Not coming out of corridor 1.
A fox just wiggling its butt and continuously wagging its tail.
What is it doing?
I had doubts, but I didn’t approach recklessly.
That could be a trap to lure me in.
The fox ignored them.
It focused on grilling Pig King’s meat without giving it a glance.
Of course, it was peeking now and then.
You never know when it might attack.
Gotta stay on guard.
As I pretended not to care,
［Kkyuu?］
The fox, startled, slowly emerged from corridor 1.
Fully revealing itself, it kept wagging its tail.
‘For now, let’s keep ignoring it.’
As I maintained my indifference, the fox let out a gloomy sound and began to approach me slowly.
［Kkyuu…］
Swaying side to side.
The fox wasn’t walking straight while looking ahead; it was backing up, showcasing its rear and wagging its tail.
【Mysticism】─ 🤔
That’s when it happened.
The Centauress, who had been glancing at the fox disdainfully, shouted nervously.
［You shameless…! Hey you! The explorer is my mating partner! Don’t even think about it!］
［Explorer! We need to chase that lewd fox away right now… huh?］
The Centauress paused mid-sentence, narrowing her eyes at the fox.
［…Could it be the Melody Fox?］
“Do you know that monster?”
［Um, I think it’s the Melody Fox. Rarely seen, but it looks just like what I heard from my brother.］
“Is it a dangerous monster?”
The nerfed danger level is B-Class.
The actual danger level is S-Class, which I already confirmed.
I asked if it’s dangerous to know if it’s a vicious monster.
The Centauress understood my intent and responded.
［I’ve heard it’s supposed to be an extremely gentle monster, but since it’s my first time seeing it, I’m not sure. I heard my mother had a brief encounter with one before I was born.］
“Ah. One of the monsters your mother tamed?”
［Not quite. It’s a female, so I don’t think she was able to tame it…or that’s what I heard.］
“So, if she didn’t tame it, it means it’s a monster friendly to other creatures, like a Medical Mushroom.”
［Yes, that’s likely.］
I still hadn’t dropped my guard.
That Melody Fox could be an exceptional case, different from the Melody Fox that was with the Centauress’s mother or the one Min Hyeong-seok used.
Since it looked remarkably similar, it must indeed be a monster called “Melody Fox.”
The Centauress scratched her head and called out to me.
［Explorer.］
“Why?”
［Earlier, I said we should chase that fox away… but I think I need to retract that statement. The Melody Fox must be tamed without exception.］
“Must be tamed?”
［Yes. That fox’s ability will surely help us.］
The Centauress paused her meal preparations and began to explain the Melody Fox’s abilities.
*
Singing in a beautiful tone.
This was the ability of the Melody Fox that the Centauress talked about.
At first, I thought, what help could that be?
But after hearing more details about its ability, my thoughts changed.
‘…This is a cheating ability!’
The Melody Fox possessed an unbelievable, almost suspected, cheaty-level ability.
Its ability was to give buffs.
Not temporary buffs but a power that permanently amplifies the strength of the target that hears the song.
Furthermore, it could also assist the evolution of the creatures that heard its song and sometimes even facilitate species transformation to reflect the desired form of the target.
To summarize.
It was an ability that permanently increases the power of monsters while promoting species transformation and natural evolution.
‘I’ve seen monsters that help with evolution before, but this one is on another level.’
From what I heard, the Melody Fox assists even S-Class monsters in their evolution.
Facilitating the evolution of monsters at the Demon Lord or Demon King level was indeed a game-breaking cheating ability.
I’d never heard of permanent stat boosts or species transformations.
‘It wouldn’t work on SS-Class monsters. Since Melody Fox is S-Class, if it evolves into SS-Class, there might be a possibility.’
Could I evolve too?
If that were possible, would I become a different being rather than a human?
I had many questions, but I decided to think about it later and hurried to tame it first.
It shouldn’t be difficult.
That fox is currently watching us, eyeing for food.
Wagging its tail was probably a way of asking for food.
［Kkyuu…］
Gurgle…
A soft sound echoed from the Melody Fox’s stomach.
The melody from its tummy made it sound sweet due to hunger.
I carefully approached it with some Pig King meat.
“Hey, fox.”
［Kkyuu?］
And then I placed the meat on the ground.
“Aren’t you hungry? Here, eat this.”
［Kkyu, Kkyuu!］
Then the fox raised its tails stiffly and rushed over.
For a moment, it had its eyes wide open.
Of course, it closed them again soon after.
［Kkyuhup, Kkyu munch munch!］
【Mysticism】─ 🤔
It was clearly starving.
The Melody Fox devoured the meat greedily.
I gazed at it happily, slowly placing my hand on the red spot on its tail.
