I didn’t bother reaching for my veil again.

At this point, what was the point?

My face had already been seen, my identity halfway exposed, and I was currently being supervised by a fox duke with attachment issues and two men who had already accepted their fate as background characters in my life.

So really, priorities.

I rolled my shoulders slightly, adjusting my grip on the carving tool. "...Alright," I murmured, more to myself than anyone else.

The room fell into a strange kind of silence.

I held the energy stone up, letting my fingers trace along its surface, feeling the flow beneath it.

I exhaled slowly and brought the carving tool down.

The first cut was always the most important.

Scrape.

Carve.

Turn.

Refine.

I worked without rushing, occasionally glancing up at Vesphyr, studying the way his fur layered, how his tails curved, the subtle sharpness in his gaze then back to the stone.

Again.

And again.

Time blurred.

Sykelion didn’t speak, Finnian didn’t dare peek inside, even Vesphyr was just watching.

I hummed quietly under my breath, a habit I didn’t even realize I had until the sound echoed faintly in the room, blending with the soft rhythm of carving.

Scrape.

Pause.

Adjust.

I’m almost done, I just need to add one final detail.

I leaned in slightly, narrowing my eyes as I carved the last lines with careful precision, then I etched my initials at the base.

"...Perfect," I exhaled softly, leaning back as I lifted the finished piece towards the light and smiled.

A nine-tailed fox sat elegantly on my hand, its form so refined it almost felt disrespectful to call it a "stone."

The longer you stare, the more it felt like it might blink if you weren’t paying attention.

Its body was carved from a deep, lustrous black like it was holding onto shadows instead of reflecting light.

From its back flowed nine tails, giving the illusion that they were moving, curling and layering in a way that made them feel alive, as though a single breath might set them swaying.

And the eyes...

They were more livelier and unsettling.

One eye shimmered a vivid green while the other was split in a rare, unnatural blend of blue and red, intertwined like opposing forces forced into harmony.

"...You’re welcome," I muttered to absolutely no one, because clearly I had outdone myself again.

I turned towards Vesphyr, who was still watching me.

"Alright," I said casually, walking over and placing the stone against him. "Let’s fix your whole... feral fox meltdown situation."

The moment the stone made contact, everything shifted. A blinding light covered the massive fox’s body and in the next second, it was replaced by a man.

A very tall, human, and—

I blinked.

Once.

Twice.

"...Why is he naked?"

My brain lagged.

My soul lagged.

Even my survival instincts paused to process the sheer unfairness of the situation.

I immediately turned around so fast I almost gave myself whiplash, my face heating up like I had just walked into the sun.

’Why didn’t that happen to me?!’ I thought aggressively to the universe, deeply offended by this double standard. ’Where were the disappearing clothes when I transformed?!’

"Maybe I should go outside first," I said quickly, already moving toward the door like a responsible, respectful, absolutely-not-panicking individual.

"Good idea, Miss," Sykelion said from behind me, his voice tight as he rushed toward the Duke, who was now clutching his head like his entire existence had just rebooted.

Yes.

Good.

They deal with that.

I deal with not getting arrested for staring.

The moment I stepped out and shut the door behind me, I exhaled like I had just survived something life-threatening.

Finnian was leaning casually against the wall. "Is it already done?" he asked.

I nodded quickly. "Y-Yeah."

"That fast?" His brows shot up. "It’s only been six hours. Most carvers would take days or weeks even to finish something like the Duke’s energy stone, and you just... wrapped it up in half a day?"

I waved him off like this was completely normal behavior. "Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m amazing. Possibly the best—actually, no, definitely the best—"

I paused mid-brag, narrowing my eyes.

"...Wait. I have a question."

He crossed his arms, amused. "Ask away."

I hesitated.

This was embarrassing. Very embarrassing. But also extremely important.

"Umm... you know... when you shift back to your human form..." I gestured vaguely, refusing to make eye contact. "We all have clothes in our body, right?"

"Yeah?"

"Then why is the Duke..." I cleared my throat, face heating up again, "...naked when he shifted back?"

Finnian blinked.

Then blinked again.

"Oh."

His expression shifted into something far too entertained for my liking.

"That’s because of our OmniSync," he explained, way too casually. "It syncs with our body and generates basic clothing when we transform back. Just enough to cover... you know."

I did not want to know.

"But," he continued, shrugging, "if it’s damaged or destroyed during transformation... well."

"...Well?" I prompted cautiously.

"Well," he smirked, "you get the full experience."

I froze. "...I see."

There was a very heavy pause.

"Is that why your face is red?" Finnian asked, leaning in slightly like a detective who had just found the missing clue. "Did you see the Duke naked?"

