Chapter 22: Chapter 22: The one above all others

“That was better than the rest.”

I glanced over my left shoulder, finding the voice source, Rudolf, one of the butlers who had been practicing swordsmanship among the rest.

“Soft blow skill apparently.” A snort left his mouth, finding amusement in my words and perhaps something more.

“It has been a long time ever since I, too, received such a skill. Five measly strikes for the effort I had put back then.”

“Is there a way to check the number of times we can use them?”

“Yes, of course. The index should show the skill list section. But first, use it four more times to make sure such information is unlocked.”

I turned his advice into action, finding myself exhausting my arms, feeling them growing painful by the fourth time, slightly numb by the fifth, and then I called upon the screen.

Skill list:
Sword Inspection [3/3]
Soft Blow [0/5]

“Ah! I can see it now!”

“I’m glad,” he rose his arms in the air, yawning and then stretching his neck to the sides, causing the joints to make an indistinct sound.

‘Since I had never attempted to overuse a skill, this information hadn’t appeared. How interesting.’

“Keep in mind that you can only use it again the next day if you end up exhausting its limit.”

“Is that so?” I found it to be curious, for these things to have a reset of sorts. Particularly interested as to the reason there was such a cooldown. Yet, it was likely that he, too, didn’t know of it. The divine and their mysterious ways partook my thoughts to one dimension too far, not willing to catch up to them.

“Even then, don’t be afraid of using them.”

“Oh?”

“If anything, learn with them.”

I looked around, finding the butlers practicing swordsmanship, Astal’s one.

“It makes me wonder just how many arts does the master has.”

“Perhaps not as many as you’d think.”

“Really? How so?” I looked at him, eyes hinting with a brilliance of curiosity, too much to hold inside of me.

 “During the fight with the wolf kin, the master only used two arts. He’s so great with the sword that he doesn’t rely on this world’s abilities unless the situation forces him to act to that extent.”

I averted my gaze, lowering it to the greenery beneath, “they outnumbered him after all.”

“Indeed. Had it been one on one, he would have bested their leader without the arts.”

“Is he the strongest in the world?”

“That would depend, but in what comes to swordsmanship, he’s the second best.”

“Really? Who’s the number one then?” I focused my eyes filled with curiosity as the expectation within me had assumed Astal was number one.

“That would be the master’s father,” he grinned, but it didn’t last long as his lips twirled, showing a hint of fear.

I recollected all the days living in this mansion, not remembering any old man, other than Afonso, the leader of the butlers.

“I see some confusion planted in your face,” a chuckle escaped his lips, pointing a finger at the dojo.

“Ah! You mean... he’s inside that place?”

“Yes,” he asserted it with a nod, keeping his gaze steady, towards one of the greatest mysteries I found since coming to this world, the trial of kings.

“What’s he doing inside?”

“He used to go there to aim for a higher peak. Nowadays, just a good yet dangerous way to keep his senses sharp.”

I turned my gaze, imagining the fantastic gates inside the small building, understanding that they didn’t need to be protected, for only fools would enter a place with monumental risk. A place where death crawled from every corner, and the creatures that lived in it, the stronger they became, the deeper the challenger went. A terrific battlefield without an escape route, other than a chance to escape every ten floors.

“Has anyone ever fully cleared it?” I returned my gaze, matching his eyes, which found mine briefly.

“Not that I know.”

‘So not even the greatest swordsmanship could finish it...’ I wondered about its difficulty, the troubles, and traps, the rewards if there were any, and that clearing the first ten floors was all one from the royal family needed to become king. 

“Only ten floors...”

“And being human,” he added to my distracted self, keeping myself in check.

“And being human,” I repeated, understanding his words, and in a way giving him some peace of mind that I would not attempt it. I had promised Sofia that, therefore, there was no reason to go against her wish.

Even then, I couldn’t help myself but desire to explore this world. The more I got to learn about it, the more freedom and knowledge I’d receive.

I returned to the mansion, sneaking my way into the kitchen, making the least noise possible, and avoiding bothering anyone else.

Once my hand reached the handle and opened it, a woman greeted me, quickly, “hello miss.”

“Hi there,” my lips turned into a small smile.

“I’ve just finished making some soup. Would you care to try?”

“Of course!” I raised my voice in excitement, enticed by the sweet fragrance of the meal in the oven. Such a scent had my eyes taken for a ride, paving a path for them to follow through, all the way to its source.

“The little flame is gone.”

“Yes,” she stretched her arm to the table, grabbing a soup plate, one where the center had some depth to it. The pattern was delicate, with blue and pink petals throughout the ceramic border. Clearly something affordable to rich people, such as this family.

You are reading story The Fox Girl From The White Plains at novel35.com

I took the chance to recharge my energies through the flavor of the orange-looking liquid.

“What is this?”