*
Just like when I tamed the Medical Mushroom.
The color change in the Melody Fox progressed rapidly.
When all the other exploration teams returned to the hideout, the taming was complete.
■Melody Fox
─Actual Danger Level: S-Class.
─Current (Nerfed) Danger Level: B-Class.
─Ability: Singing.
I finished the Monster Index work and looked at the Melody Fox.
It lay on the ground with a happy expression.
The Centauress, who was chatting with me, glanced at the Melody Fox and asked.
［Are you saying the one who tamed the Melody Fox was its master?］
“I don’t know if it’s the same individual, but I did have one just like it.”
［Hmm. Even if that person had tamed a Melody Fox, they probably didn’t know its true value. I’ve heard that the Melody Fox’s ability only works on friendly counterparts.］
The Centauress said that only the one the Melody Fox genuinely cares about would benefit from its ability.
An artificial relationship forced by subjugation wouldn’t help the master.
“Are the supported ones different?”
［Of course. A relationship formed through taming is not artificial. Taming is more similar to manipulating the flow of time rather than brainwashing, you see.］
“Eh? Similar to manipulating the flow of time? What do you mean by that?”
［With time spent together, bonds, trust, and intimacy naturally accumulate, right? Taming shortens that time drastically. Even with entities that have animosity, over time together, they gradually open their hearts, eventually getting tamed. However, one can’t be tamed if they never accumulate likeability, no matter how long they’re together.］
After listening to the Centauress’s explanation,
I perfectly understood why it takes longer to tame monsters with heavy animosity.
“So, unless they are sworn enemies, you can tame anyone eventually. Of course, excluding monsters that have already been tamed.”
［That’s right.］
“So the target’s strength also affects the taming time, right?”
［Yes. That’s correct. Probably.］
“Thanks for the explanation. But I wish you had told me this sooner.”
［I apologize. I forgot to bring it up when we first met the explorer. I just remembered…］
In any case, the conclusion was.
The more friendly the Melody Fox is towards someone,
In simpler terms, the higher the trust level with that individual, the more help it can provide through its abilities.
“I’m looking forward to the future. I never dreamed I’d be able to evolve the monsters I’ve tamed without tickets until now.”
Suddenly, this fortune has knocked on my door.
The Melody Fox lying there is like an unexpected windfall.
［Well, to do that, you’ll need to show the Melody Fox that you’re worth it. Not just you, but us as well.］
“That’s right. You all need to build trust with the Melody Fox to benefit truly.”
［I don’t particularly like wagging my tail at the explorer, but I’ll do my best.］
The Centauress said that and approached the resting Melody Fox.
［Hey.］
Tap.
The Centauress lightly kicked the Melody Fox with her foot.
The Melody Fox still closed its eyes and replied.
［Kkyuu?］
［I don’t like you. But I’ll be friendly with you. Got it?］
［Kkyuu.］
Swish.
The Melody Fox turned its head away.
Seems like it doesn’t want to deal with her.
These two don’t seem to be getting along well.
*
Two days later, on the 27th day in the labyrinth.
The Melody Fox has been maintaining a friendly relationship with the monsters I tamed.
Friends of friends are also friends.
However, compared to other monsters, it was only relatively friendly.
None of the monsters had built trust strong enough to be influenced by the Melody Fox’s song.
Ah. At least there was one that was quickly building trust.
［Kkyuu. Kkyuu?］
［Shii! Shikkyuu!］
The Dog Spider.
It seemed that the two had a surprisingly good connection.
On the first day, the Dog Spider unilaterally liked the Melody Fox, but after consistently showing affection, the Melody Fox seemed to have opened its heart just a bit.
Lately, the Dog Spider has been mimicking the Melody Fox’s cries.
［Shikkyuu! Shikkyuu!］
Also, it seemed the Melody Fox’s habit of walking around with its eyes closed had influenced the Dog Spider, as it occasionally followed suit.
Then, suddenly,
Bong!
［Shikkyuu!］
It kept bumping into rocks.
【Mysticism】─ 🤐
Thus, the Dog Spider always stuck close to the Melody Fox except during exploration time.
When evening came after all explorations finished today,
［Kkyuu~ Kkyuuuu~］
The Melody Fox’s song echoed through the hideout as usual.
The Dog Spider was watching it intently, fully immersed in the melody and appreciating it.
［Kkyuu~ Kkyuu~］
［Shikkyuu…］
［Kkyuu~ Kkyuuuu♪］
［Shiiii…］
Then, suddenly,
Golden threads began to erupt from the Dog Spider’s entire body.
The unending threads quickly wrapped around the Dog Spider, transforming it into a giant golden cocoon.
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