Though unwanted, tomorrow still came. As the sun slowly climbed higher into the sky, Kai stepped out of his house with high spirits and a wide grin on his face.
"How are you all doing? Are you happy!?"
Kai asked, though it was unclear who he was speaking to. In front of him stretched nothing but the farmland he had tended since the very first day he arrived in this village. There wasn't a single sign of life anywhere nearby.
"Kyuu?"
Well, almost none. A small fox now stood near Kai's feet, tilting its head in confusion. It clearly had no idea what was going on inside the head of the person who was supposed to be taking care of it.
"Oh… I forgot creatures like you even existed in this world."
Kai said it without the slightest hint of guilt. His expression genuinely showed that he had completely forgotten about the little fox until it made a sound.
"Kyuuu!!!"
The fox looked furious at its owner's behavior. How could he possibly forget the existence of a rare and legendary creature like it?
"Kyu! Kyu! Kyu!"
Kai crouched down so he could touch the head of the fox named Kyuubi, gently stroking it in an attempt to stop the noisy complaints. Although Kyuubi still seemed dissatisfied with how its owner treated it, the little fox eventually stopped whining and instead rubbed its head against Kai's hand.
"To be honest, I really don't understand why I'm supposed to keep you around. Does a tiny creature like you even have any use?"
The comment that came out of Kai's mouth made veins bulge on Kyuubi's forehead.
"Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu! Kyu!"
Kyuubi looked even angrier now, its cries becoming far louder and more obnoxious than before.
Kai immediately covered both his ears and backed away when the creature suddenly began trying to attack him with its tiny claws.
"OI! Is that how you treat the person taking care of you!?" Kai shouted while dodging Kyuubi's attacks.
Kyuubi looked even more irritated after hearing that. It didn't feel like Kai had taken care of it at all. Maybe it was because it had only become his pet yesterday, but even so, the little fox couldn't sense even the slightest intention from the man to actually care for it. Honestly, it didn't even understand why it had followed him in the first place.
"Kai, can you stop fooling around already?"
Appearing out of nowhere, the Fairy Goddess suddenly scolded Kai. She looked annoyed, standing with both hands on her hips as she openly expressed her displeasure toward his behavior.
"Does it seriously look like I'm fooling around to you!?"
Kai asked while still dodging Kyuubi's attacks. His expression was beginning to grow irritated as the little creature showed no signs of stopping.
"Yes, obviously!"
The Fairy Goddess answered without the slightest hesitation. No matter how anyone looked at it, Kai really did seem like he was just messing around.
"I'm trying to avoid this thing's attacks, and you think I'm playing around!? You've got to be kidding me!"
Kai looked genuinely angry after hearing the Fairy Goddess's response. A red vein bulged on his forehead as he clenched his fists tightly, the veins on his arms swelling as though he were ready to punch her.
But before Kai could throw his fist, Kyuubi immediately seized the opening the moment Kai's attention shifted toward the Fairy Goddess. The little fox suddenly leapt at him and repeatedly clawed at his face.
Kai couldn't avoid Kyuubi's attack at all. The creature had appeared right in front of him so suddenly that it completely caught him off guard. The force of the attack caused him to fall to the ground.
"Hey, you damn creature! Stop! Ouch! That hurts! Hey, I said stop that!"
Kai shouted while covering his face with both hands as Kyuubi continued scratching him relentlessly. He looked completely helpless against the tiny beast.
"Ah, Kyuubi! Please stop! You can't hurt him like that!"
The Fairy Goddess quickly stepped in to help Kai, lifting Kyuubi into her arms and trying to calm the little creature down. Even though the wounds on Kai's body healed quickly in this world, he could still feel pain. And while Kai could be irritating and often did strange things, she still didn't want to see him suffer.
"Good grief! What the hell is wrong with that thing!? Attacking its own master like that… seriously annoying!"
Kai said while holding his injuries, shooting a murderous glare toward the little fox now resting in the Fairy Goddess's arms.