“Mainly sweet potatoes, a new trend of the nobles, because of its peculiar taste.”

“It’s different, but...” another spoon of this mysterious liquid flew inside of me, warming up all the way to my stomach. “It is good.”

“Good, good. Seems like my cooking can indulge those of the beast folk,” a disgraceful giggle followed, finishing with a twisted smile.

However, I ignored her, causing it to vanish shortly after. I hadn’t yet lived long enough in this body, not met my kin to get upset with such commentary. Therefore, I focused my full attention on the meal, enjoying every piece.

One thing was badmouthing another was poisoning the food. And I knew from Sofia that such would lead to a death sentence. But if it happened inside this mansion, the punishment was something entirely distinct.

“I’m full,” I patted my belly on the outside, feeling my fingers less hurt. “Thank you for the meal...”

“Grace,” she added briefly, retrieving the used tableware with her.

I repeated the name after her, focusing on the cold eyes. And then, believing this futile argument was over, her words approached my fluffy ears, causing them to twinkle.

“How does a beast get the master’s favor?” Her eyes lowered to my bottom, finding my tail swaying. “I see. It must’ve been with the body.”

I gritted my teeth, leaving without uttering a word, closing the kitchen door with all the strength I had, which wasn’t much, as I was still quite tired.

‘What a despicable woman!’ I cursed her in my mind, unhappy about her words, but I knew there was nothing I could do about them. 

I was merely a guest in this mansion with no power to show or prove my worth. My position was below everyone else since they knew how to work or were useful in a certain way.

‘No way I would do what she does,’ I grinned briefly, knowing most of them were used by the men of this house willingly.

Though, it was true to some extent that I was up to no good with one of his daughters. However, that only happened after becoming a guest in this place.

I shook my head, ‘it doesn’t count.’

My cheeks became red, thinking about her, ‘It was out of love after all!’

Well, perhaps something more since I wasn’t like this in my past life. It certainly had something to do with how my body was now. 

The sensitive aspect was powerful, so feeling lust over someone was something I had yet to improve on.

I did a light nod before going upstairs. 

‘Everything will be alright,’ I convinced myself, understanding that the only thing I could do for now was to prove myself somehow. No matter how hard such a task could be.

Soon I reached our room. It was like it always was devoid of people during this time of the day. Not that there were many who actually dared to enter.

Twice a week, a maid would drop by to do the cleaning, leaving as soon as the chore was done.

Be it as it may, I was now aware of what it was like to work for something.

“My first ability,” I beamed a beatific smile, knowing that it was not true, but even then, it was the one I got through hard work.
Thus, it presented to be more valuable than the other one.

“Hehe...” now that I knew what both did, without a doubt it was far better and despite minor, it was quite the achievement.

“I did it!” I celebrated with a brief shout, cheerfully resembling the personality I once had. Not that I showed this side of mine to people often, but it existed.

My eyes glanced at the information in my index, realizing that the uses of my first skill were still many.

“Hum...” I muttered briefly, thinking about what I could use it for, and if there was anything beneficial for it.

And then I remembered about Keru, who had been picking on remnants of equipment when he found me.

‘If the inspection mentioned it was good... I could sell them!’ A wide smile surfaced on my expression.

‘I’m sorry ability, turns out you’re not useless!’ I clapped my hands in a praying motion, leaning my head slightly to them, apologizing.

I allowed myself to fall on the bed, resting. My body, completely out of energy, was grateful for this moment.

The time passed quickly, allowing Sofia to enter. She took a seat next to me and played with my cheek, poking it softly, noticing how exhausted I was.

“I heard you learned your first art,” she whispered happily, spreading her fingers, and passing them through my hair.

“A good effort,” her mellow gaze rested on me.

“But nowhere enough,” she declared, feeling melancholic about my powerlessness.

“It’ll be a matter of time till I’m married to some idiot.”

She patted me, knowing it could very well be the last time, if a noble achieved something significant.

“I lo-ve you,” she whispered remarkably low, as if afraid of someone eavesdropping on it.

“Can’t let you catch a cold now, can I?” Softly her delicate hands removed my shoes, then socks, giving way for my feet to breathe.

From her pocket, she removed a small box, turning the lid around till it came open. Inside there was a green creamy liquid.

Slowly, to not tickle me, her fingers passed through them from the ankle to the toes, carefully over the swollen areas.

Once she repeated it to both, she pulled the linens from the end of the bed, allowing their embrace to cover me.

“Sleep well Yuki,” sneakily without making much of a sound, she left, closing the door slowly.

You can find story with these keywords: The Fox Girl From The White Plains, Read The Fox Girl From The White Plains, The Fox Girl From The White Plains novel, The Fox Girl From The White Plains book, The Fox Girl From The White Plains story, The Fox Girl From The White Plains full, The Fox Girl From The White Plains Latest Chapter