“How come I never noticed you’re such a sly fox too, little fox?”
“It’s not being sly at all. It’s just a small revenge for keeping her real gender from me. She has to know that I have a little temper.”
“But little fox, your revenge feels so harmless, doesn’t it?”
“Because I don’t know how else to get back at her. After all, we are friends. Anything more would be inappropriate…”
Liuli felt helpless. Even though Yike had concealed her real gender for a long time, and even approached her with some hidden motives, she couldn’t deny that they had once been good friends. So a small revenge was enough.
“Hmph, little fox, as the Princess of Saint Laia, you could totally use your status privilege to get back at that bad kid named Yike.”
“From the way you say that, Serveyia, it sounds like you really dislike Yike.”
“I wouldn’t say dislike. Honestly, I have to thank her for her forbearance. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have met you so easily, little fox.”
“But the advice you’re giving me makes me think you actually want to do something to her…”
“Isn’t that because you want revenge, little fox? As your maid, it’s only natural for me to share your burdens.”
“That’s exactly why I find you a little scary, Serveyia…”
Was it her scheming? In any case, it truly frightened Liuli. But since Serveyia never used that scheming on her, it probably wasn’t a problem, right?
“I’m not scary at all. I’m utterly loyal to you, little fox. At most, I occasionally want to collect some compensation that I deserve from you.”
“And that’s not scary?”
“Of course not. That’s my passionate and profound love for you, little fox. Can’t you feel it?”
“I—”
Whether Liuli felt it or not, You, who was lying on the doorframe and watching everything clearly, might have felt it. Her eyes sparkled; she looked very excited.
“You! Didn’t I tell you to stay in your room?”
Even though Liuli and Serveyia hadn’t said anything too embarrassing, being overheard by You still made her feel awkward.
“But… hasn’t Master’s guest already left? Can’t I come out to get some fresh air?”
Seeing You’s expression as if she might have done something wrong, Liuli’s urge to scold her faded.
“Of course you can. I was too harsh. So, You, is there something you need?”
“Nothing much. I just wanted to see what Master was doing…”
“We weren’t doing anything. Are you hungry, You?”
“Not yet. I’ll go back to reading then…”
You left thoughtfully. Judging by her expression, Liuli felt she was probably thinking about something unexpected.
“Serveyia, do we need to lock the door?”
Nothing bad had happened today, but who could guarantee that next time something similar wouldn’t be seen by You?
“Little fox, are you really that afraid of being seen by You?”
“Don’t tell me you’re not afraid, Serveyia.”
“Of course I’m not afraid. It’s not me who’d be embarrassed. In this kind of situation, shouldn’t the one who’s more embarrassed be the one who should be afraid?”
“I don’t care. We’re locking the door from now on!”
At times like this, her words carried some weight. Unless Serveyia didn’t want to do anything to her, she’d have to obey.
“Fine, fine, locking the door. We’ll lock the door, okay.”
Serveyia’s tone sounded like she was soothing a child. To be honest, it made Liuli feel a little underestimated.
“So, little fox, shall we go to lunch?”
“It’s already time for lunch?”
“Whenever you want, little fox. We have plans this afternoon, so eating a bit earlier will give you more time to rest.”
“Then let’s go now…”
Liuli thought maybe she really needed some time to figure out how to face Yike.
…
During lunch, seeing Liuli lose her appetite, Serveyia became curious.
“You seem even more nervous than when you met Yiselinzhuo, little fox.”
“She’s my friend. We know each other inside and out. But now we’ve both changed so much. How could I not be nervous?”
“How close are you and Yike, exactly?”
“Um… how close is it when you’ve bathed together and scrubbed each other’s backs?”
“Wait, you bathed with that person?”
“Isn’t that normal? What’s so surprising about two men bathing together?”
“…No…”
“Exactly. She never told me her real gender, so I treated her like a sworn brother. If you’re really jealous, Serveyia, go after Yike. What’s the point of coming to me?”
“Good. Now I really do have a reason to get back at Yike.”
A subtle change appeared in Serveyia’s expression. Seeing that, Liuli could only silently pray for poor Yike, hoping she could endure.
After lunch, Liuli lay on the bed to rest while Serveyia sat beside her, scrolling through her phone.
“Serveyia, you’re not really plotting how to get back at Yike, are you?”
“Huh? No. Getting back at her wouldn’t take that much effort. It’s just something else.”
“Is that so?”
“You seem worried about Yike, little fox?”
“Not worried, exactly. I just think that since we’re friends, if I really scared her, I might lose her. I don’t want that to happen…”
Due to her personality, Liuli didn’t have many friends. Every one of them was precious.
That was why she desperately hoped to keep every friend by her side.
“I know my limits. You can rest assured, little fox.”
Since Serveyia said that, Liuli was willing to trust her.
But when afternoon came and Lien announced Yike’s arrival, Liuli’s heart inexplicably tightened. Was this a kind of homesickness?
“Do you need to change clothes, little fox?”
“No. There’s no need to dress up to see Yike. Casual is fine.”
Generally speaking, the closer the relationship, the less formal one is. Liuli considered herself and Yike to be close friends, so she figured that should apply.
“So you’ll keep these clothes on?”
“Yeah. This is fine.”
“Little fox, you really don’t need to be so nervous. You and Yike are friends. As you said, friends don’t have to worry about so much.”
“I know. But I’ve never been in this situation before. I don’t even know how to start the first sentence with Yike. Should I ask her how it felt to pretend to be a man?”
That would be too weird. Sure, there were jokes online about girls pretending to be femboys to scam money and feelings, but experiencing it firsthand felt surreal.
“You don’t have to talk about that. Just casually discuss your old daily life. Even though she’s ostensibly here to celebrate your birthday, who knows if she actually has something serious to discuss? Maybe your reunion will turn into a formal discussion of official business.”
“Better not.”
Just thinking about dealing with serious matters gave Liuli a headache. If she wasted a good afternoon on that, she’d rather rest a bit longer.
“Who knows? It’s not up to me what Yike wants to talk to you about. I’m just preparing you.”
Great. Serveyia’s words made Liuli even more nervous. Now she couldn’t help but wonder what Yike wanted from her. And whether Yike would laugh at her current appearance.
“Old Forest, we finally meet again!”
When Liuli walked into the reception room, a figure rushed over and threw herself into Liuli’s arms.
“Y-Yike! What are you doing?”
Liuli staggered from the impact. She looked closely and realized the person who had pounced was indeed Yike.
Yike’s appearance hadn’t changed; she still looked the same as she did in college.
The only differences were the fox ears on her head, the fluffy tail behind her, and the obviously visible feminine curves.
“Hehe, isn’t it just that I’m excited to see an old classmate? Old Forest, or should I call you… Her Highness Liuli?”
To be honest, Liuli had to admit that Serveyia’s cognitive transformation was incredibly successful.
The proof was that when Yike called her “Old Forest,” she spaced out for a moment, not even realizing whom she was referring to.
Yike only hugged her briefly before letting go, because the murderous intent in Serveyia’s gaze had almost become tangible.
Even though she wanted to stay close to Liuli, she had to weigh whether she could bear the consequences.
“Just call me Liuli. I’m more used to this name…”
“Alright. Liuli, that’s not fair. After becoming the princess of Saint Laia, you just forgot about me? Not even one phone call?”
“I think, Yike, you’re in no position to blame me. You kept your real gender from me all those years we were classmates. That’s not fair of you either.”