"N-No!" I shot back immediately, turning away so fast I almost spun in place.

"So how is it?" he continued, clearly not done tormenting me.

"About what?" I said defensively.

"The Duke’s body stats~"

My face went from warm... to fully cooked.

"I did not see a thing!" I repeated, a little too loudly, which—judging by Finnian’s expression—only made me sound ten times more guilty.

He didn’t even try to hide his grin.

"Oh? Not even a glimpse?" he asked, leaning in slightly like this was the most interesting interrogation of his life.

"I only saw his back!" I snapped, turning further away like that would somehow erase the memory from existence.

"Mm-hm," he hummed, clearly not believing a single word. "So you’re saying you didn’t accidentally notice anything else while heroically fleeing the scene?"

"I was not fleeing!" I shot back. "I was being respectful!"

"Respectful," he repeated, nodding slowly. "Right. Very noble of you."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Do you want me to go back inside and tell him you’ve been discussing his... body stats outside the door?"

Finnian froze for exactly one second then straightened. "...You know what? I respect your professionalism, Miss Crimson."

"Good," I said, crossing my arms, finally regaining a fraction of my dignity.

A beat of silence passed.

"...Still," he added casually, completely ruining it, "for academic purposes—"

"Stop."

"—you didn’t happen to notice—"

"I said stop."

"—anything below—"

"I WILL THROW AN ENERGY STONE AT YOUR FACE."

He immediately raised both hands in surrender, laughing.

"Alright, alright! I’ll stop," he said, though his grin said he absolutely would not forget this moment for the rest of his life.

I huffed, looking away again.

"...This place is insane," I muttered under my breath.

I was about to make my graceful exit—by graceful, I mean fast enough to avoid further emotional damage—when the door suddenly opened.

The first one I saw was the Duke himself, hair slightly messy, wearing a half-opened robe.

Which, for some reason, was doing a very poor job at being a robe and a very excellent job at exposing his very not-appropriate-for-my-mental-stability chiseled abs.

My brain short-circuited as my eyes, being traitorous little things, immediately drifted down slowly.

’Just a quick glance— ’

My face reddened once more as I snapped my gaze upward so fast I nearly sprained something and locked onto his eyes.

What was I thinking?!

Nothing happened.

Nothing at all.

"You did something punishable to the crime," Sykelion suddenly cut in, stepping between us like an overdramatic courtroom judge who had just been waiting his entire life for this moment.

My soul left my body. "...W-What?" I stammered.

Wait.

What crime?

Calling him by his name?

Treating him like an oversized emotional support fox?

Existing in his general vicinity?

Honestly, if anyone should be on trial here, it wasn’t me.

"What’s your name?" Sykelion demanded, stepping closer.

"...Crimson," I answered automatically.

His eyes narrowed.

"Your real name," he said, voice dropping just enough to make it sound like a threat. "Tell me now or this will be added to your list of crimes."

I froze.

’List of crimes?! Was I actually about to get arrested for lying about my name?’

"...B-Blanca. Blanca Frostine," I muttered, mentally preparing myself for prison life.

"Well, Miss Blanca," he said smoothly, like he wasn’t about to ruin my entire life, "for the crime of seeing the Duke naked..."

I froze.

"...you must marry him in order to preserve his dignity."

My brain shut down, restarted, then shut down again for good measure.

...

...

"...What?"

I stared at him, trying to figure out if this was a joke, a breakdown, or a new legal system I wasn’t informed about.

"He’s absolutely right, Miss Blanca!" Finnian chimed in from the side like an enthusiastic supporter of chaos. "You’re the first woman who has seen our Duke naked!"

I looked between the two of them.

Why did this feel like I was being blamed for something I did not sign up for?

I was the one who got shoved into a room with a feral fox!

I was the victim here!

Why did it sound like I had committed a crime of... indecent observation?!

Before I could respond or throw something, Vesphyr let out a long sigh—the kind of sigh that said I am surrounded by idiots—and shoved both Sykelion and Finnian back inside the room like they were misbehaving children.

"I apologize for their behavior," Vesphyr said, his voice calmer now, completely different from the fox that had been licking my face earlier.

I blinked.

"And," he continued, running a hand through his hair, the robe somehow still failing its job. "For what happened earlier. My aide explained everything while I was in Hysteria... including how you were pushed inside with me."

I crossed my arms. "Good. Because I would have filed a complaint."

He almost smiled. "What happened while you were with me inside earlier?" he asked.

The flashbacks hit instantly.

The licking.

The growling.

The veil theft.

The emotional manipulation via puppy behavior.

I forced a polite smile. "...It’s best if you don’t know."