Upon receiving Kai's murderous glare, Kyuubi immediately returned one just as deadly. Sparks practically seemed to crackle between the two of them.
"He attacked you because you ignored him and treated him badly! If you take proper care of him, he'll grow into a powerful creature capable of helping you with many things."
The Fairy Goddess explained while gently stroking Kyuubi's head, trying to calm the fox down and stop it from glaring daggers at Kai.
Kai had to admit that he really had forgotten about the creature's existence until it suddenly appeared near his feet. But was this truly his fault? The creature had never helped him with anything. All it ever did was ask him for food.
Well, maybe that was because it had only started living with him yesterday and simply hadn't had the chance to prove its usefulness yet. Perhaps he should at least give the fox an opportunity to show what it could do before deciding whether it was useful or not.
"So what exactly can this little thing do? It's supposed to be a legendary creature, right?"
Kai asked while pointing at Kyuubi in the Fairy Goddess's arms. Kyuubi clearly looked displeased at being pointed at, but it didn't make a sound and simply ignored him.
"You already saw its abilities, didn't you? This little one is incredibly strong!"
The Fairy Goddess answered with a bright smile on her face. She seemed to think Kai would be pleased with that answer, but unfortunately, he didn't look happy about it in the slightest.
"Huh!? So what if it's strong? It can't help me farm just by being strong, can it?"
Kai replied irritably before looking at Kyuubi with a condescending gaze.
"Just so you know… the only reason I didn't fight back was because I didn't want to hurt a helpless little creature like that… If I wanted to, I could kick it hard enough to make it unable to walk again… I just don't want people calling me an animal abuser."
Kyuubi immediately looked furious again after hearing Kai's comment. The little fox tried to lunge at him once more, but the Fairy Goddess quickly tightened her hold around Kyuubi to stop it from attacking Kai.
"Kai, could you please stop provoking him!?"
The Fairy Goddess said, clearly growing irritated with Kai's careless remarks.
"Yeah, yeah… I get it. I'm the bad guy here!"
Not wanting to get scratched by Kyuubi again, Kai turned his face away and apologized in an awkward manner, clearly embarrassed. He felt a little guilty seeing the Fairy Goddess struggle to restrain Kyuubi from going on another rampage. Besides, he didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble, so perhaps he really needed to watch what he said.
"So, what's the answer to my question?"
The Fairy Goddess looked confused for a moment after hearing Kai's question before finally remembering what he had asked earlier.
"Because Kyuubi is a powerful creature, he can help protect your fields from animals or other living beings that might try to damage them."
Kai fell silent for a moment, sensing that something about her answer felt slightly strange.
"So you're saying there are actually creatures in this world that would try to ruin my fields?"
"Yes, of course… Didn't things like that happen in your original world too?"
The Fairy Goddess was right. There were countless insects that attacked farmers' crops and reduced the quality of their harvests.
"You mentioned other living beings just now… does that mean there are creatures besides animals that might damage my fields?"
"You already know dwarves exist in this world, right? Sometimes they like to fool around and mess with the village's crops or livestock."
"Isn't keeping an eye on them supposed to be your job?"
"I'm sorry!"
The Fairy Goddess immediately lowered her head and apologized to Kai, looking genuinely guilty.
It would definitely be annoying if his fields were toyed with by tiny creatures he hadn't even met yet, but that didn't mean it was the Fairy Goddess's fault. Kai decided to let the matter go and forgive her. After all, nothing bad had actually happened to his fields yet, so there was no reason for her to apologize in the first place.
"Yeah, I understand… You don't need to apologize."
Kai said with a sigh before turning his gaze toward his farmland. Because of all the commotion that morning, he had completely forgotten to tend to his crops.
Walking toward the field, Kai pulled out his watering tool from the small pouch at his waist, intending to begin his usual morning work. Although there were still many questions he wanted to ask about the little fox, he decided to postpone them for now and focus on his job instead.