of feet in the air, heading back toward the direction we were initially heading the other day.
For some reason, I felt like I was leaving something important behind, but I could not figure out what it was. I did remember, though, that I forgot to put on my repacked parachute, so I pulled it out and equipped the backpack.
When I did this, Lou Xia looked at me strangely, so I pointed at the village behind us, and her eyes lit up with understanding.
After that, we both looked at the Elder lying unconscious beside us.
It was at this point that a quest completion notice filled my vision and caused me to smile. I opened up the quest log to see the whole quest once more.
[Quest: Mainline 3: Revenge of the Fox]
{The fox is the one who messes with others and not the one to be messed with. Get revenge on the one who messed with you.}
{Task 1: Mess with the cultivation array mat.}
{Task 2: Have the mat be used while Raina is unaware of the changes.}
{Reward: [???] will be pleased. Additional help with creating the first three levels of your cultivation technique.} (Unclaimed (Claiming will be automatic with the creation of each respective level of your technique until the rewards run out.))
[[???] is pleased with what you have done and seeks to give you a reward; however, a shrine must be built first.]
With that, I now know what unique tech I want to ask for.
(Raina POV)
When my cute little daughter left, I stood there, starting in the direction she left in for a bit.
I did not want to part with her for even a moment, as I knew the imprinting needed more time to grow and that I needed to be there when my little plan kicked off. But nothing is as we want it to be, so I return to my room at the back of the house.
When I enter, I find the blanket that I placed over her lying haphazardly on the bed.
Walking over, I pick it up and fold it before placing it in my spatial storage. I hope that this girl is not always this messy.
Moving over to the center of the room, I sat down and activated the cultivation array mat drawing, beginning a long and trying session. Surprisingly, the world's laws and even Qi seem to respond far better today than they ever have.
Thinking that all this has to do with the kitsune's past stay in this room, I do not notice the now glowing addition to the mat.
A small, little, nine-tailed kitsune made of a special type of fox fur that is going to have massive consequences for me in the near future.